Contribution Guidance
Constitutions have historically been used to define the fundamental principles by which a society is governed. They often set out shared values, establish rights and responsibilities, and describe how decisions should be made. Today, most states have some form of constitution, although they differ greatly in their structure, content, and legal traditions. Some countries have a single written constitutional document, while others rely on a collection of laws, conventions, and historical texts.
In such context, the Open Science Justice Lab asks: what global principles should apply to life on Earth as a whole? Within this project, a global constitution seeks to identify the values, rights, and responsibilities that should be shared across borders during the Anthropocene. It is an invitation to co-build a fair, peaceful, and sustainable world in line with the challenges of the 21st century.
What aspects can a global constitution cover?
You are welcome to write about any topic that matters to you, as long as it can be applicable on a global scale. Your contribution may focus on broad principles or on one specific issue that you believe deserves greater attention.
Below are some of the themes commonly addressed in constitutions in the world. Many of those themes have been drawn from the Constitute Project (ConstituteProject.org). They should serve as inspiration rather than limitation
Fundamental values and guiding principles
What values should humanity collectively uphold? Equality, dignity, justice, solidarity, freedom, peace, respect for nature, cultural diversity, or something else?
Rights and freedoms
Should a global constitution include rights, and if so, which rights should be applicable to all beings on this earth, to all humanity? Are there rights that should be recognized globally but aren’t currently?
Responsibilities and duties
Alongside rights, can a global constitution include the responsibilities of various groups (individuals, governments, businesses, international institutions)? What responsibilities do we have towards one another and towards future generations?
Environment and future generations
How and why should a global constitution protect biodiversity, ecosystems, the climate, non-human animals and the rights of those who will inherit the planet?
Peace, security, and conflict resolution
What principles could guide cooperation between countries, what limitations could be included in a global constitution to prevent or resolve conflicts?
Knowledge, science, and education
What role could education, scientific knowledge, innovation, and access to information play in shaping our common future?
Technology and the digital world
How should emerging technologies, artificial intelligence, data, and digital spaces be governed for the benefit of everyone?
Culture, diversity, and identity
What role does culture play in a globalized, diverse, and increasingly interconnected world?
Democracy and participation
What should participation look like in global decision-making?
Justice and accountability
How could power be exercised? Who should be held accountable when global rules are broken?
These are only examples, and you may choose to write about a completely different topic, combine several themes, or approach the idea of a constitution from an entirely new angle. We also welcome contributions that address the structural idea of global governance, and any original idea surrounding global constitutionalism.
What should contributions look like?
At the Open Science Justice Lab, we warmly welcome contributions from all parts of the world, ranging from a multitude of background, age, gender, careers… Above all, your contribution should represent your own way of thinking. As such, we encourage you to submit your ideas through your own expressive style. This may include (but is not limited to):
Essays
500-1000 word text where you can express your own ideas for what a global constitution should encompass.
Visual Art
A drawing, painting, photograph or illustration. We encourage you to express yourself and your ideas in original and artistic ways.
Hybrid
Infographics, cartoons, group projects.
Creative Writing
Poems, storytelling, or other creative written pieces.
A Model Constitution
Show us what a global constitution should look like by writing a set of articles.
Questions to help you get started
We encourage you to come up with any original idea that you may have, and to send them to us in the form of essay, poem, article, painting, picture, collage, infographic, cartoon or something else.
If you’re unsure where to begin, here are a few (non-exhaustive) questions that you can draw from, if you wish, and that are meant to help you get started:
What is one globally applicable principle that should guide humanity, the living world, and our planet as whole?
Are there a set of rights that should be applied to the whole of the living and non-living world, and why?
Should we define a set of shared responsibilities, and if so, which one?
What challenge facing the world today is not being addressed well enough, and how could a global constitution tackle such a challenge?
If you could add one article to a Global Constitution, what would it say?
What kind of world would you like future generations to inherit?
What does justice mean to you on a global scale?
Is there a value you think humanity has forgotten?
Resources
If you’d like to know more about constitutions, global constitutionalism, and the debates in the literature concerning such topics, we invite you to follow us on LinkedIn and to subscribe to our newsletter, where we will share updates surrounding global constitutionalism. You can also explore the Constitute Project, which gives an extensive overview of the constitutions in the world and has informed this guidance: constituteproject.org.