Kickoff seminar: A legal history of the global commons

A legal history of the global commons is a starting grant research project at Tilburg university. The project aims to become a connecting hub for scholars working in and around the history and theory of international law and to promote interdisciplinary research collaborations on the history of the global commons.

We invite scholars interested in speaking or presenting at our event to submit short abstracts for our consideration by Friday 8 March 2024. The event will be a 1-day seminar with a dinner in the evening, bringing together researchers interested in the field and charting out the overall arc of the history of the global commons, both in general and /or within the particular domains. The event will not be broadcast online.

We are delighted to welcome abstracts on all academic topics and questions that bear a relevance to the substance of the project, such as for example:

• Where should a history of the global commons begin? Where could it end?
• The legal concept of the “commons”, its history, its theory
• One, two, many global commons: what exactly are the global commons?
• Re-inventing the wheel? Past research efforts, lessons learned: has everything been done already?
• The rise and fall of the common heritage of mankind and the rights of future generations
• The global commons as continuation of empire / decolonizing the global commons
• Legal histories of conservation and environmental protection in the global commons
• The history of the global commons and global security, disarmament, use of force
• Public and private in the global commons. Does capital always win?
• The legal history of women and equality in research and access to the global commons
• Telling the story of the global commons; law, narratives, dreams and imaginations
• Methodological questions; how to do research – and where are the archives?
• Histories of particular global commons; high sea, deep seabed, Antarctica, outer space (etc?)

Please submit an abstract of one or two paragraphs to [email protected] by Friday 8 March 2024.

We will be able to cover travel and accommodation expenses for a finite number of speakers. This will be confirmed individually with the invited speakers.

More information:

email: [email protected] || [email protected]
website: www.doctorscommons.com/globalcommons