Towards climate-resilient social housing: thermal comfort assessment and renovation guidelines in the Brazilian mixed-dry climate zone

Social Housing (SH) provided by the Brazilian Minha Casa, Minha Vida (MCMV) program often exposes residents to thermal stress and poor living conditions due to inadequate adaptation to the local climate. Self-built renovations that increase housing density exacerbate these issues by restricting natural ventilation and solar radiation, which in turn heightens thermal discomfort, energy demands, and health problems. This paper presents a climate resilience assessment of horizontal SH units from the MCMV program using the Resilience Ruler (RR), a Post-Occupancy Evaluation (POE) tool that measures resilience based on users' thermal comfort on a scale from 1 (not resilient) to 5 (very resilient). Conducted in a mixed and dry climate zone, represented by the city of Uberlândia, MG, Brazil, the analysis revealed an average resilience score of 2 (little resilience) for bioclimatic design and residents' climatic adaptability, highlighting priority areas for intervention. The study expands the understanding of the relationship between modifications in horizontal SH and climate resilience based on human thermal comfort. Furthermore, it provides renovation guidelines aimed at strengthening climate resilience in housing, making relevant contributions to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 11 and 13. The research reinforces the importance of methodologies such as POE in supporting more effective design and management practices in SH, particularly in the face of global climate change challenges.