Fostering enhanced international cooperation on trade-related measures with climate objectives at the WTO: Coherence, transparency, development, and interoperability

The document argues that the proliferation of trade-related climate measures has led to fragmentation and a lack of coherence, which may undermine development and effectiveness. It proposes four primary rationales for cooperation—coherence, transparency, development considerations, and interoperability—and suggests four levels of engagement ranging from general legal principles to specific technical aspects. The briefing aims to highlight gaps where WTO-led cooperation could provide added value by leveraging existing international processes and public-private partnerships.

• International cooperation on trade-climate measures is driven by four primary rationales: the need for greater coherence, increased transparency, the inclusion of development considerations, and the support of interoperability and equivalences between measures.
• The document proposes four distinct levels of cooperation to achieve climate-trade objectives, moving from broad to specific: general principles of international law, processes for measure development and implementation, specific design features, and technical aspects.
• There is significant concern among governments regarding the fragmented nature of trade-related climate policies and how this lack of cohesion affects their overall effectiveness and impact on development.

APA

Bellmann, C., Birkbeck, C. D., Ismail, Y., & Nyaga, B. K. (2025). Fostering enhanced international cooperation on trade-related measures with climate objectives at the WTO: Coherence, transparency, development, and interoperability. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs. https://tessforum.org/latest/fostering-enhanced-international-cooperation-on-trade-related-measures-with-climate-objectives-at-the-wto-coherence-transparency-development-and-interoperability

Chicago

Bellmann, C., C. Deere Birkbeck, Yasmin Ismail, and Brian Kelly Nyaga. Fostering enhanced international cooperation on trade-related measures with climate objectives at the WTO: Coherence, transparency, development, and interoperability. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs, 2025. https://tessforum.org/latest/fostering-enhanced-international-cooperation-on-trade-related-measures-with-climate-objectives-at-the-wto-coherence-transparency-development-and-interoperability.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bellmann |first1=C. |last2=Birkbeck |first2=C. Deere |last3=Ismail |first3=Yasmin |last4=Nyaga |first4=Brian Kelly |title=Fostering enhanced international cooperation on trade-related measures with climate objectives at the WTO: Coherence, transparency, development, and interoperability |publisher=Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs |date=18 September 2025 |url=https://tessforum.org/latest/fostering-enhanced-international-cooperation-on-trade-related-measures-with-climate-objectives-at-the-wto-coherence-transparency-development-and-interoperability |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bellmann2025fostering, author = {Bellmann, C. and Birkbeck, C. Deere and Ismail, Yasmin and Nyaga, Brian Kelly}, title = {{Fostering enhanced international cooperation on trade-related measures with climate objectives at the WTO: Coherence, transparency, development, and interoperability}}, institution = {Forum on Trade, Environment, \& the SDGs}, year = {2025}, month = sep, url = {https://tessforum.org/latest/fostering-enhanced-international-cooperation-on-trade-related-measures-with-climate-objectives-at-the-wto-coherence-transparency-development-and-interoperability}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }