Key Message
Trade liberalization is a major engine of economic growth, so it has great potential as a force for sustainable development. Unfortunately, the link is not automatic. Where trade policy is in conflict with environment and development policy, it can delay or even undermine the achievement of sustainable development. IISD's work on trade focuses on how we can help ensure positive outcomes.
Video
Flavia Thomé talks about the Trade Knowledge Network
(Flash Video - 1:35 min)
Team
 | · Mark Halle Director - Trade and Investment, and European Representative | |
 | · Aaron Cosbey Associate and Senior Climate Change and Trade Advisor | |
 | · Adil Najam Associate and Senior Fellow | |
 | · Christopher Beaton Research and Communications Officer | |
 | · Chris Charles Project Manager | |
 | · Elka Parveva-Kern Project Assistant | |
 | · Damon Vis-Dunbar Network and Communications Coordinator | |
 | · Fariba Di Benedetto-Achtari Office Administrator | |
 | · Flavia Thomé Project Manager | |
 | · Howard Mann Associate & Senior International Law Advisor | |
 | · Huihui Zhang Project Manager, China | |
 | · Jason Potts Associate and Program Manager, SMART | |
| · Lucy Kitson Research Officer - Economist | |
 | · Oshani Perera Programme Officer | |
 | · Peter Wooders Senior Economist | |
 | · Robert Wolfe Associate | |
 | · Ron Steenblik emeritus Director of Research | |
 | · Sabrina Shaw Associate; Writer/Editor Earth Negotiations Bulletin | |
 | · Tara Laan Associate | |
| · Piret Nõukas Project Administrator | |
| · Deborah Roosen Programme Administrator | |
 | · John Forgách Senior Fellow and Associate | |
International Trade
Making international trade work for sustainable development
What's New in International Trade?
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New TRI-CC Policy Briefs
This pair of TRI-CC Policy Briefs, Border Carbon Adjustments: What Risk for South African Exporters and Exposure of Chinese Exports to Potential Border Carbon Adjustments, based on more in-depth analyses, starts with a hypothetical border carbon adjustment regime and applies it to the exports of South Africa and China, estimating the cost impacts for both countries if border carbon adjustments (BCAs) were to be adopted by the U.S. or the EU. They find significant impacts in a small number of sectors, although final impacts depend heavily on regime design details. -
Greening China's Fish and Fish Products Market Supply Chains - Summary
Over the past two decades, China’s involvement with world fisheries trade in aquatic products has increased dramatically, making it the world’s largest producer, consumer and exporter of seafood. China will play an increasingly important role in securing the long-term sustainability of the seafood sector. China’s role in market supply chains is especially important. There is worldwide interest in the greening of these supply chains, taking into account sustainability impacts on species and stocks, as well as ecosystems within China and elsewhere in the supply chains. International certification processes such as those of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and various seafood consumptions guides are examples of how this international interest is shifting global production, processing, trade and consumption patterns. -
Policy Recommendations for a Sustainable Copper Supply Chain: A Chinese perspective
As the world's most important importer of copper ore, and the single most important producer of refined copper and key copper-based products, China fulfills a unique role in the global copper supply chain. China has already made rapid advances in reducing the environmental impacts of its primary production, resulting in average impacts that are less than the world average and less than most of the countries exporting primary copper to China. Notwithstanding its leadership in creating sustainable primary production, there are important opportunities to carry its learning and technological capacity to the rest of its supply chain.
International trade has enormous potential to foster or frustrate sustainable development. By allowing for specialization, trade can increase incomes and contribute to increased well-being. Openness to investment and trade can bring new environmentally-friendly technologies and processes.
But trade can also allow powerful global demand to deplete countries' natural resources and create increased pollution. And the benefits of trade are not always well distributed among and within nations.
In seeking positive outcomes, IISD focuses on two major themes, with a particular concern for developing countries:
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Trade Policy and SD
National-level trade policy sets objectives such as export expansion in key sectors. It needs to consider the impacts on the national environment as well as the social impacts. Other factors at the national level are also key; liberalization without strong environmental, regulatory regimes can lead to environmental crises. And liberalization without the capacity to benefit from market access, and without the capacity to cushion the blow of adjustment, may be economically and socially damaging. Trade policy needs to take these dynamics into account. -
Trade Law and SD
Trade rules themselves, as cast in the World Trade Organization (WTO) and regional trade agreements, are key in determining whether trade has a positive sustainable development outcome. As well, the process of negotiation—and trade institutions like the WTO—can, by their very character, influence sustainable development outcomes.
Contents
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Cross-cutting Issues: Trade and Climate Change
There are a number of ways in which trade policy might help serve climate change goals, but this will only happen if we fully understand the potential and map out how to exploit it. As well, a number of climate change measures may have negative trade impacts, and we need to understand these well enough to take those impacts into account and avoid them where possible. -
Our Philosophy
Starting points: the principles of trade and sustainable development; our assumptions, our beliefs, our way forward. -
Trade Policy and SD
What needs to happen at the domestic level to ensure that trade policy contributes to SD? Our work in developing countries. -
Trade Law and SD
Can the institutions of trade—the WTO and other trade law, and the negotiations that they entail—be better formulated to harness globalization for SD? -
China, Trade and SD
The latest of our long-standing trade policy work in China.
Key Publication
Trade and Environment: A Resource Book
» IISD, 2007.IISD, in collaboration with the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development and The Ring, has released this publication as a means to shed light on some of the key themes in the trade and environment debate. Penned by 61 authors from 34 countries, this volume provides a blend of background information, expert commentaries and resources including a glossary, and a trade and environment timeline.
More...
Our Knowledge
» Themes
- Adaptation and Risk Reduction
- Climate Change and Energy
- Economics and SD
- Education, Learning and Leadership
- Environment, Conflict and Peacebuilding
- Gender Equity
- Governance for Sustainable Development
- Internet and Technology
- International Trade
- Investment and Sustainable Development
- Measurement and Assessment
- Natural Resources
- Networks & Partnerships
- Sustainable Markets
» Initiatives
- Global Subsidies Initiative (GSI)
- The Sustainable Commodity Initiative (SCI)
- Sustainability Leadership Innovation Centre (SLIC)
- Water Innovation Centre (WIC)
