In the latest post to ODID’s blog, Debating Development, Khalid Nadvi introduce a new special issue of Oxford Development Studies that explores how new players from the Rising Powers (most notably China, Brazil and India) may challenge the global ‘rules of the game’ on social and environmental issues.

Concerns about sweatshop labour, climate change and environmental pollution have prompted the adoption of labour and environmental standards in international trade over the past decades. This has been largely driven by governments, companies and civil society in Western countries. In contrast, some of the growth in Rising Powers like China occurred precisely because they started exporting cheap products, competing in the world market on low wages, and prioritising economic growth over social and environmental concerns.

Does this mean that the Rising Powers will provoke a global ‘race to the bottom’ on labour and environmental standards? Or alternatively, as these countries become more prosperous, will domestic demands for better working conditions and environmental protection increase, and will this be reflected in a more active engagement by Rising Power states and firms in the global governance of labour and the environment?

The articles in the special issue examine this topic and shed light on the different actors and processes within the Rising Powers that could potentially impact the global governance of labour and environmental standards.

Read the post.