Project R-12896

FU-RIGHTS: The future of regional human rights systems in a reconfigured world (Research)

For decades, regional human rights systems like the European and Inter-American system of human rights have played a key role in securing and safeguarding human rights for hundreds of millions of persons. But today, developments that point towards a reconfigured world are challenging basic assumptions that underlie the functioning of these regional human rights systems. These developments are: (1) a gradual move towards a post-anthropocene world, indicated by developments in the law on climate change and on rights of nature; (2) a potential move towards a post-human world, indicated by developments in the law and practice on Artificial Intelligence; (3) an ongoing move towards a post-liberal-democratic world, indicated by increased autocratization in the world; and (4) the return of state sovereignty at the heart of the international legal order, in the form of international armed conflict on a scale unimaginable a few years ago. These developments are putting pressure not only on human rights in general, but also and especially on regional human rights systems, for a number of interrelated reasons. First, developments (1) and (2) challenge the continued relevance of human rights in a reconfigured world. As a result, regional human rights systems, which often employ a narrow understanding of human rights, may need to adapt to guarantee their continued relevance. Second, major legal innovations in response to developments (1) and (2) are occurring primarily at the international level or the national level, casting doubts on the ability of regional human rights systems to address these challenges. Third, and perhaps most importantly, tackling developments (1) and (2) is generally considered to require further internationalisation, whereas developments (3) and (4) signal a return of national state sovereignty at the heart of the international legal order. This push-pull between the international and the national generates further uncertainty on the role of regional human rights systems, which risk being caught between the international and the national in a reconfigured world. This project will investigate the future role of the European, African and Inter-American human rights system in a reconfigured world. It aims to do so by analysing how different regional human rights systems have, can and should recast their role within the wider human rights system in response to the evolving characteristics of the reconfigured world in which they operate.

16 June 2022 - 15 September 2023