The protection of general interests in contemporary international law: some introductory remarks

This book is aimed at analysing the notions of global public goods, global commons, and fundamental values as conceptual tools geared towards the protection of the general interests of the international community. After having provided the readers with a general overview of the abovementioned concepts, the book examines how international law has responded to what qualifies as global public goods, global commons, and fundamental values in a wide range of fields. Moreover, the work also investigates how global governance has improved (or worsened) this response. Authors have discussed which general interests have or have not been deemed to deserve the protection of international law in one or more of the categories under scrutiny, and why; they have also explored the legal foundation of such interests in international law. In addition, they have focused on whether and how it is appropriate that international law intervenes to regulate such interests, taking into account the interplay between the multiple actors of international law, ranging from states, international and regional organizations, and non-state actors. They have further explored how states and other actors have used international law to protect general interests, what lessons can be learned from these efforts, and what main challenges still need to be addressed. Looking at international law through the prism of global public goods, global commons, and fundamental values has also implied an in-depth examination of different substantive regimes, such as, e.g. those regulating human rights, the protection of the environment, and international economic law.