Lucas Minich Vol. 39 Associate Editor Over the last several years, the European Union has emerged as a worldwide leader in renewable energy generation. This is not by accident. Rather, it is the result of concerted effort on the part of the Union and its Member States. Because climate change is an inherently international problem, in which the negative effects of one nation’s activities are shared by the world, meaningful progress (“meaningful progress” being the

Anna Rasmussen Vol. 40 Executive Editor Rubin et al. v. Islamic Republic of Iran et al. is a recent case about the ability of U.S. nationals to enforce a judgement against parties who would normally be afforded immunity. In dealing with foreign nations, the U.S. aims to respect “the careful balance between respecting the immunity historically afforded to foreign sovereigns and holding them accountable.”[1] Under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 (FSIA), in general,

Zachary Simon Vol. 39 Associate Editor Anyone watching the peaceful protests in the Syrian towns of Homs, Aleppo, and others morph into an armed uprising in late 2011 and early 2012 could have seen a storm brewing on the horizon. It was obvious even then that the shear brutality with which Syrian dictator Bashar Al-Assad repressed the uprising—by wantonly and unrepentantly massacring Syrian civilians using barrel bombs and chemical weapons—would force people to leave their

Thomas Bourneuf VOL. 39 ASSOCIATE EDITOR Introduction As the United Kingdom (UK) prepares to leave the European Union (EU), a war is raging in Europe over which EU regulations will survive the exit. On the one side of this struggle are those that favor a “hard” Brexit, wherein the UK would devise their own regulatory standards and trade with the EU like any other non-EU-member country under World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.[1] On the other

Hyun Lee Vol. 39 Associate Editor Access to voluntary family planning and reproductive healthcare play a key role in the protection of women’s reproductive rights around the world—it is not only central to gender equality and women’s empowerment, but also critical for reducing poverty.[1] However, many women in developing countries still lack even fundamental reproductive rights and health services, including contraception. As a result, approximately 303,000 women die annually during pregnancy or childbirth as a

Sarah Syed Vol. 40 Article Editor Child marriage in humanitarian settings, particularly in Rohingya and Syrian refugee communities, has increased as a result of extreme poverty, rampant violence, fear of gender based-violence, and political strife.[1] Although the prevalence data for child marriage in regions of crisis are difficult to acquire, UNICEF has determined that child marriage has reemerged in some regions where the practice was previously nearly eradicated.[2] It is vital to understand the specific

Sara Stappert Vol. 39 Business and Development Editor The United States Department of Justice charged thirteen Russian individuals and three Russian companies on February 16, 2018[1] with an impressive indictment alleging a sophisticated network designed to influence the 2016 presidential election.[2] Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein described the indictment as such: “[T]he Russian conspirators want to promote discord in the United States and undermine public confidence in democracy…”[3] February’s indictment paints a picture of a

Elizabeth Heise Vol. 40 Online Editor Poland has recently passed a law that would make it a crime, punishable by up to three years in prison, to use phrases such as “Polish death camps” to describe the Nazi death camps in Poland, or to blame Poland for its complicity in the Holocaust.[1] The bill, which passed in the Senate by a vote of 57-23[2] and was championed by the ruling Law and Justice Party,[3] contains

Jens Thomsen Vol. 39 Associate Editor On February 25, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) moved to abolish the constitutional term limit on the presidency, clearing the way for Xi Jinping to stay in power indefinitely as he nears the end of his first five-year term as president.[1] The proposed amendment to the constitution must be approved by China’s CCP-controlled parliament, but this approval is expected to be a formality.[2] In addition to the removal of