A Human-Water Systems Perspective on Vegetation Cooling and Water Constraints in Arid Regions

Urban greening is widely promoted as a heat adaptation strategy, yet its effectiveness for cooling in arid, water-stressed regions remains uncertain from an ecohydrologic perspective. In arid regions, where water scarcity and rising temperatures converge, popular greening strategies warrant critique. I present research that identifies gaps in dominant public narratives, such as the presumption that trees are the most effective vegetation for cooling, and that examines dynamic constraints like soil moisture and water availability. This research adopts a co-production model that engages stakeholders – such as water utilities, community groups, and educators – and treats their input as knowledge sources with relevance equal to that of the scientific literature. I propose that early and ongoing stakeholder engagement can reshape scientific questions, reframe data collection and methods, and generate novel insights that are inherently more actionable.