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Minutes from the 29th Meeting of the Executive Council (EC) of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), held on June 8, 2010, in Brasilia, Brazil. The meeting focused on a severe financial crisis caused by unpaid member contributions, the approval of the 2010-2011 operating budget, and strategic planning for the institute's scientific programs and its relationship with member countries and the host country, Brazil.

This report documents a speaker's meeting on April 4, 2011, featuring Rob Davies, the South African Minister of Trade and Industry. The discussion focuses on South Africa's trade strategy, the challenges of the WTO Doha Development Round, and the potential of the Tripartite Free Trade Agreement (T-FTA) to enhance regional integration and economic growth.

This meeting report details a policy dialogue organized by the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM) and the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) in March 2011. The event focused on the implications of engagement by China, India, and Brazil (CIB) in Africa and how this affects Africa-Europe relations, emphasizing the need for mutual learning, triangular cooperation, and African-led development strategies.

This policy briefing examines the trend of trade protectionism and 'bail-out' subsidies following the global economic recession, specifically analyzing whether South Africa's industrial support measures comply with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules under the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (ASCM).

A statement by Amory B. Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) arguing that the Fukushima nuclear disaster demonstrates the inherent dangers and economic obsolescence of nuclear power. Lovins contends that nuclear energy is uniquely risky, costly, and slow to deploy compared to renewable energy, cogeneration, and efficiency measures, which he presents as superior alternatives for climate protection.

This report by Friends of the Earth International documents various community-led struggles and successes in maintaining biodiversity and food sovereignty across different global territories. It highlights the conflict between industrial agricultural models—characterized by monocultures, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and land grabbing—and traditional, agroecological practices that respect natural cycles and ancestral knowledge.

This research paper analyzes how the accounting of international greenhouse gas (GHG) offsets affects the integrity of global climate mitigation pledges. Using a spreadsheet model based on marginal abatement costs, the authors examine scenarios where offsets are either double-counted (credited to both the buyer and seller) or counted only for the buyer. The study finds that double-counting could significantly dilute the ambition of current pledges, potentially reducing global abatement by up to 1.6 billion tons of CO2e by 2020, thereby increasing the gap to meet 2°C warming targets.

This research paper critiques the common misconceptions surrounding Sectoral Approaches (SAs) to climate mitigation, proposing the broader term 'Sectoral Approaches, Agreements and Measures' (SAAMs). Through case studies of the steel sector in China, India, and Japan, the author argues that practical implementation must be domestic-led rather than top-down and international. The paper concludes that SAAMs should co-exist with carbon pricing and that sector-specific forums are more effective for development than the generic discussions currently held at the UNFCCC.

This research paper by the South African Institute of International Affairs examines the evolving partnership between India and Africa, focusing on the strategic role of energy security. It argues that while energy is a primary driver of closer ties, the relationship is multi-dimensional, encompassing trade, defence, and capacity building. The authors analyze India's efforts to diversify its energy imports to reduce dependence on West Asia, the competitive yet non-antagonistic dynamics between India and China in Africa, and the necessity of good governance to avoid the 'resource curse'.

This research paper describes the integration of McKinsey & Company's marginal abatement cost (MAC) data into the Climate and Regional Economics of Development (CRED) model. To maintain model realism, the authors treated negative-cost abatement opportunities as near-zero positive costs. The resulting estimates suggest that emission reductions may be cheaper than many integrated assessment models (IAMs) project. Specifically, CRED's projections for 2030 are significantly lower than those of the RICE and EMF-22 models, though they align more closely with the MIT EPPA model for developed nations.

This report by the Climate Policy Initiative argues that Europe's current power market designs are insufficient to support the transition to a low-carbon energy system and the goals of a smart grid. It advocates for a transition from zonal pricing and market coupling toward an integrated power market based on locational marginal pricing (nodal pricing), citing the US experience as a successful model for managing transmission constraints and integrating intermittent renewable energy.

This report reviews the 2002 Belgian Model Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), arguing that it follows a traditional European model that provides extensive protections for foreign investors while imposing broad obligations on host states. The authors contend that the model lacks necessary refinements to preserve policy space for sustainable development, environmental protection, and labour rights, and fails to address governance issues in investor-state dispute settlement.

This report evaluates Integrated Place-based Management (IPM) initiatives, focusing on how goals are defined and how monitoring and evaluation frameworks measure long-term environmental and governance impacts. It analyzes Canadian and international case studies to identify trends in the transition from short-term project reporting to long-term, adaptive monitoring that combines outcome-based environmental indicators with process-based governance indicators.

This guide provides a comprehensive checklist and business case for public-sector procurers and policy-makers to implement sustainable public procurement (SPP). It emphasizes shifting the procurement mindset from 'best value for money' at the point of purchase to 'best value across the project/product life cycle,' utilizing life-cycle costing (LCC) to justify the higher upfront costs of green assets through long-term efficiency gains and reduced environmental externalities.

This report analyzes the structure, production, and sustainability of the Chinese copper supply chain as of 2010. It details China's position as the world's largest producer and consumer of refined copper, examines the environmental and social impacts of the industry, and outlines the regulatory framework governing smeltingS smelting, imports, and exports.

This policy brief by the Stockholm Environment Institute compares greenhouse gas mitigation pledges made by developed (Annex 1) and developing (non-Annex 1) countries under the Copenhagen Accord and Cancún Agreements. By analyzing four detailed studies, the brief concludes that developing countries have pledged more absolute mitigation than developed countries, yet global pledges remain insufficient to limit warming to 2°C.

This policy brief by the Stockholm Environment Institute analyzes the impact of international greenhouse gas offsets on the fulfillment of emission reduction pledges under the Cancún Agreements. It specifically examines the risk of 'double-counting'—where both the buyer and seller count the same emission reduction toward their targets—and how this could dilute global climate ambition and hinder the pursuit of a 2°C pathway.

This briefing analyzes the upcoming January 9, 2011, referendum in Sudan and the separate plebiscite in the Abyei region to determine whether South Sudan will secede. It examines the tensions between the National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), the challenges of state viability for a potential new South Sudanese state, and the role of international mediators in preventing a return to armed conflict.

This document is a formal response by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) to critiques of a working paper concerning Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects for adipic acid. The authors, Anja Kollmuss and Michael Lazarus, defend their findings regarding the competitive advantages provided by Certified Emission Reductions (CER) revenues and the resulting risk of carbon leakage.

This research paper explores the application of global equity and "burden-sharing" principles to community-scale climate action planning. Using the City of Seattle as a case study, the authors apply the Greenhouse Development Rights (GDR) framework to demonstrate that an equitable global mitigation obligation for a wealthy city would require it to go carbon "negative" by 2020, meaning it must reduce its own emissions while financing low-carbon transitions in developing regions.