Annual Conference

This keynote examines Switzerland's role as one of the world's leading commodity trading hubs. It presents insights from the report «Beyond the Transaction» and explores how decisions taken in Swiss based trading, financial and governance structures influence environmental, social and economic outcomes in producing countries through globally interconnected supply chains. It further discusses how growing geopolitical tensions, supply security concerns and the financialisation of commodity markets are reshaping global commodity trade and the challenges this creates for resilient and sustainable supply chains.

Speaker

• Fritz Brugger (ETH NADEL)

This panel explores how producer countries can benefit from the growing demand for critical minerals and translate resource wealth into long-term prosperity and sustainable domestic public revenues. The current geopolitical crises and growing global demands for critical minerals are reshaping value creation across global commodity supply chains. At the same time, international tax arrangements and profit allocation practices reduce the tax revenues retained by producing countries, with low-income countries being disproportionally affected. Experts from research, policy, industry and civil society discuss how tax policy, transparency measures and international cooperation can strengthen domestic value capture while building competitive and resilient commodity markets for the future.

Speakers

• Gilles Carbonnier (IHEID)
• further speakers tbc soon.

This session discusses how resource rich countries can preserve or retain their “right to regulate” in the current landscape of international investment law. International investment treaties oblige states to protect foreign investors from discriminatory or arbitrary government decisions to encourage investment. The bilateral or trilateral investment treaties therefore often grant investors to initiate arbitration against host states, which can create tensions with environmental and social sustainability objectives. The risk of compensation claims arising from regulatory measures that negatively affect investments may produce a regulatory chilling effect, discouraging governments from adopting laws to promote sustainability. On this panel, policy makers from Switzerland and resource rich countries discuss with academic experts the steps necessary to help lower-income countries benefit from global markets by curbing multinational regulatory arbitrage.

Input:

• Krista Nadakavukaren Schefer (SICL)

Discussion:

speakers announced soon

program & speakers available soon

program & speakers available soon

Free trade agreements aim at strengthening economic competitiveness while promoting more sustainable trade. The current controversial political debate on the Free Trade Agreement between EFTA-MERCOSUR addresses the questions, which provisions such agreements should include to mitigate potential negative impacts. Reduced tariffs and market access, linked to compliance with recognised environmental or social sustainability labels, are an approach to strengthen sustainable trade through such agreements. During the panel, experts from research, policy, industry and civil society explore what leverage trade agreements can have to promote sustainable trade in the soft commodity sector and the potential of market-based sustainability initiatives as models for such trade negotiations.

Speakers

• Janina Grabs (University of Basel)
• Elisabeth Bürgi (University of Bern)
• Andrea Rauber Saxer (SECO)
• further speakers tbc soon