The National Institute of Science and Technology Klimapolis conducts transdisciplinary research on the climate and environmental resilience of Brazilian urban areas through Real-World Experiments. Through horizontal dialogue with managers, public policy makers, and communities, the Institute seeks evidence-based solutions to adapt cities to climate change, address environmental challenges, and advance sustainable development.
INCT Klimapolis was approved by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), under the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MCTI), through Call 58/2022, in December 2022, for an initial period of five years.
Klimapolis activities began in 2017 with a German–Brazilian pilot project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and carried out by the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, with the aim of bringing together efforts related to climate change and its impacts on Brazilian cities. This project, which runs until the end of 2024 and primarily supports German researchers, has promoted exchanges and scientific events to deepen and foster binational collaboration. As a result, an international Klimapolis collaboration network was established, and in 2019 a formal agreement between the University of Hamburg (UHH) in Germany and the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil led to the creation of the binational Klimapolis Laboratory, conceived as a permanent virtual structure. The Laboratory is co-directed by Professor Anita Engels (UHH) on the German side and Professor Rita Ynoue (USP) on the Brazilian side. Its goal is to sustain strategic discussions on scientific cooperation between INCT Klimapolis researchers and partners in Germany.
Currently, the work of the new INCT Klimapolis is organized around five interdisciplinary research fronts, which form sub-networks within the Institute’s structure: Air and Noise, Water and Soil, Climate Variability, Climate Change Adaptation, and Health and Quality of Life. One of the main objectives of these sub-networks is to carry out two Real-World Experiments (RWE) in the capital cities of Rio Grande do Norte and São Paulo. To meet the Institute’s broader goals, three cross-cutting themes have also been implemented, serving all sub-networks and fostering dialogue across disciplines. The first addresses Outreach, Social Learning, and Indicator Development. The second develops the Klimapolis Platform, which provides information on available observational and modeling data, geoprocessing products, and a range of publications to support decision-making regarding Brazilian urban areas in the face of the urgent need for climate adaptation. The third cross-cutting theme focuses on the national and international consolidation and expansion of the collaboration network.
INCT Klimapolis is coordinated by Professors Maria de Fátima Andrade of the University of São Paulo (Coordinator) and Judith Hoelzemann of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (Deputy Coordinator), in partnership with the Brazilian Director of the virtual Klimapolis Laboratory, Professor Rita Ynoue, also from the University of São Paulo. The overall coordination is supported by a Steering Committee composed of the coordinators of the sub-networks, cross-cutting themes, and flagship projects.
A dedicated information portal for INCT Klimapolis is currently under development and will be launched soon, providing further details about the Institute and its activities.
If you conduct research in related fields and are interested in joining the Klimapolis network, please contact us. You can send a direct message via our social media channels @inctklimapolis (Instagram) or email us at inctklimapolis@gmail.com