Worldwide, electric lighting consumes 19% of total global electricity production, slightly more electricity than used by the nations of OECD Europe for all purposes. The energy consumed to supply lighting entails greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 1 900 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year, equivalent to 70% of the emissions from the world’s light passenger vehicles.

Fuel-based lighting, used both in vehicles and areas beyond the range of electricity grids, amplifies these consumption figures and lighting’s secondary effects on public health and the environment. At present, 1.6 billion people live without access to electric light. The paraffin- and diesel-fuelled lighting they use is much less efficient than even the most inefficient incandescent lamp. Paraffin is a large emitter of CO2 and is very costly. These combined uses provide only 1% of global lighting but are responsible for 20% of lighting CO2 emissions.

Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, the burning of fossil fuels to provide electricity for lighting and other uses has substantially increased the levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. These greenhouse gases greatly affect the temperature of the earth; without them the earth's surface would be on average about 33 °C (59 °F) colder than at present.

Hence there is a direct relationship between the increasing use of artificial lighting and increases in greenhouse gas emissions resulting from increased use of electricity and paraffin/diesel for on and off grid lighting respectively.

The potential consequences of not implementing energy efficient lighting programs represent a large missed opportunity to substantially reduce the global CO2 footprint of lighting and to contribute in large measure to the realisation of international targets to reduce emissions of CO2. This equates to a staggering global savings potential of 760 million tons of CO2 almost equivalent to the total CO2 emissions from fuel combustion for Germany or half those of the Russian Federation in 2007.

Switching older lighting technologies to the efficient technologies will also bring huge savings in energy costs and CO2 emissions. Even though there has been a revolution in lighting technology during the past 10-15 years resulting in the availability today of energy efficient lighting solutions for each segment of the market, approximately two thirds of all lighting currently installed in the world is based on older, less energy efficient technology. The current change over rate to new lighting technologies is simply too slow particularly in street lighting 3% per year and office lighting 7% per year. On average, a potential saving in energy consumption across the board of 40% is possible, taking into account conservative estimates.

In 2009 the GEF Secretariat approved the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Global Market Transformation for Efficient Lighting Project, known as the en.lighten initiative – Efficient Lighting for Emerging and Developing Countries.

The en.lighten initiative pushes for a global transition to efficient lighting through the achievement of three inter-related objectives:

• Promote high performance, energy efficient lighting technologies
• Support the phase out of inefficient incandescent lights
• Substitute traditional fuel-based lighting with efficient alternatives

In addition the en.lighten initiative serves as the global platform to promote efficient lighting through:

• Building synergies among stakeholders
• Developing best practice guidelines and recommendations
• Addressing technical, quality and harmonization issues
• Supporting countries interested in promoting the transition to efficient lighting through technical assistance

The Global Environment Facility (GEF) tasked UNEP to lead this initiative with the aim to become an umbrella initiative for the promotion of efficient lighting in support of countries and to contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. So en.lighten aims to formulate a global multi stakeholder consensus around efficient lighting which it is hoped will in turn lead to concrete actions to save energy through efficient lighting in developing countries.

This global approach and resulting stimulus towards efficient lighting is unprecedented and this is what makes the en.lighten initiative one to watch and be part of!

In an attempt to transform local markets to efficient lighting developing country governments may be confronted by a combination of the following barriers to success.

General barriers

• Insufficient knowledge, information and understanding of current energy efficient lighting technologies which lead to an attitude of indifference to change.
• Stockpiles of low efficiency lamps (encouraged by the retention of like for-like replacement policies).
• Un-metered public lighting which makes the cost of lighting related energy use abstract.
• Limited access to capital and other sources of funding.
• Organizational structures.
• Absence of a dedicated procurement/regulatory policy to incentivize market transformation to efficient lighting.
• Electricity tariff structures.
• Existing infrastructure.
• Focus on upfront capital cost of lighting technologies (not total cost of ownership).
• Manufacturer claims versus real world performance - mainly flux claims that do not meet actual performance of lamps.
• Split incentives between equipment suppliers and consumers.

Consumer related barriers

• Consumer confusion over wattages and equivalency with IL. (One of the en.lighten taskforces will review the case for use of "lumens" as the key determinant for lamp choice, rather than Watts).
• Consumer misinformation - there is a lot of consumer misunderstanding of CFLs particularly in the area of mercury, embodied energy, performance, safety, etc.
• Consumer inability to work out which lamps are suitable for which application.
• Lack of end of life ‘safe disposal’ facilities for CFLs.
• Electrical incompatibility resulting in issues with dimming CFL’s.
• Perceptions of color - many people accidentally buy cool white or daylight CFLs when they really want warm white.
• Retailer’s (or others in contact with consumers) unwillingness to help educate consumers as to new lamp choices.

If you want to join the initiative because you feel your country or organization can add value to or benefit from the global work program please contact us:

en.lighten
Efficient Lighting for Developing and Emerging Countries, UNEP (DTIE)
15, Rue de Milan
75441 Paris cedex 9, France
E-mail: en.lighten@unep.org
Telephone: +33 1 44 37 19 97
Fax: +33 1 44 37 14 74