Corporate climate (un)accountability? Landmark Shell ruling overturned on appeal
by Harro van Asselt* and Annalisa Savaresi** First published in Centre for Climate Engagement (November 13, 2024). Shell’s ongoing legal battle over climate accountability reached a pivotal moment on 12 November 2024, as the Hague Court of Appeal delivered its verdict on the company’s appeal. This case has drawn global attention since the initial 2021 […]
Does civil society have a voice in EU climate negotiation preparation?
Writer: Tuula Honkonen, Senior Lecturer in international law at the University of Eastern Finland. First published in 2035Legitimacy blog (November 7, 2024). The European Union is strongly committed to transparent and participatory governance. However, preparation of its position for international climate negotiations is not transparent or open to civil society participation. Behind the Scenes: The […]
Towards a More Representative and Equitable COP? UNFCCC Continues Efforts to Improve Observer Participation in Baku
By: Nicola Sharman, PhD Researcher at the University of Eastern Finland. This blogpost was first published 2035Legitimacy blog (October 17, 2024). From November 11 to 22, government delegations and other stakeholders will gather in Baku, Azerbaijan for COP29 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). But the UNFCCC has been struggling to […]
People around the World are Using Courts to Question whether Climate Policies are Fair – new study
Authors: Annalisa Savaresi, Senior Lecturer, Environmental Law, University of Stirling Joana Setzer, Associate Professorial Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics and Political Science First published in The Conversation (October 22, 2024). London, October 2024: trade unions call for a just transition for oil and gas workers. Vuk […]
Carbon Capture and Utilization under EU Law: A Step Towards Carbon Neutrality
By Reza Maddahi, PhD Researcher Source: International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (2022) The European Union (EU) is on a complex journey to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Among the strategies being employed, carbon capture and utilization (CCU) has become a crucial approach alongside carbon capture and storage (CCS). Both technologies play a significant […]
Democracy and Deliberation in the UNFCCC
By Tuomas Palosaari, Lecturer Democracy and the International System People living in democracies have ways to influence and follow public decision-making that affects their lives. International decision-making is problematic in this regard. The ‘chain of legitimacy’ imagined as extending from the people to the public decision-makers is convoluted when applied to international decision-making. In democracies […]
Climate Initiatives and Research Facilitating the Expansion of High-integrity Voluntary Climate Action
By Lauri Peterson, Senior Researcher In recent years, various initiatives have emerged aimed at promoting voluntary climate action (VCA). Put simply, VCA consists of efforts and measures that businesses and governments undertake of their own accord, without being legally mandated or required to do so by regulatory frameworks to tackle climate change. An increasing number […]
Environmental Procedural Rights at Risk? Inadequate Financial Contributions Threaten to Undermine the Aarhus Convention
Written by Nicola Sharman This article was originally published on Ejil:Talk! From 2-4 July, the Working Group of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention met for the 28th time in the UN Headquarters in Geneva. The agenda featured critical topics such as access to justice, public participation in international forums, the protection of environmental defenders, compliance cases, capacity-building, and possible topics […]
Keeping up with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement – The path towards Baku COP29
By Sara Tolonen, PhD Candidate The emerging Article 6 carbon market architecture The Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI-60) and Subsidiary Body for Science and Technological Advice (SBSTA-60) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held their intersessional meetings in Bonn on 6-13 June 2024, with a continuing focus on making progress on […]
Oil Bosses Call Phasing Out Fossil Fuels a ‘Fantasy’ – but an International Agreement is Plausible
By Harro van Asselt, Professor of Climate Law and Policy, Lauri Peterson, Senior Researcher, and Panagiotis Fragkos, Researcher, Energy & Economy, National Technical University of Athens. First published in The Conversation on 9 April 2024. Amin Nasser, chief executive of the world’s largest oil company Saudi Aramco, recently called on nations to “abandon the fantasy” […]