Climate change governance requires a comprehensive assessment of how policy strategies may affect individuals and communities. However, policy development and implementation often downplay aspects of social (in)equality or even run the risk of increasing them. To close this gap, SENSUS examines options for Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for urban heat stress, critically questions implementation practices and searches for solutions to foster NbS in a way that advances both urban resilience and social equality. In a broad interdisciplinary setting, the project applies quantitative and qualitative models and methodologies. Based on an examination of the demands and possibilities of different adaptation options for the City of Vienna, it aims to increase our understanding of how societal aspects as well as unintended consequences and trade-offs, such as gentrification or housing policies disfavouring already marginalized groups, can be integrated into the design of according policies. The comprehensive systemic approach guarantees new insights into a widely underexposed dynamic, namely the link between NbS and social equality in urban environments. The project team will disseminate its findings to a wider circle of relevant stakeholders and interest groups. Thus, the outcomes will not only be an important contribution to scientific debates, but also help to improve the governance and management of climate change risks in Vienna’s as well as other cities’ urban planning.