COP28: Pledge to Cut Emissions Caused by Cooling Signed by 63 Countries
On Tuesday, the United Nations Environment Programme-led (UNEP) Cool Coalition published its Global Cooling Watch report on the impact of carbon emissions from cooling technology, such as air conditioning and refrigeration for food and medicine, at the United Nations Climate Summit in Dubai (COP28).
The report outlines three areas of importance in transitioning to sustainable cooling: “passive cooling, higher-energy efficiency standards, and a faster phase-down of climate-warming refrigerants.” The release also supported the Global Cooling Pledge, a framework developed in collaboration with COP28 host, the United Arab Emirates.
The pledge, signed by 63 countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, commits signatories to cut emissions caused by cooling by 68% by 2050.
Population growth, urbanization, and climate change-induced temperature change are expected to make access to cooling even more critical, especially for developing nations in Asia and Africa, where 1.2 billion people still lack access to reliable cooling technologies.
John Kerry, the US climate envoy, told COP28, “we want to lay out a pathway to reduce cooling-related emissions across all sectors but increase access to sustainable cooling.”
According to UNEP’s report, introducing the recommendations is expected to reduce emissions from “business-as-usual cooling” by 3.8 billion metric tons by 2050, with reduced power costs and power generation investment requirements amounting to $22 trillion in total savings.
In support of the Global Cooling Pledge, COP28 President Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al-Jaber stated:
“As temperatures rise, it is critical that we work together to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions from the cooling sector while increasing access to sustainable cooling. This access is essential for the most vulnerable communities, who have often contributed the least to climate change but are the most exposed to its impacts.”
