About the Trade & Sustainable Development Program

CIEL's Trade & Sustainable Development (TSD) Program seeks to reform the international economic laws, policies, and institutions to promote equitable and sustainable trade and investment.
CIEL aims to promote greater accountability and stronger environmental policies in international trade and investment laws and institutions. Our objectives include:

• Enhancing the capacity of civil society and developing countries to help develop international trade and investment policies that promote sustainable development;
• Strengthening regimes and institutions in policy-making involving environment, trade, investment and intellectual property; and
• Reforming national trade policy-making to ensure that environmental organizations, policy-makers and experts have a stronger voice in the development of trade policy.

The Trade & Sustainable Development Program works closely with our Climate Change, Human Rights & the Environment, and Chemicals programs.  CIEL works at the international, national and local level, often partnering with NGOs, to combine our efforts in protecting the environment and improving human health. 

Our core program areas include:

• Trade in Goods
  CIEL is active in reforming the trading system to promote sustainable development so that governments can protect health, safety, and the environment at the national and international levels.
• Investment
  CIEL works with its partners to increase transparency and public participation in investor-State disputes, trade agreements, treaties, and host government agreements designed to protect foreign investors and their investments.
• Intellectual Property
  CIEL works to enhance the participation and influence of developing countries and civil society in regional, bilateral, and multilateral institutions addressing intellectual property in order to promote sustainable development.