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Financial and Administrative Committee (FAC) Report Fiscal Year 2004-2005
The Financial and Administrative Committee (FAC) Report for Fiscal Year 2004-2005 details the committee's oversight of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), focusing on external audits by KPMG, revisions to administrative manuals, and the management of the Core Budget and staff compensation.
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Document type: Report
ECO-LABELING STANDARDS, GREEN PROCUREMENT AND THE WTO: SIGNIFICANCE FOR WORLD BANK BORROWERS
This report analyzes the compatibility of eco-labeling standards and green procurement policies with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, specifically for World Bank borrowers. It concludes that WTO rules generally do not present significant legal barriers to 'greening' project procurement, primarily because government procurement is largely excluded from the main WTO agreements for goods and services. However, the report highlights significant concerns from developing countries regarding the costs, technical burdens, and potential market access restrictions associated with eco-labels, particularly those based on non-product-related process and production methods (npr PPMs).
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Document type: Report
Minutes of the Eleventh Meeting of the IAI Conference of the Parties (CoP)
The document contains the minutes of the Eleventh Meeting of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) Conference of the Parties (CoP), held on June 30 and July 2, 2004, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The meeting focused on administrative governance, the recruitment of a new IAI Director, budget approvals for FY 2004/2005, and the election of members for the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) and the Executive Council (EC).
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Document type: Report
Working Together Assessing Public–Private Partnerships in Africa
This report by the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) evaluates the implementation of public-private partnerships (PPPs) in Africa, analyzing their potential to address infrastructure and service backlogs. Through eight case studies across sectors including transport, telecommunications, water, power, and eco-tourism, the document argues that while PPPs can offer efficiency gains and fiscal benefits, they are not a 'magic bullet' and are susceptible to the same failures as full privatisation, such as corruption, poor pricing, and lack of transparency. The report provides a comprehensive set of recommendations for African governments to improve regulatory frameworks, conduct thorough feasibility studies, and build institutional capacity to ensure PPPs deliver value for money and social benefit.
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Document type: Report
Cleaner Energy, Greener Profits
This 2005 report by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) argues that fuel cells can be cost-effective distributed energy resources (DER) by capturing economic benefits beyond simple energy generation, such as deferring utility distribution investments and providing premium reliability for the digital economy.
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Document type: Report
Ülevaade Euroopa Liidu riikides läbi viidud rohelise maksureformi tulemustest
This report, prepared by the Stockholm Environment Institute Tallinn Centre for the Estonian Ministry of the Environment, examines the results of Ecological Tax Reforms (ETR) in selected European Union countries, specifically Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Sweden. It analyzes how shifting the tax burden from labour to consumption and resource use can simultaneously improve environmental quality, reduce unemployment, and increase economic competitiveness. The document provides detailed case studies of these four nations and offers specific policy recommendations for implementing a similar green tax reform in Estonia.
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Document type: Report
Ciel and other civil society organizations express concerns over USTR's proposed appellate mechanism in the investment chapter of the Dominican Republic-Central American-U.S. Free Trade Agreement
A joint statement from the Center for International Environmental Law and other civil society organizations expressing opposition to the U.S. Trade Representative's proposed appellate mechanism for the investment chapter of the Dominican Republic-Central American-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), arguing it fails to address underlying problems and could undermine public interest and domestic oversight.
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Document type: Statement
What you need to know about ‘NAMA’: Why the WTO’s non-agricultural market access negotiations threaten both environment and development
This briefing by Friends of the Earth International argues that the World Trade Organization's (WTO) 'non-agricultural market access' (NAMA) negotiations pose significant risks to the global environment and the economic development of developing nations by promoting the liberalisation of natural resources and the removal of non-tariff barriers.
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Document type: Briefing
Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice: Towards the Integration of Conflict Assessment and Prevention in Extractive Industry Practice
This research paper, authored by Rachel Goldwyn and Jason Switzer, critiques existing impact assessment tools used by the extractive industry—specifically Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), Social Impact Assessments (SIA), and political risk analysis—from a conflict-sensitive perspective. It argues that while these tools are standard, they often fail to identify or mitigate the drivers of violent conflict. The authors propose the development of a Conflict-Sensitive Business Practice (CSBP) toolbox to integrate conflict analysis into the project lifecycle, helping companies minimize their contribution to violence and contribute to peacebuilding.
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Document type: Research paper
Notes and Questions from July 13, 2004 Hearing on POPs, PIC, and LRTAP: The Role of the U.S. and Draft Legislation to Implement These International Conventions
This document consists of responses from Glenn Wiser of the Center for International Environmental Law to questions posed by Chairman Paul E. Gillmor of the Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials. The responses focus on the legal and regulatory framework required for the United States to implement the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), specifically addressing the separation of powers between the Executive and Legislative branches, the nature of treaty control measures, and the potential pitfalls of including cost-benefit balancing or 'sound science' language in implementing legislation.
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Document type: Statement
A NATIONAL CLIMATE CHANGE RESPONSE STRATEGY FOR SOUTH AFRICA
Published in 2004, this strategy outlines South Africa's approach to climate change, prioritizing sustainable development and poverty alleviation. It identifies critical vulnerabilities in agriculture, water, and biodiversity, and proposes a coordinated government response involving mitigation in the energy and industrial sectors and adaptation in rural and health sectors.
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Document type: Report
La Banque européenne d’investissement et l’environnement
This fact sheet, published by Friends of the Earth International in September 2004, evaluates the environmental policies and practices of the European Investment Bank (EIB). It contrasts the EIB's official declarations and commitments to sustainable development and EU environmental standards with the criticisms from NGOs, who argue that a significant gap remains between the bank's rhetoric and its actual investment practices.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Indigenous Peoples, Energy, and Environmental Justice: The Pangue/Ralco Hydroelectric Project in Chile’s Alto BíoBío
This research paper by the Center for International Environmental Law chronicles the decade-long struggle of the Mapuche/Pehuenche people against the Pangue and Ralco hydroelectric projects in Chile's Alto BíoBío region. It details the environmental and cultural destruction caused by the dams, the failure of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to oversee social and environmental standards, and the legal battles fought in Chilean and international courts, culminating in a 2003 friendly settlement mediated by the Inter-American Human Rights Commission (IACHR).
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Document type: Research paper
UNDECIMA REUNION DE LA CONFERENCIA DE LAS PARTES (CoP)
The document records the resolutions adopted during the Eleventh Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from June 30 to July 2, 2004.
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Document type: Statement
Full Cost Accounting for Agriculture
This research paper, written for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, examines the conceptual and methodological frameworks for full cost accounting (FCA) in agriculture. It defines FCA as the process of valuing environmental and social costs and benefits external to the market, aiming to provide policy makers and farmers with better information for decision-making. The document details various valuation methods—including market-based, circumstantial, and survey-based approaches—and discusses ecosystem frameworks like those from the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. It applies these theories to case studies in the UK, Japan, and other regions to illustrate how agricultural externalities, such as water pollution and biodiversity loss, can be quantified.
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Document type: Research paper
Comment on The American Physical Society Hydrogen Report
Amory B. Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) critiques the March 2004 American Physical Society (APS) report "The Hydrogen Initiative," arguing that it reaches erroneous conclusions regarding hydrogen economics and storage due to outdated assumptions and methodological flaws.
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Document type: Statement
JOINT POST-HEARING SUBMISSION BY AMICI TO THE TRIBUNAL
This joint post-hearing submission by four amici (IISD, CBE, Bluewater Network, and CIEL) argues that the tribunal in the Methanex v. United States arbitration should recognize that bona fide environmental protection measures are non-expropriatory under international law, similar to public health measures.
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Document type: Briefing
Functions of the EC Bureau
A briefing from the Standing Committee on Rules and Procedures of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) concludes that no changes to the Executive Council's (EC) Rules of Procedure are required to implement the assigned functions of the EC Bureau.
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Document type: Briefing
Minutas de la Decimaoctava Reunión del Consejo Ejecutivo del IAI
Minutes from the 18th Meeting of the Executive Council (EC) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held on December 4-5, 2003, in San José, Costa Rica. The meeting focused on the institute's financial instability due to member state arrears, the approval of scientific grants, and strategic planning for the upcoming 10th anniversary of the Montevideo Agreement.
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Document type: Report
JOINT POST-HEARING SUBMISSION BY AMICI TO THE TRIBUNAL
This joint post-hearing submission by several amici curiae (including the International Institute for Sustainable Development) addresses the legal status of environmental measures under the police powers exclusion from expropriation in the NAFTA Chapter 11 arbitration between Methanex Corporation and the United States.
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Document type: Briefing