Trade does not happen on its own. Behind every exchange of goods, services or ideas there are people: those who negotiate, those who sign, those who deliver, and the workers whose effort makes it all possible. International trade law is what holds these relationships together.

It is present at every stage. It shapes the negotiation, gives form to the contract, and frames the institutions, actors and rules of global commerce, from the multilateral trading system to customs, transport and taxation, subsidies and State-owned enterprises. And when a relationship breaks down, it provides the means to resolve the conflict fairly, through mediation, arbitration and other forms of dispute settlement. Today, all of this is being reshaped by digital trade, data and artificial intelligence.

At its heart, the purpose of this law is simple: to build trust. Trust is what allows partners who are far apart, and often very different, to work together with confidence. But trust is also a matter of fairness. The rules of trade reach deep into global value chains, shaping the conditions under which millions of people work and the impact of production on the environment. For the International Labour Organization, this is where trade law meets its deeper purpose: advancing decent work, social justice and the protection of the environment, so that the benefits of global trade are shared fairly and its costs are not borne by workers or the planet.

This is what our programmes are about. From the Master of Laws in International Trade Law to a wide range of specialised courses, we teach by doing: real cases, drafting and negotiation, and simulations that reflect the work professionals actually face. On a United Nations campus in Turin, we help lawyers, public officials and practitioners gain the knowledge and the confidence to work at every stage of international trade, and to help build a fairer and more sustainable global economy, grounded in decent work and social justice.