Trade agreements only partly shift environmental burden onto poorer countries

Is trade liberalisation shifting environmental burden from industrialised countries to poorer ones' This question was investigated by a research team at ETH Zurich led by Thomas Bernauer. In particular, they analysed whether, and if so how, commerce driven by free trade agreements is transferring environmental impacts from industrialised countries to poorer ones. As economic globalisation - and free trade in particular - progress, the associated environmental burden may tend to be transferred abroad. Researchers working on the National Research Programme "Sustainable Economy: resource-friendly, future-oriented, innovative" (NRP 73) are investigating the environmental impacts of production and consumption. They are also elucidating the influence of trade policy and political institutions on these environmental impacts. Partial proof of trade-related environmental impact. The researchers investigated the effect of global trade on environmental impact in 183 countries between 1987 and 2013 using the World Bank's "Country and Lending Groups" classification.