On December 5, within the framework of the COP28 Conference in Dubai (UAE), the Announcement Ceremony of the "Global Cooling Pledge" took place. Viet Nam is one of the first 63 countries to join the Commitment.
The announcement ceremony was attended by Mr. Sultan Al Jaber, President of COP 28; Ms. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP); Mr. John Kerry, US Special Presidential Envoy on Climate Change and representatives of 63 member countries.
Every year, nearly a third of the world’s population suffers from deadly heat waves that last more than 20 days. Cooling activities help reduce health problems caused by heat, and at the same time, play an essential role in a number of other important areas such as food preservation, distribution or vaccine distribution. However, conventional cooling activities, such as using air conditioning, cause more than 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions and are one of the causes of climate change. If left unmanaged, energy demand for space cooling will triple by 2050, leading to increased greenhouse gas emissions. The more humans cool, the warmer the Earth will be.
Ms. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) spoke at the event
The Global Cooling Commitment is an initiative proposed by the UAE’s COP28 Presidency. Supporting organizations are the Alliance for Enhancing Cooling Efficiency – UNEP and partners including the Sustainable Energy for All Initiative (SEforALL) and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). According to the set goal, the global cooling sector must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 68% by 2050 compared to 2022, in order to contribute to keeping the global average temperature increase at 1.5 percent. °C and is consistent with the target of achieving net zero global emissions by 2050.
Speaking at the announcement ceremony, Ms. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), emphasized that countries must act immediately to ensure the cooling sector grows in a low-emission direction. Solutions are available, focusing on energy efficiency. Deploying sustainable cooling offers the opportunity to stop global warming, improve the lives of hundreds of millions of people and save huge financial sums.
Mr. John Kerry, US Special Presidential Envoy on Climate Change, expressed his support for the Commitment and hoped that countries would jointly set out a roadmap to reduce emissions related to cooling in all fields, At the same time, increasing access to sustainable cooling systems. Committed to actively contribute to the implementation of the Kigali Amendment and Supplement on the Elimination of HFCs within the framework of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. Mr. John Kerry called on countries that were still on the outside to join the Kigali Amendment. For participating countries, it is necessary to further promote the implementation of commitments and speed up the implementation of sustainable cooling activities. Rapidly eliminating HFCs and greenhouse gases will contribute to achieving global climate goals.
Mr. John Kerry, US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Change, spoke at the event
UNEP predicts that improving efficiency and increasing access to sustainable cooling solutions could help more than 1 billion people adapt to climate change and reduce energy transition costs by $3.5 trillion. 2030. Effective, sustainable cooling can help countries eradicate poverty, reduce food loss, improve health, manage energy demand and respond to climate change.
Viet Nam is one of the countries most severely affected by climate change. Currently, about 38% of the population lives in urban areas. The demand for cooling equipment in Vietnam has increased significantly in recent years. In fact, unsustainable cooling will consume a lot of energy and fuel in urban operations and increase greenhouse gas emissions. Implementing effective management of the cooling sector to limit the leakage of substances that cause greenhouse gas emissions to the environment, combined with sustainable, climate-friendly cooling solutions will contribute to improving efficiency. Use energy, save electricity costs. Changing cooling technology also helps Vietnamese industries, sectors, businesses and households improve economic efficiency, sustainable production, increase competitiveness and open up many new business opportunities. , contributing to job creation and socio-economic development.
Viet Nam’s participation in the Global Cooling Commitment is an opportunity to implement cooperative programs and projects with international organizations, domestic and foreign businesses on sustainable cooling. Specifically, converting to high energy efficiency technology, using refrigerants with low global warming potential, applying passive cooling solutions, nature-based cooling… in accordance with general trend of the world. This also contributes to implementing international treaties and Vietnam’s legal regulations on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and protecting the ozone layer. The content of the Global Cooling Commitment is consistent with the orientations in the Viet Nam Sustainable Development Strategy, the National Climate Change Strategy for the period up to 2050 and the updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).