NCCR Guide 2013 - Schweizerischer Nationalfonds (SNF)

International Trade Regulation:
From Fragmentation to Coherence
NCCR Trade Regulation
Economy / Industry
• ABB, Zurich, CH
• Die Innovationsgesellschaft,
St. Gallen, CH
• Swissgrid, Frick, CH
• UBS, Zurich, CH
Others
• Bundesamt für Energie, Bern, CH
• CEPII, Paris, FR
• Ecoscientia, Zug, CH
• International Centre For Trade
And Sustainable Development,
Geneva, CH
• International Institute for
Sustainable Development,
Geneva, CH
• Madariaga/College of Europe
Foundation, Burssels, BE
• Swiss Federal Office for the
Environment, Berne, CH
• Swiss Federal Office of
Communication, Biel, CH
• United Nations Conference
for Trade and Development,
Geneva, CH
• World Intellectual Property
Organisation, Geneva, CH
Achievements of the previous years
Until fairly recently, international
trade regulation
was seen as a specialized
field of international
law and economic policy.
It has insufficient interlinkage
with other areas
of law and policy, which
WTO rules increasingly affect,
or with the institutions
that generate these norms.
NCCR Trade Regulation
is a unique, multidisciplinary
research network
that seeks to bring greater
coherence to the study of
these fragmented interfaces,
and looks at them
from the angles of economics,
international relations
and law. The results
of research undertaken
and published during the
first phase of NCCR Trade
Regulation were published
as The Prospects of International
Trade Regulation:
From Fragmentation
to Coherence (Cambridge
University Press 2011). The
research under the second
phase builds upon this
achievement.
Research accomplishments
NCCR Trade Regulation is
structured into six Work
Packages (WPs), which
have provided an effective
framework for research and
will continue to do so for the
remainder of the second
phase and during the third
phase of the NCCR.
We have added numerous
articles and book chapters
to our impressive list of
publications. The most recent
addition is the article
by Manfred Elsig (leader of
WP2) and Mark A. Pollack
(Temple University, USA)
“Agents, trustees, and international
courts: The politics
of judicial appointment
at the World Trade Organization”,
in the European
Journal of International
Relations.
The annual World Trade
Forum (WTF) continues to
showcase work done within
the framework of the NCCR
and in cooperation with
third parties. This year’s
WTF on the Rule of Law
in Monetary Affairs: Lessons
from the Trade Field,
will as usual, form the basis
for an edited volume to be
published by Cambridge
University Press.
Knowledge transfer
and affiliations
The WTI/NCCR is now
midway through its fouryear
academic cooperation
project with the Swiss State
Secretariat for Economic
Affairs (SECO) in collaboration
with universities in
Peru, South Africa and Vietnam,
and has welcomed
two new partners - the
University of Chile and the
Universitas Pelita Harapan
(Indonesia). Research
fellowships, joint research
projects, conferences and
workshops are integrating
foreign researchers into the
work of NCCR Trade Regulation.
In the long-term
goal, the intention is to establish
the foundations for
a sustainable and productive
network of academic
cooperation to provide the
rigorously trained experts
needed to address the challenges
of international
trade regulation.
A team of NCCR researchers
has obtained a grant
from the Swiss Network
for International Studies
(SNIS) to study power shifts
in the international trade
arena. The two-year project
entitled “From rule-takers
to rule-makers: emerging
powers in the regulation
of international trade” will
investigates the conditions
under which countries such
as Brazil, China, India and
Mexico increasingly convert
their growing market
power into regulatory influence
in the international
arena.
The International Investment
Initiative (I3) continues
to study the relationship
between trade and
investment law and policy.
Its focus is on research,
training and advisory services,
as well establishing a
forum for dialogue between
stakeholders.
Doctoral School
Work is under way to set
up NCCR Trade Regulation’s
interdisciplinary
doctoral programme. Together
with the MILE
Programme, the Summer
Academy and the Distance
Learning Programme, the
doctoral programme forms
part of the Graduate School
of Economic Globalisation
and Integration. Individual
learning agreements will
be concluded between the
doctoral thesis supervisor
and the student. These
agreements will offer each
student the possibility to
advance his or her expertise
in the field of trade
regulation and economic
globalisation, for example,
by participating in doctoral
seminars, presenting work
at international conferences
and to the doctoral
school. The school will also
offer students the chance
to augment their knowledge
by attending courses
of the MILE programme
and Summer Academy.
The in-house WTI doctoral
students will be expected
to cooperate on NCCR and
other research activities
of the WTI. It will attract
students of law, economics
and international relations,
with a focus on international
trade.
For further information see
www.nccr-trade.org
86 | Guide 2013