As the independent recourse mechanism for the private sector arm of the World Bank Group- the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)-  the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) is driven by complaints from individuals and communities affected by social and environmental project impacts. Focused on achieving outcomes for communities and the private sector across a range of challenging and complex development contexts, CAO Dispute Resolution provides opportunities for project-affected people to engage directly with the private sector to address areas of concern. From working with 25,000 community members affected by the Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline in Chad, to supporting joint fact-finding initiatives between herders and a mining company in Mongolia, CAO Dispute Resolution helps affected communities and IFC/MIGA clients to explore creative and innovative solutions through collaborative problem solving and mediation processes conducted across the globe. Join CAO’s Senior Dispute Resolution Specialist, Gina Barbieri, for a conversation about CAO’s dispute resolution work and some of the challenges and outcomes of CAO cases.

Presenter: Gina Barbieri, Senior Specialist, Dispute Resolution

Gina, a South African human rights lawyer and dispute resolution professional, manages CAO's Dispute Resolution function. Before joining CAO, she ran a legal practice specializing in mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR). She has mediated numerous disputes in the employment, commercial, and community arena and is the author of two books on labor practice in the public and private sector. Gina coauthored and edited two IFC publications on the establishment of ADR Centers in emerging markets and guidelines on the practice of ADR. She is a cofounder of the African Institute for Mediation, served as the Deputy Head of the Africa Center for Dispute Settlement, Stellenbosch University Business School, and sat on the steering committee for the establishment of the African Mediation Association. She obtained her BComm LL.B from the University of KwaZulu-Natal and is a CEDR (UK) and IMI accredited international mediator.