Measuring the Hidden Heat

Measuring the Hidden Heat: Linking Design, Health, and Community in Addis Ababa

Vulnerable communities in fast-growing African cities face a warming climate without the infrastructure, such as air conditioning, that wealthier regions rely on for relief. These cities are also data-poor, often lacking the building and environmental data needed to guide better design decisions. This project develops a research-informed approach to bioclimatic building guidelines for these communities, combining local data-sourcing methods with community and stakeholder engagement.

Addis Ababa has served as the testbed for this work, chosen for the partnerships already in place there. Two research threads have grown out of this:

1. A framework connecting city heat action plans to building and material guidance
2. A study measuring indoor heat in residential building typologies and its link to health outcomes

This project seeks to extend this fieldwork-based approach to other fast-urbanizing, warming cities across Africa, building the kind of grounded collaboration already underway in Addis Ababa. Early connections are forming in Dar es Salaam, Accra, and Kigali as a first step in that direction.