Abstracts should be submitted by June 30, 2023. Proposals will be considered by the conference convenors on the basis of academic merits and fit with the conference theme.

Abstracts should be no more than 400 words and include author (first name and last name), institutional affiliation and the title of the paper. Please e-mail all abstracts to vito.delucia@uit.no. We anticipate that authors will be advised by July 30, 2023 if their abstract has been accepted for presentation.

NCLOS invites engagements with and contributions to one or more of these themes:

  • Critical examinations of the current legal framework for ocean commons
  • Analyses of existing principles governing the commons
  • Interaction across international legal domains (law of the sea, trade, human rights etc.) and across plural legal orders (international, domestic, indigenous etc.)
  • Theoretical and methodological questions related to the notion of ocean commons
  • Alternative and novel approaches to the governance of ocean commons, including the role of non-sovereign agency (indigenous peoples, local communities, nature) and alternative legalities (e.g. legal pluralism) in the governance of ocean commons
  • The relationship between ocean commons and ocean justice
  • Future imaginaries of ocean commons governance
  • Comparative questions on global (and local) commons
  • Emerging and consolidating challenges to the governance of ocean commons (novel technologies, geopolitical shifts, climate change etc.)
  • The new implementation agreement of UNCLOS on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ)
  • The governance of regional commons.

Publication of Papers

The conference hopes to generate new knowledge and ideas on this crucial issue, which will be disseminated through an academic publication (or more than one), whether a special issue of peer-reviewed articles, an edited volume or alternative forms of dissemination, to be determined once the range of contributions is finalized and assessed.

Inquiries

Inquiries with respect to abstracts should be directed to Vito De Lucia at vito.delucia@uit.no. Inquiries regarding administrative matters ought to be directed to Christin Skjervold at christin.skjervold@uit.no.