Improving the thermal climate of schools in semi-desert climate : A case study of solutions in La Guajira, Colombia

Abstract: As the climate changes, hot regions like La Guajira's semi-desert will become even hotter. It is projected that the average temperature in this region will increase by 2.4 ℃ over the course of this century, with a 20 % reduction in precipitation. To ensure that these areas remain habitable in the future, implementing technical solutions will be necessary to mitigate the impacts on the people living there. A field study assessed the thermal comfort at a school in Manaure, which experiences excessively high temperatures that exceed international standards for good thermal comfort. Through subjective and objective data collection, the field study concluded that the school's thermal climate would negatively impact at least 83 % of the students. The study also found that the surface temperature of desks not exposed to sunlight reached a temperature of 43 ℃. To improve thermal comfort, three potential solutions were explored. Isolating the roof reduces incoming radiation and prevents excess heat from warming the structure. Increasing the ventilation rate helps dissipate hot air, and planting trees creates a cooler supply air temperature. Two of the three measures were implemented, and the tree-planting project is ongoing. Temperatures were measured on the roof, walls, desk and floor during a hot day. Together with a survey to students and teachers to evaluate the absolute temperature and the experienced thermal comfort. The results demonstrated that isolating the roof and installing a solar chimney on the classroom's roof can significantly lower the operative temperature to 36 ℃ and 35 ℃, respectively. These improvements can improve learning by 25 % due to better thermal comfort compared to a classroom that has not been modified. As a bonus, the acoustics were also improved in classrooms, resulting in a lower echo level. Overall, the study demonstrated that it is possible to significantly improve the thermal comfort of classrooms in semi-desert regions, even those without access to electricity. An added benefit is that these solutions have a low installation cost and no operational costs. However, further research is needed to determine the impact of heat on children and whether these measures will improve their learning outcomes.