Search Climate Insights Directory

This quarterly financial report for the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), dated September 30, 2002, details operating expenses, cash flow, and the funding status of research programs including the Collaborative Research Network (CRN), Initial Science Program III, and the PESCA program.

Environmental organizations petitioned U.S. Ambassador Robert B. Zoellick on September 19, 2002, regarding the General Treatment provision in the upcoming United States-Chile free trade agreement. The petitioners argue that the current administration's process lacks transparency and risks granting foreign investors greater substantive rights than U.S. investors, contrary to the Bipartisan Trade Promotion Authority Act of 2002.

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 document records the decisions made during the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held in São José dos Campos, Brazil, on June 27-28, 2002.

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 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.

This briefing by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) provides a comprehensive guide for homeowners to reduce their carbon footprint through energy-efficiency measures. It establishes a baseline for the typical American single-family home and outlines a strategic, cost-effective path toward achieving climate neutrality by 2012 through a combination of behavioral changes, equipment upgrades, green power, and carbon offsets.

This fact sheet from the Environmental and Energy Study Institute examines the debate over U.S. air conditioner efficiency standards, specifically comparing the SEER 13 standard established by the Clinton Administration with a proposed rollback to SEER 12 by the Bush Administration. It details the projected energy savings, emission reductions, and economic impacts associated with both standards.

This briefing by Friends of the Earth International argues that children and unborn babies are disproportionately exposed to and vulnerable to pesticides in food and the home. It criticizes the UK government for a lack of specific legal protections for children and calls for a ban on hormone-disrupting pesticides, the extension of strict pesticide limits to all foods, and a target of 30 per cent organic farmland by 2010.

An open letter from WWF and CIEL providing recommendations for the March 2002 WTO symposium on the assessment of trade in services, urging for a holistic approach that includes environmental, social, and developmental dimensions beyond narrow economic trade aspects.

This research paper examines the early implementation of decentralization laws in Indonesia, specifically Law No. 22/1999 and Law 25/1999, and their impact on the forestry sector. It analyzes how the shift of power from the central government to districts has led to the emergence of 'district timber regimes' focused on revenue generation, often at the expense of forest conservation and sustainable management.

A letter from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment to the Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada arguing that environmental sustainability is essential to the long-term economic sustainability of the Canadian health care system.

This position paper by Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) calls for all International Financial Institutions (IFIs), including Multilateral Development Banks and Export Credit Agencies, to phase out financing for mining and fossil fuel projects within five years to support local community self-determination and combat climate change.

This report by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) presents a scenario analysis to guide the City of San Francisco's energy resource investment strategy through 2012. It evaluates three distinct paths—Central Generation, More Imports, and Distributed Resources—to replace the aging Hunter's Point Power Station while meeting growing electricity demand and reliability requirements.

The Marrakech Accords establish a robust compliance system for the Kyoto Protocol, featuring a two-branch compliance committee (facilitative and enforcement) with membership based on equitable geographical representation and double majority voting. Annex I Parties failing to meet emissions targets face specific penalties, including deductions from future assigned amounts and loss of emissions trading privileges. While the system provides for public participation and appeals, the legal nature of its 'binding' consequences remains a point of contention among Parties, specifically the Umbrella Group.

This report analyzes the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and its implications for environmental policy makers. It argues that the GATS, which functions as both a trade and investment agreement, may constrain the ability of national and sub-national governments to implement environmental regulations. The authors highlight risks associated with market access obligations, national treatment standards, and proposed disciplines on domestic regulation, while recommending the use of Sustainability Impact Assessments and the introduction of a broader environmental exception clause in the GATS text.

This joint position paper by the Committee on Rules and Procedures and the Financial and Administrative Working Group analyzes the internal control structure of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI). It reviews existing manuals and charters and recommends strengthening oversight, updating administrative rules, and introducing whistleblower protections for employees.