Policy
Policy development is the basis for all international regulation on the environment. Atlas works hand-in-hand with clients during the policy-making process by providing informed legal guidance on rights, entitlements, procedural guarantees, principles of predictability, and transparency - contributing to clear, meaningful, and balanced environmental regulation that actively prepares business and civil society for regulatory changes, opportunities, and risks.
» Post-2012 Climate Regime Negotiation
On-going negotiations will dictate how today's international climate regime - the governing and oversight bodies that define global goals and share enforcement powers - shapes worldwide policy.
The outcome from these negotiations will be the roadmap for the immediate future for all parties involved, meaning the best prepared participants will be the ones who benefit most.
Currently, negotiations are developing parameters for:- Effective mechanisms to facilitate action and finance.
- A robust measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) and enforcement framework.
- The regime's ability to oversee all international engagement.
At Atlas, we have experience as advocates for both sides of the table - for governments and international agencies as well as corporate stakeholders, advocacy groups, and civil society - helping them to explore their best policy options by investigating climate regime mechanisms and metrics and looking closely at new developments in the environmental legal domain.
In particular, we focus on those concepts pertinent to high-stakes negotiations on the environment, such as:- The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR).
- The long-term feasibility of sustainable development.
- The structure of any upcoming climate deals among the public and private spheres.
We bring this extensive experience with international negotiation to every assignment, along with a far-reaching international professional network to review, test, and consolidate our client-specific projects, enhancing our ability to actively prepare and coach negotiators in all manner of their - and our - work together.» Climate Finance Negotiation Support
Among the goals of the international climate change regime is the development of a greater and more predictable funding scheme for developing economies looking to make an impact.
However, the painstaking particulars of accessibility, distribution, and timing are still largely undefined, and there are many different forums in which final decisions are being made.
This scenario creates huge challenges for potential funding candidates and candidate countries, since they are the ones who require urgent financial support for new projects, yet who lack the resources to acquire much-needed information or to make their voices heard during the rule-making process.
To ensure our clients in developing countries receive all the right data and financing they are due, Atlas offers a variety of experienced negotiation support, including:- On-site assistance at reviews and meetings.
- Strategic briefings with executive and senior leadership.
- Consultations with local legal representatives.
- Representation services in official conferences and summits, large and small.
» NAMAs and New Market Mechanisms
Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) and New Market Mechanisms have emerged as one of the most vibrant areas of international policy research and development. Charting the future format for mitigation intervention in developing countries, NAMAs and New Market Mechanisms are meant to leverage and scale up mitigation action and finance across national economies.
Atlas works with governments, international finance institutions, and investors to evaluate a country's economic potential for NAMAs and new Market Mechanisms, screening sector by sector and through institutional and legal systems to identify where NAMA and New Market interventions can best be made.
Together with our technical partner firms, which maintain offices and expert staff around the globe, Atlas works with its array of national and international clients to:- Undertake feasibility and options assessments.
- Perform due diligence checks.
- Deliver tailor-made intervention schemes ready for immediate implementation.
Atlas also directly assists governments in reporting to and communicating with the UNFCCC Secretariat, the Green Climate Fund, and related international donors as outlined in the emerging NAMA and international finance regulatory framework.
» AFOLU and the Climate Regime
Agriculture, forestry, and other land use (AFOLU) contribute roughly to a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. Deforestation, forest degradation, drainage of wetlands, and unsustainable farming also add to the continuous and catastrophic loss of the planet’s biodiversity, while aggravating problems of natural resource scarcity.
However, the current international climate change regime has been slow to energetically respond to this situation. Only in recent years has any policy effort to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) been introduced into international negotiations - including discussion of conservation, sustainable management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks (REDD+). Other intervention opportunities such as emission reductions and carbon sequestration from replanting forests and in rewetting wetlands - peatlands in particular - and from sustainable (or “smart”) agriculture still await a comprehensive action framework from the UNFCCC.
In the meantime, Atlas works closely with all manner of clients to prepare for the expected development and integration of sustainable AFOLU policies into international and European legal systems by:- Reporting on new frameworks.
- Crafting effective climate finance mechanisms.
- Mainstreaming AFOLU priorities within existing land-use and agricultural regulations.