France’s heatwaves light up transatlantic debate on AC

When Tiana Thompson first moved to France in 2019 to be an au pair, she only planned to stay for about a year. 

Now almost seven years later, Ms Thompson — originally from California - has built a life and career in France, spending her time teaching English and creating content about life in France versus the US. 

Despite the charm of French living that has anchored her to the country, this summer, Ms Thompson said she’s missing something quintessentially American - air conditioning. 

From stores to homes, most buildings in the US have AC, making the country’s high temperatures feel manageable, said Ms Thompson, who lives in Paris. In France, however, it is different. 

“Here wherever you go outside, it’s hot,” she said. “You go into a store, it’s hot, you go home, it’s hot — it’s constant and never ending, and it’s really exhausting.” 

Ms Thompson is one of many Americans to have moved to France over the past few years. While in certain ways life in France provides benefits unseen in the States - universal healthcare, more job security, labor protections etc - this summer, some Americans are realizing that a crucial part of their lives is missing: air conditioning. 

The concerns come as extreme heat hits France this summer, with temperatures rising over 40 degrees celsius. This week a third heatwave is predicted, and the country has already seen numerous drowning deaths as people head into the water for relief. The last heatwave in June led to 2,025 excess deaths, the French health minister said. 

Soaring temperatures have sparked debate over the reluctance in France to implement widespread air conditioning. In a June survey, eight out of ten French respondents said air conditioning was harmful to the environment and one in six said they would rather suffer for the planet’s sake. Across the country, only 25% of French households have an air conditioning unit. In contrast, over 90% of US households have AC. 

For Americans recently settled in France, that can be a tough transition to make.  

A touchy topic 

On social media, Americans criticized Europeans for complaining about temperatures that could be alleviated with AC. Other content comedically highlighted the difference cooling makes in how Americans versus Europeans deal with temperatures above 35 degrees. 

In the midst of the transatlantic discourse over AC, one Paris official replied:

“Dear American journalists and social media “influencers” : for days, some of you have been criticizing and making fun of Paris, because the city doesn’t have A/C in every room of every apartment and places,” wrote Paris Deputy Mayor Audrey Pulvar. “OMG, this is so rich.”

Pulvar continued that Americans “bear a significant amount of responsibility” for global warming and the scorching consequences French people are facing. 

At its core, the issue comes down to different cultural attitudes around AC, as well as how French homes themselves were built. Half of all French homes are insufficiently protected against the heat, according to Fondation pour le Logement, a housing NGO. 

Additionally, historical temperature trends in France have created a “big culture shock compared to North America” when it comes to ACs, said Martin Hendel, associate professor at ESIEE Paris, to The Connexion. 

Compared to New York, where climate variation is more extreme, “Europe has enjoyed a pretty mild climate for the last 2000 years, and so heat waves weren’t really a thing,” he said. 

Heating up two times faster than the global average, Europe is the most rapidly warming continent, according to the Copernicus climate service.  

A politicized issue 

If in the US AC is pretty much non-negotiable, in France, it has become a political issue in its own right.

On the right, the Rassemblement National has proposed a €40 billion plan to install widespread AC infrastructure in France, reports Franceinfo. On the left, Paris’ socialist mayor Emmanuel Gregoire called individual AC a “scourge” and urged more flexible solutions to the climate crisis.

For experts, the solution is slightly more nuanced. Political scientist François Gemenne told FranceInfo that “air conditioning saves lives,” but also added that simply implementing more units wasn’t enough. 

"If you only have an air conditioning plan without a greenhouse gas reduction plan, at some point air conditioning will reach certain limits because it remains an adaptation solution,” he said. 

Air conditioning contributes to around 4% of global greenhouse emissions. By 2050, that figure could jump to 10%, according to the UN.

One of the primary environmental concerns of AC is that units emit hot air outdoors, making cities hotter overall.  

While many French people are ready to sweat through the heat to minimize these planetary effects, Ms Thompson said it was not right that individual citizens have to go without AC while corporations contribute most to global emissions, with just 100 companies responsible for 71% of global emissions, as reported in The Guardian. 

"It's not just like it's an inconvenience, people are actually dying from the heat and lack of air,” she said. “So I think it is not really fair to say, oh well, it's bad for the environment, we need to find another solution.” 

It seems more and more Europeans agree with this perspective. AC sales soared in France during the last heatwave, with arguments breaking out at supermarkets as overheated shoppers sought the product. 

While the trend may be in favor of more AC usage, other solutions exist. More vegetation, less asphalt and public cooling spaces can help fight the heat, according to ADEME, the French government’s ecological transition agency. From installing outdoor shutters to designing cross-ventilated buildings, there are also numerous solutions available on an apartment and building scale, said Mr Hendel. 

As for Ms Thompson, she’s held back on getting an AC unit for the moment as they’re on backorder, but plans to buy one for next summer. 

She said we can take steps to improve infrastructure and become less AC reliant long-term, “but that doesn't mean in the meantime we must just suffer.”