Beat the Heat Conference 2025

28 August 2025

On behalf of the organizing committee, we are pleased to announce the “Beat the Heat: Conference 2025” taking place on Thursday, 28 August 2025 at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute in Allschwil.

Scope

This year's "Beat the Heat" conference invites experts, researchers, and practitioners to address the challenges posed by urban heat and explore potential solutions. We aim to provide a platform for collaboration and knowledge sharing, foster networking and strengthening the exchange among the Swiss research, services, and implementation community on the interactions between cities, climate change, and human health. Situated within the field of urban climatology and related disciplines, the conference offers an opportunity to present findings from past and ongoing research projects as well as practical applications in planning and implementation.

Contributions

Contributions are invited on various aspects of urban heat, including measurement, modeling, heat mitigation and adaptation, as well as impacts on health, health systems and social well-being. We particularly encourage interdisciplinary submissions and contributions from young researchers on one of these three topics:

Mitigation, resilience and impacts
Measurements and monitoring
Modelling and simulations

Abstract submission and registration

Abstract submission deadline has passed.

Registration deadline - 14 August 2025.
The conference is free however, registration is required.

Organising committee

Martina Ragettli and Mirko Winkler, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute
Markus Kalberer and Stavros Stagakis, University of Basel

08:45 Registration opens

09:30	Welcome and Setting the Stage, Organising Committee
09:45	Towards a Dynamic Assessment of Urban Heat Exposure, Gabriele Manoli, Laboratory of Urban and Environmental Systems
10:15	Heat and Health, Sarah Koch, Department of Sport, Exercise, and Health, University of Basel
10:45	Coffee Break / Poster Session (60 minutes)
11:45	Morning Parallel Sessions
12:45	Lunch Break (60 minutes)

Monitoring and Measurements: Coupling Observations and Models
Moderator: Stavros Stagakis

11:45	A Numercial Simulation of Radiation Dynamics in Urban Canyons, Guido de Bonifioli Cavalcabo, University of Basel
12:00	Analysing Urban Heat with Built-In Thermometers on Public Buses, Gianni Ardielli, ETH Zurich
12:15	Upscaling Low-Cost Urban Climate Networks with Stakeholder Needs - First Results, Moritz Burger, University of Bern

Mitigation and Impacts: Understanding Health Impacts and Promoting Adaptation
Moderator: tba

11:45	Extreme Humid Heat and Health: Preliminary Findings from a Panel Study in Basse, The Gambia, Elisabeth Tadiri, University of Bern, ISPM
12:00	Adapting to Urban Heat in Lisbon and Islamabad: A Combined Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis, Jamie McCaughey, ETH Zurich
12:15	Prediction of health Impacts and Warnings for Heatwaves in Switzerland, Daniela Domeisen, University of Lausanne

13:45	Fast Track to Climate Adaptation in Basel, Marc Pfister, Basel City Department of Public Works and Transport, Urban Planning and Architecture, Spatial Planning Section
14:15	Spotlight: Bridging the Gap Between Science and Application – Urban Climate Analysis for Adaptive Planning, Andreas Wicki, GEO Partner AG
14:35	Placing Health at the Center of Climate Action, Cathryn Tonne, Barcelona Institute for Global Health Barcelona ISGlobal
15:05	Coffee Break / Poster Session (30 minutes)
15:35	Afternoon Parallel Sessions
16:45	Closing Words and Poster Award, Organising Committee
17:00	End of Event

Modelling and Simulations: Urban Modelling for Climate Resilience
Moderator: tba


15:35		Selection of Surface Materials for Roofs and Outer Surfaces (Ground) in Sustainable Cities, Caroline Hoffmann, FHNW
15:50		Downscaled Health-Relevant Heat Indices: A Machine Learning Approach Leveraging City Measurement Networks, Charles Pierce, University of Bern
16:05		Urban Specific Heat Warning Levels Based on Hours of Pedestrian Heat Stress Exposure, Svenja Ludwig, University of Freiburg, Germany

Mitigation and Impacts: Building Heat Resilient Health Systems
Moderator: Martina Ragettli


15:35		Evaluation of the Implementation of Heat-Related Heat Protection Measures in Switzerland, Axel Luyten, Swiss TPH
15:50		The Heat is On: Supporting Home Care Professionals to Adapt to Climate Change, Francesca Cellina, University of Applied Science and Arts of Southern Switzerland
16:05		Co-Creating a Heat Action Plan in a Nursing Home: A Case Study, Cristian Martucci, Swiss TPH, Universitäre Altersmedizin Felix Plattner Basel

Measurements and Monitoring

Authors	Title
Bosch et al.	Fine-Scale Evaluation of the Urban Heat Island Effect
Gabriel et al.	Analysis of Thermal Comfort Perception in Lausanne as a Variable in Urban Heat Mitigation Strategy

Mosimann et al.	Twenty Years Energy Balance at Two Urban Sites in Basel-Stadt
Rollandi et al.	AUREOLA: Art-Based Misting Installation for Urban Heat Island Mitigration and Public Climate Awareness

Modelling and Simulations

Authors	Title
Amini et al.	Mapping Urban Heat with FAIRUrbTemp: A Dual-Model Approach for Temperature Mapping Across European Cities
Bader et al.	Turning Data into Action: High-Resolution Urban Climate Modeling for Hazard Forecasting and Resilience Planning
Bussalleu et al.	Local Climate Zones and Daily Temperatures Across European Cities: Implications for Health and Urban Planning
Dönmez et al.	Influence of Urban Canopy Parameters on a Coupled Bulk Urban Canopy Model
Federer et al.	Exploratory Modeling and Analysis of Adaptation to Urban Heat Stress Under Climate Change in Switzerland
Feigenwinter et al.	Urban Heat Emissions Monitoring Using Copernicus Services - A Cross-Cutting Application from the CURE Project
Meier et al.	The Direct Impact of Economic Growth on Temperature
Schau-Noppel et al.	EDiT-Cities: Extending Urban Digital Twins with Copernicus Data and Model Simulations for Developing Resilient Cities
Tinner et al.	Modelling European Urban Temperatures with Deep Learning
Wellinger et al.	Optimising Machine Learning Models of Thun’s Urban Climate Using High-Resolution Meteorological and Land Use Data
Yin et al.	Cooling Down Urban Green Spaces in a Future Climate

Mitigation and Impacts

Authors	Title
Benz et al.	Castanea Sativa as Urban Tree Potential in Zurich North of the Alps: A Case Study
Fortunato et al.	Occupational Factors Associated with Heat Strain at Work: A Swiss Survey on Home Care Workers
Gubler et al.	Urban Climate in Swiss Education - Insights and Perspectives
Jeannetot et al.	Assessing the Impact of Heat on Primary Care in Switzerland Using Patient Data Over 2003-2023
Lüthi et al.	Storylines for Month-Long Heatwaves and Associated Heat-Related Mortality Impacts over Western Europe
Tobler et al.	The Ecological Sponge City: The Key to a Livable and Climate-Adapted City
Weibel et al.	Heat Exposure, Impact and Management at Schools in the Basel Region