In 2020, the CLASP team demonstrated resilience and innovation in the face of a challenging year by putting partnership and dialogue at the forefront of our work. Within the newly released 2020 Annual Report, we reflect on CLASP’s impactful work over the past year. The report highlights the accomplishments of our Climate and Clean Energy Access programs, and how CLASP is innovating the way our team works in response to current events.

Click here to read the CLASP 2020 Annual Report

Climate

This year, our climate team focused on finding data-driven, nexus solutions to meet critical efficiency needs for climate mitigation. As the world transitioned to e-commerce, CLASP identified gaps in online appliance labeling and highlighted opportunities for innovative solutions to keep consumers connected, comfortable, and productive. In India, CLASP supported a variety of work, including an expansion of efficiency policy for complex industrial and commercial equipment, and a draft national water efficiency policy that provides a nexus solution for hot water use.

In 2020, CLASP continued to support equitable policies that remove low-quality products from the market and promote super-efficient and climate-friendly options. In Pakistan, we supported the country’s first mandatory policy for electric motors. The policy avoids increased emissions, saves consumers money, and protects local manufacturers. In collaboration with IGSD, we identified and quantified the issue of environmental dumping of inefficient air conditioners in Africa, and provided governments guidance on transitioning to highly efficient, sustainable cooling technologies.

Clean Energy Access

The COVID-19 pandemic posed increased financial hardships for families served by the off-grid solar sector, with 72% reporting worsening financial situations. In response, CLASP provided nearly $1.4 million in flexible grants and incentives to refrigerator and solar water pump companies, helping to safeguard sector progress in making clean energy accessible and affordable to all.

Impact, one of CLASP’s core values, drove our work in 2020 as we seek to learn more about how efficient appliances can positively impact communities. In Bangladesh, our team found that 92% of customers saw an improvement in their family’s health after purchasing a solar fan. In India, solar powered refrigerators allowed a women-led food truck company to thrive throughout the pandemic.

The Clean Energy Access team promoted major innovations in off-grid technology and business models. CLASP launched the 2020 Global LEAP Award’s electric pressure cooker competition, helping to accelerate the progress of this clean cooking technology. Additionally, CLASP facilitated the sale of almost 3,000 EPCs in Kenya, helping to make the appliance more accessible to communities.

Our Team

Just over a year ago, CLASP pivoted quickly from ‘business as usual’ to adjust to the realities of COVID-19 across all institutional functions. Team health, support and cohesion became forefront priorities across our global offices. To support our international team through these challenging times, we provided our staff with effective resources like home office materials, mental health days, and flexibility to account for unforeseen circumstances.

CLASP also took steps to advance the diversity, equity, and inclusion of our organization. We believe that our diverse team makes us stronger and took action to be more targeted in our DEI efforts. We worked to update our recruitment process, improved pay transparency and developed an internal team to move our efforts forward into 2021.

We thank you for your support during this challenging year, and CLASP looks forward to continuing to promote resiliency and innovation in the appliance efficiency sector. Read the entire 2020 Annual Report and visit our updates archive to keep up with our latest work.