A Qualitative Analysis of the Wto's Role on Trade and Environment

A Qualitative Analysis of the WTO 's Role on Trade and Environment Issues
McCormick, Rachel.
Global Environmental Politics, Volume 6, Number 1, February 2006, pp. 102-124 (Article)
Published by The MIT Press

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Rachel McCormick A Qualitative Analysis of the WTO’s Role on Trade and Environment Issues

A Qualitative Analysis of the WTO’s Role on Trade and Environment Issues
•

Rachel McCormick

This article discusses how the WTO addresses environmental issues, assesses the current and potential role of the WTO in trade-environment controversies, and provides insight into how strategies used by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and industry could complement and facilitate work within the WTO. It differs from other writing on this topic, in that I use existing literature to provide a context for the results of interviews with 71 individuals with varying backgrounds and experience, all of whom are actively engaged on the topic of trade and environment. This approach allows for evaluation of the current and potential role of the WTO based on a qualitative analytical methodology and from an interdisciplinary perspective. I found that experts’ responses regarding the role of the WTO fell into the themes of scope, successes, challenges, opportunities, and misperceptions. These responses highlighted a continuum of opinions in some instances, and a common voice in others. This allowed for demonstration of fundamental differences of opinion on speciªc topics. Responses pertaining to scope demonstrated differences of opinion regarding what issues experts felt the WTO should address. Those on successes provided insight into what the WTO has been able to achieve and what factors have allowed this, while those on challenges highlighted key barriers that limit the role of the WTO. With

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