Day 2 | 8 June

A Climate Action Agenda for Asia: Priorities and entry points for action

11:00-12:30 ICT

Background

Since the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) was unanimously endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council in June 2011, public attention has turned more fully towards the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss. In particular, the climate crisis with its complexity, scale, and urgency, has intensified conversations about corporate accountability in every region of the world.

In recent years, Asia has become the focus of climate change deliberations given the climate risks the region faces and its increasing contributions to the greenhouse gases. In fact, Asia is considered the region most at risk to climate impacts in the form of extreme heat, droughts, floods, and sea level rise. And yet, Asia is also being asked to take more responsibility for its increasing GHGs emissions. In the past two decades, the world has seen a 46% rise in carbon emissions, driven largely by the growth in Asian industry. And looking ahead, Asia’s greenhouse gas (GHG) output is likely to rise.

Whether its fair to assign increased responsibility to Asia for climate solutions is debatable, especially given the larger percentage of GHG contributions made by advanced economies in other regions over a longer, historic period. Still, it is increasing clear that the decisions made by business leaders and policy makers in Asia in the next few years will have consequences for all of humanity and for generations to come.

About the session

If Asia is central to efforts to address climate change at the global levels, then industries across the region must step up to the challenge of climate change. Obstacles need to be cleared and an effective pathway forward must be charted. What actions has been taken so far, and what impacts have they had? This session will bridge conversations taking place at the international levels to the regional context, with the help of actors who have been instrumental in moving the discourse forward.

Objectives

The key objectives of this session are to:

Define top priorities for climate action in the region, with a view to limitations and challenges facing the region
Articulate entry points for action, including low hanging fruit and moon shots
Better appreciate how far the conversation has come, to understand how far there is to go

Questions

Panelists will reflect on the following questions:

What evidence is there that policy makers will take bold decisions, in the face of other priorities, including poverty reduction and economic development?
What are the most promising entry points or mechanisms for addressing climate impacts under the trade, investment and human rights headings?
Does the loss and damage provision that emerged from COP27 mitigate responsibility for developing Asia? Will climate justice move the needle on action where law and policy have fallen short? What role does justice or just transitions have in accelerating action?
What does a roadmap for climate action look like for a region that arguably has more at stake than any other in the world?

Speakers

Sean Lees

Sean is a Business and Human Rights Specialist for UNDP Asia Pacific. In this role, Sean promotes responsible business practices in partnership with the EU, with programming in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Before his work with UNDP, Sean was a lawyer for the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security.

Gregorio Rafael P. Bueta

Grip is an environmental, climate, and sustainability lawyer who has worked with governments, private sector, and international organizations (i.e., ADB, the World Bank, UNDP, UNEP, GIZ, WWF, and Greenpeace).

He is a member of the IUCN – World Commission on Environmental Law. He lectures on Natural Resources Law, and International Environment and Climate Law at the Ateneo Law School. He is an Of Counsel of the Magtibay, Angeles, and Alfelor Law Office, a Fellow of Parabukas, Inc., and Legal Consultant of EcoWaste Coalition.

Grip has been involved in policy and legislation work, and has published concerning climate litigation, climate change and cities, plastics and marine litter, solid waste management, WTE, EPR, protected areas management, and sustainable cities.

Previously as a Judicial Capacity Building Expert with ADB, he has extensively worked with judiciaries and legal professionals on environment and climate law.

Surya Deva

Surya Deva is a Professor at the Macquarie Law School and Director of the Centre for Environmental Law at Macquarie University. He is also the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development. Deva served as a member of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights (2016-22). He researches in the areas of business and human rights, comparative constitutional law, international human rights law, sustainable development, climate change, and gender equality.

Justine Nolan

Justine Nolan is the Director of the Australian Human Rights Institute and a Professor in the Faculty of Law and Justice at UNSW Sydney. She has published widely on business and human rights and modern slavery and advises companies, NGOs and governments on these issues. Prior to joining UNSW, Justine practiced as a corporate lawyer and an international human rights lawyer in Australia and the USA. She is the Executive Editor of the Australian Journal of Human Rights and an Editorial Board Member of the Business and Human Rights Journal.

Sara K. Phillips

Sara K. Phillips is a researcher with Chulalongkorn University's Center for Social Development Studies, where her work focuses on resource development decision-making, investigating the law's role in structural inequalities that lead to mining conflicts, and how actors utilize norms to shape the resource development lifecycle. Sara is also a visiting lecturer with the Center for Global Law and Policy at Santa Clara University and has worked as a consultant and fellow at the Stockholm Environment Institute, Asia. She is a qualified attorney (New York) and holds a Juris Doctor from Vermont Law School, a Master of Laws in Environment from McGill University, a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and is a Doctor of Philosophy candidate in International Development at Chulalongkorn University. Sara is a member of the International Bar Association's Business and Human Rights and Poverty and Social Development committees.

Kanishk Negi

As Sustainable Procurement Director, Kanishk leads the sustainability strategy for global procurement and supplier engagement at Schneider Electric.
He was instrumental in development of the company’s Sustainable Procurement Framework and is leading global deployment of flagship initiatives like ‘The Zero Carbon Project’, ‘Decent Work Program’.
Prior to Schneider Electric, Kanishk led the Supplier Sustainability Development Program at ABB Ltd. The initiatives conceptualized and led by him have won multiple international awards for quantifiable success and mainstreaming sustainability in supply chain. As a management consultant with Ernst & Young, he advised and worked closely with global corporations on sustainability strategy, risk review, sustainability reporting and assurance. Kanishk has been closely associated with environmental conservation and public policy. He developed innovative approach for ground water management in Fluoride contaminated zones, which won the World Bank Development Marketplace Award in 2007.
In 2022, Kanishk was awarded as Leader in Supply Chain Sustainability by Institute of Supply Chain Management and in 2019, he was awarded the 40under40 Super Achiever in Supply Chain Sustainability by Celerity, Alvarez & Marcel.
Kanishk actively engages with the with academic community to internalize sustainability in business education. He has delivered guest lectures on Sustainable Procurement at international universities and is a Guest faculty on Business and Human Rights at the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs, autonomous institute under the aegis of Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Govt. of India.

United Nations Responsible Business and Human Rights Forum, Asia-Pacific