Exploring Urban Air and Heat in Griesheim
As part of her ongoing research in the project “Technonatural mediations of urban airs“, Malve Jacobsen conducted fieldwork in Griesheim, a town near Darmstadt, to explore how residents sense and perceive urban air quality and heat. The visit was combined with the local Climate Action Day (Klima-Aktionstag) on September 13, an event focused on urban development, structural measures, and public engagement. Malve’s research combined a survey and informal conversations with residents, as well as participating in a guided walk through the planned “Klimaquartier“—a living lab set to begin in 2026. The city government aims to address both measures on climate protection (e.g. energy efficiency, emission reduction) and climate adaptation (e.g. urban greening, heat mitigation). Citizen participation is central to the project’s realization. Malve will provide scientific guidance and continue her empirical research in the course of the living lab.
Malve asked residents how they experience air and heat in their daily lives, what they expect from climate-focused interventions in the city, and how they view the upcoming transformation of their neighborhood into a model climate district. So far, it appears that air quality is often not consciously noticed by residents, while heat is deeply felt, especially during heatwaves. Also, the often-mentioned tension between trees and parking spaces emerged as a highly politically charged topic, with competing interests in Griesheim. During her stay, Malve also revisited the “Grünes Zimmer”, a vegetated installation designed to cool urban spaces, reduce traffic noise, improve air quality, and more broadly, create a public space for social interaction. She observed the current condition of its plant-covered and moss-based walls—a living experiment in bioclimatic design.
This fieldwork offers a grounded insight into how urban atmospheres are felt, governed, and co-produced, and how climate futures are negotiated not only through policy but also through everyday life and action.
