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The Rexel Foundation supports research in the area of energy efficiency innovation. It also encourages the spread of knowledge to improve general access to energy progress.

IMPROVED KNOWLEDGE AND AWARENESS

SUPPORT FOR ACADEMIC RESEARCH The Foundation supports research programs and educational projects, in particular by providing grants and scholarships for students and researchers. In 2014, the Rexel Foundation offered a scholarship for a research project on the notion of thermal comfort in commercial buildings led by the University of Denver, Colorado. Rexel s Canadian subsidiary is providing research funding for a PhD from Nova Scotia Community College on the optimi- zation of energy distribution. Since January 2015, the Foundation has been contributing to a study by Stanford University in California to quantify the economic effects of American environmental policy (emissions taxes, energy efficiency standards, etc.) on the housing market.

SHARED KNOWLEDGE In order to build a knowledge base, the Foundation participates in stud- ies whose aim is to better under- stand energy efficiency challenges

and issues. For example, the Rexel Foundation and Microsol worked together to study the principal tools for developing energy efficiency projects for disadvantaged commu- nities in Latin America through car- bon mechanisms. Likewise, on be- half of the Rexel Foundation, Advise for Change (AfC) is leading a study on social innovation and energy access.

LED and the fight against fuel poverty Lighting represents only a small portion of household energy consumption but the stupendous profitability of LED could make it a Trojan horse for energy efficiency

among the most disadvantaged. This is one of the conclusions of the study conducted by Greenflex, a sustainable development consultancy, at the request of the Rexel Foundation and OSRAM, a world leader in lighting. However, the obstacle of its high purchase price must be addressed: the study recommends that the investment be made by the energy supplier, who would finance and install the lighting while

factoring its cost into the final bill.

REXEL FOUNDATION