Intergovernmental Institutions Research Articles

Why federalism matters: policy feedback, institutional variation and the politics of trade policy-making in Canada and Germany

ABSTRACT Sub-federal units in federal systems increasingly participate in international trade policy-making, a domain that historically represents an exclusive jurisdiction of the federal level. A first strand of research emphasised exogenous factors, most notably the changing scope and depth of trade agreements and social contestation, to explain this trend. This study, by contrast, contributes to more recent efforts that focus on endogenous factors to elucidate variation in terms of how and with what implications sub-federal units have entrenched themselves in trade policy governance. The paper makes two contributions. First, it introduces a new theoretical argument suggesting that ideational and institutional feedback effects can explain variation in sub-federal trade policy-making. Second, the paper tests this framework by using two contrasting cases of federalism: Canada and Germany. The study shows that in Canada intergovernmental institutions facilitating sub-federal participation in trade policy-making had to be created through layering, while in Germany existing institutions were activated through conversion. Although both patterns of institutional change have empowered sub-federal units, they differ in terms of their robustness.

EU’s External Action and Russia: How Can Institutionalisation Affect Decision Making?

The independent role of international institutions has been taken to be the core of the debate between institutionalists and realists. This study explores the EU’s relations with Russia in two cases as a testbed for this debate. Institutional independence, meaning restriction on the ambitions of powerful states on the one hand, and the impact of less powerful states on decisions on the other, are taken here to be the opposite of the power politics of realism. Two cases are studied to show how the EU safeguards the rights and interests of small members and restrains the ambitions of powerful ones to make the case for the institutionalists’ argument. The article also shows how a supranational entity like the European Commission is relatively more successful than an intergovernmental one like the Council of Europe in furthering institutionalisation, even in high-profile cases which are lynchpins of the EU’s Russia policy. This is in line with institutionalists’ argument about the significance of institutionalisation, as the European Commission, through its regulatory mechanism, sets overarching rules and links issues, brings transparency by forcing information sharing, dispels the fear of cheating and paves the ground for more comparative empirical research to evaluate the depth of institutionalisation in supranational and intergovernmental institutions.

Legal protection for visual artists

AbstractIt is essential that sculptors, architects, and other three‐dimensional artists gain some familiarity with the extent and limits of intellectual property (IP) law and how it protects visual artists and their works. The main areas of IP legal protection for artists are traditional copyright law, the Visual Artists Rights Act, and the Architectural Works Copyright Protection Act. This article attempts to distill the large and complex discipline of intellectual property rights for visual artists. Legislative bodies, courts, nongovernmental organizations, international and intergovernmental institutions, and IP experts continue to struggle with the question of how to balance the public‐good benefits of legal protection for artists with the demands of commerce. From copyrights to courts to alternative resolutions and other interventions, IP is a discipline broad and intricate, but visual artists have many options, including legal, organizational, and educational opportunities, to strengthen their position.

International Cooperation of BRICS Countries in the Field of Forced Migration: Topical Issues and Prospectives

Introduction. International law acts of BRICS countries enshrine their attachment to enforcement of the international cooperation in the field of population, in particular migration. The rise in the number of forced migrants on their territories as well the accession of new States to BRICS explains the topicality of the research into the particularities and prospects of BRICS countries’ cooperation in the sphere of forced migration. Meanwhile the international law acts adopted by BRICS countries do not enshrine their unified position as regards general principles of their cooperation in the sphere of forced migration.Materials and Methods. The conciliation theory according to which creation of international law norms results from the reconciliation of international legal position of its subjects serves as the theoretical framework for the present research. While exercising autonomous international legal policy, each State aims at enshrining the principles of its foreign policy in the international law acts. International legal positions of States are enshrined in their treaties, national legislation and unilateral acts. The article contains the results of a comprehensive comparative analysis of international legal positions of BRICS countries as regards international law norms governing the legal status of forced migrants. The subject of the research includes universal treaties, BRICS countries’ international law acts, national legislation and unilateral acts.Results. BRICS is an intergovernmental institution, which is not de jure an international organisation. The acts adopted by BRICS countries are joint unilateral acts enshrining their unified positions on international law. International cooperation of BRICS countries in the sphere of forced migration is based on principles of rule of international law and multilateralism as well as their coincident and similar positions on interpretation and application of international law norms governing the legal status of forced migrants. BRICS international law acts enshrine the international law concepts applicable to the international cooperation in the field of forced migration.Discussion and Conclusions. Conciliation of international law positions of BRICS countries as regards interpretation and application of international law concepts of “durable solution to the problem of forced migrants”, “responsibility sharing”, “solidarity”, “common but differentiated responsibility” as well as other international law concepts upon which the international cooperation in the field of forced migration is based should be considered a prospective area of their international cooperation.

World Order Transformation from the Grassroots: Global South Social Movements and the Transcendence of Established Approaches to International Change

Abstract In contrast to traditional top-down perspectives, this article aims to shed alternative light on the prospects for change in global order through evaluating how perspectives offered among social movements located in the Global South consider how change can take place beyond established approaches. With reference to perspectives offered among the Global Tapestry of Alternatives, the article elucidates a model of global political change that transcends reformist and revolutionary dynamics, and which bypasses dominant state and intergovernmental institutions. The analysis highlights the ontological divide between these approaches and reformist and revolutionary perspectives, given their pluriversality drawing on concepts that to date have received inadequate attention in the study of international relations. The article further considers how these approaches—given their deep roots in long-established communitarian practices and their pluriversality—may be addressing today's crisis of global order from the bottom-up in ways that may avoid limitations of previous change agendas.

Developing best environmental practice for polymetallic nodule mining - a review of scientific recommendations

Best environmental practice (BEP) is a key component of an ecosystem approach to management and is typically a product of practical experience in established industries. For an emerging activity such as deep seabed mining, no such experience will exist at the time of deciding on the permissibility of the first industrial mines. Therefore, experience from deep ocean scientific experiments and research are important to develop a preliminary understanding of BEP for deep seabed mining. This paper offers a detailed review of the scientific literature from which it identifies elements of preliminary BEP for nodule mining. The paper describes the currently envisaged mining process for manganese nodules and its expected effects on the environment and extracts specific recommendations on how to minimise environmental impacts from mining in different layers of the ocean (benthic, benthopelagic, pelagic, and surface waters) as well as from noise and light impacts. In doing so, the paper aims to inform the Mining Code being developed by the International Seabed Authority (ISA). The ISA is the intergovernmental institution mandated to organise and control seabed mining on the international seabed. The ISA is obligated to ensure effective protection of the marine environment from harm likely to arise from mining, with BEP being a core tool to achieve that. This paper provides suggestions for a future ISA Standard on BEP.

The Green Climate Fund and private sector climate finance in the Global South

ABSTRACT Governments and international organizations are increasingly using public funds to mobilize and leverage private finance for climate projects in the Global South. An important international organization in the effort to mobilize the private sector for financing climate mitigation and adaptation in the Global South is the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The GCF was established under the UNFCCC in 2010 and is the world’s largest dedicated multilateral climate fund. The GCF differs from other intergovernmental institutions through its fund-wide inclusion of the private sector, ranging from project design and financing to project implementation. In this paper, we investigate private sector involvement in the GCF through a qualitative exploratory research approach. We ask two main questions: Do private sector projects deliver on their ambitious goals? What are the tensions, if any, between private sector engagement and other principles of the GCF (most importantly the principles of country ownership, mitigation/adaptation balance, transparency, and civil society participation)? This paper argues that private sector involvement does not provide an easy way out of the financial constraints of public climate financing. We show that the GCF fails to deliver on its ambitious goals in private sector engagement for a number of reasons. First, private sector interest in GCF projects is thus far underwhelming. Second, there are strong tradeoffs between private sector projects and the Global Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation (GPEDC) principles of country ownership, transparency, and civil society participation. Third, private sector involvement is creating a mitigation bias within the GCF portfolio. Fourth, while the private sector portfolio is good at channeling funds to particularly vulnerable countries, it does so mostly through large multi-country projects with weak country ownership. Fifth, there is a danger that private climate financing based on loans and equity might add to the debt burden of developing countries, destabilize financial markets, and further increase dependency on the Global North.

Shifting geopolitical sands: COP 28 and the new BRICS+

PurposeThe new additions to Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) expand into the broader Middle East and North Africa region, adding some of the largest populations and strongest economies of the region to BRICS+. Since the BRICS summit in August 2023, significant media attention has been given to the impacts of these shifting geopolitical sands, from the potential for de-dollarization processes, and the distribution of resource reserves for influencing markets. Conference of the Parties (COP) 28 presents an opportunity for these emerging economies (BRICS+) to assert their role in addressing the global climate crisis and push for more equitable and effective solutions. However, only little has been explored on how the new BRICS+ alignment will influence climate negotiations at COP 28 and the sustainability transition more broadly. This perspective article explores what the changes to BRICS+ mean for COP 28 and the relevance of COP 28 being hosted in a BRICS+ member country.Design/methodology/approachIn crafting this perspective paper on BRICS+, the authors' methodology primarily entails a comprehensive review of existing literature, policy documents and academic analyses related to the BRICS+, as well as the examination of official statements, declarations and policy shifts from BRICS+ member countries to gauge their intentions and priorities within this expanded framework. The authors also monitor developments leading up to COP 28 to provide real-time insights into how BRICS+ dynamics shape climate negotiations.FindingsThe authors' perspective article puts forth a number of insights. First, the BRICS+ member countries are prominent players in global geopolitics. Their involvement in COP 28 could lead to climate negotiations being intertwined with broader geopolitical issues, potentially impacting the pace and direction of climate agreements. Second, COP 28 offers a critical opportunity to bridge the divide between developed and developing nations in the realm of climate action and sustainable development. The BRICS+ countries may, in this COP event, explore options beyond the traditional intergovernmental institutions, which often reflect the influence, hegemony and power dynamics of the Global North. This includes South–South collaboration, bilateral financial support, innovative financing and direct trade. Finally, agendas related to capacity building in this coming event will be a critical component of the global climate change agenda in a way that develops South–South dialogs for climate change adaptation and mitigation.Originality/valueThe authors' research sheds light on the implications of this expansion for climate negotiations, a critical global concern. It delves into uncharted territory by examining how the BRICS+ alignment may influence climate initiatives, which has not been thoroughly explored in existing literature. This comprehensive perspective fills a critical gap in the current discourse, providing policymakers and scholars with a more holistic understanding of the implications of BRICS+ for the global agenda on sustainability. Moreover, the research offers real-time insights by monitoring developments leading up to and during COP 28, allowing for timely analysis and informed recommendations. This aspect of the research provides immediate value to stakeholders engaged in climate negotiations and international relations.

International cooperation when collecting evidence in the investigation of transnational organized crime: challenges and opportunities

The purpose of the article is to highlight the organizational aspects of international cooperation during the collection of evidence in criminal proceedings related to the investigation of transnational organized crime. The results of the study indicated that international cooperation to collect evidence in criminal proceedings related to transnational organized crime involves a variety of actors, including international organizations, intergovernmental institutions, state and local authorities, judicial and law enforcement agencies, public associations and organizations and individual citizens, the main purpose of which is to detect, investigate, and prevent the commission of criminal offenses by transnational organized criminal groups and criminal organizations, and searching ways to combat such criminal manifestations. One of the types of international cooperation in the area under consideration is the provision of international legal assistance during the collection of evidence. Practical implementation. It is established that expansion of international cooperation with foreign countries, improvement of existing international conventions and treaties, national legislation, constant exchange of experience between law enforcement agencies of foreign countries, development of a single mechanism for providing international legal assistance in criminal proceedings in various directions of its implementation are important factors of international cooperation. Value/originality. The study highlights the peculiarities of the organization of international cooperation in the investigation of transnational organized crime; directions for increasing its efficiency are suggested.

Регіональні безпекові комплекси в сучасних умовах

It is substantiated that in the current conditions of development of the world economy under the influence of globalization, regional security complexes are increasing their influence on the formation of international security. It is proved that in the process of evolution, security complexes have significantly diversified their scope and cover, in addition to military and defense issues, economic, environmental, social, information and other security elements. It is determined that the European and North American security complexes have reached the transcontinental level of institutional security. Modern regional security complexes (RSCs) differ in the degree of integration of security issues at the level of intergovernmental institutions - from relatively complete integration of approaches to resolving security issues (at the EU level) to weak security cooperation. It is determined that the institutional profile of regional security complexes is predominantly mixed, which is determined by the peculiarities of the activities of both universal and specialized interstate institutions. The author emphasizes the unevenness of institutional support for various components of economic security at the level of specialized interstate institutions.

Seminar Simulations of the European Union’s Intergovernmental Institutions: The Council of Ministers and Qualified Majority Voting

The case for the use of simulations in political science seminars to provide illustrative learning of complex political process has been well demonstrated across a variety of sub-disciplines within political science. Their value to the teaching of European Union politics has also been explored and is particularly valuable for the EU’s numerous examples of complex decision-making processes. This is particularly true of the EU’s Qualified Majority of Voting (QMV) system used in its Council of Ministers. This article demonstrates the use of a QMV simulation for undergraduate EU politics classes. Achievement of learning outcomes was greatly improved versus the standard Socratic seminar method and was in confirmed student feedback.

Scalar politics in transboundary fisheries management: The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission as an eco-scalar fix for South Pacific albacore tuna management

Scholars and policymakers have debated the correct scales for managing and conserving ocean resources for decades. To address the conservation and management of highly migratory fish species, like tuna, countries have established regional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs) to regulate transboundary fisheries at the scale of oceanic regions. However, in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean region, countries have expanded their tuna management efforts to encompass multiple and overlapping intergovernmental institutions operating at regional and subregional scales. Scholars have argued that this proliferation of institutions across scales—including the development of the region’s RFMO, the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC)—has strengthened transboundary tuna management. However, while scholars focus on the successes of scalar dynamics in the tropical purse seine fishery, less attention has been devoted to the smaller and less valuable southern longline fishery, where management progress has stalled. Management inaction at multiple scales has impacted the status of the fishery’s target stock, South Pacific albacore, and domestic fishing and processing industries in Pacific Island countries and territories. This article employs a scalar politics lens to consider why multi-scalar efforts to improve southern longline fishery management have produced no decisive change in management outcomes. Analysing over a decade of management debate and subregional institutional development, the article argues that the WCPFC has operated as an ‘eco-scalar fix’ in managing the southern longline fishery. Through a combination of ecological and political factors unique to the fishery, this eco-scalar fix has enabled distant water fishing countries to locate political authority with the WCPFC while shifting the responsibility for management reform onto the subregional efforts of Pacific Island countries. This case complicates and contributes to debates concerning scale in transboundary fisheries management by concluding that the effects of scalar politics on management outcomes are uneven and the product of asymmetrical, interest-driven dynamics among countries seeking to advance their interests in industrial fisheries.

In every crisis an opportunity? European Union integration in defence and the War on Ukraine

ABSTRACT Russia’s war on Ukraine has upended the European security order. Ukraine has requested EU membership, unprecedented sanctions have been imposed on Russia, European countries have shipped weapons and munitions to Ukraine and NATO has shored up its military presence. Despite such action, is it possible to speak of a transformative moment or ‘Zeitenwende’ for EU security and defence? This article analyses the state of EU integration in defence since the war on Ukraine. Drawing on hypotheses developed under ‘new intergovernmentalism’, this article analyses how EU Member State preferences in defence and intergovernmental-supranational dynamics are being shaped by the war. In particular, the article probes how supranational and intergovernmental institutions have reacted to the war and how domestic preferences have fed into recent EU defence efforts. In doing so, the article provides a preliminary assessment of the state of EU integration in defence since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Tourism development and women employment: A study on the European union countries

The intergovernmental institutions recommend tourism development as a policy goal for reducing gender inequality through employment channels. However, such approaches ignore the indirect and induced effects of tourism sector development on women’s employment through male dominated forward and backward linkages. Adverse spillover effects of tourism-related sectors limit the impact of tourism on generating women’s employment. With this goal in mind, the study estimates the spillover effect of tourism sector development on the gender gap in selected employment indicators of 27 European Union countries between 2008 and 2019. Results show that development in the tourism sector, measured by the number of tourists per active population, improves the gender gap in labor force participation, employment, and unemployment among EU countries. Considering the precarious working conditions of the tourism sector, results only reflect a limited aspect of women’s empowerment.

Africa and climate justice at COP27 and beyond: impacts and solutions through an interdisciplinary lens.

Climate justice is not just a financial transaction to protect the environment. It needs to be seen as the protection of the most vulnerable in society after centuries of resource exploitation. African countries disproportionately face impacts of climate change on their environments, their economies, their resources and their infrastructure. This leads to greater vulnerability and increased exposure to the negative effects of a changing climate. In this article, we highlight the importance of climate justice and its role within the United Nations negotiations, and ultimately in concrete action. We discuss current climate impacts across key sectors in the African region, with a focus on health, infrastructure, food and water scarcity, energy and finance. All sectors are affected by climate change. They are interconnected and under threat. This triggers a ripple effect, where threats in one sector have a knock-on effect on other sectors. We find that the current set of intergovernmental institutions have failed to adequately address climate justice. We also contend that a siloed approach to climate action has proven to be ineffective. As we head towards the next set of negotiations (COP27), this paper argues that the economic and social conditions in Africa can be addressed through financial and collaborative support for adaptation and localised solutions, but that this will only be achieved if climate justice is prioritised by the decision makers. This needs to include a global-scale transition in how climate finance is assessed and accessed. Climate justice underpins real, effective and sustainable solutions for climate action in Africa.

Transnational Network Authority and the Question of Grounding

The structure of the global governance system has undergone significant changes in the past few years. From a system governed primarily by intergovernmental institutions and multilateral treaties, it has metamorphosed into a hybrid field in which a plethora of public, private, and semi-public institutions interact in various ways. In this article, I focus on the increasingly important role of private transnational regulatory regimes (PTRs). I argue that the authority of PTRs emerges from (and is grounded by) their embeddedness in a dense web of ties with other PTRs. The model of network authority challenges the orthodox, hierarchical view of legal authority and contributes to the more general philosophical debate regarding the concept of grounding.

The Postmodernity of the European Union: A Discourse Analysis of State of the Union Addresses

ABSTRACT While the debate about further integration is ongoing, the European Union (EU) already shows signs of functioning like a state. The dynamics of the European integration process are defined by the duality of inter-governmentalism and supranationalism. This contradiction encouraged the development of the EU as a new hybrid political organisation. A software-assisted discourse analysis of the European State of the Union Addresses highlights that Presidents of the EU Commission have indeed conceptualised the Union both as a state-like entity and an intergovernmental institution because of its unique process of evolution, as evidenced by parallelism with the US event, the co-occurrence of conventional metaphors of statehood and EU-related metaphors as well as the merging of the concepts of “Europe” and “European Union” in the Addresses. Overall, the Addresses have contributed to creating a context of statehood for the EU on the one hand, and to reinforcing the position of the Presidents of the European Commission of the EU Parliament as leaders of the EU on the other.

A Game of Whac-A-Mole

Abstract This article focuses on the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement's utilization of ‘fluidity,’ conceptualized as the ability to adapt campaign tactics to multiple arenas and political opportunity structures simultaneously. Framing BDS as both a social movement and a transnational advocacy network, it demonstrates the movement's fluidity in the context of three campaigns: the campaign at the 65th FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) congress in 2015, which illustrates an ‘outsider’ strategy aimed at intergovernmental institutions; the 2014 Olive Declaration of municipalities endorsing BDS, which illustrates how local ‘insider’ campaigns can combine to create a translocal campaign; and the ‘Ferguson-Gaza moment’ in 2014, which illustrates how movements can engage at the level of civil society and embed themselves in the broader global justice movement.

Can Exceptionalism Withstand Crises? An Evaluation of the Arctic Council's Response to Climate Change and Russia's War on Ukraine

Abstract For almost three decades, the Arctic Council has been considered exceptional in its approach to domestic, environmental, and geopolitical issues. Russia's 2022 war on Ukraine and the subsequent pause of the Arctic Council, however, give cause to question whether the Arctic Council remains exceptional in the face of actual crises. We explore this question in two ways: as an endogenous crisis, we provide a systematic literature review of publications on Arctic Council climate change governance. As an exogenous crisis, we explore the Arctic Council's pause given the Russia–Ukraine war. Taken together, our findings suggest that while the Arctic Council has the potential for exceptionalism, it lacks the capacity to substantively respond to crises. In turn, our study provides further evidence to suggest that even idealized institutions may not truly offer unique methods for withstanding environmental and geopolitical challenges; furthermore, it highlights the precariousness of intergovernmental institutions considered broadly.

Institutionalization of the Policy of Counteracting Disinformation in the European Union

The article analyzes the institutional processes of ensuring the counteraction to the disinformation influences of the Russian Federation in the European Union, starting from the beginning of the Crimea anexia in 2014. The information space of the EU countries is vulnerable, as the information component in democratic states is critical for functioning of the political system and adequate communication between society and the authorities. Having analyzed the institutional mechanisms and normative documents of the EU, as well as the reaction to the disinformation campaigns of certain countries, the EU has gradually formed intergovernmental institutions to combat disinformation. We note that the responsible civil position of social networks, providers and electronic media contributes to the fight against disinformation expressed in joint resolutions and acts of self-censorship and thorough check of news, advertisers. Public activists, experts and journalists on volunteer basis have created a backbone of the tools to counter disinformation, which confirms the advantages of democratic civil society.