About BILC

Launched in 2024, Boğaziçi International Law Conference (BILC) aims at bringing together a large number of academics and experts from around the world to critically examine the current international legal issues. Last year, BILC 2024 themed "Rethinking International Law After Gaza", engaged with the decolonial critique of international law in light of the atrocities committed in Gaza. Following the conference, scholarly discussions continued in a symposium under the same title, with selected papers published on Opinio Juris, a leading international law blog. The conference concluded with a declaration of action, which was also published on Opinio Juris. 

The second conference, BILC 2025, held last summer, focused on “Justice and Reconstruction in Post-Conflict Societies.” It explored the role of international law in the aftermath of wars and conflicts, addressing questions of reconstruction, reconciliation, and justice. Participants examined how international law has shaped post-conflict governance and considered whether it can truly support equitable and sustainable recovery or risks reinforcing existing global hierarchies.

BILC 2025 fostered rich debates on topics such as security governance, refugee return, economic recovery, constitution-making, environmental justice, sanctions, maritime disputes, and the role of international courts. With case studies including Syria, Ukraine, Afghanistan, and Palestine, the conference challenged dominant legal narratives and explored alternative approaches to post-conflict justice and reconstruction.

BILC 2026 will take place on 13–14 June 2026 at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, under the theme “International Economic Law in a Fractured Global Order”. Building on the discussions of the past two years, this year’s conference turns to the global economic order and its deepening crises. The system established after the Second World War is showing its limits, struggling to reflect the realities of the 21st century and to address growing inequalities, conflicts, and environmental challenges. As trade wars intensify, globalisation is questioned, and neo-colonial economic relations come under increasing criticism, international economic law finds itself at a crossroads.

BILC 2026 will provide a space for critical reflection on these transformations. It invites scholars from around the world to examine how international law can respond to the fractures of the global economic order and to explore new ideas for a fairer and more sustainable future.