The UN Economic Commission for Europe has estimated that, by 2050, the world’s population will reach about 9 billion — 70 percent of whom will live in cities, which equates to adding 235 cities the size of Paris. This, combined with rising global temperatures, will result in a boom in demand for cooling devices such as air conditioners and refrigerators and a corresponding surge in energy demand, which will create additional impacts on the climate. Currently, air conditioning and refrigeration cause 10 percent of global CO₂ emissions, which is three times the total emissions attributed to aviation and shipping, and still an estimated 1 billion people lack access to cooling.

To spur action and leadership in increasing access to affordable and sustainable cooling solutions, Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) has launched a Cooling for All initiative and Global Panel to drive it. As the only industrial company on the panel, Danfoss will be represented by Jürgen Fischer, president of Danfoss Cooling.

“Cooling has a powerful influence on our life and health; it keeps our food fresh and safe to eat, helps make vaccines available throughout the world, and keeps our homes and offices comfortable,” commented Jürgen Fischer. “All people should have access to these essentials. But we need to take it a step further by providing cooling in a sustainable way that tackles global warming at the same time. Danfoss looks forward to contributing our deep knowledge in this field and helping speed up implementation of energy-efficient and clean solutions.

In the Cooling for All Global Panel, Danfoss will work together with other high-level leaders from business, policy and academia. The panel will be led by two co-chairs: President Hilda Heine of the Marshall Islands, and Dr. Vincent Biruta, Minister of Natural Resources for the Republic of Rwanda.

Rachel Kyte, Chief Executive Officer of SEforALL and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for SEforALL, will act as secretariat for the Global Panel. She said: “As temperatures soar, cooling demands risk creating a significant increase in energy demand, which, if not managed through super-efficient technologies or clean sources, will cause further climate change impacts and a rise in emissions. The work of the Global Panel will, therefore, be critical to develop the evidence we need to understand the challenges and opportunities of providing cooling access for all.”

Together, the Cooling for All panel will develop a comprehensive report which outlines recommendations and evidence for how to accelerate the uptake of solutions that create sustainable cooling access around the world. The report is expected to be published in 2018.

The panel’s work will, for the first time, create a direct intersect between three international agreements: the Paris Climate Agreement, the Sustainable Development Goals, and the Montreal Protocol’s Kigali Amendment — with one of the key goals of the amendment being to limit consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), a potent greenhouse gas widely used in air conditioners and refrigerators.

John Galyen, president of Danfoss North America, commented, “At Danfoss, we continue to invest in technologies that improve the efficiency levels of cooling technologies through our Application Development Centers in order to combat rising energy costs and CO₂ emissions, and improve productivity. “

Other panel members include:
Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Program; Erik Solheim, Executive Director, UN Environment; Dan Hamza Goodacre, Executive Director, Kigali Cooling Efficiency Program; Kate Hampton, CEO, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation; Veerabhadran Ramanathan, Distinguished Professor of Climate Sciences, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego; Maria Neira, Director, Public Health and the Environment Department, World Health Organisation; Tina Birmbili, Executive Secretary to the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and its Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer; Iain Campbell, Managing Director, Rocky Mountain Institute; Kurt Shickman, Executive Director, Global Cool Cities Alliance.