The project explores how international law has accommodated human individuals, and how individual status, rights and obligations have become denser and more important in the international legal system. This so-called “humanisation” of international law is analysed in different historical periods and from various theoretical perspectives. The project elucidates how rights, interests, obligations and responsibilities of human individuals have shaped international norms and regimes. It examines how international law is responding to critique against the increased salience of individual actors and participants. It also suggests how international law can embrace post-anthropocentrism in an era of deep ecological and technical challenge.
The historical investigations explore how the interests of individuals have shaped the development of the legal system from antiquity to 1945. They provide a counterpoint to State-centric readings of international law’s history. The theoretical contributions investigates ius positivism and ius naturalism, Marxism, TWAIL, feminism, global law, global constitutionalism, law and economics, and legal anthropology. They introduce and further the positivism/naturalism debate, critical approaches, and interdisciplinary investigations.
The project seeks to stimulate further research on the humanisation of new fields ranging from the ius contra bellum to climate law.
Mo’s Footprints in the Sand
The banner image features the painting Mo’s Footprints in the Sand - Portuairk, Ardnamurchan by the Scottish artist John Lowrie Morrison. The painting depicts the beaches at Portuairk, one of the most westerly towns on the mainland of Scotland. It is located on the Ardnamurchan peninsular, renowned for its remoteness and un-spoilt beauty. The focal point of the painting is the image of the lone walker, reflecting the theme of our project and volume, while the emphasis on blues in the colour pallet, together with the serenity and dynamism of the use of the oils in the landscape and the sky, invokes a hopeful future. We are deeply grateful to John Lowrie Morrison for kind permission to use the image.
Permission Copyright: John Lowrie Morrison OBE.
Thomas Sparks
Tom Sparks and Anne Peters (eds), The Individual in International Law: History and Theory (Oxford UP 2024). open access: The Individual in International Law
Anne Peters and Tom Sparks convened an online workshop in order to discuss the draft contributions to our edited volume, The Individual in International Law - History and Theory. The workshop took place on the 17th and 18th June, 2021 via Zoom. Logistical information was sent to the authors and invited engaged listeners.
We are grateful to the Fritz Thyssen Foundation and to the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft for their generous support of our international authors workshop.
Of possible further interest the project: Individual Rights and Needs under International Law
