ON FREE TRADE, CLIMATE CHANGE, AND THE WTO
Journal Title: Journal of Globalization Studies - Year 2010, Vol 1, Issue 1
Abstract
This article focuses on the argument that a free global market benefits the en-vironment. I explore the link between climate change, which has recently emerged as the greatest environmental threat, and world trade, which has grown continuously since WWII. The growth of world trade, facilitated by the GATT-WTO regime, evokes an important question. Is this regime good for the environment, or has it contributed to the increase of greenhouse gases, the primary driver of climate change? While this question cannot be fully an-swered in this paper alone, it is important to consider it now because many of the expected damages caused by climate change may be considerable and nonreversible. After discussing the state of knowledge on the effects of trade on the environment, we evaluate whether the biosphere can accommodate perpetual economic growth. The purpose of this paper is to integrate the insights gained by outlining a proposed research program focusing on the WTO and the environment in the context of climate change.
Authors and Affiliations
Rafael Reuveny
Keywords
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