This Working Paper is the result of a workshop held at the European University Institute in November 2010. At the heart of it lies a reflection on the potentialities of a new legal concept: social environmental justice. Building on the longstanding tradition of social justice and the more recent trend of environmental (or ecological) justice, our aim was to discuss how these two different dimensions of ‘justice’ overlap and could be reconciled in an all-encompassing notion. Moreover, we discussed the need for such a new concept in the light of the contemporary challenges of climate change and economic globalisation and focused especially on the concept’s added value compared to the already existing notion of sustainable development. In addition to that, we explored the practical value of social environmental justice especially in the context of legal practice. This publication is a mirror of the different normative approaches (more social, more environmental, more holistic) one can adopt in dealing with problems such as climate change and globalization. Finally, it suggests different legal paths (Human rights, Private International Law, European Law) that could be taken in order to address these issues.

This study focuses on the legal treatment of educational uses of copyrighted works under Italian law. Considering the very narrow room for free, unauthorized educational uses under Article 70 of the Italian Copyright Act, one would expect a large recourse to rights clearance mechanisms ensuring a wide and legitimate use of copyrighted works for educational purposes (especially when such works are communicated through digital networks and are used on e-learning platforms). Unfortunately, this is not the case in Italy, where neither stakeholders nor competent authorities have taken steps to create an effective system of licences for educational uses. A comparative analysis of exceptions and licensing mechanisms for educational uses in a few countries of continental Europe, northern Europe and of the United States reveals solutions and contractual patterns that show possible solutions for Italy to escape from the present stalemate. In nearly all jurisdictions considered in the study, collective bargaining and collective management constitute an essential element of the regulation of educational uses of copyrighted works and set up mechanisms and levels of economic compensation for authors, publishers and other categories of right-holders. In conclusion, the study suggests a reform of Italian law based on the examples of statutory licensing schemes created for educational uses by countries like Germany and France. Such reform would aim at legalizing a number of educational uses to the benefit of certain categories of beneficiaries through the recognition of remuneration rights in favour of copyright holders.

Time and again the ECJ comes under fire, from the Member States who fear the loss of sovereignty, as well as from trade unions and public interest groups who fear the downgrading of ‘The Social’. The overall message then may be condensed into the plea for a court which takes a more cautious stance. I am arguing the exact opposite, at least with regard to remedies in the social and the citizen rights order. Only more judicial activism can overcome the lacunae which results from a rights-remedyprocedure mechanism that is too much designed to enforce economic freedoms.