Europe Must Learn from Africa on Heatwave Adaptation

JAKARTA – In recent years Europe has repeatedly been struck by heatwaves that scientists say could not have occurred without climate change. This shows that climate change mitigation and adaptation on the world’s fastest-warming continent have become increasingly urgent.

Meanwhile, technological progress and adaptation efforts to reduce the impact of global warming often face challenges, ranging from funding to shifting government priorities.

According to two climate advocates from the African Climate Foundation, Europe needs to seek solutions from a variety of parties, including Africa, which has long faced the impacts of climate change with limited funding.

In their opinion piece for Al Jazeera, Wole Hammond, Programme Officer for Adaptation and Resilience at the African Climate Foundation, and Ellen Davies, Head of Programmes at the foundation, argued that developed nations in Europe need to learn from adaptation practices long developed by African communities.

Heat surges across Europe affect every sector and endanger lives. Heatwaves have now become a new reality in the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Germany and the Balkans.

“The question is no longer whether wealthy nations need climate adaptation, but whether they are willing to learn from regions that have been adapting to climate instability for decades,” the two wrote on Saturday (18 July 2026).

African societies, however, have long lived with high temperatures, drought and vulnerable infrastructure. Hammond and Davies said Africa has long had to adapt to various pressures without the adequate funding or recovery systems that wealthy European nations possess.

Development practices, architecture, technological innovation and institutions in Africa can offer important lessons for Europe. Hammond and Davies acknowledged that it is impossible to transfer what is done in Africa directly to Europe.

“Solutions designed for Ouagadougou need to be reshaped, tested and adapted before they can succeed in Marseille or Madrid. Local geography, building regulations, culture and governance all matter,” Hammond and Davies wrote.