Institute for Human Rights, Åbo Akademi University, Turku/Åbo, Finland
Advanced Course on Justiciability of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: Theory and Practice
21 - 25 November 2016
Deadline for application: 14 August 2016

The Institute for Human Rights of the Åbo Akademi University organises the Advanced Course on Justiciability of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in cooperation with the Socio-Economic Rights and Administrative Justice Project, University of Stellenbosch Law Faculty, South Africa, and the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights at the University of Oslo. The course is part of the programme of the Global School on Socio-economic Rights.
This one-week intensive course offers participants an opportunity to develop specialist-level knowledge in the field of economic, social and cultural rights (ESC rights), with a particular focus on justiciability at the national, regional and international level. It draws on a wealth of material from across the world in order to analyse existing institutionalised practices of interpretation and implementation of ESC rights, and focuses on theoretical questions and practical issues, such as effective strategies and the impact of adjudication. The course is conducted in English, and is composed of lectures, seminars, group discussions and assignments, participant case analyses and an optional written examination.
Course Programme and Faculty 
Sandra Liebenberg, H.F. Oppenheimer Chair in Human Rights Law, University of Stellenbosch, Co-Director of the Faculty’s Socio-Economic Rights and Administrative Justice Research Project, newly elected member of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (2017-2020):
• Conceptual Issues on Justiciability of ESC Rights
• Reasonableness Review
• Procedural Fairness and Participation 

Catarina Krause, Deputy Director, Institute for Human Rights, Åbo Akademi University:
• European Human Rights System

Lilian Chenwi, Associate Professor, School of Law, University of Witwatersrand:
• Optional Protocol to the ICESCR
• The African Human Rights System

Katharine Young, Associate Professor, Boston College Law School:
• Minimum Standards in Relation to Socio-Economic Rights
• Rights and Queues
• New Issues in Socio-Economic Rights Adjudication (together with Malcolm Langford)

Tara Melish, Associate Professor of Law, Director, Buffalo Human Rights Center, SUNY Buffalo Law School, The State University of New York (virtual session):
• The Inter-American System on Human Rights

Malcolm Langford, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Oslo, Co-Director of the Centre on Law and Social Transformation, University of Bergen and Chr. Michelsen Institute: 
• A Comparative Overview
• New Issues in Socio-Economic Rights Adjudication (together with Katharine Young)
• Business and ESC Rights: Emerging Adjudication
• Widening the Perspective: Judicial Behaviour, Impact and Strategy

Credits
Those who successfully complete the course, including the written examination, will receive a Diploma equivalent to 10 ECTS credits. With no written examination, the participants will receive a Certificate of Attendance equivalent to 2 ECTS credits.

Requirements 
The course is designed for PhD students, scholars, practitioners (e.g. law, human rights or development), policy-makers and advanced master's students. The number of participants is restricted to 30.

Costs
The course fee, which includes the course, the course materials and a few meals is EUR 700. Doctoral candidates in human rights law at partner universities in the Doctoral Network on Realizing Human Rights can apply for a reduction in the course fee. Students at Åbo Akademi University are exempted from the course fee. 

The Institute for Human Rights will apply for funding in order to be able to grant course scholarships for a limited number of participants from Africa, Latin America and Asia (South and South-East Asia). For details regarding the scholarship, please see course application form.

The selected course participants are expected to take care of the arrangements for accommodation themselves but the Institute will provide a list of good alternatives (please see below). Accommodation is not included in the course fee. 

Application
Applicants should fill in the application form, include their cv and two separate letters of recommendation in support of their application. Deadline for submission is 14 August 2016. The applications will be processed in August-September, information regarding admission should reach you by the end of September.

More information
For more information on the application procedure and course arrangements, please send an email to courses.imr@abo.fi.

• Announcement on the Åbo Akademi University website.