Historically, Middle Eastern cities were built on plateaus above the desert floor and streets were oriented such that prevailing winds cooled them. That plus other design decisions helped keep streets at tolerable temperatures during the day, even when it was above 100 degrees Fahrenheit out on the desert floor.
We have forgotten how to do that kind of thing, but that doesn't mean it cannot be done. There is a lot we can do to mitigate urban heat island effect and use design to make even our outdoor public spaces pedestrian-friendly in terms of local weather.
I run r/UrbanForestry. It's brand new and we are likely to talk about passive solar design at the city level as part of what we do there. I already mentioned the thing I stated above about Middle Eastern cities. You are welcome to join us there.
Some terms that may be helpful in a search: Iranian vernacular architecture; desert vernacular architecture; passive solar.
It is something I hope to put more information together on, but one challenge is that I imagine a lot of primary source materials from that region of the world are not in English and I never learned any of the major languages of that area, like Farsi and Arabic.
I do occasionally speak with Middle Eastern planners and the like and ask them questions, but I haven't yet hit pay dirt in a big way. My recollection is that articles about Iranian architecture have generally been the most useful and promising so far. Iran was previously known as Persia and it is one of the older cultures on the planet and has a rich history.
We have forgotten how to do that kind of thing, but that doesn't mean it cannot be done. There is a lot we can do to mitigate urban heat island effect and use design to make even our outdoor public spaces pedestrian-friendly in terms of local weather.