Sovereignty

Sovereignty is at the core of understanding international law. In the evolution of LOSOG, there has been a debate on how to govern the seas and how to balance sovereignty and freedom of the seas. Sovereignty and sovereign rights have been the selected legal device to deal with challenges such as overexploitation of natural resources. For example, through the extension of the limits of the territorial sea and the establishment of the exclusive economic zone, which have provided the coastal states with increased competence to regulate fishing and other human activities. Yet, today sovereignty is challenged in the face of current and new challenges, in particular environmental threats such as common concern and biodiversity loss. The WP problematizes sovereignty and investigates how sovereignty could be redefined, adapted to and rethought to respond to such new global systemic challenges. This research will contribute to the main research question of the Aurora Center: What are the limits and possibilities of the current LOSOG framework to adapt and respond to the intertwined systemic challenges? And what are the possible future legal trajectories for LOSOG?

Key participants:  das Neves, Dahl, De Lucia, Frostad, Johansen, Solski, Torp Helmersen.

International partners: Ringbom, Tanaka, Trevisanut, Scott.