To examine the intersection between trade and gender equality rights, The North-South Institute, in collaboration with the University of British Columbia's Asia Pacific Dispute Resolution Project and the University of Ottawa's Human Rights Research and Education Centre and School of International Development and Global Studies, has organized the conference Coordinating Compliance between Gender Eq. [...] The widely accepted Universal Declaration of Human Rights along with the international Covenants on Political and Civil Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights provide support for these principles in their recognition of the equal rights of women and men. [...] In each, signatories commit to make improvements over "A focus on the equal rights and gender dimensions of trade liberalization allows for a broader view of poverty reduction and sustainable economic growth." "Trade policy makers need to carefully examine the relationship of trade agreements to a range of other rights, and the best time to consider these competing rights is at the negotiation sta. [...] There are potential conflicts, however, between the rights to an adequate standard of living, to food, and to the highest standard of health on the one hand, and trade agreements including the Agreement on Agriculture, the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). [...] The North-South Institute acknowledges the financial support of the Asia Pacific Dispute Resolution Project at the University of British Columbia; the Human Rights Research and Education Centre and School of International Development and Global Studies at the University of Ottawa; and, Canada's International Development Research Centre.