The activities of CaRe, the IIR working group on careers in refrigeration

CaRe, the new IIR working group dedicated to promoting careers in refrigeration to the younger generation and particularly women, has organised two events at the ICCC2018 conference in Beijing: an informal networking session to link leading academics and industry experts with students, and a presentation by Catarina Marques from Adande Refrigeration of a paper entitled: CaRe: IIR working group with emphasis on women in Refrigeration. The research carried out by the IIR demonstrates the current status of women representation in the industry. The figures obtained from national refrigeration associations show that women, on average, make up only 6.1% of their members.

During networking sessions, Don Cleland from Massey University in New Zealand was briefly interviewed for CaRe. He explained what attracted him to refrigeration and why he chose to develop his career in this field. The video will be published on the CaRe Facebook page, so watch out for it.

The general view is that refrigeration is an exciting career to be in, but there is a need to improve its image to the general public and increase its visibility. The participants, who came from six different countries, were enthusiastic about the event, and enjoyed sharing their experiences of working in the sector.

Kristina Widell, a research scientist at SINTEF, said that refrigeration is a hot topic in Norway, and pointed out that we will always need food, energy and sustainability. Julia Panzer, director of strategic communication at Danfoss Cooling, highlighted the importance of reinforcing the big picture to an audience. For instance, rather than saying this equipment has these features, it is much more effective to say that it is used to cool food, or people and the planet!

Language is key in engaging a new generation of apprentices, engineers and researchers. Gender and cultural diversity will enhance the industry, which will face new challenges on the road to becoming more energy-efficient and sustainable. The need for role models is especially important to attract more women into refrigeration.

OzonAction, in cooperation with UN Women, is launching a global initiative to raise awareness of the opportunities available in the  refrigeration and air conditioning sector. They are seeking short stories about women working in the sector. If you are interested in applying, the deadline to submit your application is the 31^st July 2018. Please check the website below for more information.