Heat Action Day: Welfare Association and Churches Demand Better Protection for Homeless People During Extreme Heat

Bösing also pointed out that the health burden of many affected people further exacerbates the situation: "Hinzu komme, dass viele Obdachlose gesundheitlich bereits stark belastet seien." This makes them part of a group that suffers particularly from the consequences of heat waves.

According to the churches, heat is now the greatest climate-related health risk in Germany. The church districts of Mecklenburg and Pomerania are calling on their congregations to take part in the nationwide Heat Action Day with the "Kühle Kirchen" ("Cool Churches") campaign. During the summer, church buildings are to remain open on hot days to offer people a place where they can escape the heat.

150 Organizations Consider Germany Insufficiently Prepared

"The advantage of the houses of worship lies in their thick walls. They often keep the heat out significantly better than many residential buildings," the appeal states. Senior citizens, pregnant women, families with small children, and people without fixed residence are to benefit particularly from the offer. According to this, the consequences of extreme heat can be particularly severe for older people, children, pregnant women, and the chronically ill.

The background to the debate is the observation that heat waves are occurring more frequently, lasting longer, and becoming more intense. On the occasion of Heat Action Day, more than 150 organizations from healthcare, nursing, welfare, and civil society point out that Germany has so far not been sufficiently prepared for extreme heat. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania has had a municipal heat protection plan since last year, "dieser ist bislang jedoch nicht Teil des Katastrophenschutzes".

Tips for Hot Days

The Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania One World state network is calling for heat protection measures to be firmly anchored in civil protection. To this end, the network poses fundamental questions: "Wie reagieren Krankenhäuser auf eine große Zahl hitzebedingter Notfälle?" and "Was geschieht, wenn Pflegeeinrichtungen evakuiert werden müssen?" The nationwide day of action is therefore intended to help raise awareness about the consequences of heat waves and to advance the expansion of protective measures.

At the same time, the organizers provide concrete everyday tips to reduce the burden of heat. These include: ventilating rooms properly, moving air in the room, not setting air conditioning too cold, drinking plenty of water that is not too cold, eating light food, wearing airy clothing, using evaporative cooling, darkening south-facing rooms, taking lukewarm rather than ice-cold showers, not bathing in cold water for too long, and moving exercise to the morning or evening hours.

The initiative thus combines short-term help for vulnerable groups with the long-term demand to secure heat protection in Germany institutionally and financially. Whether and to what extent the appeals will translate into concrete federal and state programs initially remained open. The news was broadcast on June 11, 2026 on the Deutschlandfunk program.