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Status of the UNFCCC Negotiations
This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) provides an overview of the UNFCCC climate change negotiations held in Bonn from March 29 to April 8, 2009. It details the progress and points of contention across the four pillars of the Bali Action Plan—mitigation, adaptation, technology, and financing—as countries worked toward a comprehensive post-2012 climate agreement intended for adoption at COP 15 in Copenhagen in December 2009.
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Document type: Report
Etat des négociations de la CCNUCC
This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) details the outcomes of the UNFCCC climate change negotiations held in Bonn from March 29 to April 8, 2009. It outlines the progress made across the four pillars of the Bali Action Plan—mitigation, adaptation, technology, and finance—as parties worked toward a global post-2012 climate agreement intended for conclusion at COP-15 in Copenhagen in December 2009.
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Document type: Report
Trade and Development: The rising importance of sustainable development in the trade agenda of Argentina
This report examines the intersection of international trade, foreign direct investment, and sustainable development in Argentina. It analyzes how external pressures, international agreements, and domestic factors influence the adoption of environmental and labor standards, while highlighting specific natural resource management challenges and the role of multilateral negotiations like the Kyoto Protocol.
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Document type: Report
Climate Change Mitigation through Land Use Measures in the Agriculture and Forestry Sectors
This research paper examines the potential for climate change mitigation through land-use measures in the agriculture and forestry sectors, focusing on the challenges of integrating these sectors into international policy frameworks like the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol. It analyzes technical barriers such as permanence and leakage, the role of REDD in developing countries, and Canada's domestic approach to carbon accounting and emissions trading.
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Document type: Research paper
Outcomes of COP 14 in Poznan
This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) provides an overview of the outcomes of the fourteenth Conference of the Parties (COP 14) to the UNFCCC held in Poznan, Poland, in December 2008. It details the progress of the two main negotiating tracks—the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action (AWG-LCA) and the Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP)—as they move toward a comprehensive post-2012 climate agreement expected at COP 15 in Copenhagen.
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Document type: Report
Interlinked ODS Phase-out Activities Handbook: Improved Effectiveness of ODS Phase-out Activities in the Refrigeration Servicing Sector
The Interlinked ODS Phase-out Activities Handbook provides guidance for government officers to reduce the demand for ozone-depleting refrigerants in the servicing sector through coordinated stakeholder activities.
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Document type: Guide
Climate Change, Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Rights
This background paper, prepared by the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) for a 2008 seminar in Copenhagen, examines the complex relationship between intellectual property (IP) rights and the transfer of climate-related technologies. It analyzes how IP can act as both an incentive for innovation and a barrier to the diffusion of technology, specifically exploring the role of the WTO TRIPS Agreement and the UNFCCC framework in facilitating the transition to a low-carbon economy.
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Document type: Briefing
Commerce et Changement Climatique
This report, published by the Socialist Group in the European Parliament and featuring contributions from the Center for International Environmental Law and Friends of the Earth, examines the tensions and potential synergies between international trade policies and climate change mitigation. It argues that while the current trade regime often promotes unsustainable consumption and production, trade can be leveraged to support climate goals through the liberalization of environmental goods, the implementation of high energy-efficiency standards, and the alignment of WTO rules with international climate agreements.
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Document type: Report
COP 14/MOP 4, Poland 2008
Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) outlines its positions for the COP 14/MOP 4 negotiations in Poland, demanding a climate justice framework based on historical responsibility. The organization calls for steep emission reductions by industrialized countries, the rejection of carbon offsetting and market-based forest mechanisms, and significant financial and technology transfers to developing nations to support adaptation and mitigation.
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Document type: Statement
Statement to House of Commons Legislative Committee on Bill C-30
A statement by Drexhage to the House of Commons Legislative Committee on Bill C-30 regarding the implications of the Kyoto agreement for Canada.
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Document type: Statement
Climate Change and Global Governance
This research paper by John Drexhage of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) argues that global climate governance must evolve beyond a state-centric, environment-department-led model to better integrate environmental and development policies. The author critiques the top-down target-setting of the Kyoto Protocol and proposes a more flexible, sector-based approach to mitigation that engages industry and major economies more realistically. The paper emphasizes that a successful post-2012 regime requires a strong commitment to a development agenda for the Global South, leveraging official development assistance (ODA), foreign direct investment (FDI), and synergies between adaptation and mitigation to alleviate poverty.
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Document type: Research paper
Multilateral Environmental Agreements on the Ground – Lessons from Supporting Implementation of the Montreal Protocol
This research paper by the Stockholm Environment Institute evaluates the Swedish Ozone Layer Protection programme (OLP), a bilateral initiative from 1999 to 2006 designed to support the implementation of the Montreal Protocol in developing countries and economies in transition. The report identifies country ownership, capacity building, and stakeholder participation as critical governance factors for the successful national phase-out of ozone-depleting substances (ODS). It argues that a shift from top-down regulation to bottom-up governance is necessary for sustainable implementation and provides recommendations for reforming the incentive structures of implementing agencies and the status of national ozone units.
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Document type: Research paper
les mythes du gazoduc de l'afrique de l'ouest
This report by Friends of the Earth International critiques the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP), challenging claims that it promotes regional integration, provides affordable energy to Ghana, or effectively ends gas flaring in Nigeria. The document highlights risks including legal unaccountability due to the project company's registration in Bermuda, economic burdens on Ghana through 'take-or-pay' contracts, and the continued environmental and health impacts of gas flaring in the Niger Delta.
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Document type: Report
Realizing the Development Dividend: Making the CDM Work for Developing Countries
This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) evaluates the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol, focusing on its ability to provide a "development dividend"—socio-economic and environmental benefits for developing countries beyond greenhouse gas reductions. The analysis finds that the emerging CDM market is skewed toward a few large developing countries and dominated by low-cost industrial projects (such as HFC23 decomposition) that offer minimal sustainable development benefits. The report recommends reforming the CDM Executive Board, shifting from project-by-project to sectoral or policy-based approaches, and increasing support for small-scale projects to ensure more equitable and impactful development outcomes.
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Document type: Report
Realizing the Development Dividend: Making the CDM Work for Developing Countries
This executive summary evaluates the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) under the Kyoto Protocol, focusing on its ability to provide a "development dividend"—benefits to developing countries in economic growth, technology, poverty alleviation, and health beyond climate mitigation. The authors argue that the current project pipeline is under-performing, skewed toward a few countries, and dominated by low-development-benefit industrial gas projects, necessitating reforms in project cycles, rules, and international financing to ensure sustainable development goals are met.
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Document type: Executive summary
Climate Change and Competitiveness
This briefing paper examines the perceived tensions between climate change mitigation efforts under the Kyoto Protocol and the economic competitiveness of firms and sectors. It distinguishes between the 'non-Party problem,' where firms in participating countries face disadvantages against those in non-participating nations, and the 'implementation problem,' where differing national strategies within participating regions create internal competitive imbalances. Using Canada and the EU as case studies, the document argues that while these concerns are politically significant, their actual economic impacts may be limited by flexibility mechanisms, sub-national actions in non-participating countries, and potential technological innovations driven by regulation.
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Document type: Briefing
Action Targets: A New Form of GHG Commitment
This briefing proposes 'action targets' as a method for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission commitments. Unlike fixed or intensity targets, action targets require an entity to reduce emissions by an agreed percentage of its actual emissions during a commitment period, providing greater predictability regarding the 'level of effort' required regardless of economic growth scenarios.
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Document type: Briefing
El Banco Europeo de Inversiones: el poder invisible dentro de la Unión Europea
This 2003 fact sheet by Friends of the Earth International describes the European Investment Bank (EIB) as a powerful yet 'invisible' financial institution that operates with limited public oversight. The document criticizes the EIB for its lack of transparency, inadequate environmental and social safeguards, and its failure to be held accountable by EU institutions or the public, particularly regarding its lending activities outside the European Union.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Towards Assessing the Distributional Impacts of Meeting Kyoto Targets in Canada
This research paper introduces MARKAL-Equity, a model developed to assess the distributional impacts of meeting Kyoto Protocol emission targets on different income groups in Canada's residential sector. The study finds that low-income households are the most vulnerable to energy price increases, experiencing the greatest reductions in energy service demand and consumption, and lacking the financial capacity to switch to more efficient technologies compared to middle- and high-income groups.
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Document type: Research paper
World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg) – An assessment for IISD
This briefing paper assesses the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), held from 26 August to 4 September 2002 in Johannesburg. It details the resulting political declarations, implementation plans, and partnership commitments, while analyzing the political tensions between developed and developing nations regarding renewable energy targets, corporate accountability, and the role of the WTO in environmental governance.
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Document type: Briefing