For that reason, this paper analyses market access opportunities for environmental goods (EGs) from developing countries in the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) regions and focuses on a few issues particularly relevant to these countries. The paper uses a partial equilibrium model to estimate the possible trade effects of different tariff liberalisation scenarios for ACP countries. It finds that any tariff elimination by ACP countries will result in an increased level of imports and a deepening of the trade imbalance in this sector. The paper subsequently discusses how to leverage the benefits that may come from tariff liberalization of environmental goods.

The objective of this paper is to examine the viability and potential effects of different actions that Germany and the European Union (EU) can take to curb the growth of GHG emissions from the international transport sector. It analyzes different options that policy makers have available to reduce transport induced emissions. In doing so, this paper takes the impacts on trade, especially for developing countries, into account. The overarching question that is reverberates throughout this paper is: what are the advantages and disadvantages of different measures that Germany and the EU can take to limit emissions from trade-related transport?

On 16 December 2011, at the occasion of the eight ministerial conference of the WTO in Geneva, ICTSD organised a high-level lunch addressing the urgent need to switch from fossil based to sustainable energy as a key measure for addressing climate change, and how this shift could be promoted using trade policies. Discussions revolved around various options and vehicles to do this, including through negotiating a sustainable energy trade agreement (SETA).

Renate Christ, Secretary of the IPCC highlighted issues such as the current state of climate change, current and expected levels of emissions, the contribution of energy supply and use to carbon emissions, and the
mitigation efforts required to stay below a 2 degree temperature increase. In particular, she highlighted the role of renewable energy in this effort.

Ricardo Melendez-Ortiz Chief Executive of ICTSD then outlined the relevance of trade and trade-policy in facilitating the rapid scale up of sustainable energy in the context not only of the environmental challenge but also other key sustainable development challenges such as providing energy access to millions of people through low-carbon means.

The lunch sparked a lively debate on the relevance and interplay of trade and sustainable energy policies. Participants encouraged ICTSD to continue its momentum on the initiative and to provide informed input through research and dialogue to policy makers.

Questions on the consistency with WTO provisions have been frequently raised as sustainability criteria and implementation measures were defined and adopted under the RED and FQD. However, no thorough analysis has been carried out on this topic. The objective of the worksho is to engage in an informed and constructive discussion on the technical and legal arguments surrounding the compatibility of the EU sustainability requirements with international trade rules. Special attention will be given to recent WTO jurisprudence.

Speakers include Andrew Shoyer, chair of Sidley Austin’s international trade and dispute resolution practice; Dr. Alan Swinbank, Emeritus Professor of Agricultural Economics at Reading University; Malena Sell, Senior Programme Officer, Environment and Natural Resources, ICTSD; and high-level representatives from the European Commission and the European Parliament.

This paper challenges these norms of neglect by taking a close look at trade in the services that are essential for the development and dissemination of climate-friendly technologies. The paper reveals which services can be linked to action on climate change, what barriers are impeding trade in these services, and what commitments governments have made on lifting these barriers. As such, the paper provides valuable insights for both the specific negotiations on EGS and for negotiations on services in general.

Interestingly, this paper shows that there are significant economic and environmental benefits to liberalizing trade in environmental services that address climate change and the goods that are indispensable for delivering them in tandem. It also shows that despite these advantages there remain many challenges to realizing them.

The study builds on a series of recent ICTSD studies that map and classify climate-friendly goods and analyse trade patterns, drivers, and barriers in such goods. As this paper shows, a vast range of services across multiple sectors appears to be related to implementing climate change policies. The paper covers multiple key mitigation sectors identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC): energy supply, transport, buildings, industry, agriculture, forestry, and waste. In doing so, the paper goes beyond the issue of market access and national treatment and points to a variety of domestic laws and regulations, such as those regarding government procurement.

By invitation.