LESSONS FROM OTHER TREATY INITIATIVES
Join the Fossil Fuel Treaty as we embark on discussions learning from other successful treaties around the world. By learning from the experiences of other treaty initiatives, we can better learn to how move forward with the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaties
The Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative is at a critical moment in time - we have a committed group of 16 countries who are spearheading the push to negotiate a new treaty, and they are backed by a powerful global network of 120 city and subnational governments, 3500 civil society organisations and over a million individuals across every continent who have endorsed the Fossil Fuel Treaty proposal.
As we kick off 2025, join us as we take a deep dive into other international campaigns who have successfully embarked on treaty processes to see what we can learn to ramp up our campaigning and movement building, explore diplomatic and legal pathways, learn lessons from other powerful social movements including pitfalls to avoid and opportunities to seize. How did they do it and what can we learn from their experience?
UPCOMING SESSION:From Resistance to Treaty: Disarming Systems of War, from Fossil Fuels to Autonomous WeaponsAs wars escalate and AI advances unchecked, autonomous weapons—“killer robots”—are no longer science fiction. These machines, capable of making lethal decisions without human oversight, pose urgent legal, ethical, and security threats. Years before AI dominated global headlines, civil society launched a bold and visionary campaign to ban lethal autonomous weapons systems, warning against a future where technology is used not to protect but to kill. In this session, we’ll hear from two key leaders in that fight Richard Moyes and Gisela Luján Andrade.
Richard and Gisela will share insights from the Stop Killer Robots campaign—its progress, its challenges, and its ongoing push for a binding international treaty. They’ll reflect on how the movement reshaped global conversations, built powerful coalitions, and challenged the influence of tech giants like Microsoft, Google, and Nvidia, much like the Fossil Fuel Treaty movement faces off against entrenched fossil fuel interests.
Drawing on their deep experience across humanitarian disarmament efforts, they’ll explore what it takes to transform ethical concern into international law, and how global norms can be reshaped before catastrophe strikes. As they advocate for AI to be used in the service of humanity, not as a tool of violence, they’ll unpack the role of national and regional campaigning, especially in the Global South, in building the political will needed for a treaty.
PAST SESSION:
Lessons from the Mine Ban Movement for the Fossil Fuel Treaty Network
As we consider approaches to ensure governments begin negotiating a Fossil Fuel Treaty it’s time to learn from one of the most impressive campaigns of our time - the push for negotiation of a Mine Ban Treaty. Listen to experts as we hear from two powerful voices who helped take the Mine Ban Treaty from a dream to reality.
PAST SESSION:
Lessons from the Arms Trade Treaty- Strategies for Effective Global Advocacy
The Arms Trade Treaty was a powerful agreement that entered into force a decade ago to prevent and eradicate illicit trade of conventional weapons. 10 years on, there are many lessons to be learnt from this historic process for the global network pushing for negotiation of a Fossil Fuel Treaty. This session takes you inside a landmark campaign, unpacking the key decisions, challenges, and breakthroughs that led to success. From navigating treaty negotiations and engaging governments across regions to mobilizing a powerful grassroots movement, we’ll explore what worked—and what lessons we can apply to our campaign for a Fossil Fuel Treaty.
PAST SESSION:
Towards an International Treaty on Plastic Pollution
Experts from CIEL shared legal and policy perspectives on the treaty process, while colleagues from Break Free From Plastic discussed the power of movement building. Our panelists uncovered key takeaways from the Global Plastics Treaty that can help shape and strengthen the Fossil Fuel Treaty movement as we push for a just and fossil-free future.
PAST SESSION:
Banning the Bomb, Smashing the Patriarchy - Perspectives and Lessons from Ray Acheson
The previous session, "Banning the Bomb, Smashing the Patriarchy," featured Ray Acheson, Director of Reaching Critical Will, the disarmament program of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, the world’s oldest organization. Ray shared valuable insights from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons and its journey to achieving the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, adopted in 2017 and entering into force in 2021.
Relevant Resources
