Law and Development Activities, 2023-2009
2023
26–27 June 2023 — Distribution of Responsibility in Protecting Human Rights
This workshop examined extraterritorial human rights obligations in relation to multinational businesses and climate change, including state regulation, corporate due diligence and climate litigation.
Open-access Routledge Handbook
2022
9 September 2022 — UN Global Congress of Victims of Terrorism
Deborah Casalin addressed the rights of people displaced by terrorism, emphasizing protection, assistance, non-refoulement and a victim-centred approach.
August 2022 — Research Visit to Mzumbe University
Researchers developed cooperation on child marriage and health in Tanzania, provided research-funding training and launched an app for social workers.
15–20 August 2022 — Advanced Course on the Right to Development in Africa
The Centre for Human Rights at the University of Pretoria and the Law and Development Research Group organized an intensive course followed by a two-day roundtable at Future Africa.
8–12 August 2022 — Cooperation with Universidad Católica Boliviana Renewed
The VLIR-UOS-supported partnership was renewed for five years, including doctoral research on indigenous forest law, community legal clinics and pollution in the Katari River Basin.
20–24 June 2022 — Doctoral Seminar on Future-Proofing Human Rights
Wouter Vandenhole delivered a seminar at Addis Ababa University addressing state-centred responsibility, socioeconomic inequality, planetary boundaries and colonial legacies.
3 June 2022 — Biodiversity Litigation Workshop Series Concludes
Three international workshops compared biodiversity litigation in Europe and the Global South before developing a transnational and multidisciplinary research agenda.
European biodiversity litigation · Global South workshop · Transnational research agenda
20 May 2022 — Research Day on Future-Proofing Human Rights
The research day examined how stronger forms of accountability could respond to complex and multilayered human rights violations.
27 April 2022 — Corporate Accountability for Atrocity Crimes
Professor David Scheffer delivered a Francqui Class of Excellence keynote on corporate involvement in atrocity crimes and the relationship between voluntary standards and legal accountability.
26–27 April 2022 — PhD School on Human Rights and Global Justice
Doctoral researchers from universities in Antwerp, Lima, New Delhi, Padova and Pretoria discussed research methodologies and subjects including violence against women, digital technology, trade and vulnerability.
March 2022 — Lectures on Global Justice, Inequality and Decolonization
Professor Punj of National Law University Delhi taught students about global justice, deep inequality and decolonization and delivered a public lecture on developments concerning abortion in India.
2022 — Advanced Introduction to Children’s Rights
Gamze Erdem Türkelli and Wouter Vandenhole published a multidisciplinary introduction to the rights children share with adults and their differentiated and special rights.
2022 — Manisha Aswal’s Research Visit
The National Law University Delhi doctoral researcher studied Belgian policies for promoting gender inclusion in education.
2022 — Deborah Casalin Completes Her PhD
Deborah Casalin completed doctoral research on the role of international and regional human rights mechanisms in securing reparation for arbitrary displacement.
2022 — Expert Advice on Children’s Rights and the Environment
Researchers advised the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child about states’ responsibilities for environmental and climate-related harm to children.
2022 — “To the Righthouse” Podcast
Professor Koen De Feyter discussed tensions between human rights, economic progress, national security and political stability.
2021
13 December 2021 — European Biodiversity Litigation Workshop
The first workshop in the biodiversity-litigation series examined litigation before European and national courts from academic and practitioner perspectives.
10 December 2021 — Max van der Stoel Human Rights Award
Yousra Benfquih received the award for her doctoral research on reasonable accommodation in education, substantive equality, inclusive education and freedom of religion.
8–10 December 2021 — Child Marriage and Health
Following Isabela Warioba’s PhD defence, researchers presented findings on children’s rights, child marriage, health and the translation of international standards into local contexts.
6 December 2021 — PhD Defence on Child and Adolescent Sexuality
Katarzyna Wazynska-Finck defended research on the protective and emancipatory roles of law in sexuality education, reproductive health and sexual-assault legislation.
1–3 December 2021 — Global Law Schools’ Summit
The virtual summit explored the present and future of global legal education. Professor Thalia Kruger contributed to a panel on the changing professional identity of law teachers.
1 December 2021 — Green Finance and European Policy
Dr Daniel Tischer examined how financial actors and institutional networks shaped European green-finance narratives and policymaking.
1 December 2021 — Yearbook on Poverty and Social Exclusion
The thirtieth yearbook addressed poverty during pandemics and reflected on three decades of poverty policy in Flanders and Belgium.
24–26 November 2021 — Fifth LDRN Conference
Hosted online by Nelson Mandela University, the conference addressed law and development beyond the crisis, including health, climate change, migration, land and international economic law.
Law and Development Research Network
25 October 2021 — Decolonizing Human Rights Research and Teaching
Wouter Vandenhole discussed the decolonization of human rights curricula, staffing, teaching and research with doctoral students at the University of Padova.
12 October 2021 — Fundamental Human Rights Forum
Professor Koen De Feyter joined a panel in Vienna on protecting freedom of artistic expression.
September 2021 — Advisory Report on Intercountry Adoption
An expert panel involving Wouter Vandenhole advised the Flemish Government to adopt a more restrictive approach to intercountry adoption.
24–25 June 2021 — INCLUDE Conference on International Child Abduction
Young people presented participatory research on child-friendly practices in international child-abduction proceedings, contributing to guidance for legal and other professionals.
23 June 2021 — Shifting Concepts of Development in International Law
Professor Koen De Feyter delivered an online policy talk examining changing understandings of development in international law.
16–25 March 2021 — Research and Supervision Training
Law and Development researchers contributed to doctoral research, publication and supervision training organized with Austral University and the University of Venda.
2021 — Third-Party Intervention in European Climate Case
Group members joined an intervention in Duarte Agostinho and Others v. Portugal and Others, presenting arguments on extraterritorial climate obligations and children’s need for special protection.
European Court of Human Rights case database
2021 — Children’s Rights Perspective on Well-Being
Wouter Vandenhole published an article in Population Review examining child well-being through a children’s-rights framework.
2020
2020 — Yousra Benfquih Selected for the Flemish PhD Cup
Yousra Benfquih’s dissertation on reasonable accommodation, equality, inclusive education and freedom of religion was selected as one of sixteen entries advancing in the competition.
15–30 January 2020 — Winter School on Law, Justice and Sustainable Development
The University of Antwerp and National Law University Delhi organized a Winter School covering sustainable development, plural identities, education, children’s rights and human rights-based approaches to development.
2019
9 May 2019 — Annual LAW&DEV Research Day
The programme combined a lecture on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants with roundtables on interdisciplinary research and academic activism.
25–26 March 2019 — From Researcher to Author
Early-career law and development scholars worked with experienced researchers to transform doctoral research into academic books and journal articles.
5 February 2019 — Human Rights Risks in the Construction Sector
This expert seminar considered the human rights and sustainable-development risks associated with major infrastructure projects, focusing on construction workers and affected neighbourhoods.
2018
6–7 December 2018 — Children’s Well-Being in International Abduction Proceedings
The VOICE project trained judges, lawyers, mediators and other legal professionals to better protect children’s well-being during international child-abduction proceedings.
2017
16 November 2017 — Referendums, Secession and Self-Determination
This public debate considered the legal and political implications of referendums in Catalonia, Scotland, Crimea, Kurdistan and other contexts.
2014–2016
No dated activities were identified in the supplied archive pages for these years.
2013
18–20 March 2013 — Doctoral Seminar on Global Multilevel Governance
Doctoral and postdoctoral researchers discussed globalization, multilevel governance and constitutionalism while developing their methodology, presentation skills and critical perspectives.
14 March 2013 — Human Rights Integration Expert Seminar
Experts shared approaches to empirical human rights research during the first annual seminar of the Human Rights Integration project.
2012
30 July–24 August 2012 — Human Rights for Development
The four-week HR4DEV programme explored human rights and development, children’s rights and globalization from critical and interdisciplinary perspectives.
4 June 2012 — LAW&DEV Expert Seminar
The Flemish Interuniversity Research Network on Law and Development held its second annual research day in Antwerp, including a roundtable on ecocide.
10–11 May 2012 — Law, Power-Sharing and Human Rights
This expert seminar examined the human rights dimensions of power-sharing arrangements in sub-Saharan Africa.
2011
19–21 May 2011 — Beyond Territoriality
This interdisciplinary conference examined globalization, the changing role of the state and the allocation of human rights responsibilities among states, corporations and international organizations.
2010
26–27 November 2010 — Children and Armed Conflict
The UNICEF Chair in Children’s Rights and the Law and Development Research Group organized an expert seminar on children and armed conflict.
2009
22–23 October 2009 — Rehabilitation and Reintegration of War-Affected Children
Held in Brussels for the twentieth anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, this conference examined the rehabilitation and reintegration of war-affected children.
2006–2008
No dated activities were identified in the supplied archive pages for these years.
Undated Archive Items
Research Visit on Women’s Labour Conditions
Visiting researcher Saumya of National Law University Delhi conducted comparative research on women’s working conditions, gender equality and sustainable development in India and Belgium.
Publication on Water, Indigenous Peoples and Oil
Researchers at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru published an e-book based on fieldwork concerning water rights, Indigenous peoples and oil extraction.