The Campaign for Greener Arbitration hopes its mission may prove easier as a result of people discovering the potential of virtual rather than in-person hearings during the coronavirus pandemic.

In an industry which thrives on lofty ideals of amicable dispute resolution and open debate, it is startling to observe that the environmental impact involved in the conduct of international arbitrations has received little attention.

Professor Evans has dedicated the last twenty years to identifying what he calls “invisible waste” , looking not at what has been manufactured, but at what has been wasted in the process.

When the Green Pledge team conducted its analysis of a standard arbitration from an environmental perspective, it looked at printing, couriers, flights, hotels….and disposable coffee cups.

The Pledge for Greener Arbitrations was launched in November 2019 to assess the carbon impact of international arbitrations and to encourage arbitration practitioners to consider the environment when conducting arbitrations.

Here’s a new word for you for 2020: Flygskam. It’s a Swedish word meaning “shame of flying” and the initiative behind the word led to a reduction in air travel in Sweden last year of around 5% (pronounced fleeg-skaam).