On 25 November, Professor Paula Wojcikiewicz Almeida, Director of the Centre for Global Law and the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence (CEJM) co-funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ programme, and researcher Giulia Romay were awarded the Research Excellence Prize at the VIII FGV Research and Innovation Symposium.

The award recognized the excellence of the research project developed under the auspices of the CEJM, co-funded by the European Commission, titled “Opening the World Court to State and Non-State Actors in Contentious Cases: Reality or Utopia?”.

The project was conducted with the participation of the researchers taking part in the CEJM, notably former researchers Giulia Romay, Mariana Gouvea and Gabriela Porto. It culminated in a book co-authored with researcher Giulia Romay, published by Springer and now available for pre-order on their website.

The study aimed to fill a gap in the academic literature on International Law and stood out for its interdisciplinary empirical methodology to map all formal and informal avenues of access to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

The research sought to map the voices of civil society that resonate within the International Court of Justice on matters of public interest and to explore the challenges and possibilities for expanding access to international courts.

Professor Paula Almeida expressed her satisfaction for the national and international recognition of the excellence of the research conducted by the Centre. She extended her gratitude to the entire FGV academic community for the award.