Search Climate Insights Directory

The report from the Executive Directorate of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) details activities and strategies to strengthen the science-policy interface. It focuses on providing scientific information to governments for policy-making, enhancing cooperation with multilateral environmental agreements, and increasing the visibility of the IAI among member and non-member states in the Americas.

This briefing document from the IAI Directorate outlines the coordination of meetings between the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC), the Science Policy Advisory Committee (SPAC), and the Conference of the Parties (CoP) to enhance interaction and the science-to-policy interface.

This guide by Friends of the Earth International provides a compilation of strategies and experiences for communities and Indigenous Peoples to declare their territories free from threats such as REDD, financialization of nature, mining, fracking, and GMOs. It frames these declarations as exercises of autonomy and political practices aimed at realizing collective human rights and defending traditional ways of living against an extractivist corporate model.

This guide, published by Friends of the Earth International, outlines the concept and practice of declaring 'free territories' to protect lands from extractive industries, financialization of nature, and corporate imposition. It provides a framework for communities and indigenous peoples to exercise autonomy and human rights by formally rejecting projects such as mining, fracking, and GMOs.

This guide by Friends of the Earth International provides a compilation of ideas and experiences regarding the declaration of 'free territories'—areas where communities, indigenous peoples, or local governments formally reject specific harmful projects or policies. The document focuses on strategies to resist the 'financialization of nature' (FN), REDD projects, extractive industries, and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to protect local autonomy and traditional ways of life.

This report assesses progress toward Goal 4 of the New York Declaration on Forests, which focuses on supporting alternatives to deforestation driven by basic needs, such as subsistence farming and fuelwood collection. The document highlights a significant lack of aggregate global data to measure progress, relying instead on proxy indicators like the distribution of clean cookstoves and related financial funding.

The 2018 Progress Assessment Goal 4 Update evaluates efforts to support alternatives to deforestation driven by basic human needs, such as subsistence farming and woodfuel use. While the distribution of clean cookstoves has increased significantly, financial support for woodfuel interventions has declined. The report highlights various regional case studies in the Amazon, West Africa, and Southeast Asia that employ sustainable landscape approaches and community-based management to alleviate poverty and protect forests.

This document is a logistics guide for the 26th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-26) and the Executive Council meetings of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held from June 19 to 22, 2018, in La Antigua Guatemala.

This report by Friends of the Earth International documents systemic human rights and environmental violations by transnational corporations (TNCs) across eight Latin American and Caribbean countries. It highlights cases of corporate impunity, the use of investor-state dispute settlement mechanisms to challenge public health and environmental policies, and the violent suppression of territory defenders. The document advocates for a legally binding international treaty to hold TNCs accountable and the creation of an International Tribunal on Human Rights and Transnational Corporations.

This report by Friends of the Earth International documents systemic human rights and environmental violations by transnational corporations across eight Latin American and Caribbean countries. It argues that a 'architecture of impunity'—composed of free trade agreements, investment protection treaties, and the ICSID arbitration system—shields corporations from accountability while allowing them to challenge public health and environmental policies. The report advocates for a legally binding UN treaty on transnational corporations and human rights, including the creation of an International Court to ensure justice for affected communities.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) criticizes the 2017 U.S. NAFTA negotiating objectives for prioritizing corporate interests over public health, labor rights, and the environment. CIEL highlights the failure to address Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS), the promotion of fossil fuel investment in Mexico, and the lack of binding environmental enforcement and transparency.

The draft minutes of the forty-fourth meeting of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) Executive Council (EC), held on June 14, 2017, in Bogotá, Colombia, detail the approval of previous decisions and the establishment of new actions regarding committee nominations, funding agency participation, and long-term institutional strategies.

The document contains the minutes of the 44th Meeting of the Executive Council (EC) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held on June 14, 2017, in Bogotá, Colombia. The meeting focused on approving the agenda and previous decisions, establishing criteria for committee member selection, and reviewing long-term strategies for communication and financing.

The document contains the minutes of the 43rd Executive Council (EC) meeting of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held on June 12, 2017, in Bogotá, Colombia. The meeting focused on the transition to a new Executive Director, the alignment of scientific research with regional policy priorities, the development of capacity-building programs, and the approval of the 2017-2018 operating budget.

This financial report for the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) details the organization's budget status, member contributions, and administrative updates as of April 30, 2017. It highlights a strong cash position due to payments from Brazil and the US, alongside ongoing challenges with contribution arrears from other member countries.

The document contains the minutes and an annex from the Special Conference of the Parties (CoP) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held on March 9, 2017, in Panama City, Panama. The primary purpose of the session was the election of a new IAI Executive Director.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) expresses concerns regarding a proposed $200 million Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) loan to Guatemala for border integration between Guatemala and Mexico. CIEL argues that the project's lead agency, the Guatemala Ministry of Defense, lacks the legal mandate for fiscal and economic controls, suffers from a lack of transparency, and has documented links to corruption and organized crime. Additionally, CIEL warns that the program's focus on migrant control may violate international legal obligations regarding refugee rights and freedom of movement.

This policy brief summarizes the findings and recommendations from a regional meeting held in Colombia in September 2017, focused on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Latin America. The document identifies key challenges such as institutional vulnerability to government changes, sectoral silos, and limited local ownership, while highlighting best practices in harmonization, multi-stakeholder cooperation, and budgetary monitoring across several Latin American countries.

A joint statement by indigenous peoples of Mexico, issued on December 4, 2016, during the COP 13 of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Cancún. The document denounces the 'predatory extractive model' and the 'green economy,' arguing that these frameworks facilitate the dispossession of indigenous territories and the privatization of ancestral knowledge.

A joint statement by North American and Guatemalan organizations condemning the murder of Jeremy Abraham Barrios Lima, an assistant at the Guatemalan Centre for Legal, Environmental and Social Action (CALAS), and highlighting the broader risks faced by environmental defenders in Guatemala and Latin America.