It’s an organisation of 148 countries that come together to decide the rules of international trade. For more info on it, have a look at the jargon buster at the bottom of this page.

Four years ago, the WTO began a series of talks and negotiations to establish trade rules for years to come. Despite initial support, rich countries have since done all they can to block changes in the rules that could benefit poor countries. The meeting in Hong Kong is the grand finale of this focus on trade. It is a crucial meeting for the millions of people whose poverty is caused, or made worse, by unjust trade rules.

The big players in the WTO are the US and the European Union, which represents 25 countries in Europe. They both refuse to make substantial cuts to the subsidies they pay their farmers. At the same time, they fight hard to get poor countries to open their markets to competition from abroad. Together, they have the WTO stitched up.

Put pressure on the UK government to deliver trade justice ahead of the WTO talks. Send an e-mail to the UK government RIGHT NOW. This will automatically add your name to the Big Noise Petition to Make Trade Fair, too – more than 8 million people from across the globe have already added their voice. And tell your mates about all of this – send them one of our ‘Cows love subsidies’ e-cards.