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The report uses a case study of Costa Rica's JI pilot projects to identify challenges in quantifying and verifying carbon sequestration, such as baselines and leakage. It argues that the CDM must integrate strong environmental and social safeguards, including public participation and benefit-sharing with local communities, to ensure sustainable development. The author proposes a phased evolution for the CDM, moving from project-specific credits to national baselines, and suggests limiting the use of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) to 1% of Annex I Parties' assigned amounts initially to prioritize domestic reductions.

The Alto Maipo Hydroelectric Project (PHAM) is a large-scale run-of-the-river project in Chile with an installed capacity of 531 MW and an estimated annual output exceeding 2,100 GWh. Despite being pitched as a public good, the project faces significant opposition due to its potential to reduce the flow of the Yeso, Volcán, and Colorado Rivers by up to 60%, threatening drinking water for Santiago's 7 million residents and irrigation for 120,000 hectares of farmland. Financially, the project has seen costs rise to US$2.4 billion, with the Grupo Luksic consortium withdrawing in January 2017 at a loss of $350 million. The project is funded by several multilateral banks, including the IFC (US$150 million) and the IDB (US$200 million), both of which are facing complaints regarding violations of environmental and social policies. Environmental concerns include accelerated desertification, erosion of riverbeds, and risks to protected areas like the Glacial Natural Monument. The Chilean government has penalized the project for 14 separate violations of environmental norms.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) submits this brief to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) regarding Case 12.696. It contends that Chile's Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG) provided incomplete and ambiguous information about GMO crops, failing to disclose specific planting locations and the identities of companies involved. The document argues that scientific uncertainty regarding GMO risks to human health and biodiversity necessitates a transparent regulatory framework and public participation. It supports its claims by citing international instruments like the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and the Aarhus Convention, as well as jurisprudence from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the European Court of Human Rights, and the European Court of Justice, all of which emphasize the public's right to environmental information.

The report examines the draft investment chapter of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), finding that it largely replicates NAFTA's Chapter 11. It warns that the proposed investor-state dispute settlement mechanism, broad definitions of expropriation, and restrictions on capital controls and performance requirements would empower corporations to challenge domestic laws and hinder sovereign economic and social development across the hemisphere.

The report examines the draft investment chapter of the FTAA, highlighting its reliance on the NAFTA model. It identifies several critical areas where the draft threatens democratic governance and environmental protection, specifically through investor-state dispute settlement mechanisms, broad definitions of expropriation, and restrictions on capital controls and performance requirements.

The document examines how the draft FTAA IPR Chapter imposes standards exceeding the WTO's TRIPS Agreement, potentially hindering public health, food security, and technological development in the Americas by restricting compulsory licensing and expanding patent scopes.

The research paper examines the impact of international intellectual property rights (IPR) standards on sustainable development, specifically focusing on the Draft Chapter on IPR within the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). It contends that while the WTO's TRIPS Agreement provides some flexibility, newer bilateral and regional agreements—including the FTAA—often implement 'TRIPS-plus' standards that exceed multilateral requirements. The author argues these stricter rules threaten public health, food security, and technological development in developing nations by restricting the use of compulsory licenses, extending patent terms, and limiting the ability of countries to define patentability for biological materials. Ultimately, the document asserts that the FTAA draft prioritizes the rights of knowledge producers over the public interest and sustainable development goals of the Americas.

The document critiques the February 2023 draft proposals from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) regarding remedial action and responsible exit. It argues that these drafts do not meet international human rights law standards, as they lack an actionable plan for remedy and fail to apply to existing projects. The briefing highlights that remedy can take various forms beyond financial compensation, such as public apologies and guarantees of non-repetition, and suggests that providing remedy actually reduces legal exposure for the institutions. It calls on the IFC/MIGA Board of Directors to require second drafts that implement the 2020 External Review recommendations and commit to financial contributions when financing has contributed to harm.

The document examines the World Bank's historical reluctance to integrate non-economic factors—specifically governance, civil society, and human rights—into its development mission. It argues that the Bank's adherence to a strict interpretation of its Articles of Agreement leads to an ad hoc approach to governance and a failure to protect civil and political rights. While noting progress in 'mainstreaming' public participation and the creation of the Inspection Panel, the author contends that these efforts are often superficial or undermined by an institutional 'culture of approval' that prioritizes loan volume over project quality.

The paper analyzes the convergence of human rights and environmental law, arguing that a healthy environment is a prerequisite for the enjoyment of fundamental human rights. It explores legal tools within the Inter-American System—such as precautionary measures, admissibility exceptions, and state responsibility for third-party actions—to address environmental degradation. Through a comparative analysis of jurisprudence from the Inter-American, African, and European systems, the author demonstrates how rights to life, integrity, property, and information are increasingly interpreted to include environmental dimensions, emphasizing the state's duty of due diligence to prevent harm from industrial activities.

The Alto Maipo Hydroelectric Project in Chile, verified under the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), is cited as a failure that violated multiple human rights and environmental standards. The project involves rerouting three tributaries of the Maipo River through tunnels in the Andes Mountains, which the document claims threatens the drinking water of 7 million people in the Santiago metropolitan area and risks reducing river flows by 60-90%. Specific violations include threats to the rights to a healthy environment, water, life, health, food, adequate housing, work, and cultural participation. The document recommends that the project be removed from the CDM list and its construction halted. It further urges COP25 negotiators to ensure that Article 6 of the Paris Agreement incorporates robust social and environmental safeguards and independent grievance mechanisms to prevent similar outcomes in future 'sustainable development' projects.

This evaluation report by the Office of the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) examines a complaint regarding the Pangue hydroelectric project in Chile. The report analyzes the International Finance Corporation's (IFC) role as a minority shareholder and lender, focusing on social mitigation failures, lack of transparency, and the cumulative environmental impacts of the Pangue and Ralco dams.

The complaint argues that the State of Chile facilitated the forced eviction of Mapuche-Pehuenche communities from their ancestral lands in the Alto Bío Bío region to allow ENDESA to build the Ralco Hydroelectric Project. The petitioners claim that the state bypassed the Indigenous Law (Ley 19.253) and environmental conditions set by CONAMA, which required voluntary land swaps (permutas) approved by CONADI. Instead, the state used the 'Electric Law' (Ley Eléctrica) to impose flood easements and monetary compensation, which the petitioners describe as a form of 'ethnocide' that destroys their cultural, spiritual, and physical existence. They further allege a denial of justice by Chilean courts, which they claim have been ineffective or biased in favor of the company.

The document argues that the IFC's proposed Approach to Responsible Exit fails to establish remedial responsibilities for the IFC or the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), effectively allowing the institutions to exit projects without addressing harms caused by their investments. The authors contend that remedy should be a prerequisite for exit, as divestment removes the financial leverage necessary to drive corrective action. They propose four core principles: ensuring exits do not undermine ongoing Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) processes, conducting pre-divestment due diligence verified by communities, implementing meaningful consultation at least 12 months prior to divestment, and establishing protocols to prevent and manage reprisals against affected populations. The submission includes a table of projects in China, Egypt, Chile, Colombia, Nicaragua, and elsewhere where the IFC allegedly exited without providing remedy for documented harms such as forced labor, environmental damage, and human rights violations.

This research paper, published in November 1999 by WWF-World Wide Fund for Nature and authored by experts from the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), examines the conflict between World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and trade measures used in Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs). The authors argue that uncertainty regarding WTO consistency is used by some nations to 'chill' the development of effective environmental laws, specifically citing the Biosafety Protocol and the POPs Agreement. The paper recommends that WTO members adopt a political statement of consistency and negotiate a separate agreement to grant MEAs equal status with WTO rules.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) asserts that existing UNCITRAL rules, designed for private commercial disputes, are inadequate for State arbitrations which often involve public policy and significant public funds. CIEL recommends that UNCITRAL distinguish State arbitrations from private ones, conduct a participatory review involving civil society and other UN bodies, and adopt rules that ensure full transparency and public participation while protecting state secrets and confidential business information.

The document asserts that the World Health Organization (WHO) has a mandate to evaluate how intellectual property provisions in bilateral and regional free trade agreements (FTAs) impact public health. It warns that these agreements, often between industrialized economies and developing nations, frequently impose 'TRIPS-plus' standards that restrict access to affordable medicines and undermine the 2005 Amendment to the TRIPS Agreement and the Doha Declaration. The author contends that the WHO should be extensively consulted on these provisions to ensure that health outcomes remain a priority in trade policy.

The Alto Maipo Hydroelectric Project in Chile, funded by the IFC, IDB, and OPIC, resulted in severe environmental degradation and human rights violations, including threats to the water security of millions in Santiago. Despite these harms, the project's financiers used procedural loopholes and premature divestments to avoid accountability. However, strategic campaigns by Chilean activists and CIEL leveraged Independent Accountability Mechanisms (IAMs) to force institutional changes, resulting in the repeal of the IDB's legal exclusion clause and the creation of the IFC's Remedial Action Framework and Responsible Exit Approach.

The document catalogues alleged human rights implications across numerous international projects in sectors such as mining, energy, and forestry. It organizes these cases by the specific right implicated, including the rights to adequate food, housing, health, and life, as well as freedoms from forced labor and torture. The case studies highlight recurring issues such as forced resettlement, environmental contamination of water and land, the use of military force to suppress protests, and inadequate compensation for displaced populations.

The document analyzes the global debate over water privatization, contrasting the view of water as an economic good promoted by international financial institutions with the view of water as a human right. It details the role of the World Bank and IMF in pushing privatization through loan conditionalities and provides case studies of both failed privatization (Cochabamba, Bolivia) and successful participatory public management (Porto Alegre, Brazil).