Bridging the Climate-Housing data Gap connecting city needs with Earth Observation solutions

Housing authorities worldwide face a critical information gap: they must decide where to invest in climate-resilient housing, which neighbourhoods to prioritise for retrofit, and how to protect vulnerable residents from heat and flooding, often without the neighbourhood-level data needed to make those decisions well. Research shows informal settlements locate in climate-vulnerable areas due to affordability, not habitability,meaning conventional climate risk mapping often misses where adaptation is most needed. This networking event brings together two groups who rarely meet: city practitioners struggling with these decisions, and the Earth observation community with data and tools to help. Rather than showcasing technology, the session surfaces user needs first, then explores whether global datasets on building stock, heat exposure, flood risk, and settlement patterns can genuinely inform local housing decisions. The session directly addresses Dialogue 4: The Climate-Housing Nexus, responding to WUF13 Background Paper findings that 167 million homes will be lost to climate impacts by 2040 and that substandard housing makes communities inherently vulnerable in extreme weather events. Session structure (90 minutes): Part 1 – User Perspective (25 min): City practitioners and housing authorities share decisions they face, information they lack, and barriers encountered. Facilitated Q&A draws out priority needs from the audience. Part 2 – Solutions Showcase (25 min): Rapid presentations from the Earth observation community responding to articulated needs - heat and flood risk mapping, building stock data, informal settlement monitoring -framed as potential responses, not finished products. Part 3 – Matchmaking Discussion (30 min): Interactive session connecting specific user needs with potential solutions. Participants identify where capabilities match needs and where gaps remain. Live polling captures priorities for follow-up. Part 4 – Next Steps (10 min): Key takeaways, invitation to join GEO's Resilient Cities Working Group, and commitment to post-WUF13 follow-up. What makes this session different:Unlike traditional panels, this session enables two-way exchange. We hear from users before providers. We facilitate concrete matchmaking rather than abstract discussion. And we commit to follow-up: participants connect to ongoing GEO initiatives working on these challenges, ensuring the 90 minutes in Baku catalyse partnerships that continue beyond the Forum