There are lots of different ways to talk about the status quo of the multilateral trade system in particular. I think we are stuck in the status quo with respect to the status of the negotiations. I said in my opening comments that multilateralism is dead. Really, in the trajectory of multilateral trade negotiations, multilateralism was a blip. We got a multilateral deal in the Uruguay Round, but that was really the exception, we're finding, as opposed to the rule.
When it comes to these broad-based agreements that have “one country, one vote” principles, where developing countries are able to link issues so that they get goodies in areas that are of their strategic interest, that's a rarity. That's part of our status quo problem in multilateral trade. More broadly, I think what you're talking about is ideologically, right? A lot of my research has looked at the role of different international organizations in helping disrupt the status quo, to think about ways in which we can put sustainable development, for example, on the agenda in a meaningful way.
Clearly gender is the new buzzword these days. I'm interested in where this idea of gender in global trade came from but also in its potential to bring about real, meaningful social change. I'm a pessimist, I have to say, with the initiatives that are currently under way. Partly that's because I'm thinking pragmatically about what's been done in other areas, with things like inclusive trade, and microfinance before that, and sustainable development to date. We're very good at changing up the discourse but very bad at following it up with substantive policy change. I hope this is an area where we can do better.