News Stories Archives

Business Flags Innovation and Investment at UN Environment Assembly

Published on May 27, 2016

unea2-logo.fwThe second United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) is meeting this week in Nairobi, Kenya to define new priorities on global environmental policy action, based on the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This session, which meets as a universal assembly involving all UN member states and including environment ministers from over 100 countries, was also the farewell session for the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) executive director, Achim Steiner, who has led UNEP for ten years. Erik Solheim, executive director of the OECD Development Assistance Committee will succeed Steiner in that post.

Business and industry representatives from the Global Business Alliance for 2030 attended this session, including USCIB’s Norine Kennedy in her capacity as official business focal point for UNEP.  Attendees took part in the Science and Policy Forum and several events at the Sustainable Innovation Expo, including the UNEA2 Business Dialogue.

L-R: Sally Lee, Mayor of Sorsogon City, the Philippines; John Alrichs, Planet Labs; Barrie Bain, International Fertilizer Association; and Daniel Calleja, Director-General, Environment DG, European Commission
L-R: Sally Lee, Mayor of Sorsogon City, the Philippines; John Alrichs, Planet Labs; Barrie Bain, International Fertilizer Association; and Daniel Calleja, Director-General, Environment DG, European Commission

Speaking for the Global Business Alliance for 2030, Barrie Bain of the International Fertilizer Association (IFA) stated that “while technological innovation can come in the form of disruptive change, far more important is to enable continuous evolution and improvement of a wide range of technologies to reduce their environmental impacts.”

After several nights of late night negotiations, UNEA reached over 20 policy decisions, including in the areas of:

  • Marine debris and plastics
  • Chemicals and Waste
  • Access to Information
  • Climate Change
  • Reducing Food Waste

Addressing the links between health and environmental policy is an emerging issue that has received considerable attention in Nairobi.  According to UNEP’s new report, Healthy Environment, Healthy People, 23 percent of all global deaths are due to modifiable environmental factors, with air pollution as the leading factor.

In comments to the UNEA2 Plenary, Kennedy highlighted the importance of creating a strong substantive interface for business and industry to inform and strengthen UNEP programs on environmental science and technology, policy and implementation.  She stated that “sustainability and environmental challenges will require new ways of working, through partnership and enhanced cooperation between governments, business and others.”

USCIB members met with the U.S. government delegation attending UNEA2, and took part in side events on women’s economic empowerment, private-sector partnerships with municipal governments, and climate change and chemicals.  The next UNEA will take place in the fall of 2017.

A full report of UNEA2 outcomes on issues and opportunities for business will be provided at the next meeting of USCIB’s Environment Committee, June 8 in NYC.

Business Priorities for UN Climate Agreement Implementation

Published on May 23, 2016
Norine Kennedy and Peter Robinson speak at a press conference on December 9 at COP21 in Paris.
Norine Kennedy and Peter Robinson speak at a press conference on December 9 at COP21 in Paris.

Following last year’s landmark conclusion of the United Nations climate negotiations (COP21) culminating in the Paris Agreement, an international treaty designed to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, USCIB attended the first meeting of the UN’s Ad Hoc Working Group (APA) on the Paris Accord on May 17 in Bonn, Germany to provide business views on the agreement’s implementation.

Norine Kennedy, USCIB’s vice president for strategic international engagement, energy and environment, spoke on behalf of the Business and Industry NGOs at the first meeting of the APA on May 17. She noted that COP21 saw an unprecedented level of business support for the Paris Agreement, and that business across all sectors provides solutions for the world’s mitigation and adaptation to climate change.

“Business develops and provides sustainable solutions in energy production and use, industry, building, transport, energy efficiency, smart cities, water and food security, industrial processes, finance and others that will all be needed for the ambitious, effective global strategy we are embarked on together,” Kennedy said at the meeting.

Kennedy said that transparency, innovation, and investment and markets are business priorities for immediate attention as the UN implements the climate agreement:

Transparency

Defining common rules to measure, report and verify commitments will be essential for the long-term success of the Agreement, and will help promote business support.  Credibility and predictability are vital considerations for private sector planning and investments.

Innovation

All countries and business sectors need to support developing new skills to respond to climate change challenges, enabling energy transitions and shaping public policies for sustainable economies.  Enabling frameworks for innovation and its dissemination, including intellectual property rights protection, are essential. Predictable and transparent policy conditions, open trade and investment and a level playing field in global markets are a prerequisite for effective climate protection.

Investment and Markets

Business welcomes Article 6, because in our view, all markets — including for carbon, goods or financial — should be enlisted to support and deliver results for mitigation and adaptation. Market-based approaches should synergize with other existing policies and options such as international standards, voluntary agreements or other regulatory instruments.

Because business has the relevant expertise to contribute to the review and strengthening of countries’ climate pledges, Kennedy said that a recognized channel for business engagement with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is a must.

“In our view, an institutionalized channel within the UNFCCC for private-sector consultation and engagement would provide the necessary institutional infrastructure to support dialogue, partnership and action in short and long term,” she concluded. “This recognized and regular interface should feature not only at high level events, but in all working aspects of the UNFCCC.”

New Study Details the Impact of an Environmental Goods Agreement on China

Published on April 22, 2016

Solar-workers_3The Coalition for Green Trade, of which USCIB is a founding member, issued the following press release today about a new study onthe impact of an Environmental Goods Agreement on China:

New Study Details the Impact of an Environmental Goods Agreement on China

The Coalition for Green Trade today released the results of a new study detailing the effects that a World Trade Organization (WTO) Environmental Goods Agreement (EGA) would have on the economy of China and the country’s ability to meet its environmental goals.

Overall, the study, “Value of an Environmental Goods Agreement: Helping China Meet Its Environmental Goals,” finds that full implementation of an EGA accord to eliminate tariffs on green technologies by China – the largest producer of these technologies participating in the EGA negotiations – would have a positive impact on the Chinese economy and environment.

The study was principally prepared by Dr. Joseph F. Francois and Laura M. Baughman of the Trade Partnership Worldwide, LLC.  They find that full implementation by China of an ambitious EGA:

  • Increases China’s GDP and national income by billions of dollars;
  • Increases exports by nearly $27 billion, up by 9.8 percent;
  • Increases real spending of roughly $22 billion annually on environmental goods; and
  • Results in gains of approximately $659 billion annually in economic benefits linked to improved environmental quality, based on the literature assessing cost-benefit ratios for investment in improved environmental conditions.

In July 2014, the United States and a group of other countries launched EGA negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in an effort to improve access to important green and energy efficient technologies, among other objectives. The United States and the 16 other WTO members participating in the EGA talks account for at least 86 percent of global environmental goods trade.

The Coalition for Green Trade is composed of a broad range of associations – including the U.S. China Business Council, which provided advice and outreach in support of this report – and companies doing business in the United States who seek to remove barriers to global trade in environmental technologies.

USCIB Statement: Setting the 2030 Sustainability Agenda In Motion

Published on April 20, 2016

un_headquarters_lo-resNow more than ever, business and the global community share a common goal of advancing economic development and sustainability while effectively addressing climate change. This week in New York, governments, business and civil society are gathered to move forward on the landmark decisions of 2015. Through USCIB’s Campaign2015, USCIB and its members supported and informed the decisions of Addis, Paris and New York.  This week our message is clear — it is time to get to work!

Together we have an opportunity to design and carry out promising solutions for the world’s economy and governments, reflecting the UN 2030 Development Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – and the conviction that business and governments should work together to address global challenges.  These universal agendas speak to everyone, including the business community. USCIB will approach these imperatives holistically, working with our global business network, the U.S. and other governments, and numerous other partners.

USCIB members are committed to advance the vital outcomes of Addis, New York and Paris, both those that have been decided, as well as those requiring further discussion and elaboration.

Addressing the challenges of sustainability demands new ways of working together, through partnership and enhanced engagement between governments and business.  We understand that the real effort is now beginning, as governments determine working details and put commitments into action.  In business, we too are moving to define priorities for further elaboration and what it will take to mobilize and scale up business investment, innovation and action going forward.

Our joint priorities should include:

  • Strengthening specific and distinct business interfaces to the UN system, such as the Private Sector Coordinating Group for FfD, the HLPF and to the UNFCCC and its bodies, such as the Technology Mechanism and Green Climate Fund
  • Tapping business expertise to catalyze and design enabling frameworks for, among other things, research, development, deployment and management of efficient and low-carbon technologies, investment, trade, finance, MRV, adaptation, risk management, and frameworks to promote effective, inclusive and efficient results.

We welcome the UN’s willingness to work in partnership with business so that we can build solutions to energy security, lower carbon development and sustainable economic growth together. USCIB’s platform, Businessfor2030, highlights the fundamental role business will play in helping to achieve the SDGs and 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

USCIB and its members are ready to demonstrate what we are ready to bring to this global effort, and look forward to working with governments, the UN community and society as a whole.

Read more about USCIB’s 2015 activities in support of the UN 2030 Development Agenda

Fighting Efforts in the UN to Degrade Intellectual Property Rights

Published on February 19, 2016

intellectual_propertyOne of the most contentious issues during the United Nations COP21 climate negotiations was the push by NGOs and some countries to frame intellectual property (IP) rights as a barrier to environmental goals. USCIB and other business groups made a strong case for IP frameworks, arguing that innovation is crucial for developing solutions to the world’s climate challenges, and thanks to their efforts IP was not mentioned in the final climate treaty agreed to in Paris last year.

However, significant challenges to IP are proliferating throughout the UN system, and concerns remain about the Paris Agreement’s implementation and subsequent climate negotiations. To help push back against attacks on IP protection, USCIB and five other business associations sent a letter to U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch urging the U.S. government “to safeguard innovation at multilateral institutions.”

The letter notes that there is positive precedent for such an approach by the United States, as several IP experts from the American delegation at COP21 worked together to ensure that the Paris Agreement’s text didn’t mention IP and removed uncertainty that could have discouraged continued investments by U.S. companies in clean technology.

Challenges to IP have also arisen in the recently announced UN High Level Panel (UNHLP) on Access to Medicines, and at other international regulatory institutions such as the World Health Organization (WHO). In both cases, the business community is worried that innovators’ perspective will not be taken into account in the agencies’ policy deliberations. The letter encourages the U.S. to prevent the UNHLP and WHO from “constraining business involvement to the detriment of innovation.”

“U.S. leadership will be essential to managing diverse initiatives across the UN system…to ensure that they do not undermine innovation,” the letter stated. “All relevant U.S. government agencies must be aligned in such efforts.”

Read the full letter.

Following the Paris Agreement, UN Charts Next Steps for International Environmental Policy

Published on February 17, 2016

UNEPFresh on the heels of COP21 in Paris – possibly the most important United Nations environmental meeting in history – governments are meeting in Nairobi this week to develop an international policy agenda on a wide range of environmental topics at a UN Environment Programme (UNEP) preparatory meeting. The meeting saw over 20 draft resolutions for government action and further UN activity on climate change, chemicals and waste, marine plastic debris and micro plastics, and food waste. The new resolutions that come out of this meeting will be adopted at the 2nd UN Environment Assembly in May.

Beyond environmental topics, governments are also considering cross-cutting issues and initiatives, including health and environment, and the UN’s far-reaching collaboration with the World Health Organization; financing and investment for sustainable development; and the role of public-private partnerships involving the business community across several of these areas.

USCIB is on hand as an official business representative to UNEP. Norine Kennedy, vice president for strategic international engagement, energy and environment, delivered remarks on behalf of the Business and Industry Major Group on a range of business issues in a statement to the Opening Session.

“The groundbreaking sustainability agreements of last year could not have happened without the strong engagement of business working with other stakeholders and governments, and UNEA must also engage the private sector,” Kennedy said.  Innovation, enabling frameworks for cost effective and scientifically sound policy design, and the need to work with business in partnerships are priorities for USCIB’s ongoing involvement in UN environmental work

The UN Environment Assembly next May will be the first major inter-governmental sustainability meeting since the Paris climate summit. The assembly will place special emphasis on “Delivering the Environmental Aspects of the SDGs.”  Ministers will meet to consider how to jumpstart and deepen implementation on environmental issues embedded in the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

UNEP is the authoritative environmental agency in the United Nations system.  USCIB will be discussing business issues and strategy for the second UN Environment Assembly at the next meeting of the USCIB Environment Committee in Washington DC on March 8.

Is the Trans-Pacific Partnership a Catalyst for Climate Action?

Published on January 22, 2016
L-R: Claire Reade (Arnold & Porter), Ben Beachy (Sierra Club), Norine Kennedy (USCIB) and Michael Gerrard (Columbia Law School)
L-R: Claire Reade (Arnold & Porter), Ben Beachy (Sierra Club), Norine Kennedy (USCIB) and Michael Gerrard (Columbia Law School)

One of the most important challenges in 2016 will be developing mutually reinforcing international trade and climate policies, seeking synergies in the global market place for economic growth and environmental innovation. Yet difficulties remain. Nowhere is this more evident than in the controversy swirling around the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free trade agreement between 12 Pacific-Rim countries representing 40 percent of global GDP, and the perception by some groups that TPP could impede climate action. USCIB champions free trade, investment and climate action, and supports TPP and other free trade agreements, along with the United Nations Paris Agreement, and is uniquely placed to advocate for the important links between them.

USCIB participated in a panel on January 19 organized by the Columbia Center on Sustainable Development (CCSI) about the effects of TPP on domestic and international climate change policy.  While much of the discussion focused on TPP’s investment chapter, Norine Kennedy, USCIB’s vice president for strategic international engagement, energy and environment, urged panelists to consider TPP as a whole in economic and environmental terms, especially in the context of the recently concluded UN Paris Agreement, which will require substantial investment, finance and technology cooperation to meet ambitious objectives for greenhouse gas reduction.

Claire Reade (Arnold & Porter) argued TPP goes above and beyond the environmental protections found in previous trade agreements and would facilitate the transfer of clean technologies,  Moreover, it will provide recourse for U.S. companies of all sectors, such as clean energy and green technology, in cases of discriminatory or unlawful treatment by host governments. However, Ben Beachy (Sierra Club) and Lise Johnson (CCSI) stated concerns that the agreement’s Investor-State Dispute (ISDS) mechanism would increase legal actions against governments and hinder environmental regulations among TPP parties.

Kennedy argued that investors require security and protection to make the investments needed to implement the Paris outcomes, and ISDS through TPP is an important part of that.  “Both the UN Paris and TPP agreements are too important to fail,” Kennedy said, and reminded the group of President Obama’s final State of the Union Address highlighting the need for both rapid climate policy implementation and ratification of TPP.

The TPP agreement’s 30 chapters cover issues ranging from market access, to intellectual property rights, to labor standards. TPP offers opportunities to strengthen climate action via provisions on capacity building, regulatory coherence, anti corruption and rule of law.

“TPP is a must-have for climate action,” Kennedy concluded. “It’s part of the bigger picture of policy and market infrastructure for climate-friendly economic activity.”

USCIB Webinar: USAID’s Public-Private Partnership to Support Responsible Land-Based Investments

Published on January 22, 2016

USCIB hosted a webinar on USAID’s Public-Private Partnership to Support Responsible Land-Based Investments on February 4, which kicked off the USCIB Corporate Responsibility webinar series.

USAID speakers discussed their call for Expressions of Interest for potential private sector partners to co-create, co-design, co-invest and collaborate in addressing land tenure risks related to current or future land-based investments with a particular focus on African land deals as a means of piloting the effectiveness of the recently finalized Analytical Framework for Land-Based Investment in African Agriculture that USAID has just developed with the G7, UN Food and Agriculture Organization and African Union.

A recording of the webinar is available here. (Free registration is required).

Speakers included:

Chad Dear
ChadDear is an interdisciplinary social scientist, educator and development professional dedicated to improving land and resource governance. Through positions in academia, civil society, and government, Dear has led applied, interdisciplinary research teams; designed and implemented rural livelihood and natural resource management projects; and designed innovation programs within USAID.  Recent achievements include co-leading establishment of the Mountain Societies Research Institute (part of the Aga Khan Development Network), and guiding the Institute’s inaugural applied research programs. Dear, PhD Forestry and Conservation, has nearly ten years of on-the-ground international experience, primarily in Central Asia and Southern Africa, as well as significant domestic experience in the American west, including Alaska. He publishes in academic, technical and popular literature.  Dear is affiliate faculty in the College of Forestry and Conservation, University of Montana; an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science & Technology Policy Fellow; and a former Fulbright Fellow.

Sarah Lowery
SarahLowery is an Economist and Public-Private Finance Specialist in USAID’s Land Tenure and Resource Management Office. She focuses on the link between secure land tenure and inclusive economic growth and leads econometric, financial and risk analysis related to strengthened land tenure, access to finance and responsible investment. Lowery has designed public-private financial mechanisms in Brazil and Colombia that encourage sustainable land use, and she has authored several papers on climate finance innovations like REDD+ bonds and ways to unlock larger pools of capital like agricultural finance in the pursuit of conservation goals. Lowery holds an MBA and Master of Environmental Management from Yale University and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Business from Lafayette College.

Yuliya Neyman
YuliyaNeyman is a Land Governance and Legal Advisor in USAID’s Land Tenure and Resource Management Office. She leads the office’s private sector engagement and responsible investment work. Prior to joining USAID, Neyman worked as a corporate lawyer at White & Case, LLP in New York City. Prior to earning her law degree, Neyman worked as a journalist, and has written for the Huffington Post, Miami Herald, South Florida Business Journal, New York Daily News, Newsday, Washington Times and USA Today. Neyman has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Northwestern University, and a law degree from Columbia Law School.

2016 USCIB Corporate Responsibility Webinar Series

The goal of the series is to provide members with introductions to new and innovative initiatives and organizations related to corporate responsibility that may be of interest and to allow for deeper dives into certain topics. The following additional webinars will be offered over the course of the first half of 2016. We hope you are able to join us for some or all of these programs and would like to remind you that you are welcome to indicate your interest in one or more of the below webinars (or to suggest other topics) via this form. 

February 24: World Bank Group’s Global Partnership for Social Accountability (GPSA)
This unique program within the World Bank’s Governance Unit focuses on supporting governments, citizens and the private sector to work together to solve governance challenges. The GPSA provides direct long-term assistance to civil society organizations to promote accountability by government actors on development challenges. This webinar, jointly hosted with GPSA, will introduce the GPSA and showcase its potential for solving vexing governance issues that are undermining the ability for entry into new markets and/or the long-term viability of private-sector investments in the over 40 countries in which the GPSA is authorized to fund programs.

March 23: Bretton Woods II:  New America Foundation’s multi-stakeholder platform for reducing global volatility
Led by Tomicah Tilleman, a former senior adviser to Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, the non-partisan BWII is working with a large coalition of organizations to demonstrate that large long-term financial actors can significantly increase their long-term returns by dedicating a percentage of their holdings to investments that address root causes of volatility, such as poverty, corruption, poor governance and the lack of rule of law. Such directed investments can also improve investment climates in countries throughout the world in ways that have a multiplying effect for multinational enterprises. BWII also presents an opportunity for companies with unique competencies to lend their talents to this important endeavor.

Business Reflections on COP21

Published on December 18, 2015

COP21_sideventAfter four years of intensive negotiations, 194 countries concluded a long-term global climate treaty, known as the Paris Agreement, to reduce worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. The two-week meeting, which concluded on December 12, was one of the largest gatherings in the history of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), with 150 heads of state on hand, more than 40,000 registered attendees and unprecedented business involvement. USCIB members and staff, including President and CEO Peter Robinson and Vice President for Energy, Environment and International Engagement Norine Kennedy, were on the ground in Paris to advance USCIB policy priorities, hold several side meetings and presentations on US business climate perspectives and demonstrate business’s stake in a successful outcome.

The Paris Agreement is based on national pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and sets out an international framework for stocktaking on government actions in several areas, including mitigation, adaptation and technology cooperation. The agreement requires countries to report on progress and calls on them to set progressively more ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets at five year intervals. There will be many opportunities for the private sector to contribute to this global endeavor, although some specifics regarding the agreement’s implementation still require elaboration.  It sets ambitious long term goals to limit mean temperature rise to 1.5 C, with global peaking and net carbon neutrality in the second half of the century.  It also calls on public and private sources to mobilize a minimum of $100 billion per year to support climate action in developing countries, with that amount to increase after 2020. The Paris Agreement will enter into force when 55 countries making up 55% of global emissions ratify it.

USCIB noted several positive outcomes for business in the Paris Agreement relating to technology innovation, the option to use markets for emissions reductions, and the engagement of business in near term actions and technical inputs.

“Business was seeking flexibility and clarity in this agreement, especially with regard to the possible use of markets at national and international levels,” said USCIB member Nick Campbell (Arkema). “We note that the Paris Agreement does not preclude these options, and the door remains open for carbon markets to evolve among interested countries.”

Prior to COP21, USCIB had strong concerns that some countries would attempt to address intellectual property in the Paris outcome as a barrier to the transfer of green technology. Thanks to sustained advocacy from USCIB and many other business organizations, the Paris Agreement does not reference IP, and underscores the need for enabling frameworks.

“Open trade and strong IP protection  are central enabling conditions for innovation, stimulating investment and disseminating new greener technologies and knowledge,” said Norine Kennedy, USCIB’s vice president for strategic international engagement, energy and environment. “Many governments continue to express interest in engaging with the private sector on climate action, and business will remain involved in the process as countries move to elaborate and implement the agreement.”

Visit our climate homepage for more coverage of COP21.

USCIB Hails Long-Term Paris Agreement, Calls for Engagement with Private Sector

Published on December 14, 2015
Norine Kennedy and Peter Robinson speak at a press conference on December 9 at COP21 in Paris.
Norine Kennedy and Peter Robinson speak at a COP21 side event on December 9 in Paris.

Governments reached a long-awaited climate accord on December 12 in Paris, bringing an end to four years of intensive United Nations negotiations to set a new global plan from 2020 onward, with long-term targets through the end of the century. The two-week meeting, known as the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21), brought together President Obama, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, and over 150 heads of state. In addition to the governmental meetings, businesses and other non-state representatives from every region of the world presented numerous new initiatives and solutions to the climate challenge at multiple venues.

“USCIB members were on hand at COP21 in unprecedented numbers to demonstrate their commitment and stake in the accord, and we are confident that this engagement will continue,” stated USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson. “USCIB is ready to strengthen its involvement with the UN process to build long-term cooperation for practical and cost-effective results.”

Robinson went on to thank the government of France for organizing COP21 and shepherding the agreement to its conclusion, and noted its excellent partnership with industry including  business groups such as MEDEF and ICC-France. He also commended the strong and positive representation in Paris of multiple national and international business organizations, coordinated in large part by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), for which USCIB serves as U.S. affiliate.

Read ICC’s press release.

Unlike its predecessor, the Kyoto Protocol, this new universal agreement engages all countries in climate action under an international cooperative framework on mitigation, adaptation and resilience, requiring periodic reporting and review of governmental actions, Based on a foundation of national pledges and actions, the agreement calls on countries to set progressively more ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets at five year intervals.


Robinson speaks to Climate TV about private-sector involvement in the Paris Agreement

While questions do remain about the feasibility of the Paris Agreement’s longer term target to eventually limit mean temperature change to 1.5  degrees C,  the new treaty does recognize the need for enabling frameworks in global markets and policy necessary to mobilize business innovation and investment across all sectors.  These will be essential to shift national economies and the dynamics of the global market place to help meet the agreement’s ambitious targets.

John_Kerry_COP21
“What’s happening in the private sector is nothing less than extraordinary… If we send the right signals – if we make the right choices – the private sector will deliver.” – John Kerry, U.S. Secretary of State

“In its over 20 years of involvement in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) process, USCIB has emphasized that the lynchpin for successful implementation will be private sector involvement at national and global levels,” Norine Kennedy, USCIB’s VP for Environment and Energy said. “Governments will look to business for technical input, as well as finance, investment and implementation, and we are ready to step up.  Thanks to a concerted effort by USCIB and other US business groups, the agreement provides clarity on markets, while steering clear of confusion on intellectual property rights protection.“ 

In coming weeks, USCIB will assess the Paris outcomes and set priorities for its engagement with the first phase of the Paris Agreement, in partnership with ICC, the Major Economies Business Forum and other business organizations.

BIAC Welcomes COP21 Outcomes and Calls for Dynamic Role for the OECD

More information on USCIB’s activities at COP21 available on our climate homepage.