From the Clean Energy Ministerial

The third Clean Energy Ministerial of 23 leading countries was held in London late April.  Leaders from the 23-government Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) and the UN Secretary-General’s Sustainable Energy for All initiative (SE4All) have given their backing to a renewed push to increase energy efficiency worldwide.

Meeting at the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM3) taking place in London this week, they outlined specific commitments by participating countries and private sector leaders which will promote improved energy efficiency, renewable energy technologies, and increased energy access around the world.

Both the CEM and the Sustainable Energy for All initiative seek to improve energy efficiency, but also to increase the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix, and ensure access to energy.

Sixteen governments already participating in the Super-efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD) initiative renewed their enthusiasm to work together and with the private sector to accelerate global progress on improving the energy efficiency of equipment and appliances.

They announced a new public-private partnership, the Efficient Product Promotion Collaborative, being set up to help make better use of the billions of dollars spent globally on appliance efficiency programmes each year, including a new program targeting super-efficient fans in India.

Several CEM participants are also involved in cross-cutting initiatives, including 11 countries that agreed to bolster with up to $1 million over three years the Clean Energy Solutions Center, which was launched last year at the second CEM.

It is a $15 million Internet-based technical assistance project jointly led by Australia and the United States in partnership with UN-Energy, with 10,000 users from 150 countries who have access to 1,300 clean energy policy resources, including policy and deployment data, online trainings and webinars, and policy assistance consultations.

The US also announced a national Women in Clean Energy programme, in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), as part of its commitment to the Clean Energy Education & Empowerment Initiative (C3E).

Over 20 senior professional women in clean energy will act as ‘C3E Ambassadors’, an awards programme which recognises individuals who have advanced women’s leadership and their accomplishments.

Italy and the US announced the launch of Lighting India, which will bring modern lighting services to two million people by the end of 2015.

Also at CEM3, Denmark, Germany, and Spain released a global renewable resource atlas that maps the potential for solar and wind energy across the world.

This includes plans to assess the cost-effectiveness of those resources in different countries, based on energy prices, project finance costs, and available incentives.

The US also launched a beta version of the Global Rooftop PV opportunity map in cooperation with the Clean Energy Solutions Center. The map highlights the potential commercial market for rooftop solar.