scholarly journals Governing the global commons: the ‘planetary boundaries’ approach

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaus Bosselmann
Keyword(s):  
Outer Space ◽  
National Interest ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Planetary Boundaries ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
Nation States ◽  
National Jurisdiction

This article offers some ideas about a system of governance which reflects the reality of planetary boundaries (Rockström et al., 2009; Steffen et al., 2015). The goal of living safely within the boundaries of our planet cannot be achieved by relying on traditional forms of governance based on the concept of sovereign nation states. States, driven by national interest, have been resistant to accepting responsibility for areas beyond national jurisdiction known as the global commons (Ostrom, 1990). The focus for governing the global commons – the polar regions, oceans, atmosphere, outer space – needs to shift from states to Earth as a whole, evoking what might be called ‘Earth governance’.

From Mare Liberum to the Global Commons: Building on the Grotian Heritage

Grotiana ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 168-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vid Prislan ◽  
Nico Schrijver
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resources ◽  
International Law ◽  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Common Property ◽  
Outer Space ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
The Moon ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
National Jurisdiction

AbstractThis article addresses the heritage of Grotius's concept of common goods (res communes) as developed in his seminal work Mare liberum. This contribution identifies the basic tenets of Grotius's thinking on the nature of common property and identifies the relevance of these ideas for the present day management of global commons, i.e., the areas and natural resources beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. Successively, the article examines the regimes for: the deep seabed, the high seas, and marine mammals; outer space, particularly the moon; the two polar regions; and the atmosphere, in particular the ozone layer and the climate system. The article demonstrates how some of the original tenets of Grotius's concept of res communis – in particular the idea of inexhaustibility – can no longer be upheld and how the freedom of access to the global commons has become increasingly qualified and supplemented, if not replaced by a new law of international co-operation aimed at conservation and sustainable use of natural wealth and resources beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. The global commons function as laboratories for the testing of new principles of international law and new forms of international co-operation, which can be said to clearly build upon the Grotian heritage.

The Global Commons and Common Interests: Is there Common Ground?

2021 ◽  
pp. 13-45
Author(s):  
Nilufer Oral
Keyword(s):  
Common Ground ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Outer Space ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
The Moon ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Common Interests ◽  
And Control ◽  
High Seas

The global commons, or common areas, are those areas that lie beyond the national jurisdiction and control of any state. In general, these areas include the deep seabed, the high seas, the atmosphere, the Moon and outer space, and Antarctica. However, other than falling under a common nomenclature there is no common regime that applies to these common areas, or global commons. This chapter examines the different regimes of common heritage, common concern, and the freedom of the high seas, as they apply to the different global commons looking at the specific case of the new international legally binding instrument for conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction under negotiations at the United Nations. In conclusion the legal landscape that emerges for the global commons is one more of variation than commonality.

Remarks By Cymie Payne, Brian Egan, Lydia Slobodian, and Stefan Kirchner

2020 ◽  
Vol 114 ◽  
pp. 75-82
Author(s):  
Cymie Payne ◽  
Brian Egan ◽  
Lydia Slobodian ◽  
Stefan Kirchner
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Outer Space ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
National Jurisdiction

Professor Cymie Payne introduced this session, the final event for the Society's Signature Topic, “Beyond National Jurisdiction,” which examined international law governing the oceans, polar regions, cyberspace, and outer space.

Lessons from International Space Law: The Role of International Relations in Governing Global Commons Regions

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 434-453
Author(s):  
Edythe E. Weeks
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Outer Space ◽  
Political Process ◽  
First Century ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
Legal Norms ◽  
Space Law ◽  
Enforcement Mechanisms

Drawing from an analysis of experiences in outer space law, this paper provides insights into challenges involved with managing the global common spaces of the polar regions. The literature concerning governance of the international commons regions focuses on justice and equity concerning natural resources, climate change, the speed, uncertainty and consequences stemming from key actor activity in the Polar Regions. This usually boils down to successes and failures of treaty noncompliance and enforcement mechanisms, or the lack thereof. This paper highlights a current political process aimed at dismantling agreed upon terms outer space international agreements. This offers a snapshot of a political process, likely to influence evolving polar legal norms for the rapidly melting Arctic and Antarctic regions. This is a conceptual paper borrowing theoretical and methodological approaches from political science and international relations such as a Gramscian analysis, constructivism theory and critical discourse analysis, to present several interesting ideas. The purpose is to enable people to understand and explain that future colonisation patterns are unfolding today. It calls attention to issues likely to challenge and define our world in the twenty-first century.

Identifying Community Interests in International Law

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rüdiger Wolfrum
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Dispute Settlement ◽  
International Community ◽  
Available P ◽  
General Question ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
Settlement Systems ◽  
Community Interest ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Advisory Opinions

This chapter explores the general question of how to establish that the regulation of a certain matter constitutes a matter of community-wide concern, which is the necessary step for the recognition of community obligation. The hypothesis is that such a qualification must, first, be well founded factually and, secondly, accepted as such in a legal or political legitimizing process. On this basis, the chapter suggests that the governance of spaces beyond national jurisdiction constitutes a community interest and has to be guided by the interests of the international community. Exploring this question with respect to key common spaces and particular issues, the chapter notes the difficulty of most of the dispute settlement systems, which, being bilateral, are not fully adequate to address questions related to the management of global commons as well as for the protection of the environment. To avoid this difficulty, the chapter suggests greater reliance on advisory opinions where available.

The commons institution of Antarctica: a roadmap to governance of mankind resources

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paschalis Arvanitidis ◽  
Aikaterini Almyriotou
Keyword(s):  
Outer Space ◽  
Governance Structure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
Multiple Resources ◽  
Governance Regime ◽  
The Social ◽  
Common Resource ◽  
The Commons ◽  
The Antarctic

Purpose This paper aims to draw on Ostrom’s commons theory to analyse the governance regime of Antarctic as a commons institution. Antarctic is a peculiar territorial space on Earth, which due to its unique characteristics constitutes a global common resource that very much resembles outer space resources. On these grounds, the paper highlights successful, and less successful, arrangements developed in the Antarctic commons to be considered as a blueprint or roadmap towards the governance of outer space resources as a commons. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses first, the social-ecological system (SES) framework to outline the characteristics of Antarctic as a commons institution, and second, Ostrom’s design principles to assess the commons institution of Antarctic. The Antarctic commons institution is used next, as an analogy to reflect on the challenges outer space global resource face and the way it could be managed. Findings The paper concludes that Antarctic enjoys a functional, credible and successful commons institution that should reinforce the twofold governance structure it exhibits. Similar cases of global common resources, such as these of outer space, that seek to establish a similar commons institution should take into account issues related the benefits spectrum and the credible commitment of actors to engage in different levels of the governance regime. What matters is not necessarily the form of the regime but rather how the commons as an institution functions, whether it fulfils the needs and interests of the driving actors and, on these grounds, how credible these arrangements are in the eyes of the committed members. Research limitations/implications Both Antarctica and outer space are rather unique cases and domains of multiple resources. Practical implications The paper provides an analogy to consider sustainable appropriation of global resources (“global commons”) for peace and prosperity to all. Originality/value The paper is original, in the sense that according to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no published work has identified Antarctic as a commons institution or has used the aforementioned methodologies to analyse Antarctica as a commons and to employ their findings in providing directions for the design of appropriate governance frameworks for other resources that exhibit the characteristics of global commons, such as these of the outer space.

scholarly journals Iran’s Nuclear Decision Making and the Issue of Nuclear Non-Proliferation in the International System

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-65
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Suleiman ◽  
Hamza Shehu Mohammed ◽  
Haruna Mohammed Haruna
Keyword(s):  
Human Nature ◽  
International Politics ◽  
International System ◽  
National Interest ◽  
World Politics ◽  
The State ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Nation States ◽  
Military Diplomacy

This paper studies the reason for Iran’s nuclear decisions making by using the realist approach in the international politics, also the issue of nuclear non-proliferation in the international system and why the international system is totally against the Iran’s nuclear program? The study employs both primary and secondary sources as a method of data collection. The study reveals that that national interest should come first before any collective ones. The process which decisions are made is only determined by self-serving interests of those who possess power in the international system. The realist school of thought provides the critical opinions propounded by various political science scholars on power politics and national interest in the international system. According to Hans Morgenthau a classical realist scholar, society has to be governed generally by objective laws which are rooted in human nature. To him theory is necessary so that to bring order in the international politics, he rejected the idea of liberalism and idealism. Theory has to reflect the objective laws like power, military, diplomacy and norms of the society. First of all we have to look at the human nature which is seen as a rational, we have to examine through individual, group, and societal level because naturally human nature is selfish. Morgenthau defined the state as a collection of human beings who are self-interested, thus the state will have to deal with order interested states in the world politics. The aim of state in the international politics is pursuing national interest which is basically about power. He viewed international politics as a struggle for power.Thus, the realist scholars maintained that in the international politics, states happened to be the key actors and that politics is a conflictual, a struggle for anarchical environment in which nation-states defend on their own capabilities to survive.

scholarly journals Assessing Indian Ocean Economics: Perspective from Pakistan

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Zaeem Hassan Mehmood ◽  
Ramla Khan
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Security Threats ◽  
Export Markets ◽  
Trade Networks ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
Nation States ◽  
The Indian Ocean ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
Port Infrastructure

The Indian Ocean offers the “global commons” the sea lanes of communication that connects the East with the West. These SLOCs nurtures the global economic world by providing for a classical instance of ‘multilateral maritime matrix,’ whereby merchant ships are manufactured in one country, maintained and owned by another, underwritten by third, registered in fourth and crewed by subjects of another. In this regard, the strategic and commercial concerns of nation-states extends from its immediate maritime borders to the protection of chokepoints where merchandise is most vulnerable to array of contemporary security threats. The third largest ocean, since the cessation of bipolar hostilities after the end of the Cold War, has been integrated to global market economics to a critical extent whereby any interruptions to the established trade networks is likely to have a ‘shockwave effect’. The Indian Ocean is presaged to continue as a ‘central shipment pathway’ for regional and inter-continental trade in wide scope of commercial commodity items. The patterns observed in the region consists of up gradation of existing port infrastructure and developing export markets and resources based on blue economy would strengthen maritime ties. These transformations have the potential to permit the Indian Ocean to be the “strategic heart of the maritime world”.         

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