Everyone was sad to see the inevitable; no one wanted the Geneva Program to end. On our last night, we all got together for a farewell dinner at a tasty Italian restaurant in the hip area of Carouge. We even had some of our prominent guest lecturers attend the dinner. Some of us took the opportunity to discuss with each other our ideas for our final research paper. After spending four weeks learning and thinking about global governance, humanitarianism, the financial crisis, international trade and our future jobs in service economies, we bid adieu to Geneva. Thanks for all the memories; we look forward to coming back!
Cynthia Ferman, Roni Lippmann, Brittany Stevenson and Becky Jakob at the Farewell Dinner
We began the day with a class examining the politicized issue of outsourcing. We looked at arguments both for and against outsourcing, including empirical data.
at the World Intellectual Property Organization
Next, we visited the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). We considered the role of Intellectual Property services within many areas, including development. Some students discussed the relationship between implementation of the IP system within countries that fail to property enforce property rights. In this case, is an IP system a realistic option?
lunch at the World Maritime Organization
After lunch at the World Maritime Organization, we hurried back to the Geneva Institute to hear Lee Tuthill speak about her many years of experience within the telecommunications sector of the WTO. Her perspective gave us incredible insight into the dynamics of multilateral negotiations.
The final week of CCT Geneva 2009 kicked off with yet another jam-packed day of speakers from academia, WIPO and the WTO. The day concluded with an intense (yeah, it got real hot) mock trade deliberation. Xavier Castañer of the University of Lausanne lectured on the influence of creative industries in international business decisions. Donna Hill of the World Intellectual Property Organization broke down the creative services industry country by country, and Martin Roy of the World Trade Organization outlined the reasons why member states are unable to reach a consensus on audio/visual services in the General Agreement for Trade and Services.
Moderators Dr. Singh and Dr. Xavier Castañer look on as Kasia of the United States takes charge
The day culminated with a mock trade deliberation aimed towards collectively coming to consensus for a global trade agreement. We were divided into three camps tasked with this challenge. They were: sovereign states, multi-national companies, and a civil society composed of global special interest from around the world. After each group met independently to outline their trade demands we reconvened to hammer out a collective trade agreement while Dr. Singh, and Dr. Castañer served as moderators.
Civil Society member, Nargis, adamantly objects to loose definition of "liberalization"
Boy, negotiations were tough. Civil Service represented so many interests that they simply could not get it together. Varying interest didn’t keep Big Business from negotiating as a cohesive unit. They knew what they wanted and played the game like smooth operators. Meanwhile, the US dominated the discourse while the remaining sovereign states stood on the sidelines choosing their battles carefully. Many items on the agenda were tabled, while subtle differences in wording proved to be major points of contention and the ensuing deliberations only ate precious chunks of time. In the end, we essentially agreed to eventually agree on setting a date and location for future deliberations and negotiations. This exercise brilliantly demonstrated the challenges of the Doha rounds and the complexity of the General Agreement on Trade and Services. Having taken part in an experience where fifteen emotionally disconnected graduate students failed to achieve a very basic consensus, we are able to relate on a very ephemeral level the difficulty and the challenges that 198 impassioned nations with a myriad of interests must reconcile when dealing and deliberating complex and sophisticated issues that will impact billions of lives.
On Thursday we were honored to have two of Professor Singh’s colleagues join us for drinks on the Hotel Drake patio. William Isasi is Senior Attorney at the General Counsel’s Office of the Department of Commerce, while Marisa Goldstein works in the legal trade division of the World Trade Organization. Both Mr. Isasi and Ms. Goldstein provided valuable insight into the complicated world of international trade disputes and enforcement mechanisms. An especially insightful moment was when Mr. Isasi likened the current legal framework of the WTO to the U.S. constitution in the first years following its drafting because of the precedence that current decisions will make in setting standards for future WTO practice.
Professor Singh and students with William Isasi (Senior Attorney, General Counsel's Office, DoC) and Marisa Goldstein (WTO, legal division)
On Saturday, we celebrated the 4th of July by having a picnic on Lake Leman in Geneva. This was an especially significant day because it was Professor Singh’s first 4th of July as a U.S. citizen. We listened to a fine selection of music from around the world and, thanks to James and Kasia, ate watermelon from Italy.
Professor Singh with fellow U.S. citizens Becky and Zach
Italian watermelon, with pips
On Sunday, the group traveled to Montreux for the annual Jazz Festival. The festival features performances by regional musicians as well as internationally renowned acts such as legendary jazz maestro Herbie Hancock and the charismatic pianist Lang Lang. We also traveled to the Chateau de Chillon, a castle located on the eastern end of Lake Geneva. The oldest parts of the castle are thought to date back to the 11th century. In 1816, Lord Byron made the castle famous with his poem about the imprisoned monk Fancois de Bonivard, titled The Prisonner of Chillon.
We began the day with a class on telecommunication policy, one of Professor Singh’s many areas of expertise. Telecommunication policy is one of the most classic issues of the global service economy. We examined in particular the shift from national monopolies within telecommunication toward gradual liberalization through an opening up of the market. We considered the behavior of large monopolies within the context of international trade even after agreements had been made at the Doha rounds to collaborate with younger elements. The threat of competition served to inhibit full cooperation between traditional power houses and newbies within the telecommunications industry.
Following a lively discussion, class broke up for the day and many students decided to visit “old town” Geneva, which lies across the lake from our hotel. Some shopped, others wandered through the narrow cobble stone streets armed with cameras. For some, the highlight of the afternoon was the short water taxi ride across the lake, which runs every ten minutes.
Each and every day at CCT Geneva is jam packed with action and today was no exception. Dr. Singh started the morning with an excellent overview of intellectual property. After wards, we were delighted to have Mrs. Jayashree Watal of the World Trade Organization for our afternoon speaker. She gave a talk on her negotiation experiences during the Doha Rounds as a member of the Indian delegation. She vividly recalled her account of the events leading up up to the landmark consensus agreement that amended article 30 of TRIPS so that developing nations could have access to affordable medicines for the very first time. Her charisma and passion more than convinced several of us to sign up for her one credit health and international law seminar which she will be teaching at Georgetown Law Center this coming fall.
Dr. Singh is "TRIP'in" (Agreement on "Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property" Rights)
After wards, we proceeded with our weekly Swiss chats. We were introduced to the requirements for our final papers and participated in a lively discussion concerning our intercultural experiences here in Geneva. We discussed everything from language barriers and cultural immersion to theorizing that a relationship exists between the dearth of state sponsored raves and the abundance of police resistance street art and graffiti that are plastered throughout this otherwise beautiful city. Dr. Singh concluded our intercultural discourse by recalling how he was told to “follow the Golden Arches” on his very first day in America way back in 1984. Needless to say, he had the entire class balling from laughter.
We think it has something to do with the fact that the state doesn't sponsor nearly enough raves
We were having such a great time that we were reluctant to leave class today. We began to come to the realization that we only have five more classes left here in Geneva. As we wrap up our third week and head into our final one, we each plan to relish every moment we have together in this magical city.
On Monday, Heather returned to Washington, DC after two weeks with the CCT Geneva program. We will miss her!
That same day, we began the second of our two courses: The Global Services Economy, taught by Professor Singh. On Tuesday, we walked to the World Trade Organization to hear Rudolph Adlung speak about services liberalization. An expert on the Global Agreement on Trade in Services, or GATS, Mr. Adlung provided in-depth analysis of the challenges and difficulties confronting the liberalization of the global services economy. It was an honor to hear about the complexities of GATS from an insider like Mr. Adlung.
On Sunday, June 28 we took an hour-long bus trip to Annecy, France – often called the “Venice of France.” Annecy has lots of medieval buildings, jails, churches, a castle – and gorgeous canals! On Sunday, they have a wonderful farmer’s market in old town, which provided an opportunity to meet the people making the local products (and get some great cheese and meat!). The town is situated next to one of the cleanest lakes in Europe with mountains coming down to the water. Annecy was one of the centers of the Counter Reformation after the bishops left Geneva as a result of the Protestant Reformation. In addition, Annecy also figures in the trade talks that our students will be studying. The GATT commenced in 1947, and the second round of the GATT, which further reduced tariffs, took place in Annecy in 1949. Annecy has also been a respite for negotiators and a meeting place for various negotiations that followed the 1949 talks held there.
Two intense weeks of reflection paper writing, literature reviews, workshops with WTO representatives, trade policy and development bank experts concluded yesterday with a European-style exam (two essays in two hours) followed by drinks on The Graduate Institute lawn. The Georgetown representatives in attendance had the chance to say farewell to many of the international students from the course. We will miss their presence in our upcoming course on the Global Services Economy.
On our way back from the farewell, we came across a Fete des Enfents being held on the lake, filled with children rock climbing and bottle rocketing.
Ah, Geneva.
