Funded by the Fritz Thyssen Foundation, the project “Assessment of Heat Protection from the Perspectives of Health and Legal Sciences: Health Requirements and Legislative Action Needs” brings together an interdisciplinary network of experts in law, public health, and public administration. The project investigates how health risks arising from extreme heat can be assessed, which constitutional duties of protection result from these risks, and to what extent existing legislation already fulfils these obligations.

Building on a comprehensive analysis of the legislative need for action, the project aims to develop health science-based legal policy recommendations – including a proposal for a potential Heat Protection Act.

Initial findings confirm that extreme heat constitutes a serious and largely unavoidable public health risk. From a constitutional perspective, three key state duties of protection emerge: the obligation to mitigate climate change, to ensure proactive climate adaptation, and to provide effective emergency protection for the population. Many current regulations on heat protection are merely advisory and not legally binding. A systematic analysis of the relevant provisions at both federal and state levels is underway. The findings of this evaluation will be presented in a comprehensive monograph, scheduled for publication in mid-2026.

The project runs from June 2025 to July 2026