Save on cooling

In most places people dress according to the conditions, but not everywhere. Japan has a strong tradition that bind businessmen to the same dress code all year round, winter and summer. But five years ago the government launched a cool biz-campaign with the slogan “no jacket, no tie”. The campaign was aimed at saving energy on air conditioning as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Japanese summer is extremely warm and damp, but this does not stop businessmen from turning up in a vest – because of social etiquette. The official cool biz-period lasts for four months, from June to September, and participating public offices and private companies do not push the thermometer under 28 degrees. South Korea’s Ministry of Environment and the British Trades Union Congress have had their own cool biz-campaigns since 2006.

In some of the world’s biggest economies, such as the USA, China and India, it is expected that consumption from air conditioning will triple by 2030, according to the McKinsey/Vattenfalls Climate Map. American houses are now on average twice as big as European ones, and almost eight out of ten are equipped with air conditioning.