Staying Cool in The Face of Heat: Exploring Sustainable Everyday Climate Adaptation through Practice-Oriented Design

Abstract

Climate change is already seen to cause extreme weather and climate across the world. Extreme heat events are projected to become more frequent, intensive and longer-lasting as climate change proceeds, which creates various challenges in a society adapted to a cold climate. This has been identified as a national focus area in Swedish climate adaptation, given its significant effects on societal functions, the energy system and human health, particularly in urban environments. There is an urgency to adapt on different levels of society, and the role of civil society is gaining attention. Thus, this master thesis aimed to contribute to the understanding of what household climate adaptation is, and could be, in Sweden, as this had been identified as rather unexplored. The project used a research-through-design approach informed by practice-oriented design, focusing on everyday practices related to energy use and how these are affected by extreme heat. The combined findings from exploring varieties of the target practice in Sweden, other countries and contexts, inspired opportunities for desirable ways for households living in apartments to adapt to periods of extreme heat. Two proto-practices were developed around the idea of heat-conscious daily rhythms, building on general heat advice and sustainable ways to address urban indoor overheating. These were used to understand households’ perceptions and imaginations of adaptation in future everyday life. Heat already affected households’ thermal comfort and quality of life, but currently manageable by different improvised strategies. Summer was associated with temporary lifestyle shifts, often related to viewing heat and daylight as limited resources, which affected households’ willingness to follow behavioural advice. Finally, opportunities both for what can be designed to support households’ adaptive capacity in apartments, and a perspective on possible roles of design in household climate adaptation, were discussed.