WWF-India's climate solvers feature in Sustainia100

Both Toro and Clique were recognized as “Climate Solvers” by WWF-India in 2012 and 2013 respectively. 

The recognition is part of WWF’s global innovation platform that awards small and medium enterprises who are either significantly reducing carbon emissions or enabling energy access.

Apart from these two, 6 innovations that have been developed in India have also featured in the Sustainia list.

Sustainia100 is an annual guide that identifies readily available projects, initiatives and technologies that are at the forefront of sustainable innovation from around the world.

Sustainia100 names the top 100 sustainability solutions after reviewing more than 1500 projects and businesses from six continents. More than half of this year’s selected innovations are not only competing on sustainability criteria, but also on affordability and convenience.

WWF-India’s Climate Solver 2012 winner, Toro, offers sustainable and energy-efficient air conditioning alternatives and uses water for heat exchange to cool the air.

The system’s dual path technology removes the need for excessive cooling and reheating of the air. Instead, the temperature is lowered only to the desired level while moisture is removed separately.

This eliminates a substantial part of the cooling process, which requires less refrigerant and energy.

By downsizing the mechanical refrigeration system, Toro claims to reduce operating electricity costs by half. It also saves 50-80 per cent energy compared to AC systems.

Clique Solar, the second WWF Climate Solver winner listed in Sustainia 100, harnesses the power of the sun to heat water and air to high temperatures for industrial purposes, by mixing the properties of a magnifying glass and a sunflower.

Their concentrated solar power (CSP) technology called ARUN dish involves a parabolic dish of mirrors that focuses sunbeams to a single point. Like a sunflower, the ARUN tracks the sun on dual axes, maximizing energy output. Occupying a ground area of less than 9 m2, the ARUN is a flexible solution that can be installed in a wide variety of settings including those where hot water, steam or air is a necessity, such as in industrial process heating and community cooking.

“SME sector in India has a great potential for providing transformative and scalable solutions that can significantly reduce carbon emissions. The recognition provided by Sustainia100 to the Climate Solver awardees is a testimony to the potential impact they can make at the global level as well”, said Dr T.S. Panwar, Director, Climate Change & Energy, WWF-India.

“Looking at innovations portrayed in Sustainia100 and our innovation program WWF Climate Solver over the years, it is clear that the solutions for an economy-wide transition away from fossil fuels towards 100% renewable energy are available and ready to be fully commercialized,” said Samantha Smith, leader of WWF’s Global Climate and Energy Initiative.

The new Sustainia100 study is the fourth publication of leading sustainability innovation. The innovations are screened and selected by independent sustainability experts from 18 international research organizations including Yale University, World Resources Institute and the Acumen Fund. Over the past four years, Sustainia has identified more than 3200 sustainability solutions.