As Europe experiences hotter summers, residents who once scoffed at “luxuries” like air conditioning are turning to the appliance to stay cool. It’s even a matter of life or death, as more Europeans die from heat-related deaths compared to Americans.
The Financial Times reports 83,000 Western Europeans died from heat-related deaths between 2000 and 2019, compared to 20,000 North Americans who died during the same time period.
Policy analyst Alec Stapp recently quipped, “We need a new Marshall Plan for shipping air conditioning units to Europe.” He’s not wrong.
Both the United Kingdom and France have a crisis on their hands due to an absence of AC units. The Guardian is encouraging readers to employ these methods to stay cool this summer: shut curtains, open windows (when cooler), create DIY air conditioning, and turn off cooking appliances until nighttime, for instance. These are unacceptable living conditions for Europeans—or anyone, for that matter—to subject themselves to. Having an AC can easily solve this problem.
As of this writing, Italy, Turkey, Greece, France, and Spain are the top five consumers of air conditioning in the EU. Only 20% of European homes possess an AC, whereas nearly 90% of U.S. households have a unit. Mass EU-wide adoption of AC, however, could be a challenge despite rising demand for HVAC units in the region.
There’s cultural resistance to embracing this American product. Some across the pond claim AC use will harm the planet and lead to social inequalities. The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, has equally made widespread adoption challenging since it enacted strict green appliance standards that require AC models to be “eco-friendly” and labeled “energy efficient.” This directive has limited the sale of cheaper, affordable gas-powered units that can quickly deliver relief. Some European nations even go further than Brussels by enacting harsher penalties for AC use, as The Free Press recently reported:
European governments do a great deal to discourage air-conditioning, whether central AC or window units. You might need a hard-to-get permit to install an AC unit, and in Geneva you have to show a medical need for it. Or in many regions of Europe, the air conditioner might violate heritage preservation laws, or be illegal altogether. In Portofino, Italy, neighbors have been known to turn each other in for having illegal air-conditioning units. The fines can range up to €43,000, though most cases are settled out of court by a removal of the unit.
Despite this, the EU is expected to see installed AC units rise to 275 million by 2050 across its 27 member states—up from 115 million units installed in 2020. This is a substantial increase from 1990, when the continent only had 44 million installed AC units.
The EU should not only draw inspiration from America here, but also from Singapore. Like the U.S., this country embraces AC. The nation’s first leader, Lee Kuan Yew, famously said of AC: “Air conditioning was a most important invention for us, perhaps one of the signal inventions of history. It changed the nature of civilization by making development possible in the tropics.”
The U.S. has the highest overall gross domestic product (GDP) of any nation. In comparison, Singapore has the third-highest GDP per capita (GDP divided by population) globally. Therefore, it’s not a surprise to see a positive correlation between increased air conditioning use and rising household incomes.
To our European friends: Air conditioning isn’t a luxury, but a necessity for first-world living standards. Your friends in America welcome your belated embrace of AC units.