The Canadian Council on International Law is currently calling for proposals for its 45th Annual Conference held under the theme “The Promise of International Law: Solutions for the World’s Crises“.

When?

The Conference will be held from November 3-5, 2016. The deadline to submit a proposal is 31 May 2016.

Where?

The Conference will be held at Global Affairs Canada, at 111 & 125 Sussex Road, Ottawa.

Theme

In a world of accelerating change, there is a need to adapt quickly and implement solutions to address crises.

The term crisis can be applied to almost any international law issue when that issue reaches an undeniable intensity. The international community faces crises on numerous fronts across all dimensions: social, political, economic, and environmental.In fact, it can be applied to almost any international law issue. As such, international law has been called on to tackle pressing subjects like climate change, genocide, fluctuating oil prices, unstable economies, human migration, disease outbreak, poverty, consumerism/consumption, war, species extinctions, corporate instability, and lack of governance.

International law has often been called upon to provide the solution to these various crises. Sometimes, international law becomes the framework for international legal actors to resolve issues. Other times, international law is itself the solution to the problem. In what ways are international law being looked to and applied to the issues of today that are of most concern to the global community? What are those potential solutions and what is the action-plan to move forward?

But is the current international legal system yielding enough solutions to address new crises? International law may be falling short and losing relevance. International law experts constantly adapt to stay relevant in this fluctuating world. But are we keeping up? Is international law moving fast enough with technology? Can treaties and governance helpin situations of constant changes? What are the solutions therein?

The term “crisis” itself raises several foundational questions of its own. Is it too abrasive? For instance, can the slowing economy and fluctuation of oil prices really be considered a crisis? Perhaps they are just cyclical challenges with solutions just around the corner. Is climate change at a crisis already? If not yet at that level, can a crisis on the international legal issues be averted through cooperation and international law? What are the crisis-prevention measures exactly, and what do they look like? Or does the international community require a crisis in order to galvanize?

All these issues, and more, will be discussed at the 45th Annual Conference of the Canadian Council on International Law (CCIL). Join us as we discuss solutions to the world’s crises.

Proposals

All types and topics for panel and paper proposals are welcome. When crafting the proposal, note and address the following, where applicable:

• All proposals must relate to the 45th Annual Conference theme: The Promise of International Law: Solutions for the World’s Crises.
• The CCIL encourages proposals from all sectors within the legal profession (academia, private law firms, NGO’s, and government lawyers)
• Diversity in speakers and panel composition from designated groups will be a focus when crafting the program.
• Creativity in proposals will also be a focus and we encourage deviation from traditional reading of a power point presentation, such as case studies, debates, ensuring interaction with audience such as extended Q&A, mock treaty negotiation, etc.
• Speaker duplicates during the Conference are discouraged (i.e. one speaker should not be on more than one panel).

All areas of international law are welcome.

Panel Proposals

Panel proposals should be organized around the Conference theme and must include a brief description of the focus, format, and speakers.

Focus: The focus of the panel should be described including a presentation title, with descriptions of the particular sub-topics proposed (300 words maximum). Emphasis should be placed on the various perspectives on the sub-topic that will be presented. Solutions for each crisis must be offered.

Construction/Format:Diversity (i.e. Equal gender representation and/or designated group representation) and creativity in panel format(i.e. Deviation from traditional delivery methods), such as increased audience interaction, will be considered an asset.Formats should encourage audience interaction with an objective toward solution- making and teachable moments. Examples of creative panel formats include:

• Debates (ex. Theory vs. Practice)
• Case Studies;Real-life Experiences
• Mock negotiation/trial/arbitration/etc. (possibly based on a case, which can then be reviewed with the solution & applied law in reality)
• Roundtable
• Panels focused mainly on interaction with delegates, such as Q&A’s

Proposed Speakers:Include a list of the proposed speakers (minimum of 3 speakers) with their anticipated contributions, such as topics or titles. Note that:

• Proposed speakers must have already expressed a willingness and availability to participate in the Conference should the proposal be accepted.
• All speakers must be available each day of the Conference for assignment to a program timeslot (November 3-5, 2016).
• Designations/title, organization, and short biographies of the proposed Chair and speakers should be included with the proposal.
• Speakers will receive a 50% discount on the Conference fee.
• Speaker duplicates on different panels is discouraged (Speakers should not appear more than once on the program, which will be a factor in panel selection).

If accepted for the program, speakers must be confirmed and panels must be finalized and provided to the CCIL by September 26, 2016. CCIL will assign the date and time of the panel.

Paper Proposals

Paper proposals should include a working title of the paper and an abstract (300 words maximum) describing the paper’s main thesis, methods, and contribution. Applicants should also include the designation/title, organization, and a short biography (200 words maximum). Solution(s) for any crisis in the proposal must be offered.

Authors of accepted proposals have the option to draft a paper on their proposed topic, and CCIL may publish the paper. Final papers should be sent to manager@ccil-ccdi.ca no later than November 1, 2016.