[sustran] Advisory Meeting for Shell Sustainable Energy Initiative

[Paul Barter]

Dear sustran-discussers

I have been invited to the following meeting next week in Bangkok. It is a
consultation on the Shell oil company's proposed Sustainable Energy
Initiative.  The half-day meeting is being run by the Asia office of the
International Institute for Energy Conservation (IIEC).

I would very much appreciate any comments and ideas to help me better
represent a pro-equity, pro-environment, transport-focused constituency.
And to avoid being dazzled by corporate "greenwash"?!

Paul.

A. Rahman Paul BARTER,
SUSTRAN Resource Centre
c/o Asia Pacific 2000, PO Box 12544, 50782 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Fax: +603 253 2361, E-mail: <tkpb at barter.pc.my>
The SUSTRAN Resource Centre hosts the Secretariat of SUSTRAN (the
Sustainable Transport Action Network for Asia & the Pacific).

SUSTRAN is dedicated to promoting transport policies and investments
which foster accessibility for all; social equity; ecological sustainability;
health and safety; public participation; and high quality of life.


>EXPERT DIALOGUES ON THE PROPOSED SHELL SUSTAINABLE ENERGY INITIATIVE
>
>Context
>Shell International, the world's largest oil company, has recently made a
>major public and internal commitment to contribute to sustainable
>development. This commitment is now becoming manifest in a number of ways.

>1) Operationally, Shell is working towards attaining world class standards
>in reducing the environmental and social impact of its operations around
>the world.

>2) Shell is expanding its commercial investment in the renewable energy
>arena enormously and is doing the same with its gas operations.

>3) Finally, Shell International  wishes to focus its program of charitable
>expenditure on the promotion of sustainable development.

>It is intended that a major part of this sustainable development/social
>investment effort will concentrate specifically on promoting society's
>efforts to advance along a "sustainable energy" path.
>No final decisions have been taken on SEI, but we can identify some basic
>features.

>Purpose of SEI.  The SEI is an articulation of Shell's commitment to
>sustainable development. At this stage, the specific purpose of SEI is to
>advance the development and implementation of practical measures that
>enable society to achieve sustainable and ever more efficient production
>and consumption of energy.  This definition of the purpose of SEI will
>evolve over time.

>Institutional location. SEI will be a program of Shell International.
>Shell International is essentially the holding company of Shell group.
>Individual operating companies within the group (140 world-wide) may
>choose also to participate in and support SEI.  The scale and nature of
>this participation in SEI by Shell operating companies is, however, not
>yet determined.

>Scale and duration.   The core SEI will therefore be funded by Shell
>International.  No final figure or time period has been set but the scale
>of funding  and length of operation of SEI will be significant and
>commensurate with Shell's global status.

>Character of SEI.  SEI can viewed as a social investment program by Shell,
>meaning that it will involve the expenditure of Shell funds (and the
>participation of Shell in other ways) on projects that promote society's
>efforts to shift production and consumption onto a sustainable energy
>basis.  We recognize explicitly that "sustainable energy" is a subset of
>the wider concerns of sustainable development .

>SEI feasibility study and expert dialogues
>An SEI feasibility study is underway under the direction of Kurt Hoffman.
>Mr. Hoffman (who was a senior fellow at the Science Policy Research Unit
>of the University of Sussex for ten years and director of its
>international development program) is an independent consultant to Shell
>and reports to a steering committee of senior management drawn from
>Shell's group planning and external affairs department and other
>divisions.
>The feasibility study's purpose is to define precisely how SEI should be
>focused, structured and operated.  Dialogues with experts are the core
>element of this feasibility study and will take place over the next six
>weeks in the U.K., Europe, North America, Asia and Latin America.

>Format of the Southeast Asian Regional SEI Dialogue.
>The organization and conduct of the dialogue will be deliberately informal
>in order to promote the fullest exchange of ideas and viewpoints. An
>introductory presentation by Mr. Hoffman will place SEI within the overall
>context of Shell's recent history and its public commitment to sustainable
>development. But apart from the introduction there will be no formal
>presentations expected from the participants.
>Instead we would first ask participants to discuss and debate from the
>floor what they view to be the most important issues in the field of
>sustainable energy - with no reference to Shell's interests or the SEI.
>The second task is for the participants to place themselves in the
>position of the director of the SEI, faced with the job of designing
>action programs and projects that could address specific SEI problems
>within their local or national context.  We thus ask participants to give
>some advance thought to this topic if acceptable to participants, this
>phase of the meeting will be conducted in small group sessions. At this
>stage, we consider that all dimensions of the sustainable energy problem -
>at the international, regional, national and local level - are legitimate
>targets for SEI.
>The dialogue will conclude with an open ended discussion of the
>appropriate role that Shell, and other large TNCs, should play in
>society's efforts to pursue a sustainable energy future - both through its
>commercial operations and through its social investment programs.
>For all the topics discussed, we hope, by the end of the session, to
>achieve some sense of priorities of the participants in relation to the
>issues raised - but without forcing consensus.
>All participants will be provided with a meeting report and will have
>access to  meeting reports form other dialogues being conducted and will
>be kept fully informed of the progress and design of SEI.
> Proposed Participants
>The meeting will be small, in order to facilitate a round-table type
>discussion.  Invitations have been sent to the following individuals:
>
>Dr.    Wiku Adisasmito Executive Director      Pelangi Indonesia
>Mr.    Pho Muangnalad  Director        Council On Renewable Energy
>Dr.    A. Rahman Paul Barter   Director        Sustainable Transport
>Action Network for Asia and the Pacific
>Mr.    Mitsuo Sato     President       Asian Development Bank
>Mr.    Gani Sarano     Vice President  Philippines Rural Reconstruction
>Movement
>Khun   Tongroj On Chan Managing Director       Thailand Environment Institute
>Dr.    Kulthorn Silapabanleng  Director        Chulalongkorn Energy
>Research Institute
>Khun   Chalongphob Sussangkarn Director        Thailand Development and
>Research Institute
>Khun   Paul  Wedel             Kenan Institute
>Khun   Kamal Malhotra  Co-Director     Focus on the Global South
>Khun   Meechai Viravaidya      Managing Director       Population and
>Development Association
>Khun   Witoon  Managing Director       Towards Ecological Recovery and
>Regional Alliance
>Khun   Surapong Chirarattananon        Professor       Asian Institute of
>Technology
>Dr.    V.S. Pendakur   Professor       Institute for Transport and
>Development Policy
>Khun   Chirapol Sintunawa              Association for Development of
>Environment Quality
>Mr.    Kim Deridder    Managing Director       Worldwide Fund for Nature
>Khun   Wattanapong Rakwichian  Director        Solar Energy Research and
>Training Center
>