Bradly J. Condon

The Role of Climate Change in Global Economic Governance

Climate change presents an unprecedented global challenge, and impacts upon a wide range of human economic activity. The issue of how to address climate change in developing countries has provoked international political controversy and the urgent need for effective international responses has become increasingly apparent. The Role of Climate Change in Global Economic Governance addresses the growing number of legal and economic issues that arise with respect to climate change, combining analysis from economic, financial, and legal perspectives. The book assesses how the World Trade Organization, international investment law, and the international intellectual property rights regime approach the economic issues raised by climate change. The authors analyse how climate change regulation interacts with international economic law, and consider how financial instruments and insurance can mitigate the risks posed by climate change and facilitate adaptation. It breaks new ground in considering the financial sectors response to climate change, looking at how market mechanisms and risk insurance can reduce its economic cost.

The Concordance of Multilingual Legal Texts at the WTO.

Abstract Multilingualism is a sensitive and complex subject in a global organisation such as the World Trade Organization (WTO). In the WTO legal texts, there is a need for full concordance, not simply translation. This article begins with an overview of the issues raised by multilingual processes at the WTO in the negotiation, drafting, translation, interpretation and litigation phases. It then compares concordance procedures in the WTO, European Union and United Nations and proposes new procedures to prevent and correct linguistic discrepancies in the WTO legal texts. It then categorises linguistic differences among the WTO legal texts and considers the suitability of proposed solutions for each category. The conclusion proposes an agenda for further work at the WTO to improve best practices based on the experience of the WTO and other international organisations and multilingual governments.

The Successes and Failures of Global Health Organizations: The World Health Organization, UNAIDS, Médicins sans Frontières and PEPFAR

Chapter 7 examined the operations of multilateral, bilateral and private donors in financing the fight against HIV/AIDS. This chapter examines the operations of five organizations that focus more directly on addressing HIV/AIDS health issues on the ground: the World Health Organization; UNAIDS; Médicins sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders); the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR); and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The first two form part of the United Nations (UN) system, the third is a private, non-profit non-governmental organization that relies on volunteers to deliver medical services and products in developing countries that are facing health crises and the fourth and fifth are a US government program and agency, respectively. The UN has won the Nobel Peace Prize a number of times: UN Middle East mediator (1950); UNHCR, the UN refugee agency (1954); UN Secretary-General (1961); UNICEF (1965); ILO, the UN labor agency (1969); UNHCR, the UN refugee agency (1981); UN peacekeeping (1988); and UN Secretary-General and the UN, jointly (2001). There are several bodies inside the UN that also have won the Nobel Peace Prize, such as the International Atomic Energy Agency (2005) and Director Mohamed El-Baradei and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2007). In addition, the prime minister of Canada, Lester Bowles Pearson, won Nobel Peace Prize for his work with the UN (1957). Médicins sans Frontières has won the Nobel Peace Prize once (1999)

Lost in Translation: A Comparative Analysis of Plurilingual Interpretion in WTO Panel and Appellate Body Reports

This article analyzes the extent to which the Appellate Body and WTO panels compare the authentic texts in their examination of the WTO Agreements and the extent to which the parties themselves do so in their arguments. The texts of the WTO Agreements are authentic in English, French and Spanish. Article 33 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties governs the interpretation of treaties authenticated in two or more languages. WTO practice diverges significantly from the rules set out in Article 33 and the travaux preparatoires of the International Law Commission. The terms of a plurilingual treaty are presumed to have the same meaning in each authentic text, which means that a treaty interpreter need not compare the authentic texts as a routine matter as a matter of law. Nevertheless, routine comparison of authentic texts would be good practice in the WTO context, since there are several discrepancies that could affect the interpretation of WTO provisions.Presented at the SIEL 2010 Conference in Barcelona.

Bilateral and Multilateral Financing of HIV/AIDS Programs: The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Global Fund, Bilateral Donors and the Private Sector

This chapter examines the operations of the World Bank (a multilateral development institution), the International Monetary Fund (a multilateral financial institution) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (a multilateral fundraising and financing institution) to fight HIV/AIDS. We also examine the role of bilateral donors and the private sector in financing the fight against HIV/AIDS. We examine the relationships among bilateral donors and international organizations, what distinguishes their roles in the global HIV/AIDS pandemic and the extent to which their activities overlap. In addition, we consider how funding strategies and parameters may affect the effectiveness of AIDS funding in preventing transmission and providing treatment.

The Way Forward: Prevention, Treatment and Human Rights

There now is a considerable body of evidence to support the view that an effective HIV/AIDS strategy integrates prevention, treatment and human rights. In this chapter, we emphasize the importance of each of these aspects and draw upon the conclusions reached in previous chapters to map out the future of HIV/AIDS. While medicine and science have a crucial role to play in addressing pandemics, whether slow-moving (like HIV/AIDS) or fast-moving (like influenza), the social, legal, political, financial and economic ramifications of pandemics can not be ignored. Well-considered social, legal, political and financial strategies are essential in order to address any pandemic effectively.

Introduction to the Economic, Financial, Political and Legal Implications of Global Pandemics

In this chapter, we begin with an assessment of the risks posed by fast-moving global pandemics. We then examine the origin and nature of the slow-moving global HIV/AIDS pandemic. The remainder of this chapter summarizes the topics that will be covered in the subsequent chapters of this book.

The Economics of HIV/AIDS

Economics is inextricably linked with HIV/AIDS. Economic conditions affect HIV/AIDS and, in turn, HIV/AIDS affects an economy at both the macro and micro levels. Thus, the link works in both directions. In this chapter, we examine the relationships between HIV/AIDS and poverty, inequality and social capital, and consider whether economic differences between countries explain differences in HIV prevalence. As we have noted in Chap. 3, HIV/AIDS disproportionately affects people of working age. In this chapter, we examine the potential economic impact of HIV/AIDS, using a macroeconomic model. This is followed by a review of microeconomic and epidemiological models that try to answer questions about the behavioral response of people who are either at risk of or actually living with HIV/AIDS. Such studies provide a useful mechanism for determining the effectiveness of HIV/AIDS prevention strategies (a topic we explore further in Chap. 9). Economics plays a significant role in the propagation of HIV/AIDS in high incidence countries. The economics of HIV/AIDS also shows us the likely economic returns on different strategies to prevent HIV infections.

AIDS Prevention, Treatment and Legal Rights: Local Strategies for a Global Disease

AIDS is a global disease. Prevention, treatment and human rights protection must all form part of any comprehensive AIDS strategy. Prevention, treatment and human rights protection are inter-related issues. For example, the rights of women affect their ability to use prevention strategies. Moreover, the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS, together with a lack of legal protection against discrimination, may deter people from seeking testing and treatment. Prevention, treatment and human rights strategies must also be adapted to suit the conditions in different parts of the globe. Variations in cultural values, affected groups, infection rates, legal systems, economic resources, and human resources mean that HIV/AIDS must be considered in specific contexts. This paper examines the use and absence of these three strategies in different regional contexts in developing and developed countries: South Africa, Brazil, Thailand, Japan and Australia. We examine AIDS strategies from a multidisciplinary perspective that considers legal issues, political issues, and demographic issues.