CONF / Cfn – Youth Trade Summit on Gender, 13-14 November 2023, World Trade Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

Organized by the WTO Gender Research Hub and the WTO Trade and Gender Office

Nomination deadline: 12 September 2023

The WTO and the WTO Gender Research Hub has issued a call for nominations for the Youth Trade Summit on Gender, to be held on 13-14 November 2023 at WTO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. Aimed at promoting the next generation of trade and gender experts and researchers, the Summit targets young researchers in academia and research institutions (i.e., research foundations and centres, think thanks and policy research settings), and young professionals working in governments. It seeks to strengthen the connection between researchers and policymakers, and to contribute to tomorrow's gender equality landscape by advancing research initiatives in this field.

The Youth Trade Summit on Gender will support fifty talented young people from across the globe, offering them a unique opportunity exchange views with global stakeholders, WTO Members, and senior researchers in the field. Participants will also enhance their technical knowledge of the trade and gender nexus and discuss these issues with senior researchers and experts during the event's technical assistance and capacity building sessions.

Nomination criteria

• Nominees must be between 20 and 35 years old.
• Nominees must show their current work on trade and gender, or their interest in including trade and gender issues in their current work.
• Nominees must provide a motivation letter and complete the application form.
• Nominees must be endorsed by their academic/research institution or government.
• Nominees' travel costs and expenses to participate in the Summit must be funded by their academic/research institution or government.

Nomination process

Nominations must be made by the relevant academic/research institution or governmental authority for young professionals aged 20-35 who have a proven interest in trade and gender issues. No individual applications will be considered.

WTO members and observers, as well as academic and research institutions such as foundations, research centres, think thanks and policy research settings are invited to submit nominations by sending the nominee's application form to WTO's Trade and Gender Office at trade-gender@wto.org.

A total of 50 nominees will be selected by members of the WTO Gender Research Hub to participate in the Youth Trade Summit on Gender at the WTO. Nominees' travel costs and expenses to participate in the Summit must be funded by their nominating academic/research institution or government.

For enquiries about the call for nominations for the Youth Trade Summit on Gender, please contact WTO's Trade and Gender Office at trade-gender@wto.org.

Background

In May 2021, the WTO established the WTO Gender Research Hub, a network of researchers on trade and gender from international and regional organizations and academic institutions. At WTO's 12th Ministerial Conference held in June 2022, ministers recognized multilaterally the links between women's economic empowerment and economic growth, noting the work of the WTO on this issue.

In December 2022, the WTO initiated and organised the first edition of the World Trade Congress on Gender, the first international research conference on trade and gender. Promoting innovative research, this high-level event brought together the most eminent trade and gender experts to present new findings and the latest trade and gender research from around the world. It also provided a platform for researchers and policy makers to exchange and build partnerships.

The Youth Trade Summit on Gender builds on this momentum to promote opportunities for young professionals  to engage on trade and gender issues in academia, in research institutions and in government.