News

Cairo, Egypt, 19 January 2023 ‒ There is a growing need for females to join the ranks of air- conditioning and refrigeration (RAC) technicians. A training workshop recently organized by the Government of Egypt and the United Nations OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP) better prepared women for advancement in the field and revealed the unique challenges women face.

Nominations of Customs and Enforcement Officers from Bulgaria, China, France, Georgia, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Lithuania, Malaysia, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Spain, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, as well as the European Commission and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), have been validated

The following story from Zambia is an extract from the booklet 'Women in the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry."   STORY BY YOLANDA DEMBEDZA It is not always easy or even possible for a woman to choose a career in a male-dominated weld. One thing I have learnt is never to underestimate yourself; you can be who you want to be as long as you stay positive because the sky is the limit.

The following stories from Zambia are an extract from the booklet 'Women in the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry."  

14 December 2022, Paris. France -- The World Customs Organisation (WCO) has just announced the successful outcome of Operation DEMETER VIII, a coordinated enforcement action that aims at intercepting illegal shipments of hazardous waste, especially plastic waste, as well as ozone depleting substances (ODS) and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

The following stories from Vanuatu are an extract from the booklet 'Women in the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry."  

UNEP Executive Director's speech at the 91st Meeting of the Executive Committee of the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol, Montreal Canada, 5-9 December 2022Mr. Hassan Ali Mubarak, Chair of the Executive Committee, Mr. John Thompson, Vice-Chair, distinguished members of the Executive Committee of the Multilateral Fund, Colleagues from implementing agencies and other organizations,

Colleen Keyworth was appointed President for the year 2023 with Dr. Ina Colombo-Youla as President-Elect to serve the following year.   Paris, 30 November 2022 – Formed this year, the International Network for Women in Cooling (INWIC) has appointed its first President and President-Elect. Colleen Keyworth was voted in by the board as President to serve as of 1 January 2023 with Dr. Ina Colombo-Youla as President-Elect to succeed her in 2024.

Coral Coast, Fiji, 3 November 2022 – National Ozone Officers from the Pacific Island Countries (PICs) met in Fiji for their Network Meeting from 10-12 October 2022 to prepare countries to meet the hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) freeze from 1 January 2024, while sustaining hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) phase-out.  Back-to-back with this meeting was the training workshop of new National Ozone Unit (NOU) staff held from 13 - 14 October 2022. The purpose of this workshop was to strengthen the capacity of NOU staff to implement the Montreal Protocol.

Chiang Mai, Thailand, 6-7 October 2022 ‒ Twenty-one new National Ozone Unit (NOU) staff (female 11, male 10) in the South-Asia (SA) and Southeast Asia (SEA) Networks met on 6-7 October 2022 in Chiang Mai, Thailand to learn how to connect their day-to-day activities with the legacy of the Montreal Protocol.

Chiang Mai, Thailand, 6 October 2022 ‒ National Ozone Officers (NOOs) in the South-Asia (SA) and Southeast Asia (SEA) Networks met from 3-5 October 2022 in Chiang Mai, Thailand to do some forward thinking about the sustainability of Montreal Protocol implementation.

The following stories from the United States of America are an extract from the booklet 'Women in the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry."  

Paris, 28 October 2022 – ASHRAE and UNEP OzonAction are pleased to announce the opening for submissions for the 2022 Lower GWP Refrigeration & Air-Conditioning Innovation Award until the closing date, 31 December 2022.

Nairobi, Kenya, 5 October 2022 – After nearly three years of not meeting physically due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Anglophone, and Francophone National Ozone Officers (NOOs) of the Africa Regional Networks were physically reunited from 3-5 October 2022, in Nairobi, Kenya.

Prague/Cheb, Czech Republic, 23 September 2022 - As part of UNEP OzonAction’s Compliance Assistance Programme under the Montreal Protocol, European and Central Asian countries met in Prague / Cheb to learn from the Czech Republic’s Montreal Protocol experience and to share information on the preparation of HFC phase-down plans under the Kigali Amendment.

16 September 2022, BANGKOK ‒ On the occasion of World Ozone Day (16 September), which commemorates the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, UNEP and its partners are pleased to announce that 36 artists have won the “Asia Pacific Regional Ozone2Climate Art Contest.”  This competition, which took place over a one-year period, is designed to increase public awareness about the importance of the treaty for protecting human health and nature and to generate further support for the Protocol’s compli

MONTREAL PROTOCOL@35 - GLOBAL COOPERATION PROTECTING LIFE ON EARTH Marking International Day, Secretary-General Says Montreal Protocol’s Success Protecting Ozone Layer Powerful Example of Multilateralism in Action

The following stories from the United Kingdom are an extract from the booklet 'Women in the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry."   STORY BY HAYLEY ANN BILLSON

1 August 2022, Chongqing, China ‒ The 11th Ozone2Climate (O2C) Technology Roadshow and Industry Roundtable was jointly organized by the Foreign Environmental Cooperation Center, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, China(FECO/MEE) and the China Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry Association (CRAA), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), as part of the 33rd International Exhibition for Refrigeration, Air Conditioning, Heating and Ventilation, Frozen Food Processing, Packaging and Storage (CRH 2022), one

The Asia Pacific Regional Ozone2Climate Art Contest (O2C Art Contest), launched on the World Ozone Day, 16 September 2021 by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Asia and the Pacific Office, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the National Ozone Units (NOUs) in Asia Pacific in partnership with Mahidol University, aims to engage the general public, particularly youth to call actions and raise awareness for the protection of ozone layer and mitigation of climate change through a visualization of artwork in three categories- 🎨 drawing, 

Beirut, Lebanon, 15 July 2022 ‒ The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), West Asia Office, in collaboration with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization  (UNIDO) and the National Ozone Unit (NOU) of the Syrian Arab Republic, organized a successful two-day workshop from 23-24 June 2022 in Beirut, Lebanon, for the manufacturing sector of Refrigeration, Air-Conditioning (RAC) and thermal insulations in Syria on alternative technologies and data verification for the investment components of the HCFC Phase-out Managemen

Amman, Jordan 8 July 2022 – The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP) West Asia, met with Jordan’s Government officials and representatives from institutions in Amman, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan from 28-30 June 2022, to review the ongoing projects, activities, and achievements within th

17-19 July 2022, Bangkok, Thailand ‒ After conducting business through computer screens for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ozone Officers of the Asia and Pacific countries were enthusiastic to meet in-person for the first time in Bangkok, Thailand from 17-19 July at the Joint Meeting of the South Asia (SA), Southeast Asia (SEA) and Pacific Island Countries (PIC) Networks of National Ozone Officers.

The following stories from Togo and United Arab Emirates are an extract from the booklet 'Women in the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry."   STORY BY AGBAVOR YAWA MAWULI, TOGO In 2004 I enrolled at the CRETFP (regional centre for technical education and vocational training) to receive training in refrigeration and air-conditioning (RAC) and two years later obtained my qualification.