Mary E Footer - Böcker

The European Society of International Law (ESIL) is known for its particularly dynamic character. After 10 years of existence it has proved that it is one of the most cutting-edge scholarly associations in the field of public international law. At its 10th Anniversary Conference in September 2014, which was held in Vienna, participants assembled in order to discuss ‘International law and…’, the proceedings of which are published here. Going beyond the usual related disciplines of political science, international relations, economics and history, this conference ventured into less well-trodden paths, exploring the links between international law and cinema, philosophy, sports, the arts and other areas of human endeavour.As the proceedings show, it is clear that international law has long been influenced by other fields of law and other disciplines. They also explore whether the boundaries of international law have been crossed and, if so, in what ways.

Of the many challenges that society faces today, possibly none is more acute than the security of ordinary citizens when faced with a variety of natural or man-made disasters arising from climate and geological catastrophes, including the depletion of natural resources, environmental degradation, food shortages, terrorism, breaches of personal security and human security, or even the global economic crisis. States continue to be faced with a range of security issues arising from contested territorial spaces, military and maritime security and security threats relating to energy, infrastructure and the delivery of essential services. The theme of the book encompasses issues of human, political, military, socio-economic, environmental and energy security and raises two main questions. To what extent can international law address the types of natural and man-made security risks and challenges that threaten our livelihood, or very existence, in the twenty-first century? Where does international law fall short in meeting the problems that arise in different situations of insecurity and how should such shortcomings be addressed?

This is the fourth in the Series of Select Proceedings of the European Society of International Law (ESIL) featuring the most important and interesting papers presented at the Fifth Biennial Conference on ‘Regionalism and International Law’, organised by ESIL and the University of Valencia in 2012. As usual, the best papers from that conference have been re-written, edited and drawn together by the two editors to present a perspective on what is a flourishing forum for the discussion of new ideas and scholarship on international law.