ITS Global

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ITS Global is the trading name for International Trade Strategies (ITS), a Melbourne-based consultancy founded by Alan Oxley. ITS Global has worked consistently against the Kyoto agreement on greenhouse gas emissions, and opposed other mandatory limits on greenhouse gas emissions. It has also done a number of consulting projects which have promoted increased logging and associated operations in Papua New Guinea and Tasmania. ITS Global was used by Oxley as a leading promoter of the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement through the establishment of the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement Business Group (AUSTA)

Environmental Policy Consulting

One of the priority areas for ITS is environmental policy. "Few people are against improving the environment. The issue is how to do it. The major problem in environmental affairs today is bad environment policy. It poses risks for business and jeopardizes growth. Greens exert constant pressure for the environmental interest to override all others. Most people want policies to improve the environment balanced with those that promote growth," ITS states on its website.

The key environmental policy areas its focusses on are greenhouse, genetically modified organisms, trade in metals and chemicals and trade and the environment.

Rimbunan Hijau

ITS Global has been employed by Malaysian logging company Rimbunan Hijau to defend its ongoing illegal logging practices in Papua New Guinea. These practices have not only devastated millions of hectares of rainforest, but have resulted in widespread human rights abuses [1].

In July 2006, ITS Global released a report in Port Moresby defending the Malaysian logging company Rimbunan Hijau and its logging operations in Papua New Guinea.

ITS Global Justifies Gunns Pulp Mill in Tasmania

Following its work for Rimbunan Hijau, in 2007, ITS Global was hired by the Tasmanian Government of Paull Lennon to review the economic and social benefits of the Gunns Pulp Mill at Bell Bay, which the government had expressed string support for. Not surprisingly, the ITS report on the pulp mill found that "The net benefit for Tasmania overall is assessed to be positive and high, both over the long term, the operational phase of the Project and during the construction phase."

Climate Change Denial Work

ITS designed the website for a 2003 conference of Australia's climate change skeptics at Parliament House in Canberra. Entitled "Managing Climate Change: Practicalities and Realities in a post-Kyoto future", the conference was organised by Alan Oxley and his Australian APEC Study Centre.

Climatchangeissues.com

Climatchangeissues.com is a climate skeptic website set up by Alan Oxley, and edited by ITS Global employee Steven Macmillan. The site showcased the research of climate change deniers like Ian Plimer and CR De Freitas who are not climate scientists, but have appeared in the media denying the established facts of the impacts of increasing atmospheric CO2 levels. [2]

Other Projects

Australia/US Free Trade Agreement Business Group (AUSTA)

In 2001, ITS Global and it's director Alan Oxley set up the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement Business Group (AUSTA), to lobby the Australian government to negotiate and approve the FTA. The AUSTA site lists Alan Oxley of ITS as its sole contact person. [3]

The members of AUSTA are:[4]

China Business Focus

In 2005, ITS and its director Alan Oxley set up China Business Focus to lobby for a Free Trade Agreement between Australia and China.

Institutional Links

The ITS website notes that is has "close associations" with a number of right wing US groups, including the American Enterprise Institute, the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Heritage Foundation. [5]

Personnel

Former personnel

Contact information

International Trade Strategies
60 Collins St Melbourne 3000
Victoria Australia
telephone: 613 9654 8323
fax: 61 3 9650 7622
mobile: 61 417 358 462
email: its AT vic.bigpond.net.au
Web: http://www.itsglobal.net/

Other Sourcewatch Resources

External links

  • 1.0 1.1 ITS Global, "ITS Global Consultants", ITS Global, website archived from February 2007.