(Online) Crimes against humanity, genocide, and ecocide: Of rights, responsibilities, and international order

On April 8, 2022, as part of the eighth annual Justice Stephen Breyer Lecture on International Law, Foreign Policy at Brookings will host Philippe Sands, professor of law at University College London and Samuel and Judith Pisar visiting professor of law at Harvard Law School, for a keynote address on rights, responsibilities, and international order.

Sands will explore the evolution of the rights of individuals and groups under international law, from the introduction of the ideas of aggression, crimes against humanity, and genocide — introduced at the Nuremberg Trial, in the autumn of 1945 — to the treatment of these issues in current times, including ISIS and the Yazidis; the Rohingya in Myanmar; the Uighurs in China; and the Chagosians and the Chagos Archipelago. He will also address the current situation in Ukraine and touch on new ideas to extend the reach of international law to criminalize severe harm to the environment.

After the keynote address, Nonresident Senior Fellow Ted Piccone will join Sands for a conversation on the role of international law in prosecuting crimes against humanity, genocide, and ecocide. A panel discussion of distinguished experts on these issues will follow their conversation.

Viewers can submit questions by email to events@brookings.edu or on Twitter using #InternationalLaw.