The WTO has issued a call for young economists to submit papers for the 2023 WTO Essay Award. The aim of the award is to promote high-quality research on trade policy and international trade cooperation and to reinforce the relationship between the WTO and the academic community.

Eligibility: The paper must address issues related to trade policy and international trade cooperation.  The author(s) of the paper must possess or be engaged in the completion of a PhD degree and, if over 30 years of age, be no more than two years past a PhD defense. In the case of co-authored papers, this requirement shall apply to all authors. In addition, to be considered for the award, essays cannot exceed 15,000 words.

Eligible Countries: International

Type: Essay

Value of Award: 

  • The annual WTO Essay Award provides a prize of CHF 5,000 to the author(s) of the winning essay.
  • In the case of a co-authored paper, the prize will be equally divided among the authors.
  • The winning paper will be officially announced at the annual meeting of the European Trade Study Group (ETSG), the largest conference specializing in international trade.
  • The award ceremony will take place on 14-16 September 2023 at the University of Surrey in the United Kingdom. The winning author will receive funding to attend the meeting.

Number of Awards: Not Mentioned

Method of Application: All submissions should be sent to essay.award@wto.org. Submissions should include as separate attachments in PDF format:

  1. the essay
  2. the CV of the author(s), specifying (i) current affiliation(s), (ii) the academic institution awarding the PhD, (iii) the year (or the expected year) of the PhD, (iv) the date of birth of the author(s).

Application Deadline: June 2, 2023