The final consortium meeting of the SophiA Project took place in Karlsruhe, Germany, on 17–18 September 2025. Partners, researchers, and stakeholders gathered to reflect on the project’s achievements and to discuss future perspectives for advancing sustainable healthcare solutions across Africa.
Day 1 – Vision, Technology, and Policy
The meeting opened with Professor Michael Kauffeld (HKA), who reminded participants of refrigeration’s life-saving role in preserving temperature-sensitive health products. Speakers then presented the technologies integrated in the SophiA containers all designed to provide carbon-neutral energy, clean water, and reliable cooling to rural hospitals in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi, and Uganda.
Representatives from hospitals and ministries followed by sharing their experiences with SophiA installations. They reported significant improvements, including reliable access to clean water, safer conditions for surgery and sterilization, reduced infant mortality, functional kitchens with lower energy costs, and improved working conditions for healthcare staff. They also underlined the importance of training and local manufacturing as key elements for long-term sustainability.
Training and capacity building were at the heart of the next session. From Training of Trainers to summer schools, SophiA created strong knowledge-sharing platforms across Africa and Europe. Testimonies from technicians, students and ministries highlighted how these initiatives empower local communities, encourage the adoption of natural refrigerants, and ensure system durability.
The day concluded with a session on policy recommendations. Partners discussed challenges encountered during implementation, such as administrative hurdles and sourcing components, and presented policy briefs to support the wider adoption of sustainable, off-grid technologies.
Dowload the presentations below :
| Session 1 | Session 2 | Session 3 | Session 4 |
Day 2 – Collaboration, Funding, and Future Generations
The second day opened with presentations from coordinators of sister projects including SESA, ENERGICA, REFFECT AFRICA, and SteamBioAfrica. Discussions emphasized the importance of cross-project collaboration and the value of building a common evidence base to scale sustainable solutions.
Funding and post-project perspectives were then addressed. Philippe Schild (European Commission) highlighted the strategic role of African demonstration sites in EU projects. Léonard Lévêque (LGI) introduced the LEAP-RE funding scheme and the upcoming AU-EU 2025 call for collaborative projects on sustainable energy. Rasmus Larsen (Sustainia) shared insights on how effective communication can help attract funding. Francisca Rodrigues (IIR) presented the potential of extending SophiA’s financing beyond EU support through the carbon market, drawing on its greenhouse gas reduction capacity.
The Leaders4Future session focused on the next generation of professionals. Monique Baha (IIR) presented on women in refrigeration, drawing from the IIR’s CARE initiative and its global database of over 1,300 women professionals. She also emphasized the urgent need to train young technicians to replace an aging workforce. Heike Hoedt (Simply Solar), Kirsten Laaks (Everflo (Pty) Ltd), and Sneha Shakya (HKA) shared their personal experiences as women engineers in the sector. The session closed with the presentation of awards and certificates to early-career leaders, women in cooling, and Train-the-Trainers participants, celebrating the human capacity built during the project.
Dowload the presentations :
| Session 5 | Session 6 | Session 7 |
The event concluded with a Steering Committee meeting and discussions on the prospects of a future “SophiA II” project, ensuring continuity and further development of the momentum achieved.
Throughout the two days, the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR) conducted interviews with participants, capturing their reflections on SophiA’s impact. These interviews will be shared soon so stay tuned !
