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This fact sheet by the Institute for Economic Justice describes the South African food system as an unsustainable, corporate-industrial model characterized by concentrated ownership, food insecurity, and environmental damage. It advocates for a 'just transition' toward agroecology and a system that treats food as a public good to ensure the right to food for all citizens.

This fact sheet from the Institute for Economic Justice examines the current state of South Africa's food systems, highlighting the dominance of large-scale industrial agriculture and the resulting socio-economic and environmental inequalities. It advocates for a 'just transition' toward agroecology and a rights-based approach to food security.

This fact sheet from the Institute for Economic Justice outlines the vulnerabilities of South African agriculture to climate change, predicting significant temperature increases, water scarcity, and socio-economic disruptions. It emphasizes that small-scale farmers and marginalized groups are most at risk and advocates for a just transition toward agro-ecological practices and resource redistribution.

This fact sheet by the Institute for Economic Justice examines the systemic causes of the global food crisis, arguing that hunger is driven by corporate greed, market concentration, and climate change rather than food scarcity. It critiques the G20's historical failure to implement structural reforms and outlines South Africa's priorities for its G20 presidency, including the establishment of a Food Security Task Force to study commodity price volatility and stabilisation techniques.

The research paper by Nicolas Lamp explores the emergence of 'multifunctional trade policy,' a paradigm shift where trade policy is used to achieve broad political goals—such as climate mitigation, national security, and labor rights—rather than focusing primarily on economic efficiency and trade liberalization.

This briefing analyzes the historical and systemic link between poverty and environmental degradation, arguing that sustainable development requires integrating these two goals. It highlights how extreme wealth inequality drives resource overconsumption and how the world's poorest populations are disproportionately affected by climate-related disasters, conflict, and zoonotic pandemics like COVID-19. The text advocates for shifting government metrics from GDP to national well-being indices and limiting the resource consumption of the wealthiest 10% to allow the poor to escape poverty within planetary boundaries.

This research paper by Nicolas Lamp explores the emergence of 'multi-purpose trade policy,' a paradigm shift where trade policy is no longer focused solely on economic efficiency and liberalization, but is instead used as a tool to achieve broader goals such as climate mitigation, national security, and labor rights.

The paper argues that the current divide between the WTO's non-binding environmental dialogues and unilateral trade measures (like the EU's CBAM) is insufficient for global environmental governance. It advocates for 'hybrid' plurilateral agreements—such as the one initiated by New Zealand—that integrate trade and environment goals into binding, cooperative frameworks.

This briefing analyzes the agricultural negotiations for the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), focusing on food security, domestic support, and the specific needs of Least Developed Countries (LDCs). It argues that success depends on moving beyond non-binding declarations toward binding commitments to regulate food and agricultural trade.

This background paper by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the international arbitration case of Vattenfall v. Germany. It analyzes how the Swedish energy utility Vattenfall used the Energy Charter Treaty to challenge German environmental restrictions on a coal-fired power plant, highlighting the tension between international investment protections and a state's ability to regulate for the environment.

This report examines the tension between trade liberalization and environmental conservation in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). It highlights how rapid economic growth and infrastructure development have exacerbated illegal wildlife and timber trade and increased vulnerability to climate change, while regional governance remains hampered by non-binding agreements and limited administrative capacity.

This fact sheet from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) introduces 'Ecohealth,' a conceptual approach that links human well-being to the health of ecosystems, specifically focusing on the role of watershed management in improving both social and environmental determinants of health.

This fact sheet describes the Trade Knowledge Network (TKN), a global collaboration of research institutions coordinated by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) since 1998. The TKN aims to promote sustainable development by strengthening research capacity in developing countries and generating policy analysis on trade and investment.

An infographic from the International Institute for Sustainable Development detailing the economic costs of various types of pollution in Canada, specifically highlighting smog, contaminated sites, and heat waves.

The UN 2023 Water Conference in New York brought together over 6,500 participants to address the global water crisis. Key outcomes included the appointment of a UN Special Envoy for Water and the creation of the Water Action Agenda, which comprises approximately 700 voluntary commitments totaling USD 300 billion. The conference highlighted the urgent need to quadruple efforts to meet SDG 6 targets, emphasizing a nexus approach (water-food-energy) and the recognition of water as a global common good amidst the pressures of climate change and population growth.

This executive summary details an expert meeting held on June 13, 2018, in Ottawa, Canada, organized by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). The meeting brought together representatives from the Canadian government, academics, and civil society to discuss the reform of international investment law and the revision of Canada's model Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA). The discussions focused on transitioning from a traditional investment protection model to one that promotes sustainable development and addresses the negative impacts of Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanisms.

This research paper examines the challenges facing the Codex Alimentarius Commission due to increasing scientific uncertainty and the resulting political tensions in international food standard-setting. The author argues that the Commission must evolve by incorporating elements of the precautionary principle to maintain its legitimacy and functionality in a globalized trade environment.

This report, produced by the China Association of Aquatic Products Processing and Trade (CAPPMA) in collaboration with the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), analyzes the sustainability of China's fisheries and aquaculture supply chains. It focuses on three specific case studies—tilapia, cod, and live reef food fish—to identify environmental and social challenges and provide strategic policy guidance for integrating sustainability into China's national trade and economic policies.

This report is a response from the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) to the United Nations Secretariat regarding the mandate review of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). IISD recommends renewing the IGF's mandate for a second five-year term but argues that the forum must evolve from a general discussion space into a multi-function body with greater analytic capacity, increased transparency in its governance, and stronger linkages to global policy issues such as sustainable development and climate change.

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) submitted a consultation response regarding the 2022 Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (API) between Switzerland and Indonesia. While IISD acknowledges innovations in the treaty—such as stricter investor definitions to prevent 'treaty shopping' and the exclusion of speculative profits from expropriation compensation—it argues that several provisions remain problematic. Key concerns include a climate-neutral definition of investment, the persistence of unpredictable 'legitimate expectations' in the Fair and Equitable Treatment (FET) standard, and the lack of a requirement to exhaust local remedies before pursuing international arbitration. IISD recommends that Switzerland adopt more sustainable investment definitions and strengthen the right to regulate in the public interest in future treaties.