A conference on climate resilience was held with the young people of the ‘Les Planes’ space in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat
On Thursday 18 July, the inauguration of the shade structure installed as part of the European Cooltorise project took place at the Cruyff Court Jordi Alba, in the municipality of L’Hospitalet de Llobregat. This event brought together around twenty teenagers from Esplai Les Planes, some of whom had previously participated in the creative process of transforming the space to tackle climate change. The young people aged between 12 and 17 enjoyed a day full of educational activities aimed at encouraging curiosity and learning about climate resilience and the prevention of the effects of heat.
The process of transforming the space is part of one of the interventions implemented in the public space with the Cooltorise project, funded by the European Union under the Horizon 2020 programme, with the participation of the Ecoserveis Energy Culture Association and the Welfare and Development Association, and which in the case of the transformation of the Cruyff Camp Jordi Alba has had the support of the City Council of L’Hospitalet de Llobregat.
The day began with a welcome from the councillor of the IV-V district, David Torres, and the coordinator of Integral Plans, Lluís Esteve. The latter explained the reasons and objectives that led the City Council to carry out the intervention in this space.
Playful activities to learn how to mitigate the heat
Through different activities, the teenagers were able to explore concepts such as climate resilience, the greenhouse effect and the impact of high temperatures on health, and especially the importance of the shade structure installed to mitigate these effects, an aspect that the young people were able to experience first-hand.
They were able to examine the use of measuring instruments such as temperature guns, thermometers, hygrometers and luxmeters to measure temperature, humidity and light at different points in space. These measurements have allowed them to understand how the shade structure helps to reduce the health risk from heat and solar radiation.
It is worth mentioning activities aimed at understanding the concept of albedo, i.e. how light interacts with the colour of surfaces and how this influences the heat absorbed by these surfaces. The use of light surfaces in public spaces and on clothing are very useful measures to maximise the reflection of sunlight and prevent it from being absorbed as heat. The young people from the Esplai have shown great interest in this phenomenon and have been able to verify its effects through different tests: they have measured the differences in temperature between black and white fabrics exposed to the sun and have seen how white balloons do not explode when exposed to the concentrated light of a magnifying glass while black balloons do. In this way, they have been able to understand how the use of different colours and surfaces can contribute to warming or cooling the environment.
The day concluded with a reflection on the solutions proposed to reduce the effects of heat and the importance of collaborating in the creation of spaces that are more resilient to climate change.
All in all, the day was a great success, with the teenagers enjoying a morning full of discoveries and practical learning that consolidated the use and meaning of the participatory process at the Cruyff Court Jordi Alba.
