For the first time, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP) on climate change, to be held in Dubai (United Arab Emirates) from 30 November to 12 December 2023, has made refrigeration (cold chain for food and health, air conditioning in particular) one of its priorities. The day of 5 December will be dedicated to refrigeration. To mark the occasion, a global cooling pledge will be launched, inviting governments to commit to reducing the impact of refrigeration on the environment as part of sustainable development. (Link soon available.)
As part of this initiative, the IIR has joined forces with the United Nations agencies and programmes that are partners in the Montreal Protocol, as well as with various public and private organisations and companies, to share a pavilion and hold workshops there over the two weeks. The IIR is organising five workshops, co-organising one and participating in several others:
- Sustainable air conditioning: 12/01/2023, 4:30-5:30 pm; Teams link to IIR Workshop 1
- Sustainable refrigeration practices in health systems (hospital, pharmacies, cold chain for vaccines): 12/03/2023, 9:30-10:30 am; Teams link to IIR Workshop 2
- What can INWIC do for women in cooling? (jointly with UNEP and OzonAction): 12/04/2023, 02:00-03:00 pm. Link soon available.
- Empowering youth in cooling and building of local skills: 12/08/2023, 04:30-05:30 pm; Teams link to IIR Workshop 3
- Leapfrog to a sustainable agricultural cold chain in low-income economies: 12/10/2023, 10h45-11h45 am; Teams link to IIR Workshop 4, with the presentation of a new publication entitled “Walk-In Cold Rooms: A Practitioner’s Technical Guide”. More information about this guide (soon available).
- Increasing the frozen food storage temperature from -18°C to -15°C; pioneering global change within the cold chain: 12/10/2023, 12:00-01:00 pm; Teams link to IIR Workshop 5
