Global Heat and Cooling Forum 2026

Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN)

NDMA

• Examine key challenges and gaps in mobilizing cross-sectoral government action, particularly in low-resource and high-vulnerability contexts.
• Introduce a structured approach to advancing heat governance anchored in the Extreme Heat Governance Framework and Toolkit, developed by the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN) in partnership with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR).
• Showcase successful governance approaches and implementation models that have supported heat resilience-building across various urban and rural contexts.

Atlantic Council’s Climate Resilience Center, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), Heat officers from African cities, Heat officers from Indian cities, Municipal Corporations from key cities in India, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), National University of Singapore (NUS), Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), Sustainable Futures Collaborative (SFC), University of Oxford, WRI India, and others.

Ashok B Lall Architects and Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy (AEEE)

Dr. Satish Kumar, President and Executive Director, AEEE

• Discuss the symbiotic interests of power and health government stakeholders to collaborate with housing & urban planning government stakeholders to explore developing simple yet effective regulations for all new buildings, with a focus on affordable housing; or explore ways in which existing policy and regulatory frameworks can be leveraged to pursue common goals.
• Introduce a practical framework for heat-adaptive building regulation with the aim of inspiring policy action.
• Highlighted opportunities to transition affordable housing towards climate-responsive, resilient, and energy-efficient housing, at scale.

AEEE, Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology (CEPT) University, Harvard University, Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS), Indian Institute of Public Health Gandhinagar (IIPH-G), National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA)*, NITI Aayog, National Programme on Climate Change and Human Health (NPCCHH)*, National University of Singapore (NUS), Odisha Urban Housing Mission (OUHM)*, Plaksha University, ps Collective, University College London, World Bank, WRI India, and others.

Sustainable Energy for All, SouthSouthNorth (SSN) and Sustainable Solutions for Africa (SSA)

Yamide Dagnet, Senior Vice President, International, NRDC

• Identify and share proven institutional approaches that demonstrate how cities can adopt scalable and transferable models for heat resilience and sustainable cooling.
• Strengthen the use of granular, geospatial, and community level data to map heat vulnerability, assess cooling needs, and guide targeted, evidence-based interventions.
• Identify mechanisms to unlock finance, mobilize public and private investment, and develop bankable project pipelines that enable large scale implementation of heat resilience and sustainable cooling solutions.

Africa Adaptation Initiative (AAI), Asian Development Bank, Atlantic Council, CEEW, CII Godrej Green Business Centre, GHHIN, Heat Resilience Action (HERA), Heat officers from African cities, Heat officers from Indian cities, Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS), Mahila Housing Trust (MHT), Municipal Corporations from key cities in India, NDMA, Resurgence, SEWA, SSN, State SDMAs, Sustainable Solutions for Africa, UNEP, WRI India, and others.

The Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability, Harvard University

Dr. Satchit Balsari, Associate Professor, Emergency Medicine, Harvard Medical School

• Assess whether prevailing heat metrics adequately capture physiological strain among informal and gig workers.
• Present emerging interdisciplinary evidence from SEWA-CEPT–AIDMI–Harvard research and mortality analyses.
• Examine lived experience alongside labour law and governance constraints.
• Integrate gender and built-environment considerations into occupational heat discourse.
• Generate evidence-informed governance questions to strengthen institutional reform across health, labour, housing, and disaster risk systems.

CEEW, Eternal Group, HeatWatch, HT Parekh Foundation, International Labour Organization (ILO), Jan Sahas, National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), National Programme on Climate Change and Human Health (NPCCHH), NRDC, Population Services International, SEWA, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, State and city depts of health and labour, Telangana Gig and Platform Workers Union, University of Oxford, University of Sydney, WIEGO, World Health Organization, and others.

CEEW and Climate Trends

Jayashree Nandi, Hindustan Times

• Briefing on the latest tools being used by IMD to gather data on heat
• Deepen media’s understanding on underlying vulnerabilities of extreme heat preparedness and sustainable cooling solutions.
• Exchange best practices of reportage and storytelling
• Address media room limitations and how to work around them for effective reportage on the subjects

• Dr. Akhil Srivastav, Scientist, India Meteorological Department *
• Bijal Brahmbhatt, Executive Director, Mahila Housing Trust
• Presentations by Climate Trends and CEEW