Students from the LLM in International Economic Law programme visited Geneva on a three-day academic trip in mid-June. Students visited some of the most prominent organisations in the trade and development sectors, including the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), The Graduate Institute, the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the Advisory Centre on WTO Law (ACWL), and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). The trip presented a valuable opportunity for students to engage in stimulating discussions with current practitioners and professionals, and to explore future career opportunities in the trade and development sectors.
Activities included a discussion of the Trade Facilitation Agreement at UNCTAD; a presentation at the WTO on the current issues facing the international trade community; and a talk by a current legal practitioner at ACWL. Students also had the opportunity to explore the relevance of intellectual property to trade and development in four thought-provoking discussions at WIPO.
While in Geneva, students attended the EIF Global Forum on Inclusive Trade for Least Developing Countries, and witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the WTO and the Commonwealth, one of the very first of the communique commitments of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to be delivered.
The student group, headed by their student representative, Gemma Fearnley, organized the trip with support from Dr Gabriel Gari, Academic Director of the LLM.
Find out more about studying international economic law at Queen Mary.