Applied projects and expertise

As part of Work Area II, we apply knowledge, insights and expertise in pragmatic climate change mitigation projects, often working with partners from public institutions, philanthropy, academia and industry to accelerate the low-carbon transition. With these projects, we aim to reduce emissions and demonstrate the feasibility of concrete solutions to convince political and economic actors of the potential. The aim is to catalyze a systemic change towards a sustainable society.

Some examples of our current projects:

Green marine fuels from Africa
In 2023, European legislation has been introduced that will increase the demand for low-carbon fuels for ships travelling too, and from EU ports. We want to help African ports seize the opportunity to become suppliers of new low-carbon fuels produced locally with domestic renewable energy.

Greener reefer containers
Millions of refrigerated sea containers play an important role in global trade, but also have a significant and growing impact on the environment. The refrigerants used today are many times more harmful to the climate than CO₂, they contain “forever chemicals” (PFAS) and consume a lot of energy for cooling - better alternatives are available. The use of natural coolants, better insulation in combination with more intelligent energy management can together make a real difference. We are working with industry and academic partners to test new solutions and accelerate the introduction of new, more sustainable refrigerated containers.

Learn more about Greener Reefers: https://www.green-cooling-initiative.org/about-us/
Stay updated on our Greener Reefers LinkedIn page: Greener Reefers Transition Alliance.

Green freight transport in East Africa
Green freight transport programmes are well established in Europe, North America and Asia and are helping to improve the environmental performance of freight transport. To meet the growing demand for climate-friendly supply chains, African companies need access to low-carbon transport and logistics services. We are working with partners in East Africa as well as international industrial, commercial and transport companies to establish a regional green freight transport programme.

Life-Links initiative

Supply chains are increasingly vulnerable to climate change. Extreme weather events, which have increased in frequency and intensity with global warming, can disrupt supply chain links: floods destroy roads, heatwaves derail trains, wildfires close airports, and droughts render inland waterways unusable. Rising sea levels also threaten operations while climate hazards amplify social and geopolitical tensions across global supply chains, causing further disruptions. Responses remain reactive and localized, hindered by fragmented supply chains, lack of data, short-term focus, and low consumer awareness. The KCC addresses these gaps through the Life-Links initiative.

Founded by Sophie Punte, Life-Links unites key global supply chain stakeholders and actors — from private, public, and development sectors —to design and implement concrete resilience measures targeting critical supply chain links. Collective action is crucial for building supply chain resilience, and innovative partnerships can be formed by aligning the self-interests of each partner with their commitment to advancing the adaptation agenda.

KCC is applying the Life-Links concept to three supply chains connecting East Africa and Europe. To drive scalability, it has also co-founded a non-profit organization, Life-Links, which is developing a global framework and playbooks focused on building climate resilience in supply chains through collaborative action. This should, in turn, catalyze more Life-Links initiatives, expanding their reach and impact across industries.

Logistics of carbon dioxide removal
As CO₂ emissions continue to rise, there is a growing realization that large-scale carbon dioxide removal (CDR) will also be needed to limit climate change. There are several possible methods that have the potential to remove gigatons of CO₂ from the atmosphere over the next few decades, even if some of them are still in their infancy. If they prove to be safe and effective, some of the methods, such as enhanced rock weathering or ocean alkalinity enhancement will require the transport of billions of tones of alkaline minerals. In this project, we are exploring the logistical implications (costs, emissions, investments, technologies, routes, social impacts, etc.) of scaling up such CDR solutions.