INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
long been on the frontline of the climate crisis
extreme heat in her home city, Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh
Photograph: Monirul Alam/EPAThe 30-year-old joins an all-female network of heat officers in cities around the world, including Miami;
administration departments coordinate their response to extreme heat and better protect their residents.Between climate change and rapid
heat officers are tasked with accelerating heat-protection efforts and initiating new work to reduce the risks and impact of the
particularly vulnerable to the urban heat-island effect due to its densely populated city centre, with some urban hotspots more than 10C
(18F) higher than the surrounding countryside
With the number of dangerously hot days a year estimated to double by 2050, the impacts of extreme heat in Dhaka will also
Many have migrated from rural villages after being forced to leave their homes due to other climate disasters; two-thirds of Bangladesh is
less than 5 metres (15ft) above sea level (with about 10% of the country only 1 metre above it), and the rising ocean and heat-amplified
Photograph: Syed Mahamudur Rahman/NurPhoto/RexJewel Ahmed, 27, migrated from Barishal to Dhaka a year ago, and spends more than 10 hours a
poorer communities generally suffer the most from extreme heat.As heat and humidity increases with climate change, it is expected to double
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Dhaka is unusually vulnerable due to its labour-intensive economy and low rate of cooling measures.We have no air conditioning and our tin
hut becomes so hot during the day, you burn your hand touching itKhatunArsht-Rock analysis suggests that under the current climate
conditions in Dhaka, 20% of outdoor working hours are lost to heat each year, which could increase to 24% by 2050.Low-income workers are
Hazera Khatun, 48, works as a waste recycler and is exposed to dangerous heat and fumes all day long
can burn your hand touching it
get cheap drinking water, in north Dhaka, which she is looking to expand across the city.Bushra Afreen says women in Bangladesh will also
suffer from climate change because extreme heat is contributing to a rise in gender-based violence
temporary air-conditioned spaces set up to offer respite from the heat when temperatures rise to dangerous levels.However, expanding
infrastructure takes time, and the magnitude and increasing severity of the problem in Dhaka calls for a rapid scaling-up of efforts to
actions that safeguard women are urgently needed
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
