Our Work

The Remaking Trade Project began in June 2021 with the aim of re-examining the foundations of international trade policy and identifying how it can better contribute to what we see as the sustainability imperative of the 21st century – and the sustainable development mandate contained in the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) own 1994 Marrakesh Agreement. The result of this work is the framework for trade system reform that is set out in the Villars Framework Report.

The Remaking Trade Project reform agenda promises to reinvigorate the WTO, create an international trade system that is fit for purpose in the 21st century, better connect to today’s public values and priorities, and thereby demonstrate the trade system’s legitimacy and rebuild political support for trade.

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The world has entered a new era of data-driven environmental policymaking. As demonstrated by the quantitative targets recently established by initiatives like the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement, and the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, governments are increasingly being asked to validate their environmental performance with data. A more empirical approach to environmental protection promises to make it easier to spot problems, track trends, highlight best policy practices, and optimize investments in sustainable development.  

YCELP has a longstanding commitment to enabling and advancing data-driven environmental policymaking. As the flagship project of our center, the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) has shaped debates and informed governments around the globe on how to improve country-level performance against environmental benchmarks. The EPI is a biennial analysis that ranks 180 countries on 58 indicators covering a wide range of environmental issues such as climate change, environmental health, and ecosystem vitality. These indicators track trends in environmental performance and provide scorecards on how close countries are to meeting established environmental targets. Our transparent and robust analyses provide practical guidance for countries that aspire to move toward a sustainable future.

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The Yale Initiative on Sustainable Finance (YISF) aims to produce fresh thinking and cutting-edge research on the challenges to integrating sustainability concerns into financial markets and investment decisions.

YISF functions as a knowledge hub and provides space for intellectual exchange among scholars, practitioners, and policymakers.

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This project builds on the SDSN Deep Decarbonization Pathways Project, which published its report in 2015 and then a 350 PPM Pathways for the United States report in 2019. The 2019 report describes the changes in the U.S. energy system required to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to a level consistent with returning atmospheric concentrations to 350 parts per million (350 ppm) in 2100, achieving net negative CO2 emissions by mid-century, and limiting end-of-century global warming to 1°C above pre-industrial levels. This work inspired the Zero Carbon Action Plan (ZCAP) which launched in early 2020.This plan will serve as roadmap for the U.S. based on the latest modeling, research and understanding of decarbonizing six key sectors (power, transport, industry, buildings, food and land use, and materials) supported by technical pathways to zero carbon by 2050, as well as supporting policy recommendations. 

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The Center had the pleasure of participating in multiple events at Climate Week NYC 2025. Explore our full recorded sessions a of discussions surrounding Al and climate change, international trade policy, and rebuilding bipartisanship in the U.S.