White flags above the Hohen Straße: Cologne fights against the heat!

White flags above the Hohen Straße: Cologne fights against the heat!

In the Cologne city center, white flags have recently been blowing over Hohe Strasse. This new project aims to improve the climate in the strongly frequented shopping street, especially on the hottest summer days. Because the Hohe Straße, one of the oldest and most revitalized shopping streets in Germany, is often critically neglected and perceived as a cheap mile. The challenge lies in the narrow, medieval structure of the street, which leaves little space for greening or cooling elements. But with the newly installed white flags between house numbers 121 and 131, an attempt is made to bring a fresh wind into the shopping experience and donate shadows.

The project was initiated by Stadtmarketing Köln e.V. and funded by the "Disposition Fund Cologne City". A scientific accompaniment by the "Cologne Cologne Central Center" - a cooperation between the University of Cologne and the Aachen basic assets - ensures that the measure is also subjected to a thorough evaluation. Students analyze the temperature developments in the areas with and without flags with the help of installed measurement stations. The aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of the shading elements and thus gain knowledge that could also be important for further measures in the city center. Because even if the Cologne measurements focus on local conditions, they could serve as a model for similar projects in other cities.

climate protection in Cologne

But the white flags are not the only measure in Cologne against climate change. Climate protection includes far -reaching steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The average German citizen is currently producing around 9 tons of CO2 emissions per year, while the finish should drop to 1.5 tons per capita and year. To achieve this, profound changes in the usual ways of life, energy supply and consumption behavior are necessary. Everyone can act in a climate-like manner through simple measures in everyday life: be it through the use of renewable energy sources or climate-friendly mobility such as bus, train or bike, so is emphasized on stadt-koeln.de.

The importance of the greening of the city

Another important aspect to improve the city climate is greening. In times of climate change and increasing temperatures in cities, this has become more important. Green areas reduce so -called heat islands and increase the quality of life through noise reduction and fine dust binding. Plants not only help with the absorption of pollutants and the production of oxygen, they also promote biodiversity by creating habitats for a variety of plant and animal species. Project, as in Cologne, show that the integration of shade -giving elements is important and must be carefully planned and cared for.

The long -term goal of the people of Cologne is to establish the Hohe Strasse as a high -quality entrance with a high quality of stay. In 2022, the "Mission statement for the Hohen Straße and Schildergasse trade" was adopted, which divides the two shopping streets into six ecologically and aesthetically designed quarters. This vision will not only be important for the local population, but could also serve as a pattern for other cities that are interested in similarly climate protection -promoting measures. In addition, the continuous integration of green areas into urban planning could make a large contribution to reducing the surface temperature and increasing the quality of life in urban rooms.

The Cologne city center is at a turning point - there is really something. With a combination of creative ideas and scientific analysis, the city is jointly worked towards a climate -based future model.