The Vance Center worked with partner law firms to help update a widely used international database of climate change laws, contributing essential information for NGOs and companies in 17 countries in Southeast Asia and the MENA region. Many countries now require companies to reveal more about the climate-related impacts of their activities, through legislation and policies such as corporate disclosure regulation. In the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission recently introduced requirements for large companies to provide more information on their climate impacts, and similar laws have also been introduced in the European Union. Keeping up with these laws... read more
Post tagged in "environment"
Vance Center Project Builds Knowledge About Corporate Climate Laws in 17 Countries
Posted on May 28, 2024
Environment Program Partners with WECAN on Escazú Agreement Toolkits Launched on Earth Day
Posted on April 30, 2024Speakers and attendees, including Vance Center Environment Program Advisor Nathalya Desterro (center in front of banner) and WECAN Executive Director Osprey Orielle Lake (right, holding banner) at an event in New York City, April 17. 2024. Photo: WECAN In partnership with client the Women’s Earth & Climate Action Network, International (WECAN), the Vance Center’s Environment Program has since last year worked with its international network of law firms to develop the Escazú Agreement Toolkits for Women Land Defenders and Frontline Communities for five countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. WECAN launched the five toolkits in a live online event... read more
Vance Center Supports Crucial Submission in Landmark Inter-American Court Decision on Environmental Rights
Posted on March 25, 2024Photo credit: Shutterstock On March 22, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights issued a landmark decision finding that the state of Peru violated multiple human rights of the residents of the town of La Oroya, including their right to a healthy environment. Together with the law firm Arias, the Vance Center advised David Boyd, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment, in his 2022 submission to the Court in this case. This month’s decision by the Inter-American Court marks a major development in a long and arduous process for the victims seeking justice. For decades the residents... read more
Our Year in Review: 2023 at the Vance Center
Posted on January 5, 2024Upholding Core Elements of Democratic Governance An Independent Judiciary: Working closely with the Latin American Federation of Judges (FLAM) and other national and regional partners, the Latin America Policy Program continued to call out threats to judicial independence and support judges in asserting their key role as defenders of democracy. Our actions included a thematic hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on threats to judicial independence, publishing country-level assessments of judicial independence in seven countries, and continuing to pursue justice for exiled Guatemalan judge Erika Aifán. Spotlight: Inter-American Dialogue on Judicial Independence The IACHR hearing inspired an... read more
Vance Center Supports Major UN Report on Environmental Rule of Law
Posted on December 15, 2023The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) recently released its Second Global Report on the Environmental Rule of Law, one of the UN agency’s flagship reports. The report extensively relies on data collected by the Vance Center working together with partner firm White & Case, in one of the largest research projects ever undertaken by the Vance Center. The rule of law is an essential element of effective environmental protection. States must have the capacity to develop and implement effective environmental regulations, and such regulations must be enforced fairly, developed through equitable participation, and applied by effective and transparent institutions. The... read more
Vance Center Files Brief in Landmark Climate Case at Inter-American Court
Posted on December 7, 2023The Court is considering a request for an advisory opinion outlining the obligations that States owe in relation to the climate emergency under the American Convention on Human Rights. Together with Milbank LLP, the Vance Center is representing three UN Special Rapporteurs before the Court. Earlier this year, the Inter-American Court received a request from two States, Chile and Colombia, for an advisory opinion on States’ climate obligations under the American Convention. The Vance Center’s Environment Program has worked with Milbank and three UN Special Rapporteurs – the rapporteurs on human rights and the environment David Boyd; rapporteur on toxics... read more