27 February 2013: As part of the Decade of Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL), the UN has released a public service announcement video on CNN International and YouTube featuring former US Vice President Al Gore, supermodel Gisele Bündchen, and Director General of the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and UN Special Representative for Sustainable Energy for All, Kandeh Yumkella.

In the video, Gore, Bündchen and Yumkella draw attention to global access to energy inequalities, highlighting that New York State uses more energy than all of sub-Saharan Africa. They explain that nearly a billion and a half people lack access to electricity, and that nearly three billion people inhale deadly fumes when cooking.

According to UNIDO, its major contribution to the SE4ALL Initiative is industrial energy efficiency, which it says is the key to sustainable industrial development, especially in developing countries. UNIDO urges investment in energy-efficient technologies, stressing that sustainable energy production is essential for overcoming the major challenges the world faces today.

SE4ALL aims to achieve three inter-linked global targets by 2030: universal access to modern energy services; the doubling of energy efficiency; and the doubling of the share of renewable energy in the world’s energy mix. [Public Service Announcement Video] [UNEP Press Release] [UN Press Release] [UNIDO Press Release] [UN Decade of Sustainable Energy for All press release]