Douglas de Castro

The International Institutions as Promoters of Systemic and Symbolic Violence – Feminist Approach to the Climate Change Regime

Climate change regime is formed to ameliorate the impacts of anthropocentric activities over the environment. The structure of the regime is formed by multilateral international agreements that reproduce a colonial logic in which metanarratives are used to cast the shadow of domination thru the language of international law. In this study the metanarratives are challenged by feminist theory that provides the dialectic tools to expose the attempt to perpetuate the colonial ruling thru law. The empirical dimension of the study is conducted using the content analysis to identify the subtext and context underlying the text of international law, being such task conducted using a computer assisted qualitative data analysis software (CADQAS) called ATLAS.ti.

International River Basins as Regional Security Communities: The Okavango River Case

Due to the uneven water distribution around the world, population growth, high pressure over economic output (mostly food production) and an increasing number of sources of pollution, the use of water in international river basins will be under stress in the near future. However, why we won’t observe a crescent number of acute conflicts or wars? It is the opposite; States in the presence of water scarcity tend to engage into cooperative behavior embracing principles such as equitable and rational use to mention a few, but why? This chapter takes an interdisciplinary framework comprised by international law and theory of international relations and a constructivist approach for analyzing the quality of cooperation over transboundary water. The argument of the chapter is that the increasing sophistication in cooperation process over shared water produces important implications to international security in the river basins, thus, reaching the point of the formation of regional water security communities. At empirical level, the chapter presents evidences of the existence of a water security community in the Okavango River Basin, which demonstrates that even in challenging political and physical environments, as in the case of Sub-Saharan Africa, it is possible to achieve a high level of cooperation and institutional design that includes principles of governance and peaceful conflict resolution.

Escassez hídrica e Direito Internacional Econômico: o Brasil como protagonista na tranferência de água para regiões áridas

O presente artigo tem por objetivo inicial operacionalizar o conceito de agua virtual e aproxima-lo do direito internacional economico, apresentando assim as implicacoes de natureza economica e ambiental no comercio internacional de produtos agricolas e sua contribuicao para diminuir a escassez hidrica em regioes aridas. Inicialmente apresentaremos o conceito de agua virtual como originalmente formulado por Anthony Allan e a posterior inclusao dos indicadores de water footprint e rotulagem, que juntos apresentam uma ferramenta com grande poder analitico. Em seguida, abordaremos os temas associados ao comercio internacional que sofrerao a influencia do conceito de agua virtual, enfrentando, inclusive, alegacoes de praticas discriminatorias no âmbito do GATT. A analise na sua dimensao empirica e feita a partir do metodo qualitativo de estudo do caso brasileiro, sendo justificada sua escolha o protagonismo internacional do Brasil na exportacao de bens agricolas vis-a-vis as responsabilidades assumidas em questoes ambientais. Conclui-se da analise do caso que o Brasil reune as condicoes internas e externas para utilizar a agua virtual como alavancagem em foros multilaterais para ampliar o fluxo de agua que “escorre” no comercio internacional e contribuir para a reducao da escassez localmente.

Las elecciones implícitas en la investigación para la elaboración y aplicación de casos en cursos de Derecho Internacional

This article aims to bring the story of the experience of the interinstitutional research group called New teaching methodologies in law: case study in undergraduate and graduate degrees in International Law, between the Getulio Vargas Foundation and the University Mackenzie. The organization of the group takes place on the border between research and teaching, since the preparation of the case requires research of the concrete elements of a real situation and the pedagogical choice of elements to be analyzed and strategies for the application of the case in the classroom. Reflection on these steps is essential to identify the potential and limitations of the case, which depend on the theoretical and pedagogical choices implicit in the case designing. The authors propose to highlight these elements in the collective construction of the Samarco case that brings to light the discussion of law and international relations elements.

TRANSNACIONALISMO E PARADIPLOMACIA NAS RELAÇÕES ECONÔMICAS BRASIL-ANGOLA: O CASO DA CONSTRUÇÃO DE CAPANDA PELA CONSTRUTORA ODEBRECHT

A reconstrucao de Angola, com o final da guerra civil, dependeu e ainda depende em grande parte dos investimentos externos recebidos e teve as empresas brasileiras como as principais aliadas a partir de linhas de credito especialmente concedidas para este fim. Qual a razao que levou o Brasil a adotar uma postura de exercicio de influencia indireta em relacao a Angola, a despeito de sua pretensao explicita de politica externa de aumentar o intercâmbio Sul-Sul? O que levou as empresas brasileiras a aceitar os riscos de fazer negocios em um pais com baixa estabilidade politica e institucional, assolado por guerra civil e sem um quadro juridico estavel com o Brasil? Utilizando como quadro teorico o transnacionalismo e a paradiplomacia, as respostas para estes questionamentos serao apresentadas neste artigo a partir de estudo a ser conduzido no caso da construcao e posterior ampliacao da hidreletrica de Capanda.