URBESGG - Urban Heat Islands

The phenomenon known as Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) has become a serious problem for cities: their Environment, Society, and Governance (ESG). They are easy to observe and explain after their consolidation, but difficult to predict or identify during formation due to their multidisciplinary nature that exceeds human observation capacity, and even more complex to be reversed as they require large interventions and investments.

According to Nature Climate Change, Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) are characterized by urban regions with higher average temperatures than adjacent areas, having distinct causes that affect all cities and citizens of the planet to a greater or lesser extent, but mainly regions with higher economic activity and population density. According to the United Nations, 54% of the world's population already lives in urban areas, with a projection to reach 68% by 2050. 59 countries with more than 10 million inhabitants already have more than 80% of their urban population, requiring improvement that combines sustainability, quality of life, economic development, and environment (ESG).

According to the University of Southern California, in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives (2018), there was a correlation between temperature and higher crime rates in several neighborhoods. A study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology (2017) by the University of Illinois correlated ambient temperature with health, finding that about 6% of deaths from respiratory and cardiac diseases in a city were directly linked to excessive heat

In economics, studies conducted in Baltimore, Lisbon, and Sydney have shown that the average temperature of a region is inversely related to property values and appreciation. Similarly, publications in Landscape and Urban Planning (2017), Urban Forestry & Urban Greening (2018), and Energy and Buildings (2020) indicate that regions with higher temperatures tend to attract less investment and employment opportunities, contributing to increased poverty and local degradation. This information is supported by observations in Buenos Aires, where for every 1°C increase in temperature in a municipal region, the number of companies decreases by 1.2%, the number of jobs is reduced by 0.8%, and per capita GDP in the area decreases by an average of 0.6%.

This convergence points to average losses between 1.4% and 1.7% of municipalities' annual GDP by 2050, which is more impactful and pernicious in emerging and poor societies, as it causes a recurring scenario of degradation combined with resource consumption. To reduce thermal discomfort and cool the indoor environment, the annual energy cost per capita is estimated at $25, without considering that this compensation (internal/external heat exchange) consumes economic and energy resources and worsens the external scenario

Corroborating with this international perspective, a study published in Energy and Buildings on Barcelona analyzed the relationship between outdoor temperature and energy consumption in commercial buildings, finding that for every 1°C increase in outdoor temperature, energy consumption for cooling increased on average by 4.7%. In Belo Horizonte, Brazil, it was observed that areas with temperatures above 32°C have an average impact on household budgets that is 35% greater than in areas with temperatures below 24°C.

It consists of an unprecedented Digital Twin SaaS platform, created based on Knowledge-Based Urban Development (KBUD) models and Nature-Based Solutions (NBS), to analyze Urban Heat Islands (UHI) using data science: Big Data, Statistics, Machine Learning, and AI. The platform aims to continuously monitor municipal environments by promoting systematic collection of primary data from IoT sensors, thermal and GPS, installed in buses and delivery vehicles, and public and private sources such as the Brazilian Solar Energy Atlas (INPE), Wind Map, Vegetation Coverage Area, economy and population density (IBGE), urban interventions, thermal properties of materials, fixed and mobile heat generators (air conditioning, vehicles, etc.), energy consumption, and other open data systems.

Using the created data frame, the platform automatically cross-references data in complex analyses of the environment, aiming to identify Urban Heat Islands, mapping existing ones or those that have the potential to form through proposed new urban interventions. In this way, the service's Artificial Intelligence can identify and break down the various causes of formation: from the types of materials used and lack of vegetation to occupation and use of the environment, for each climatic zone, making projections on potential socio-economic, environmental, and energy impacts, current or predicted.

These analyses generate reports in online georeferenced dashboards to support decision-making, aimed at public managers, private construction companies, energy distributors, investment banks, academic centers, and other public and private groups, pointing out problems and suggesting actions to reverse or mitigate existing situations, or changes in new urban intervention projects to avoid the formation of new heat zones.

Among the suggestions, proposals for Nature-Based Solutions are prioritized, followed by recombination of elements or replacement of construction materials, aiming to reduce costs and impacts of SDGs 11, 3, 8, 9, 13, 15, and 17.

The proposal meets the needs of public administrations, civil construction companies, building materials industry, energy concessionaires, universities and research centers, promoting entities and financiers of urban development and smart cities, and extends to other sectors of society directly or indirectly affected by the impacts of Urban Heat Islands (UHI).

Currently, public administrations work independently when observing UHIs, often duplicating efforts. This proposal aims to integrate various departments and share multidisciplinary views, extract indicators of impacts on the environment, promote interactions that are currently non-existent or bureaucratic, and create public policies and actions that aim to generate sustainable socio-economic and environmental results, with projections in the areas of health, economy, investments, environment, and others.

It allows for a pre-analysis of the impact of civil works on the urban environment before submitting building projects or other interventions to obtain construction permits, optimizing and automating interactions with municipal public authorities. This way, it observes the contribution of civil works in the formation of UHIs, promoting the preservation of the environment in search of local sustainability by conducting real estate risk analyses and promoting the well-being of society.

In the construction industry, universities, and research laboratories, the platform will provide intelligence analyses as a guide for the development of materials and construction practices to reduce the formation of UHIs, enabling substitution and promotion of sustainable materials to meet the challenges of each ecosystem.

Electric power companies can correlate projections between UHIs and energy consumption, mitigating risks of blackouts and transformer overload due to urban energy demand, promoting the use of nature-based solutions to mitigate their risks, as well as analyzing investment models in distributed cogeneration.

Promoting institutions, investment, and development banks can incorporate new sustainability indicators based on data into their models, accessing impact analyses of interventions in the formation of UHIs and their consequences in other areas, making compensatory adjustments to invested projects.

UHIs are mostly the subject of academic studies segmented as a phenomenon and are underutilized in society, municipal management, or business. At most, it results in punctual high-cost consultations on a specific large-scale environment or work, bringing a superficial picture of that moment about the locality without promoting continuous follow-up, evolution, or consequences of the interventions.

The use of the URBESGG Digital Twins Platform aims to go beyond the model of punctual consultations and studies, providing a deeper analysis of each environment through the integration of various sources and types of data, proprietary, open, and continuously provided in IoT, promoting diagnoses of causes and impact indicators identified. Additionally, it points out potential solutions for each urban scenario and stage of UHI, observing geographical and biome-related issues, ranging from future project adjustments and replacement of construction intervention materials to the introduction of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS)

The team is composed of highly skilled and experienced multidisciplinary professionals in their respective fields, bringing a wide range of complementary specialties capable of understanding the urban, constructional, social, economic, and environmental problems generated by UHIs. 

As the team leader and representative to the communities, Estela Bolani has worked closely with public administrations and local organizations, community leaders, academia, and residents to understand the needs and priorities of the communities. She has developed an analytical base supported by feedback and suggestions from local stakeholders to ensure that it meets the needs and desires of various end-user profiles, promoting transparency in the development process and maintaining open and constant communication with stakeholders.

Estela is a business manager, architect, urbanist, and entrepreneur. Master's degree in Human, Intelligent and Sustainable Cities. Researcher at LABCHIS - Laboratory for Human, Intelligent and Sustainable Cities at EGC/UFSC and GENINT - Laboratory for Management and International Business Strategy at UNESC. At SENAI SC, she is currently a teacher capable of transforming citizen's environment and needs analyses into valuable insights for continuous development of the service, in agreement with the Urbesgg team:

Arthur Sanders is a Data Scientist and Innovation Consultant with an MBA in ESG and estudent in AI Postgraduating degree. Researcher at LABCHIS/EGC/UFSC and specializes in cross-referencing, analyzing, and interpreting complex urban data, with international experience in innovation environments like manager in "Project 14Bis" (sports events such as the London Olympics, World Cup, and Rio Olympics, showcasing Brazilian Science, Technology, and Innovation), as well as representing startups and UFSC at WebSummit Lisbon.

Wanderlei Pereira is a researcher, Civil Engineer, and holds a Master's degree in Geotechnics, Structures, and Civil Construction, and a Doctorate in Exact and Technological Sciences. He is a professor at the Department of Civil Engineering and has experience in the areas of Civil Engineering, structure mechanics, and applied mathematics, developing AI for engineering process optimization and model calibration.

Clara Salvador is an architect and urbanist in Urban Development and Licensing area, Public Policies, and SEBRAE consultancy for Territorial Development, Business Strategic Planning. She has participated in programs such as Brasil Mais, Território Vivo and DET, planning and implementing SEBRAEHUB, GOVTECH Innovation, and managing the SEBRAEHUB Incubator. She was part of the Strategic Planning of the ELI Blumenau Innovation Ecosystem and is a Titular Counselor at the Recife Urban Development Council. She has a Master's degree in Urban Development, Bioclimatic and Sustainability, and a specialization in Intelligent Cities. She coordinates the Articulation Movement for SDG SC and is a member of ACATE, ACIF and IAB.

Maria da Graça Agostinho is an architect and urbanist with a Master's degree in Geography, Regional and Urban Development and an Interdisciplinary Doctorate in Human Sciences. She is a professor at the Southern Santa Catarina University and specializes in Urban and Landscape Planning and Design.

Silviane Lopes is an architect and urbanist with a postgraduate degree in Master BIM and Engineering, and student at ISEC in Construction and Rehabilitation Engineering in Portugal.

The project has been under development for over 2 years, going through the research phase, being selected and refined as a concept and business by the IDEIAZ acceleration program of Anprotec. It has also gone through technological conceptual models, with bench tests based on real climate data and machine learning experiments focused on the topic of Urban Heat Islands.

Following this, it was submitted to the acceleration program of FAPESC - Santa Catarina Research Foundation, and was approved for funding under the Centelha program for innovative entrepreneurship. It has already completed the operational analysis phase and is finalizing the conceptual tests of the first functional version of the technology, with plans to present it at national and international events.

Zero.
In Prototype yet.
Last tests to market.

URBESGG's solution - Urban Heat Islands - is not only a technological innovation, often classified as disruptive, but it also provides an unprecedented observation of Urban Heat Islands (UHIs), identifying how it negatively affects the quality of life, social, economic, and environmental aspects. Through studies by renowned researchers in the available literature that show that temperature is correlated with various elements, we can cite crime rates, cardiovascular disease/diabetes, devaluation of real estate, and lower investment/employment opportunities. The temperature increase also leads to increased energy consumption and negatively impacts sustainability. The UN warns that 54% of the world's population already lives in urban areas and projects 66% in 2050, increasing the challenges of climate change and sustainability. Therefore, the AI-based Digital Twins Saas Platform is directly supporting public or private decision-making, based on Knowledge-Based Urban Development that aims to identify and predict Urban Heat Islands through complex data analysis, building predictive models for the mitigation or reversal of UHIs and treating them through Nature-Based Solutions (NbS).

The proposal consists of a pioneering service for automation in urban mapping and decision-making support, using data science to generate sustainable urban development indicators. The focus is on the Urban Heat Island phenomenon and its impacts, with multidisciplinary observation and integration of actors from the quadruple helix: Public Administration, Various types of Companies, Academia, and Civil Society. The service operates in cross-dimensional analyses to identify the causes of UHIs and measure their impacts, suggesting interventions to reverse or avoid them. In addition, it provides a strategic planning basis for action, with cost and ROI analysis, guiding construction projects, promoting research and development of new materials, encouraging energy efficiency, and providing decision support indicators for investors.

The Urban Heat Island phenomenon and its impacts are still academic themes with little observation by companies and public administrations, with measurable implications in several other areas beyond thermal discomfort. It is a pioneering service in the use of data science to generate KBUD (KNOWLEDGE-BASED URBAN DEVELOPMENT) indicators from the perspective of social, economic, and environmental sustainability of the UN SDGs. It is the only available service that operates in cross-dimensional analyses to identify the causes of UHIs and measure their impacts, suggesting interventions to reverse and mitigate them via the use of SBN or avoid them through the analysis of new planned interventions, with the modification of projects, replacement of materials, and recombination of urban elements.

It not only points out the potential costs, current and projected in multiple areas, derived from UHIs, but also provides a strategic planning basis for action, with potential costs and ROI analysis, unifying impact analyses of public management, guiding construction projects, promoting research and development of new materials, encouraging energy efficiency, and providing decision support indicators for investors.

a) Generate and disseminate Knowledge-Based Urban Development related to urban heat islands to support data-driven decision-making in public and private spheres;

b) Enhance and socialize knowledge about urban heat islands, related to business strategies for entry into the international market, bringing predictive data analysis to various cities around the globe;
c) Develop content and methodologies in the areas of complex data analysis and predictive models in the mitigation or reversal of urban heat islands through Nature-Based Solutions for international business activities;
d) Expand the scope of competencies through partnerships with national and international public and private entities.
e) Guide banks and urban development entities on the impacts of investments, aiming for greater sustainability and alignment with ESG/SDG themes.
f) Improve the quality of life of the society inhabiting urban environments, promoting optimization and sustainability in the use of resources and the environment.
g) Development of Sustainable and Smart Cities, with greater efficiency and resilience

As this is a technological solution available as SaaS for a theme that produces medium and long-term results, it is based on various indicators that reflect the need for continuous monitoring to analyze impacts, both on the Environment and communities, as well as on Public Administrations, Companies, and the Economy, which include:

Continuous temperature monitoring: The IoT mobile monitoring service, as well as consumption of open data collected from weather stations and satellites, continuously feed the database of the analyzed environment, enabling knowledge about the local temperature variation with each intervention, in the short, medium, and long term, enabling the refinement of predictive models' accuracy and measurement of the solution's effectiveness (Data Science: Big Data, Statistics, Machine Learning, and AI).

Engagement of the target audience of the service: Continuous analysis of attendance and monitoring of interactions of each of the client profiles regarding the use of the platform in relation to the development of the societies it encompasses, measuring participation and involvement in initiatives and projects related to Urban Heat Islands and, in parallel, to temperature variations in each environment.

Environmental analysis: Continuous monitoring of the distribution of urban space coverage, ranging from green areas, water surfaces, and built-up areas in the urban environment, to the type of element and albedo existing in each one, observing percentage variations of coverage over time, the flow of air circulation existing for each geographic environment, with all analysis observing the real thermal variations captured in the environments, aiming to understand the impact of constructive materials and formats, distribution and replacement of materials, and inclusion of nature-based solutions in reducing urban heat islands.

Energy consumption: In partnership with local distribution companies, we analyze energy consumption levels in buildings and urban structures, continuously evaluating the effectiveness of the actions indicated and executed from the service, measuring the impact of reducing Urban Heat Islands on energy consumption for each environment.

Health and socioeconomic: Together with public administrations, private and public health entities, construction, and entrepreneurship, we analyze data on the variation in the number of diseases, investments in urban development, and job and income generation linked to the monitored environments, continuously analyzing the variation of results against the temperature reduction from the proposals indicated by the solution.

SDG 11, in the promotion of Sustainable Cities and Communities, directly affecting SDGs 3, 8, 9, 13, 15, and 17.

OKR (Objectives and Key Results) creating alignment and engagement around measurable goals.

Continuous mapping in IoT or the Internet of Things, in real-time, allowing the platform to maximize its operations through systematic data capture, constant monitoring of environments, and more sophisticated analyses.

Integration with open data APIs and satellite-derived data, connecting systems in an agile and simplified way, crossing environmental, climatic, health, social, and economic data from environments.

Identification and measurement of the various factors that can cause UHIs.

The proposal is based on providing decision-making support for the joint action of various urban actors to reverse, mitigate, or prevent the formation of Urban Heat Islands, bringing facts, analysis, and projections on the subject, aiming to promote the formation of a more humane, intelligent, and sustainable city.

It aims to integrate and promote joint action by various areas of public administration, encouraging and pointing the way to existing heat areas or analyzing the impacts of proposals for new interventions, as well as sharing data between developers and development banks. In this way, and analyzed from various perspectives, it will guide the actions and limits of each one regarding the expected results, in a joint datadriven management model developed on data science.

The proposed model will act continuously and recursively through data provided by external and internal sources, enabling identification of strong and weak correlations, identifying urban heat islands, their causes, and social, environmental, and economic impacts, to the results produced by the implementation of its recommendations. Thus, in addition to acting on existing heat islands, it aims to provide information to alert about possible impacts on new constructive urban interventions, indicating mitigation and reversal actions, with ROI analysis.

For this purpose, the solution proposes the use of methodologies such as KBUD (Knowledge-Based Urban Design) and NBS (Nature-Based Solutions) as structural models, as well as access to open data from various sources and proprietary IoT systems to collect data capable of producing accurate and reliable information on the urban heat islands of each city. And in the same way, it will work on continuous review models to monitor the reversal of identified heat island effects.

In this way, it seeks to change the way public administration, companies, and society deal with the problem of urban heat islands, providing an effective tool for planning and implementing urban interventions that consider the impact on urban temperature in various perspectives so that proactive action can be taken to avoid, mitigate and reverse the effects of urban heat islands.

The main technology used will be the application of the entire framework of Data Science (Big Data, Statistics, Machine Learning, and AI) focused on analyzing urban environments and UHIs from the KBUD and SbN perspectives, with automation robots and IoT for capturing primary data.

Due to its interdisciplinary nature, as the sources and techniques employed come from different sciences (mathematics, physics, social sciences, and others), it will initially be trained with static sources developed internally and collected via APIs from organizations such as IBGE, municipal environmental departments, and INPE, among others. From this, IoT sensor data will be applied for machine learning and real-time simulation, identifying critical points and phenomenological conditions of UHI evolution, with machine learning having a temporal variable on dynamic maps. In this way, measurable indicators will be generated to support decision-making on causes and projections of future scenarios.
Automated models of exploratory analysis will be used, continued through autonomous robots, continuously fed by IoT sensors, using the Python language and specialized packages in exploratory analysis, machine learning with supervised and unsupervised clustering: Scikit-learn, Pandas, and Geopandas. The frontend will be a dashboard model with data and a geographic information system (GIS), which will indicate causes and combinations of solutions in each case.

We recognize the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we are committed to incorporating them into all areas of our project. As a team, we have a wide range of backgrounds, with the majority being women, as well as descendants of Black and Indigenous peoples. We believe that the foundations and relationships derived from this diversity allow us to create more effective and comprehensive solutions to understand and meet the needs of our target population.

The majority of the population affected by our project in Brazil is low-income and composed of Black and immigrant individuals, and we are committed to ensuring that our work is equitable and inclusive for these communities, with social analysis of proposed results being part of our research DNA. To further ensure diversity and inclusion in our team, we have established recruitment and selection goals that focus on quality, but also consider diversity and training and development programs, in our continuous search for opportunities to expand our network of contacts and collaborate with organizations and individuals who share our values and commitment to humanity.

Additionally, we work to ensure that our solution is equitable, constantly evaluating our impact on all affected communities and identifying and addressing possible disparities. We understand that equity does not mean treating all people the same way, but rather ensuring that all people have equal access to the opportunities and resources necessary for success.

In this way, and based on our own management model, "lean startup", we are committed to creating inclusive work environments where all voices are valued and respected. We encourage open and honest communication, and promote a culture of collaboration and mutual respect, always looking for ways to improve and adapt to the needs of all members of our team and the communities we serve.

Through this approach to incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusion into our work, we base our values and commitment on these principles, recognizing that diversity is a driving force of innovation and that our proposal can only be successful if we strive to ensure that it is equitable and accessible.

The proposal will be marketed as a Software as a Service model, available for both one-time and ongoing contracts, online and offline. Due to the nature of the service, which covers public, private and academic groups, there will be different business models for each segment, ranging from direct and indirect agreements with the public and academic sectors through partners and associations to direct contracts with companies.

It is suggested that the average monthly value be R$ 6,000 for public entities and management, validated by groups such as SESC-MS for continuous city monitoring, R$ 3,000 for academic entities for research and development, R$ 6,000 for private contracts with construction companies sector, and R$ 9,000 for companies in the electric power sector, validated by INERGE. The sale of specific intelligence reports for sectors aimed at generating multilateral knowledge will be sold at a unit price of R$ 6,000.

The two major cost centers are for human resources and technological hosting services. The total cost for the first 12 months of operation is estimated at R$ 148,000, segmented into the stages of development, commercialization, and operation of the service, assuming no compensation for the proposing team.

In the development stage, an external IT support team will be contracted to produce the platform's software and the necessary infrastructure for integration and testing. Additionally, consulting services from urban planning and landscaping experts will be used to support the development of the solutions spreadsheet (SBN and others), and consulting services for trademark and patent registration, with an estimated total cost of R$ 95,580.00.

In the commercialization stage, given the sales cycle and the partners who have already positioned themselves to work in the area, virtual management, marketing, and technological support services will be contracted, along with accounting and coworking consulting, totaling approximately R$ 31,550.00 in the first year of operation.

The operation stage has a variable cost component based on the number of contracts and a fixed cost component. However, it is noted that the analyzed variable costs are below 25% of the suggested business revenue.

Therefore, it is observed that the proposed business can reach break-even with the contracting of just three actors, one from the energy sector and two from municipalities, enabling the compensation of the proposing team as planned for the 4th month of operation.

The proposal falls under services aimed at Smart Cities, energy efficiency, AI, and ESG, becoming of interest in various segments such as new grant tenders focused on these areas or AI, marketing, sustainability and reducing the impacts of climate change, governments and companies, and private investments.

Thus, in addition to continuous search for other grants, such as FINEP AI, innovation and energy efficiency resources (PII and PEE) from agencies, concessionaires, and permissionaries in the energy sector will be sought with investment obligations. Contacts will also be made with Portuguese, Canadian, and British groups, not only for exporting the solution but also for opening up fundraising opportunities from these countries within the framework of their ESG agendas.

Initially, we seek national and international investments from technology development and funding agencies, as well as from funds and angel investors who have interests in ESG, finance, government, and construction. Simultaneously, we aim to sell our services to municipal government entities, trade associations, business groups, and development agencies to guide them on ESG and creating more humane, intelligent, and sustainable cities, particularly from the perspective of Urban Heat Islands. We will constantly develop strategies to acquire both public and private clients, which will be put into practice at technology service fairs and conferences. For example, we plan to participate in the Summit Cities 2022 Congress in Florianópolis, Brazil, presenting an academic paper and a speech at the fair showcasing our Urbesgg Digital Twins platform solution.

Our financial planning follows a gradual growth strategy. To stay away from risky relationships, we align our financial metrics, set realistic targets such as increasing our net profit margin by 5% or 10% over a period of six to 12 months, project positive and negative scenarios for the medium term, and price our services correctly.

Our corporate culture at Urbebegg is defined by a strong sense of purpose and long-term goals and values on which the company was and continues to be built. We believe this is important for our team, and we are all engaged in these same ideals. Our team was strategically selected and invited to participate, and we are in tune with our startup's corporate culture. When necessary, we seek out diverse training to create an environment that benefits everyone involved and facilitates the maintenance of well-engaged and experienced teams.

Finally, we designed the company for scalable growth. Workflows and tasks have been designed to handle an increase in data and information volume, as well as new demands and clients. We only add new team members and allocate financial and material resources as needed, and we validate processes that work well within the company's sectors.

The project has already received investments of approximately US$ 20,000 for the development of its MVP, through the Centelha SC Program, by FAPESC (Foundation for Research Support of the State of Santa Catarina), in the selection process of entrepreneurial innovation proposals, where it was classified among the 4% eligible for receiving resources. It has already held conversations with BNDES (Brazilian Development Bank) for an analysis of the impacts on works financed by the institution, as well as a partnership with the CIGA Consortium, a municipal technology and innovation consortium belonging to 300 Brazilian municipalities, and SESC-MS for a pilot project with 8 municipalities in that state.

It was a semifinalist in the BNDES Startup Garagem program and was awarded the IDEIAZ program by Anprotec Brazil. Currently in April 2023, it was awarded the Jornada Startups Program, a partnership between ACATE and SEBRAE/SC.
Furthermore, it is in the process of opening a company in Portugal, aiming to raise public funds from the StartUp programs under the Horizon 2030.
In the second half of 2023, we will be at the Instituto Empresarial do Tâmega Accelerator, in Amarantes, Portugal, on the European continent.
It has already made presentations at national events on cities, attracting the attention of dozens of national municipalities, as well as confirmed presentations at Summit Cidades 2023 in Florianópolis-SC, the ICKM/CIKI 2023 International Congress, and WebSummit Lisbon 2023.