CFP: The Ethics of Business, Trade, and Global Governance Conference

The 7th Ethics of Business, Trade, & Global Governance Conference

Location: Saint Anselm College (Manchester, NH)

Dates: February 6-7, 2026

Proposal Submission Deadline: Oct 31, 2025

Submission email: [email protected]

Plenary Speaker: Dani Rodrik, Ford Foundation Professor of International Political Economy

John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

The Saint Anselm College Center for Ethics in Society, in cooperation with the Department of Finance—University of Vienna and the University of St. Andrews Centre for Responsible Banking & Finance, announces a call for proposals for a conference on the economics, ethics, and governance of global commerce.

Significant economic and political changes continue to challenge the established global economic and political order. This time of disruption and shifting economic power is an opportunity to reassess debates about tariffs and international trade, capital and labor flows, and global economic cooperation and governance. This interdisciplinary conference invites contributions from ethicists, economists, political scientists, international relations scholars, policy experts, and business leaders to examine the political and economic impact of recent events and policy changes. Our central goal is to explore how economic cooperation, international trade, and investment can be conducted more ethically as we make sense of this new economic and political era.

We welcome all presentations at the intersection of Business Ethics, Trade, and Global Governance.  We are particularly interested in proposals that engage directly with the work of Professor Rodrik on economic globalization, growth, and development.  Other suggested topics or questions that a proposal could address include:

International Commerce

●      How have or will the tariffs (implemented or proposed) by the US affect trade and global supply chains?

●      What has the Russia-Ukraine conflict revealed about the vulnerability of the global economy (e.g. dependence on oil and natural gas)?

●      How will the continuing conflict between Russia and Ukraine affect economic policies and trade relations in Europe and beyond  (e.g. redistribution of oil and natural gas flows)?

●      Who benefits and who loses economically from trade in this period of war, instability, and fragmentation?

●      Economic and trade rebalancing - The rise of China and other emerging countries are shifting economic activity. How will this affect trade and commerce?

●      Acceleration of new technologies - New and disruptive technologies, primarily AI, are advancing faster than the ability to manage and harness them. How are digital platforms and automation transforming patterns of production, trade, and labor, and what new business models or institutional frameworks are required in response?

●      Uncertainty - What are the effects of increasing political and economic uncertainty on international trade and commerce? 

●      Demographic Shifts - Emerging and developing economies have younger populations than developed economies. How will these demographic shifts change trade?

●      Do the benefits of portfolio liberalization, in terms of financial deepening, counteract its systemic risks?

●      What are the “externalities” of trade or foreign direct investment for democracy, human rights, civil peace, and state autonomy?

●      How has the global interest rate environment affected the viability of exchange rate management?

●      How have rising interest rates affected global trade?

●      How have big-data and AI begun to affect decision making about trade policy and how will they continue to do so?

Ethics

●    Are tariffs ever just?  If so, in what conditions are they justified?

• Can trade wars ever be just?  Does traditional just war theory have anything to contribute to a theory of just trade wars?

• Are economic sanctions an ethical way to protest belligerent countries in military conflicts, or to punish unwelcome policy decisions in other countries?

●    What ethical norms ought to govern trading with aggressors in a war?

●    What are the ethical ramifications of trading weapons?  What are the proper limits in trading weapons to countries engaged in war?

●      Are nations right to prioritize their own interests in the global economy? And how should national as opposed to particularistic interests be defined in formulating trade policies?

●      Is globalization beneficial or detrimental to political communities?  

●      What are the rights and responsibilities of economic actors engaging in the global economy?

●      Does free trade demand the free movement of peoples?

●      Do participants in international trade have a responsibility to ensure a more equitable distribution of benefits?

●      Should there be a shared responsibility to ensure that trading practices enable sustainable development and the recognition of human rights?

●      What responsibilities do multinational firms have to the communities where they do business?

●      Is offshoring morally problematic?  Is offshoring necessarily part of a free trade system?

●      Should nations ensure that they produce essential goods within their own borders?

●      Are economic sanctions against nations and/or individual citizens ethically problematic?  What are some ethical guidelines that should govern state actors when imposing sanctions?

Global Governance

●    How do ongoing wars (Russia-Ukraine, Middle East, etc.) challenge existing global governance structures, and what are the implications for institutional reform?

• What constitutes good economic policy, and what factors determine the ability of governments to foster sustainable economic growth?

●      What are the social and political challenges to governing international trade and the movement of global capital?

●      What are the respective roles of corporations and governments in determining trade policy?

●      What are the advantages and disadvantages of bilateral versus multilateral trade agreements?

●      Sustainability and Environmental Degradation - Rising demand is straining supplies of energy, food, water, and other resources. Unrestricted trade and commerce threaten the land, air, and water, and promote global warming. What policies or institutional mechanisms at the national and international level are most effective for preventing and mitigating environmental degradation?

●      Which actors possess the power to define and implement the legal and regulatory frameworks of the global economy?How is authority to make and enforce global economic rules established, contested, and exercised??

●      How does international trade affect collective bargaining rights across nations? 

●      What is the relationship between economic development and international trade?

●     How do international organizations influence global economic relations, and what are the trade-offs involved in delegating regulatory and decision-making authority to such actors?

Details for Preparing Proposals:  The conference will take place in person. We will accept proposals for individual presentations, entire panels (3-4 presentations per panel), or academic posters. 

●      Individual proposals should be submitted in an abstract of no more than 350 words.  Individual presentations at the conference will be about 20 minutes. 

●      Panel proposals should include a proposed title and brief explanation (50-100 words) of the panel along with abstracts for each presentation.  

●      Poster session proposals should include a proposed title, a research question under investigation, and a bibliography of at least three sources engaged.  

All proposals or questions may be submitted via email to Kyle Hubbard ([email protected]). 

Deadlines:  Proposals for individual presentations, panels, and roundtable discussions are due October 31, 2025.

More Information:  The conference is hosted by the Saint Anselm College Center for Ethics in Society and supported by our partners at the University of Vienna and the St. Andrews Centre for Responsible Banking & Finance.  For more information on the conference, please see the Saint Anselm College Center for Ethics in Societywebsite (www.anselm.edu/ethics).

Conference Costs:  The regular and student fees include three meals.  Financial support may be available in certain cases.  

•  $225-regular

•  $75-student