Urban green spaces play a vital role in cooling urban environments and mitigating extreme heat waves caused by climate change. Cities must address urban heat islands, which result from heat-absorbing surfaces displacing natural land cover. Marginalized neighborhoods often have limited access to these green areas, exacerbating health risks. Effective urban planning should incorporate community needs and consider social equity in green space distribution. Experts advocate for balanced strategies, like "just green enough," to enhance vegetation without displacing residents, ensuring local communities benefit from enhancements to urban greenery.
Simply increasing 'green coverage' without considering the relative location of green spaces cannot effectively reduce the problem of urban warming.
Cities face more frequent and extreme heat waves, putting citizens at risk, and urban green spaces are crucial to mitigate these effects.
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