The seventh edition of Trade and Environment Week is taking place at the World Trade Organization from 1-5 June 2026. This year’s edition will feature 16 member-organized side events alongside the regular meetings of the WTO Committee on Trade and Environment. The annual Trade and Environment Week offers a platform for WTO members and stakeholders to engage on a range of critical issues at the nexus of trade and environment. Many of these issues have taken on greater salience in recent years amidst growing expectations for the multilateral trading system to more proactively respond to global environmental challenges and wider sustainable development priorities. TESS will be co-organizing and speaking at a number of events across the week.
Events
Tuesday, 2 June 2026
Event: Carbon Accounting, Standards and Trade: How International Cooperation Can Reduce Fragmentation and Support Decarbonisation
Location: WTO, Room D
Time: 10:00–11:30 CET
Summary: This event is organized by China and Australia. The session will explore the key role the WTO has to play in responding to emerging challenges at the trade and climate nexus, including to achieve policy coherence, reduce compliance costs for business, and maintain the stable and smooth operation of global supply chains. The discussion will focus on issues such as improving the interoperability and consistency of trade-related climate measures, enhancing policy transparency, and promoting development cooperation. Carolyn Deere Birkbeck, Executive Director of TESS, will moderate the session.Event: Emerging Agricultural Trade (EAT) Issues: An Environmental Sustainability Perspective
Location: WTO, Room D
Time: 14:45–16:15 CET
Summary: This event is co-organized by the co-sponsors of the Statement on a Dialogue on Emerging Agricultural Trade Issues (WT/MIN(26)/40), circulated at MC14 by Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Iceland, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Peru, Switzerland, Ukraine and Uruguay. It will serve as the first in a planned series of workshops and other events dedicated to this dialogue. As a kick-off session, the event will focus on framing the concept of “emerging agricultural trade issues.” Lee Ann Jackson, Head of Programmes at TESS, will speak at the session.
Wednesday, 3 June 2026
Event: From Strategy to Synergy: Aligning Climate and Trade for Resilient and Sustainable Development
Location: WTO, Room D
Time: 11:45 – 13:15 CET
Summary: This event is organized by the Philippines, with TESS. The session will explore how developing countries can better align climate and trade strategies to advance resilience, competitiveness, and sustainable development. Drawing on emerging national experiences, the session aims to: (i) Examine how countries can use trade policies as proactive instruments for domestic transformation; (ii) Highlight options for integrating trade elements in climate planning, including support for green goods and services, climate-resilient value chains, renewable energy deployment, MSME readiness, traceability systems, and access to finance and technology; (iii) Explore how international cooperation can help developing countries strengthen policy coherence, manage new market requirements, and identify sectors where trade can support both mitigation and adaptation objectives; and (iv) Generate actionable insights on how national trade-climate strategies can be designed and implemented in ways that are development-sensitive, internationally connected, and responsive to real economy needs.Event: Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels and Updates from the FFSR Initiative
Location: WTO, Room D
Time: 16:30 - 18:00 CET
Summary: This event is organized by Colombia and the Netherlands, and FFSR Coordinator (New Zealand). This session will address two complementary dimensions of international cooperation on the transition away from fossil fuels. First, it will provide an opportunity for Colombia and the Netherlands to share general reflections on the First Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels, held in Santa Marta, and on the broader international conversation around a just, orderly, and development-sensitive transition. Second, the session will focus on ongoing work under the WTO Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform (FFSR) Initiative. Carolyn Deere Birkbeck, Executive Director of TESS, will moderate the session.- Event: Reception hosted by the Philippines and TESS
Location: WTO, WTO Gallery
Time: 13:15 - 14:45 CET
Summary: The Philippines and TESS will host a lunchtime reception at the WTO Gallery.
Publications
Following are three recent outputs that underline the growing interest in ensuring environment and sustainability goals are prioritized in the multilateral trading system.
Environment, Climate, and Sustainable Development at MC14: A Review of Ministerial Declarations, Decisions, and Statements
This new publication compiles examples of how and where WTO members addressed issues of environment, climate, and sustainable development in ministerial declarations, decisions, and statements at the Fourteenth WTO Ministerial Conference (MC14). We found that more than two-thirds of all official ministerial statements in MC14 referred to the sustainability dimensions of trade.
Sustainable Development and the WTO Reform Agenda: A Call to Action for Ministers at MC14
TESS coordinated this message to ministers on behalf of a diverse group of leading stakeholders from business, civil society, and research communities on the occasion of MC14.
Crafting Pathways for Delivery on Trade and Sustainability after MC14
In the wake MC14, Carolyn Deere Birkbeck, Christophe Bellmann, and Yasmin Ismail authored this article calling on governments and stakeholders to think afresh and collaboratively about how the trading system can deliver concrete, fair, and effective progress on sustainability.
TESS at the World Trade Organization
This work is part of our initiative supporting inclusive cooperation on trade, environment, and sustainable development at the WTO.
