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The Manila Declaration outlines the severe environmental and human rights violations caused by extractive industries on Indigenous lands, calling for a moratorium on new projects and the mandatory application of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC).

The report argues that climate change is a significant threat to fundamental human rights and that States have legal obligations to protect individuals through effective climate action and human rights-compliant responses. It outlines five institutional approaches to integrate these regimes: utilizing existing human rights special procedures, establishing a new special procedure on climate change and human rights, maintaining direct engagement through the Human Rights Council (e.g., via Universal Periodic Reviews), engaging human rights treaty bodies through General Comments and Concluding Observations, and integrating human rights principles and specialized bodies within the UNFCCC framework. The document emphasizes the particular vulnerability of women, children, indigenous peoples, and small island nations, and calls for increased transparency and participation of affected communities in climate negotiations.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) alleges that the International Finance Corporation's (IFC) Agribusiness Department improperly interfered in a Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) case concerning an IFC-financed ethanol plant and sugarcane fields in Nicaragua. CIEL claims the Department issued inaccurate public statements on January 29, 2009, which mischaracterized the CAO's findings on the link between Nicaragua Sugar Estates Limited (NSEL) and an epidemic of chronic renal insufficiency (CRI). CIEL argues these actions undermine the CAO process and jeopardize sensitive negotiations between local communities and NSEL regarding health services and epidemiological studies. The letter requests a retraction of the response, an inquiry into its preparation, and the appointment of an overseer for the Department's activities in this case.

The report examines the history and legal mechanisms used to construct barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border, specifically focusing on the 'Real ID Act' and 'Secure Fence Act'. It details how these laws allowed the Secretary of Homeland Security to waive nearly all federal and state laws, including environmental and historic preservation statutes, to expedite construction. The author highlights the resulting environmental damage in areas like the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area and Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, the disruption of Native American sacred sites, and the high financial costs of the project. It concludes by calling for a suspension of construction and a legislative review of the wall's effectiveness and constitutionality.

The document outlines the efforts by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) to revise its 1976 Arbitration Rules to address a lack of transparency in investor-State disputes. It notes that while these rules are primarily for commercial disputes, they are frequently used in investment cases involving public interests such as environmental and health protection. Following a consensus reached on June 27, 2008, UNCITRAL's Working Group II is mandated to develop transparency rules for investor-State dispute resolution starting in September 2009.

The document assesses the institutional and financial failures of technology transfer from industrialized to developing countries under the UNFCCC. It contrasts the G77 + China proposal for a centralized Executive Body and Multilateral Climate Technology Fund with the European Union's preference for bilateral Technology Oriented Agreements and carbon market financing. To resolve these divergences, the author suggests a three-themed evaluation framework based on legal principles, actions across the technology chain (R&D, demonstration, deployment, and diffusion), and institutional mandates. Additionally, the document details the Climate Action Network's (CAN) call for a dedicated Technology Cooperation Mechanism and a Technology Fund to ensure measurable, reportable, and verifiable (MRV) delivery of climate-friendly technologies, specifically addressing intellectual property barriers through a proposed International Declaration on Climate Technologies and IPRs.

The Manila Declaration, issued by Indigenous Peoples and support organisations from 35 countries, condemns the environmental degradation, human rights violations, and land dispossession caused by extractive industries. It argues that Indigenous territories hold over 60% of the world's most coveted mineral resources, leading to unsustainable exploitation and contributions to climate change. The document demands a moratorium on new extractive projects, the recognition of Indigenous Peoples as rights holders rather than stakeholders, and the strict implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UN DRIP). It specifically calls for the end of fossil fuel investment, the protection of the human right to water, and the inclusion of Indigenous Peoples in climate change negotiations.

The SCCR-18 session focused on three primary issues: the proposed Broadcast Treaty, Exceptions and Limitations to Copyright, and Audiovisual (AV) Performance Protection. Negotiations on a Broadcast Treaty remain stalled due to disagreements over the scope of new intellectual property rights, while a treaty for the visually impaired (WBU Treaty) was officially proposed by Brazil, Ecuador, and Paraguay despite opposition from some industrialized nations and the publishing industry. Discussions on AV performance protection continue as the US and EU seek to harmonize rights despite differences over moral rights and the transfer of rights.

The document details a discussion among legal experts on the shift in WTO Appellate Body (AB) jurisprudence from a strict trade-centric approach to one more sensitive to environmental and health regulations. Key focus areas include the analysis of the Brazil – Retreaded Tyres case, the application of the GATT Article XX necessity test, the role of scientific evidence in the SPS Agreement, and the specific challenges faced by developing countries in navigating trade-environment disputes.

The document examines two types of standards used to mitigate climate change: product-based energy performance standards and labels, and standards based on processes and production methods (PPMs). It argues that while product standards are highly cost-effective and widely used to correct market failures, PPM-based measures are more controversial in trade law due to concerns over protectionism and impacts on developing countries. The authors advocate for international harmonization of testing and certification procedures and increased technical and financial assistance for Southern exporters to ensure climate goals do not create unfair trade barriers.

The document argues that the PS/EPs fail to provide a robust framework for managing human rights risks, citing substantial gaps in substantive standards, due diligence procedures, and grievance mechanisms. Through a review of 61 project cases and an analysis using the Danish Institute for Human Rights' tool, the authors conclude that the PS/EPs do not align with international human rights norms and require significant amendment to ensure project sponsors meet their baseline responsibility to respect human rights.

The document examines the trade-off Peru faced between securing permanent preferential market access to the United States and the potential negative impacts of intellectual property concessions on public health and education. It specifically focuses on the role of civil society and pharmaceutical companies in challenging the intellectual property provisions of the US-Peru FTA.

The document details a formal complaint against the IFC regarding its financing of Nicaragua Sugar Estates Limited, S.A. (NSEL). Complainants allege that NSEL's operations have caused a Chronic Renal Insufficiency (CRI) epidemic among workers, contaminated water supplies, and violated indigenous Sutiaba land rights. The complaint asserts that the IFC failed in its due diligence, miscategorized the project as Category B instead of Category A, and ignored NSEL's history of environmental and labor violations.

The document argues that the global trade of lead and cadmium creates significant health and environmental risks that cannot be effectively managed by countries acting unilaterally, particularly in developing nations. It highlights the toxicity of these metals, the externalization of environmental costs to producing countries, and the failure of existing frameworks to cover the entire lifecycle of these substances.

Civil society organizations have invited candidates for the WIPO Director-General position to a meeting in Geneva on April 15, 2008, to discuss their visions for the organization. The organizations seek clarity on how candidates will mainstream development, integrate civil society into norm-setting, and address the negative impacts of intellectual property rights (IPRs) on areas such as access to medicines and climate change technologies.

This briefing serves as a 'Thought Starter' for the sixth session of the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety (IFCS). It examines whether the international trade of lead and cadmium—as commodities, products, and wastes—creates environmental and health risks that necessitate a coordinated international response rather than isolated national actions.

The workshop addressed the interface between WIPO and the CBD's Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) Working Group, highlighting concerns that the proposed international regime prioritizes state and industry rights over those of indigenous peoples. Presentations covered the framework of ABS discussions, the gap between state and indigenous conceptions of traditional knowledge, and the political use of WIPO by industrialized nations. Participants identified a need for further capacity building on technical concepts like 'derivatives' and 'disclosure of origin', and expressed skepticism regarding governments' willingness to implement commitments to indigenous rights.

The document examines the tensions between trade liberalization and climate goals, proposing that the EU integrate ambitious environmental standards into trade agreements and that WTO rules be subordinated to international climate agreements.

The document examines the tensions between trade liberalisation and climate mitigation, proposing that the EU and WTO shift from a market-access focus to one that prioritises environmental standards, technology transfer, and the principle of mutual supportiveness between trade and climate regimes.

The document examines how international trade contributes to climate change, primarily through transport emissions, and explores whether trade mechanisms can be repurposed to support sustainability. It discusses specific tools such as 'fair miles' labeling, the liberalization of environmental goods and services, and the implementation of energy efficiency technical standards. The text highlights a conflict between the EU's 'A Global Europe' strategy—which emphasizes market liberalization—and its climate commitments, arguing that intellectual property rights and trade barriers often hinder the transfer of clean technologies to developing nations. Furthermore, it analyzes the legal uncertainty within the WTO regarding carbon footprint labeling and border tax adjustments, calling for a 'mutual support' principle where trade rules are interpreted to facilitate, rather than obstruct, multilateral environmental agreements.