1st European Civil Society Forum on Trade and Sustainable Development

Breaking down the silos - 29 March 2022 

Draft programme

09:15 – 09:45:   Registrations / Testing connections

09:45 – 10:00:   Introductory remarks

  • Christa Schweng, President of the European Economic and Social Committee

10:00 – 11:00:   Opening roundtable: Trade and sustainable development: Where are we and where do we want to go?

Moderated by Carolyn Deere-Birkbeck, Senior Researcher at the Graduate Institute’s Global Governance Centre and Director, Forum on Trade, Environment and the SDGs, TESS, this roundtable will set the scene, take stock of where things stand on Trade and Sustainable Development and steer reflections on possible ways forward.

  • Bernd Lange, Chair of the International Trade Committee at the European Parliament
  • Luisa Santos, Deputy Director-General at BusinessEurope
  • Daniele Basso, Advisor, ETUC
  • AnaĂŻs Berthier, Head of EU affairs at ClientEarth

11:00 – 11:30: Break

11:30 – 13:00: Parallel breakout sessions: TSD substantive rights: is the overall frame fit for purpose?

Each of the breakout sessions ('labs') will kick-off with a 10-minute steer from an expert moderator who will set the scene. Assisted by two/three 'ice-breakers' to throw in some reflections to launch the debates: a genuine, inclusive debate where all participants are invited to share their views. The objective is to break the silos and have a real debate, not just a long list of presentations.

Lab 1: How can trade catch up with environment and climate agenda and how to steer work forward?

Moderated by Isabelle Garzon, Director of Studies and Development at Europe Jacques Delors

  • Andres Barcelo Delgado, EESC Rapporteur on CBAM
  • Antoine Oger, Head of the Global Challenges and SDGs team, IEEP
  • Saskia Bricmont, Member of the International Trade Committee at the European Parliament

Lab 2: How can trade catch up with social agenda and how to steer work forward?

Moderated by Alice Tipping, Lead, Sustainable Trade and Fisheries Subsidies at the International Institute for Sustainable Development

  • Corinne Vargha, Director of the Standards Department, International Labour Organization
  • Emmanuelle Butaud-Stubbs, Secretary General of ICC France

13:00 – 14:30:   Lunch break

14:30 – 16:00: Parallel breakout sessions: TSD monitoring, enforcement and the involvement of civil society

 Lab 3: What framework for an inclusive and efficient monitoring of TSD?

Moderated by Professor James Harrison, School of law at University of Warwick

  • Stefano Palmieri, President of the EESC Section on Economic affairs and rapporteur on the role of civil society in trade agreements
  • Benedikt Wiedenhofer, BusinessEurope, Chair of Andean EU DAG

Lab 4: Delivering on TSD promises: rights are only as good as their effective enforceability

Moderated by Jean-Baptiste Velut, Sorbonne Nouvelle University, LSE Consulting Trade Policy Hub

  • Angelo DiCaro, Director, Research Department, Unifor, Canadian Labour DAG member
  • Stuart Newman, Senior Legal Advisor - Sustainable Trade & Customs, Amfori

Experienced and knowledgeable rapporteurs from think tanks, academia and the media will be taking notes on each lab to make sure that issues and questions raised find their way in the concluding roundtable debate.

16:00 – 16:30:   Break

16:30 – 17:30: Concluding roundtable: Meeting civil society expectations on TSD: delivering on ambitions

Moderated by DesirĂ©e LeClercq, Assistant Professor, Cornell School of Industrial Labor Relations. This roundtable will build on the debates of the day and consider ways forward.

  • Maria Martin Prat, Deputy Director-General at the European Commission
  • Jean-Marie Paugam, Deputy Director-General at the World Trade Organisation
  • Tanja Buzek, Chair of the EESC Follow-up Committee on International Trade and Rapporteur on the TSD Review