População e Sociedade n.º 45

Judite Gonçalves de Freitas (editor)

Thematic Issue

The Reconfiguration of the International Order in a Multipolar World

Coordinator

Judite Gonçalves de Freitas

The present issue of the journal brings together, in its thematic dossier, a collection of studies examining some of the principal challenges facing the contemporary international order. These contributions reflect on the transformations affecting human rights, global governance, international law, geopolitics, environmental sustainability, and the protection of individuals and the most vulnerable groups. Despite their thematic diversity, the articles converge in their critical analysis of the tensions characterising the current international context and in their search for responses guided by justice, human dignity, and cooperation among States.

The dossier opens with an article by Daniela Cortinhas de Azevedo, which revisits the continuing relevance of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and discusses the challenges of adapting it to emerging global realities. This is followed by the contribution of Bárbara Bernardes de Oliveira Sartori, who analyses the evolution of access to justice, advocating a paradigm of protective governance centred on the effective implementation of rights and the protection of vulnerable groups. The dimension of global governance is further explored by João Casqueira Cardoso, Shaikh Sayed Ahammed, Bárbara Bernardes de Oliveira Sartori, and Elvira Alves Barry through an analysis of the role of environmental standards in the new international order, while Nubia Zulma Nieto Flores reflects on the contemporary threats to freedom of expression and European democracies. The relationship between power and international law is examined by João Tavares and António Tavares, who analyse the limits of jus ad bellum in the face of great-power politics. This discussion is further developed in the study by Sami A. R. J. El Jundi and Judite Gonçalves de Freitas, which examines the persistence of coloniality as an explanatory framework for geopolitical dynamics in the Middle East, highlighting how historical structures of power continue to shape international interventions and the reconfiguration of regional balances. Closely aligned with this perspective, Vítor Teixeira analyses the strategic challenges confronting Iran in the current context of regional transformation, emphasising the interplay of geopolitical, economic, and domestic factors that will shape the future of the Islamic Republic and the balance of power in the Middle East.

The issue concludes with two contributions addressing more immediate contemporary concerns. Fernando Campos examines the impact of the current crisis in the Middle East on multilateralism and international governance, while Margarida T. S. Pocinho discusses the consequences of contemporary conflicts for collective mental health, highlighting the need to strengthen social resilience in an increasingly unstable international environment.

Taken together, the studies published in this issue provide an interdisciplinary perspective on the challenges defining the twenty-first century, contributing to the advancement of scholarly debate on human rights, global governance, international security, and the development of more effective, inclusive, and sustainable responses to a world undergoing rapid transformation.

The Varia section presents three additional articles. The first examines freedom of expression, digital hypervulnerability, and the judicialisation of youth digital conflicts in the platform society. The second offers a critical perspective on the housing information system in Cabo Verde. The third analyses the demographic revolution and demographic dividend in Angola over the period from 1960 to 2050.