Cities are where so many of us really experience climate change. They’re where heatwaves keep us awake at night, where flash floods turn streets into rivers, and where concrete, glass and asphalt can reshape the weather around us. As more than half of humanity now lives in urban areas, the story of climate change is increasingly a story about cities - how they amplify extremes, how they trap heat, and how smart planning might help protect the people who call them home.

In this episode of Totally Cooked, Sarah and Iain are joined by Associate Professor Negin Nazarian, and PhD student Ressy Fitria. They're hitting the streets to explore the science of urban climate. What exactly is an urban heat island? Do cities just experience climate change, or do they actually modify the climate themselves? And how well are our climate models capturing the complexity of real neighbourhoods?

We’ll also head to Indonesia, where a brand new capital city is rising in tropical Borneo. As Jakarta sinks and sea levels rise, Nusantara is being billed as a 'smart forest city' built for the future. But what happens to heat, humidity and extreme weather when you replace tropical forest with high-density urban development? And can we truly design cities that work with the climate, rather than against it?

Iain records Totally Cooked on the lands of the Bunurong People of the Kulin Nation. Sarah records Totally Cooked on the lands of the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging and recognise their unique and continuing connection to the land, skies, waters, plants and animals.

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