This award recognizes projects that develop innovative and sustainable solutions for adapting to climate change. The "OPUSH – Citizen Science Pilot Urban Heat Stories" project impressed the jury with its practical approach to actively involving citizens in research on urban heat stress and collaboratively developing foundational knowledge for adapting to rising temperatures in cities.

As part of OPUSH, seniors, children, and young people mapped their locations in the urban environment, shared their individual experiences with heat in the city, and conducted mobile temperature measurements. The measured data were compared with the participants' personal heat perceptions to create comprehensive "Urban Heat Stories." The results of this citizen science initiative aim to support urban planning and are already being integrated into the redesign of heavily affected urban areas, such as the Quellenplatz in Vienna.

“The recognition of our work underscores the importance of involving the public in climate research,” emphasized project leader Christian Peer from future.lab at the Faculty of Architecture and Planning at TU Wien. His project colleagues Helena Bernhardt and Sebastian Harnacker from TU Wien, along with Silvio Heinze from luftdaten.at and Beate Guba, director of TU Wien Bibliothek, also expressed their gratitude for the award and the appreciation of their collaborative efforts.

The interdisciplinary team of the OPUSH project accepted the award from Leonore Gewessler, Federal Minister for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology, and Mag. Bernd Vogel, Managing Director of the Climate and Energy Fund, on October 16, 2024.

The project would not have been possible without the active participation of city residents and the support of its partners. The team thanks luftdaten.at for providing the measuring devices and for their collaboration in the empirical data collection and analysis. They also express their heartfelt gratitude to the seniors, children, and young people who, as co-researchers, contributed valuable insights and experiences regarding urban heat stress. A special thanks is also extended to the municipal departments of the City of Vienna, which have integrated the project into urban planning.

For more information and research findings, please visit the websites of future.lab, luftdaten.at, and "Österreich forscht".

Official press release, opens an external URL in a new window from the Ministry

CliA website, opens an external URL in a new window on "OPUSH – Citizen Science Pilot Urban Heat Stories"