Bridging the Gap
The Trade Policy Research Forum (TPRForum) provides a space in which new research can be critically discussed and its practical policy implications better understood. On the last Thursday of the Month at 9 AM ET/ 1500 CET we gather together for an hour of insightful discussions on trade and trade policy. Our goal is to bridge the gap between research and practice by connecting economists, political scientists, lawyers, public policy specialists, and practitioners from all over the world for an hour of discussion through webinars. We’d be delighted to have you join us.
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Because good trade policy requires a solid foundation
Upcoming Webinar - September 26, 2024
TPRForum webinar will be on September 26, 9:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada).
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The numerous hits produced when searching the online news for the words "geopolitics" or "geoeconomics" shows how topical this subject is. Major organizations like the IMF, World Bank and World Economic Forum have recent contributions to the debate and, therefore, it is fitting that our September webinar is titled "Trade and Geopolitics during the Cold War: Lessons for the Future". Benedikt Heid will present his co-authored paper and Costanza Bosone will discuss. Using a quantitative trade model applied to a novel dataset on trade between the Eastern and Western blocs, Benedikt's paper finds that the Iron Curtain halved East-West trade flows and caused substantial welfare losses that persisted in the Eastern bloc countries until the end of the Cold War.​​​​​
Who we are
The trade policy community is keen to know more about recent research in areas like gender, trade facilitation, global value chains, digitalization and technology, and many others.​
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Good trade policy requires a solid foundation. Enlightened decision making is built on gathering input from economists, political scientists, lawyers, public policy specialists, as well as practitioners. Designing good trade policy is a careful process that rests on the capability to analyze complex and highly topical issues.
While discussion forums exist for many of these groups separately, our ambition with the Trade Policy Research Forum (TPRForum) is to act as a bridge between communities, as well as between research and practice. Researchers and practitioners at all levels of experience are welcome to participate, as (of course!) are students. Our aim is to provide a space in which new research can be critically discussed, and its practical policy implications better understood.
Attend a webinar and join the discussion
The TPRForum community is keen to know more about recent research in areas like gender, trade facilitation, global value chains, digitalization and technology, and many others. Attend a webinar session to engage in the discussion. Sessions are free and will take place monthly (approximately the last Thursday of the month at 9AM ET/ 1500 CET) through Zoom throughout the year. Researchers and practitioners at all levels of experience are welcome to participate, including students. Participants are encouraged to sign up for the TPRForum email list to ensure they have information on upcoming sessions.
Ways to Participate
Present your work in a webinar session or suggest a topic
TPRForum will use a variety of formats to facilitate the dissemination of research and discussion of its implications. Some sessions will see an established researcher present key findings from a paper, taking particular care to ensure accessibility to those from other academic backgrounds. Other occasions will see a small group of researchers come together to discuss a salient issue where each has made a research contribution.
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