On Monday, February 12th, and Tuesday, February 13th, 2024, WITA hosted its sixth annual Washington International Trade Conference (WITC). This conference brought together leaders in international trade from across the U.S. and around the world to explore the trade landscape and look toward the future of trade.

DAY 2 OF THE WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL TRADE CONFERENCE 

To download the full program, click here.

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On Thursday, November 30, WITA hosted a webinar to look at what was accomplished at the APEC Summit in San Francisco, what has yet to be achieved, and where IPEF may be heading from there.

This event was held in partnership with the Asia Society Policy Institute.

Featured Speakers:

Wendy Cutler, Vice President, Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), and Managing Director of the Washington, D.C. office; former Acting Deputy United States Trade Representative

Eric Gottwald, Policy Specialist, Trade and Economic Globalization, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)

Yeo Han-koo, Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute of International Economics; former Trade Minister of the Republic of Korea

Marc Mealy, Senior Vice President-Policy, US-ASEAN Business Council

Moderator: Paul H. DeLaney, III, Partner, Kyle House Group

Speaker Biographies:

Wendy Cutler is Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI) and the Managing Director of the Washington, D.C. office. In these roles, she focuses on leading initiatives that address challenges related to trade, investment, and innovation, as well as women’s empowerment in Asia. She joined ASPI following an illustrious career of nearly three decades as a diplomat and negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), where she also served as Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative. During her USTR career, she worked on a range of bilateral, regional, and multilateral trade negotiations and initiatives, including the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, U.S.-China negotiations, and the WTO Financial Services negotiations. She has published a series of ASPI papers on the Asian trade landscape and serves as a regular media commentator on trade and investment developments in Asia and the world.

Eric Gottwald is a Policy Specialist on Trade & Economic Globalization at the AFL-CIO where he advocates for the effective integration of workers’ fundamental labor rights into trade and investment policy.

Prior to joining the AFL-CIO, Eric was the Deputy Director of the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF), where he coordinated programs to end labor abuses in global supply chains, utilizing trade-related complaint mechanisms to hold governments and corporations accountable for upholding international labor standards. He graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2005, completing human rights fellowships with Oxfam Great Britain and the International Labor Organization. He is fluent in Spanish and licensed to practice law in Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.

Yeo Han-koo is the former Trade Minister of the Republic of Korea, and he has been Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics since June 2023. His research focuses on international trade policy, industrial policy, supply chain resilience, and economic security and international trade negotiations including the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Yeo completed almost three decades of public service as trade minister of the Republic of Korea in 2022, in the final year of the Moon Jae-in presidency.

A veteran international trade negotiator, Yeo has been involved in a number of bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations, including as the chief negotiator for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), Korea-UK Free Trade Agreement, Korea–Central America Free Trade Agreement, Korea-Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, and Korea-Philippines Free Trade Agreement. He was also an original participant in developing the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity.

While serving as commercial attaché at the Korean Embassy in Washington, he was involved in amendment negotiations of the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement and Section 232 steel negotiations. As Korean minister of trade, he oversaw conventional trade negotiations, export controls, and investment screening. Yeo also led negotiations for Korea’s export control measures against Russia in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

A graduate of Seoul National University, Yeo has served as visiting professor at the Seoul National University Business School, teaching international trade, negotiation, and economic security issues. Yeo holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School.

Marc Mealy is the Senior Vice President-Policy at the US-ASEAN Business Council. He manages the production of the Council’s information products, coordinates advocacy efforts across our country and industry committees, and serves as the in-house lead on international trade policy. He joined the Council in 2003 as the Senior Director for Malaysia, Philippines and Brunei Affairs as well as Coordinator of the Council’s ASEAN Financial Services Working Group. He was named the Vice President in 2010.

Marc has over twenty years of experience in international trade and economics.

He began his professional career in 1989 as an international economist with International Trade Policy Division of USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Services. While at USDA he was accepted into the United States Foreign Service, and later went on to manage some of USDA’s largest commodity trade finance (GSM) and food assistance programs (PL-480) in Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe for USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation.

In 1994-1996, he joined the African American Institute, an international non-profit NGO, as the Director of its Trade and Investment Program and later worked as a consultant to foreign government and international development NGO’s.

Prior to joining the Council Marc spent four years inside the U.S. Congress. From 1999-2001 he was a member of the Professional Staff of the House International Relations Committee. From 2001 to 2003, he served as the international economic and foreign policy advisor to Congressmen Gregory Meeks of New York, a member of the House Foreign Affairs and Financial Services Committees.

Marc holds a B.A. in Economics and Third World Studies from Oberlin College and an M.S. degree in Economics from the University of Florida.

Paul H. DeLaney, III is a Partner at Kyle House Group. Paul rejoined the firm in the summer of 2022 and brings 20 years of private sector and public service experience working on international economic, policy, political and business issues. Paul leads the firm’s international commercial policy, advocacy, counseling and dispute resolution efforts. He specializes in international trade, investment, tax, supply chain, regulatory and customs advocacy and policy development.

Prior to rejoining KHG, Paul was Vice President for Trade and International at Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers of America’s leading companies. Paul partnered with the BRT leadership and the Trade and International CEO Committee Chair to set strategy and engage BRT CEOs on policy priorities and advocacy. Paul worked closely with other U.S. associations to align trade and international policy efforts, and he led the successful USMCA Coalition effort within BRT and with partner associations.  

Paul worked at the Kyle House Group for over five years before joining BRT. Prior to joining KHG, Paul served as International Trade Counsel to Ranking Member Orrin G. Hatch for the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance where he advised Senators and their staff on trade, investment, customs and international economic issues. Paul assisted with Finance Committee hearings and legislative markups, drafted trade legislation and amendments, briefed Senators and staff, consulted with the Administration and the trade and customs agencies, and met with stakeholders and foreign governments. Paul assisted in managing the Senate floor during the consideration of seven trade bills. He also drafted a bipartisan customs modernization and reauthorization bill, the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2013, with Chairman Max Baucus’ staff.

Before joining the Finance Committee, Paul worked as Senior Attorney for Trade and International Affairs at FedEx Express on trade policy and international regulatory issues before the U.S. and foreign governments, as well as with industry and trade associations. His work focused on trade policies, trade agreements and international regulatory policies that impacted the company’s international operations and investments. He was appointed to serve on Industry and Trade Advisory Committee 10 on Services and Finance by the Bush and the Obama Administrations. He helped open the FedEx Express Washington, DC Office of Trade and International Affairs, and he coordinated advocacy efforts with FedEx Express regional and country teams around the world.  

Prior to joining FedEx Express, Paul worked at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative for three years, including serving as Deputy Chief of Staff for U.S. Trade Representatives Rob Portman and Susan C. Schwab. Paul was integrally involved in strategic planning, agency operations and decision-making with senior political and career staff. Paul was the front office point of contact for the White House Staff Secretary, National Security Council, and National Economic Council staff to coordinate interagency actions.  

Before joining USTR, Paul was a litigation associate at Vinson & Elkins, LLP in Washington DC. Paul attended Yale University and the University of Virginia School of Law. Paul is a Washington DC native, having grown up in Northwest DC and attended the St. Albans School for Boys. He lives in Virginia, with his wife Meghan and their daughters Charlotte and Maia.

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On Monday, February 13th, and Tuesday, February 14th, 2023, WITA hosted its fifth annual Washington International Trade Conference (WITC). This conference brought together leaders in international trade from across the U.S. and around the world to explore the trade landscape and look toward the future of trade.

Day 2 of the Washington International Trade Conference 

The post 2023 Washington International Trade Conference appeared first on WITA.

The event began with remarks from Kenneth I. Levinson, Executive Director of WITA, as he introduced the first two panelists: Angela Ellard, Deputy Director-General and World Trade Organization and Ambassador Rufus Yerxa, Senior Advisor, McLarty Associates; former WTO Deputy Director General; and former Deputy USTR.

The panelists of the second panel, “Climate Diplomacy and Trade – a NextGenTrade() discussion”, included Kelly Milton, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Environmental and Natural Resources, USTR, David Livingston, Managing Director for Clean Energy & Senior Advisor, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, Dan Esty, Hillhouse Professor of Environmental Law and Policy, Yale School of the Environment and Yale Law School – on public service leave at the World Trade Organization, Julio José Prado, Minister of Production, Foreign Trade, Investment and Fisheries, Ministry of Production, Foreign Trade, Investments and Fisheries of Ecuador, Jo Tyndall, Director, Environment Directorate, OECD, and Moderator Maureen Hinman, Co-Founder, Chairman, Silverado Policy Accelerator.

The third panel of the conference, “Making a More Meaningful TTC in its 3rd Year”, featured speakers Michelangelo Margherita, Head of Trade, Agriculture and Digital Economy in the Delegation of the European Union to the U.S., Jonathan McHale, Vice President, Digital Trade, Computer & Communications Industry Association, Daniel Mullaney, former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Europe and the Middle East, Jason Oxman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), and Moderator Marjorie Chorlins, Senior Vice President, Europe, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. 

The fourth panel, “Trade, Supply Chains and Industrial Policy”, included speakers Simon J. Evenett, Professor of International Trade and Economic Development, University of St. Gallen, Founder, St. Gallen Endowment for Prosperity Through Trade, Jimmy Goodrich, Vice President, Global Policy, Semiconductor Industry Association, Hon. Nazak Nikakhtar, Partner, Wiley Rein LLP; Senior Fellow, Center for Technology Diplomacy, Purdue University; and Strategic Advisor, Silverado Policy Accelerator, Scott Paul, President, Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), and Moderator Jonathan Lang, Director for Trade and Supply Chains, Industrial & Consumer, Eurasia Group.

The fifth panel focused on “U.S.-China Strategic and National Security” and included the following panelists: Amy P. Celico, Principal Albright Stonebridge Group, Dentons Global Advisors, Samm Sacks, Senior Fellow, Yale Law School, Paul Tsai China Center, Scott Kennedy, Senior Adviser and Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Moderator Erin Ennis, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs, Dell Technologies. 

The start of the second day began with the panel providing an “Update From Congress” with U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ranking Republican, Senate Finance Committee and Moderator Steve Lamar, President & CEO, American Apparel and Footwear Association, and President of the WITA Board of Directors. 

The second panel featured an “Update on the Administration’s Trade Agenda”, Marisa Lago, U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade opened the panel with remarks followed by questions from Moderator Wendy Cutler, Vice President, Asia Society Policy Institute and Managing Director of the Washington, D.C. Office; and former Acting Deputy United States Trade Representative. 

The closing session of the 2023 Washington International Trade Conference was the “Trade Around the World Ambassadors Roundtable” featuring Hon. Ashok Kumar Mirpuri, Ambassador of Singapore to the United States, Hon. Karin Olofsdotter, Ambassador of Sweden to the United States, Ambassador Tamaki Tsukada, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Japan, Hon. Tanee Sangrat, Ambassador of Thailand to the United States, and Moderator Ambassador Susan Schwab, Strategic Advisor, Mayer Brown LLP; and former United States Trade Representative. 

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On Thursday, December 8, 2022, panelists joined WITA to discuss 20 notable global trends and risks for 2023.

Climate change. Food security. Political polarization. Great power friction. Supply chains and reshoring.  WITA was pleased to host noted “futurist” Robert Moran of Brunswick Group to discuss 20 notable global trends and risks for 2023, in a discussion with Edward Alden, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Featured Speakers:

Edward Alden, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations and Ross Distinguished Visiting Professor, Western Washington University

Robert Moran, Partner, Insight Global Lead, Brunswick Insight

Speaker Biographies

Edward Alden

Edward Alden is Bernard L. Schwartz senior fellow at the Council on Fore­­­ign Relations (CFR), specializing in U.S. economic competitiveness, trade, and immigration policy. He is the author of the book Failure to Adjust: How Americans Got Left Behind in the Global Economy, which focuses on the federal government’s failure to respond effectively to competitive challenges on issues such as trade, currency, worker retraining, education, and infrastructure.

Alden recently served as the project director of a CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force, co-chaired by former Michigan Governor John Engler and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, which produced the report The Work Ahead: Machines, Skills, and U.S. Leadership in the Twenty-First Century. In 2011, he was the project codirector of the Independent Task Force that produced U.S. Trade and Investment Policy. In 2009, he was the project director of the Independent Task Force that produced U.S. Immigration Policy.

Alden’s previous book, The Closing of the American Border: Terrorism, Immigration, and Security Since 9/11, was a finalist for the Lukas Book Prize, for narrative nonfiction in 2009. The jury called Alden’s book “a masterful job of comprehensive reporting, fair-minded analysis, and structurally sound argumentation.”

Alden was previously the Washington bureau chief for the Financial Times, and prior to that was the newspaper’s Canada bureau chief, based in Toronto. He worked as a reporter at the Vancouver Sun and was the managing editor of the newsletter Inside U.S. Trade, widely recognized as a leading source of reporting on U.S. trade policies. Alden has won several national and international awards for his reporting. He has made numerous TV and radio appearances as an analyst on political and economic issues, including on the BBC, CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, NPR, and PBS NewsHour. His work has been published in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Fortune, the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Toronto Globe and Mail, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post.

Alden has a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of British Columbia and a master’s degree in international relations from the University of California, Berkeley. He pursued doctoral studies before returning to a journalism career. Alden is the winner of numerous academic awards, including a Mellon fellowship in the humanities and a MacArthur Foundation graduate fellowship.

Robert Moran

Robert Moran is Partner at the Insight Global Lead at Brunswick Insight. He leads Brunswick Insight, our global public opinion, market research and analytics function with research teams in New York, London, Washington, Dubai, Beijing, Hong Kong, San Francisco, Munich and Dallas.

Brunswick Insight provides intelligence for market-moving decisions by combining experienced, data-driven counsel with an emphasis on rapid research and analysis. Brunswick Insight converts research into strategic advice for communications programmes and campaigns.

Robert was previously President of StrategyOne’s US operations, Edelman’s strategic research consultancy. Prior to that, Robert was Vice President at Fabrizio, McLaughlin & Associates. He began his career at political polling giant Public Opinion Strategies.

Robert is a Partner in the Washington office. He is a published thought leader and frequent speaker on trends in public opinion and market research and frequently writes on future forward subjects. He has lectured at the National War College in Washington and is a frequent contributor on Huffington Post.

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On Friday, May 13, WITA held a webinar previewing what we might expect from the second meeting of the U.S.-European Union Trade and Technology Council (TTC). Speakers discussed opportunities for the US and EU to work together on issues such as secure supply chains, semiconductors, rare earths, and critical minerals, which have taken on added importance in the midst of the war in Ukraine and Russia sanctions.

Featured Speakers: 

Tyson Barker, Head of the Technology and Global Affairs Program, German Council on Foreign Relations

Tony Fernandes, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Trade Policy and Negotiations, Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Jordan M. Haas, Director, Trade Policy and Government Relations, Intel Corporation

Eva Maydell, Member of the European Parliament (Bulgaria)

Moderator: Former Congressman Bart Gordon, U.S. Director, Trans-Atlantic Business Council (TABC)

SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

Tyson Barker

Tyson Barker is the Head of the Technology and Global Affairs Program at the German Council on Foreign Relations. Tyson Barker joined DGAP in October 2020 as head of its Technology and Global Affairs Program. He previously worked at Aspen Germany where, as deputy executive director and fellow, he was responsible for the institute’s digital and transatlantic programs. Prior to that, Barker served in numerous positions including as senior advisor in the Bureau for European and Eurasian Affairs at the US State Department and director for transatlantic relations at the Bertelsmann Foundation. He has written for numerous publications on both sides of the Atlantic including Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Politico, The Atlantic, The National Interest, and Der Spiegel.

Barker was a Fulbright scholar in Austria and a Truman National Security Project Fellow. He was a recipient of the Taiwan Cultural Exchange Fellowship and a grant from the Starr Foundation to conduct research on Sino-European relations. Barker has a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and a master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). In addition to his native English, he speaks fluent German and Spanish.

Tony Fernandes

Tony Fernandes is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Trade Policy and Negotiations in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, after having served as Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary since August 2021. Prior to that, Tony was Director of the Multilateral Trade Affairs Office in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

Previously, Tony was Director for Regional Affairs in the Bureau of Legislative Affairs and Director for Africa and Middle East Programs in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. He also served in the Office of the United States Trade Representative, the Diplomatic Readiness Task Force, and the Operations Center. His overseas assignments include positions in Turkey, Nigeria, Russia, Canada, and China.

Tony joined the Foreign Service in 1997 and is a member of the Senior Foreing Service. He holds a B.A. from Boston College, a J.D. from the University of Minnesota School of Law, and a Master’s in National Security Strategy from the National War College. 

Bart Gordon

Bart Gordon is the U.S. Director of the Trans-Atlantic Business Council, and a former Congressman. Mr. Gordon joined K&L Gates as partner in the Washington D.C. office after 26 years representing the state of Tennessee in the United States House of Representatives. Mr. Gordon served as Chairman of the House Committee on Science and Technology from 2007 to 2012. Mr. Gordon was also a senior member of the House Committee on Science and Technology from 2007 to 2010. Mr. Gordon was also a senior member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and served on the House Committee on Financial Services and the House Committee on Rules, Transatlantic Parliamentary Dialogue, and NATO Parliamentary Assembly. Mr. Gordon is a member of the Tennessee bar and the District of Columbia bar. 

Jordan M. Haas is the Director of Trade Policy and Government Relations at Intel Corporation and has over 20 years of experience advocating for policies that foster economic growth for American businesses. 

Haas joined the Obama Administration during the first year of the first term and served until the last day of the Administration. He played a lead role in advancing the Obama Administration’s trade legislative agenda, including running the Department of Commerce’s Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) outreach and as an active member of the White House interagency trade team. He was centrally involved in the teams that stood up the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield framework and the SelectUSA Summit.  

Haas served as Deputy Assistant Administrator for Congressional and Legislative Affairs at the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) where he facilitated the development and passage of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, a long-term reauthorization of the Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program, and the implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

As Director of Trade Policy at Internet Association, Haas was an active player in the private sector push for the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) and the U.S.-Japan Digital Trade Agreement. Haas was the first person to represent the digital industry on the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (ITAC-13). 

Haas previously worked on Capitol Hill as Legislative Director for Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-TX), on the Senate Democratic Technology and Communications Committee, and for half a decade on the House Committee on Small Business. Haas has also worked for Polsinelli Shughart PC and at the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA). A native of Shaker Heights, Ohio, Haas holds a BA from American University. 

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On Tuesday, February 22, WITA and GWU discussed how the WTO has handled trade shocks and supply chains. The discussion also included how the WTO and globalization have responded to international trade being subjected to increased geo-political uncertainty and a major global health shock.

Featured Remarks:

Jay Shambaugh, Professor of Economics and International Affairs, Director of the Institute for International Economic Policy at the Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University. 

Discussion Featuring:

Bob Koopman, Chief Economist of the World Trade Organization, Adjunct Professor of International Economics at the Graduate Institute, Geneva. 

Moderator: Michael Moore, Director of the Masters of Arts in International Economic Policy program, former Director of the Institute for International Economic Policy, former Director of the International Trade and Investment Policy Program

SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES:

Jay Shambaugh is a Professor of Economics and International Affairs and the Director of the Institute for International Economic Policy at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University. 

Professor Shambaugh’s area of research is macroeconomics and international economics. His work includes analysis of the interaction of exchange rate regimes with monetary policy, capital flows, and trade flows as well as studies of international reserves holdings, country balance sheet exchange rate exposure, the cross-country impact of fiscal policy, the crisis in the euro area, and regional growth disparities.

He has had two stints in public service. He served as a Member of the White House Council of Economic Advisors from 2015-2017. Earlier, he served on the staff of the CEA as a Senior Economist for International Economics and then as the Chief Economist. He also spent 3 years as the Director of the Hamilton Project at the Brookings Institution. He is also a Faculty Research Fellow at the NBER and Non-Resident Senior Fellow in Economic Studies at Brookings.

Prior to joining the faculty at George Washington, Shambaugh taught at Georgetown and Dartmouth and was a visiting scholar at the IMF. Shambaugh received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of California at Berkeley, an M.A. from the Fletcher School at Tufts, and a B.A. from Yale University.

Robert B. Koopman serves as the Chief Economist and Director of the Economic Research and Statistics Division at the World Trade Organization. In this post Bob provides the Secretariat and Member Countries with analysis and information that promotes a deeper understanding of trade and trade policy’s role in economic growth and development.

Prior to this post he served as the Director of Operations and Chief Operating Officer for the United States International Trade Commission. Bob oversaw the Commission’s trade policy research and negotiation assistance to the President, the U.S. Trade Representative, and Congress; antidumping, countervailing duty, and safeguard; investigations; intellectual property investigations; maintenance and analysis of the Harmonized Tariff System, as well as the agency’s strategic planning and performance measurement initiatives. He also previously served as the Chief Economist and Director of the USITC Office of Economics, and numerous leadership and research positions at the Economic Research Service of USDA.

Bob previously taught international trade, applied international trade, advanced international trade, and trade and economic development in the Economics Department at Georgetown University, in Washington DC. Bob‘s research interests include measuring the economic effects of trade and trade policy changes, measuring global value chains, and the application and validation of large scale economic simulation models. Bob also currently serves as an ex officio member of the World Trade Review Editorial Board, and serves as an editor for the Springer Series Advances in Applied General Equilibrium Modeling, with James Giesecke and Peter Dixon.

Professor Michael Moore is Director of the Masters of Arts in International Economic Policy program and has been a faculty member at the Elliott School since receiving his doctorate in 1988. He received his B.A. in liberal arts from the University of Texas at Austin and his M.S. and Ph.D. in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Professor Moore teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in international trade theory and policy as well as international macroeconomics. He also has taught international economics to US diplomats at the Foreign Service Institute and students at the Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques (Sciences-Po) in Paris. He has published in numerous academic journals including the Journal of International Economics, International Trade Journal, Canadian Journal of Economics, Review of International Economics, European Journal of Political Economy, and Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv, and has been a contributor to five books. His commentary has appeared in numerous media outlets, including The Washington Post, The Financial Times, CNN, CBC, NPR, and NBC.

Professor Moore has served as Director of the Institute for International Economic Policy, Director of the International Trade and Investment Policy Program, and Associate Dean at the Elliott School.

Professor Moore served as Senior Economist for international trade on the President’s Council of Economic Advisors from 2002 to 2003.

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On Monday, January 31st, and Tuesday, February 1st, 2022, WITA hosted its fourth annual Washington International Trade Conference (WITC). This conference brought together leaders in international trade from across the U.S. and around the world to explore the trade landscape and look toward the future of trade.

 Secretary-General Mathias Cormann, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

Moderator: Ambassador Kristen Silverberg, President & COO, Business Roundtable; former U.S. Ambassador to the European Union 

Aik Hoe Lim, Director, Trade and Environment Division, World Trade Organization

Kelly K. Milton, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative, Environment and Natural Resources

Ambassador Gloria Abraham Peralta, Costa Rica’s Permanent Representative to the World Trade Organization, Co-Chair, Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured Discussions (TESSD), World Trade Organization

Moderator: Sarah Stewart, Executive Director, Silverado Policy Accelerator; former Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative, Environment and Natural Resources

Angela Ellard, Deputy Director General, World Trade Organization

Moderator: Ambassador Rufus Yerxa, former Deputy U.S. Trade Representative; former Deputy Director General of the World Trade Organization

Amy P. Celico, Principal Albright Stonebridge Group | Dentons Global Advisors; former Senior Director for China Affairs, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Wendy Cutler, Vice President, Asia Society Policy Institute; former Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative

Bonnie Glaser, Director of the Asia Program, German Marshall Fund of the United States

Samm Sacks, Senior Fellow, Paul Tsai China Center & New America, Yale Law School

Moderator: Erin Ennis, Vice President, Global Public Policy, Dell Technologies

Ambassador Kirsten Hillman, Canadian Ambassador to the United States

Ambassador Tomita Koji, Japanese Ambassador to the United States

Ambassador Stavros Lambrinidis, European Union Ambassador to the United States

Moderator: Ambassador Susan Schwab, Strategic Advisor, Mayer Brown LLP; former U.S. Trade Representative

Orit Frenkel, CEO, American Leadership Initiative

Ed Gresser, Vice President and Director for Trade and Global Markets, Progressive Policy Institute (PPI)

Jeffrey Kucik, Associate Professor, School of Government and Public Policy at University of Arizona

Chad Thompson, Executive Director for Legal Affairs & Trade, General Motors

Moderator: Sarah Thorn, Senior Director of Global Government Affairs, Walmart

Jon Gold, Vice President of Supply Chain and Customs Policy, National Retail Federation

Phil Levy, Chief Economist, Flexport

Penny Naas, President of International Public Affairs and Sustainability, UPS

Maria Zieba, Assistant Vice President of International Affairs, National Pork Producers Council

Moderator: Ana Swanson, Correspondent, New York Times

Ambassador Sarah Bianchi, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative

Moderator: Ambassador Robert Holleyman, Partner & President & CEO, Crowell & Moring LLP and C&M International; Former Deputy U.S. Trade Representative

The post 2022 Washington International Trade Conference Recap appeared first on WITA.

On April 20, 2021, WITA discussed the efforts to increase trade in environmental goods, technologies and services through bilateral, regional and multilateral trade agreements.

PROGRAM AGENDA 

Welcome: 4:00 PM (US/Eastern)

• Kenneth Levinson, Executive Director, WITA

Remarks and Panelist Discussion: 4:05 PM

• Sarah Thorn, Senior Director, Global Government Affairs, Walmart
• Mark Linscott, Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council/Senior Advisor, The Asia Group
• Ambassador Vangelis Vitalis, New Zealand Deputy Secretary Trade and Economic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
• Moderator: Maureen Hinman, Co-Founder and Chairman, Silverado Policy Accelerator

Followed by:

• Q & A with Audience – Webinar attendees are encouraged to use the Q&A function on the Zoom app to submit their questions in real time.

OVERVIEW

On Tuesday, Silverado’s co-founder and executive chairman Maureen Hinman joined the Washington International Trade Association (WITA) for its virtual event “Trading For Good,” a panel discussion exploring efforts to increase trade in environmental goods, services, and technologies through bilateral, regional and multilateral trade agreements. The event marked the second installment of WITA’s Trade and the Environment Series, a multipart event series co-sponsored by Silverado Policy Accelerator examining issues at the intersection of international trade and the environment.

Hinman moderated a wide-ranging discussion between three esteemed trade experts: Mark Linscott, the former assistant U.S. Trade Representative for South and Central Asian Affairs and a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council; Sarah Thorn, senior director of global government affairs for Walmart; and Ambassador Vangelis Vitalis, New Zealand’s deputy secretary for trade and economics at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The event attracted a broad audience, including current and former government officials, academics, industry representatives, foreign envoys, and non-governmental stakeholders.

The panelists focused in particular on potential paths toward a new agreement to expand market access for environmental goods following the collapse of plurilateral negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2016.

Ambassador Vitalis argued that the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), which accounts for 60 percent of total global GDP, can play a vital role in laying the groundwork for a future agreement by building off the 2011 APEC 54 list. Vitalis said that New Zealand, APEC’s host nation this year, is hoping to begin building broad support for an expanded list of environmental goods, an issue that proved a fatal sticking point in the WTO negotiations.

“Given that APEC is both consensus-based and voluntary, we think that it’s an opportunity to develop a longer and more ambitious list, and then we hope that APEC economies will want to take that to Geneva as a contribution to the process there, and also for [other nations] to think of it as a reference point,” he said. “In the APEC context, it’s very much a ‘define-by-doing’ [mentality] … We’ve very conscious of how long it takes to negotiate [a list], so we’re very anxious to avoid a protracted process.”

Linscott raised the possibility that future negotiations could move forward without China at the table — an option which was seen among trade experts as unlikely in the past, but which has gained some traction following the collapse of the 2016 negotiations, largely as a result of China actions.

“The question is, should China be at the table?” said Linscott. “Certainly there’s a free-rider problem if China is out, but given [past] experience, with China in, do we ever get to an agreement?”

Linscott also argued that an interim agreement on environmental goods could potentially provide a stepping-stone toward a broader agreement — an option that Hinman proposed in a recent op-ed for WITA — but noted that such an approach could run afoul of WTO principles.

“I think [an interim agreement] prompts a necessary discussion in the tariff world about the implications of [the most favored nation principle],” he said. “There’s this knee-jerk reaction that we have to protect that principle, but when there are concerns about free-riders — and one in particular — it should prompt healthy debate on the approach going forward.”

On the business side, Thorn presented Walmart’s case for a new environmental goods agreement, arguing that companies like Walmart would benefit from a trade agreement that lowered the costs of the green technologies that large companies need to meet their own environmental goals. Thorn also argued that there is broad-based support for a new agreement in the business community, noting that companies like Walmart have recognized that expanding access to green goods and services is not only the ethical path forward, but is also good for business.

“For us, this is about supply chain resilience and supply chain sustainability,” said Thorn. “We can’t just exhaust people and planet. We have to be thinking about how we’re going to renew if we’re going to be around in another, twenty, fifty, one hundred years.”

All participants said they were encouraged by U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai’s recent comments on trade and the environment, in which she made a strong case for using trade policy to advance climate objectives but stopped short of delineating specific trade measures the United States supports.

“Traditionally, in order to get things done on trade and the environment, we’ve needed U.S. leadership,” said Ambassador Vitalis. “It’s all well and good for the keen, goody-two-shoes countries like [New Zealand] to say, ‘We need to get something done on trade and the environment’ … but we really do need U.S. leadership, U.S. engagement, and the U.S. leaning in to really drive this agenda forward.”

Linscott said he is optimistic that the Biden administration will push for renewed environmental goods negotiations.

“During the Obama administration, [officials] were following very closely the negotiations on environmental goods, and they were big cheerleaders for efforts to get a trade agreement that would have some benefits for the diffusion of environmental technologies,” he said. “Some of those people are still around and are working for [United States Special Presidential Envoy for Climate] John Kerry, so I can imagine there being some degree of excitement for those who do climate negotiations with respect to a new initiative among trade negotiators on EGA — and that’s how it should be.”

Across the board, participants agreed that renewed negotiations would mark a major step forward in the global effort to combat climate change — although it remains too early to tell whether they will take place in APEC, the WTO, a bilateral or regional forum, or in all of the above.

“Let’s not pretend that trade is going to be the silver bullet to solve climate change, but trade can make a contribution,” said Vitalis. “I think that’s a very powerful message to our societies: trade is actually part of the solution here, not part of the problem.”

To view the original overview on the Silverado Policy Accelerator website, please click here.

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On April 14, 2021, WITA discussed the efforts to modernize the US-Central America trade relationship, including to help address the current immigration crisis at the U.S. Southern Border.

• Kenneth Levinson, Executive Director, WITA

• Beth Hughes, Vice President, Trade and Customs Policy, American Apparel & Footwear Association
• Matt Rooney, Managing Director, The Bush Institute
• Maria Sierra, Policy Advisor, Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D.
• Patrick H. Ventrell, Director, Office of Central American Affairs, U.S. Department of State
• Moderator: Kellie Meiman Hock, Managing Partner, McLarty Associates

• Q & A with Audience – Webinar attendees are encouraged to use the Q&A function on the Zoom app to submit their questions in real time.

SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

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