Coimbra Polytechnic University (UPCoimbra) will lead a European project to make cities more climate-resilient through sustainable rainwater management.

Over three years, partners will map existing solutions, deploy monitoring systems in several cities, collect and analyze environmental data, validate new sustainable drainage materials, and develop decision-support tools to produce technical and policy recommendations for European uptake.

The project aims to show that city planning and construction can be rethought to integrate water management, climate adaptation, waste valorization, and the creation of more resilient urban spaces beyond pure technology.

Global investment in the project exceeds one million euros.

UPCoimbra’s team is multidisciplinary, spanning urban hydraulics, artificial intelligence, geotechnics, environment, and geographic information systems, among others.

The project is named ResSuDSCita – Resilient and Sustainable Drainage Systems for Cities, focused on evaluating and optimizing sustainable urban drainage systems and green infrastructure that mimic natural water cycles.

Joaquim Sousa, UPCoimbra project coordinator, notes that urban challenges are intensified by climate change, urbanization, and heat island effects, underscoring the need for integrated water-management solutions.

The 36-month project involves partners from Portugal, Greece, Poland, Hungary, and Sweden, with Águas de Coimbra participating to support the implementation and monitoring of pilot solutions.