UKRI GCRF TRADE Hub

The project

The trade in agricultural commodities and wildlife contributes to economic development, but it also has unavoidable social and environmental consequences. Balancing the benefits and negative impacts is an intractable challenge in the implementation of sustainable trade. To overcome this challenge, menjadi the Trade, Development, and the Environment Hub (TRADE Hub) will examine the trade in agricultural commodities and wildlife through research activities in various areas ranging from supply chains; the social and environmental impacts of trade; the modelling of future scenarios; through to formulating recommendations for the public and private sectors.

Landcape Oil palm plantation in Muara Kaman Ilir village, Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan. Photo by Ricky Martin/CIFOR

The hub

The TRADE Hub is funded by the UK Research and Innovation Global Challenges Research Fund and led by the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC).

The TRADE Hub has research activities in nine countries: The United Kingdom, Brazil, Cameroon, China, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Indonesia, Republic of Congo, and Tanzania. Research is conducted by 50 organizations based in 15 countries, including six organizations in Indonesia.

The TRADE Hub project will run for 5 years, from February 2019 to February 2024. The research team will work closely with international and regional trade bodies, charities and corporate partners to develop targeted recommendations for public policy and the corporate sector, ensuring effective use of the research and bringing about sustainable change.

Work packages

Research activities within the TRADE Hub are organized into 10 work packages:

  • WP0 Co-design and Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL)
  • WP1 Wild species in trade
  • WP2 Domesticated species in trade
  • WP3 Social impacts
  • WP4 Trade policies and economic impacts
  • WP5 Modelling trade scenarios
  • WP6 Private-sector solutions and impacts
  • WP7 Public-sector solutions and impacts
  • WP8 Innovation, technology and outreach
  • WP9 Capacity building