Globalization and international economic governance offer unprecedented opportunities for cultural exchange. Foreign direct investments can promote cultural diversity and provide the funds needed to locate, recover and preserve cultural heritage. Nonetheless, globalization and international economic governance can also jeopardize cultural diversity and determine the erosion of the cultural wealth of nations. Has an international economic culture emerged that emphasizes productivity and economic development at the expense of the common wealth? This book explores the ‘clash of cultures’ between international law and international cultural law, and asks whether States can promote economic development without infringing their cultural wealth. The book contains original chapters by experts in the field. Key issues include how international courts and tribunals are adjudicating culture–related cases; the interplay between indigenous peoples' rights and economic globalization; and the relationships between culture, human rights, and economic activities. The book will be of great interest and use to researchers and students of international trade law, cultural heritage law, and public international law.

This book explores how Indigenous Peoples are impacted by globalization and the cult of the individual that often accompanies the phenomenon.

A comprehensive insight into the legal framework of international economic relations, comprising the law of the World Trade Organization, investment law, and international monetary law, this book highlights the context of human rights, good governance, environmental protection, development, and the role of the G20 and multinationals.

The book assesses emerging powers’ influence on international economic law and analyses whether their rhetoric of reforming this ‘unjust’ order translates into concrete reforms. The questions at the heart of the book surround the extent to which Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa individually and as a bloc (BRICS) provide alternative regulatory ideas to those of ‘Western’ States and whether they are able to convert their increased power into influence on global regulation. To do so, the book investigates two broader case studies, namely, the reform of international investment agreements and WTO reform negotiations since the start of the Doha Development Round. As a general outcome, it finds that emerging powers do not radically challenge established law. ‘Third World’ rhetoric mostly does not translate into practice and rather serves to veil economic interests. Still, emerging powers provide for some alternative regulatory ideas, already leading to a diversification of international economic law. As a general rule, they tend to support norms that allow host States much policy space which could be used to protect and fulfil socio-economic human rights, especially – but not only – in the Global South.

This book explores the objects, means and ends of international cultural heritage protection. It starts from a broad conception of cultural heritage that encompasses both tangible property, such as museum objects or buildings, and intangible heritage, such as languages and traditions. Cultural heritage thus defined is protected by various legal regimes, including the law of armed conflicts, UNESCO Conventions and international criminal law. With a view to strengthening international protection, the authors analyze existing regimes and elaborate innovative concepts, such as blue helmets of culture and safe havens for endangered cultural heritage. Finally, the ends of international protection come to the fore, and the authors address possible conflicts between protecting cultural diversity and wishes to strengthen cultural identity.

Since the 2008 economic meltdown, market-driven globalization has posed new challenges for governments. This collection introduces the innovative concept of “grey zones” of global governance, where international rules are bent or ignored. These zones are significant, contested spaces for state policy and market behaviour to interact with respect to trade, the environment, food security, and investment. Powerful incentives exist in the global economy for states to harmonize their policies through trade and investment agreements. But grey zones both promote uniformity in many areas of public life and facilitate diverse forms of capitalism in market societies. They enable governments to balance national and global economic benefits as they advance their core interests. At a time of growing nationalist sentiment, Grey Zones in International Economic Law and Global Governance explores creative local engagement with international economic law and offers a bold new way to understand public concerns about international trade and investment, food security, green energy, subsidies, and anti-dumping actions.

This volume examines the range of Non-Trade Concerns (NTCs) that may conflict with international economic rules and proposes ways to protect them within international law and international economic law. Globalization without local concerns can endanger relevant issues such as good governance, human rights, right to water, right to food, social, economic, cultural and environmental rights, labor rights, access to knowledge, public health, social welfare, consumer interests and animal welfare, climate change, energy, environmental protection and sustainable development, product safety, food safety and security. Focusing on China, the book shows the current trends of Chinese law and policy towards international standards. The authors argue that China can play a leading role in this context: not only has China adopted several reforms and new regulations to address NTCs; but it has started to play a very relevant role in international negotiations on NTCs such as climate change, energy, and culture, among others. While China is still considered a developing country, in particular from the NTCs’ point of view, it promises to be a key actor in international law in general and, more specifically, in international economic law in this respect. This volume assesses, taking into consideration its special context, China’s behavior internally and externally to understand its role and influence in shaping NTCs in the context of international economic law.