CIL Energy Law & Policy Team’s Mohammad Hazrati and Nivedita S. have co-authored a new article, “Towards a human rights-based ASEAN approach to governing critical energy transition minerals,” published online ahead of print in 2026 in the Journal of Energy & Natural Resources Law (JERL). The article appears in the Special Issue on Regional Energy Interconnectivity and Sustainable Development: Role for International Law, co-edited by Damilola S. Olawuyi, and Denise Cheong.

The article examines the need for a human rights-based approach to the governance of critical energy transition minerals (CETM) in Southeast Asia as the region accelerates its clean energy transition. Using doctrinal and comparative case study methods, it analyses international and African approaches alongside the ASEAN governance framework.

The authors find that while ASEAN currently lacks a human rights-based approach to CETM governance, its existing governance framework provides potential normative and institutional building blocks. The article calls for coordinated regional action to integrate human rights into CETM governance as an essential step toward a just and sustainable energy transition.