◼ TECHNOLOGY Bloomberg Businessweek October 7, 201922
PUMPS:ENGIE/MIRO/ANTOINEMEYSSONNIER.DATA:BLOOMBERGNEF● Air conditioning systems that rely
on water temperature are on the riseA Greener Way
To Cool the Air
Four decades after it supplied its last coal to the
Netherlands, a shuttered mine near the German
border is feeding low-emission air conditioning to
homesnearby.Thecoolingsystemcollectssome
ofthemillionsofgallonsofwaterheldinflooded
mineshaftsabout 200 meters(650feet) below
the surface and pumps it through a network of
underground pipes. The cold water flows through
a neighborhood of 400 homes and a handful of
nearby businesses, keeping them cool during the
summer. In the winter, warmer water from deeper
inthemineis usedtoheatthesamebuildings.
Theefficiencyandlowpowerrequirementsof
thesysteminHeerlen,developedbyMijnwaterBV,
means it consumes 65% less energythantradi-
tionalheatingandcooling,accordingtothecom-
pany.Suchnetworks,knownasdistrictcooling—or
heating—systems, are on the rise as towns and cities
look for ways to cut emissions. They point the way to
solvingoneofclimatechange’sbiggestchallenges:
AsEarthwarmsandsummertemperaturesbreak
records,demandrisesforairconditioning, boost-
ing energy consumption and the climate-warming
emissions that come with it. Demand for power to
cool homes and businesses is likely to more than
double by 2050 and account for about 13% of thethe company gym. It also said an immediate fam-
ily member was paid to host eight live events. And
there were more instances that weren’t disclosed in
the filing. The chief product officer was Rebekah’s
brother-in-law; the longtime head of real estate was
Rebekah’s cousin; and for years the company’s
lavish summer retreats were hosted at a venue in
upstate New York owned by the cousin’s parents.
In 2017, WeWork debuted WeGrow, whose mis-
sion statement is “to unleash every human’s super-
powers.” Rebekah became WeGrow’s founder and
CEO, saying she was inspired to build the school
because she wasn’t happy with her eldest daugh-
ter’s experience in kindergarten. Students would be
“raised as conscious global citizens of the world,”
she said. For a yearly tuition of as much as $42,000,
children run around the modern, blond wood
floors, staff a vegetable stand, and take music les-
sons, in addition to more academic endeavors. The
school, located on the third floor of the same New
York building as WeWork’s headquarters, has about
100 students and is buoyed by WeWork’s resources:
A significant number of students are the children of
employees, and more than half receive financial aid,
though the Neumanns’ five children paid full price,
according to two people familiar with the matter.
At WeWork, Adam had the role of fundraiser and
visionary, and Rebekah was the driving force behind
the lofty corporate ideals, three former employees
say, embodied in the company’s mission to “elevate
the world’s consciousness.” She made decisions
quickly and was known to hire or reassign WeWork
staff on the basis of their “energy” or if they said
something she disapproved of. She was also devoted
to her ideal of familial obligations. Onstage at
WeWork’s annual company festival Summer Camp
last year, she told an audience of 8,000 WeWork
employees and customers that “a big part of being
a woman is to help men manifest their calling in life.”
In 2018, Rebekah decided that WeGrow needed
a chief operating officer and had her eye on Adam
Braun, according to four people familiar with
the matter. At the time, Braun, founder of non-
profit Pencils of Promise, was CEO of the educa-
tion startup MissionU. The Neumanns approached
MissionU about an acquisition and pitched plac-
ing its education services in WeWork’s many cam-
pusesandoffices,saytwopeoplefamiliarwiththe
deal.RebekahinterviewedmanyofMissionU’s
25-person staff, but the interviews weren’t focused
on their qualifications. She asked each of them
about their “superpower,” according to a former
MissionU employee.
As the deal progressed, it seemed clear to
MissionU staff that Rebekah simply wanted to hireTHE BOTTOM LINE As Wall Street took down WeWork’s valuation,
investors became uncomfortable with the blurring of personal and
professional by the husband-and-wife team in charge.Braun, the people say. Eventually, Braun joined
WeGrow, as did another employee. No one else
from the startup was hired at the school, though
three people joined WeWork. The company paid
$4 million in stock for the acquisition, according to
a person familiar with the deal. “Adam Neumann
waltzed into my startup’s office 18 months ago
under false pretenses to poach my co-founder,” Mike
Adams, who started MissionU with Braun, wrote
in a now-deleted tweet the day the husband-and-
wife team stepped down. “Rebekah ‘didn’t like my
energy’ so I wasn’t even offered a job.” �Ellen Huet
and Gillian Tan, with Peter Elstrom and Cathy Chan● Air conditioner
demandbyregion,
in terawatt-hours
2018
2050China
743 TWh
1,399
India
160
1,191
Middle East/North Africa
239
533
U.S.
413
482
Southeast Asia
79
470
Japan
134
142
Mexico
38
110