Governments:	Major Groups: European Partners for the Environment (Belgium) Internat. Inst. for Sustainable Development (Canada) Eco-tex Institute (Germany) Ecoperation-Netherlands (Netherlands) Internat. Institute for Environment and Devt (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)
UN System: United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) (Switzerland) United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) (United States of America)	Other intergovernmental organizations: Commonwealth Science Council (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)
Other: Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (South Africa)

Primary Themes: Sustainable development in a globalizing world

Secondary Themes: Changing unsustainable patterns of consumption and production

Globally, no institution is mandated to support developing countries respond to this challenge. The scoping study found that an array of multilateral, national, NGO and business initiatives currently exist - in many cases delivering useful results. But these are often small-scale, limited in terms of sectoral scope or types of participants. To deliver genuine benefits to developing country exporters, the study concluded that a dedicated organisation is required that brings together four key attributes:
- practical experience with export promotion;
- expertise in sustainability issues;
- technical competence in innovation; and, crucially
- developing country leadership.
The Sustainable Trade and Innovation Centre aims to fill this gap. The proposed goal of STIC is to enable developing country exporters to respond, anticipate and ultimately shape the environmental and social dimensions of the market, thereby capturing a greater share of the value-added of trade. This can be achieved in three main ways:
i. information exchange
ii. promoting innovation and strengthening skills
iii. brokering solutions
i. Information Exchange
Practical experience has shown that inadequate information is often a major constraint to both developing country producers and the buyers in developed countries. Very often developing country producers lack information on the multitude of standards and regulations that exist in export markets. This is often accompanied by a lack of knowledge and know how on technological and managerial solutions. On the part of the North too there is inadequate information and understanding, not only of the pressures facing businesses operating in the South, but also of the potential for Southern businesses to meet environmental and social challenges.

• Human resources development/training
• Education/building awareness
• Technology transfer/exchange

Relationship to Agenda 21:
STIC will directly address the goals of Agenda 21 as they relate to the following:
-Promotion of sustainable development through trade.
-Making trade and environment mutually supportive.
-Combating poverty and improving social justice in the workplace.
-Integrating environment and development at the management level.
-Conservation and management of resources for development (especially in the forestry, agri-food and fisheries).
-Strengthening the role of workers, business and industry and the scientific and technological community.
-Transfer of environmentally sound technology, cooperation and capacity building.
-Promoting training
-Improving availability of information.
Relationship to the UN Millennium Declaration:
STIC conforms with the Values and Principles of the UN Millennium Declaration, and, in particular with following clauses related to Development and Poverty Eradication as well as Protection of the Environment:
-Transparency in trading systems
-Addressing the special needs of least developed countries
-Developing strong partnerships with the private sector and civil society in pursuit if development
-Reaffirming support for Agenda 21 Relevant Sections of Agenda 21
Relevant Sections of the Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21
Relevant Sections of the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation

BACKGROUND - THE NEED FOR STIC
Exporters from developing countries are facing mounting pressures to integrate environmental and social factors into their export strategies. While some of this is prompted by regulatory demands (notably from the EU), the main drivers are business requirements from international buyers and a growing demand from the end consumer for products that demonstrate environmental and social responsibility. Environmental, and increasingly social, factors are now routinely incorporated into supplier contracts across a range of sectors. New trade opportunities have resulted for some producers.
But many exporters have experienced difficulties responding to these demands, incurring extra costs at a time when global competition is constantly eroding returns to the producer. Although higher standards are sometimes associated with premium prices in export markets, more often they are simply an 'entry ticket' -- an added burden rather than a source of competitive advantage. These concerns are being heightened by the mounting complexity of environmental and social aspects of international trade, with an array of often incompatible measures, from company-specific codes of conduct through regional initiatives to global systems of certification.
While the motivation behind these market-driven measures to improve the environment may be genuine, the manner in which they have been implemented leaves much to be desired. In particular:
* They lack transparency - with little or no involvement of developing country producers in setting the standards;
* They fail to consider questions of equity - and the way in which the costs of improving environmental and social performance are distributed along the supply chain; and
* They neglect the need to make the links between environmental measures and developing country capacity for innovation - essential if environmental upgrading is to generate lasting productivity and gains to value-added.
The result is considerable frustration in the marketplace and fears that these voluntary market-based environmental requirements will simply hamper export prospects ('green protectionism'). On the part of the North, there is still widespread distrust of the South and its capacity to move towards sustainable production and trade. A new generation of enterprises has come to the fore in many developing countries committed and capable of achieving world-class standards in quality, the environment and social matters. However, media reports, which inform public opinion and NGO campaigns, tend to focus exclusively on poor performers where bad practice undoubtedly still exists.
If these market pressures are to lead to genuinely sustainable development - a pressing theme in the run-up to the Johannesburg Summit - then additional measures are required to give developing country exporters both the capacity and the connections to shape these requirements to their advantage.
There is therefore a definite need for greater information exchange. There are a number of existing initiatives to learn from. Examples include:
- Global initiatives: The International Trade Centre (ITC) supports information networks in developing economies, such as World Tr@de Net and Capacity building and networking for business information services (CAPNET/BIS);
- Regional initiatives: The Sustainable Markets Intelligence Service (SMIS) is being set up by the Latin American Centre for Competitiveness and Sustainable Development in Costa Rica to provide information on market trends and opportunities to Latin American firms to allow them to orient their products and processes towards high value markets for environmentally and socially preferable products.
- Donor supported initiatives: the Dutch Ecooperation initiative has set up an electronic One World Market to facilitate trade in sustainable products between the Netherlands and selected African countries, while GTZ's Protrade programme has established a 'Green Trade Net' database for organic products from developing countries.
Two key problems have confronted these information initiatives. First, there is often inadequate national network leadership in participating countries. Second, experience has shown that in many countries, a purely electronic information dissemination network is inappropriate and must be accompanied by more traditional information dissemination activities.
There is also a need to link up existing information exchange activities. STIC will aim to provide comprehensive and coordinated information dissemination, with the active support of existing networks. It will do this through various media: websites, workshops, seminars, and briefings. At the sectoral level, for example, STIC will work together with business organisations such as the International Apparel Federation in disseminating information to the textile and clothing producers in developing countries and retailers in developed countries.
ii. Promoting innovation and strengthening skills
Moving to sustainable patterns of production and trade requires investments of time, commitment and finance, and this means the development of new support mechanisms for producers and other agents. Experience has shown that it is the innovative businesses, those that have introduced changes in product design as well as in management practices, that have been able to seize the opportunity, increasing exports of sustainable products and making profits in the bargain.
iii. Brokering solutions
One of the major obstacles facing developing country producers is a lack of input into the plethora of trade related environmental and social standard setting initiatives. Dialogue along the value chain needs to be stimulated to generate fair, feasible and lasting solutions. This dialogue needs to bring three sets of stakeholders to the table: business representatives, such as buyers and suppliers; regulatory and standard setting authorities; and civil society representatives. At present no organisation is engaged in such activities in a dedicated and singular manner with developing countries entrepreneurs as the main target beneficiaries

Two particular priorities for STIC could be:
* Voicing the concerns of developing country producers in implementing existing environmental and social standards imposed by export markets, and, working together with standard setters to ensure that these concerns are taken in to consideration;
* Co-designing mutually agreed upon standards and codes through dialogues between different stakeholder groups. Professional and well-facilitated dialogues may be organized on sectoral and geographical lines. They should bring together consumer groups, industry, buyers, financial institutions, governments, NGOs, researchers from the North and South. Preparations for such dialogues would involve an analysis of:
o the implications of EU and other Northern requirements for Southern producers;
o the possibilities and ways forward for elaborating a mutually agreed upon minimum code of conduct for particular sectors;
o the requirements for implementing such a code, including the tools and techniques for: managing sustainable supply chains; implementing social accountability improvements; and applying eco-efficient solutions.


Links:
Some examples of potential partners/linkages are given below:
- Global initiatives: UNCTAD's Biotrade Initiative for increasing market access for biodiversity products from developing countries; The International Trade Centre (ITC) information networks in developing economies, such as World Tr@de Net and Capacity building and networking for business information services (CAPNET/BIS);
- Regional initiatives: The Sustainable Markets Intelligence Service (SMIS) being set up by the Latin American Centre for Competitiveness and Sustainable Development in Costa Rica to provide information on market trends and opportunities to Latin American firms to allow them to orient their products and processes towards high value markets for environmentally and socially preferable products.
- Donor supported initiatives: the Dutch Ecooperation initiative to facilitate trade in sustainable products between the Netherlands and selected African countries; GTZ's Protrade programme and 'Green Trade Net' database for organic products from developing countries.