The Clean Cooling Network (CCN) is a globally integrated programme to make cooling and cold-chain critical national infrastructure.
Our mission is to accelerate the delivery of sustainable, resilient and equitable cooling and cold-chains in the developing countries of the world, harnessing them to improve food security and resilience, as well as social, One Health, environmental, and economic goals - locally and globally.
"How do we unlock the Global South's agricultural potential to feed itself and the world whilst also economically empowering smallholder farmers and making them climate-resilient … all without using diesel?"
The Programme in Action
We aim to provide the tools, knowledge, training, and support throughout The Programme to deliver inclusive, equitable, and future-proofed cooling and cold-chain solutions with minimum environmental impact.
It's time to start reframing cooling as critical infrastructure because many communities lack access to reliable, sustainable cooling, and the consequences of this are far-reaching. Including:
- Inequality continues across working environments
- Food spoils before it reaches markets
- Vaccines and medicines degrade in transit
- Extreme heat threatens lives and livelihoods
- Farmers lose income, and supply chains break down
Clean Cooling Academy
Educational and professional development courses covering topics such as the cold-chain, refrigeration, and GESI, aimed at enhancing the skills of an individual or workforce.
Training at CCN
Educational and professional development courses for you and your workforce.
Upcoming Academy courses
Foundation in Cold-chain - Niarobi, Kenya
1st to 5th December 2025 Niarobi, Kenya
African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS), who are partners of the Africa Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Cooling and Cold- chain (ACES) invites applications for its next upcoming Foundation in Cold-Chain Training programme.
Foundation in Cold-chain - India
15th to 19th December 2025 HACE, Haryana
A state-of-the-art and first-of-its-kind Haryuna-UK Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Crop Post-Harvest Management and Cold-Chain (CoE-SPMCC) is being established in Panchkula, Haryuna.
By Degrees Magazine
Expert comment and analysis from the Clean Cooling Network, opening up the discussion around clean cooling, cold-chain, energy transition, policy-making, community engagement, climate change, and much more.
By Degrees discussions
By Degrees Magazine aims to promote, explore and stimulate debate around the role of cooling as critical infrastructure, ensuring societal well-being, economic stability, and public health; adapting and mitigating the impacts of extreme heat to climate change.
In a By Degrees article, A Cool World: Accelerating the journey to Sustainable Cold-Chain for the Global South, Dr Tim Fox explores the importance of clean cooling solutions, the barriers to progress and the roadmap to a cool world - also to be explored at our upcoming conference: Sustainable Cold-Chain for the Global South.
In another By Degrees article, Building Africa’s Resilience through Cold-Chain Training for Global Health, ACES’s One Health team, Jean Pierre Musabyimana, Hugor Shema and Ariane Mutabaruka discuss how the cold-chain is the silent backbone to global health, and how its failure can mean the difference between life and death. This is one of the plenary topics to be discussed at the Sustainable Cold-Chain for the Global South conference too.
Recently published
Optimising the Vaccine Cold-Chain for Resilient Immunisation in Africa
We are helping to pioneer climate-smart and data-driven approaches to optimise vaccine cold-chain performance and strengthen One Health resilience.
Our communities
Discussion groups, available for all CCN members, that provide access to relevant cooling and cold-chain content and support.
CCN communities
Join The Clean Cooling Community of Practice for Mapping the food system - Towards efficient post-harvest management.
It explores the fresh produce supply chain, identifying the most critical loss points, and aims to develop strategic interventions to mitigate these inefficiencies.
The CoP is led by Dr. Carol Verheecke-Vaessen and Dr. Tobi Fadiji at Cranfield University.
Our other communities include:
+50°C Community of Practice
Join the Living in a +50°C World Community of Practice to discuss these important issues, attend events and contribute!
The future of cooling in the Global South
Over the next three years, our global reach is planned to continue, driven by our team of more than 80 researchers and experts and our industry leaders, international development agencies, and government partners. Take a look at our first Centres of Excellence established in Africa and India.
Africa
ACES is housed on a five hectare campus with an adjacent 200 hectare farm in Kigali, Rwanda. Collaborative research, new equipment testing, and the development of knowledge training programmes and robust business models takes place here.
India
To establish the CoE, the state government has allotted ca. 15 acres (6 ha.) of land within the premises of the Directorate of Horticulture (DoH) at Panchkula, Haryana. Test laboratories, demonstration facilities, a community cooling hub, training centre and incubation hub will all be available.
Get involved
Whether you're shaping policy, building systems, or supporting communities, we invite you to explore our resources, connect with our partners, and help make clean cooling accessible to all.
Become a member
Join the network for free:
- Cooling and cold-chain resources
- Expert chats and debates
- Cooling news, events & webinars
- Support and much more
Annual Review 2024/25
A pivotal year for the Sustainable Cooling and Cold-chain Solutions Programme. Our annual review is now available for members to download.
