Abstract:
Urban heat is an increasingly critical but unevenly experienced consequence of rapid urbanization and climate change, particularly in cities of the Global South. This study examines how the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect shapes livelihood vulnerability among informal workers in Islamabad, Pakistan. Despite being a planned city, Islamabad has experienced intensified thermal stress due to land-use change, expansion of impervious surfaces, and growing climatic variability. The research investigates how these environmental conditions intersect with socioeconomic precarity to affect work, health, and adaptive capacity within the informal economy. The study adopts a qualitative research design, drawing on in-depth semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and field notes collected from informal workers in the G-9 sector, including street vendors, daily wage laborers, construction workers, and service providers. To contextualize lived experiences, remotely sensed climate data from Google Earth Engine; MODIS, and Copernicus datasets were used to characterize land surface temperature, air temperature, humidity, wind speed, and cloud cover during the period of fieldwork. This environmental data was used for contextualization and triangulation rather than as a standalone analytical method. Findings show that UHI-related heat and weather variability compound existing vulnerabilities by disrupting income generation, reducing productivity, damaging perishable assets, and intensifying health risks. Limited access to healthcare, absence of formal labor protections, and regulatory harassment further constrains adaptive capacity of these workers. Coping strategies are predominantly informal and short-term, relying on social networks, borrowing, improvised heat mitigation, and spiritual resilience. Integrating Urban Metabolism and Vulnerability theories, the study demonstrates how urban environmental processes translate into unequal social and economic outcomes. The findings highlight the need for climate-responsive urban planning and inclusive adaptation policies that address the specific risks faced by informal workers in rapidly urbanizing cities.
