Thank you very much. As Paul said, I was asked to talk about how the Trump administration's environmental policies compared with those of previous administrations. Those of you who know me know that as a frustrated academic I would usually pay to get to speak to an audience about anything. But I actually woke up at 4:00 a.m. this morning, sick to my stomach, and for the first time in my life I thought about calling in sick, because I think it's actually a thankless task to try to talk to anybody about the Trump administration. It brings to mind my late father-in-law's line, “Don't try to confuse me with common sense and reasoning. My mind is made up.”

Bilateral investment treaties (BITs) containing traditional clauses such as Most Favorite Nation (MFN), National Treatment (NT), and Free and Equitable Treatment (FET) have been used as old tools to protect Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) throughout the African continent. African states have formed different economic blocks in order to facilitate intra-Africa investment trades and FDI protection. However, investment laws in the continent remain very fragmented. In 2005, African states enacted the Pan-African Investment Code (PAIC), which did not include provisions for traditional Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) but included exceptions to MFN and NT while omitting FET. The PAIC is a classic example of the African perspective in using old tools in new ways to promote more economic nationalism and sustainable development in Africa while maintaining a balance between investors’ protection and states’ sovereign right to regulate.

These Proceedings remarks aim to address interrogations on a Global Pact for the Environment. A Global Pact for the Environment is a project for an international treaty that seeks to recognize environmental rights and duties for citizens, states, and businesses.