Climate Law and Governance Day 2017 Concept Note November 10, 2017 Alongside the UNFCCC COP23 Universitätsforum Bonn, Heussallee 18-24 53113 Bonn, Germany 1
CLIMATE LAW AND GOVERNANCE DAY 2017 OVERVIEW With leading climate law and governance experts joining over 15,000 delegates for the UNFCCC CoP23 in Bonn, Germany from 6 to 17 November 2017, a unique opportunity is presented to unlock this knowledge, share best practices and build capacity. The third annual Climate Law and Governance Day (CLGD) will take place in parallel to COP23 on 10 November 2017 in Bonn to facilitate the dialogues between diverse sets of stakeholders, government representatives and the academic legal community. It will build on the success of the inaugural CLGD 2015, which took place alongside COP21 with an audience of 60 key jurists, policy and law makers, academics, and civil society representatives, and CLGD 2016, which drew an audience of over 260 government delegates, law and policy practitioners, academics, and students, and reached a network of over 50,000 in its follow up and associated social media activities. Interested collaborators are invited to contribute sponsorship funds and in-kind contributions to support the conference, and interested session hosts are invited to submit research briefs and contribute modest cost-shares to host sessions during the day-long event. These sessions serve to share and profile the climate law and governance work across the global UNFCCC community, whether it is analysis and progress on new laws and policies, climate litigation, questions or findings for legal and governance research projects, outcomes technical assistance, or educational programmes. They can also be launching or convening points for ongoing programmes, a chance to check in with decision-makers, negotiators, civil society, private sector and other actors convened by the CoP23, or to share progress with sponsors and partners. The discussions during the Day will stimulate knowledge exchange, provide opportunities to learn about on-going research and initiatives in the field, build synergies through networking and finding opportunities for (research) collaborations, and inspire cross-pollination amongst legal fields and jurisdictions on legal and institutional tools to advance climate action. Parties, UN bodies, intergovernmental organizations, academia, jurists and civil society are invited to join the current co-hosts and core partners of Climate Law and Governance Initiative including the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law, the Centre for International Governance Innovation, the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law at the University of Cambridge, the University of Bonn and the University of South Pacific. The Climate Law and Governance Initiative is also grateful for the continued support of our diverse network of IGO, university, and NGO partners, as well as law firms and associations. This concept note outlines the proposed focus areas for CLGD 2017, the component elements of the day and the opportunities for partners to contribute through sponsorship, and cost-share session hosting. CLG Roundtable Dialogue 2017, Bonn Climate Law and Governance Day 2016, Marrakech
The Climate Law and Governance Initiative The Climate Law and Governance Initiative (CLGI) is a coalition of diverse members of the climate law community, including think tanks, universities, international organisations, NGOs and law firms. CLGI focuses on the legal and institutional aspects of responses to the challenges posed by climate change and seeks to complement and coordinate ongoing efforts in this field. The core activities of the CLGI are centred on four main pillars. First, with the support of partners, the CLGI Secretariat organises and coordinates knowledge sharing events alongside the UNFCCC processes and beyond. Second, the initiative provides support and outreach for the capacity building and climate action efforts of its partners. The third pillar of the initiative focuses on involving students and young people from different regions in its activities so as to enhance long term capacity strengthening. Finally, it hosts an online knowledge centre, which profiles useful knowledge resources and tools and serves as a research repository for the knowledge cogeneration aspect of its work including a blog, research reports and a legal working paper series. While the CLGI in its present form was formalised during COP21 in Paris, its roots can be traced back to events held annually alongside the COPs, starting with COP11 in 2005 in Montreal. More information on the history of CLGI and past CLGDs can be found online at climatelawgovernance.org and in the annex. Note on Other CLGI Activities During COP23 In addition to the CLGD 2017, the Climate Law and Governance Initiative will host an international climate law and governance capacity building course. In this one-day course, for which a certificate shall be granted, international delegates and leading national and regional scholars and practitioners will provide focused capacity-building on relevant issues. Furthermore, CLGI will support the coordination and promotion of side events hosted by its core partners. CLGI will engage in the official UNFCCC side event zones of the COP23 Climate Change Conference, as well as participating in associated side events in collaboration with leading climate law organisations. CLGI will aim to boost its nascent knowledge centre during its COP23 activities by interacting with policymakers, lawmakers, parliamentarians, and delegates on the ground in Bonn. CLGI will be seeking blog contributions from its diverse network from the legal community in the lead up to, and during COP23. Having supported the COP22 Moroccan Presidency in its legal advisory capacity, CLGI will continue to support the COP23 Fijian Presidency. 3
CLIMATE LAW AND GOVERNANCE DAY (CLGD) 2017 Building on the success and the lessons learned from past Climate Law and Governance Days, CLGD 2017 will convene the diverse members of the international legal community to discuss how research and capacity building efforts can support national and international legal and institutional solutions to climate action, including how to implement the Nationally Determined Contributions, the Paris Agreement, the SDGs relating to climate change, and the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol. A particular focus will be given to the challenges and experiences of the COP 23rd Fiji Presidency, including renewable energies, building climate resilience, loss and damage and climate migration. The day-long event will take the form of an interactive dialogue with world-leading experts on international, national and local law and governance challenges in responding to climate change. CLGD 2017 will accept proposals by individuals and consortia of partners to host sessions along the following themes, identified according to the vision set by the COP23 Presidency and in consultation with the CLGD Programme Committee and informed by the discussion at the Bonn Roundtable. 1. Legal tools and multi-level instruments to implement the Paris Agreement and NDCs: Focusing on innovating multi-level and multi-sectoral climate mitigation and adaptation instruments, creating synergies within and across sectors, and exploring how to build capacity amongst legislators and policymakers. 2. Operationalising the Paris Agreement: Exploring challenges in finalising and implementing the Paris Rulebook including transparency and compliance mechanisms, loss and damage and market mechanisms. 3. Advancing Climate Resilience and Climate Justice: considering the role of civil society and the legal community, including courts and legal professionals, in accelerating climate action, enhancing transparency and ensuring accountability, integrating human rights into climate actions, advancing the Warsaw international mechanism on loss and damage and ensuring adequate finance for loss and damage, creating adequate insurance mechanisms, and addressing climate migration. 4. Legal Frameworks to Enable Climate Finance and Engage the Private sector: Exploring the legal tools and obstacles in promoting sustainable finance and investment flows to implement NDCs and the Paris Agreement, including fossil fuel subsidies, considering conflicts and differences between international regimes including public and private international law, and international trade law, investment law and climate law, and building climate resilient and climate just societies and economies. Objectives 1. To inform the 2018 facilitative dialogue, and in particular the political/ministerial level, to inspire politicians and decision-makers on how legal tools and institutional reforms can assist in implementing and increasing the ambition of their NDCs and respond to climate challenges. 2. To profile and share innovative international, national, and local law and governance mechanisms, challenges and best practices relating to global efforts to address climate change. 3. To catalyse knowledge exchange to co-generate new climate law and governance knowledge and approaches, particularly by facilitating dialogue between delegates, legal practitioners and legal academic. 4. To strengthen capacity, collaboration and a law and governance community of practice to implement the Doha Amendment, the Paris Agreement, the Paris Rulebook and the COP22 outcomes, and the SDG 13 on climate change. 4
Component elements 1. A series of preparatory seminars and symposia in different law schools around the world including a pre-cop visit hosted by our Pacific co-hosts (tbc). 2. Keynote speakers and contributors from convenor organizations and partners. 3. Briefings on the diverse progress in climate law and governance worldwide, regionally and nationally, and plans for capacity building and dialogue related to implementing the Paris Agreement and NDCs, the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, and the Climate SDG. 4. Substantive roundtable sessions on key international, national, and local climate law trends and governance practices, how different legal instruments can assist in implementation, harmonising different areas of international law around the Paris Agreement, and mobilising interdisciplinary actors to build synergies for collaboration. 5. Sessions and debates to scope and agree the future legal and governance research agenda, identifying specific scholarship and capacity gaps and needs, as opportunities for new capacity building and technical cooperation. 6. International essay-writing and mooting competitions, to engage law and politics students in discussions of how the Paris Agreement can be implemented on the ground in their countries. Outcomes 1. An outcomes report of CLGD 2017 on how legal and institutional mechanisms can contribute to achieving the long-term temperature goal of the Paris Agreement on the basis of equity, and in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty, and the implementation of the (i)ndcs to be shared with the Parties and the COP22/COP23 presidencies. 2. A forum for dialogue and knowledge exchange, resulting among others in a report that captures the discussions and insights of the day that will be informing delegates and other interested actors of the outcomes of the day. 3. Establishment of new partnerships for research, technical assistance and capacity building to support international, national, and local implementation of the Paris Agreement. 4. An informed and engaged climate law and governance community of practice, strengthened by the exchange of knowledge and legal experiences shared during CLGD and other CLGI events alongside the UNFCCC events. 5. Engagement of law and governance students from different regions, and in particular the Pacific islands, in the project, research and outreach activities so as to build long term capacity and create leadership opportunities. 6. New publications and online legal materials building on shared lessons, including legal working papers, case studies, good practice and materials for law teaching and practice. Venue Climate Law and Governance Day 2017 will take place at the University Forum, thanks to the generous contribution of the University of Bonn. The University Forum is conveniently located 5 minutes by foot from the World Conference Center Bonn, the centre of the COP23 negotiations. 5
HOW TO ENGAGE WITH CLIMATE LAW AND GOVERNANCE DAY 2017 The Climate Law and Governance Initiative invites interested Parties, organisations, law firms, universities, and institutions, to become partners in the upcoming Climate Law and Governance Day 2017. There are several options to contribute to Climate Law and Governance Day. Propose and host a session, or apply for a sponsored session 1. Session host: Session hosts will have the opportunity to share and profile their climate law and governance work, such as new laws and policies, litigation, research projects, technical work and education. Institutions, universities, initiatives or law firms will convene (or chair a consortium to convene) a dedicated climate law and governance experts panel, roundtable or workshop during the Day. Session hosts are acknowledged and thanked as session hosts in the programme, banners, website and the proceedings report, as a partner in Climate Law and Governance Day 2017, and will nominate speakers, VIPs and other guests to participate. Session hosts help share part of the costs of the overall Day, including for venue, catering, security, materials, outreach, website, coordination and support, as well as rapporteurs, proceedings and publication of the best legal working papers from the Day. Cost-share for session hosts are 3000-5000 Euro which may include in-kind contributions to outreach, editing and dissemination, and can be shared by a consortium of partners. 2. Sponsored sessions for developing country and Indigenous partners: Depending on the means available and support secured, 2-3 sponsored sessions that waive the usual cost-share contribution will be made available for eligible institutions from Indigenous Peoples, least developed and highly climate vulnerable countries. Opportunities for Partnership: Engaging as a partner in the 2017 CLGD offers countries, inter-governmental organisations, law and governance associations and other institutions several important advantages. These benefits include: 1. A dedicated seat on the CLGD 2017 Programme Committee helping to guide the substance and structure of CLGD; 2. The opportunity to convene and chair a dedicated experts panel, roundtable, workshop or plenary session on the aspects of implementing the Paris Agreement that are most pressing for the partner s work, profiling recent developments and obtaining valuable feedback from a global audience of specialists and potential partners; 3. Opportunities for high profile participation in the ceremonies, chairing, and plenary sessions of CLGD 2017, in the preparatory materials related to the CLGD, and in the sharing and dissemination of the CLGD s outcomes to the 193 Parties to the UNFCCC including leading stakeholders and partners, and to the interested public; 4. New and deepening climate law and governance research and education partnerships with leading government departments, international organizations, universities, law associations and civil society organizations of the world, serving to enrich and inform your work to develop innovative and effective laws, policies and actions to combat climate change. 6
Levels of Partnership / Sponsorship: 1. Event Collaborators: In addition to hosting a session, for a combined cost-share and financial sponsorship contribution over 5,000 Euros, collaborating institutions will be able to publish outcomes to the broad and growing CLGI network of partners and sponsors, be featured with a 'Conversation with Climate Law Experts' blog in the lead up to CLGD 2017, and be profiled as full collaborators in the CLGD 2017 and related activities. 2. Co-Hosts of CLGD 2017: Alongside hosting a workshop or plenary session during CLGD, co-host institutions will be featured with speakers in the opening and closing ceremonies, join the co-hosts presenting the CLGD 2017 outcomes during CoP23, in a special event in the official UNFCCC side-event zone, reaching a wider audience directly as global climate law and governance leaders and appoint a senior-level international judge for the international student essay and mooting competitions. Cohost countries and partners will join the Programme Committee of CLGD 2017, and be highlighted and acknowledged in the outreach and proceedings material, outreach for other relevant events and activities through our outreach channels. Co-hosts contribute over 20,000 Euros, including in-kind support. These contributions are crucial in supporting the sponsored sessions, a broad and balanced international participation, publication of outcomes, law student volunteer engagement, and the university-based secretariat that serves the CLGD 2017. 3. Core Partnership. Core partnerships provide crucial support to the different activities of the initiative, particularly capacity building through courses and the nascent online knowledge centre as well as the events. Support includes the opportunity to jointly set the priorities, activities and strategic planning of the Climate Law and Governance Initiative as a whole, over multiple years. Core Partners will be highlighted and acknowledged in all event and initiative outreach and proceedings material, and further package details can be tailored to the objectives of the partnership. Core partnership opportunities over 35,000 Euros can be discussed with the Secretariat by emailing climatelawgovernance@cisdl.org. Additional financial sponsorship contributions to sponsor sessions hosted by highly climate vulnerable countries, least developed country organizations and indigenous peoples, publication of the legal working papers and report, the international climate law and governance capacity-building course, and the participation of delegates from indigenous peoples and developing countries, in particular from the Pacific region, will also deeply welcomed, for a more tailored engagement. Countries, institutions and others interested in this engagement are invited to contact the CLGI secretariat by emailing climatelawgovernance@cisdl.org. 7
CO-HOSTS AND CONFIRMED CORE PARTNERS OF CLGD 2017 INCLUDE The Climate Law and Governance Initiative continues to be supported by our diverse network of IGO, university, and NGO partners, as well as law firms and associations. Current core partners and co-hosts include the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law (CISDL), the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law at the University of Cambridge (LCIL) and the International Law Association (ILA). For more information see the CLGI website. The Centre for International Sustainable Development Law (CISDL) The Centre for International Sustainable Development Law is a charitable international legal research centre with offices at the Faculty of Law of McGill University in Montreal, Canada; the University of Cambridge, UK; the University of Chile in Santiago, Chile; and the University of Nairobi, Kenya. CISDL works to integrate environment, human rights and economy through leading international legal research and scholarship on international sustainable development law, and legal empowerment by organizing and contributing to courses, conferences, lectures, roundtables, symposia and workshops to promote new ideas, dialogue and collaboration on law for sustainable development. CISDL supports the increased understanding, development and implementation of law for sustainable development through capacity-building, capacity development and technical cooperation in all regions of the globe. Since its creation in 2002, CISDL has grown to include a global fellowship of over 140 lawyers and legal scholars in more than 60 countries supported by a small international secretariat, through 7 substantive legal research and education programmes, over 80 new books and publications, to become the world s leading centre for law on sustainable development. The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) The Centre for International Governance Innovation is a nonpartisan, independent think tank focused on issues of global governance and law, economics and politics, based in Waterloo, Ontario. The International Law Research Program (ILRP) is a ten-year program of international law research and international law capacity building, co-funded by CIGI and the Province of Ontario. The ILRP conducts policy relevant cutting-edge legal research involving academics, public and private sector practitioners, on issues of international economic law, international intellectual property law and innovation, international environmental law and international indigenous law, and intersecting issues of international human rights, development and security. The Lauterpacht Centre for International Law at the University of Cambridge The Lauterpacht Centre is part of the Faculty of Law and the scholarly home of international law at the University of Cambridge. In this role, it seeks to provide both a framework and forum for critical and constructive thought about the function, content and working of law in the international community as well as to develop an appreciation of international law as an applied body of rules and principles. The Centre enjoys a congenial and relaxed atmosphere, providing the perfect space for social and intellectual interchange. The University of Bonn and the University of South Pacific The University of Bonn is one of Europe s leading research based universities, and its preeminent Faculty of Law is home to leading German law professors. The University of the South Pacific (USP) is the premier provider of tertiary education in the Pacific region and an international centre of excellence for teaching, research, consulting and training, with 12 Pacific Island member countries - Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. 8
CONTACTS Dr Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger Senior Director, CISDL LCIL, Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge Email: mccs2@cam.ac.uk Prof. DDr. Wolfgang Durner Professor of Law, University of Bonn Email: durner@jura.uni-bonn.de Ayman Cherkaoui Lead Counsel, Climate Change, CISDL CISDL, Faculty of Law, McGill University Email: acherkaoui@cisdl.org Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh University Lecturer in Environmental Law, University of the South Pacific Email: mjwewerinke@gmail.com Please cc climatelawgovernance@cisdl.org in your correspondence BACKGROUND The impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly more visible and the imperative to take action has been widely recognised. In response, in 2015 the international community adopted the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as well as the Sustainable Development Goals, which specifically dedicate Goal 13 to climate change as well as related cross-cutting issues. Reflecting a consensus on the urgency to take bold action, the Paris Agreement entered into force less than a year later and has been ratified by 146 countries as of May 2017. While the Paris Agreement marks a milestone in the international community's response to climate change, many issues remain to be negotiated. In addition to operationalising the various provisions of the Agreement, the implementation of the nationally determined contributions (NDCs), will require considerable further effort. With the Fijian Presidency of the 23rd UNFCCC Conference of the Parties shedding more light on the plight of highly vulnerable countries, it is also crucial to share experiences and to consider issues specific to the small island nations, including recent regional initiatives such as the Pacific Climate treaty. Solving these challenges and ensuring compliance will require input from a diverse set of stakeholders, including the legal community which can play a crucial role in enhancing national and international responses. This important role of legal and institutional approaches to climate challenges is reflected in the (intended) Nationally Determined Contributions (i)ndcs submitted by parties. Surveys of the (i)ndcs show that the vast majority of countries highlight the need for institutional and legal reform in response to climate change and many developing countries call for legal and institutional capacity building support. The upcoming 2018 Facilitative Dialogue, which will bring together parties to take stock of the collective efforts towards the Paris Agreement s long-term temperature goal, provides an opportunity to engage in a dialogue amongst the different stakeholders on exchanging knowledge, best practices and innovative ideas on how the legal community can contribute to accelerating climate action. 9
ANNEX History and Background of the Climate Law and Governance Initiative and Climate Law and Governance Day While the Climate Law and Governance Initiative was formally founded in 2015 in wake of the Paris negotiation, its roots can be traced back to 2005 to Montreal, the first COP for the Kyoto Protocol. Since then the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law, from which CLGI emerged, has organised various evens on climate law and governance alongside the UNFCCC processes. These included symposia and side-events on Strengthening Climate Cooperation, Compliance and Coherence (2005), Sustainable Development Law on Climate Change: Emerging Legal Regimes & Mechanisms (2006), Law & governance of climate change adaptation & vulnerability (2007), Building the Low-Carbon Economy beyond Copenhagen: The Global Law & Policy Research Agenda An International Seminar (2009), Developing sustainable and equitable legal frameworks for the global low carbon economy (2010), Legal Preparedness for Climate Compatible Development: Securing REDD+ (2011), Public Participation and Climate Governance (2012), Rights, Governance & Climate Change (2013), Innovations for Sustainable Energy: Smart Energy Path Planning, Law and Governance (2014) and Climate Law and Governance: Future Practices and Prospects (2015). The inaugural CLGD took place in Paris in 2015. Due to the tight security, the number of participants was severely restricted, however, all 60 available spots at the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne were filled by participants from academic and research institutions, international organisations and government delegates. In addition to high-level key note speeches by Rt Hon Mary Robinson (President, Mary Robinson Foundation - Climate Justice and former Prime Minister of Ireland) and Dr Ibrahim Thiaw (Deputy Executive Director, UN Environment Programme) the day featured nine substantive sessions as well as two plenary sessions. 10
CLGD 2016 focused on crafting the Paris Rulebook. With over 260 attendees, including 100 expert speakers, 100 participating delegates and 60 local and national students, as well as over 30 partners CLGD 2017 provided a forum for knowledge exchange, dialogue and networking. The day featured 2 inter-governmental sessions, 12 substantive expert sessions and involved law students and young scholars from across the globe through a climate moot court competition, an essay competition and poster session. The event was co-hosted by the Universitée Privé de Marrakech and Universite Hassan 1er de Settat, The hospitality and support of previous hosts including McGill University, the University of Copenhagen, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México in Mexico, then University of KwaZulu- Natal in South Africa, University of Warsaw in Poland, Sorbonne in Paris, and Universitée Privée de Marrakech and Hassane 1rst in Marrakesh continues to be deeply appreciated. 11