2019GIR: Challenges and Opportunities in Environmental Peacebuilding Essay

Questions

1. To what extent does anarchy limit the effectiveness of international law? Discuss with reference to at least one international treaty that relates to international peace and/or security.

2. To what extent can compliance with states’ international human rights commitments be enforced?

3. Discuss the claim that the United Nations’ General Assembly resolutions have little influence on state behaviour. Relate your discussion to international peace and/or security.

4. Discuss the claim that activists and non-governmental organisations are as important as states in shaping International Relations. Relate your discussion to international peace and/or security.

5. Assess the significance of the Women, Peace and Security framework to international peace and security.

6. Assess the significance of the Responsibility to Protect principle to international peace and security.

7. Assess the challenges and opportunities pertaining to environmental peacebuilding.

Assessment Brief International Peace, Security & Law

Assessment type: Short essay questions (critical analysis) on international law, state behaviour, global institutions and frameworks related to peace and security.

Purpose: Demonstrate depth of knowledge about how international law, norms, institutions and non-state actors affect international peace and security; show critical reasoning, use of evidence (treaties, cases, resolutions, reports), and clear academic writing.

Key pointers you must cover (for these question topics):

• Clear thesis statement answering the question up front.
• Relevant legal/ normative instruments or frameworks (e.g., UN Charter, a specific treaty such as the Genocide Convention / Chemical Weapons Convention / Rome Statute, Women, Peace and Security (WPS) resolutions, Responsibility to Protect (R2P) statements).
• Description of the institutional or legal mechanisms for creating, implementing and enforcing rules (treaty bodies, ICJ, Security Council, universal jurisdiction, sanctions, monitoring and reporting mechanisms).
• Empirical and doctrinal evidence: state practice, prominent cases or incidents, UN resolutions, NGO reports.
• Barriers and limits: anarchy, sovereignty, political will, resource constraints, selective enforcement.
• Role and influence of non-state actors: NGOs, activists, transnational networks and how they shape norms, advocacy and compliance.
• Critical evaluation (strengths, weaknesses, counter-arguments) and a short conclusion with implications for peace/security.

How the Academic Mentor Guided the Student Step-by-Step

Step 1 Question selection & scope

• Mentor helped clarify which questions to prioritise (e.g., choose those best aligned with student’s strengths or available evidence).
• Advised narrowing scope: pick one strong treaty or framework per answer rather than trying to cover everything superficially.

Step 2 Research strategy

• Suggested primary sources to prioritise: the text of the chosen treaty(s), relevant UN resolutions, leading ICJ decisions or tribunal judgments, official reports, and high-quality secondary literature.
• Recommended credible databases and NGO/think-tank reports for empirical material.
• Emphasised contemporaneous examples (state practice) to illustrate claims.

Step 3 Drafting a roadmap/outline

• For each question the mentor required a 3-part plan: (1) thesis & definitions, (2) evidence & argument, (3) rebuttal/limitations and conclusion.
• Advised using a short signposted structure: Intro → Argument 1 (legal/ institutional basis) → Argument 2 (practical limitations/illustrations) → Counter-arguments → Conclusion.

Step 4 Building arguments with evidence

• Mentor coached the student to: cite the treaty provision(s) or resolution text that supports claims; use one or two well-explained case studies or state examples; and where applicable show how NGOs/activists influenced outcomes.
• Encouraged inclusion of both legal analysis (doctrinal) and policy analysis (political realities).

Step 5 Critique and balance

• The mentor insisted on addressing counter-arguments (e.g., anarchy undermines enforcement vs mechanisms that mitigate anarchy like treaties, tribunals, conditionality).
• Taught the student to avoid sweeping assertions use qualifiers and evidence.

Step 6 Formal requirements & polishing

• Reviewed citation style (use the appropriate legal citation style required by the unit e.g., AGLC, OSCOLA, Bluebook and be consistent).
• Provided feedback on clarity, paragraph signposting, and concise thesis statements.
• Performed a final scan for coherence, referencing, and a strong concluding paragraph that draws implications for peace and security.

Outcome What the Student Produced

• A set of concise, evidence-based answers that:
  • Directly respond to each question with a clear thesis.
  • Anchor arguments in at least one relevant treaty or framework for the questions that require it (e.g., UN Charter provisions, a specific peace/security treaty or convention).
  • Use illustrative examples (state practice, UN resolutions, NGO interventions) to show how norms operate in practice.
  • Provide balanced evaluation of strengths and limits (legal mechanisms vs political realities).
• Properly referenced and formatted essays that meet the assignment’s academic standards.

Learning Objectives Achieved

1. Doctrinal understanding: Demonstrated knowledge of international legal instruments and institutional mechanisms relevant to peace and security.
2. Critical analysis: Assessed how structural factors (anarchy, sovereignty) and political will affect the effectiveness of international law.
3. Applied reasoning: Linked theory to practice through treaties, cases, UN resolutions and concrete examples.
4. Comparative evaluation: Weighed the relative influence of states, international organisations, NGOs and activists.
5. Normative appraisal: Evaluated the practical significance of frameworks such as WPS and R2P for peace and security.
6. Academic skills: Developed persuasive thesis statements, used authoritative sources, and employed appropriate legal citation and structure.

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