Much of our understanding of the world is framed from the perspective of a dominant power center, or from standard readings of historical events. The architecture of international information distribution, academic centers, and the lingua franca of international scholarly discourse also shape these stories. Remoteness Reconsidered employs the idea of remoteness as an analytical tool for viewing international law's encounter with the Americas from the unusual, peripheral perspective of the Atacama Desert. The Atacama is one of the most remote places on Earth, although that less-than-accurate perspective comes from standard historical accounts of the region, accounts that originate from the “center.” Changing the usual frame of reference leads to a reconsideration of the idea of remoteness and of the subsequent marginalization of historical narratives that influence hemispheric international relations in important ways today. Lessons about international law's encounters with neoliberalism, indigenous and human rights, and the management and extraction of mineral resources take on new significance by following a spatial turn toward the idea of remoteness as applied to the Atacama Desert.

This book challenges certain differences between contract, tort and equity in relation to the measure (in a broad sense) of damages. Damages are defined as the monetary award made by a court in consequence of a breach of contract, a tort or an equitable wrong. In all these causes of action, damages usually aim to put the claimant into the position the claimant would be in without the wrong. Even though the main objective of damages is thus the same for each cause of action, their measure is not. While some aspects of the measure of damages are more or less harmonised between contract, tort and equity (e.g. causation in fact and mitigation), significant differences exist in relation to (1) remoteness of damage, which is the question of whether, when and to which degree damage needs to be foreseeable to be recoverable; (2) the compensability of non-pecuniary loss such as pain and suffering, distress and loss of reputation; (3) the effect of contributory negligence, which is the victim's contribution to the occurrence of the wrong or the ensuing loss through unreasonable conduct prior to the wrong; (4) the circumstances under which victims of wrongs can claim the gain the wrongdoer has made from the wrong; and (5) the availability and scope of exemplary (or punitive) damages. For each of the five topics, this book examines the present position in contract, tort and equity and establishes the differences between the three areas. It goes on to scrutinise the arguments in defence of existing differences. The conclusion on each topic is that the present differences between contract, tort and equity cannot be justified on merits and should be removed through a harmonisation of the relevant principles.

While entities as different as armed groups, multinational corporations, political parties, megacities, labour unions, terrorist organisations, or indigenous peoples are mentioned as non-state actors in the relevant literature, rural communities are never referred to. This book addresses the role of rural communities as non-state actors, lifting this invisibility veil with arguments coming from three theories of/scholarly approaches to international law: positivism, sociolegal realism (the New Haven School), and constitutionalism. It argues, first, that rural communities are recognised by the community of states as derived subjects of international law since they are made bearers of rights and duties in some major multilateral treaties. Second, rural communities have the ability to affect international lawmaking as they acquire the tools to influence decision-making in international arbitration and court litigation. Finally, the book highlights the need to recognise the status of rural communities when seeking global justice, as these are the communities that benefit the least from globalisation, while paying the highest price in terms of damage to the natural and sociocultural environment. Advocating for the existence of some supreme norms above the will of the states and the recognition of rural communities as non-state actors, this book will be of interest to academics, policy-makers, and non-governmental organisations working in the field of public international law and rural social matters.

This book brings together thirteen of Nicholas Onuf’s previously published yet rarely cited essays. They address topics that Onuf has puzzled over for decades, including the problem of materiality in social construction, epochal change in the modern world, and the power of language.

Engaging and innovative, this text uses problems and illustrations to help students quickly grasp core concepts, identify relevant issues, engage with key debates, and apply their learning to real-life contexts.

This book examines how the United States adopted and contributed to the practices of international society—the habits and practices states use to regulate their relations—during the nineteenth century. Expert contributors consider America’s "entry" into international society and how independence forced it to enter into diplomatic relations with European states and start a permanent engagement with a society of states. Individual chapters focus on U.S. perceptions of the international order and its place within it, the U.S. position on international issues of that period, and how America’s perceptions and positions affected or were affected by the habits, practices, and institutions of international society. This volume will serve as an invaluable text for undergraduate courses focusing on international relations theory and U.S. foreign policy. It will also appeal to established scholars in international relations, diplomacy, and international history and historical sociology.

Politics "with" the environment