The Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI), a joint center of Columbia Law School and Columbia Climate School at Columbia University, is the only university-based applied research center and forum dedicated to the study, practice and discussion of sustainable international investment. It develops practical approaches for governments, investors, communities, and other stakeholders to maximize the benefits of international investment for sustainable development. Applying its legal, economic, and policy expertise, CCSI addresses sustainable investment holistically, bridging investment law, natural resource management, human rights, economics, political economy, and environmental management. It works to strengthen the sustainable development potential of international investment, and to ensure that international investment is mutually beneficial for investors and the citizens of recipient countries.
Publications from 2019
Memo/Briefing Note: Bridging the Information Gap: How Access to Land Contracts Can Serve Community Rights, Lara Wallis and Sam Szoke-Burke
Memo/Briefing Note: Briefing for Civil Society Organizations – Understanding Commercial Eucalyptus Plantations: How Do They Work and What Are Their Environmental Impacts?, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: CCSI Submits Written Views to US Department of State Regarding UNCITRAL’s Working Group III, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Draft Text Providing for Transparency and Prohibiting Certain Forms of Third-Party Funding in Investor–State Dispute Settlement, Brooke Güven, Lise Johnson, Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder, Lorenzo Cotula, and Jane Kelsey
Memo/Briefing Note: Draft Treaty Language: Withdrawal of Consent to Arbitrate and Termination of International Investment Agreements, Brooke Güven and Lise Johnson
Memo/Briefing Note: Inconsistency's Many Forms in Investor-State Dispute Settlement and Implications for Reform, Lise Johnson and Lisa E. Sachs
Memo/Briefing Note: Legal Frameworks & Foreign Investment: A Primer on Governments’ Obligations, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Lise Johnson, Sam Szoke-Burke, and Rumbidzaii Mawen
Memo/Briefing Note: Primer: International Investment Treaties and Investor-State Dispute Settlement, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Reputational and Integrity Due Diligence on Investors, Kroll and Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: The Business and Human Rights Arbitration Rule Project: Falling Short of its Access to Justice Objectives, Lisa E. Sachs, Lise Johnson, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Jesse Coleman, and Brooke Güven
Memo/Briefing Note: Third-Party Rights in Investor-State Dispute Settlement: Options for Reform, Jesse Coleman, Lise Johnson, Brooke Güven, Lorenzo Cotula, and Thierry Berger
Memo/Briefing Note: UNCITRAL Working Group III on ISDS Reform: How Cross-Cutting Issues Reshape Reform Options, Lorenzo Cotula, Thierry Berger, Lise Johnson, Brooke Güven, and Jesse Coleman
Report/Policy Paper: Aligning Investment Treaties with Sustainable Development Goals, Lise Johnson, Lisa E. Sachs, and Nathan Lobel
Report/Policy Paper: Alternatives to Investor-State Dispute Settlement, Lise Johnson, Jesse Coleman, Brooke Güven, and Lisa E. Sachs
Report/Policy Paper: Ensuring Economic Viability and Sustainability of Coffee Production, Jeffrey D. Sachs, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, James Rising, Perrine Toledano, and Nicolas Maennling
Report/Policy Paper: Fixing the Business of Food: The Food Industry and the SDG Challenge, Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition, Sustainable Development Solutions Network, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, and Sanda Chiara Lab
Report/Policy Paper: How International Oil Companies Could Assist Greece to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals: A Conversation Starter, Alexandra Sdoukou, Andreas Tornaritis, and Perrine Toledano
Report/Policy Paper: Human Rights Law and the Investment Treaty Regime, Jesse Coleman, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, and Lise Johnson
Report/Policy Paper: Innovative Financing Solutions for Community Support in the Context of Land Investments, Sam Szoke-Burke
Report/Policy Paper: Investment Treaties, Investor-State Dispute Settlement and Inequality, Lisa E. Sachs and Lise Johnson
Report/Policy Paper: Linkages to the Mining Sector in Colombia, Nicolas Maennling and Perrine Toledano
Report/Policy Paper: Outcome Report on the Climate Crisis, Global Land Use and Human Rights Conference, Mateusz Kasprowicz, Sam Szoke-Burke, and Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Report/Policy Paper: Securing Adequate Legal Defense in Proceedings under International Investment Agreements: A Scoping Study, Lise Johnson and Brooke Guven
Report/Policy Paper: The Policy Implications of Third-Party Funding in Investor-State Dispute Settlement, Brooke Guven and Lise Johnson
Publications from 2018
Article: Framing the Global Pact for the Environment: Why It’s Needed, What It Does, and How It Does It, Teresa Parejo Navajas and Nathan Lobel
Article: Il Contributo Delle Compagnie Oil & Gas nel Raggiungimento Degli Obiettivi Energetici e Climatici (How Oil and Gas Companies Can Help Meet the Global Goals on Energy and Climate Change), Lisa E. Sachs, Nicolas Maennling, and Perrine Toledano
Article: Tax Expenditure and the Treatment of Tax Incentives for Investment, Agustin Redonda, Santiago Diaz de Sarralde, Mark Hallerberg, Lise Johnson, Ariel Melamud, Ricardo Rozemberg, Jakob Schwab, and Christian von Haldenwang
Article: Tying the Knot: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Understanding the Human Right to Adequate Nutrition, Jessica Fanzo, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Elizabeth F. Fox, and Anna Bulman
Book: Rethinking International Investment Governance: Principles for the 21st Century, Emma Aisbett, Barnali Choudhury, Olivier De Schutter, Frank Garcia, James Harrison, Song Hong, Lise Johnson, Mouhamadou Kane, Santiago Peña, Matthew Porterfield, Susan Sell, Stephen E. Shay, and Louis T. Wells
Book: The Yearbook on International Investment Law & Policy 2015-2016, Lisa E. Sachs and Lise Johnson
Book Chapter: Implementing Shared-Use of Mining Infrastructure to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, Perrine Toledano and Nicolas Maennling
Book Chapter: Investments and Human Rights in the Agricultural Sector, Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Memo/Briefing Note: Agricultural Investments under International Investment Law, Jesse Coleman, Sarah Brewin, and Thierry Berger
Memo/Briefing Note: Governing Land Investments: Do Governments Have Legal Support Gaps?, Sam Szoke-Burke and Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Memo/Briefing Note: Outcome Report of Roundtable on International Investment Regime and Access to Justice, Michelle Chan, Kanika Gupta, Jesse Coleman, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, and Lise Johnson
Memo/Briefing Note: Updates to the UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Privately Financed Infrastructure Projects, Brooke Guven and Motoko Aizawa
Report/Policy Paper: Clearing the Path: Withdrawal of Consent and Termination as Next Steps for Reforming International Investment Law, Lise Johnson, Jesse Coleman, Brooke Güven, and Lisa E. Sachs
Report/Policy Paper: Community-Investor Negotiation Guide 1: Preparing in Advance for Potential Investors, Rachael Knight, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Sam Szoke-Burke, Tehtena Mebratu-Tsegaye, and Marena Brinkhurst
Report/Policy Paper: Community-Investor Negotiation Guide 2: Negotiating Contracts with Investors, Sam Szoke-Burke, Rachael Knight, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Tehtena Mebratu-Tsegaye, and Marena Brinkhurst
Report/Policy Paper: Costs and Benefits of Investment Treaties: Practical Considerations for States, Lise Johnson, Jesse Coleman, Brooke Guven, and Lisa E. Sachs
Report/Policy Paper: Governing Land Investments: Do Governments Have Legal Support Gaps?, Sam Szoke-Burke and Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Report/Policy Paper: How International Oil Companies Could Assist the Republic of Cyprus to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals: A Conversation Starter, Andreas Tornaritis and Perrine Toledano
Report/Policy Paper: Implementing the Ahafo Benefit Agreements: Seeking Meaningful Community Participation at Newmont’s Ahafo Gold Mine in Ghana, Benjamin Boakye, Maggie M. Cascadden, Jordan Kuschminder, Sam Szoke-Burke, and Eric Werker
Report/Policy Paper: Resourcing Green Technologies Through Smart Mineral Enterprise Development: A Case Analysis of Cobalt, Saleem Ali, Perrine Toledano, Nicolas Maennling, Nathaniel Hoffman, and Lola Aganga
Report/Policy Paper: The Renewable Power of the Mine, Nicolas Maennling and Perrine Toledano
Publications from 2017
Article: At the Intersection of Land Grievances and Legal Liability: The Need to Reconsider Contract Rights and Expectations at the Supranational Level, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Lise Johnson, and Sam Szoke-Burke
Article: India’s Revised Model BIT: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back?, Jesse Coleman and Kanika Gupta
Article: Submission Regarding Amendments to the ICSID Arbitration Rules, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Book: The New Frontiers of Sovereign Investment, Perrine Toledano and Malan Rietveld
Memo/Briefing Note: 230+ Law and Economics Professors Urge President to Remove ISDS from NAFTA, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Amicus Brief on Rights to Information and Public Participation in Colombia, Brooke Guven, Sam Szoke-Burke, and Pedro Villegas
Memo/Briefing Note: Briefing Note: A Collaborative Approach to Human Rights Impact Assessments, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, Danish Institute for Human Rights, and Sciences Po Law School Clinic
Memo/Briefing Note: CCSI Submission to UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty Re: United States Country Visit, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Comment on US Trade and Investment Agreements Submitted to USTR, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Comments on the World Bank’s Draft Guidance Note for Borrowers ESS5: Land Acquisition, Restrictions on Land Use and Involuntary Resettlement, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: How Oil and Gas Companies Can Help Meet the Global Goals on Energy and Climate Change, Lisa E. Sachs, Nicolas Maennling, and Perrine Toledano
Memo/Briefing Note: Public Consultation on a Multilateral Reform of Investment Dispute Settlement, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Submission on the Draft General Comment on “State Obligations Under the ICESCR in the Context of Business Activities”, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: The Settlement of Investment Disputes: A Discussion of Democratic Accountability and the Public Interest, Lise Johnson and Brooke Guven
Report/Policy Paper: A Collaborative Approach to Human Rights Impact Assessments, Sam Szoke-Burke, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Tulika Bansal, Manon Aubrey, Adrien Le Louarn, Jeremy Perelman, and Marie Poirot
Report/Policy Paper: Articulating a Rights-Based Argument for Land Contract Disclosure, Jesse Coleman and Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Report/Policy Paper: Designing a Legal Regime to Capture Capital Gains Tax on Indirect Transfers of Mineral and Petroleum Rights: A Practical Guide, Perrine Toledano, John Bush, and Jacky Mandelbaum
Report/Policy Paper: Green Foreign Direct Investment in Developing Countries, Lise Johnson
Report/Policy Paper: Guide to Land Contracts: Forestry Projects, International Senior Lawyers Project, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, and Sam Szoke-Burke
Report/Policy Paper: International Gas Outlook and Implications for Developing Tanzania’s Gas Projects, Nicolas Maennling, Perrine Toledano, and Thomas Mitro
Report/Policy Paper: Mechanisms for Consultation and Free, Prior and Informed Consent in the Negotiation of Investment Contracts, Sam Szoke-Burke and Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Report/Policy Paper: The Role of IPAs in Advancing Sustainable Development, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment and World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies
Publications from 2016
Article: A Silver Lining? Impact of Commodity Price Fall on Good Governance in Sierra Leone, Herbert M'cleod, Nicolas Maennling, and Lisa E. Sachs
Article: Corporate Agricultural Investment and the Right to Food: Addressing Disparate Protections and Promoting Rights-Consistent Outcomes, Kaitlin Y. Cordes and Anna Bulman
Article: Emerging Practices in Community Development Agreements, Jennifer Loutit, Jacqueline Mandelbaum, and Sam Szoke-Burke
Article: Here's the Deal, Sam Szoke-Burke
Article: International Investment Agreements: Impacts on Climate Change Policies in India, China and Beyond, Lise Johnson and Brooke Güven
Article: Periodic Review in Natural Resource Contracts, Jacky Mandelbaum, Salli Anne Swartz, and John Hauert
Article: ResourceContracts.org – A Searchable Repository for Publicly Available Mining and Petroleum Contracts, Sophie Thomashausen
Article: Sustainable Development Goals: How Can the Mining Sector Contribute?, Lisa E. Sachs
Article: The Outsized Costs of Investor–State Dispute Settlement, Lise Johnson and Lisa E. Sachs
Article: The Real Danger in TPP, Lise Johnson, Lisa E. Sachs, and Jeffrey D. Sachs
Article: TransCanada Lawsuit Highlights Need to Scuttle TPP, Jeffrey D. Sachs, Brooke Güven, and Lisa E. Sachs
Book: Rethinking Investment Incentives: Trends and Policy Options, Ana Teresa Tavares-Lehmann, Perrine Toledano, Lise Johnson, and Lisa E. Sachs
Book: The Yearbook on International Investment Law & Policy 2014-2015, Andrea K. Bjorklund
Memo/Briefing Note: 220+ Law and Economics Professors Sign Letter Opposing ISDS in the TPP, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Beyond Trade Deals: Charting a Post-Brexit Course for UK Investment Treaties, Lise Johnson and Lorenzo Cotula
Memo/Briefing Note: Emerging Practices in Community Development Agreements, Jennifer Loutit, Jacqueline Mandelbaum, and Sam Szoke-Burke
Memo/Briefing Note: International Investment Law and the Extractive Industries Sector, Lise Johnson and Jesse Coleman
Memo/Briefing Note: Land Deals and the Law: Grievances, Human Rights, and Investor Protections, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Lise Johnson, and Sam Szoke-Burke
Memo/Briefing Note: Recommending Transparency in Land-Based Investment: A Summary of Relevant Guidelines and Principles, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Memo/Briefing Note: Submission to OPIC on Revisions to its Environmental and Social Policy Statement, Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Memo/Briefing Note: Submission to the SEC on Addressing Land Tenure Risks Through Regulation S-K, Kaitlin Y. Cordes
Memo/Briefing Note: Transparency in Land-Based Investment: Key Questions and Next Steps, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Report/Policy Paper: A Policy Framework to Approach the Use of Associated Petroleum Gas, Shay Banerjee and Perrine Toledano
Report/Policy Paper: Conference Report: Climate Change and Sustainable Investment in Natural Resources: From Consensus to Action, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and Sabin Center for Climate Change Law
Report/Policy Paper: Employment from Mining and Agricultural Investments: How Much Myth, How Much Reality?, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Olle Östensson, and Perrine Toledano
Report/Policy Paper: Guide to Land Contracts: Agricultural Projects, International Senior Lawyers Project, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, and Sam Szoke-Burke
Report/Policy Paper: Land Deal Dilemmas: Grievances, Human Rights, and Investor Protections, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Lise Johnson, and Sam Szoke-Burke
Report/Policy Paper: Linkages to the Resource Sector: The Role of Companies, Governments, and International Development Cooperation, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Report/Policy Paper: Mapping Mining to the Sustainable Development Goals: An Atlas, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, Sustainable Development Solutions Network, United Nations Development Programme, and World Economic Forum
Report/Policy Paper: Mining a Mirage: Reassessing the Shared-Value Paradigm in Light of the Technological Advances in the Mining Sector, Aaron Cosbey, Howard Mann, Nicolas Maennling, Perrine Toledano, Jeff Geipel, and Martin Dietrich Brauch
Report/Policy Paper: Outcome Report of Workshop on International Investment and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Kaitlin Y. Cordes and Jesse Coleman
Report/Policy Paper: Space for Local Content Policies and Strategies, Lise Johnson
Publications from 2015
Article: Exploring the Link Between Food Security and Climate Change, Kaitlin Y. Cordes