In this hybrid fireside talk, we will discuss the importance of international law praxis- the challenges faced in its implementation, and ways to strengthen it. The following speakers will share their perspectives on the topic: Professor Dr. Attila Tanzi (Chair) Full Professor of International Law (University of Bologna), Member of the PCA, Member of the ICSID Panel of Arbitrators, 3 Verulam Buildings, Associate Member. Ms. Monica Feria-Tinta Barrister, Twenty Essex. Mr. Ali Malek KC Commercial Barrister, Chair of Chambers, 3 Verulam Buildings. Mr. Anil Malhotra Practising Barrister, Adjunct Faculty, O.P. Jindal Global University and IAFL Fellow.

An international organization is the culmination of the states’ collective imagination to purport resources for and into a mission mandated to preserve and sustain the common heritage of humankind. This heritage is observed most strongly in the ambitious goals of promoting solidaristic measures such as sharing data, sharing information, sharing pathogens, sharing resources, and sharing technology to maintain a sense of urgency while engaging in thoughtful, sustained, and good-faith deliberation and consensus-building. However, to preserve the principles of the Organization, inter-state and intra-organizational differences must be resolved. If not, a global and overarching organization like the World Health Organization (WHO) will bottleneck. WHO is responsible for directing and coordinating authority on global health is marred with financial imbalance. The imbalance limits and imposes boundaries on an international organization. In the face of inequality, it is crucial to study the legal obligations of member states vis-a-vis financing. The present-day lack of adequate funding has created a deep cleavage and pits the Organization’s mandate on one side and the harsh reality on the other. As a result, exposing the boundaries of an international organization mandated to curb global health challenges such as Pandemics. Through the paper, the Organization’s potency in terms of international responsibility and the rule of law will be apparent, and so will ineffectiveness. To do is, the article will focus on referencing the corrosion of human rights and the right to health caused to the global community. The duality of responsibility on states and international originations enables the origination to implement the responsibility that rests on its shoulders. International human rights law and global governance institutions can and should be powerful drivers for change. Too often, however, their far-reaching potential is curtailed by goals that focus on short-term gains rather than addressing the root causes of human rights and public health failures. They must also ensure the full participation of civil society, including independent public health and human rights experts, to improve the effectiveness and legitimacy of these efforts. Therefore, in times of global health emergencies, it is essential to note that boundaries must be limitless for organizations, and if we fail to prepare, we are preparing to fail.

An international organization is the culmination of the states’ collective imagination to purport resources for and into a mission mandated to preserve and sustain the common heritage of humankind. This heritage is observed most strongly in the ambitious goals of promoting solidaristic measures such as sharing data, sharing information, sharing pathogens, sharing resources, and sharing technology to maintain a sense of urgency while engaging in thoughtful, sustained, and good-faith deliberation and consensus-building. However, to preserve the principles of the Organization, inter-state and intra-organizational differences must be resolved. If not, a global and overarching organization like the World Health Organization (WHO) will bottleneck. WHO is responsible for directing and coordinating authority on global health is marred with financial imbalance. The imbalance limits and imposes boundaries on an international organization. In the face of inequality, it is crucial to study the legal obligations of member states vis-a-vis financing. The present-day lack of adequate funding has created a deep cleavage and pits the Organization’s mandate on one side and the harsh reality on the other. As a result, exposing the boundaries of an international organization mandated to curb global health challenges such as Pandemics. Through the paper, the Organization’s potency in terms of international responsibility and the rule of law will be apparent, and so will ineffectiveness. To do is, the article will focus on referencing the corrosion of human rights and the right to health caused to the global community. The duality of responsibility on states and international originations enables the origination to implement the responsibility that rests on its shoulders. International human rights law and global governance institutions can and should be powerful drivers for change. Too often, however, their far-reaching potential is curtailed by goals that focus on short-term gains rather than addressing the root causes of human rights and public health failures. They must also ensure the full participation of civil society, including independent public health and human rights experts, to improve the effectiveness and legitimacy of these efforts. Therefore, in times of global health emergencies, it is essential to note that boundaries must be limitless for organizations, and if we fail to prepare, we are preparing to fail.

International law is omnipresent and permeates the conduct of States, corporations, and even individuals. In today’s time, we find an astounding amount and diversity of treaties encompassing a broad range of regulatory areas - multilateral, plurilateral, and bilateral. This has occurred hand in hand with an increase in the international fora’s institutional scope and practice. Despite its seemingly wide and progressive acceptance of international law, the Supreme Court of India’s jurisprudence is incapable of contributing to the formulation, crystallization, and future evolution of international law norms due to its lack of accuracy. Additionally, this corpus of jurisprudence, in taking authority from Parliament, is subject to the allegation of denying democracy, regardless of how beneficial the decisions of specific cases may be. This is especially troubling given constitutional provisions that seem to entrust the administration with unfettered treaty-making authority. Thus, the constitutional architecture has facilitated the executive and judiciary usurping power, with little authority being left to the legislature, which is the elected body.

The need to enshrine is crucial. Recent discourse on its inclusion as an international crime under the Rome Statute is evidence of its importance. While a definition that is solely ecocentric or explicitly refers to planetary boundaries may have sent a stronger environmental signal, it may have jeopardised its likelihood of being adopted. Fully cognizant of the procedural and diplomatic difficulties that any proposal to change the Rome Statute (as outlined in the paper) would confront, it was critical to present a definition that appeared pragmatic and hence not unrealistic. Vietnam, as this paper will briefly highlight, offers itself as a case study of historical explanations which compelled legislative action on ecocide. This paper seeks to discuss foreign law (Vietnam) and international law (Ecocide) for ecocide as a bold reform. The paper will underscore the importance of this reform by recollecting the status quo on environmental fallacies and jurisprudence and then juxtaposing them with foreign and international law. In short, it will highlight the cleavage between the international and foreign frameworks thus urging immediate action. Given the compensation-oriented approach, ecocide brings a different dimension. The hope is that this dimension offers a different vantage point and the ghost of penal consequences is a sufficient deterrent for those who are willing to sacrifice environmental well-being for personal gains. This can only be achieved if countries internalise international measurements, as this article has discussed.

My short address on life as a law student and my love for art, history poetry and the armed forces at the glorious Army Institute of Law (AIL), Mohali! I touched on the writings of Sir Winston Churchill, Siegfried Sassoon, Hannah Arendt, the Dreyfus Trail and my guru ji, Gopal Subramanium. I end with a hope for my time at SOAS University of London as the Felix Scholar!

“I felt as if I were walking with destiny, and that all my past life had been but a preparation for this hour and for this trial” Sir Winston Churchill had spent a lifetime shaping his destiny and learned from his faults during humanity's most challenging hour. In the years of 2017 through till 2022, the beating heart of this speech are vivid and varied. An endless moving picture in which one was an actor. Before proceeding any further, I like to express my gratitude to the Hon’ble Chancellor and the Vice Chancellor for their support and also recall my promise to the Vice Chancellor to start a Foundation in my parents' name: The Simmi and Anil Malhotra Foundation in JGU which will focus its attention on Indian History and International Law- a small token of gratitude from my sister and me towards our parents for their unrelenting support. I would also like to thank the Registrar, Faculty and Administration and especially Professors Mohsin Raza Khan, Esther Schmidt, Gudmundur, Popovski and Sreejith and who were the invisible guiding hands helping me at every rung of the ladder. They taught me to believe that some people are destined to be successful some are determined to be successful. And the path to success is knowledge. I have been more than fortunate to gain from remarkably inspiring professors and human beings who I can call friends. I have often said that this institution runs on patience as it is one of the most challenging institution on academic earth. It does not have the aesthetics or the history of a centuries-old universities. However, JGU is on the horizon of something special. Sitting in this room, we must have the confidence of seeing a future Secretary General of the United Nations or the founder of the most successful 21st Century microfinance firm. But, time will be testing. There are no two ways about it. But, let that patience be tested. You have got this far already and as you reach the zenith and look over the horizon, remember one more thing: Giving it your everything does not guarantee anything, it is, however, the only chance you have. At SOAS, my father’s alma mater, there is a little blue statue of a man sitting by the side, his name is Thiruvalluar, a great Tamil poet and philosopher. He once wrote, ‘learn thoroughly whatever is to be learnt and then let the conduct be worthy of this learning’. As he sat and continues to sit there patiently for us to make him proud he symbolizes the patience we need. I hope you remember it as you embrace the past with remembrance and the future with longing. May you always do for others and let others do for you. May you build a ladder to the stars and climb on every rung and may you stay forever young. Make each other proud to have shared this place. Good luck and Godspeed. JGU class of 2022. Jindal Society of International Law Jindal Global Law School (JGLS) O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) SOAS University of London