With only 5 months left before the 27th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27), there is an urgent need for signatories to the Glasgow Statement to deliver on their pledges. However, a new report by IISD, Oil Change International, and Tearfund shows that most signatories have yet to adopt new fossil fuel exclusion policies and strategies to prioritize clean energy finance that match the ambition of the Glasgow Statement.

This virtual London Climate Action Week event provides a first look at the findings of this new report, zeroing in on three critical and timely questions:

1. What is the Glasgow Statement's potential impact, if fully implemented?
2. What existing best practices can signatories follow?
3. How can signatories ensure that the implementation of the statement is strong enough to realize its full potential?

Panellists from government and civil society share their experiences implementing the Glasgow Statement and reflect on how it can facilitate a clean and just energy transition in low- and middle-income countries.

Agenda

Introduction

Moderator: Chloé Farand, Senior Reporter and Investigation Lead, Climate Home News

Presentation of Report Findings

Lucile Dufour, Senior Policy Advisor, IISD
Laurie van der Burg, Co-lead, Global Public Finance, Oil Change International

Panel Discussion

• John Murton, UK COP26 Climate Envoy
• Jorim Schraven, Director, Impact and Environmental, Social, and Governance Department, FMO: Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank
• Vivienne Yeda, Director-General, East African Development Bank
• Promise Salawu, Project Officer, Renew our World, Tearfund

Q&A

Energy sector support measures are one of the key economic policy levers that the Government of Indonesia can use to influence energy production and consumption. These measures, however, often come at a high cost to the public budget. Therefore, it is important for Indonesia to ensure that current fiscal policies are properly aligned with energy and climate objectives, such as 23% renewable energy by 2025 and net-zero emissions by 2060.

This webinar serves as a starting point for stakeholders and the public to discuss the flow of public funding in Indonesia’s energy sector as experts shed light on the current status of support measures for fossil fuels, renewable energy, and clean technology.

In addition to highlighting the incentives and support measures available for the energy sector in Indonesia, this webinar also discusses relevant questions, such as:

• Are these incentives helping or hindering Indonesia’s effort to improve access to clean and affordable energy?
• Are incentives in line with energy transition policy objectives?
• Are measures appropriately designed to provide social protections and reach those who need them most?

The webinar also launched a first-of-its-kind report that provides an account of all the support measures available for various energy types in Indonesia, including coal, oil and gas, electricity, renewable energy, biofuels, and electric vehicles.

Agenda

Opening Remarks

Lourdes Sanchez, Senior Policy Advisor and Lead, Indonesia, IISD

Presentation of Indonesia’s Energy Support Measures

Lourdes Sanchez, Senior Policy Advisor and Lead, Indonesia, IISD

Panel Discussion

• Andi Novianto, Assistant Deputy for Oil and Gas, Mining, and Petrochemical at the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs, Republic of Indonesia
• Thomas Capral Henriksen, Head of Energy Sector, Embassy of Denmark in Indonesia
• Filda Yusgiantoro, Chairperson, The Purnomo Yusgiantoro Center, Republic of Indonesia
• Paul Burke, Professor of Energy Economics and Project Convenor in the Zero-Carbon Energy for the Asia-Pacific, Australian National University

Closing Remarks

Philip Gass, Lead, Transitions, IISD

The SDG Lab, Cepei, and IISD—in partnership with UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs and Action for Sustainable Development—hosted an informal virtual briefing and question/answer session on the 2022 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). The webinar gave an overview of the themes and issues of this year's HLPF, helping interested stakeholders unpack the main messages, connect with like-minded peers, and shape their own advocacy and communications during the high-profile event.

Agenda

• Welcome | SDG Lab and IISD
• HLPF 2022 Program and Participation | Irena Zubcevic, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
• What to Watch for at HLPF 2022 | SDG Lab
• Voluntary National Reviews and Regional Perspectives | Javier Surasky, Cepei
• Civil Society Perspectives and Expectations | Uchita de Zoysa, Action for Sustainable Development
• Q&A Expectations From Participants | Audience
• Wrap Up and Staying Connected During HLPF | Trine Schmidt and Lynn Wagner, IISD

• Click here to watch in French
• Click here to watch in Spanish

Click Here for the Presentation by Lea Di Salvatore

In response to the climate crisis, policy-makers across the globe are stepping up their efforts to adopt adequate regulations and policies to phase out fossil fuels. However, foreign investments in fossil fuel projects are granted extensive protection under current international investment law. This includes access to investor–state dispute settlement—a mechanism that allows investors to bring expensive claims to international tribunals to mitigate losses they incur from regulatory measures adopted by host countries. 

This webinar discussed the findings of a recent report published by IISD, Investor–State Disputes in the Fossil Fuel Industry, which shows that the fossil fuel industry has relied heavily on international investment law to protect its assets. In addition, the industry is increasingly using it to counteract important climate and environmental regulations—and these claims are likely to rise as more and more governments implement climate measures in line with the objectives of the Paris Agreement.  

Our panel of experts presented the report’s key findings and discussed their implications for sustainable policy-making. What effect will the investor–state dispute settlement process have on global efforts to achieve tangible climate goals? And what can be done to overcome the legal barriers that obstruct climate action?

Speakers

Moderator

• Lukas Schaugg, International Law Analyst, Economic Law and Policy Program, IISD

Speakers

• Lea Di Salvatore, PhD Researcher, School of Law, University of Nottingham; Report Author
• Greg Muttitt, Co-Lead, Sustainable Energy Supplies, IISD
• Kyla Tienhaara, Canada Research Chair in Economy and Environment, Queen's University
• Bart-Jaap Verbeek, Researcher, Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO)

Interested in learning more?

This webinar is part of IISD's work to address the rules and institutions in investment law and policy that are undermining efforts to achieve sustainable development goals. This includes our work on the Energy Charter Treaty—the most employed international investment agreement in fossil fuel arbitrations. Learn more about the Energy Charter Treaty and what's at stake in the following resources:

• Video: What Is the Energy Charter Treaty and What Does it Mean for Sustainable Development?
• Article: How the Energy Charter Treaty Risks Undermining the Outcomes of COP 26
• Webinar: Aligning Investment and Climate Goals: Where does the Energy Charter Treaty modernization stand?

IISD also hosts the first permanent Secretariat of the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance (BOGA), an international partnership seeking to facilitate the phase out of oil and gas production. Read more about BOGA here.

And as we celebrate our 2022 research season—the biggest one since the pandemic started—we want to share some notes from the field, from across the planet.

Watch videos from Vanuatu, hear notes from North Carolina, and read postcards from Phnom Penh*—from our collaborators excited to share what they’re going to be getting up to at IISD Experimental Lakes Area during its 54th research season.

*Disclaimer: These almost certainly won’t be the places you’ll be hearing from.

Join us on Friday, June 24, 2022 at 12:00 p.m. (CST)

SIGN UP HERE

On June 1, 2022, the International Institute for Sustainable Development organized a hybrid session for World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiators on supporting the implementation of new WTO rules on fisheries subsidies.

Ahead of the WTO Twelfth Ministerial Conference, where WTO Members hope to conclude a new agreement on fisheries subsidies, the session explored some of the international cooperation opportunities available to WTO Members for the implementation of the new disciplines. In particular, delegations heard from institutions like the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Bank about possible sources of multilateral support for improving information and data collection capabilities, establishing the required domestic mechanisms to comply with new disciplines, and strengthening fisheries management systems more broadly. IISD also presented a self-assessment tool it is developing to assist WTO Members, and in particular developing countries, in their implementation efforts.

As the world faces increasing economic uncertainty and rising energy prices, G20 countries must maintain momentum on a sustainable energy transition, one of the key priority issues set by Indonesia as part of its G20 Presidency in 2022.

For this purpose, Indonesia’s interministerial Energy Transition Working Group (ETWG) has defined three energy priority issues:

1. Securing energy accessibility
2. Scaling up smart and clean energy technologies
3. Advancing energy financing.

Taking place 3 weeks prior to the ETWG finalizing the Energy Ministerial Communiqué and Main Deliverables, this webinar explored how G20 governments can safeguard carbon pricing and fossil fuel subsidy reform within the Communiqué and G20 Leaders’ Declaration.

The webinar began with opening remarks by the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto. International Institute for Sustainable Development Senior Director, Energy, Peter Wooders then delivered a keynote address on the importance of raising ambition on carbon tax and fossil fuel subsidy reform in the Energy Ministerial Communiqué and Leaders’ Declaration. Finally, the high-profile panellists shared their own perspectives on the importance of raising ambition within G20 proclamations.

Agenda

Check-In and Outline of Event

Rike Amru, News Anchor, BeritaSatu TV News Channel

Opening Remarks

Airlangga Hartarto, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Republic of Indonesia

Keynote Speech

Peter Wooders, Senior Director, Energy, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)

Panel Discussion

• Chrisnawan Anditya, Head of Planning Bureau, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Republic of Indonesia
• Ahmad Agus Setiawan, Advisor to the Deputy Chief of Staff of the President, Republic of Indonesia
• Leonie van der Stijl, Friends of Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform and Senior Climate Diplomat, Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Peter Wooders, Senior Director, Energy, IISD

Closing Remarks

Lourdes Sanchez, Senior Policy Advisor and Lead, Indonesia, IISD

IISD convened a roundtable discussion on trade and gender at the International Association for Feminist Economics 30th Annual Conference, which took place online and in Geneva from June 29 to July 1, 2022.

The objective of the roundtable was to draw attention to the spaces in trade-related policy arenas where efforts can be directed to ensure that the direction of work on trade and gender is consistent with an inclusive and rights-based feminist agenda. It will bring together experts on women’s rights, feminist economics, and trade policy to critically and constructively assess opportunities to advance gender equality and women’s rights in trade policy.

Confirmed speakers 

• Joanna Bourke-Martignoni (Gender Centre, Graduate Institute and Geneva Academy of Humanitarian and Human Rights Law)
• Caroline Dommen (International Institute for Sustainable Development, Geneva)
• Marzia Fontana (Institute for Development Studies, University of Sussex, UK)
• Lolita Laperle Forget (World Trade Organization, Geneva)
• Adrienne Roberts (University of Manchester, UK)

Geneva provides the ideal setting to consider how discussions about women’s economic empowerment in international economic institutions are consistent with feminist and women’s rights objectives, as the city is home to the international human rights mechanisms, including the Human Rights Council, and the World Trade Organization.

Carefully designed government support measures for energy are a critical step on the path to net-zero emissions, particularly for achieving ambitious clean energy targets. Beyond 2030, as India’s fossil fuel use begins to peak and decline, we can also anticipate that fossil fuel revenues will fall significantly. The strategic use and diversification of revenue sources will be crucial to boosting the supply of clean energy, incentivizing its demand, and maintaining a smooth fiscal transition. In both support schemes and revenue planning, the synergy between social protection and the consumption of clean energy must be factored in as the country deliberates a new investment paradigm.

This session, organized by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) provides an updated assessment of how the Government of India has used public resources to support fossil fuels, renewables, and electric vehicles from FY 2014 to FY 2021. The session also touches on the revenue implications of the energy transition and discusses the role of the public and private sectors in collective action toward achieving a clean energy transition.

This event will launch a new CEEW-IISD report on Mapping India’s Energy Policy 2022: Aligning Support and Revenues with a Net-Zero Future.

Agenda

Welcome Remarks

Christopher Beaton, Lead, Sustainable Energy Consumption, IISD

Keynote Speaker

Amit Verma, Director, Energy, NITI Aayog

Presentation of Mapping India’s Energy Policy 2022

Swasti Raizada, Policy Advisor, IISD

Panel Discussion

Moderator

Prateek Aggarwal, Programme Associate, CEEW

Speakers

• Kavita Rao, Professor, Acting Director, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy
• Anjana Seshadri, Lead, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), Neev Fund, SBICAP Ventures ltd
• Alexander Hogeveen Rutter, Private Sector Specialist, International Solar Alliance
• Abhishek Ranjan, Senior Vice President Strategy and Head—Utilities and Retail, ReNew Power

Closing Remarks

Christopher Beaton, Lead, Sustainable Energy Consumption, IISD

In recent years, investor–state arbitral tribunals have awarded increasingly high amounts of compensation to foreign investors—exacerbating the negative socio-economic impact of investment treaties in practice. Because of this, the approaches used by arbitral tribunals to determine compensation amounts are drawing ever-greater scrutiny from policy-makers, academia, and civil society.

One question that has emerged is this: How are compensation awards being calculated elsewhere? This webinar marked the launch of a brand new IISD policy paper that seeks to answer this question. Approaches of International Courts and Tribunals to the Award of Compensation in International Private Property Cases examines how other international courts and tribunals approach the awarding of compensation in international property claims cases.

The paper explores and compares practices of the Permanent Court of International Justice, the International Court of Justice, and the European Court of Human Rights, among others, drawing out lessons and innovations applicable to international investment arbitration reform.

This webinar brought together the paper's lead author, Esmé Shirlow, and three distinguished speakers to discuss the paper and its implications for the ongoing reform of investor–state dispute settlement.

Speakers

Moderator

• Sarah Brewin, Senior Law Advisor and Coordinator of Advisory Services, Economic Law and Policy Program, IISD

Speakers

• Esmé Shirlow, Associate Professor, Australian National University School of Law; Report Author
• Simon Batifort, Partner and Brussels Managing Partner at Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP
• Veronika Fikfak, Associate Professor in Human Rights Law at the Centre of Excellence for International Courts at the University of Copenhagen
• Martins Paparinskis, Reader in Public International Law at the Faculty of Laws, University College London

IISD’s new research paper

We asked Esmé Shirlow about the paper and what lessons could be drawn from this comparative research. Watch what she had to say:

Interested in learning more?

This webinar is the fourth in IISD’s webinar series on compensation under international investment law, following on from:

• Damages in International Investment Law
• Valuation in Investment Arbitration: Spotlight on discounted cash flow analysis
• Compensation Under Investment Treaties: Exploring ideas for reform

IISD aims to continue exploring this topic with further webinars throughout 2022. In addition to the paper that will be launched at this event, IISD has also published:

• Compensation Under Investment Treaties: What are the problems and what can be done?—a concise brief for policy-makers.
• Compensation Under Investment Treaties—a longer paper discussing existing principles of compensation and possible reforms in greater depth.