Dubai Funds 7 Heat-Fighting Innovations Reaching 6M People

Seven innovators from five countries just won funding to tackle one of climate change's most dangerous threats: extreme heat that's making parts of our planet nearly unlivable.

Expo City Dubai Foundation selected these projects from over 1,000 applications spanning 84 countries. Each winner receives up to $100,000, plus technical support and connections to scale their solutions across Asia, Africa, South America, and the Middle East.

The winning ideas showcase how local wisdom meets cutting edge technology. Morocco's Ecodome Maroc revives ancient building methods using local materials to create heat-resistant bricks for rural communities. Egypt's Visenleer transforms ocean waste and seaweed into cooling textiles that lower temperatures in public spaces.

India's solutions tackle heat from two angles. Mercredi Solutions converts leftover wheat straw into nutritious animal feed, helping livestock survive brutal heat waves while supporting farmers. Meanwhile, Fuselage Innovations flies drones over crops to detect heat stress before it destroys harvests.

Technology plays a starring role in several projects. Resilience AI developed real-time heat mapping that shows exactly where cooling centers and interventions are needed most. Nigeria's Moon Innovations deploys solar powered systems bringing refrigeration for food and medicine to vulnerable communities cut off from reliable electricity.

Even waste becomes a climate solution. Peru's Greendeal transforms non-recyclable plastic destined for landfills into heat-resistant construction panels, solving two environmental problems at once.

The Ripple Effect

This eighth cohort joins a program that's already supported over 200 entrepreneurs from 97 countries. Together, they've reached more than six million people with climate solutions that work in the real world, not just on paper.

The foundation has been nurturing these innovations for nearly a decade, starting in 2016. That patient investment is paying off as extreme heat becomes one of humanity's most urgent challenges.

What makes these projects special is their dual focus: they protect people from heat while creating jobs and strengthening local economies. A farmer using heat-resistant animal feed doesn't just save livestock. They preserve their family's livelihood and their community's food supply.

The judges included representatives from Emirates Airline and energy company ENGIE, bringing practical business perspective to evaluating which innovations could truly scale. Their selections prioritize solutions that communities can actually afford, maintain, and adapt to local conditions.

Yousuf Caires, Executive Director of Expo City Dubai Foundation, emphasized the collaborative spirit driving the program. "These projects hold immense potential across a range of industries," he said, noting that even in uncertain times, purposeful action must continue.

The overwhelming response proves that innovation thrives when given support. From seaweed textiles to drone analytics, the future of heat resilience is already being built by entrepreneurs who refused to accept extreme temperatures as an unsolvable problem.