International investment agreements (“IIAs”) provide enforceable protections to foreign investors in order to stimulate investment flows and therefore sustainable development... [This paper] proposes that IIAs should be designed and evaluated with respect to their ability to promote investments that advance sustainable development goals, and to withhold benefits from investments that undermine these goals. Second, it... cautions that current provisions in IIAs protect the interests of investors over those of other stakeholders and constrain states’ abilities to regulate investments to conform with the public interest... Finally, it suggests that international agreements could and should do more to address transnational governance gaps, regulatory races to the bottom, and global commons problems, where international commitments related to the governance of investment could advance development outcomes.