CCIL 41st Annual Conference: Ronald St. John Macdonald Young Scholars Award
Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at 11:54AM CALL FOR STUDENT PAPERS
The Canadian Council on International Law is inviting international law papers from students who are studying at the graduate or undergraduate level in any discipline. Articling students are also eligible: papers from articling students will be considered under the graduate student category.
Successful applicants will give a presentation based on their papers at the 2012 CCIL Annual Conference to be held in Ottawa from November 8-10, 2012. One award will be given for the best graduate paper and one for the best undergraduate paper. Winners will receive the fourth annual Ronald St. John Macdonald Young Scholars Award. (Subsidies for travel to the annual conference are available.)
This year's CCIL conference theme is “SOS International Law: International Law and Disasters and Emergencies”. Crises and emergencies come in many forms. They may be financial, environmental or purely political, as states break apart, governments are ousted or armed conflicts occur. From the financial turmoil in the United States and Europe, to the surge for democracy in the Arab world and resulting civil conflicts, to natural disasters in Haiti and Japan, and to the predicament of nuclear proliferation in Iran and elsewhere, international relations have been preoccupied by these crises and emergencies. And behind these newspaper headlines are countless crises averted or emergencies abated, where early intervention forestalls disasters before they emerge.
International reactions to emergencies and crises are the stuff of high politics. In some instances, international law may prove a useful tool in the decision-making of states confronting such calamities. In other cases, it seems woefully inadequate and plays at best a supporting role. What part is there for international law in dealing with crises and emergencies? Is international law capable of providing useful guidance during catastrophes? Or is it instead burdened with feet of clay?
Papers that reflect the conference theme will be given strong consideration by the CCIL Ronald St. John Macdonald Award Selection Committee. Papers must be no more than 35 pages in length.
All papers must be the original workproduct of the applicant. Applicants must observe fully academic conventions barring plagiarism and other forms of academic fraud.
Papers should be sent by email to: manager@ccil-ccdi.ca by July 15, 2012. Please use the subject heading: Macdonald Award