Verification of current nuclear arms control treaties between United States and Russia relies primarily on the verification of delivery vehicles. Warheads are counted indirectly via the delivery vehicles that they are associated with. As states move to lower numbers of nuclear weapons in their arsenals, verification will likely pose complex challenges. Most importantly, future nuclear disarmame...

The Opium Wars of 1839 to 1842 and 1856 to 1860 marked a new stage in China’s relations with the West. China’s military defeats in these wars forced its rulers to sign treaties opening many ports to foreign trade. The restrictions imposed under the Canton system were abolished. Opium, despite imperial prohibitions, now became a regular item of trade. As opium flooded into China, its price dropp...

At the same time when outer space activities become increasingly important to states, the room for actions and new actors tends to get smaller and the risk that outer space becomes inaccessible is rising. Decisionmakers have recently taken the topic of space sustainability on their agenda, investigating policies to coordinate future actions. Nevertheless, they are ignoring the danger that alrea...

In my recent article, ‘Do Human Rights Treaties Make a Difference?’, I presented evidence and arguments that called into doubt two widely shared assumptions: (1) that countries generally comply with their human rights treaty commitments and (2) that countries’ practices will be better if they have ratified treaties than they otherwise would be. In response, Professors Ryan Goodman and Derek Jin...

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This paper approaches the general issue of the complex challenges in the relationship between those who generate data--researchers, scientists, and state statistical offices--and those who use data--researchers and policy-makers--in light of the more specific policy challenges created by the monitoring requirement of the United Nation's Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRP...

In a previous study, it was found that 209 of 375 recognized American Indian treaties have been cited in opinions of the United States Supreme Court (Bernholz, 2004). This guide now identifies – through 246 citations from 142 cases between the years 1863 and 2005 – 85 treaties found only in opinions of the lower Federal Court system. In addition, this investigation uncovered another treaty refe...

BACKGROUND This paper provides a summary and analysis of the regulation of ayahuasca in Brazil, from its prohibition in the mid-eighties to the recent adoption of CONAD's (Conselho Nacional de Políticas sobre Drogas) 2010 Resolution, which established a set of rules, norms and ethical principles to be applied to religious and ritual uses of ayahuasca. Brazil's regulatory process is used as a st...

Two hundred million girls and women in the world are estimated to have undergone female genital mutilation (FGM), and another 15 million girls are at risk of experiencing it by 2020 in high prevalence countries (UNICEF, 2016. Female genital mutilation/cutting: a global concern. 2016). Despite decades of concerted efforts to eradicate or abandon the practice, and the increased need for clear gui...