reporter
Name Affiliation Title Makoto Kanekawa Counselor and Section Chief, Team 3, Urban and Regional Development Group, Social Infrastructure Department
summary
Date: November 19, 2025
Organizers: United Nations Environment Programme, Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction (GlobalABC), Cool Coalition
Name of venue (pavilion name)：Buildings and Cooling Pavilion
speaker
Name Affiliation Title Chuop Paris Secretary of State, Ministry of Environment, Kingdom of Cambodia Kazunao Shibata Deputy Director General, Global Environment Department and Head of Environmental Management and Climate Change Group, JICA Luong Quang Huy Deputy Director General, Climate Change Department Greenhouse Gas Emissions Management and Ozone Layer Protection, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Socialist Republic of Vietnam Director, Energy and Climate Policy, Department of Sustainable Environment, Republic of Singapore Calvin Chong Director, Energy and Climate Policy, Department of Sustainable Environment, Republic of Singapore Zulfikar Yurnaidi Director, Energy Modeling and Policy Planning, ASEAN Energy Centre HY William Chan Special Advisor, ICLEI, former Sydney City Councilor and Chair, Transportation, Heritage, Environment and Urban Planning Committee Montserrat Bodadilla EBP, Co-Chair, CEELA, Chile Hubert Nsaw Zan, Assistant Manager, Ghana Energy Commission * Gennai Kamada, Associate Specialist, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
Background and Objectives
As the year 2024 will be the hottest year in recorded history and global temperatures continue to rise, passive cooling, which makes it possible to create energy-efficient, comfortable, and healthy homes that rely as little as possible on mechanical air conditioning, is currently attracting worldwide attention. Mechanical air conditioning already accounts for 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and if no action is taken, it could reach 6.1 billion tons by 2050, accounting for more than 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This trend is particularly pronounced in emerging and developing countries, where urbanization and population growth are increasing. According to the Cool Coalition of the United Nations Environment Programme, the introduction of passive cooling, which minimizes reliance on mechanical air conditioning, could reduce cooling demand by 24% by 2050, saving US$1.5 to 3 trillion in new equipment costs and At COP28, more than 70 countries including Japan supported the Global Cooling Pledge, and in 2024 the UN Secretary-General issued a “Call to Action on Extreme Heat,” calling for the promotion of passive cooling worldwide. The importance of passive cooling is increasing. In addition, it has been confirmed among more than 70 countries that international collaboration will be promoted to promote passive cooling through the Scheio Declaration in 2024.
The purpose of this session is to allow government representatives and practitioners from various countries to share knowledge and accelerate the spread of passive cooling.
Contents
Keynote speeches and panel discussions were held by representatives of developing countries actively engaged in passive cooling projects. JICA introduced a demonstration experiment of passive cooling in the country. Through thermal simulation of a model house, an energy-saving and comfortable natural ventilation system was developed, and the findings are now being reflected in the country’s design standards and guidelines. He also introduced an example of social implementation in which a climate classification map developed by collecting and analyzing climate data specific to Indonesia was officially adopted by the Indonesian government. He also reported on his participation in the ASEAN Passive Cooling Advisory Group led by the United Nations Environment Programme and the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE), where he is actively contributing to the development of a passive cooling roadmap for the region while sharing his knowledge in Indonesia. He emphasized that JICA is committed to promoting passive cooling and contributing to the creation of green, resilient, and inclusive buildings and cities. Some of the other speakers also stated that climate change countermeasures will not be able to keep pace unless passive cooling is urgently made the new normal, and the importance of JICA’s support in this area was reemphasized.
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