The WTO and Cosmopolitics

Abstract

The relationship of the WTO to the international community and to its individual denizens continues to be a contentious topic in trade law and policy. In 2001, European Commissioner for Trade Pascal Lamy suggested the need for `cosmopolitics` in global governance in order to improve decision-making and enhance legitimacy. In this article, Steve Charnovitz shows how the WTO already engages in various practices of cosmopolitics, despite the continuing pull of the mantra that only Members are of relevance within the WTO. Following this review of current practice, the article points several additional ways in which the WTO could boost transparency and deepen public participation.