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Pension and endowment funds linked to conflict-plagued oil palm in DRC

11 May 2021
  • A new report from the Oakland Institute, a policy think tank, reveals that several well-known pension funds, trusts and endowments are invested in a group of oil palm plantations in the Democratic Republic of Congo accused of environmental and human rights abuses.
  • Plantations et Huileries du Congo (PHC) was recently purchased by two African private equity investors, and several European development banks have invested millions of dollars in the company’s operations.

81 Indigenous leaders, environmental defenders slam BlackRock in open letter

11 May 2021
  • A letter signed by Indigenous leaders and environmental defenders from the Amazon, West Africa, Southeast Asia and elsewhere blasts BlackRock for failing to hold companies in its investment portfolio accountable for deforestation and land grabs.
  • “While BlackRock makes pledges to ask portfolio companies to cut emissions in the future, our forests are being razed, our land is being stolen, and our people are being killed, today,” the letter said.
  • Last week, BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, published new guidelines related to “nat

Explainer: What does it mean to invest ‘ethically’ or with ‘impact’?

11 May 2021

Demand for funds which cherry pick investments with strong environmental, social or governance (ESG) credentials has surged in recent years.

Many of these funds include terms such as 'ethical' or 'impact' in their names. But what do these words actually mean?

Below is a glossary of the key terms often used to describe investment styles and processes.

 

SUSTAINABLE/RESPONSIBLE INVESTING

Decree Amending Several Provisions of Mexico’s General Law of Sustainable Forestry Development

10 May 2021

On April 26, 2021, the Decree amending several provisions of Mexico’s General Law of Sustainable Forestry Development was published in the Federal Official Gazette (DOF). The Decree is effective as of April 27.

In relevant part, the Decree’s amendments include the following:

  • Changes to land use of forest land will be subject to analysis of carbon storage capacity, in addition to the existing requirements set forth in the current law.

Merged districts embroiled in land disputes after getting rid of terrorism

06 May 2021

PESHAWAR: Terror incidents reduced significantly in erstwhile Fata after merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The credit for improvement goes to the security forces and other institutions.

However, increasing land disputes are now troubling the peaceful environment of merged districts and dozens of people have lost their lives in clashes over such disputes. Peaceful resolution of these disputes by bringing all parties to disputes to negotiating table is a huge challenge for the administration.

Thailand: Land Rights Activist Gunned Down

10 May 2021

(New York) – Thai authorities should immediately investigate the killing of Somsak Onchuenjit, a lawyer and land rights activist, in Trang province in southern Thailand, Human Rights Watch said today. Successive Thai governments have failed to prevent or adequately respond to attacks against human rights defenders who represent landless farmers.


CPS & ICRAF support opposition to sand mine

05 May 2021

The Catholic Professionals Society PNG in association with the Individual & Community Rights Advocacy Forum support the opposition to the proposed sand mining in Madang and PNG.
This was highlighted in a press conference that was held in Port Moresby today.

A statement from the press conference authorized by the President of the Catholic Professional Society, Paul Harricknen expressed several concerns in support of the opposition to sand mining by the landowners.

Case 2.1 – Special Agricultural Business Lease (SABL)

07 January 2019

On July 21, 2011 the then Acting Prime Minister Sam Abal announced the establishment of a Commission of Inquiry to investigate 77 land leases which were issued under the Somare government’s Special Agriculture & Business Leases (SABL). The inquiry, which was later extended by Prime Minister Peter O’Neill in October 2011 for a further five months, discovered that over 90 percent of the leases totalling over 5 million hectares were illegally obtained from traditional landowners (Zealand, 2015).


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