Periodic Reporting for period 2 - SRR (Sovereignty and the Right to Regulate)
Berichtszeitraum: 2019-02-01 bis 2020-01-31
In the returh phase, I completed research for two wide-ranging articles. The first article, entitled “The Myth of the Standard of Civilisation”, was first presented in outline in May 2019 at the workshop which I co-organised at the University of Tartu. I argue in the article that the so-called 'standard of civilization’ was never part of international law. This conclusion changes our perspective on the present system international investment law since it undermines the claim that its investor-friendly character reflects a survival of the old civilisational standard. The second article (forthcoming in the Oxford Handbook of the History of International Law in Europe) is entitled “Sovereignty: Alive and Well?”. In this text, I was able to link the work completed during the project to ongoing debates surrounding responses to the Covid-19 crisis.
A large part of the work carried out during the return phase related to skill transfer. I taught a seminar course at the University of Tartu dedicated to sovereignty in the Autumn semester of 2019. It had many participants from other European countries, thus being yet another means to disseminate the results of the project internationally. I was also able to apply the management skills acquired at Harvard in putting together a successful grant proposal for a five-year international project on sovereignty and self-determination in May 2019."
Secondly, the project has contested the notion that international investment law is biased towards investment protection because of its historical origins. I developed an alternative to the reception model which had been dominant in studying the history and global diffusion of international law. The introduction of this novel approach has extended the impact of project beyond the field of law since the reception paradigm I criticise is prevalent in cultural studies more generally.
Thirdly, the project has led to important results regarding the political effects of economic interdependence. It is often assumed - particularly in the context of European integration - that rules which enhance economic interdependence (by promoting cross-border trade and investment), favor the creation of larger political units. The project has led to a better understanding of how rules protecting economic openness may cause an entirely rational backlash against economic openness by some groups. The appreciation of this fact should lead to more research into the political effects of economic integration, especially in the context of the European Union.
The project led to the creation of a permanent outfit dedicated to studying international economic law in Tartu. The grant proposal put together in the final year of the project obtained full funding from the Estonian Research Council for the next five years. The project also led to direct input into policy planning. In 2018, I became member of the group of experts helping the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to formulate the “Foreign Policy 2030 Development Plan”. Drawing directly on the work conducted under the project, I advised top officials of the Ministry on ways to contribute to the EU’s investment and trade policy in the coming decade, especially in the area of digital trade. In November 2019, I shared the results of the project with around 300 state officials involved in drafting legislation.