Brown is beautiful: what Namibia’s capital Windhoek can teach African cities as they get hotter and drier

Many African cities have started drawing up climate plans .

These promise cooler streets, urban forests and green roofs on buildings.

This urban climate adaptation has become an urgent priority.

Windhoek , Namibia’s capital, is a fast-growing city spread across hills and valleys.

Its suburbs stand alongside expanding informal settlements.

But life in this dry city is becoming harder.

Rainfall is low and unpredictable and temperatures rise as high as 40°C.

Sparse vegetation and heat-absorbing roads and buildings make parts of the city even hotter.

Read more: African cities and climate change: the real debate is who should pay to fix the problem Similar conditions are found in other dry cities, including Gaborone in Botswana .

The city experiences intense heat, scarce water and regular droughts.

Sudden heavy rains can also cause flash floods.

Limited vegetation makes the heat even worse.

We are landscape architects who design towns and cities to work with nature rather than against it.

Nature-based solutions are central to our work.