Extreme heat is one of the deadliest climate threats, yet access to cooling remains out of reach for billions. The 2025 Global Heat & Cooling Forum convened key stakeholders to drive forward climate-resilient cooling solutions and heat mitigation strategies, emphasizing the need for urgent, integrated solutions that protect lives while reducing emissions.

The Forum explored the complex links between heat and cooling, emphasizing how conventional short-term solutions like air conditioning can worsen long-term climate challenges. As temperatures continue to rise globally, energy-efficient and climate-smart cooling have never been more urgently needed.

A recurring theme raised throughout the event was the need to rethink heat risk governance. We need to move away from treating heat as a short-term emergency, and towards embedding Heat Action Plans into long-term planning frameworks across public health, disaster risk management, and urban development. Cities like Mumbai are already leading the way in this shift.

Experts agreed that multi-sectoral collaboration—spanning energy, health, urban planning, and finance—is essential to address heat holistically. To scale solutions that work, we need innovative financing mechanisms, such as climate insurance, microfinance, and public-private partnerships, as well as regulatory incentives to mobilize private sector action. Localized, data-driven forecasting is also essential to creating tailored responses and improving early warning systems.

Throughout the event, discussions were framed through an equity lens. Extreme heat disproportionately impacts vulnerable communities, particularly low-income residents, informal workers, and women, and closing this “heat divide” requires community-led adaptation strategies and inclusive, gender-sensitive policies.

The India 2047 Forum explored how South Asia can thrive as India faces unprecedented climate challenges. Scientists stressed that future warming will be faster and more intense, with extreme weather becoming more unpredictable. While weather and climate forecasting and predictions are improving, early action remains crucial.

Over four days, experts discussed pressing issues, shared groundbreaking research, and offered new perspectives on health, labor, urban planning, and the impacts of climate change on water and agriculture. A key focus was making weather and climate forecasting and predictions more useful for decision-making across sectors—from farming to urban design. The need for action based on available data was emphasized, even as systems to track heat-related health risks continue to evolve.

The Forum brought attention to the challenges faced by India’s workers, many of whom are already adapting informally to rising heat but need stronger protections and legal recognition. In urban planning, experts stressed that infrastructure must go beyond cooling, focusing on long-term livability, equity, and resilience. A key debate emerged: is heat a disaster or an ongoing development issue? This distinction will shape future policies and investments.

The event demonstrated that scientific innovation, community-driven projects, and entrepreneurial startups are already making South Asia more heat-resilient. But scaling these efforts requires sustained investment and systemic change. From heat-adaptive housing to scalable startup solutions, experts agreed that science and technology must be backed by greater investment to create lasting, large-scale impact.

Aligned with GHHINs ongoing priority to support heat action planning and heat risk governance was a panel discussion on India’s leadership in deploying Heat Action Planning at city, state, and national levels. Moderated by Aditya Pillai lead author of a new report from the Sustainable Futures Collaborative that examines how Indian cities are implementing heat policies. The report assesses the experience in India and highlights the need for long-term preparedness and improved coordination and governance.

Sustainable Futures Collective (2025).Is India Ready for a Warming World? How Heat Resilience Measures Are Being Implemented for 11% of India’s Urban Population in Some of Its Most At-Risk Cities

During the session, Sameer Kwatra (NRDC India) pointed to cities like Ahmedabad and Jodhpur as pioneers in heat action planning, demonstrating the power of public-private partnerships in scaling solutions. Arunabha Ghosh (Council on Energy, Environment and Water) stressed the need for hyper-local data to guide early warning systems and policy. Siddharth Nadkarny (Atkins Realis) introduced the upcoming Heat Action Handbook (developed with the Red Cross Climate Center for the World Bank), emphasizing a simple but urgent principle: start now, start small.

Alejandro Saez Reale, Technical Support Unit Coordinator for GHHIN at the World Meteorological Organization, introduced the Network’s mission and its role in bridging science and policy to support heat risk governance and action planning. He underscored the Network’s three core goals—connecting experts, accelerating knowledge, and catalyzing action—to ensure that decision-makers have access to the best available research to drive effective, scalable heat resilience strategies. He noted that the challenges experienced in India are not unique, but reported as common barriers in many countries also working to establish heat risk governance