Statement from IIR Director General at UNIDO Sustainable Cooling Forum

UNIDO Director General, Mr. Muller,

Chief Officer of the MLF, Ms. Birmpili,

Executive secretary of the Ozone Secretariat, Ms. Seki,

Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
 

Thank you to UNIDO, and specifically the climate division, for bringing us together at this unique platform to accelerate addressing the global challenges, and sharing solutions related to the refrigeration sector.
 

Let me start with two simple realities:

Refrigeration, or artificial cooling, is at the heart of major global challenges, including food security, public health, human wellbeing, energy security and is now also essential to respond to the rising energy demand of digital infrastructure, all while supporting climate action. The other reality is that we are living in times where multilateral cooperation is being tested, it is essential that we strengthen our solidarity and get closer together. The Montreal Protocol and its Kigali amendment stand as a powerful example of what can be achieved through international cooperation, demonstrating that when we are united for a shared purpose, there is no limit to what we can accomplish. The active and sustained engagement of countries around this sector is not only important, it is indispensable.

 

Demand for cooling is rising rapidly. In many regions, it is already exceeding our capacity to respond sustainably. The good news is that technology is not the barrier. The technologies exist and are ready to be deployed. The bottlenecks are well known: lack or non harmonised standards, fragmented regulations, shortage of skills, lack of systems thinking, limited access to finance, and, at times, a gap between the policymaking world and the science and technology landscape. Addressing these challenges in an integrated manner through a system thinking approach is key to accelerating sustainable and equitable access to cooling.
 

Innovation, driven by advances in science, is already delivering more energy-efficient cooling solutions.  Improvements in equipment design such as oil free compressors, variable speed drives, thermal  integration and the ability to recover and reuse energy for the combined delivery of cooling and heating, are making cooling technologies more efficient and more versatile. At the same time, greater use of renewable energy, thermal energy storage, along with clear guidance for the efficient operation and maintenance of equipment, is helping to strengthen these gains. To fully realise these benefits, robust and harmonised energy performance standards are essential. They help guide deployment, ensure that efficiency gains are achieved in practice, and accelerate the transition to more sustainable cooling solutions.

 

Among low GWP solutions, natural refrigerants, including CO₂, ammonia, and hydrocarbons, are no longer niche. They are proven, widely deployed, and scalable across many applications. From the perspective of the International Institute of Refrigeration, which brings together global scientific and technical expertise in the refrigeration sector, these solutions are already available and ready to scale, and the real question is what technologies do we need? For a specific application and for a specific climatic zone, as there is no one size fits all solution, and the answer is provided by scientists and technology experts.

 

Scientific information is essential to guide effective decision-making and ensure that solutions are both relevant and impactful. But knowledge alone is not enough. We need much stronger connections between those who generate knowledge and those who apply it. In this context, The IIR plays a key role in connecting knowledge with action, advancing refrigeration science and providing independent, evidence-based scientific insights translated into actionable technical guidance, grounded in real-world applications. This means bridging the gap between the scientific community and policymakers, in close collaboration with implementing agencies such as UNIDO whose outstanding work on the ground is instrumental in turning policy into action.

 

The IIR considers it essential to broaden and strengthen this collaboration across all levels of government and sectors, including environment, as well as energy, health, agriculture, and industry, and not limited to those, reflecting the truly cross-cutting nature of cooling.

 

Efforts should not be fragmented, they must be coordinated and aligned and adopting an inclusive approach, if we want to move at the pace required.

 

In that spirit, the IIR stands ready to further strengthen its role as an active partner, working alongside those who share the same vision and recognise the essential role of scientific evidence. We see very concrete areas where collaboration with UNIDO and all partners can make a difference:

• Strengthening sustainable cold chains
• Supporting the deployment of energy-efficient and climate-friendly cooling technologies
• Building capacity and sharing knowledge to accelerate the adoption of natural refrigerants
• Promoting technical standards, best practices, and regional cooperation
• Reinforcing thematic regional centers, technical standards and best practices
• Bridging the gap between science, policy, and implementation for practical, real-world solutions

 

The objective is simple, not just to deploy solutions, but to deploy the right and feasible solutions, at scale, and with long-term impact. We already have much of what we need. What we need now is speed, coordination, and clarity and the IIR stands ready to contribute to this effort, not only with knowledge, but with action.

 

Thank you, and I wish you all a very productive and successful forum.