Seven EU-funded LIFE projects set out measures to help cities cope with extreme heat and flooding at the 2026 European Urban Resilience Forum in Guimarães, Portugal.
The forum took place from 17 to 19 June as a severe heatwave began affecting Western Europe, with about 100 million people facing temperatures of up to 41°C and at least 20,000 deaths reported, CINEA (the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) reported on Tuesday.
One of the projects, COOLIFEALMADA, is working in Almada, Portugal, with plans to cut temperatures in the city centre by up to 3°C through a combination of interventions.
Measures described by the project include creating microforests along a 0.5 km “urban green corridor” linking two public parks, planting vegetation in public spaces and installing heat-reflective surfaces on roads.
The project is also testing green roofs and façades to reduce indoor temperatures, and has installed shade netting and micro-sprinklers in areas with limited tree cover.
The project manager for COOLIFEALMADA at Almada Municipality, Diana Henriques, said the team presented a “comprehensive and multi-dimensional approach” that treats urban heat as an environmental, public health, urban planning and social resilience issue.
Mapping shade and involving residents
Another project at the forum, LIFECOOLCITY, uses satellite data to map green spaces and water features across Europe to show their effect on city temperatures, CINEA said.
LIFE ASAP also presented its work using the Worldwide Fund for Nature’s One Planet City Challenge to encourage cities to take climate action.
Alice Fonseca, a climate and policy officer with WWF Portugal, said the project helps cities develop climate action while giving local communities — “especially young people” — a voice in shaping urban plans.
Projects focused on flooding were also represented, including LIFE LATESTadapt, which has been building buffer ponds and improving riverbeds at eight demonstration sites in Estonia and Latvia to help urban areas handle extreme weather.
LIFE FLOPRES has developed an early warning system for flooding in cities in Slovakia and Poland and is also using nature-based solutions to reduce flood risk.
Nature-based solutions refer to measures that use natural features — such as vegetation and water retention areas — to reduce climate impacts.
