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United Nations Environment Programme
  • Overview
  • Schedule

The deep dive will be held on 21st June in Geneva. Experts and delegates from various regions and countries will gather for a one day deep dive to explore possible approaches and pathways to addressing environmentally harmful agricultural subsidies.

The UN Environment Programme, with the Forum on Trade, Environment, and SDGs (TESS), collaborated to bring together government officials from both developed and developing countries with leading experts from think tanks and international organizations in an informal and off-the-record setting. After a series of short thought starter remarks, the floor will be open for discussions among delegates and experts. The dialogue will take place in a brainstorming mode and will provide an opportunity for in-depth discussions.

Who's speaking
  • Asad Naqvi
    Head, Economic and Trade Policy of UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
  • Carolyn Deere Birkbeck
    Director of Forum on Trade, Environment and the SDGs (TESS)
  • Alan Matthews
    Professor Emeritus of European Agricultural Policy, the Department of Economics, School of Social Sciences and Philosophy, Trinity College
  • Anthony Cox
    Senior Policy Advisor, GHG emissions at Ecologic Institute
  • Christophe Bellmann
    Head of Policy Analysis and Strategy at Forum on Trade, Environment & the SDGs (TESS)
  • David Laborde
    Director, Agrifood Economics Division of Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
  • Felipe Garcia-Cardona
    Manager, the Center for Biodiversity Economics and Finance of Humboldt Institute
  • H.E. Mr. Guilherme Patriota
    Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Brazil to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and International Organizations in Geneva.
  • H.E. Mr. James Baxter
    Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Australia to the World Trade Centre (WTO).
  • H.E. Mr. João Aguiar Machado
    Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the European Union to the World Trade Organization (WTO)
  • Helen Ding
    Head, New Economics of Wellbeing & Distribution and Lead Economist, Forest & Landscape Restoration at World Resource Institute (WRI) Centre of Excellence in Economics
  • Jason Clay
    Senior Vice President, Markets, Executive Director, Markets Institute of World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
  • Joaquin Arias
    Policy and Sectoral Analyst, Center of Strategic Analysis for Agriculture, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA)
  • Joy Aeree Kim
    Environmental Affairs Officer, Economic and Trade Policy of UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
  • Juha Siikamäki
    Chief Economist, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
  • Julia Nielson
    Deputy Director, Trade and Agriculture Directorate of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
  • Lena Gubler
    Geographer, Biodiversity, the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape (WSL)
  • Silvia Secchi
    Senior Research Fellow, Environmental Policy Research Program
    Professor, Department of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences, University of Iowa
  • Ulla Kask
    Counsellor at the World Trade Organization (WTO).

21 Jun 2024

Time & Place
Event Details
09:14
Introduction and welcome remarks Opening the event with introductory comments.
Asad Naqvi Head, Economic and Trade Policy of UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
Carolyn Deere Birkbeck Director of Forum on Trade, Environment and the SDGs (TESS)
09:40
Session 1: The policy context and relevance This session will briefly discuss the policy context and relevance of fostering enhanced cooperation on environmentally harmful subsidies at the international level.
H.E. Mr. James Baxter Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Australia to the World Trade Centre (WTO).
H.E. Mr. Guilherme Patriota Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Brazil to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and International Organizations in Geneva.
H.E. Mr. João Aguiar Machado Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the European Union to the World Trade Organization (WTO)
10:15
Session 2: Setting the scene After a short reminder of the discussions to date on the sustainability dimension of the domestic support reform process in the WTO, this session will provide an overview of the composition and evolution of agricultural subsidies drawing on WTO notifications, OECD data and other relevant sources. It will then review the main findings of available studies examining the relationship between agricultural support and environmental impacts, highlighting areas where further analysis is required.
Ulla Kask Counsellor at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Julia Nielson Deputy Director, Trade and Agriculture Directorate of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
David Laborde Director, Agrifood Economics Division of Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Joy Aeree Kim Environmental Affairs Officer, Economic and Trade Policy of UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
11:30
Session 3: Assessing the environmental impacts of agriculture subsidies This session will dive deeper into the specific impacts of agriculture subsidies on different environmental challenges including GHG emissions, biodiversity loss, water, or soil pollution and degradations. In doing so, the discussion will highlight different production methods, or agricultural practices as well as context specific circumstances or agro-ecological conditions where the impacts of subsidies tend to be the highest. Finally, it will identify trade-offs between different environmental objectives or broader public policy goals such as food or livelihood security.
Lena Gubler Geographer, Biodiversity, the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape (WSL)
Anthony Cox Senior Policy Advisor, GHG emissions at Ecologic Institute
Silvia Secchi Senior Research Fellow, Environmental Policy Research Program
Professor, Department of Geographical and Sustainability Sciences, University of Iowa
13:30
Session 4: A focus on domestic policy reforms and their impact on the environment This session will review the evolution of existing support schemes at the domestic level and their consequences on some of the environmental challenges highlighted in the previous session. It will provide an opportunity to discuss lessons learned from reforming or repurposing agricultural subsidies and identify best practices.
Alan Matthews Professor Emeritus of European Agricultural Policy, the Department of Economics, School of Social Sciences and Philosophy, Trinity College
Jason Clay Senior Vice President, Markets, Executive Director, Markets Institute of World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
Felipe Garcia-Cardona Manager, the Center for Biodiversity Economics and Finance of Humboldt Institute
14:45
Session 4: Options and pathways to address environmentally harmful agriculture, focusing on the international trading system Building on the considerations highlighted in previous sessions, discussions will explore different options for advancing inclusive international cooperation on environmentally harmful agricultural subsidies, focusing on the international trading system. It will review possible collaborative outcomes in the short and medium term in different fora and initiatives ranging from new disciplines through increased transparency, to guidelines, voluntary commitments or pledges. In so doing, it will explore possible hurdles and key knowledge gaps in this area, and how can they be overcome.
Juha Siikamäki Chief Economist, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Madhur Gautam Senior Research Fellow, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
Joaquin Arias Policy and Sectoral Analyst, Center of Strategic Analysis for Agriculture, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA)
Helen Ding Head, New Economics of Wellbeing & Distribution and Lead Economist, Forest & Landscape Restoration at World Resource Institute (WRI) Centre of Excellence in Economics
Christophe Bellmann Head of Policy Analysis and Strategy at Forum on Trade, Environment & the SDGs (TESS)
16:15
Concluding remarks Closing the event with final evaluative comments.
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