Plus Fraîche Ma Ville

Summary

As heatwaves intensify, Plus Fraîche ma Ville provides local authorities with solutions to cool urban spaces: from streets and parking lots to schools and roundabouts. The platform categorizes actions into green (vegetation), blue (water management), grey (materials and shading), and soft (urban planning and engagement) solutions. Beyond technical guidance, Plus Fraîche ma Ville supports municipalities through its Project Builder space, where they can find tools to assess the causes and impacts of urban heat, simulate budgets, find funding, and connect with partners. Through its Call for Expressions of Interest, the service also provides expert assistance and practical tools to help cities implement effective cooling strategies for more resilient urban environments.

Host organisation: Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME) 

Launch date: March 2023

Update status: Ongoing

Funding: The service was developed by ADEME through its Accelerator for Ecological Transition incubator, with the support of Beta.gouv, the French government initiative that fosters the creation and testing of innovative digital public services.

Team: The Plus Fraîche ma Ville service is led by Elodie Briche, intrapreneur and R&D Coordinator at ADEME, with the support of a multidisciplinary team specializing in development, design, deployment, and content creation. The platform’s strength lies in its close collaboration with local decision-makers and key partners, who co-create and continuously enhance the service to meet the evolving needs of municipalities in their fight against urban heat.

Main functions

• Various types of solutions tailored to urban spaces
• Details for each solution, including costs, timeframes, and temperature impact
• Diagnostic tools to assess urban heat causes and effects
• Webinars and resources on urban heat reduction strategies
• Save and organize favourite solutions for future planning
• Database of completed projects with real-world examples of successful cooling initiatives
• Budget simulation tool to estimate project costs
• Search tool for available funding to support urban cooling projects
• Project directory with contacts for municipalities and service providers.

Intended audiences

• City and regional-level decision-makers / local government
• Public and private stakeholders in urban cooling

Why the platform was established

The platform was established to maintain urban overheating at a reasonable level, provide municipalities of all sizes with access to necessary knowledge, and first-level decision-making free support. In June 2023, Plus Fraîche ma Ville became a key action of the national heatwave plan, further strengthening its role in helping cities tackle urban heat challenges effectively.