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A letter from the Centre for Environmental Rights to the South African Department of Environmental Affairs regarding the legal implications of the North Gauteng High Court judgment in Earthlife Africa Johannesburg v Minister of Environmental Affairs and Others (the Thabametsi case).

This amicus curiae brief, submitted by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and the Vermont Law School Center for Applied Human Rights, provides legal analysis to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights regarding a request for an advisory opinion from the Republic of Colombia. The brief argues that State Parties to the American Convention on Human Rights have extraterritorial obligations to ensure their acts and omissions do not cause environmental harm that infringes on human rights outside their borders, and that the Convention should be interpreted through a normative dialogue with international environmental law.

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the rule of exhaustion of local remedies (ELR) in international investment law. It analyzes how the customary international law requirement—that individuals seek redress in domestic courts before initiating international proceedings—has been largely dispensed with in investment treaties, while recently being reintroduced by several states to protect domestic sovereignty. The document reviews treaty practices, case law from ICSID and other tribunals, and provides policy recommendations for states negotiating investment agreements.

This chapter from the 'Research Handbook on International Law and Natural Resources' examines 'problem shifting'—the transfer of environmental problems resulting from sustainable natural resource management practices—and evaluates the capacity of international law to mitigate these risks in the Anthropocene.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted comments to the Department of Environmental Affairs on October 7, 2016, regarding proposed amendments to the Financial Provisioning Regulations, 2015. The CER argues that several proposed deletions of appendices and clauses would create legal uncertainty, reduce transparency, and weaken the state's ability to ensure that mining rehabilitation funds are available and used correctly.

This written submission by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) urges the Committee on the Rights of the Child to formally articulate the right of the child to a healthy environment as an implied right within the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The document argues that such a recognition is necessary to clarify State responsibilities and ensure the effective realization of children's rights in the face of global environmental crises.

This policy brief examines the legal complexities and risks associated with foreign investment in African farmland, specifically focusing on the often-overlooked issue of water rights. It highlights a systemic imbalance where foreign investors' statutory rights frequently override the customary water rights of local communities, exacerbated by poor state enforcement and restrictive investment contracts.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted recommendations to the Department of Environmental Affairs to amend the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA): National Appeal Regulations, 2014. The CER argues that the current regulations may violate the right to just administrative action under the Constitution and the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 (PAJA), specifically regarding restrictive timeframes and procedural fairness for interested and affected parties (I&APs).

This research paper provides early reflections on the legal architecture of the Paris Agreement, specifically examining how its 'bottom-up' approach and 'ratcheting mechanism' will function to achieve global temperature goals.

This briefing from the World Resources Institute explains the legal structure and terminology surrounding the expected outcome of the COP 21 climate negotiations in Paris, clarifying that the legal force of the agreement is determined by its content rather than its name.

The report 'SIGNS OF HOPE?' by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) evaluates the implementation of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) regarding environmental records in South Africa from January 2010 to September 2015. It identifies a slow trend toward greater reactive disclosure by authorities and private companies, though proactive disclosure remains poor.

This research paper examines the use of amicus curiae submissions by civil society organisations (CSOs) to introduce community perspectives into investor-state arbitration, focusing on the case of Pac Rim Cayman LLC v. The Republic of El Salvador.

This report analyzes the use of amicus curiae briefs by civil society organizations (CSOs) to introduce community perspectives into investor-state arbitration, focusing on the case of Pac Rim Cayman LLC vs. the Republic of El Salvador. It details how the Mesa Nacional Frente a la Minería Metálica de El Salvador (La Mesa), supported by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and the Fundación de Estudios para la Aplicación del Derecho (FESPAD), used legal tools to challenge the jurisdiction of the arbitration tribunal and highlight the democratic debate over metallic mining and sustainable development in El Salvador.

Friends of the Earth Japan and the Citizens Group to Watch Nuclear Regulations issued a request to Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) to halt the vetting of nuclear reactors for restart and fundamentally review safety standards following a Fukui District Court injunction against the Takahama nuclear power plant.

This policy brief examines the conflict between the UNFCCC's principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities (CBDRRC) and the international aviation law's principle of equal treatment. It argues that 'contextual treatment'—which considers changing national circumstances and provides implementation assistance—offers a viable path to reconcile these opposing frameworks to regulate international aviation emissions.

This guide by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines performance requirements (PRs) in investment treaties, analyzing their types, their prohibition under WTO rules, and their treatment in Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs). It evaluates how these requirements impact the policy flexibility of developing countries and provides options for states to preserve their ability to impose PRs to maximize the economic, social, and environmental benefits of foreign direct investment.

This briefing note by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the international arbitration case Vattenfall v. Germany II, focusing on the lack of transparency regarding the proceedings and the financial implications for the German public following the country's decision to accelerate its nuclear energy phase-out.

This research paper analyses the legal dispute regarding the Premier of the Western Cape's authority to appoint a commission of inquiry into police inefficiency in Khayelitsha. It examines the resulting judgments from the Western Cape High Court and the Constitutional Court to clarify the scope of provincial policing powers versus national competency in South Africa.

This report by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) analyzes the implementation of the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 (PAIA) in South Africa between January 2010 and August 2014. It details the challenges in accessing environmental governance and management records from government departments, parastatals, and private bodies, highlighting a trend of using the protection of third-party commercial information to refuse requests.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) submitted a statement to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) arguing that the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) could undermine environmental and public health protections. CIEL expresses concern that 'regulatory coherence' mechanisms and the prioritization of trade impacts over public interest could create a 'chilling effect' on the development of new laws and the implementation of existing ones, particularly regarding toxic chemicals, endocrine disruptors, and nanomaterials.