Nairobi, Kenya – 1 November 2025 — The World Cold Chain Symposium (WCCS) convened global experts, industry leaders, and policymakers at the UNEP Headquarters in Nairobi, ahead of the 37th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol. Organised by the Global Food Cold Chain Council (GFCCC) in partnership with UNEP OzonAction and Carrier, this…
Training of Trainers Workshop From 23 to 27 June 2025, Makerere University hosted a comprehensive Training of Trainers workshop to establish a skilled pool of technicians for system maintenance and repairs. Participants were selected from diverse backgrounds including recent engineering graduates, university technical staff, Buvuma District officials, and electricians from Kampala. Training Modules Day One:…
Transforming Rural Healthcare with Sustainable Energy Solutions The Sustainable Off-Grid Solutions for Pharmacies and Hospitals in Africa (SophiA) Project has successfully commissioned an innovative solar-powered facility at Buvuma Health Centre IV, marking a significant milestone in improving healthcare access for off-grid communities across Africa. The Launch Event On 30 September 2025, the Vice Chancellor of…
Access to reliable healthcare remains a challenge in many rural parts of Africa, where limited electricity and clean water compromise medical services. The Horizon 2020 SophiA project has spent the past years tackling this issue head-on, providing solar-powered solutions designed specifically for remote healthcare facilities. Transforming rural healthcare with solar energy Across sub-Saharan Africa, roughly…
On 16 September 2025, prior to travelling to Gambia for the ESEF 2025 mission, the Director General of the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR), Yosr Allouche, made a strategic stop in Dakar, Senegal. The visit aimed to engage with key Senegalese stakeholders who have shown strong interest in the outcomes and future collaboration opportunities of…
The SophiA project has entered an exciting new phase in Cameroon with the official inauguration of its sites, marking an important step in strengthening sustainable medical refrigeration in the country. Launch ceremonies have already taken place at the PVMEDPORT sites of Ekekam (9 September 2025) and Nomayos (11 September 2025), with the Edea site inauguration…
The SophiA project was presented at the 10th edition of the West African Sustainable Energy Forum (ESEF 2025), organised by the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE). The event took place on 18–19 September 2025 at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Center in Banjul, The Gambia, marking not only a…
The SophiA project has reached a major milestone with the official inauguration of the container installed at Mua Missionary Hospital in Malawi. This event marks a turning point for the facility, which now benefits from sustainable energy and technology solutions dedicated to support healthcare services. In the days leading up to the ceremony, Olivier Schmid…
Following the conclusion of the two-day SophiA final meeting, participants enjoyed an enriching excursion on Friday to BITZER Headquarters and the SCHAUFLER Academy. The visit provided an exceptional opportunity to deepen their practical knowledge of refrigeration technology and safety practices. The day began with a warm welcome at BITZER Headquarters, where Volker Stamer presented an…
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…
During a SophiA Training the Trainers session in Karlsruhe, participants from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi and Uganda shared the latest updates on national efforts to phase-out HCFC R22. The EU-funded “Sustainable Off-grid solutions for Pharmacies and Hospitals in Africa” (SophiA) project concluded on a final event on September 15-19, 2025, in Karlsruhe, Germany. The…
The World Refrigeration Day (WRd) is celebrated every June 26 to raise awareness about the importance of refrigeration and air conditioning in modern society. The 2025 edition, themed “Pierce the Bubbles,” promotes responsible and sustainable technology choices in the cooling sector to ensure the well-being of present and future generations. In Cameroon, the event took…
On the occasion of World Refrigeration Day in Cameroon, and as part of its ongoing mission to strengthen healthcare infrastructure and foster collaboration, SophiA presented by Ina Colombo from the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR) carried out a series of strategic visits in Cameroon. These engagements included hospital tours, institutional presentations, and meetings with key…
After participating in the project meeting (10-11 June) of the AGRI-COOL sister project in Vicenza, the IIR team travelled to Milan to take part in the 22nd European Conference, organised by Centro Studi Galileo on 12–13 June 2025 in Milan, Italy. This internationally renowned event brought together leading experts, researchers and industry professionals to explore…
On May 27–28, representatives of the SophiA project specializing in solar and cold chain technologies met in Rapperswil, Switzerland, with Dr. Bidjogo Atangana, Managing Director of the Ad Lucem Medical Foundation (Cameroon), Dr. Ina Colombo, Deputy Head and Coordinator of EU and international programmes at International Institute for Refrigeration (France). The discussions focused on finalizing…
We are pleased to share that Duc Dinh, Research Associate at the Institute of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Environmental Engineering (IKKU), Hochschule Karlsruhe, recently attended and presented at the 7th Conference of Electrochemical and Membrane Separations (E&MS 2025), held last week in Poland. More information about the event is available on the official website: https://emsp2025.pwr.edu.pl.…
SophiA participated to the final event of SESA and Energica, two of the Green Deal sister projects, titled: “Africa in Transition – a bright future for energy and local communities”. SophiA was represented by three partners: International Institute of Refrigeration, Institute for Solar Technology SPF – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences and Raach Solar.…
We’re proud to share that SophiA has been officially recognised as a European Green Deal success story on the EU’s Research and Innovation website! 🔗 Read the full article here: Transforming healthcare in rural Africa through sustainable energy solutions The article highlights SophiA’s innovative approach to improving healthcare in rural Africa using sustainable, solar-powered technologies.…
We are excited to announce that World Refrigeration Day 2025 will take place on June 26, 2025. This annual global event highlights the essential contributions of refrigeration to society, from ensuring access to safe food and healthcare to enabling sustainable cooling technologies. In this context, all pilot countries of the SophiA project are encouraged to…
📍 Location: Makerere University, Uganda 📅 Dates: June 10-13, 2025 As a proud partner of the SophiA project, Makerere University will host the upcoming Train-the-Trainers. This event will offer participants practical and theoretical training on solar-powered cooling systems using natural refrigerants, as well as skills in maintaining filter-based water treatment systems and solar heat…
ANSOLE’s 14th Anniversary International Online Conference (A2IOC 2025) & 1st WAITRO SDG7 Working Group Online Conference (WAITRO-WG7-25) Held on February 21-22, 2025, A2IOC 2025 and WAITRO-WG7-25 brought together global experts, researchers, and policymakers to discuss sustainable energy, innovation, and policy. Co-hosted by North-West University, South Africa, and Multimedia University of Kenya, the event partnered…
The University of Yaoundé hosted a landmark Capacity Building Workshop from January 20–24, 2025, focusing on SophiA’s innovative technologies. This intensive five-day program brought together 20 lecturers and researchers from universities across Cameroon, marking a significant step toward advancing renewable energy education in the region. A total of 35 participants attended the training over…
From January 20th to 24th, 2025 the second capacity building session for SophiA4Africa trainers will take place in Yaoundé, Cameroon! This second edition, organized by 2iE – International Institute of Water and Environmental Engineering of Burkina Faso and the Ministry of Public Health of Cameroon, will enable teaching and technical staff from the University of Yaoundé…
For the second time, the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR) took part in the ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum (ESEF), this year held on November 28-29 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. The IIR’s participation highlighted the significant progress made by its projects in the region, particularly in the fields of solar cooling, sustainable refrigeration, and strengthened partnerships…
From October 22 to 24, 2024, the SophiA consortium held its general assembly in M37 online. The project is steadily progressing and with just one year remaining, it is now entering its final phase. Launched exactly three years ago, the project aims to make meaningful advancements in healthcare access and sustainability at four demo…
The SophiA project has reached a significant milestone with the preparation of the arrival of its advanced refrigeration technologies at Mua Mission Hospital (MMH) in Malawi. This collaboration is an important step in SophiA’s mission to improve healthcare through sustainable, energy-efficient solutions. Mua Mission Hospital, established in 1911, is a non-profit health facility that…
Promoting African-European Cooperation in Renewable Energy Research and Innovation Kokouvi Edem N’TSOUKPOE from the International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering (2iE) actively participated in the LEAP-RE Stakeholder Forum 2024, held from October 6 to 12. The forum, a key event for fostering cooperation between the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU)…
The SophiA project took center stage at Chillventa 2024, the world’s premier exhibition for HVAC&R technology, held from 8-10 October 2024 in Nuremberg, Germany. This globally renowned event attracted around 1,000 exhibitors, who presented thousands of innovative products and cutting-edge solutions in the refrigeration, air conditioning, ventilation, and heat pump sectors. There, the IIR…
Global Students Gathered for the 3rd International Summer School on Sustainability at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (HKA) The 3rd International Summer School on Sustainability, held at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (HKA) from September 9 to 13, 2024, brought together 36 students from 13 countries to explore cutting-edge sustainability topics. This year’s event,…
On August 13th, 2024, Oliver Schmid, a third-year PhD candidate from Hochschule Karlsruhe (HKA), made made quite an impression at the 16th IIR-Gustav Lorentzen Conference on natural refrigerants. As the Technical Project Coordinator of the SophiA project, Schmid delivered a 20-minute presentation titled “SophiA: Sustainable Off-Grid Solutions for Pharmacies and Hospitals in Africa – Laboratory…
Kanchan Bohara, a researcher at the SPF Institute for Solar Technology, has received the prestigious Best Poster Award at the International Sustainable Energy Conference (ISEC) 2024. The event, held on April 10th and 11th at Messecongress Graz, Austria, brought together world experts in renewable heating and cooling within integrated urban and industrial energy systems. Kanchan…
From June 24-28, 2024, the 2iE Institute organised a capacity-building session for local technicians and engineers in Kombissiri and Léo, Burkina Faso. The training provided participants with an in-depth understanding of sizing techniques for solar cooling systems based on natural refrigerants, as well as skills in servicing and maintaining filter-based water treatment systems and solar…
June 27, 2024 will remain a memorable date for the Léo community, marked by the inauguration of an innovative sustainable refrigeration and water treatment system at the Dr. Sedogo Medical and Surgical Clinic. This event was organised by the 2iE Institute, attended by numerous local dignitaries, including Téwindé Isaac SIA, the High Commissioner of the…
The inauguration ceremony for the SophiA containers will be held June 27, 2024 at Leo Hospital Finally, after two and a half years of development, testing, installation, waiting for components, shipping, and customs, the first SophiA systems are installed at the Operieren Hospital in Afrika in Leo, Burkina Faso. Thanks to a dedicated and…
On 4 June, SophiA participated in a joint webinar alongside its sister projects REFFECT AFRICA, ENERGICA, SteamBioAfrica and SESA, all funded by Horizon Europe. Together, these projects are leading the European-African partnership to advance renewable and sustainable energy solutions across rural Africa. Michael Kauffeld, coordinator of the SophiA project, gave an overview of the project,…
Together with SophiA partners 2iE, Raach Solar and Simply Solar, SPF has prepared three inspiring days for the future SophiA trainers on solar technologies. Professors from the OST – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, study program in Renewable Energies and Environmental Engineering were also involved in this unique initiative aiming to empower future trainers…
The architect of the Léo Hospital, Francis Kéré, has won the prestigious 2024 Crystal Awardfrom the World Economic Forum. This award celebrates the achievements of leading artists who are bridge-builders and role models for all leaders in society. It is an excellent way of recognising Mr Kéré’s exceptional contributions to architecture and his commitment…
December was a busy month for the SophiA project! Sneha De, Duc Ngoc Dinh and Jan Hoinkis, from HKA, attended two events to present their paper: “Sustainable Off-Grid Technologies for Drinking and Deionised Water for Hospitals in Africa”. With a focus on SophiA’s water treatment process and its laboratory test results, the paper attracted considerable…
The SophiA project was at COP28 in Dubai from 30 November to 12 December 2023. The brochures and video presentations of the project, distributed and shown in the pavilion shared by the IIR and UNEP, were a great success and attracted many visitors. SophiA aroused great interest among the public! A workshop led by D.…
The first SophiA systems – the solar-powered cooling and clean water containers – are operational at Everflo in Cape Town, South Africa! From 9th to 16th of November 2023, Andreas and Lukas from SPF were at Everflo to set up, parameterise and commission the PV solar and battery system. In addition, the SCADA control…
From 2nd to 4th November 2023, the institute 2iE participated in the 3rd edition of International Exhibition of Air Conditioning and Refrigeration of Ouagadougou (SICRO). It was the perfect opportunity to present the SophiA project to the many visitors in attendance! Thanks to its booth, complete with brochures and a kakemono, SophiA was visible to…
On October 12 and 13, 2023 IIR, 2iE and SPF partners represented the EU-funded SophiA4Africa project together at the 8th edition of the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE) Sustainable Energy Forum ESEF 2023 in Praia (Cabo Verde). This year’s theme was “Strengthening sustainable energy in the ECOWAS region”. The event was…
The IIR International Congress of Refrigeration took place on August 21-25 in Paris. It was the perfect opportunity to present SophiA to the public! Various events were planned through the whole week. The IIR team held a booth with some SophiA prospectuses. The booth’s success gave strong visibility to SophiA’s roll-up banner. Oliver Schmid from…
The second edition of the International Sustainability Summer School is over! Forty students attended the summer school in Brașov, Romania, from July 24 to 28. It was organised jointly by two partners of the SophiA project, the Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (HKA) and the University of Applied Sciences of Eastern Switzerland (OST), and by…
From 24 to 26 June 2023, the World Refrigeration Day was held in Douala, Cameroon. This event was organised by the Association of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Professionals in Cameroon (APFCC) and the Union of African Associations of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Professionals (U-3ARC). This event, focusing on the theme “Refrigeration Speaks to Humanity,” emphasised…
SophiA at the ENRICH in Africa Center event On June 14th 2023, Kirsten Laaks, a Mechanical Engineer at Everflo was invited to the Inauguration ceremony of the ENRICH in Africa Center in Cape Town. She gave an opening speech about SophiA and Everflo, and she referred specifically to the Woman and Youth Led Initiatives. The…
SophiA at the Sustainable Places event SophiA participated in the Sustainable Places Conference from 14-16 June 2023. This year, the 11th edition of the Sustainable Places conference took place in Madrid, Spain, and online. Sustainable Places is a large platform bringing together actors from research and innovation projects contribution towards building sustainably: from energy…
SophiA participation to board of coordinators meeting in Brussels On the 5th of June, the SophiA coordinators were invited to the Green Deal Board of Coordinators meeting organized by the Green Deal Support Office (GDSO) in Brussels. At the beginning, it was made clear to the coordinators of the 73 EU-funded projects how important your…
SophiA consortium met in Cape Town Held from March 15 to 17, 2023, the 18-month SophiA progress meeting took place in hybrid format between South Africa and Germany. The majority of the SophiA consortium partners met in Cape Town, South Africa, in the facilities of Everflo, and those partners who could not travel joined the…
SophiA Water Technologies for Drinking and Deionised Water Poster Presentation The 40th Euromembrane Conference in Sorrento, Italy was attended by the Water Technology team of HKA from 21st – 24th November 2022. The Horizon 2020 EU funded project SophiA was presented by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jan Hoinkis, his team member Sneha De and SophiA’s advisory board…
COP 27 has marked the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the UNFCCC in Sharm El-Sheikh (Egypt) from 6-20 November 2022. SophiA was also theret! One of the main outcomes of COP27 is the establishment of a loss and damage fund to save livelihoods and support low- and middle-income economies qualified to be as the…
On 16-18 November 2022, the German Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Association (DKV) held its RACHP Conference in Magdeburg, which was attended by 114 participants. At the DKV Conference 2022, Oliver Schmid and Elena Melito, students at the HKA university, presented the SophiA project The three fantastic days included a student event where eleven students presented…
On Monday 10 October 2022, a physical SophiA meeting took place between the teams of HKA, SPF-OST and Operieren in Afrika. The Director of Léo hospital, Omar Ouedraogo, and one surgeon of the hospital of Operieren in Afrika, Clarisse Judith, travelled from Burkina Faso for this purpose. Additionally, the German technician of the NGO, Horst…
On October 11-13, 2022, the Chillventa world’s leading exhibition for refrigeration technology took place in Nuremberg (Germany). Most of SophiA’s German partners were present at the stands of HKA and IIR which were located close to each other in Hall 9. The Eveflo partner also came from South Africa for this occasion. The brand new…
On 25-29 July 2022, the SophiA partners met at the International Summer School at the OST Rapperswil-Jona campus and it was all about sustainability! The event was held for the first time by the Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (HKA), the University of Applied Sciences of Eastern Switzerland (OST) in Rapperswil, and the Transylvanian University…
A very interactive SophiA workshop took place on the first day of the 15th IIR-Gustav Lorentzen Conference on Natural Refrigerants (GL 2022), in Trondheim (Norway) on June 13-15, 2022. SophiA partners (HKA and IIR) explained the benefits of this European Commission funded project on the African populations but also the complexity and constraints of CO2…
On April 13, 2022, during the 7th IIR International Conference on Sustainable Development and the Cold Chain (ICCC 2022), the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR), in collaboration with the Institute of Refrigeration (IoR, UK), organised an online workshop entitled “Projects on clean and efficient refrigeration solutions for food and healthcare in developing countries“, which was…
Our partner, the 2iE Institute, participated in the SICRO international exhibition of air conditioning and refrigeration in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso from March 3 to 5, 2022 and promoted SophiA on the 2iE stand. 2iE presented the SophiA project during the opening session panel.
Francis Kéré won the Pritzker, Architecture Prize in 2022. Francis Kéré is the architect who designed the new hospital in Léo, Burkina Faso where the first SophiA system will be installed. Congratulations to Francis Kéré! For more information, you can read articles in Le Monde and The Guardian.
SophiA took part in the 2022 ASHRAE Winter Conference & AHR Expo in Las Vegas. Didier Coulomb, Director General of the International Institute of Refrigeration, was present at the project booth to tell more about the SophiA project and its main objectives. With over 50,000 members from more than 132 nations, ASHRAE is a diverse…
Our partner HKA participated in the clustering meeting “Energy research projects in cooperation with Africa”, organised on the occasion of the inauguration of the EurAfrica Institute. Oliver Schmid, the SophiA project coordinator at HKA participated in the ʺEnergy research projects in cooperation with Africa” clustering meeting organised by CINEA – European Climate Infrastructure and Environment…
Our partner Makerere University launched the international multidisciplinary project “Sustainable Off-grid Solutions for Pharmacies and Hospitals in Africa” (SophiA). On this occasion, Vice-Chancellor Barnabas Nawangwe underlined the importance for Makerere University to participate in the SophiA project. The grant given to Makerere is an opportunity to address the issues faced by health centres in Uganda.…
Thanks to a donation campaign, a total amount of 2360 Euros has been handed over to the family of Prof. Noble Ephraim Banadda. “Besides the pride that we can actually start this international research project together today“, said project leader Prof. Dr. habil. Michael Kauffeld at the SophiA kick-off meeting at the HKA in October…
SophiA is funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme and coordinated by Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (HKA). With a budget of 8 millions euros over four years, SophiA will develop containerised solutions for hospitals using natural refrigerants, solar thermal and photovoltaics to enable more and more African people to…
