1. Context: cities and climate change

The sixth report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicates that human activities, in particular greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, have caused global temperatures to rise by 1.1°C over the decade 2011-2020 compared with the period 1850-1900 . These rapid environmental changes, which affect not only the atmosphere but also the oceans, cryosphere and biosphere, are having an impact on the global climate, particularly in terms of extreme events. Extreme events can have many adverse consequences for ecosystems, people and infrastructure. Observations and climate models suggest that the geographical distribution of extreme...