CALL FOR PAPERS: Yale WHC working group: Cultures of (Good) Legislation / Cultures of (Good) Administration [DEADLINE 22 FEB 2025]

(image source: Wikimedia Commons)

 

Abstract:

The Yale Whitney Humanities Center Working Group “Cultural Foundations of Law and Public Administration“ plans on publishing an edited volume on Cultures of Good Legislation / Good Administration that will address different cultural contexts (West/Global South/Asia). A hybrid symposium at Yale is also intended to foster the dialogue between the contributors. The group is mainly interested in theoretical inquiries or empirical case studies of good legislation / good governance in a cultural or decolonized context. We are in particular looking for essays that inquire in how cultural factors influence governance and legislation. We are also looking for essasy that investigate how cultural factors have impacted legislation or cultures of administration, how they limit an evolution of legislative or administrative culture, or how they create distinct advantages for a particular legal or administrative culture. We are also looking for essays investigating how the cultural predetermination of legislation or administration limits the transferability of legislative or administrative frameworks between different legislative or administrative cultures, in particular as part of the export of Western ideas and institutions in a globalized world (from human rights to administrative principles). Welcome are both traditional and postcolonial perspectives. We in particular seek for papers that inquire how colonial legal or administrative concepts, institutions or practices embedded in the legislative or administrative frameworks of former colonies create challenges nowadays due to the cultural differences of the colliding legislative or administrative cultures, or how they create advantages. We welcome general and more theoretical essay, but we are in particular looking for case studies that deal with a specific country or a specific cultural legislative or administrative challenge. The reason for our inquiry is to understand the cultural determination of legal and administrative cultures. At the same time, we aim at developing a foundation for non-western and non-hegemonial models of Good Legislation and Good Administration.

Topics:

Non-Western principles of good legislation

• Non-Western principles of good administration
• The principles and discontents of colonial legislation 
• The discontents of colonial administration
• The cultural pre-determination of legislation, its potential and discontents
• The cultural pre-determination of administration, its potential and discontents
• The language of good legislation
• Decolonizing good legislation 
• Decolonizing good administrative legislation
• Decolonizing good administration
• Decolonizing the language of good legislation
• Other empirical studies on countries of the Global South or Asia on cultural topics pertaining 

to good legislation or administration. 

• Cultural aspects of legal translation.
• Decolonizing legal translation
• Cultural aspects of Environmental Legislation/Politics & of Sustainable Development

Practical:

Please submit a four-line abstract, a brief bio including a list of relevant publications, and a 300-400 word extended abstract until latest February 22, 2025 via email to: culturalfoundations@outlook.de Accepted papers will be due in late 2026 Our intended publisher is Routledge (also the venue of our last edited volume)

 Sources: H-Law.