The URBCARE Conference 2023 in Lucknow (India) focused on addressing critical urban and environmental challenges related to climate change. The conference aimed to foster global collaboration and knowledge-sharing on managing urban climate issues, including heat stress, air pollution, waste management, and urban flooding. Additionally, it sought to promote sustainable urban development by discussing mitigation and adaptation strategies, such as low-carbon pathways, urban planning, and climate-health risk management. The event highlighted the need for integrated approaches and technologies to enhance the resilience of cities against climate-induced challenges.
Avia-GIS (Guy Hendrickx) was an invited presenter at this conference. In his presentation he highlighted recent findings by his team regarding urban dengue hotspots in Lucknow. Weekly dengue hotspots can be related to greener parts of the cities, where buildings are less dense, tree cover is more important, temperature is lower and humidity higher. Making cities greener with less concrete on the other hand is a preferred method to succesfully reduce the effect of urban heat islands which are on the increase due to climate change. Both facts mean that thes climate mitigation measures may generate an increased risk for dengue. The combinantion of VECMAP and VECTRACK was presented as a way to monitor and therefore mitiogate that risk.