Professor Spain to Present at International Law Conference in Japan

Professor Anna Spain has been invited to present her paper “The Emerging Architecture of International Dispute Resolution in an Era of Climate Change” at the Third International Four Societies Conference in Hyogo, Japan, in August 2010.

The theme of the conference is “International Law in the New Era of Globalization.”

“I am honored to represent the American Society of International Law and Colorado Law at the Four Societies conference in Japan this August,” said Spain.

Professor Spain’s paper addresses the current limitations of the international legal system in resolving international disputes over natural resources.

Professor Spain recommends institutionalizing inter-disciplinary approaches to international dispute resolution (IDR) that utilize mixed-methods of adjudication and mediation to solve the complex problems surrounding natural resource disputes. She believes that such an approach would provide long-term solutions and prevent the re-emergence of such conflicts in the future.

“I submitted this article because I believe that the peaceful resolution of conflict is one of the primary and most important functions of international law,” said Spain. “I hope to encourage thinking about how international law can promote global peace and security while upholding the highest values of our collective humanity in an era of climate change.”

The Four Societies Conference is an annual conference at which members from the Japanese Society of International Law, the Australian and New Zealand Society of International Law, the American Society of International Law, and the Canadian Council on International Law meet to discuss and debate international law.

Each society selects four finalists from their society to present papers at the conference. Professor Spain’s paper was one of the four selected by the American Society of International Law.