Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: One of the central issues plaguing international commercial relations is that the private interests at the heart of international flows of goods, services, and capital have traditionally lacked any “personality” within customary international law. Without

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Although the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has increased trade and investment between Mexico and the U.S., it has not stemmed patterns of "illegal" migration. In fact, undocumented migration from Mexico to the U.S. has increased since NAFTA's inception ten years ago. In the years following NAFTA�s implementation one could argue that trade liberalization would stimulate job growth in Mexico�s export sector, that wage levels would converge with those in the U.S. and as a result fewer Mexicans would seek employment in the U.S. Why then, did Mexican migration increase so rapidly during the decade of NAFTA�s realization? Has economic integration between the U.S. and Mexico done anything to stem the flow of unauthorized Mexican workers into the U.S.? This paper will address these questions by examining employment, income and productivity trends in Mexico�s export sector, and more specifically the maquiladora industry, as a way of determining the impact of NAFTA on employment opportunities for Mexican labor.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) was created among expectations that it would help control negative environmental consequences of increased trade between Canada, Mexico, and the US. This presentation considers the legacy of the CEC ten years after its creation. The first part of the presentation analyzes the development and performance of the CEC within the context of regional and domestic changes in North America under NAFTA. The second part seeks to extract some lessons useful to the discussion of trade and environmental protection in North America.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: In ?NAFTA. Economic Statecraft?? I attempt to determine whether the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) can be called a successful work of economic statecraft, as defined by James Baldwin in his book, Economic Statecraft. I hypothesize, first, that NAFTA can be defined as an act of economic statecraft. Second, I hypothesize that it has been a successful act of economic statecraft by both the United States and Mexico. After a brief literature review, I attempt to prove my first hypothesis. Baldwin defines ?economic statecraft? as an economic instrument which is used by one nation to influence other international actors. First, I demonstrate that NAFTA is an economic instrument. Second, I demonstrate that NAFTA is international in scope, involving at least three nations. Finally, I demonstrate that NAFTA was an attempt by both the US and Mexico to influence the behavior of the other. In addition, I suggest that NAFTA may have been used as a way to influence the behavior of stalling GATT (Global Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) trading partners during the Uruguay round of GATT negotiations. Next, I attempt to demonstrate that NAFTA was a successful influence attempt by both the United States and Mexico. I begin by comparing the costs and benefits of NAFTA, and attempting to determine whether the US and Mexico were successful in influencing the behavior of one another, and other world actors. Finally, I discuss possible alternatives to NAFTA, and compare the costs and benefits of NAFTA to the likely costs and benefits of those alternatives. Ultimately, I draw two conclusions. First, NAFTA can be called an act of economic statecraft. Second, NAFTA was successful as economic statecraft for two reasons: it was preferable to all other alternatives in terms of costs and benefits, and was successful in altering the behavior of other international actors.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed