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UN Agent: ISDS "Undermines" Democracy
April 21, 2016
UN Independent Expert Alfred de Zayas has called on countries to phase out the use of any "privatized or semi-privatized" dispute settlement, including the investor-state dispute settlement ("ISDS") system, in current and future trade agreements, asserting that these systems permit "predatory" investors and companies to "undermine" democracy and human rights.
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IFC, Puma Push Suppliers on Environmental, Social Standards
April 21, 2016
The International Finance Corporation ("IFC") and sports apparel company Puma have launched an initiative providing financial incentives for companies in Puma's supply chain to abide by global social and environmental standards.
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US, China Push for Early Action on UN Climate Deal
April 20, 2016
The Guardian reports that, due to a late change to provisions in the UN climate deal negotiated in December that some of its parties did not notice, officials in the US and China are indicating that they plan to bring into force the agreement, which provides for restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions, as early as this year.
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Resolution Seeks US Veto of UN Action on Palestine
April 20, 2016
Asserting that the UN "cannot be a truly neutral arbiter" of the conflict, a bipartisan resolution introduced in the US House of Representatives calls for the President to continue the longstanding practice of vetoing any UN Security Council resolution that seeks to impose a solution or timeline on the Israel-Palestine peace process.
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EU, World Bank Support Access to Climate Insurance Program
April 20, 2016
Amid growing global efforts to finance initiatives that seek to counter the effects of climate change, the World Bank and the European Commission have agreed to ease access of Latin American countries to "catastrophe risk insurance" under the Multi-Donor Trust Fund in recognition of the growing threat of global warming to these countries.