Embedding Ethics in Trade Law: Toward Sustainable Global Governance

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-581-2_10How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Bangladesh; Ethics; Global Governance; International Trade Law; Sustainability; Sustainable Development Goals

Abstract

International trade law increasingly incorporates references to sustainability and ethical responsibility, yet these concerns remain weakly embedded in binding legal structures. This paper examines how ethics can be more effectively integrated into trade governance through a doctrinal and comparative analysis of selected instruments, including the Navigation Act of 1651, the UK Trade Act 2021, WTO jurisprudence, the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), and key soft-law frameworks such as the UN Guiding Principles and OECD Guidelines. The analysis demonstrates that, while ethical and sustainability considerations are formally recognized, they are typically confined to exceptions, soft commitments, or non-binding provisions, whereas core trade obligations remain legally enforceable. WTO case law further indicates that ethical regulation is permitted only within narrowly defined conditions of necessity and non-discrimination, thereby limiting policy space for developing countries. In response, the paper advances a WTO-consistent and development-sensitive model for embedding ethics in trade law, based on enforceable treaty provisions, cooperative compliance mechanisms, and inclusive negotiation strategies. By shifting from aspirational commitments to operational legal design, the paper contributes a more structured framework for aligning trade governance with sustainability objectives and equitable development.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - M. Anwarul Aziz Kanak
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/30
TI  - Embedding Ethics in Trade Law: Toward Sustainable Global Governance
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Challenges and Trends in Arts and Social Sciences (ICCTASS 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 109
EP  - 134
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-581-2_10
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-581-2_10
ID  - Kanak2026
ER  -