Context

In a warming world, access to sustainable cooling is not a luxury; it is an issue of equity. Currently, over 1 billion people living in poor rural and urban areas are at the highest risk level due to a lack of access to cooling. Heatwaves kill 12,000 people per year today, a number that will rise to 255,000 by 2050 unless we adapt to the threat.

Rising temperatures also pose a threat to our food and healthcare systems. The ability to keep vaccines and medicine cool is critical to ensuring people’s well-being and an equitable global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cold chains can help farmers earn higher incomes, create jobs, and reduce malnourishment – all while drastically reducing emissions from what is equivalent to the 3rd largest global emitter: food wastage.

Sustainable solutions are needed to cool people and goods without causing a massive spike in electricity demand, which would jeopardize our ability to achieve SDG7 and the Paris Agreement.

Sustainable cooling solutions include: 

• Efficient and climate-friendly cooling devices and services that are affordable, reliable and use environment-friendly refrigerant gases. 
• Passive cooling solutions, which include a broad range of building materials and natural solutions that reduce indoor air temperatures. 

Cooling needs we support:

• Comfort: human comfort and safety
• Food: agriculture and food production and logistics cooling
• Health: medical cold chains and healthcare facility cooling

Activities

• Provide knowledge and data to understand progress towards achieving Cooling for All, including our Chilling Prospects series 
• Bring awareness to sustainable cooling solutions with the #ThisisCool communications campaign, the Cooling Solutions Directory and Cooling for All Solutions Tool. 
• Support government and development partners to mobilize finance and expand access to cooling with policy and technical assistance.
• Work with the Global Panel on Access to Cooling and manage the Cooling for All Secretariat in support of access to cooling initiatives.

Key partner initiatives 

Clean Cooling Collaborative (formerly K-CEP) is an initiative of ClimateWorks Foundation focused on increasing access to climate-friendly cooling.

Cool Coalition together with partners works to support the global transition to efficient and climate-friendly cooling through advocacy, action and knowledge exchange. 

Fair Cooling Fund is an initiative of Ashden that supports ambitious project scaling up the impact of frontline fair cooling solutions.

Global Cool Cities Alliance is supporting a transition to cooler, healthier cities, including through the Million Cool Roofs Challenge.