In commemoration of International Women’s Day, CITD hosted an “Erasing the And” roundtable focused on trade and gender. Trade is no longer viewed as “gender neutral”, and trade agreements are increasingly incorporating gender provisions. Yet deeper research and more tailored legal and policy approaches are needed to ensure that women’s needs are met. CITD’s event shared highlights of the December 2022 WTO World Trade Congress on Gender, featuring Anoush der Boghossian, Head of the Trade and Gender Unit at the WTO, followed by a panel discussion including Nadia Rocha, Lead Economist, Global Trade and Regional Integration at the World Bank, CITD Co-Director Professor Katrin Kuhlmann and Advisory Board Member Professor Amrita Bahri. Professors Kuhlmann and Bahri will also presented research on how to ensure that trade agreements can be better designed and implemented to address the challenges that women face around the world, which they presented and at the WTO Gender Congress.

December 8, 2022

CITD Co-Director Katrin Kuhlmann presented her research at the WTO's Trade Congress on Gender: Gender Equality for Sustainable Trade and Recovery. The three-day event was the first of its kind, featuring top researchers and their ground-breaking analysis of the relationship between trade and inclusivity. With 82 of the world's top gender and trade researchers presenting across 15 sessions to nearly 1,000 participants, the Congress laid the groundwork for innovative global solutions to the 21st century's unprecedented challenges. Georgetown Law's Kuhlmann presented her paper Gender Mainstreaming in Trade Agreements: "A Potemkin Facade"?, co-authored with Amrita Bahri, in addition to hosting CITD and the DisAbled Women's Network of Canada's joint discussion, "Making Trade Agreements Work for People with Disabilities."

November 30th, 2022

Our third “Erasing the And” focused on the relationship between trade and social inclusion. Although trade is not primarily to blame for rising inequality and social conflict, it is not wholly innocent either. International trade law plays a powerful role in fomenting the conditions under which people thrive, implicating social equality and inclusion. The impacts of trade and rapid technological change on income inequality and the security of work have become politically salient issues in the United States and Europe, challenging the international trade legal order. Social inclusion is an issue in developing economies as well, where issues of equity drive trade debates within and between nations. This talk and discussion addressed how international trade law can and should be retooled to support social inclusion worldwide, despite a brief interruption by the fire alarm.

In her recent conversation with the Friends of Multilateralism Group, Jennifer Hillman discussed recent major developments in US trade policy since 2018, and the transition of trade priorities from the Trump administration to that of President Biden. Hillman then described the US move to an initiatives-centric economic policy, especially with regards to international trade. Several key shifts in perceptions around US trade policy will shape the outcome of WTO trade efforts.

CITD Co-Director Jennifer Hillman participated in a US Trade Policy Preview with the Friends of Multilateralism Group's "Trade Policy Preview," or "TP-P" series. Across this multi-year installation, FMG gathers regional, policy, and academic experts to examine and react to WTO trade policy trends in different countries. This week's iteration of the series focused on the United States and its future under new WTO policies.

Jennifer Hillman testified on the importance of WTO reform before the European Parliament's Committee on International Trade on October 24th. Gathering with other experts on global trade, Hillman emphasized the relationship between global trade outcomes and successful US and EU cooperation leadership efforts. She further discussed the erosion of buy-in to WTO commitments and outlined potential reform methods and substance as the world navigates the notable transition in US leadership and policy over the past four years.

This fall, CITD's Katrin Kuhlmann joined Rem Korteweg and Beata Javorcik in a panel discussion on AIG's Global Trade Series podcast. Together, they discussed the range of impacts international trade has on women and gender equality in the global arena. Central to the panel discussion and Katrin Kuhlmann's work are questions about the nature of opportunities created by international trade for women, as well as identifying action items to ensure that globalization empowers women while advancing a narrative of gender equality.

October 24th, 2022

Our second Erasing the "And" focused on trade and climate change. There is a growing interest in carbon pricing and carbon border adjustments (CBAs) as a policy tool to protect economies that pursue relatively aggressive climate policies, while also encouraging broader international adoption of such strategies. During the discussion, panelists Maureen Hinman of Silverado Policy Accelerator and Matt Porterfield of the Climate Leadership Council explore issues arising from these policies, as well as differing approaches for setting equitable and effective carbon pricing models with CITD's Katrin Kuhlmann and Jennifer Hillman.

October 3rd, 2022

The Center on Inclusive Trade and Development (CITD) launched the “Erasing the And” series. For too long, issues like development, gender, labor, environment, and health have been viewed as “add-ons” to trade policy. This series reimagines trade law and policy in a way that puts these issues at the center of the discussion. Our first “Erasing the And” focused on trade and access to medicines. The June 2022 WTO MC12 TRIPS waiver on COVID-19 vaccines has prompted conversation about the measures necessary to improve access to medicines in low- and middle-income countries. The keynote address, by Jayashree Watal, and the subsequent panel discussion explored the impact of this measure, its possible extension to pharmaceuticals and diagnostics, and the broader link between intellectual property, public health, and development.

CITD Co-Director Katrin Kuhlmann's paper, "Resetting the Rules on Trade and Gender? A Comparative Assessment of Gender Approaches in Regional Trade Agreements in the Context of a Possible Gender Protocol Under the African Continental Free Trade Area", was recently listed on SSRN's Top Ten download list for: ERN: Trade & Foreign Exchange Policies in Developing Economies, ERN: Women & Gender Issues, PSN: Gender Studies, WGSRN: Gender & Globalization and WGSRN: Gender & International Trade.

CITD Co-Director Jennifer Hillman's paper "China's Entry into the WTO -- A Mistake for the United States?" , was recently listed on SSRN's Top Ten download list for: ERN: Open Macroeconomics in Emerging Markets, ERN: Other Institutions & Transition Economics: Political Economy, Emerging Markets Economics eJournals, Emerging Markets Economics: Macroeconomic Issues & Challenges eJournal, Institutional & Transition Economics eJournals and Institutions & Transition Economics: Political Economy eJournal.

The Center on Inclusive Trade and Development Launches with a keynote speech by Pamela Coke-Hamilton and a round table with Co-directors Jennifer Hillman and Katrin Kuhlmann.