Sources
Q1 – European Parliament – Free Trade Agreements
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/topics/en/article/20161014STO47381/eu-free-trade-agreements-key-deals-and-the-negotiating-process
Last accessed: 12.04.2026
"Free trade agreements, also simply referred to as trade agreements, are treaties between two or more countries designed to improve trading and investment relations by removing related barriers."
Q2 – Britannica – Free Trade
https://www.britannica.com/money/free-trade
Last accessed: 12.04.2026
"Free trade is a policy by which a government does not discriminate against imports or interfere with exports by applying tariffs (to imports) or subsidies (to exports)."
Q3 – Wikipedia – Freihandelsabkommen
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freihandelsabkommen
Last accessed: 12.04.2026
"Mit dem Abkommen wird der Freihandel zwischen den Vertragspartnern gesichert. Zölle und nichttarifäre Handelshemmnisse, wie Exportbeschränkungen, Importquoten oder nationale Normen und Standards, werden abgeschafft."
Q4 – BPB – Zur Geschichte des Freihandels
https://www.bpb.de/shop/zeitschriften/apuz/263043/zur-geschichte-des-freihandels/
Last accessed: 12.04.2026
"Als System und internationale Vertragsordnung ist Freihandel ein relativ neues Phänomen der Weltgeschichte, das in Europa entstand und sich von dort aus über den Globus ausbreitete. Es gibt ihn erst seit der Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts."
"1860 schlossen Großbritannien und das Frankreich des Kaisers Napoleon III. den Cobden-Chevalier-Handelsvertrag – benannt nach Richard Cobden und seinem französischen Hauptverhandlungspartner Michel Chevalier."
Q5 – WTO – Free Trade Principles
https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/dda_e/status_e/jargon_e.htm
Last accessed: 12.04.2026
"Being desirous of contributing to these objectives by entering into reciprocal and mutually advantageous arrangements directed to the substantial reduction of tariffs and other barriers to trade and to the elimination of discriminatory treatment in international commerce."
"No prohibitions or restrictions other than duties, taxes or other charges, whether made effective through quotas, import or export licences or other measures, shall be instituted or maintained by any contracting party on the importation of any product of the territory of any other contracting party."
Q6 – WTO – Ad Valorem Tariffs
https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/glossary_e/ad_valorem_tariff_e.htm
Last accessed: 17.04.2026
"A tariff rate charged as percentage of the price."
Q8 – U.S. Customs – Duty Calculation
https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/assets/documents/2018-Feb/ACE%20CATAIR%20Appendix%20F%20Duty%20Calculation%20-%20April%202011.pdf
Last accessed: 17.04.2026
"The value is multiplied by the ad valorem or secondary rate."
Graphic Sources
VG1 – AI-generated image
Created with OpenAI DALL·E (text-to-image model), based on a custom prompt by the author.
Create an educational diagram for a geography video.
Topic: Free Trade Agreements and Tariffs
Visual:
- A neutral smartphone (no logos, simple modern design) centered on the slide.
- Two price tags next to the smartphone:
- Left: "575€" in red with a red strikethrough line, accompanied by a small customs/tariff shield icon labeled "15% Tariff".
- Right: "500€" in green with a green highlight, accompanied by a small "FTA" symbol (three interconnected circles representing countries).
- A red arrow between the two price tags labeled "−75€".
- Background: A simple, modern container ship (side view, no flags) on the left and a neutral customs station (building with a barrier gate) on the right.
Style:
- Clean, minimal, modern
- High contrast
- Simple shapes
- No text except for the price tags and labels
- No unnecessary details
Colors:
- Use Nora Studios gradient for accents:
- Top: #833AB4
- Middle: #E1306C
- Bottom: #FF5F1F
- Background: Transparent
Rules:
- No text except for the price tags and the "−75€" label
- No labels or icons unless necessary
- Focus on clarity
Composition:
- Centered layout
- Clear visual hierarchy
- Easy to understand at a glance
Output:
- High resolution
- Suitable for presentation slides
VG2 – AI-generated image
Created with OpenAI DALL·E (text-to-image model), based on a custom prompt by the author.
Create an educational diagram for a geography/economics video.
Topic: Free Trade Agreements
Visual:
- Two neutral country shapes (no flags, simple geometric forms) connected by a treaty document with a seal.
- Three barrier symbols that are crossed out with a red line:
1. A tariff shield with a "%" symbol.
2. A quota shield with a "limit" symbol (hourglass or barrier icon).
3. A stack of rule documents with a paragraph symbol (§).
- Arrows showing free flow of goods (a container ship between the countries).
- Before: Barriers block the flow of goods.
- After: Barriers are crossed out, goods flow freely.
Style:
- Clean, minimal, modern
- High contrast
- Simple shapes
- No text except for the symbols
- No unnecessary details
Colors:
- Barriers: Red
- Free flow: Green
- Accents: Use a gradient of #833AB4 (top), #E1306C (middle), #FF5F1F (bottom) for key elements
- Background: Transparent
Rules:
- No text except for the symbols
- No labels or icons unless necessary
- Focus on clarity and visual hierarchy
Composition:
- Centered layout
- Clear visual hierarchy
- Easy to understand at a glance
Output:
- High resolution
- Suitable for presentation slides
VG3 – AI-generated image
Created with OpenAI DALL·E (text-to-image model), based on a custom prompt by the author.
Create an educational diagram for a geography/economics video.
Topic: The 3 Core Rules of Free Trade
Visual:
- Three vertical pillars, each representing one of the core rules of free trade:
1. Non-Discrimination: A balance scale icon with two neutral country shapes (no flags) on each side, equally balanced.
2. Reciprocity: A double-headed arrow icon (⇄) between two neutral country shapes, with a tariff percentage decreasing from 15% to 0%.
3. Most-Favored-Nation: A star icon with three neutral country shapes around it, all receiving the same benefit.
- Background: A simple world map with trade routes (neutral, no real borders).
Style:
- Clean, minimal, modern
- High contrast
- Simple shapes
- No text except for the small labels on the pillar shields (ND, R, MFN)
- No unnecessary details
Colors:
- Pillars and icons: Use a gradient of #833AB4 (top), #E1306C (middle), #FF5F1F (bottom) for key elements
- Background: Transparent
Rules:
- No text except for the small labels on the pillar shields
- No labels or icons unless necessary
- Focus on clarity and visual hierarchy
Composition:
- Centered layout
- Clear visual hierarchy
- Easy to understand at a glance
Output:
- High resolution
- Suitable for presentation slides
VG4 – AI-generated image
Created with OpenAI DALL·E (text-to-image model), based on a custom prompt by the author.
Create an educational diagram for a geography/economics video.
Topic: How Tariffs Are Calculated: The Smartphone Example
Visual:
- A neutral smartphone (no logos, simple modern design) centered at the top.
- Below the smartphone, a bar chart comparing prices before and after a free trade agreement:
- "Before FTA": A stacked bar showing 500€ (blue, labeled "CIF Value") + 75€ (red, labeled "15% Tariff") = 575€ total.
- "After FTA": A single bar showing 500€ (green, labeled "CIF Value").
- A customs station icon in the background, crossed out in the "After FTA" section.
- A small shield with "15%" next to the red segment in the "Before FTA" bar.
- A green checkmark next to the 500€ bar in the "After FTA" section.
Style:
- Clean, minimal, modern
- High contrast
- Simple shapes
- No text except for the labels "CIF Value", "15% Tariff", "Before FTA", and "After FTA"
- No unnecessary details
Colors:
- CIF Value (500€): Blue (#0077B6)
- Tariff (75€): Red (#E1306C)
- After FTA (500€): Green (#4CAF50)
- Accents: Use a gradient of #833AB4 (top), #E1306C (middle), #FF5F1F (bottom) for key elements
- Background: Transparent
Rules:
- No text except for the labels mentioned above
- No labels or icons unless necessary
- Focus on clarity and visual hierarchy
Composition:
- Centered layout
- Clear visual hierarchy
- Easy to understand at a glance
Output:
- High resolution
- Suitable for presentation slides
VG5 – AI-generated image
Created with OpenAI DALL·E (text-to-image model), based on a custom prompt by the author.
Create an educational diagram for a geography/economics video.
Topic: The Origins of Free Trade: A 19th-Century Revolution
Visual:
- A horizontal timeline with two milestones:
1. 1846:
- Symbol: A wheat ear with a crossed-out euro symbol (representing the repeal of grain tariffs).
- Text: "1846" (small, neutral, below the symbol).
2. 1860:
- Symbol: A handshake between two neutral country silhouettes (no flags, representing the UK and France).
- Text: "1860" (small, neutral, below the symbol).
- Connecting arrow from 1846 to 1860 with the label "First Free Trade Agreement" (small, neutral, along the arrow).
- Background: A stylized world map (no real borders, neutral colors).
Style:
- Clean, minimal, modern
- High contrast
- Simple shapes
- No text except for the years and the label on the arrow
- No unnecessary details
Colors:
- Milestones: Use a gradient of #833AB4 (top), #E1306C (middle), #FF5F1F (bottom) for the symbols
- Arrow and label: #FF5F1F
- Background: Transparent
Rules:
- No text except for the years and the label on the arrow
- No labels or icons unless necessary
- Focus on clarity and visual hierarchy
Composition:
- Centered layout
- Clear visual hierarchy
- Easy to understand at a glance
Output:
- High resolution
- Suitable for presentation slides