Research

My current research is largely focued on the global political economy of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions globally. I am working on several projects in this area. I am interested in the concept of global Net Zero emissions - how this target was constructed and how aspirational goals such as Net Zero shape political possibilities and outcomes, including why different types of actors commit to international aspirational goals. I am also interested in the orchestration, standardization, and harmonization of Net Zero regulations and governance.

I am interested in the politics of international climate change law and in the influence of climate change litigation on global climate governance. I pursue this interest through several strands of research. My research is especially concerned with non-binding legal advice developed by transnational lawmaking coalitions and international (quasi) judicial bodies, including international court Advisory Opinions and General Comments of UN Treaty Bodies. I am also interested in developing and exploring the concept of ‘just transition litigation’.

I have been conducting research on business and human rights since 2011. My early business and human rights research concerned the politics of developing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and corporations’ early implementation of the UNGPs. My PhD thesis examined early adoption of the UNGPs in the form of National Action Plans (NAPs) on business and human rights. I am currently especially interested in climate-related human rights responsibilities of corporations, on which I have advised numerous international organizations and expert bodies and which is the subject of mulitiple ongoing research projects.

I am interested in the legitimacy and effectiveness of transnational multistakeholder partnerships (MSPs) for sustainable development. I have published a major new assessment of how MSPs that are organized under UN initiatives have (not) improved over time, showing that MSPs for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remain largely unequipped to deliver global sustainability transformations through synergies across goals. My current research focuses on UN High Impact Initiatives in the orchestration and meta-governance of MSPs. I focus especially on Energy Compacts and the Energy Compact Action Network’s prospects for promoting just transitions.