We are delighted to welcome Dr. Matias Margulis as our next colloquium speaker on Tuesday 26th September.
Dr. Matias Margulis is Associate Professor in the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs and Faculty of Land and Food Systems at the University of British Columbia. His research and teaching interests are in global governance, development, human rights, international law and food policy. He has previously held academic positions at the University of Edinburgh, University of Stirling, University of Northern British Columbia and Max Plank Institute for the Study of Societies. In 2010-2011, he was the Cadieux-Léger Fellow at Global Affairs Canada.
Rights Redux: The Return of Human Rights at the World Trade Organization
The conventional wisdom is that human rights have long been off the negotiating agenda at the World Trade Organization (WTO). The failed attempt by Northern states to include a ‘social clause’ in WTO rules during the late 1990s and early 2000s is often cited as having foreclosed bringing human rights to bear in multilateral trade negotiations. This article challenges this traditional view, by demonstrating that states are mobilizing human rights at the WTO to shape current global trade rulemaking. Moreover, in sharp contrast to the prevailing assumption that developed countries are the primary champions of human rights in the trade regime and developing countries the opponents, I show that developing countries have in fact become key protagonists in marshalling human rights at the WTO. To illustrate these claims, I examine how developing countries have been mobilizing human rights norms, principles and discourse to shape global trade rulemaking in two of the most contentious issues in recent WTO negotiations: the use of public food stockholding for food security purposes and a TRIPS waiver to ensure access to COVID-19 vaccines.
This event will take place in-person and on Zoom, on Tuesday 26th Sepember from 12:00 pm – 1:45 pm Pacific.
No registration is necessary for in-person attendance, in Geography Room 229.
Please register to receive Zoom meeting details.
