Search Climate Insights Directory

The draft report of the Fifth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP) to the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held June 4-5, 1998, in Arlington, Virginia, details the approval of a revised science agenda, budget authorizations, the re-election of Director Armando Rabuffetti, and the establishment of a capacity-building program for under-represented countries.

This case study examines IKEA's integration of environmental sustainability into its global business model, specifically focusing on its partnership with The Natural Step (TNS) and the implementation of these principles within its North American operations during the 1990s.

This 1997 draft report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development and the University of Toronto examines the vulnerability of agriculture in the Canadian Prairies to climate change. It analyzes historical droughts, projects future agroclimatic shifts, and discusses the economic and policy adaptations required to maintain sustainability and global competitiveness.

This document is an annotated bibliography prepared for a 1996 conference in Beijing and the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development. It summarizes various reports, articles, and books concerning the ISO 14000 series of environmental management standards and their implications for business strategy, international trade, and regulatory shifts.

This 1996 report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development analyzes the development and implications of China's national ecolabelling program. It details the program's structure, its role in reducing domestic environmental stress, and the potential for environmental labels to act as trade barriers for developing countries. The document evaluates the impact of foreign ecolabelling on Chinese exports—specifically in the textile and refrigerator sectors—and provides recommendations for strengthening China's program through increased transparency, the adoption of life-cycle analysis, and international cooperation to achieve mutual recognition of standards.

This case study describes the founding and early operational challenges of Deja, Inc., an environmental footwear company established by Julie Lewis. The company aimed to create a sustainable business model by producing shoes from recycled materials, such as pre-consumer disposable diaper waste and plastic bottles, while targeting environmentally conscious consumers in the casual footwear market.

This case study examines the conflict between the U.S. pulp and paper industry, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Greenpeace over the use of chlorine in bleaching processes. The central tension involves the production of toxic organochlorines, specifically dioxins, and the debate over whether the industry should move toward elemental chlorine-free (ECF) or totally chlorine-free (TCF) technologies. The document details the 'cluster rule' regulatory approach and the economic and environmental trade-offs associated with different bleaching standards.

The 1992 Agreement Establishing the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research creates a regional network of cooperating research entities dedicated to studying the natural and human-induced alterations of the Earth system. The Institute focuses on interdisciplinary research, the exchange of scientific data, and providing information to governments to support public policy regarding global change.

The 1992 Agreement establishing the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) creates a regional network of research organizations dedicated to studying global-scale changes. The Institute focuses on interdisciplinary research across earth, ocean, atmospheric, environmental, and human sciences, with a specific emphasis on the Americas. It is governed by a Conference of Parties, an Executive Council, a Scientific Advisory Committee, and an Administrative Directorate.

This 1989 research paper by Amory B. Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute argues for the creation of markets in resource efficiency to combat the economic tendency to treat natural resource depletion and pollution as free goods. Lovins proposes treating saved resources—such as 'negawatts' of electricity—as commodities that can be traded, auctioned, and hedged, providing a market-based alternative to regulatory mandates. He asserts that efficient technology is generally cheaper than producing new resources, creating a significant profit opportunity for those who sell efficiency rather than the resource itself.

This fact sheet from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) urges physicians to lead efforts in mitigating climate change, framing it as a critical public health issue. It outlines the health risks of global warming, the feasibility of a low-carbon economy, and the role of carbon pricing, while providing actionable steps for medical professionals to engage in advocacy and personal lifestyle changes.

The "DivestInvest for Health" guide, published by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, provides a strategic framework for health associations and advocacy groups to divest from fossil fuels and reinvest in climate solutions. It argues that continued investment in fossil fuels creates an "ethical contradiction" for health professionals committed to doing no harm, given the public health threats posed by climate change.

This factsheet from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) argues for the phase-out of coal-fired power plants in Alberta, citing their significant contribution to air pollution, mercury emissions, and climate change, and the resulting negative impacts on public health and the economy.

A statement by 82 health organizations from 30 countries calling on G7 nations to accelerate the global transition away from coal-fired electricity to improve public health and mitigate climate change.

A statement from a group of doctors and nurses, represented by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), urging the British Columbia government to halt the expansion of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) and hydraulic fracturing (fracking) industries due to significant risks to public health, healthcare system costs, and climate targets.

This 2006 report by INFOTOX for Eskom reviews international literature to identify risk factors for quantifying health impacts associated with PM, NO2, and SO2 emissions. It highlights the cardiovascular and respiratory risks of particulate matter, identifies highly susceptible subpopulations (children, elderly, and the chronically ill), and notes significant data gaps in South African provincial hospital admission records that hinder precise local risk quantification.

This report reviews risk factors to quantify the potential health impacts of particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5), sulphur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) emissions from various Eskom operations. It synthesizes global epidemiological data from organizations like the WHO and USEPA to establish risk estimates for mortality and morbidity, while incorporating South African provincial population and health data to support a health risk assessment.

This legal opinion by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) analyzes the obligations of OECD members regarding the trade of plastic wastes following the OECD's failure to reach a consensus on incorporating the Basel Convention's Plastic Waste Amendments into the OECD Decision on the trade of wastes. The analysis concludes that plastic wastes classified as "other wastes" under the Basel Convention fall outside the scope of the OECD Decision, meaning OECD members who are Parties to the Basel Convention must apply Basel's control and prohibition mechanisms. CIEL further argues that separate agreements, such as those between the US and Canada or within the EU, fail to meet the equivalence requirements of Article 11 of the Basel Convention and are therefore invalid for bypassing Basel controls.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) submitted comments to the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) arguing that proposed trade liberalization in the forest product sector could exacerbate forest degradation and loss. CIEL contends that the current U.S. environmental review process is inadequate and calls for the administration to halt negotiations until a comprehensive assessment, guided by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), is completed. The document emphasizes that trade liberalization can intensify negative impacts if countries lack robust forest protection frameworks, and suggests that developed nations provide technical and financial assistance to developing ones to establish sustainable management systems.

This guide by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) examines the intersection of climate change and international human rights law. It details how climatic phenomena and the measures taken to mitigate or adapt to them can infringe upon fundamental rights, particularly for vulnerable populations such as indigenous peoples, women, and children. The document outlines key international milestones—including UN Human Rights Council resolutions and the Cancun Agreements—and advocates for a rights-based approach to be integrated into the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) processes.