Environmental Law Commons^™

Catalyzing Public And Private Investments To Scale Up Socio-Bioeconomy And Nature-Based Solutions, Lara Fornabaio, Lisa E. Sachs, Meike Siegner, Vivek Pandey, Rajat Panwar

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

Socio-bioeconomy presents a promising approach to sustainable development by leveraging biological and social diversity to transition away from a fossil fuel dependent economy while simultaneously creating income and employment opportunities for millions of Indigenous and rural communities worldwide. Because the bioeconomy values the sustainable utilization of renewable biological resources, nature-based solutions (NbS), which are a facet of the socio-bioeconomy, gain increasing prominence. Socio-bioeconomy requires substantial investmentsfrom both public and private sectors to develop effective socio-biodiversity production systems. Socio-bioeconomy development will require improved institutional coordination, robust planning, and novel methodologies to measure trade-offs as well as promote synergies that can generate …

Climate Change And Human Health: A Synthesis Of Scientific Research And State Obligations Under International Law, Jessica A. Wentz

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This report synthesizes the latest scientific research on the human health effects of climate change and discusses the legal implications of this research, specifically with regards to State obligations under international law. In doing so, the report seeks to provide insights on issues to be analyzed by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in its upcoming advisory opinion on the legal obligations of States with respect to climate change. It also seeks to enhance the capacity of judges, advocates, and governments to understand these issues in the context of current and future proceedings involving international law obligations related to climate …

Advisory Opinion On Climate Change: Summary Of Written Observations Submitted To The Inter-American Court Of Human Rights (Part 1), Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

On January 9, 2023, the Foreign Ministers of Chile and Colombia requested an advisory opinion from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) on the scope of state obligations for responding to the climate emergency under the frame of international human rights law and, specifically, under the American Convention on Human Rights. Within this context, the IACtHR received a total of 255 amicus brief submissions.

This report includes summaries of the amicus briefs submitted to the Court. Due to the number of submissions received and the short timeframe prior to the hearings, the report is divided into parts. This first …

International Governance Of Ocean-Based Carbon Dioxide Removal: Recent Developments And Future Directions, Romany M. Webb

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

With the impacts of climate change intensifying, and progress in reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that cause it continuing to lag, the parties to the Paris Climate Agreement have emphasized the need to accelerate efforts to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, while simultaneously curbing emissions. As the parties have recognized, the ocean is already a major carbon sink, and could play an important role in future carbon dioxide removal (“CDR”) efforts. Scientists have proposed a variety of ocean-based CDR approaches, but most require further research to fully evaluate their efficacy, benefits, and risks. In-ocean testing of the approaches, and …

Incorporating Climate Considerations Into Investment Assessment Processes: Guidance For National And Local Governments, Esther Akwii, Grace Brennan, Leslie Hannay, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Nora Mardirossian

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

Global climate change impacts pose complex, dynamic challenges to the success of land-based investments — such as agriculture, forestry, and wind and solar energy — which can further exacerbate detrimental climate change impacts if they are not sustainably implemented. Countries outline in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) their goals and plans to reduce GHG emissions and adapt to climate change impacts. To ensure their success, governments must fully integrate their NDCs into national climate strategies, plans, and policies that drive government action and decisions. Improved land-based investment decision-making through the incorporation of climate considerations in investment assessment processes (IAPs) can …

It Is (Finally) Time For And Advisory Opinion On Climate Change: Challenges And Opportunities On A Trio Of Initiatives, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

In recent years, the number and diversity of climate-related lawsuits have increased, with courts in over seventy jurisdictions now handling such cases. After the expansion through domestic courts, stakeholders worldwide are turning to international courts and tribunals to help define the responsibilities of states in light of the climate crisis. Three initiatives requesting advisory opinions to international courts or tribunals have been announced within six months. These advisory opinions could have significant implications for international climate change law, defining the human rights obligations of states (and potentially corporations) in light of the climate crisis. It is expected the International Court …

Billion-Dollar Exposure: Investor-State Dispute Settlement In Mozambique’S Fossil Fuel Sector, Lea Di Salvatore, Maria Julia Gubeissi

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

Alongside preparing for climate change, Africa should invest in the zero-carbon future, avoiding locking itself into the declining fossil fuel–based economy while taking advantage of the opportunities presented by decarbonization. However, investment treaties and investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS) hinder, rather than catalyze, the transition to climate-friendly investment opportunities. This report shows how Mozambique’s international investment agreements and publicly available oil, gas, and coal contracts allow foreign investors to bypass the national judicial system and bring multi-billion-dollar ISDS claims against Mozambique. Such claims can result in significant costs for the country, and they also have a chilling effect on new public-interest …

An International Law Framework For Climate-Aligned Investment Governance, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Elena Klonsky, Fanny Marie Everard, Qiaozi Guanglin, Tyler Alviano, Justin Cuddihey, Mary Wang

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

The January 2024 CCSI Working Paper, An International Law Framework for Climate-Aligned Investment Governance, outlines a framework — and invites and hopes to inspire further thinking, research, and discussion — on how to bridge gaps and build cohesion among various areas of international law relevant to investment in climate mitigation and adaptation. The working paper identifies areas of international law that are or could be relevant to investment governance, highlights points of inconsistency, and proposes a framework to reform and integrate international law with the objective of promoting and facilitating climate investment flows and achieving climate-aligned regulation of investment.

Legal Issues In Oceanic Transport Of Carbon Dioxide For Sequestration, Carolina Arlota, Michael B. Gerrard, Pria Deanna Mahadevan

Faculty Scholarship

A number of large facilities intended for the permanent sequestration of carbon dioxide are being developed in the United States. Several of them will be located in Texas and Louisiana on or near the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, making them easily accessible to ships. At the same time, there is substantial interest in Europe in installing equipment to capture carbon dioxide from certain industrial operations before it is emitted into the atmosphere, but currently there are inadequate facilities existing in Europe to sequester much of this carbon dioxide. Therefore, there is interest in the possibility of using ships …

Itlos Advisory Opinion On Climate Change: Summary Of Briefs And Statements Submitted To The Tribunal, Maria Antonia Tigre, Korey Silverman-Roati

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This report provides a summary of the briefs and statements submitted to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) in response to the Co-Chairs of Commission of Small Island States (COSIS)’ request for an advisory opinion on climate change-related legal questions. The central issue before the ITLOS is whether State Parties to UNCLOS have specific obligations regarding the prevention, reduction, and control of marine environmental pollution stemming from climate change, as well as the protection and preservation of the marine environment concerning climate change impacts. While States and civil society organizations have put forward a variety of …

Beyond The North–South Divide: Litigation's Role In Resolving Climate Change Loss And Damage Claims, Maria Antonia Tigre, Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Within the international climate regime, legal aspects surrounding loss and damage (L&D) are contentious topics, implicating liability, compensation and notions of vulnerability. The attribution of responsibility and the pursuit of redress for L&D present intricate legal and governance challenges. The ongoing debates under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change are characterized by a pronounced North–South divide and have done little to provide tangible support to those most affected by L&D. This apparent neglect has prompted exploration of alternative avenues for climate harm redress. The burgeoning field of litigation for liability and compensation of climate harm holds potential significance …

Carajás Corridor In Brazil: Could An Sea Have Reconciled Shared-Use Infrastructure And Environmental Protection?, Perrine Toledano, Martin Dietrich Brauch

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

The 998km Carajás railway corridor connects the world’s largest iron ore mine, operated by private mining company Vale S.A. (Vale) in Brazil’s northern state of Pará (PA), to the company’s maritime terminal in São Luís, the capital of the northeastern state of Maranhão (MA). Carajás is one of the few integrated railway corridors financed by a mining company that, apart from transporting the iron ore that made the infrastructure investments viable, also transports general cargo and operates passenger services along the corridor. This corridor was born from the Brazilian government’s plans in the mid1950s that foresaw the iron ore reserves …

Status Report On Principles Of International And Human Rights Law Relevant To Climate Change, Katelyn Horne, Maria Antonia Tigre, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

The report aims to provide high-level guidance on the legal issues to be analyzed by the ICJ on the advisory opinion request on climate change. The status report addresses (i) advisory proceedings before the ICJ, including the Court’s jurisdiction and procedure (Section II), and (ii) key legal principles relevant to the request for an advisory opinion, including principles of international environmental law and international human rights law (Section III). The report identified, in a non-exhaustive manner, key relevant principles of international environmental law, key relevant principles of international human rights law, and issues of intergenerational equities that apply to the …

Climate Change And Indigenous Groups: The Rise Of Indigenous Voices In Climate Litigation, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Climate change’s pervasive human rights impacts on populations worldwide are widespread and now widely known. One avenue to address these human rights impacts is the growth of rights-based climate litigation. There are now hundreds of cases worldwide grounded on human rights claims. However, less attention has been brought to how vulnerable groups are disproportionally affected by climate change. Indigenous groups, in particular, are disproportionately affected by climate change due to their connection to their land and dependence on their ecosystems. To increase global attention and seek legal remedies to address how Indigenous communities are impacted by climate change, Indigenous groups …

Roadmap To Zero-Carbon Electrification Of Africa By 2050: The Green Energy Transition And The Role Of The Natural Resource Sector (Minerals, Fossil Fuels, And Land), Jeffrey D. Sachs, Perrine Toledano, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Tehtena Mebratu-Tsegaye, Efosa Uwaifo, Bryan Michael Sherrill

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

All Africans — whether living in urban or rural areas — need access to affordable, clean, efficient, reliable, climate-proof, and renewable energy for both residential and productive uses to achieve sustainable development objectives. At the same time, the world is moving to decarbonization by 2050, and Africa will be part of this global trend. Prospective oil and gas projects in Africa will no longer be pursued as overseas markets, and financing will shrink. At the same time, Africa’s vast renewable energy potential, in the solar and hydropower sectors especially, will engage increasingly bankable and highly attractive investments. In net terms, …

International Investment Law And The Extractive Industries, Ella Merrill, Jesse Coleman, Lisa E. Sachs, Lise Johnson

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

As of April 2022, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) tallied 3,218 international investment treaties, of which 2,558 are in force. Investors in extractive industries (the oil, gas, and mining sectors) have used investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanisms embedded in these treaties to challenge a wide range of host state actions and inactions that have allegedly negatively affected their investments. Those claims, and the threats thereof, restrict states’ ability to maximize the benefits, and their ability to limit environmental and social harms, resulting from the exploitation of natural resources. This briefing note provides an introduction to international …

International Investment Governance And Achieving A Just Zero-Carbon Future, Ella Merrill, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Lisa E. Sachs

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

As developing countries continue to be the most negatively affected by climate change and the energy transition, it is increasingly critical that they receive foreign direct investment and financial support to build climate resilience, adapt to climate impacts, avoid carbon lock-in and fossil fuel dependence, and leverage their rich endowments of renewable and extractive resources to prepare for the zero-carbon future.

There is a disconnect and fundamental misalignment between international investment law and the international climate change regime, comprising the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement. Existing investment treaties—including their centerpiece, investor–state dispute settlement …

Exploring The Bedrock For Earth Jurisprudence, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This article calls for a reassessment of our core beliefs on how we relate to the environment through a deep dive into the philosophical foundations of environmental protection. With this purpose, it shows how Earth-centered discourses have existed in human societies and civilizations for millennia. Different religious and philosophical underpinnings all share a view of humanity as an integral part of an organic whole, revering all living things. While recent developments in jurisprudence may appear novel, they are somewhat latent and emergent. Theories of land ethics, rights of nature, Earth-centered environmental ethics, wild law, and Earth jurisprudence all build on …

New Producer Contract Terms And Uncertainty: Lessons From The Recent Past, Patrick R.P. Heller, Perrine Toledano, David Mihalyi, Tehtena Mebratu-Tsegaye

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

The petroleum industry is volatile, and governments in “new producer” countries have operated at a significant information disadvantage when negotiating with international oil companies. This challenge is growing today; new producer countries face intensifying questions around whether to offer fiscal incentives to maintain investment in the face of 1) the pandemic-induced volatility in oil prices and 2) long-term questions about the future of the industry in the face of the climate crisis and the global energy transition.

This confluence of short-term and long-term uncertainty is prompting a reexamination of the narrative that once took hold in many new producer countries. …

Climate Action Needs Investment Governance, Not Investment Protection And Arbitration, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

A response by the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment to the OECD Public Consultation on Investment Treaties and Climate Change.

The Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI) — a joint research center of Columbia Law School and the Earth Institute at Columbia University — explores elements of the international investment legal framework, including the impact of investment treaties, investor–state dispute settlement, and home and host government policies governing inward and outward investment, among many other issues.

Reframing Global Biodiversity Protection After Covid-19: Is International Environmental Law Up To The Task?, Maria Antonia Tigre, Natalia Urzola, Victoria Lichet

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

In an increasingly interdependent world, the climate and biodiversity crises are, more than ever, inextricably tied to human health and the transmission of infectious diseases. The 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has irrevocably shown us that the exploitation of wild species and deforestation increases and modifies the interface between people and wildlife, leading to a spillover of diseases from wildlife to people. From a legal perspective, the gaps in international environmental law have contributed to the lack of an effective international biodiversity policy. In light of the challenges brought by the pandemic, there is now an opportunity to rethink our existing legal …

Cooperation Without Convergence: Border Carbon Adjustment And Heterogeneity Of Climate Actions, Lucas Moreira Jiminez

LL.M. Essays & Theses

Border Carbon Adjustment measures (“BCAs”) were originally conceived to help solve a problem that arises when countries ask firms to internalize the costs of environmental depredation in an open economy. Environmental regulation raises costs to domestic producers who feel and are — both are relevant — disadvantaged vis-à-vis their foreign competitors subject to lower regulatory costs, in ways that impact economic competitiveness but also the effectiveness of the regulation itself, to the extent it is directed at a ‘global commons’ problem such as reducing greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions in an attempt to mitigate climate change. However, BCAs create issues of …

Permitting Seaweed Cultivation For Carbon Sequestration In California: Barriers And Recommendations, Korey Silverman-Roati, Romany M. Webb, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

Interest is growing in seaweed cultivation and sequestration as a carbon dioxide removal strategy. This white paper explores the barriers to seaweed permitting for carbon sequestration in California, including a complex, costly, and time-consuming lease and permitting process. Other states in the U.S., namely Maine and Alaska, have permitting systems designed to be more supportive of seaweed cultivation. This paper describes the legal framework for seaweed cultivation permitting in California and discusses the permitting systems in Maine and Alaska. The paper then explores possible reforms to streamline California’s permitting process, while maintaining appropriate environmental and other safeguards.

Investment Governance In Africa To Support Climate Resilience And Decarbonization, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Brenda Akankunda

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

African nations have only marginally contributed to global warming relative to developed and emerging economies in the Americas, Asia, and Europe. However, the African continent will bear a disproportionate burden of the negative impacts of climate change. Climate-related challenges like flooding, drought, and intense heat waves will increasingly confront the continent at a worsening rate. African nations should not be expected to take the lead in addressing a climate emergency they did not create. The priority for Africa is to receive support and investment to build resilience and adapt to climate impacts.

Primer On International Investment Treaties And Investor-State Dispute Settlement, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

What is Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)? FDI occurs when an individual or corporation in one country (“home state”) sets up or buys all or a significant part of a company that is incorporated in a different country (“host state”). Companies invest abroad to access land-based resources including mining, more affordable labour for instance in manufacturing, and new markets, among other reasons. Many countries seek to attract FDI in order to realize benefits in the form of tax revenues, technology transfer, jobs, and other economic linkages. The images below illustrate the concept of FDI, as well as some of the sectors …

Fixing The Business Of Food: Aligning Food Company Practices With The Sdgs, Sustainable Development Solutions Network, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment, Sanda Chiara Lab, Barilla Center For Food And Nutrition

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

The food sector confronts significant sustainable development challenges. It both contributes to, and suffers from, environmental degradation, especially human-induced climate change and deforestation. Although it can provide farming communities with livelihoods and incomes, it also can fuel land grabs that undermine community rights and wellbeing. The sector feeds the growing global population, but also contributes to the epidemics of obesity and metabolic diseases, while chronic malnutrition has continued to worsen in the years since adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In light of these challenges and opportunities, a number of frameworks, guidance documents, and standards have aimed to create …

Carbon Accounting By Public And Private Financial Institutions: Can We Be Sure Climate Finance Is Leading To Emissions Reductions?, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Emily Spittle

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

To further and fully understand how to plan for the decarbonization of mining value chains, we need better data on carbon and other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, neither consumers, corporates, or financial institutions know the embodied emissions in the products they produce or sell. While methods like life-cycle analysis and environmental product declarations exist, none use a verifiable, comparable, or widely adopted emissions reporting framework capable of sending supply chain signals.

To truly reform material supply chains, new solutions for markets, capital, and policy are required. COMET (the Coalition on Materials Emissions Transparency) – an alliance launched at Davos …

New Tech, New Deal: Mining Policy Options In The Face Of New Technology, Isabelle Ramdoo, Aaron Cosbey, Jeff Geipel, Perrine Toledano

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Throughout the history of mining, technological innovation has played a vital role across all cycles of mining projects. The new wave of technological adoption is a combination of evolutionary and revolutionary technologies, with an increasing focus on the latter. An acceleration in investments in disruptive technologies in recent years has seen the large-scale mining sector finally catching up with a dynamic that has already advanced in many other sectors. The reasons for this shift include more difficult geology, declining ore deposits, the need to reverse a secular decline in productivity, the need to improve safety for mine workers, a need …

Responsible Coffee Sourcing: Towards A Living Income For Producers, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Margaret Sagan, Solina Kennedy

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Coffee, one of the world’s most popular beverages, provides livelihoods for at least 60 million people across dozens of countries. Promoting the long-term health, wellbeing, and environmental sustainability of the much beloved coffee sector should be a clear priority.

CCSI has continued its work on coffee sustainability with a 2021 report: “Responsible Coffee Sourcing: Towards a Living Income for Producers.” The report focuses on a critical but under-examined topic: the impact of coffee company sourcing practices on coffee producer and farmworker well-being. The report, commissioned by a long-term investment manager, analyzes the sourcing practices of ten large coffee roasters and …

Guide On Incentives For Responsible Investment In Agriculture And Food Systems, Anna Bulman, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Ladan Mehranvar, Ella Merrill, Yannick Fiedler

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

To support implementation of the Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems (CFS RAI), CCSI has developed resources for governments and other stakeholders in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO).

This work includes an online course on creating an enabling environment for responsible investment in agriculture and food systems. The course is freely available, accessible online and available for download. Part I highlights the features and key players of an enabling environment that promotes responsible investment in agriculture and food security. Part II addresses multi-stakeholder engagement in the design of legal and …