When: 28 September – 1 October 2021
Where: For online attendance register here on Monday 27 September the latest.
Watch and Listen: In this section of the website you can watch and listen to recordings after the sessions.
This year's Public Forum, entitled “Trade Beyond COVID-19: Building Resilience”, will look at the effects of the pandemic on trade and how the multilateral trading system can help build resilience to COVID-19 and future crises. Here you will find the Full Program. The Public Forum will have three subthemes:
- Enhancing Resilience beyond COVID-19
- Strengthening the Multilateral Trading System
- Collective Action towards Sustainable Trade
It is clear that trade has an important role in the response to COVID-19 – not least in scaling up vaccine production - as well as in supporting economic recovery and efforts to prepare more effectively for future pandemics. The Forum will bring together representatives of governments, the private sector, civil society, academics, consumers and students to consider how the trading system can help countries further develop this resilience. Participants will discuss the role of trade at a time of crisis and how the WTO can be strengthened to tackle the issues of the 21st century, increasingly characterised by rapid technological change, knowledge-driven economies, global environmental issues and growing consumer influence on the production of goods.
UNEP participation at WTO Public Forum:
29 September 2021 | 16:30 – 17:30 CEST | Enhancing resilience and sustainable recovery through circular economy and trade (Session 41)
Trade is a crucial contributor to recovery from the pandemic: it plays an essential role in economic development, supports peace and is an engine for achieving the SDGs. As climate change and unsustainable consumption of natural resources are interlinked, transition to a circular economy is a necessity and an opportunity for a sustainable economy. Several countries, including Colombia and Finland, have taken steps towards circular economy and productive transformation. This interactive, inclusive session focuses on
1) opportunities provided by transition to circular economy for sustainable growth with the help of trade;
2) the role of collective action such as national, regional and international policies and cooperation in supporting the transition;
3) impacts of circular economy transition on strengthening resilience and tackling challenges related to climate change and resource scarcity.
The session highlights the importance of aligning circular economy transition and sustainable post-COVID recovery policies as countries are rebuilding their economies.
Organizers:
- Permanent Mission of Colombia to the WTO
- Permanent Mission of Finland in Geneva
- United Nations Environment Programme
Panelists:
- Andrea Corzo Alvarez, Director of environmental affairs, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia
- Jussi Jäntti, Research team leader, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd • Kirsti Kauppi, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Finland to Geneva
- Jorge Andrés López de Mesa, Vice President of sales, Enka Colombia
Moderator: Steven Stone, Chief, Resources and Markets Branch, UNEP
Registration: For online attendance register here on Monday 27 September the latest. After registration you have to go to session 41 on 29 September.
30 September 2021 | 16:30 – 17:30 CEST | Trade and climate change: What is at stake for developing countries (Session 74)
This session will discuss the trade-related impacts of climate change in developing countries. It will explore how future trade opportunities will be affected by changing climates and mitigation responses. Panelists will discuss how trade provides the goods and services that can drive mitigation efforts, the challenges such efforts entail for developing countries, but also the opportunities for promoting trade diversification supportive of a transition to a low-carbon world. Governments and firms are increasingly supporting the adoption of measures aimed at reducing carbon footprints. Because such measures can affect trade, developing countries need to have a substantive stake in their design and implementation. The session will explore how developing countries can best balance the pursuit of their developmental objectives whilst adapting to climate change. Suitable trade and environmental policies can offer the right economic incentives for attaining both sustainable growth and poverty reduction through trade.
Organizers:
- Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the WTO
- World Bank Group
Panelists:
- Sheila Aggarwal-Khan, Director, Economy Division, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)
- Mónica Araya, Independent adviser on electric mobility, advocate and decarbonization strategist, Costa Rica
- Paul Brenton, Lead Economist, Trade and Regional Integration, World Bank Group
- Aik-Hoe Lim, Director, Environment Division, World Trade Organization
Moderator: Gloria Abraham, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the WTO, Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the WTO
Registration: For online attendance register here on Monday 27 September the latest. After registration you have to go to session 74 on 30 September.
30 September 2021 | 15:00 – 16:00 CEST | Trade and environment at MC12: How can governments work together at the WTO to support a green and fair global economy? (Session 65)
The purpose of this session is to spur forward-looking discussion on what governments can do at the multilateral level to ensure trade and trade policy advance progress on shared environmental goals, the SDGs, and a green recovery. In particular, it aims to highlight the growing political focus on what specific environmental deliverables governments could pursue at the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference? Further, it aims to illustrate the interest of business and environmental stakeholders in this agenda and their support for stronger engagement of governments on this topic.
Organizer: Forum on Trade, Environment & the SDGs (TESS)
Panelists:
- Stephen de Boer, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Canada to the WTO
- Joyce Myusa, Deputy Executive Director, UNEP
- Jean-Marie Paugam, Deputy Director-General, WTO
- José Valencia, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Ecuador to the WTO
Moderator: Carolyn Deere Birkbeck, Director, Forum on Trade, Environment and the SDGs (TESS)
Registration: For online attendance register here on Monday 27 September the latest. After registration you have to go to session 65 on 30 September.
1 October 2021 | 13:30 – 14:30 CEST | Building resilient and sustainable regional and global value chains through the AfCTA. (Session 88)
COVID-19 has shed light on the fragility of Africa’s supply chains, highlighting the urgency to develop more resilient and sustainable regional value chains that can withstand future climate change shocks and respond to growing demand for green goods and services. In building back better, Africa can take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement to advance the green transition. Integrating environmental considerations within the AfCFTA protocols and strategies for implementation also offers an opportunity to develop common African environmental sustainability priorities at multilateral fora, including the UNFCC and WTO. This session will answer the following questions: What actions are required by African policymakers and businesses to fully harness the AfCFTA to further the green transition? How can the AfCFTA be implemented in a way that supports the adoption of environmental standards? How can the AfCFTA be utilized to develop a common African position on trade and environmental sustainability?
Organizers:
- United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA)
- Overseas Development Institute (ODI)
- United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
- Forum on Trade, Environment and the SDGs (TESS)
Panelists:
- Usha Chandnee Dwarka-Canabady, Ambassador, Permanent Representative, Mauritius Mission to the United Nations Office at Geneva
- Stephen Karingi, Director, Regional Integration and Trade, UNECA
- Maximiliano Mendez-Parra, Principal Research Fellow, ODI
- Hermogene Nsengimana, Secretary General, African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO)
Moderator: Sheila Aggarwal-Khan, Director, Economy Division, UNEP
Registration: For online attendance register here on Monday 27 September the latest. After registration you have to go to session 88 on 1 October.
