The 5th edition of Geneva Trade Week took place from September 9 to 13, 2024, and was more integrated into the WTO Public Forum than ever before. Together with our diverse partners—including the World Economic Forum, the World Spirits Alliance, and the St. Gallen Endowment for Prosperity, among others—GTW offers participants new to the WTO Public Forum an easy introduction to pressing global trade issues and an opportunity to engage in policy discussions that are often closed off to outsiders. As in 2023, many of this year’s events and receptions were hosted within the WTO premises, reinforcing a growing partnership.
In addition to the popular receptions and breakfast meetings, which foster deep, meaningful exchanges, the panels and plenaries provided vital spaces for stakeholders to engage in substantive discussions. A highlight of the week was TESS's opening high-level plenary on fostering international cooperation and collective action on trade, climate, and sustainable development at the WTO, which was one of our most well attended events and drew over 10,000 online viewers.
This year, we are also particularly excited to spotlight three notable events that were new additions to the GTW lineup: the Q&A session on the Free Trade Law E-Casebook, the Student Debate: Moratorium on E-Commerce Duties featuring a team of students from the Graduate Institute, and the book talk with Dmitry Grozoubinski, author of 'Why Politicians Lie About Trade'.
Opening session on trade and environment with TESS
It is the tradition of GTW to kick off the conference week by partnering with our Forum on Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development Goals (TESS).
On 9 September, TESS hosted the high-level plenary on fostering international cooperation and collective action on trade, climate, and sustainable development at the WTO. The event brought together a diverse group of leading international experts and Geneva-based ambassadors to the WTO to share their views on both pragmatic options and unconventional ideas on ways forward. This event was one of most well attended online and in-person and the recording drew the attention of over 10 thousand viewers.
Additionally, TESS hosted a reception of trade and sustainability colleagues in Geneva for the WTO Public Forum. At the reception TESS celebrated their three-year anniversary and launched a compilation of expert views on Reviving multilateralism: From vision to action on trade and sustainability at the WTO. Published as a series from February to September 2024 in their blog Synergies, the compilation marks a notable achievement for TESS through commissioning close to 30 articles by leading experts on the state of play in the multilateral trading system and how to put sustainability at the top of the agenda.
Q&A session on the Free Trade Law E-Casebook
A significant milestone for the Geneva Trade Platform was the launch of the free trade law E-Casebook in September 2023. The book is currently being used by over 4,000 students in 6 different continents. Developed to address the persistent challenge of overpriced and inaccessible trade law casebooks, this digital resource is now available for free to students, professionals, and anyone interested in learning more about international trade. The casebook is housed on the Beyond Trade Network, a free online social platform similar to LinkedIn or Facebook, but tailored specifically for those engaged in trade policy.
Authored and edited by Professors Gao, Hillman, Lamp, and Pauwelyn, the E-Casebook is now used in dozens of universities and by hundreds of officials and professionals worldwide. It is not your traditional trade law text book but presents knowledge via videos, case studies and audio clips. The book presents a different perspective of looking at trade policy by showing how it intersects with digital trade, national security, labour, e-commerce or environment. One of the next steps is to translate the book into Spanish and Chinese as well as other languages to make sure it is used by as many people globally as possible.
At GTW 2024, we hosted an insightful event with three of the authors, Professor Jennifer Hillman of Georgetown Law, Professor Joost Pauwelyn of the Geneva Graduate Institute and Professor Henry Gao of Singapore Management University, exploring the E-Casebook's origins, the challenges it was designed to address, and its unique features. The discussion also touched on how this model could be replicated to bridge other knowledge gaps in the trade policy space. Click above to re-watch the discussion and below to explore the Trade Law E-casebook.
The Student Debate: Moratorium on E-Commerce Duties
Perhaps one of the most exciting additions to the GTW experience is the opportunity to see future leaders of trade policy in action. Following the success of the first-ever student debate at the WTO Public Forum in 2023, we were thrilled to bring back these exceptional young professionals back for a second consecutive year. In partnership with the Geneva Debate, teams of students from the Geneva Graduate Institute and World Trade Institute presented their cases for and against the moratorium on e-commerce duties, a critical and timely issue in global trade.
The debate aimed to provide fresh perspectives while empowering the next generation of trade leaders. It featured a combination of constructive speeches, quick fire responses and engaging exchanges with the jury. Find out more about the Geneva Debate and their upcoming events on their instagram account.
Book Talk with Dmitry Grozoubinski
A much-anticipated addition to GTW 2024 was the book talk with Dmitry Grozoubinski, Executive Director of the Geneva Trade Platform. In May 2024, Dmitry published Why Politicians Lie About Trade, an accessible and timely exploration of how trade policy has come to dominate electoral campaigns worldwide. The book addresses the urgent need for open, honest, and clear engagement with the public on the complex trade-offs that governments face. The book talk attracted a large audience, and Dmitry’s insights further enriched the GTW experience. We thank you for the overwhelming support! For the full conversation between Inu Manak and Dmitry Grozoubinski, click here.
A huge thank you to everyone who came for any of our events to show support, network or learn. Should you wish to relive the 2024 GTW experience, we captured brief video segments with different partners to give you a taste of what it's like to be on the inside and the subject matter they are working on.