CONSULTANT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS INFRINGEMENTS BY THE FOSSIL FUEL INDUSTRY

Purpose of the assignment

The Cross National Campaign on Human Rights and Fossil Fuels is seeking a consultant to develop an impactful, accessible, and visually engaging report based on existing internal reports and data.

Background

There is an alarming record of human rights abuses by governments and corporations associated with fossil fuel operations, resulting in appropriation of land, forced relocation, brutal and sometimes deadly suppression of critics and irreversible effects on the wellbeing and health of communities and nature. There is strong evidence for a repression effect of the fossil fuel industry, which mirrors the colonial extractive and exploitative mindset that continues to drive and underpin it.

A consortium convened by CAN International is collaborating to identify concrete ways to facilitate cross-national campaigning to call out the injustice and human rights violations caused by fossil fuel extraction, especially by governments and corporations from the Global North in the Global South. This campaign is to call for an end of the fossil fuels era, ensuring that the human rights of the people exposed to the effects of fossil fuel extraction are protected and upheld, requiring a) ending further investment in and extraction of fossil fuels, and b) restoring justice for the communities whose rights have been violated by governments and fossil fuel companies, and c) a just transition to support the people dependent on the fossil fuel industry.

The cross national campaign, working with national and international civil society, aims to hold governments and corporations from the global North associated with fossil fuel operations to account for their human rights violations and climate impacts, particularly in developing countries. This campaign started with a scoping that is to set off deeper research to identify concrete evidence and highlight the human rights impacts of fossil fuel production and extraction, which will serve as the basis for a campaign between different partners. Hence advance our collective efforts to move towards adoption and expansion of renewable energy and real solutions for a global just transition.

Previous Output of the Campaign

During the previous phase of this project an internal scoping report was developed which mapped out fossil fuel expansion projects in the Global South conducted by corporations from the Global North, their violation of human rights of local communities and campaigns against these projects including mapping of those involved in these campaigns. The report also highlighted the different categories of human rights the fossil fuel industry systematically violated/s during its practices in the Global South.

The report also included a set of set of recommendations for key fossil fuel extraction projects where deeper research could provide a base for a campaign of the planned type, which is complementary to existing efforts through solidarity and allyship, supporting efforts to hold the Fossil Fuel industry to account through an intersectional lens of fossil fuel extraction, human rights and coloniality.

Scope of Report

A report that is based on the previously developed work of the campaign with a focus on the presented case studies as well as complementary work developed by allies and members of the campaign that can clearly visualise the inherent nature of the fossil fuel industry in violating human rights.

The focus of the report is to be decided on through a series of discussions mainly through a workshop conducted with the campaign’s taskforce (representing the member organisations), in early August.

The report should provide in depth case studies based on the previous report (but not necessarily limited to) documenting the different categories of violations highlighting how they were integral to the execution of these projects.

Purpose and Key Objectives

During 2023 the climate movement has committed to escalate the fight against fossil fuels demanding a fair, fast, full, funded and permanent phase out of fossil fuels, enshrining the principles of fair shares and historic responsibility. As part of this global escalation, it is necessary to highlight the nature of fossil fuel development and the neocolonial practices of the industry in order to expose the true cost that communities pay and companies externalise, extracting wealth from the Global South and leaving them victims of extractivism, locked in debt traps.

This report is to contribute to breaking the narrative of the necessity of extracting resources to fund development in the Global South, building the argument that fundamental systemic changes to our socio-economic system based on equity and justice are what are necessary to provide well being to communities. Additionally the report must challenge the northern narrative that offloads the responsibility of human rights violations from the industry onto Global South governments, under the pretext of insufficient regulation or corruption rather than being an inherent systemic nature of the industry and global economic model.

Skill Set for the consultant

The consultant must have excellent writing skills and experience working on fossil fuels campaigns, good understanding of human rights frameworks and the dynamics of corporate violations of them, good political understanding of the dynamics of climate politics in the multilateral arena and strong understanding of the principles behind climate justice campaigning.

They must have a strong command and experience in the development of campaign narratives, applicants with both a communications and campaigning background are encouraged to express interest.

Key Deliverables & Timeline

• Detailed outline based on workshop with taskforce: two working days after the workshop.
• Detailed outline based on workshop with taskforce: two working days after the workshop.
• Draft report: 31st of August (for review by taskforce members and CAN-I secretariat)
• Final report: 4th of September