Globalisation and Global Justice

Göran Collste

The discussion about justice has often been limited to a specific territory, i.e. a nation. However, globalisation has undermined the relevance of this presupposition. Hence, this project focuses on the meaning of justice in an age of globalisation.

John Rawls's theory of justice is a starting point for contemporary discussions about justice. But, contrary to Rawls's view, principles of global justice should not only include principles of non-interference and respect for universal human rights but also a principle of democratic legitimacy of global governance and a principle of global distributive justice. The notion of global justice is not uncontroversial. It is argued that the meaning of justice differs between different communities and, thus, one can not hope for a universal approval of the concept of global justice, that a principle of global distributive justice does not take into account that global differences in wealth are caused by differences in the ambitions of individuals and nations and that the idea of global justice overlooks crucial institutional differences between a nation and the global situation.

The concept of justice can be distinguished in distributive and rectificatory justice. Discussions on global justice have normally focused on global distributive justice. One aim of the project is also to investigate the meaning of global rectificatory justice.

Funding:

Riksbankens Jubileumsfond

Publications:

Collste G, 1998. Social Justice in the Age of Globalization. In: Grenholm & Helgesson, (eds). Value Assumptions in Economic Theory, Studies in Ethics and Economics, 2, Uppsala.

Collste G, 1998. Globaliseringen - en utmaning för den politiska filosofin? Recension i Tidskrift för politisk filosofi, 3/1998

Collste G, 1999. Den globala ekonomins etik. I: Studies in Ethics and Economics, 5, Uppsala.

Collste G, 2001. Den globala ekonomins etik. I: Öygarden G (red). Vår tids ekonomism. En kritik av nationalekonomin. Umeå: Borea.

Collste G, 2001. Globalisation from an Ethical Perspective. In: Technology and Ethics. Goujon and Heriard (eds). Leuven: Peeters.

Collste G, 2004. Globalisering och global rättvisa. Studentlitteratur, Lund.

Collste G, 2005. Globalisation and Global Justice. Studia Theologica, Nordic Journal of Theology, Vol 59, No 1.

Collste G, 2007. Economic Globalisation and Global Justice. I: Sustainable Development and Global Ethics. Grenholm C-H & Kamergrauzis N (eds). Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis, 33, Uppsala.

Collste G. "…punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation…" An argument for Global Rectificatory Justice. In: Heuser S, Ulrich HG (eds). Political Practices and International Order. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Societas Ethica in Oxford, August 2006, Societas Ethica Vol. 4, Münster: Lit 2007.

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