La Jolla Energy Conference Curtain Raiser Videos

To set the stage for the topic and discussion, in this La Jolla Conference Curtain Raiser interview, our E&S Vice President, Jeremy Martin spoke with Tom Reichert, CEO of Environmental Resources Management (ERM) about how ESG and sustainability objectives are driving investment across Latin America and the globe.

Tom Reichert also shared insights on operationalizing ERM’s own carbon reduction goals and timelines.

Blue Carbon Initiative

Blue carbon ecosystems are among the most important ecosystems capable of mitigating some of the impacts from climate change. In dry, desert areas like the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico, wetlands like the Bay of San Quintín in Baja California, and Magdalena Bay in Baja California Sur, provide a variety of ecosystem services like fisheries, aquaculture and tourism that sustain the livelihood of thousands of people. As part of the Las Californias project, we used the InVEST Blue Carbon models developed by Stanford’s Natural Capital Project to estimate the carbon stocks in mangroves, marsh vegetation and seagrass meadows in these coastal bays. This tool helped produce a holistic analysis of two biologically important regions influenced by natural and anthropogenic activity. Estimating the economic benefits generated through ecosystem services can strengthen regional management and conservation efforts. Each report integrates data to help local stakeholders design conservation and restoration strategies, as well as inform management decisions that help prevent environmental damage forward.

As part of the Las Californias Blue Carbon Initiative, we undertook a study entitled “Legal Analysis of the Ownership and Use Regime of Mangroves, Seagrass And Macroalgae in Mexico, in Connection to their Capacity to Generate Blue Carbon Offsets.

It is an in-depth analysis of the legal and regulatory framework of coastal and marine ecosystems in Mexico and their relation to international and potential future domestic carbon markets, including the legal status of such habitats, with the ultimate objective of shedding light on what is missing legally for Mexico to monetize carbon sequestered by them.

You can find the Spanish, original version of the study here and the English translation here. We held a webinar with the authors of the analysis and other experts on September 20th.

Participation in the UN Latin America and the Caribbean Climate Week (LACCW) 2022

As part of the Latin American and the Caribbean Climate Week (LACCW) organized by the United Nations and the Government of the Dominican Republic that took place July 18th-22nd, the IOA hosted a side-panel titled “Decarbonization Across Supply Chains: The Role of Regulations on Climate Risks Disclosures,” which addressed the challenges and opportunities of climate disclosure regulations, their role in supporting a net-zero transition by the private sector, and the decarbonization of supply chains.

Panelists included our non-resident fellow, Soffia Alarcon, as well as Keith Nurse, President of the St Lucia Community College in St. Lucia; David Colin, COO of MexiCO2; Ivan Islas Cortes, Associate Director of Carbon Trust Mexico; and, Mauricio Mira Ponton, Americas Director of Climate Policy, Finance and Carbon Markets.

Click here to read a related Q&A briefing with the experts.

Marine Pollution Research Project – Results and Infographics

As a part of our Marine Pollution Project, focusing on ship-born pollution from Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems (also known as scrubbers), particularly from 10 cruise ships that stayed for long periods during the pandemic in the Bay of La Paz, in the Gulf of California, we have published two new infographics on the results from our study.

Created by dataMares, these graphics are available in both English and Spanish.

Click here to see the new graphics, to learn about our study, or read the full report! You can also find here a cool new map we developed on the different policies and regulations throughout the Americas that help curve this source of marine pollution.  

IOA co-hosts COMCAL meeting with UC San Diego USMEX to review California’s EV regulatory mandate and cross-border impacts

Senior policymakers from the States of California, Baja California, and Baja California Sur met on September 14 at the first meeting of the Commission of the Californias (COMCAL) since its re-establishment in December 2019.

Officials at this tri-state meeting discussed the need for expanded binational cooperation to address emerging cross-border issues, including barriers and opportunities associated with the California Air Resources Board’s recently approved Advanced Clean Cars II (ACCII) regulatory mandate.

See press release in English and Spanish.

IOA co-authors study analyzing cross-border impacts of California’s EV regulatory mandates

To help facilitate dialogue among the tri-state policymakers, the IOA, the Center for US-Mexico Studies, San Diego State University’s Institute for Regional Studies of the Californias, and the Autonomous University of Baja California Sur published an issue paper in English and Spanish entitled, Advanced Clean Cars II (ACCII) Rule:  An Assessment of Economic Opportunities & CrossBorder Impacts in the Las Californias Region.  

Distinguished Speaker Series: Saleem Ali, author of Orderly Earth: How Natural Laws Define Human Life

The Institute’s Public Programs featured Distinguished Speaker Saleem Ali, Ph.D., an environmental economist, who spoke about his new book Earthly Order: How Natural Law Defines Human Life. Dr. Ali explained, using a multi-disciplinary approach, how natural laws impact and define our lives.

“Humanity has either tried to conquer or capitulate to natural order” when instead it should “seek to understand the latent structures and patterns that permeate all systems and develop an earthly order, that is socially functional and sustainable.”

He maintains that the development of an earthly order will help us better address both current and emerging planetary crises.  Dr. Ali is a Professor of Energy & the Environment at the University of Delaware and a National Geographic Explorer. See related video