The Asia Pacific Urban Energy Association (APUEA) is an initiative of the International Institute for Energy Conservation - IIEC (www.iiec.org) , supported by Euroheat & Power www.euroheat.org), the Danish Board of District Heating (www.dbdh.dk), the Asian Development Bank - ADB (www.adb.org), and the UN Environment (www.unep.org). The Association promotes the development of sustainable urban energy systems in the Asia Pacific region.

The Association:
■ Convenes stakeholders from a variety of sectors to advance sustainable urban energy;
■ Promotes market development for sustainable urban energy systems;
■ Shares global and regional experiences and best practices; and
■ Facilitates collaboration on sustainable urban energy projects.

In the Asia Pacific region, more than 50 percent of the population is expected to live in cities by 2018. Two of the most critical challenges for fast growing urban areas are providing access to energy services and providing a healthy and safe environment.

Rising urban populations also contribute to the global challenge of climate change: Cities consume over two-thirds of the world’s energy and account for more than 70 percent of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

There is no single solution to these challenges; sustainable urbanization in the Asia Pacific will require cross-sectoral efforts. The Asia Pacific Urban Energy Association was established to engage and promote collaboration among a broad range of public and private sector stakeholders in order to stimulate the favorable policies, innovations and public awareness needed to achieve sustainable energy systems in urban areas throughout the region.