Mega-Regionals and Sustainable Development: The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and the Trans-Pacific Partnership

Abstract

This article analyzes the sustainable development provisions of two mega-regional trade agreements: The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Whereas the TTIP is still being negotiated, the TPP was concluded in 2015. The article examines the TTIP in the context of sustainable development and energy. Section II deals with the main sustainability goals, the role of the TTIP in addressing issues such as raw materials, energy efficiency, and renewable energy generation. Section III discusses particular provisions of the TPP’s Environment Chapter and introduces the TPP as a 21st-century trade agreement. It deals with the TPP’s Environment Chapter and its enforcement as well as with the sustainable development dimension of the TPP’s Environment Chapter. Section IV compares the TPP with the TTIP, whereas the last section concludes the article.

Keywords: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, Trans-Pacific Partnership, mega-regionals, sustainable development, energy, trade and investment, energy security, energy efficiency, trade in raw materials and natural resources

JEL Classification: F13, F14, N7, K33, Q4