Type

Journal Article

Author(s)

Blanchard, C.

Title

Evolution or Revolution? Evaluating the Territorial State-Based Regime of International Law in the Context of the Physical Disappearance of Territory Due to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise

Year

2016

Journal

Canadian Yearbook of international Law/Annuaire canadien de droit international

Vol (No), pp

53, 66-118

Abstract

The threat of the permanent physical disappearance of the territory of states no longer belongs to the mythical realm, and the situation is particularly imminent for small island developing states. While most international legal scholarship has so far focused on issues stemming from territorial disappearance, this article goes one step further. It questions the appropriateness of the classical notion of the territorial state — a socio-cultural and politico-legal entity evolving on a defined territorial area — as the basis for an international legal system faced with new realities created by climate change, sea-level rise, and globalization. After examining the current rules on statehood within the context of the physical disappearance of states’ territories and looking into the solutions suggested in the legal literature to address territorial loss, this article assesses a new way of understanding statehood by exploring theoretical lenses through which a new model of statehood could be contemplated.

Citation

Blanchard, C. (2016). Evolution or Revolution? Evaluating the Territorial State-Based Regime of International Law in the Context of the Physical Disappearance of Territory Due to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise. Canadian Yearbook of international Law/Annuaire canadien de droit international, 53, 66-118. doi:10.1017/cyl.2016.4.