Sustainable development advocates have long argued that international treaties designed to promote trade and investment restrict state efforts to promote sustainable development, such as raising environmental standards. Beginning in the 1990’s, some international trade and investment treaties started to incorporate provisions intended to ensure that treaty obligations did not limit state efforts to move toward sustainable development. The focus was on labour rights and environmental protection. 

Initially, most of these provisions were aspirational and not binding. Over time, these provisions have expanded to cover a wider range of social issues, including corporate governance, human rights, and corruption, and, in some treaties, have become binding and subject to treaty dispute settlement procedures. This seminar will canvass these developments and draw some conclusions regarding how effectively they contribute to the achievement of sustainable development. Some ideas for new approaches will also be discussed.