Écrit en 2002 par William McDonough et Michael Braungart, deux grands noms américains de l'enviro... more Écrit en 2002 par William McDonough et Michael Braungart, deux grands noms américains de l'environnement, ce livre est considéré comme un des ouvrages de référence en matière d'éco-conception. Pour commencer, nous pouvons dire que « ce livre n'est pas un livre ». En effet, ce livre n'est pas un livre comme les autres car il n'est pas composé de papier mais fabriqué à partir de résine plastique recyclable. Cette particularité lui confère un touché soyeux et l'avantage d'être résistant à l'eau mais aussi un poids anormalement élevé compte tenu de son format. Les auteurs reviennent tout d'abord sur les substances toxiques présentes dans nos produits de consommation courante et l'inefficience d'un processus de recyclage qu'ils qualifient de « downcycling ». Ces aberrations du système industriel actuel doivent conduire selon eux à une nouvelle révolution industrielle basée sur une autre conception des biens et permettre d'« éliminer le concept de déchets ». Ils dénoncent ainsi dans cet ouvrage un système de production de masse inadapté à l'environnement naturel. En effet, pour McDonough et Braungart le modèle de production dominant de « Cradle-to-Grave » (du berceau à la tombe) n'est pas soutenable dans un monde de ressources naturelles limitées car il tend à produire un système d'obsolescence programmée des biens. De plus, cette vision à court terme amène le monde industriel à produire des biens fortement toxiques pour l'environnement et la santé humaine, que les auteurs qualifient de « crude products ». Selon eux, ces produits de qualité médiocre sont principalement dus à une mauvaise conception de ces produits et non à une volonté de nuire. Les démarches visant à limiter ou réduire les nuisances de ces produits n'en sont pas pour autant pérennes. En effet, pour McDonough et Braungart, ces actions à minima ne font que limiter les impacts négatifs de l'activité humaine sans pour autant y remédier, tout en frustrant le consommateur et en réduisant l'activité économique. Les auteurs en viennent à considérer ces démarches de limitations comme des échecs intellectuels.
Regional and Global Regulation of International Trade
How is globalisation governed? The following article tries to answer this question. Focusing on e... more How is globalisation governed? The following article tries to answer this question. Focusing on economic globalisation, it presents the case of the international commodity chain in toys, identifies its various segments or boxes, and then gives examples to illustrate how the chain is governed. The article argues that economic globalisation is governed by the totality of strategically determined, situationally specific, and often episodic conjunctions of a multiplicity of sites throughout the world. These sites include, for example, EU law, United States law, Chinese law, multinational corporation and trade association codes of conduct, international customs conventions, and WTO law. Each of these sites has institutional, normative, and processual characteristics. Though the sites are not isolated from each other, each has its own history, internal dynamics, and distinctive features. Taken together, they represent a new form of global legal pluralism.
4ème Rencontre Internationale des Jeunes Chercheurs (RIJC) / 4th International Workshop for Young... more 4ème Rencontre Internationale des Jeunes Chercheurs (RIJC) / 4th International Workshop for Young Scholars (WISH
This collection of original essays is designed to explore the relationship between labour, law an... more This collection of original essays is designed to explore the relationship between labour, law and crime in European and Third World countries and brings together work from a variety of disciplines from law to African history.
Les origines du "Mieux Légiférer" se situent dans un contexte national britannique spéc... more Les origines du "Mieux Légiférer" se situent dans un contexte national britannique spécifique, qui a conditionné son développement dans l'Union européenne et dans les relations internationales de l'UE, par exemple avec la Chine. Ces variations sur un thème commun démontrent que le "Mieux Légiférer" n'a pas pu surmonter les limites de ses origines. En plus, il est à noter que les notions de 'Better Regulation' et 'Mieux Légiférer' sont très différentes, ce qui est encore une indication des difficultés de la transposition des pratiques juridiques. Abstract Better Regulation (BR) originated in a specific national United Kingdom context, which conditioned
The development of digital technologies has led to the emergence of new business models benefitin... more The development of digital technologies has led to the emergence of new business models benefiting consumers in their searching, shopping and communicating activities. However, it also challenges the applicable competition law framework and enforcement. Although there seems to be a global consensus on the need to update competition law, the EU and China have chosen different regulatory tools—hard law and soft law, respectively—to address the new and complex challenges facing the competition governance of digital markets. This paper aims to explore why the EU opted for hard law while China opted for soft law, and to further examine whether the selected regulatory tool is the most appropriate in the specific context. By analyzing and comparing characteristics of the digital market and competition institutions’ powers in the EU and China, the paper concludes firstly, that, through the use of hard law, the EU is able protect the Internal Market and at the same time overcome the inflexib...
We are grateful for comments on this occasion. Snyder also thanks several participants in Slow Fo... more We are grateful for comments on this occasion. Snyder also thanks several participants in Slow Food Firenze (Italy) for helpful discussion. For help in preparing the final draft, we thank Ni Lili for useful comments, Tian He for library assistance and Wang Jiayi for putting the footnotes in correct form.
Regulatory Issues in Organic Food Safety in the Asia Pacific, 2020
Ensuring food safety and quality for ordinary people in China is a continuing challenge. Among th... more Ensuring food safety and quality for ordinary people in China is a continuing challenge. Among the major responses to this challenge has been ecological food, which can be defined as the product of 'ecological agriculture (shengtai nongye). Ecological food in China takes three principal forms: hazard-free food (wu gonghai, also known as 'pollution-free' or 'no public harm' food), green food (lűse shipin) and organic food (youji shipin). This chapter identifies the major factors which have shaped the regulation of ecological food in China. It first examines how these forms of ecological food have been regulated so far. It then offers a theoretical explanation for the coexistence of these forms by referring to the theories of regulatory intermediaries, path dependence and legal pluralism. The discussion shows that the distinctive Chinese pattern of regulating ecological food tends to perpetuate lack of consumer trust, domestic regulatory competition, tensions between different economic interests, and conflicts among national food policy objectives. It also suggests, however, that the Chinese model may in the short run be a useful template for many other countries seeking to improve food safety and food quality, while in the long run it appears to be consistent with current global developments in the regulation of ecological food.
This work consists of the proceedings of an International conference on "European Law in Con... more This work consists of the proceedings of an International conference on "European Law in Context: Constitutional Dimensions of the European Economic Integration", held at the European University Institute in Florence on 14-15 April 1994. The conference had two purposes. Its first purpose was to begin to take stock of research already done and then to develop further the study of European Union Law in its social, political, cultural and economic contexts. In order to do this, the conference focused on a specific set of issues concerning European Union constitutional law. The second purpose was to bring together a relatively small group of specialists for an informal but structured discussion of some of the major issues concerning the future of European Integration. In this respect, the conference involved participants from academic life, law practice, national governments and the European Union institutions. The conference papers, comments by pre-designated commentators and...
Better Regulation (BR) is a term that is used in European Union law to denote a well-established ... more Better Regulation (BR) is a term that is used in European Union law to denote a well-established method of making laws and other norms at minimum cost. This article argues however that BR is best viewed as variations on a theme, rather than as an unalterable model that can easily be transplanted from one context to another. First, BR originated in a specific national political, social, economic, cultural and legal context, which conditioned its initial theoretical and institutional expression and which then shaped its development. Second, transposed to the EU context, the proponents, idea and practice of BR encountered very different opportunities and constraints as compared to its national origins, and BR has never been able to achieve many of its original idealistic objectives. Third, in recent debates about the effect of China’s WTO Accession Protocol on the EU’s non-market economy anti-dumping methodology, we see a conjunction of the legacy of BR, EU realpolitik and neglect of b...
The EU constitution covers three interrelated dimensions: Constitutional principles, constitution... more The EU constitution covers three interrelated dimensions: Constitutional principles, constitutionalising processes and constitutional culture, all of which are shaped through the all-encompassing context of contemporary globalisation. On this basis Snyder asks whether the EU will ever have a "finished" constitution and proposes ways towards a fundamental reformulation of our concepts of the constitution.
Écrit en 2002 par William McDonough et Michael Braungart, deux grands noms américains de l'enviro... more Écrit en 2002 par William McDonough et Michael Braungart, deux grands noms américains de l'environnement, ce livre est considéré comme un des ouvrages de référence en matière d'éco-conception. Pour commencer, nous pouvons dire que « ce livre n'est pas un livre ». En effet, ce livre n'est pas un livre comme les autres car il n'est pas composé de papier mais fabriqué à partir de résine plastique recyclable. Cette particularité lui confère un touché soyeux et l'avantage d'être résistant à l'eau mais aussi un poids anormalement élevé compte tenu de son format. Les auteurs reviennent tout d'abord sur les substances toxiques présentes dans nos produits de consommation courante et l'inefficience d'un processus de recyclage qu'ils qualifient de « downcycling ». Ces aberrations du système industriel actuel doivent conduire selon eux à une nouvelle révolution industrielle basée sur une autre conception des biens et permettre d'« éliminer le concept de déchets ». Ils dénoncent ainsi dans cet ouvrage un système de production de masse inadapté à l'environnement naturel. En effet, pour McDonough et Braungart le modèle de production dominant de « Cradle-to-Grave » (du berceau à la tombe) n'est pas soutenable dans un monde de ressources naturelles limitées car il tend à produire un système d'obsolescence programmée des biens. De plus, cette vision à court terme amène le monde industriel à produire des biens fortement toxiques pour l'environnement et la santé humaine, que les auteurs qualifient de « crude products ». Selon eux, ces produits de qualité médiocre sont principalement dus à une mauvaise conception de ces produits et non à une volonté de nuire. Les démarches visant à limiter ou réduire les nuisances de ces produits n'en sont pas pour autant pérennes. En effet, pour McDonough et Braungart, ces actions à minima ne font que limiter les impacts négatifs de l'activité humaine sans pour autant y remédier, tout en frustrant le consommateur et en réduisant l'activité économique. Les auteurs en viennent à considérer ces démarches de limitations comme des échecs intellectuels.
Regional and Global Regulation of International Trade
How is globalisation governed? The following article tries to answer this question. Focusing on e... more How is globalisation governed? The following article tries to answer this question. Focusing on economic globalisation, it presents the case of the international commodity chain in toys, identifies its various segments or boxes, and then gives examples to illustrate how the chain is governed. The article argues that economic globalisation is governed by the totality of strategically determined, situationally specific, and often episodic conjunctions of a multiplicity of sites throughout the world. These sites include, for example, EU law, United States law, Chinese law, multinational corporation and trade association codes of conduct, international customs conventions, and WTO law. Each of these sites has institutional, normative, and processual characteristics. Though the sites are not isolated from each other, each has its own history, internal dynamics, and distinctive features. Taken together, they represent a new form of global legal pluralism.
4ème Rencontre Internationale des Jeunes Chercheurs (RIJC) / 4th International Workshop for Young... more 4ème Rencontre Internationale des Jeunes Chercheurs (RIJC) / 4th International Workshop for Young Scholars (WISH
This collection of original essays is designed to explore the relationship between labour, law an... more This collection of original essays is designed to explore the relationship between labour, law and crime in European and Third World countries and brings together work from a variety of disciplines from law to African history.
Les origines du "Mieux Légiférer" se situent dans un contexte national britannique spéc... more Les origines du "Mieux Légiférer" se situent dans un contexte national britannique spécifique, qui a conditionné son développement dans l'Union européenne et dans les relations internationales de l'UE, par exemple avec la Chine. Ces variations sur un thème commun démontrent que le "Mieux Légiférer" n'a pas pu surmonter les limites de ses origines. En plus, il est à noter que les notions de 'Better Regulation' et 'Mieux Légiférer' sont très différentes, ce qui est encore une indication des difficultés de la transposition des pratiques juridiques. Abstract Better Regulation (BR) originated in a specific national United Kingdom context, which conditioned
The development of digital technologies has led to the emergence of new business models benefitin... more The development of digital technologies has led to the emergence of new business models benefiting consumers in their searching, shopping and communicating activities. However, it also challenges the applicable competition law framework and enforcement. Although there seems to be a global consensus on the need to update competition law, the EU and China have chosen different regulatory tools—hard law and soft law, respectively—to address the new and complex challenges facing the competition governance of digital markets. This paper aims to explore why the EU opted for hard law while China opted for soft law, and to further examine whether the selected regulatory tool is the most appropriate in the specific context. By analyzing and comparing characteristics of the digital market and competition institutions’ powers in the EU and China, the paper concludes firstly, that, through the use of hard law, the EU is able protect the Internal Market and at the same time overcome the inflexib...
We are grateful for comments on this occasion. Snyder also thanks several participants in Slow Fo... more We are grateful for comments on this occasion. Snyder also thanks several participants in Slow Food Firenze (Italy) for helpful discussion. For help in preparing the final draft, we thank Ni Lili for useful comments, Tian He for library assistance and Wang Jiayi for putting the footnotes in correct form.
Regulatory Issues in Organic Food Safety in the Asia Pacific, 2020
Ensuring food safety and quality for ordinary people in China is a continuing challenge. Among th... more Ensuring food safety and quality for ordinary people in China is a continuing challenge. Among the major responses to this challenge has been ecological food, which can be defined as the product of 'ecological agriculture (shengtai nongye). Ecological food in China takes three principal forms: hazard-free food (wu gonghai, also known as 'pollution-free' or 'no public harm' food), green food (lűse shipin) and organic food (youji shipin). This chapter identifies the major factors which have shaped the regulation of ecological food in China. It first examines how these forms of ecological food have been regulated so far. It then offers a theoretical explanation for the coexistence of these forms by referring to the theories of regulatory intermediaries, path dependence and legal pluralism. The discussion shows that the distinctive Chinese pattern of regulating ecological food tends to perpetuate lack of consumer trust, domestic regulatory competition, tensions between different economic interests, and conflicts among national food policy objectives. It also suggests, however, that the Chinese model may in the short run be a useful template for many other countries seeking to improve food safety and food quality, while in the long run it appears to be consistent with current global developments in the regulation of ecological food.
This work consists of the proceedings of an International conference on "European Law in Con... more This work consists of the proceedings of an International conference on "European Law in Context: Constitutional Dimensions of the European Economic Integration", held at the European University Institute in Florence on 14-15 April 1994. The conference had two purposes. Its first purpose was to begin to take stock of research already done and then to develop further the study of European Union Law in its social, political, cultural and economic contexts. In order to do this, the conference focused on a specific set of issues concerning European Union constitutional law. The second purpose was to bring together a relatively small group of specialists for an informal but structured discussion of some of the major issues concerning the future of European Integration. In this respect, the conference involved participants from academic life, law practice, national governments and the European Union institutions. The conference papers, comments by pre-designated commentators and...
Better Regulation (BR) is a term that is used in European Union law to denote a well-established ... more Better Regulation (BR) is a term that is used in European Union law to denote a well-established method of making laws and other norms at minimum cost. This article argues however that BR is best viewed as variations on a theme, rather than as an unalterable model that can easily be transplanted from one context to another. First, BR originated in a specific national political, social, economic, cultural and legal context, which conditioned its initial theoretical and institutional expression and which then shaped its development. Second, transposed to the EU context, the proponents, idea and practice of BR encountered very different opportunities and constraints as compared to its national origins, and BR has never been able to achieve many of its original idealistic objectives. Third, in recent debates about the effect of China’s WTO Accession Protocol on the EU’s non-market economy anti-dumping methodology, we see a conjunction of the legacy of BR, EU realpolitik and neglect of b...
The EU constitution covers three interrelated dimensions: Constitutional principles, constitution... more The EU constitution covers three interrelated dimensions: Constitutional principles, constitutionalising processes and constitutional culture, all of which are shaped through the all-encompassing context of contemporary globalisation. On this basis Snyder asks whether the EU will ever have a "finished" constitution and proposes ways towards a fundamental reformulation of our concepts of the constitution.
Product standards are ubiquitous in contemporary societies and trade relations. Reflecting a lega... more Product standards are ubiquitous in contemporary societies and trade relations. Reflecting a legal perspective, this chapter considers selected aspects of domestic, bilateral and international product standards in EU-China relations. It gives examples of different types of structures, actors and issues. It argues, first, that product standards may be adopted by numerous sites of governance, ranging from domestic, transnational, regional or international sites, or from public bodies to private organisations or both, and may be legally binding or take the form of ‘soft law’. Second, though appearing to be simply the normative expression of scientific opinion, product standards are not neutral but instead result from politics, negotiation and compromise. Third, they are double-edged in protecting public health while also determining market entry; in fact they may actually create markets. Fourth, the EU and China compete in developing international standards, but they also cooperate in making standards in numerous bilateral and multilateral settings. Each develops its own standards, promotes them internationally and seeks to apply them so far as possible to domestic and foreign products. On the one hand, domestic product standards tend frequently to converge, because in many fields product standards are actually highly transnational, not simply domestic, in origin, culture and content. On the other hand, the setting of product standards in EU-China relations, regardless of the setting, must increasingly be sensitive to domestic characteristics and priorities; this imperative renders more complex the long-standing debate about the normative and economic effects of globalisation.
Product standards are ubiquitous in contemporary societies and trade relations. Reflecting a lega... more Product standards are ubiquitous in contemporary societies and trade relations. Reflecting a legal perspective, this chapter considers selected aspects of domestic, bilateral and international product standards in EU-China relations. It gives examples of different types of structures, actors and issues. It argues, first, that product standards may be adopted by numerous sites of governance, ranging from domestic, transnational, regional or international sites, or from public bodies to private organisations or both, and may be legally binding or take the form of ‘soft law’. Second, though appearing to be simply the normative expression of scientific opinion, product standards are not neutral but instead result from politics, negotiation and compromise. Third, they are double-edged in protecting public health while also determining market entry; in fact they may actually create markets. Fourth, the EU and China compete in developing international standards, but they also cooperate in making standards in numerous bilateral and multilateral settings. Each develops its own standards, promotes them internationally and seeks to apply them so far as possible to domestic and foreign products. On the one hand, domestic product standards tend frequently to converge, because in many fields product standards are actually highly transnational, not simply domestic, in origin, culture and content. On the other hand, the setting of product standards in EU-China relations, regardless of the setting, must increasingly be sensitive to domestic characteristics and priorities; this imperative renders more complex the long-standing debate about the normative and economic effects of globalisation.
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