Search Climate Insights Directory

This report by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) argues that sustainable development and environmental justice are symbiotically related, asserting that the former cannot be achieved without the latter. The document explores the legal nexus between human rights and the environment, emphasizing the right to a healthy environment, community-based property rights, and procedural rights as essential components for achieving global sustainability and justice.

This research paper examines the failure of the patent system to prevent the misappropriation of traditional knowledge (TK) and explores the use of the patent system as a defensive measure. It specifically analyzes how TK can be formally recognized as 'prior art' to defeat patent claims that lack novelty or an inventive step. The author reviews prior art definitions in the US, Japan, and Europe, as well as the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) framework, and provides recommendations for improving search procedures, implementing disclosure requirements, and developing standardized TK databases.

This conference report details a workshop held in Accra, Ghana, from September 8-12, 2002, focused on the impact of small arms on children and youth. Organised by UNICEF and the Institute for Security Studies in South Africa, the event featured presentations on youth involvement in violence, the legal and technical aspects of small arms and light weapons, and the effects of war on children, while supporting the development of a UNICEF strategy for Africa.

The report 'Traversing Peoples Lives' critiques the World Bank's financing of the Chad-Cameroon Oil and Pipeline Project, documenting widespread community disruption in Cameroon. Key issues include the marginalization of indigenous Bakola/Bagyeli peoples, inadequate compensation for farmers, pollution of drinking water in multiple villages, the rise of child prostitution, and poor labor conditions. The authors conclude that the World Bank's safeguard mechanisms failed and that the project serves as a warning against public financing of large-scale fossil fuel projects.

This document is a petition submitted on August 29, 2002, to an ICSID arbitral tribunal by a group of Bolivian civil society organizations, individuals, and Friends of the Earth-Netherlands. The petitioners seek standing to intervene as parties or amici curiae in an arbitration between Aguas del Tunari, S.A. and the Republic of Bolivia. The dispute concerns a 40-year water concession in Cochabamba that was terminated following widespread public protests over rate increases. The petitioners argue that the tribunal's decision will directly impact water access and public finances in Bolivia and that the process must be transparent to be legitimate.

This briefing by Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) criticizes Anglo-American Plc for its poor social and environmental record in South Africa, Zambia, and Peru, while highlighting the company's role as a funder of the Johannesburg Earth Summit and its presence in the official UK delegation.

This report by Friends of the Earth International examines the conflict between corporate-led economic models and the conservation of forest biodiversity. Through case studies in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, it argues that neoliberal policies, transnational investments, and flawed international definitions of 'forests' drive deforestation and displace indigenous and local communities, who act as the primary defenders of biodiversity.

This research paper examines agri-environmental and rural development programs within the WTO framework, specifically focusing on the 'Green Box' of the Agreement on Agriculture (AoA). It analyzes the practices of the 'Quad' countries (EU, US, Canada, and Japan) and evaluates how the Doha Round negotiations might impact the ability of developing countries to implement similar sustainable agriculture policies.

This research paper by the Institute for Security Studies analyses the outcomes of the 2002 summits in Durban, marking the transition from the Organization of African Unity (OAU) to the African Union (AU). It details the establishment of the AU's core governance structures, the protocol for the Peace and Security Council, and various declarations regarding democratic elections and continental development frameworks like NEPAD and CSSDCA.

This research paper by David Vivas Eugui of the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) analyzes the intersection of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the WTO's TRIPS Agreement following the Doha Ministerial process. The author examines how the TRIPS Agreement's focus on private intellectual property rights can conflict with the CBD's objectives regarding sovereign rights over genetic resources and the fair sharing of benefits. The document provides strategic recommendations for developing countries to utilize WTO mandates—specifically through the TRIPS Council and the Committee on Trade and Environment (CTE)—to incorporate CBD principles and protect traditional knowledge (TK) within the international trade framework.

A coalition of environmental organizations urged the U.S. Congress to oppose H.R. 3009 (the fast track conference report), arguing that it fails to protect environmental standards, grants excessive rights to foreign investors, and lacks enforcement parity for environmental provisions compared to commercial ones.

This report by Friends of the Earth International (FOEI) documents 22 campaigns against multinational corporations whose activities cause biodiversity loss and harm local communities. It argues that corporate globalization, driven by industrial agriculture, mining, and logging, prioritizes shareholder profit over ecological stability and human rights. The document calls for binding international laws to hold companies legally and economically accountable for environmental damage and advocates for the recognition of 'ecological debt' owed by Northern industrial nations to the Global South.

This report provides a preliminary assessment of the Quartering, Disarmament and Demobilisation (QDD) process in Angola as of June 2002, following the April 4 ceasefire agreement between the government and UNITA. While the assembly of troops has proceeded rapidly, the report highlights a critical humanitarian crisis in the camps and significant logistical failures in weapon verification and registration.

A June 2002 joint statement by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and WWF International urging the WTO Council for Trade in Services (CTS) to integrate comprehensive sustainability assessments into the market access phase of services negotiations to protect the interests of developing countries.

This briefing paper, written by Aaron Cosbey of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) for the Commission for Environmental Cooperation's (CEC) Joint Public Advisory Committee (JPAC), analyzes the environmental implications of NAFTA's Chapter 11. The author argues that the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism, originally designed for commercial protection, has become a tool for challenging non-commercial public interest regulations, creating risks for national environmental management.

This fact sheet describes the work and results of the Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development (MMSD) North America project, culminating in the June 2002 final report 'Towards Change'. The project aimed to identify how the North American mining and minerals industry could move toward sustainable development through collaborative research, scenario planning, and a sustainability assessment framework.

The North Central Arizona Water Demand Study Phase I Report examines water use, conservation, and alternative supplies for non-reservation communities on the Coconino Plateau. It establishes a baseline of current water demand, evaluates existing conservation efforts, and proposes a detailed methodology for a Phase II study to forecast future potable and nonpotable water needs under various investment scenarios.

This research paper, prepared for a Royal Institute of International Affairs conference, examines the implications of the Doha Ministerial Declaration's commitment to sustainable development. The author argues that achieving this objective requires a fundamental shift in the World Trade Organization's (WTO) institutional structure, moving beyond narrow commercial goals toward integrated impact assessments and increased transparency.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) provides preliminary comments on the 8 May 2002 draft text regarding the Institutional Framework for Sustainable Development for the Fourth Session of the Preparatory Committee for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). CIEL suggests strengthening the framework by integrating human rights, improving coherence between economic and environmental governance, and enhancing the status of UN environmental bodies.

This briefing from the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) provides preliminary comments and proposed textual amendments to the Chairman's Paper dated 9 May 2002 for the Fourth Session of the Preparatory Committee for the World Summit on Sustainable Development. CIEL argues that while the draft has improved, it still lacks critical protections for human rights, community-based property rights, and rigorous regulation of biotechnology, and it fails to sufficiently address the risks associated with intellectual property rights and the liberalization of trade in services.