INF/TE/SSD/R/ 22 
25 March  2024 
(24-2530) Page: 1/3 
Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured 
Discussions  Original : English  
 
  
TRADE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY STRUCTURED DISCUSSIONS  
PLENARY MEETING  HELD ON  25 JANUARY  2024 
Informal summary by the Co -Convenors1 
The plenary meeting of the Trade and Environmental Sustainability Structured Discussions (TESSD), 
held on 25 January 2024, was chaired by the TESSD Co -convenors , Ambassador Nadia Theodore 
(Canada ) and Ambassador Ronald Saborío (Costa Rica).  The meeting offered an opportunity for 
Members to exchange views on the TESSD package of del iverables for MC13 , which included the 
Co-conven or Statement, the updated Work Plan, and the outcome documents of each of the four 
Informal Working Groups . Members also received an update on the progress made in the four 
Informal W orking Groups since the l ast plenary meeting held in July . Around 120 participants joined 
the discussions in hybrid format.  
1  INTRODUCTORY REMARKS BY THE CO -CONVENORS  
1.1.  In their introductory remarks, the Co -convenors said that Members had collectively risen to 
the challenge of the ambitious  2021 Ministerial mandate of TESSD . Members  could be proud of the 
progress that had been made over the past year  and the body of work that TESSD would present at 
MC13.  They also welcomed Peru as the 76th co -sponsor of TESSD.  On the invitation of the 
Co-convenors, the Director of the Trade and Environment Division provided introductory remarks, 
highlighting opportunities for TESSD to use the progress made to inform a broader audience outside 
WTO as well as to support multilateral work in the CTE and other WTO bodies.  
2  MC13 OUTCOMES AND WAY FORWARD  
2.1.  The Co -convenors provided an overview of the MC13 outcomes, in particular, the Statement 
by the Co -convenors ( INF/TE/SSD/W/32 ) and the Update of  the TESSD Work Plan 
(INF/TE /SSD/W/31 ), thanking Members for their inputs and suggestions shared during the 
consultations and Working Group meetings. The Co -convenors' Statement is organized along three 
broad elements – the foundation s and objectiv es guiding the work of TESSD so far, the progress 
made since MC12 , including the achievements of the four IWGs in terms of outcome documents , as 
well as  the way forward towards MC14. As for the update of the Work Plan, Co-conven ors outlined 
key features such as maintaining the structure of four W orking Groups while adding flexibility to the 
format and frequency of meetings to suit the needs of each group;  strengthening efforts to support 
multilateral work in the Committee on Trade and Environment  (CTE) and other WTO bodies; drawing 
out common themes across W orking Groups to foster complementarities ; particular attention to 
ensure inclusivity in the discussions ; and, finally, leveraging discussions in a more targeted manner 
to strive towards concre te actions or recommendations by MC14.  
2.2.  The Co-facilitators2 of the Working Group s provided a brief overview of the outcome documents 
of their groups: (i) Analytical Summary in the Working Group on Environmental Goods and Services 
 
1 This summary, prepared and circulated under the Co -convenors' responsibility, provides a 
non-exhaustive, illustrative review of the issues addressed by Members and stakeholders at the meeting . 
2 The Co-facilitators are  Jean-Marie Meraldi (Switzerland) and  Ariel Marie Quek (Singapore) for the 
Working Group on Trade -related Climate Measures; Carlos Guevara (Ecuador) and Ben Rake (United Kingdom) 
for the Working Group on Environmental Goods and Services; Olivia Cook (Chile) Kazunari Morii (Japan) for the 
Working Group on Circular Economy – Circularity; and Tiffany Smith (Israel) for the Working Group on 
Subsidies.  INF/TE/SSD/R/ 22 
 
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  (EGS)  (INF/TE/SSD/W/24/Rev.4 ); (ii) Best Practices in the Development of Tr ade-related Climate 
Measures (TrCM s) (INF/TE/SSD/W/25/Rev.3 ); (iii) Mapping Exercise: Trade and trade policy aspects 
along the lifecycle of products in the Working Gr oup on Circular Economy – Circularity 
(INF/TE/SSD/W/27/Rev.2 ); and (iv)  Compilation of experiences and considerations regarding 
subsidy design in the Working Group on Subsidies (INF/TE/SSD/W/29/Rev.2 ). 
2.3.  Some 12 Members intervened3 and broadly expressed support for the TESSD package of 
documents for MC13. Regarding the outcome document of the Working Group on TrCMs, t wo 
Members suggested to replace "Best practices" in the title with "Member practices" as this was  a 
more suitable ref lection of the nature of discussions and was also used in previous versions of the 
document. S everal Members encouraged introducing  certain to pics to the CTE and other WTO bodies 
to support multilateral work and facilitate positive outcomes beyond TESSD. I n doing so, a few 
Members also cautioned against duplication of efforts and called for alignment with the CTE 
revitalization process as appropriate. Suggestions also included sharing TESSD work with the wider 
Membership through inter alia , presentation of the outcomes of the Working Groups in the CTE and 
other regular committees as well as ensuring cross -cutting information flows with ongoing efforts in 
other WTO bodies. A few members provided specific comments while a few others re -iterated the 
importance of outreach to developing and LDC Members, encouraged TESSD to remain ambitious  
and work towards reaching consensus on solutions wherever possible .  
2.4.  Regarding  the updated Work Plan, several Members appreciated the more flexible approach in 
the organization  of meetings in line with the different needs of the Working Groups,  and a few 
Members indicated the need for fewer plenary meetings. To facilitate in -person participation by 
capital officials, some Members recommended grouping environment -related meetings . Several 
Members supported the efforts to  create synergies and  draw out common elements across W orking 
Groups and have agendas with thematic/sectoral focus . Additionally, one Member suggested 
considering the framing of Working Group s towards specific objectives such as investigating specific 
problems or working towards trade policy solutions.  
2.5.  Members also provided  some more specific  views on the  way forward in the  different working 
groups. Regarding the Working Group on  EGS, it was  suggested working towards more concrete 
actions  such as agreeing on indicative non -binding lists of goods and services  which would send  
positive  signal s to businesses and other stakeholders , while other Members suggested expanding 
the scope of discussions beyond the  renewable energy sector . Regarding the  Working Group on 
TrCMs a number of Members supported experience sharing and technical work, including on  carbon 
leakage and methodologies for embedded emissions  in sectors covered in 2023. Regarding the 
Working Group  on Subsidies, a number of Members expressed interest in discussing different types 
of subsidies including agricultural subsidies, industrial subsidies and support for sustainable aviation 
fuels. One Member also cautioned against the introduction of the concept  of Common but 
Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR -RC) into the WTO .  
2.6.  A representative from UNEP offered remarks on the way forward for each Working Group. For 
instance, for the Working Groups on TrCMs and EGS, the need for integrating developing country 
perspectives was highlighted; for the Working Group on Subsidies, UNEP stressed the importance of 
data as well as capacity and technical expertise for reporting on subsidies at the national and sub -
national levels; and, with regards the Working Group on Circular Economy – Circularity, UNEP 
welcomed the sectoral approach and s ignaled its willingness to support Members through its ongoing 
projects. The representative from UNEP also invited Members to UNEA -6 (26 February -1 March) and 
to attend two UNEP co -hosted sessions at MC13 on deforestation -free global value chains as well a s 
trade and industrial policy options on climate. The Forum on Trade, Environment and the SDGs 
(TESS), inter alia , encouraged Members to adopt a solution -oriented approach in their work, called 
for greater attention to clean energy access and efficiency un der sectoral discussions, suggested 
another stocktaking event before MC14 , and encouraged TESSD to find ways to socialize its valuable 
contributions beyond the WTO.   
3  SUMMARY REPORT 2023 AND REPORTING ON INFORMAL WORKING GROUPS  
3.1.  The Co -convenors presented th e Summary Report for 2023 (INF/TE/SSD/R/21 ), highlighting 
that it is non -exhaustive and is based on the summaries of each of the meetings held in 2023 and 
 
3 Australia, Brazil, China, European Union, Israel, Japan, Norway, Russia n Federation , Singapore, 
Switzerland, United Kingdom  and the United States.   INF/TE/SSD/R/ 22 
 
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  aims to capture the essence of the rich discussions had over the course of the year. Co -facilitators 
of each of the Working Groups then provided a brief report on the meetings held on 19 -20 September 
(INF/TE/SSD/R/19 ) and 21-22 November ( INF/TE/SSD/R/20 ).  
3.2.  The co -facilitators of the Working Group on TrCMs reported that the September m eeting had 
covered the decarbonization and carbon measurement standards in the aluminum sector, while the 
November meeting had focused on decarbonization of hydrogen production and development of 
green hydrogen markets. Discussions had also included an exc hange on principles and good 
practices for the development of TrCMs in September, perspectives of small businesses in developing 
countries in November, and the draft outcome document in both meetings.  
3.3.  The co -facilitators of the Working Group on EGS noted that the September meeting had focused 
on the opportunities and approaches to promote and facilitate trade in goods and services to foster 
renewable energy as well as developing country perspectives , whereas in the November meeting, 
discussions had covered the green hydrogen and biofuels sectors . In both meetings , Members had 
also discussed the Analytical Summary, which is the Working Group 's living outcome document.  
3.4.  The co -facilitators of the Working Group on Circular Economy – Circularity reported  that the 
meetings held in September and November had addressed the electronics sector and the textiles 
sector, respectively. Additionally, discussions had also covered developing country and private sector 
perspectives as well as the importance of transpa rency and traceability. Valuable feedback on the 
Mapping Exercise was also received in these meetings.  
3.5.  The facilitator of the Working Group on Subsidies reported that the September meeting had 
focused on the environmental effects and transparency of agric ultural subsidies  whereas the 
November meeting had covered green hydrogen and renewable energy subsidies. Both meetings 
had included rich experience sharing by Members as well as substantive discussions on the outcome 
document of the group, which would rem ain a living document.  
4  UPDATE ON PLANS FOR MC13  
4.1.  The Co -convenors  recalled that this was the last plenary meeting before MC13. They  believe d 
that the outcome  documents were comprehensive and reflect ed not only the progress, but also the 
direction Members would like  to take with TESSD . They informed that TESSD would follow  the same 
model as in the previous Ministerial Conference and present the progress made through a press 
briefing at MC13, tentatively scheduled for the morning of 2 7 February. The press bri efing would be 
provided by the Ministers  of Canada and Costa Rica, and Ministers from the most recent 
co-cosponsors would be invited to join the podium for interventions.   
5  OTHER BUSINESS  
5.1.  The Co -convenors  indicated their intention to make publicly available videos of the 
presentations delivered in future Working Group meetings  to enhance transparency and knowledge 
dissemination . They clarified that only videos of the presentations would be made available, while 
the discussion among Members would remain in the room.  
6  CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE COORDINATORS AND NEXT STEPS  
6.1.  In their concluding remarks, the Co -conveners Ambassador Nadia Theodore (Canada) and 
Ambassador Ronald Saborío (Costa Rica)  emphasized  the sh ared conviction of Members participating 
in TESSD  that the trade and environmental sustainability agendas c ould be mutually supportive . The 
deep and substantive discussions in TESSD since MC12 had been contributing to  a clearer picture 
on how trade c ould make a positive contribution in addressing the climate crisis . The Co-convenors  
felt encouraged to take the next step together with co -sponsors and stakeholders  in their work on 
how trade can be a catalyst for positive change , including by boosting collabor ation as well as  
experience sharing among Members  and exploiting synergies among the working groups . 
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