Our Deep Dive into International Investment Policy

Foreign investment is a core pillar of the global economy. As governments around the world seek to attract foreign investment, however, they are increasingly faced with difficult choices on how to balance the rights and interests of foreign investors with other public policy objectives. This deep dive will look at how these choices are being struck and why it matters. After introducing the drivers and impacts of foreign investment, the course will focus on core challenges relating to market access – including investment screening – and the protection of foreign investment. Core treaty commitments will be introduced in the WTO, Free Trade Agreements, and Bilateral Investment Treaties. We will assess why and how these commitments are shaped, and reshaped, by policy-makers and the implications for foreign investors. 

Who will benefit from this Deep Dive

Officials in government and international organizations

Officials new to the field of foreign investment policy or officials working in trade policy, commercial diplomacy, energy and climate policy, or other areas of international economic policy that intersect with foreign investment. 

Private Sector Public Policy Teams


People engaging with foreign investment policies relating to market access or investment protection. 

Non-government organizations and non-profits

People developing and advocating policy solutions in foreign investment policy or other areas of international economic policy that intersect with foreign investment, such as climate change or trade policy.

Hear Is What You Will Learn

The factors driving international investment decisions

 Learn about different types of foreign investment, what drives decisions to invest overseas, how foreign investment relates to development of global supply chains and the relationship between foreign investment, trade and economic development.

Developments in the international regulation of foreign investment relating to market access and investment protection

Learn about the latest development in foreign investment policy in investment treaties, Free Trade Agreements and at the WTO. Understand the scope, key commitments and developments with respect to investor-state dispute settlement and other investment related policy developments, including around market access and foreign investment screening.  

Who are the key actors shaping foreign investment policy

Learn about the key actors driving trends international investment policy, the role of bilateral and multilateral negotiations and the key international organizations and fora where international investment policy is being developed. 
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Watch an introduction to this Deep Dive

International Investment Policy
Length: April 13, 2023 - April 25, 2023
Dates: new dates to be announce shortly  
Cost: $850

Format and Content
  • No need to take time off work - content is released every couple of days so you can watch at your own pace.
  • Approx. 4hrs in total of video, with modules released every 1-2 days.
  • Two live lectures with expert Lauge Poulsen that are also recorded and made available to all participants
  • You also get access to all videos and recorded live lectures for four weeks after the end of this Deep Dive
  • Group discussion and exercises  
  • A Policyware certificate in International Investment Policy  
Lauge N. Skovgaard Poulsen OBE
University College London

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Meet Your Expert

Lauge N. Skovgaard Poulsen OBE  

Lauge Poulsen is Professor of International Relations & Law at University College London. Poulsen is chair of the OECD inter-governmental work with stakeholders and experts on investment treaties, where he leads discussions on investment treaties and climate change policy. He serves as specialist adviser to the UK House of Commons' International Trade Committee and leads Whitehall's advanced trade policy training programme. Poulsen was adviser to the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 2017 to 2020 and was appointed OBE (Officer of the British Empire) in the 2022 Queen’s New Year Honours List for services to UK trade policy. Before joining UCL, Poulsen was a postdoctoral fellow at Nuffield College, University of Oxford, and he has been a visiting scholar at the Brookings Institution's Economic Studies Division and Melbourne Law School. Prof Poulsen is an editorial board member of several journals, including the Journal of International Economic Law.