What Do People in the World’s Hottest Countries Do to Stay Cool?
As global warming changes the climate, once temperate areas will become hotter. Scientists predict that in 2050 the temperature in the average US city will be about 3°F warmer than today , and in some places it will be twice as bad – Bozeman, Montana; Saint Paul, Minnesota; and the average temperature in Chicago will be almost 6°F warmer. So we will all be dealing with a hotter world than before.
“Turn on the air conditioner” is probably the solution many people would suggest, but that’s the kind of thinking that got us here in the first place. Instead, let’s look at the lessons learned by people elsewhere who have dealt with excessive heat without air conditioning for thousands of years.
White Roofs (Indonesia): The color of a roof can make a huge difference to the temperature inside a building. In tropical Indonesia, researchers have found that painting rooftops with a special white paint called MS-Thermashield cools buildings by as much as 10°C – that’s 50° Fahrenheit! — at the hottest time of the day. You may not get such spectacular results, but painting your roof with heat reflective paint is a very good idea if you want to keep cool.
Solar panels providing shading (Israel) : Tel Aviv is conducting the first test of an environmentally friendly shading system. Lumiweave is designed to help people stay cool during the day and light up the city at night – public awnings are covered in solar panels and act as street lights when it gets dark. The lesson you can learn from this is that even if you don’t have natural shady spots, you can create cooler spots with awnings, umbrellas, pergolas, and anything that blocks the sun.
White loose clothing (Saudi Arabia and almost anywhere it’s hot): Wearing light-coloured loose clothing made from natural fabrics is customary in the Middle East, India, and most other places where it’s hot. Like a white roof, the idea is to reflect sunlight away from itself.
Conical hats (Asia): The traditional sedge hat or conical hat is worn throughout Asia and is ideal for protection from the heat. Usually made from bamboo, they are light and large enough to protect the wearer from both sun and rain. You can even soak them in water for a personal evaporative cooler. Wearing a conical hat may not be culturally appropriate for you, but the same principles apply to the big straw hats worn by Southern California surfers and that floppy garden hat your aunt loves.
Cool Your Neck (India) : In India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and parts of South and Southeast Asia, many people wear an all-purpose cotton towel that can be used as a scarf, headwear, or face mask. and can even be used as a weapon in a pinch. In hot weather , it is often soaked in water and draped around the neck and shoulders for personal cooling. Check out these cooling towels for a high-tech application of the same principle.
Traditional sunscreen (Myanmar): The people of Myanmar have been smearing themselves with thanka , a yellowish paste or cream made from the crushed bark of native trees , for over 2,000 years. It looks amazing, smells like sandalwood, provides a feeling of coolness and protects the skin from the sun. Tanaka is often applied heavily on the cheeks and nose, exactly where you apply sunscreen. Lesson: Use plenty of sunscreen.
Take a siesta (Spain) : Although often associated with Spain because of the name, taking a nap or taking a break during the hottest part of the day is traditional everywhere from China to Italy to the Middle East. It just makes sense not to strain in the heat, and the sooner we normalize siesta in the US, the sooner we can all take a nap after lunch.
Fan (Egypt): The oldest evidence we have of hand fans is from Egypt, around 2000 BC, but they have probably been around for as long as the hot weather itself. Mechanical fan from China. In 180 AD, Han Dynasty inventor Ting Huang created a rotating fan system that allowed one person to cool an entire building. How best to cool your home with fans is a hotly debated topic, but in general it’s best to use them to draw in cool air at night and pump out warmer air during the day.
Cooling curtains (India) : It was once customary in India to hang curtains woven from khus or vetiver, a local herb, on exterior doors and windows. During the hot part of the day, the curtains were sprinkled with water to keep the dry air outside cooler and more humid when it blew into the house. This practice has become less common with the advent of air conditioners, but it is making a comeback as people look for more environmentally friendly cooling methods. You can find similar curtains at home improvement stores, or go the other way and hang heavier curtains designed to keep your room darker and therefore cooler.
“Passive” Buildings (Germany): Traditional architectural styles from tropical regions include many methods to keep buildings cool, and ” passive house ” designs from Germany take many of these into account and add modern materials and know-how. Passive buildings are designed to be energy efficient and maintain a constant temperature through insulation, building materials, and other passive cooling and heating methods rather than air conditioning.
Registration Programs (Brazil and Australia): Both Brazil and Australia have recently introduced community programs in which officials call or text vulnerable members of society during heat emergencies to make sure they are all right. I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for the United States to put in place such a program, so take it upon yourself to test all the vulnerable during a heat wave.
Get used to it (universal) : If you use all the methods of dealing with the heat available, it will still be hot during a heat wave. But you’ll get used to it. People adapt to extreme conditions; besides, you won’t have a choice.