About Urban Climate Tools
Urban Climate Tools is an open-source platform connecting city leaders, planners, researchers, and communities with the tools they need to build climate-resilient cities. We curate evidence-based solutions across heat, flooding, coastal risk, green infrastructure, and more — freely accessible to anyone working toward a more sustainable urban future.
Curated Tool Catalog
Hand-selected tools from leading organisations, filterable by cost, skill level, category, geographic scope, and user type.
Tool Finder Quiz
Answer four questions about your city's challenges, budget, and skill level — get matched with the best tools for your needs.
Real-World Case Studies
In-depth examples of cities implementing climate tools — what worked, what didn't, and what outcomes were achieved — on an interactive global map.
Side-by-Side Comparator
Compare any two tools across cost, skill level, coverage, and use cases in a structured table.
Climate Data Explorer
Search any city and visualise live temperature trends, precipitation, and heat stress metrics from open climate APIs.
Case Study Map
Explore global climate resilience examples pinned on an interactive world map, filterable by challenge type.
Our Mission
Climate change poses an existential challenge to cities worldwide. Rising temperatures, more frequent flooding, coastal erosion, and worsening air quality are reshaping urban life. Yet the tools to confront these challenges already exist.
Our mission is to make climate adaptation accessible and actionable by connecting people with the world's best open-source and evidence-based tools. We believe that the right tool, in the right hands, at the right moment can meaningfully change outcomes for communities and ecosystems alike.
Who This Is For
Urban Climate Tools is built to serve three interconnected groups. Each has a different entry point — and a different way to give back.
City Officials & Planners
You are responsible for making decisions that affect thousands of residents. UCT helps you rapidly identify, compare, and evaluate tools for procurement or direct use — without needing deep technical expertise.
- Use the Tool Finder Quiz to get matched with relevant tools in under two minutes
- Filter tools by Free cost and Beginner skill level to find accessible options
- Browse Case Studies from peer cities to understand real-world outcomes
- Save tools (sign in or use local mode) to build a shortlist for your team
- Use the Comparator to build a procurement brief
Contribute: Share case study outcomes from your city, suggest tools your department has used, or partner with us to feature your city's work.
Researchers & Students
Whether you are analysing urban heat islands, studying adaptation policy, or building a literature review, UCT provides a structured, citable overview of the tool landscape alongside live climate data.
- Use the Climate Data Explorer to pull temperature, precipitation, and heat-stress metrics for any city via open APIs (Open-Meteo, OSM Nominatim)
- Filter tools by Advanced skill level and research-relevant categories (Data & Analytics, Planning)
- Browse Case Studies to identify precedents for comparative urban analysis
- Use the Interactive Map to visualise the geographic distribution of case studies
- All data sources are open and citable — links to Git repos and official documentation are included on every tool page
Contribute: Submit academic resources, suggest new tools from your field, or help us improve tool descriptions with peer-reviewed evidence.
Community Advocates
You know your neighbourhood's needs better than anyone. UCT helps you find free, accessible tools that can support advocacy, community planning, and public participation in climate decisions.
- Filter tools labelled Community to find resources designed for public engagement
- Use the Tool Finder Quiz — no prior knowledge needed — to discover tools relevant to your concerns
- Use the Climate Data Explorer to generate charts and data for presentations or grant applications
- Read Case Studies to find examples of community-led resilience projects
- Submit a Resource via the Contact page if you know of a tool or guide that should be here
Contribute: Submit tools or guides used in community organising, share your city's story as a case study, or translate tool summaries for wider accessibility.
How to Use This Site
Find Your Tools
Start with the Tool Finder Quiz for a personalised match, or go to Browse Tools and use filters for category, cost, skill level, continent, and user type. Each tool page includes a full description, key features, data requirements, and direct links to documentation.
Compare Options
Use the Tool Comparator to place two tools side by side and evaluate their cost, skill requirements, coverage, and use cases. You can also open the comparator directly from any tool page.
Learn from Case Studies
Browse the Case Studies section or open the Interactive Map to explore how cities worldwide have applied these tools. Filter by challenge type, continent, or user type to find the most relevant examples.
Explore Climate Data
Head to the Climate Data Explorer to search any city and pull live temperature trends, precipitation, and heat-stress indicators, powered by the free Open-Meteo API. Charts can be used in reports, presentations, or academic work.
Save Items to Your Profile
Click the bookmark icon on any tool or case study card to save it. Your saved items are stored locally in your browser by default — no account needed. To sync across devices, use the Sign In button (top right) to create a free account or sign in with Google. Your saves are then accessible from your profile menu at any time.
Contribute and Share
Know a tool that belongs here? Head to Submit a Resource, or open a pull request on GitHub. We welcome tool suggestions, case study submissions, and documentation improvements from anyone.
Contributing
Urban Climate Tools is open-source and community-driven. There are many ways to get involved: suggest a new tool, share a case study, improve existing descriptions, report broken links, or contribute code. Every contribution helps make this resource more useful for everyone working on the climate challenge.