Abstract

Cities are increasing in temperature at an exponential rate, with major influences of rapid urbanization, heat-trapping materials, and climate change. This creates what is known as Urban Heat Islands (UHIs), with common urban construction materials retaining more heat than natural materials, causing increased baseline temperatures in cities. To mitigate these effects by tracking patterns and trends of heat, remote sensing (RS) technologies have been used to examine changes in land surface temperatures (LST), absence, or influx of green spaces, tracking daytime and nighttime heat changes, and more. This study aims to combine these two phenomena, with the inclusion of the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF), a known policy theory claiming that four streams of consideration in the political sphere—the problem, policy, politics streams, and policy (agenda) window—can answer the question of, “How do varying levels of remote sensing integration into city urban heat island analysis affect stream coupling and policy advancement in UHI mitigation, as understood through the Multiple Streams Framework?” To see whether higher levels of RS integration into UHI create sufficient policy advancement in the eyes of the Multiple Streams Framework, a content analysis with three coding passes is used, aimed to see if policy documents pertaining to heat have better stream coupling and policy windows occurring. The study showed that higher levels of RS integration tend to overlap with stronger problem stream recognition and targeted policy instruments, while the relationship between RS and policy development is layered and complex.

Advisor

Lantis, Jeffrey

Second Advisor

Goharipour, Hamed

Department

Political Science; Urban Studies

Disciplines

Comparative Politics | Emergency and Disaster Management | Environmental Policy | Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation | Policy History, Theory, and Methods | Public Policy | Urban Studies and Planning

Keywords

remote sensing, urban heat islands, multiple streams framework, coupling

Publication Date

2026

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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