Events

CCD’s Global Leaders Forum brings world leaders to UC San Diego to share insights on current trends in global policy and politics, leadership and life lessons. The forum enriches the diplomacy dialogue at GPS and the wider San Diego community, and, most of all, is an essential learning experience for the next generation of world leaders being educated at the School of Global Policy and Strategy.

Ambassador Roberto Azevêdo on “What is the role of international institutions in (re)Globalization?”
April 21, 2022
The international institutions that have sustained economic cooperation for the past 75 years seem to be losing their relevance. The Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations have been stalled for decades and, as of December 2019, the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) dispute settlement mechanism is no longer functional. Ambassador Robert Azevêdo, former Director General of the WTO, takes stock of the challenges facing multilateralism and presents insights on the path ahead for international institutions.

CCD Global Leaders Forum: Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO)
The Role of the WTO in Ensuring Trade Works for All
Feb. 25, 2022 | Video
Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO). She is an economist and international development expert with over 30 years of experience. She was Chair of the Board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (2016 – 2020), the African Risk Capacity (2014 – 2020) and Co-Chair of The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate. Previously, she served as Senior Advisor at Lazard and sat on the B​​oards of Standard Chartered PLC and Twitter Inc.

Okonjo-Iweala was appointed as an AU COVID-19 Special Envoy and WHO COVID-19 Special Envoy. She served twice as Nigeria’s Finance Minister (2003-2006, 2011-2015), the first woman to hold the position, and spent a 25-year career at the World Bank rising to the No. 2 position of Managing Director. In 2020, she was named Forbes African of the Year. She has been ranked by Fortune as one of the 50 Greatest World Leaders (2015) and by Forbes as one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in the World consecutively for four years. She holds a Bachelor’s in Economics from Harvard University and a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Read the full biography here.

CCD Global Leaders Forum: Christopher Landau, Former United States Ambassador to Mexico
Oct. 21, 2021 | Video
Former United States Ambassador to Mexico Christopher Landau presented “COVID: A Stress Test for USMCA”. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) went into effect on July 1, 2020, during unprecedented global uncertainty. The pandemic, trade wars, natural disasters and rising geopolitical tensions tested the resilience of global economic agreements. Landau served as the U.S. Ambassador from 2019 to 2021, in the midst of this upheaval, and during the infancy of the USMCA agreement. Landau shared his thoughts on the agreement’s inception and performance after its first year in existence, and possible future direction.

CCD Global Leaders Forum: Robert B. Zoellick, Former President of the World Bank
Oct. 22, 2021 | Video
Robert B. Zoellick, the 11th President of the World Bank spoke on "The Idea of North America". The discussion was moderated by Caroline Freund, the first economist to serve as dean of the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy, and former World Bank Global Director of Trade, Investment and Competitiveness. Zoellick shared insights from the top of the world's largest development bank, and from his extensive experience in policymaking as a former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and U.S Trade Representative.

CCD Global Leaders Forum: Andrew Michael Holness, ON, MP, Prime Minister of Jamaica
Feb. 22, 2021 | Video
The Most Honourable Andrew Michael Holness ON, MP, Prime Minister of Jamaica, presented on "Mobilizing Climate Financing for a Sustainable Future." CCD Director Renee Bowen moderated the discussion. Climate change is a global issue that requires a collective, global response. However, not all nations share the same resources to implement effective measures to mitigate climate change. Those countries which are most affected by the impacts of climate change are faced with an undue burden to respond. A more collective effort is needed to share the commitment to the problem, specifically in financing. The Prime Minister shared his thoughts on this topic, along with the work he is doing as the Co-Chair of the UN Climate Change Financing Initiative with French President Emmanuel Macron.

CCD Global Leaders Forum: Jeff Immelt, Former CEO, GE
Feb. 23, 2021 | Video
Jeffrey Immelt, former CEO of General Electric, presented on "The Future of Manufacturing and Global Supply Chains." CCD Director Renee Bowen moderated the discussion. Trade wars have disrupted supply chains, domestic opposition to globalization is rising and global economic leadership has faltered. The future of global business is highly uncertain. As former CEO of one the largest global firms, Jeffrey Immelt provided fresh insights into what lies ahead for the manufacturing sector, and what the government can do to address the policy challenges.

CCD Global Leaders Forum: Dr. Condoleezza Rice
Sept. 13, 2019 | Photos
The forum’s inaugural event featured former Secretary of State, Dr. Condoleezza Rice who discussed her new book, "To Build a Better World," co-authored with Philip Zelikow, and shared insights about life as the nation's top diplomat.

CCD’s by-invitation-only conferences convene academics, business leaders and policymakers to share insights and make practical policy and institutional recommendations on critical trade related issues. The conferences are under Chatham House Rules.

15th Annual Political Economy of International Organizations Conference (PEIO)
Academic Conference hosted by the UC San Diego Center for Commerce and Diplomacy
May 4-6, 2023 | Details
The PEIO conference brings together economists, political scientists and other scholars to address political economy issues related to any international organization, including the World Trade Organization, the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the European Union, and also other international organizations that have as yet received less attention in the academic literature. Questions we seek to address include how IOs are organized and governed, what are the incentives of governments dealing with IOs as well as the incentives of the bureaucrats who staff them, and what are the effects of IOs on policy outcomes. We also consider the interaction of IOs with transnational actors such as commercial lobbies and NGOs and have a particular interest in the interaction of the international political economy with the domestic political economy of IO members. Submissions on topics more broadly related to international organization—such as foreign aid, international agreements and international law—are welcome.

U.S.-Mexico Relations and Global Pharmaceutical Supply Chains
Event hosted by the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies and the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy at the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy
Oct. 27, 2022 | Takeaways [PDF]
The objective of the roundtable is to bring together business, policy and academic leaders to discuss the state of U.S.-Mexico Relations and the prospect for cooperation on pharmaceutical supply chain resilience. The current world order has been affected by COVID, the war in Ukraine, and a number of new geopolitical tensions that are having a profound impact on how the world operates. The recent passage of the CHIPS Act has drawn attention to the semiconductor industry and the infrastructure and workforce needs. Drug manufacturing and medical supplies are another critical product line that needs to be similarly rethought. COVID has heightened the awareness of what can happen if a strategic supply channel breaks down or if politics shapes the landscape of global goods. Panelists will provide policy, business and academic perspectives on the prospect for the U.S. and Mexico to coordinate policies to enable a more robust global pharmaceutical supply chain.

Panelists:

• Charles Dadswell, Senior Vice President & General Counsel, Illumina
• Kyle Handley, Associate Director and Associate Professor, Economic Affairs Officer, UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy
• Christopher Landau, Of Counsel, Ellis George Cipollone LLP and Former United States Ambassador to Mexico
• Cristobal Thomas, Executive Director, Asociación Mexicana de Industrias de Investigación Farmaceutica
• Rafael Fernandez De Castro, director of the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, will provide brief introductory remarks, and Renee Bowen, director of the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy, will moderate the discussion

Empirical Investigations in International Trade (EIIT)
Academic Conference co-hosted by the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy and Center for Commerce and Diplomacy
Oct. 14-16, 2022 | Details
At this conference, economists specializing in empirical international trade presented their current research. The goal of this conference was to promote the awareness of ongoing research in the area. It is also our hope that by bringing together people of similar interests, increased communication of ideas and future directions for the general research area will be promoted.

Future of the Global Trading System: Trade and Labor Markets
Feb. 25, 2022 | Details
The purpose of this conference was to address rising inequality in the U.S. labor market and its consequences for international trade. Global economic integration and technological change have generated serious challenges for labor markets in high income countries. Low-skilled workers in manufacturing communities have been left behind, while high-skilled workers in urban metro areas have reaped enormous gains. Although wages at the bottom of the income distribution have risen during the pandemic, practical long-term solutions are needed to address long-term labor market frictions and revitalize support for open markets. We aimed to develop such solutions in this conference.

Conference on USMCA and Global Supply Chains: An Assessment After One Year
Oct. 21-22, 2021 | Details
The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) went into effect on July 1, 2020, during unprecedented global uncertainty. The pandemic, trade wars, natural disasters and rising geopolitical tensions affected the resilience, robustness and reliability of regional and global supply chains. The purpose of this conference is to assess the USMCA after its first year of operation, to generate actionable responses to the unanticipated challenges and opportunities it has faced.

Conference on What Future for the Global Trading System?
Feb. 23, 2021 | Details
Global economic cooperation faces unprecedented challenges. Trade wars have disrupted supply chains and increased business uncertainty. Brexit, the U.S. departure from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and U.S. disengagement from the World Trade Organization have generated doubts about the future of global economic governance. Populism is pushing nations inward, just as the rise of China and the Covid pandemic demand coordinated global responses. National security concerns in the technology sector add another layer of complexity to global economic policymaking.  

Academic research and policy analysis can illuminate the sources of these challenges and identify tractable policy and institutional responses to the threats that imperil global cooperation. Research and policy discussions are also relevant to business leaders, who must navigate uncertain global markets and anticipate the policies of the new Administration. This virtual event brought together leading academics, policy analysts, and business leaders to consider some of these major challenges in the global trading system.

Conference on Rational Inattention and Political Economy
Nov. 9, 2019 | Details
The first conference on Rational Inattention and Political Economy was a small, high-quality research conference intended to push forward the research agenda on limited-attention politics.

CCD’s policy advocacy events are a unique opportunity to share our rigorous research and provide timely and practical direction to policymakers, business leaders and the general public.

West Coast Launch of the Global Value Chain Development Report 2021: Beyond Production
Sept. 26, 2022 | Summary [PDF]
A radical shift is underway in global value chains (GVCs) as they increasingly move beyond traditional manufacturing processes to services and other intangible assets, aided by digitization. The Global Value Chain Development Report 2021, the third of a biennial series by leading economic institutions, explores this shift Beyond Production. At the virtual U.S. West Coast launch on Sept. 26, 2022, hosted jointly by the UC Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation, UC San Diego’s School of Global Policy and Strategy, the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy, and UC Irvine, panelists and discussants discussed recent trends in GVCs, including intellectual property protection, productivity growth and innovation, and the role of digital platforms. They also consideredThere how protectionism and geopolitical tensions, environmental risks, and the COVID-19 pandemic could undermine the stability of global value chains and lead to their geographic reorganization.

Climate, Trade and Developing Economies: Recommendations for Policies and Practices
Nov. 9, 2021 | Video | Photos
UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), Glasgow
CARICOM Pavilion, Hall 4, Scottish Event Campus (SEC)
On Nov. 9, the center convened a panel discussion to launch the findings of the report “The Role of Trade in Addressing Climate Change: Recommendations for Policies and Practices.” The launch event focused on the needs of developing economies and features a distinguished external panel of policymakers and experts from both developed and developing countries, to comment on and discuss the report. The aim is to coalesce on actionable items to cement the commitment of advanced economies and the developing world to addressing their shared economic and climate future. Presented by the Government of Jamaica and the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy, UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy.

The Political Economy Lunch Group (PELG) Speaker Series and Faculty Reading Group showcases leading scholars in economics and political science from across the globe to discuss policy-relevant research on globalization, inequality, populism, national security and other topics related to the center’s mission of advancing peace and prosperity through commerce.

View Past Speaker Series Events

View Past Faculty Reading Group Events

Public lectures bring together experts and reach a wide audience, intended to share information and increase knowledge of international trade, global economic cooperation and international institutions.

Social Science for a World in Crisis – Episode 23: New Visions for Effective Worker Influence
May 2, 2023

There is a lot of talk about the importance of "worker voice" but much less about how it comes about. As a matter of law and policy, there is a chicken-and-egg problem: existing U.S. labor laws and regulations are wildly outmoded. They incentivize overly narrow and parochial bargaining units, enable employer resistance, hamper organizational experimentation in unions, and preclude some organizational alternatives altogether. But changing the law requires that workers’ organizations and their allies apply sustained political pressure beyond what they appear capable of delivering. Precarious employment, fissuring workplaces, and distributed supply chains are making it harder for workers to develop the occupational identities and dense networks of coworkers that supported the organization-building of the past. Can we build effective workers' organizations now? Do we need to jettison existing law to do so? We joined John Ahlquist, Oren Cass, and Veena Dubal in conversation with Roy Bahat as they explored these challenges and questions.

Sponsored by the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) at Stanford University. Cosponsored by the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy's Center for Commerce and Diplomacy and Peter F. Cowhey Center on Global Transformation.

Threats to Food Security in 2023: The Trade Dimension
March 23, 2023 | Video
Global grain and fertilizer supplies remain at risk in 2023 — and food security with it. While crop prices have started falling again after peaking around the time of Russia's invasion of Ukraine a year ago, geopolitical uncertainty, volatile commodity markets and climate change continue to pose threats. In this webinar, our panel discussed the trade dimension, both as a cause of food insecurity and a solution. The Black Sea Grain Initiative, which has helped Ukrainian grain and fertilizer exports through the Black Sea since July 2022, has just been renewed but only for two and not four months as expected. The short extension period may signal Russia's increasing assertiveness in the grain market, so the geopolitical drivers of trade will receive particular attention.

The Future of Nuclear Power
Feb. 7, 2023
We joined a discussion with Mohamed Al Hammadi, CEO of Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC), the developer and operator of one of the world's largest new nuclear power plants, located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). The plant is offering a massive supply of clean energy in the region and is a model for how foreign investment can help transform the nuclear power industry. The conversation focused on how that model was developed, implications for the region, particularly in the run-up to the UAE-hosted COP28, the role of nuclear energy in decarbonization and the relationship between all this and regional energy security.

Will Moscow Really Pay? Predictions from Simulated Sanction Scenarios
April 29, 2022 | Video
In this webinar, Professors Simon Evenett of the University of St. Gallen and Marc Muendler of UC San Diego discussed their research estimating the economic effects on both Russia and the sanctioning economies using a new trade simulation tool. They compare varying policy scenarios in terms of their impact on GDP and job loss in Russia and show half a million job losses from broad-based tariffs, but a small reduction in Russian GDP. Listen as they discuss their findings. Kyle Handley, Associate Professor of Economics and Associate Director of the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy moderated the discussion.

WTO (Adjudication) at a Crossroads
Nov. 4, 2021 | Video
One of the key functions of the World Trade Organization is to help members resolve trade disputes. But the WTO dispute settlement system is in crisis, endangering the future of the organization. Petros C. Mavroidis (Columbia Law School), the world's leading legal expert on the WTO, evaluates the crisis and provides practical proposals for trade dispute adjudication going forward. The conversation was moderated by J. Lawrence Broz, Professor and Associate Director at the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy, UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy.

J. Lawrence Broz's Presentation on CCD and Business-relevant Research
Aug. 13, 2021 | Video
J. Lawrence Broz presents center activities and research at the executive roundtable.

WTC San Diego: Q1 Global Competitiveness Council Virtual Meeting
April 1, 2021 | Report
At the virtual Global Competitiveness Council meeting, we shared key findings from our new strategic plan and discussed how trade and investment will help San Diego its global competitiveness and domestic resilience.

Toward a U.S.-China Trade Policy That Maximizes American Employment
Feb. 11, 2021 | Video
Craig Allen, president of the US-China Business Council, examines the difficult trade-offs that the Biden Administration faces to ensure balanced and effective China policy. It is organized by the 21st Century China Center and co-sponsored by the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy at GPS.

Fireside Chat with Michael Greenwald
Feb. 4, 2021 | Video
On behalf of the GPS student-led Strategic Studies Group, the Center for Commerce and Diplomacy hosted a fireside chat with Michael Greenwald, director at Tiedemann Advisors and former United States Treasury Attache to Qatar and Kuwait. The discussion was moderated by CCD Director Renee Bowen and will center around Greenwald’s recent publication “The Future of the United States Dollar: Weaponizing the US Financial System”.

Post-Globalization Supply Chain Movement Project
Dec. 10, 2020 | PDF | Video
Project PGM (Post-Globalization Movement) is an industry research project that combines the intellectual powerhouse of research faculty, graduate students, and industry experts to envision the Global Value Supply Chain's future.

The student team will present their research findings from 5-5:45 followed by a 15 minute Q&A session. This project is managed by a diverse group of interdisciplinary UCSD students:
Marina Shimizu, Daniel Henderson, Lorena Arellano, Avinav Kartikay, and Ying Zeng from Rady School of Management, and Ethan Roseman from the School of Global Policy and Strategy.

This presentation will detail how students utilize the newly developed "Five-Dimensional Model" to analyze four countries' (US, Mexico, India and China) competitiveness, assess the COVID-19 effect, anticipate challenges of foreign trade policies and outline rebalancing options.

A BRANDES INSTITUTE / RADY VIRTUAL SUMMIT
COVID-19 2020 and Beyond
Sept. 24, 2020 | PDF
What is the latest scientific analysis on the coronavirus revealing? What are emerging options for testing and treatment? What may the future hold with regard to policy changes and economic impacts? Our panel of experts addresses these questions and others. Panelists:

• Dr. Gene Yeo, Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, UCSD
• Matt Sause, CEO of Roche Diagnostics Corporation (UCSD MBA alumnus)
• Dr. Renee Bowen, Director, Center for Commerce and Diplomacy, UCSD
• Moderator: Dr. James Hamilton, UCSD Professor of Economics

California Small Business and the Global Economy
Aug. 27, 2020 | PDF
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended economic activity worldwide, and small businesses in California have been particularly affected by the public health crisis and the associated global policy responses. This webinar presented perspectives and policy recommendations from the private sector, civil society, and the state government as we navigate this unprecedented period of uncertainty.

Forging the Pacific Century – GPS 30th Anniversary Events
Day 1: Forging the Pacific Century – A GPS 30th Anniversary Event
April 26, 2019 | Video
This year, GPS celebrated our 30th Anniversary. The first day featured panel discussions with international thought leaders on topics likely to dominate the news cycles in the future. CCD Director Renee Bowen moderated the 9:15 a.m. panel on "Policy Uncertainty and Business."

Forging the Pacific Century – GPS 30th Anniversary Events
Day 2: Forging the Pacific Century – A GPS 30th Anniversary Event
April 27, 2019 | Video
GPS faculty provided TED-style talks on four key challenges of equality, prosperity, sustainability and conflict to continued progress in the 21st Century. CCD Director Renee Bowen presented at the 11 a.m. panel on "The Challenge of Prosperity."

Domestic Politics of Free Trade Agreements: Implications for U.S.-Japan Relations
March 19, 2019 | PDF | Photos
It comes as no surprise that domestic political forces complicate and create obstacles to cooperation that can impede trade agreements. But what is the current situation between the US and Japan? What courses of action are decision makers being advised to pursue? Guests enjoyed an evening of dialogue as CCD convened top scholars and policy experts from the U.S. and Japan to strategize on how to achieve optimal economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific. Cosponsored by: Japan Forum for Innovation and Technology, Center for Global Transformation and Center for Global Partnership/Japan Foundation.

San Diego 2049: Radical Economies
Feb. 19, 2019 | Video
With co-author Eric Posner, Glen Weyl argues for a new way to organize markets in the book "Radical Markets: Uprooting Capitalism and Democracy for a Just Society." They seek to demonstrate why private property is inherently monopolistic; how we would all be better off if private ownership were converted into a public auction for public benefit; how the principle of one person, one vote inhibits democracy; ways to leverage antitrust laws to liberate markets from the grip of institutional investors; and how to create a data labor movement to force digital monopolies to compensate people for their electronic data, among other provocative ideas. Joining Weyl on stage was David Brin, the celebrated science fiction writer and futurist who has long explored the future of economic possibility and privacy (The Transparent Society), and Renee Bowen, GPS professor and Director of the Center on Commerce and Diplomacy.