Level A1 – BeginnerCEFR A1
2 min
78 words
- Painting walls in light colours reduces indoor heat.
- Insulating roofs well keeps home rooms cooler in summer.
- Use medium-sized windows to control heat and light.
- Align buildings with the sun's path for shade.
- Researchers test design options with computer simulations for houses.
- They study five cities in Latin America to compare.
- Cities include Rio, São Paulo, Santiago, Bogotá and Lima.
- The best materials are common and low cost.
- Passive design uses natural ventilation, shading and direct sunlight.
Difficult words
- climate — Weather conditions over time.
- change — To make something different.
- problem — A situation that needs a solution.
- housing — Homes or places where people live.
- design — The way something is made or arranged.designs
- materials — Substances used to make things.
- studied — Looked closely at something to learn more.
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- How does climate change affect people?
- Why are cheaper designs better for many people?
- What other solutions can help with housing problems?
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Low-cost cooling could help Bangladesh garment workers
A University of Sydney study, published in The Lancet Planetary Health on Monday (20 October), tested simple low-cost cooling in a chamber that mimicked extreme factory heat. Fans and water partly restored productivity; a reflective roof cut indoor temperature by 2.5°C.