← Rihaan Sodhani

Animal Welfare

Urban Heat Map for Stray Animals

Heat Map

Screenshot of the heat relief map: Bandra, Khar and Santacruz with hotter-than-average zones in red, cooler zones in green, and numbered suggested water bowl locations
Open the Heat Map

Water Stations

I collaborated with PAL Foundation and Senior Police Inspector Sudhir Kudalkar to place 10+ water bowls in the highest-risk zones.

Rihaan giving water to two street dogs at a water bowl An orange and white cat drinking from a steel water bowl on a pavement A crow drinking from a concrete water bowl Rihaan with three street dogs beside a water bowl outside Jio World Centre A tabby cat drinking from a concrete water bowl A striped palm squirrel drinking from a concrete water bowl

Urban Heat Mapping for Stray Animals: A Pilot Study in Bandra, Khar and Santacruz, Mumbai

Executive Summary

The urban heat island effect has resulted in significantly increased temperatures in cities such as Mumbai compared to nearby rural areas. This heat burden poses a serious, largely unaddressed risk to street animals, which face increased risks of dehydration and heatstroke. However, water bowl placement for street animals today is driven by informal, volunteer-led effort rather than any data-informed assessment of where heat exposure is greatest. Hence, this project addresses this gap, using Landsat 8 satellite thermal imagery and geospatial safety screening to develop a reproducible methodology for identifying water bowl placement locations. The study has been piloted across Mumbai’s H/West and H/East wards, but the methodology can be expanded to cover a larger region. Using land surface temperature data from March–May 2025, the pilot identified elevated-heat zones aligning with major roads and railways, while cooler regions lay in residential areas near the coast. 14 candidate locations were identified for potential intervention, screened against hazardous areas, including railways, roadways, and water bodies; the number of water bowls can be set based on ward animal population data or available implementation capacity. These points recorded a mean surface temperature 2.08°C above the pilot area’s overall average, confirming the methodology reliably targets genuine thermal hotspots. The outputs of this study are intended to serve organisations such as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Non-Governmental Organisations, and local animal welfare organisations to guide heat action planning or volunteer-led placement.

Read White Paper
Conflict to Coexistence

Conflict to Coexistence is a curriculum that helps students understand animal body language, practice safe interactions, and develop empathy towards community animals. I’ve presented to 1,000+ students in collaboration with 10+ schools and NGOs, mentoring 5+ students to continue the initiative.

Partner Organisations

  • Pali Chimbai Municipal School
  • Kudilal Govindram Seksaria Sarvodaya School
  • Kudilal Govindram Seksaria English School
  • Aseema Charitable Trust
  • Umang Foundation
  • Agastya Foundation
  • Thinksharp Foundation
  • Sahara Charitable Trust
  • Children’s Hope India
  • Centre for the Study of Social Change

Curriculum

Rihaan presenting a slide titled Who Lives Here to a classroom of students Rihaan speaking with a microphone in front of a slide on what to do when you see an injured animal Rihaan sitting on the floor with children as they work on drawings Rihaan presenting to a classroom at a municipal school Students raising their hands to answer a question during a session A full classroom of students after a Conflict to Coexistence session Rihaan with children holding up their drawings of a city designed for animals and humans Rihaan with a group of children holding their drawings above their heads

Student Work

“Imagine a city designed for both animals and humans to coexist.”

Coloured drawing of houses with a dog kennel and a birdhouse in a tree Drawing of a zebra crossing a road at an animal crossing Pencil drawing of a street with animal crossing and no honking signs Drawing of a city with a play house, water supply, medical centre and cat and dog shelter Drawing of an animal house with a cat, a dog, dog food and water Drawing of a dog house with dogs, a water pot and dog food, and a speech bubble saying please don’t give us pain Drawing of a medical centre, water tap, and cat and dog houses

“Leave out food or water for a street animal.”

A student offering water in a small steel bowl to a street dog A student leaving biscuits and a water bowl for a street dog beside a parked car

Workbook

Cover of the workbook Conflict to Coexistence: A guide to Living with Animals in the City Rihaan holding the workbook beside a teacher in a school library Rihaan and a fellow volunteer handing copies of the workbook to two students The spiral-bound workbook on a school library shelf
Read the Workbook
Fundraising
  • Raised $3,300+
  • Running the Tata Mumbai Marathon in support of World For All Animal Care and Adoptions for 4+ years
  • Recognized as a Young Leader, with commendation from George Aikara, CEO of United Way of Mumbai
  • Helped establish Healing Haven, a canine rehabilitation shelter near Karjat that provides long-term care for 210+ dogs suffering from paralysis, blindness, epilepsy, and other conditions

Tata Mumbai Marathon

Rihaan walking the Tata Mumbai Marathon route wearing a World For All T-shirt Rihaan holding a World For All Animal Care and Adoptions banner with his finisher medal Rihaan with his medal in front of the Tata Mumbai Marathon 19 January 2025 board Rihaan holding a World For All sign, wearing a bib reading Running for a Cause

Healing Haven

The gate of the World For All shelter with its sign The two-storey Healing Haven shelter building Caretakers feeding dozens of dogs outdoors on the hillside near Karjat Three dogs resting together on the shelter floor Two dogs standing in front of a kennel at the shelter Dogs eating from bowls in a corridor at the shelter A room of shelter dogs, some resting and some walking around