Common heritage of humanity (also termed the common heritage of mankind, common heritage of humankind or common heritage principle) is a principle of

international law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...

that holds the defined territorial areas and elements of humanity's common heritage (

cultural Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

and

natural Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the laws, elements and phenomena of the physical world, including life. Although humans are part ...

) should be held in trust for

future generations Future generations are Cohort (statistics), cohorts of hypothetical people not yet born. Future generations are contrasted with current and past generations and evoked in order to encourage thinking about intergenerational equity. The Moral agenc ...

and be protected from exploitation by individual

nation states A nation state, or nation-state, is a political entity in which the State (polity), state (a centralized political organization ruling over a population within a territory) and the nation (a community based on a common identity) are (broadly ...

corporations A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...

Origins

In tracing the origins of the common heritage principle, it is important to distinguish its history as a term from its

conceptual history Conceptual history (also the history of concepts or, from German, ''Begriffsgeschichte'') is a branch of historical and cultural studies that deals with the historical semantics of terms. It sees the etymology and the change in meaning of terms ...

. The common heritage principle was developed under different names, including common "heritage", common "property", and common "patrimony" of mankind. These terms have at times described different concepts; for instance, in 1813 the "property of mankind" might mean the arts and sciences, rather than items or areas. By the early 20th century, "common heritage" and similar terms usually referred to areas and the resources in them, while other referents had become known under terms like "cultural heritage of all mankind", such as in the preamble to the 1954

Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict The Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict is the first international treaty that focuses exclusively on the protection of cultural property in armed conflict. It was signed at The Hague, Nethe ...

. Conceptually, the common heritage arose in response to the Roman civil law principle of ''

res communis ''Res communis'' is a concept or doctrine. The expression is a Latin language, Latin term derived from Roman law that preceded today's concepts of the commons and common heritage of mankind. It has relevance in international law and common law. I ...

'', which described items or areas that anyone could access or use, but none could own. Common heritage instead described areas or items that were owned by humanity as a collective. For example, in his essay ''Toward Perpetual Peace'',

Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (born Emanuel Kant; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German Philosophy, philosopher and one of the central Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works ...

claimed that the expansion of hospitality with regard to "use of the right to the earth's surface which belongs to the human race in common" would "finally bring the human race ever closer to a cosmopolitan constitution". The first known use of ''Common Heritage of Mankind'' by a state representative in the United Nations, constituting state practice, was at the First UN Conference on the Law of the Sea by Prince Wan Waithayakon of

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

in 1958. The role of 'mankind' as a legal subject was mentioned in negotiations for the outer space treaties, and mentions of 'mankind' appear across the space treaties. 'Mankind' as a subject in international law also appears in the Preamble of the

United Nations Charter The Charter of the United Nations is the foundational treaty of the United Nations (UN). It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the United Nations System, UN system, including its United Nations System#Six ...

, the Preamble of the

North Atlantic Treaty The North Atlantic Treaty, also known as the Washington Treaty, forms the legal basis of, and is implemented by, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The treaty was signed in Washington, D.C., on 4 April 1949. Background The treat ...

(1949) and the

Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, commonly known as the Non-Proliferation Treaty or NPT, is an international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperatio ...

(1968).

Law of the Sea Treaty

In 1970,

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its Seventy-ninth session of th ...

Resolution 2749, the ''Declaration of Principles Governing the Seabed and Ocean Floor'', was adopted by 108 nation states and stated that the deep seabed should be preserved for peaceful purposes and is the "Common Heritage of Mankind." In 1982, the Common Heritage of Mankind concept was stated to relate to "the seabed and ocean floor and

subsoil Subsoil is the layer of soil under the topsoil on the surface of the ground. Like topsoil, it is composed of a variable mixture of small particles such as sand, silt and clay, but with a much lower percentage of organic matter and humus. The su ...

thereof, beyond the limits of national jurisdiction" under Article 136 of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

Law of the Sea Treaty The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty, is an international treaty that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. , 169 sov ...

(UNCLOS). In his book titled ''Cries of the Sea: World Inequality, Sustainable Development and the Common Heritage of Humanity,'' Payoyo argues that the ''common heritage of humanity'' principle in Part XI of the

should favour developing states who were the voice of

conscience A conscience is a Cognition, cognitive process that elicits emotion and rational associations based on an individual's ethics, moral philosophy or value system. Conscience is not an elicited emotion or thought produced by associations based on i ...

in establishing it, and not merely in some transient 'affirmative action' manner. He claims, however, that the 1994 ''Implementation Agreement'' facilitated control by industrialised countries of the

International Seabed Authority The International Seabed Authority (ISA; ) is a Kingston, Jamaica-based intergovernmental body of 167 member states and the European Union. It was established under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and its 1994 Agreement o ...

(ISA), allowing access by the private sector to the deep sea bed and inhibiting constructive dialogue on sustainable development. In July 2024, during the International Seabed Authority’s 29th General Assembly,

Palau Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...

's President Surangel Whipps Jr., in his address entitled Upholding the Common Heritage of Humankind," emphasized the importance of safeguarding the ocean from exploitation and modern-day colonialism.

Core conceptual components

Former Maltese Ambassador Arvid Pardo, one of the founders of the ''common heritage of humanity'' concept under international law, has claimed that it challenges the "structural relationship between rich and poor countries" and represents a "revolution not merely in the law of the sea, but also in international relations". One of the main architects of the principle under international

space law Space law is the body of law governing space-related activities, encompassing both international and domestic agreements, rules, and principles. Parameters of space law include space exploration, liability for damage, weapons use, rescue efforts ...

has claimed that it is "the most important legal principle achieved by man throughout thousands of years during which law has existed as the regulating element of social exchange". This praise relates to the fact that

in the ''common heritage of humanity'' principle is seeking to protect, respect and fulfill the interests of human beings independently of any politically motivated

sovereign state A sovereign state is a State (polity), state that has the highest authority over a territory. It is commonly understood that Sovereignty#Sovereignty and independence, a sovereign state is independent. When referring to a specific polity, the ter ...

; the concept covering all humans wherever they are living, as well as future generations. Jennifer Frakes has identified five core components of the Common Heritage of Humanity concept. First, there can be no private or public appropriation; no one legally owns common heritage spaces. Second, representatives from all nations must manage resources contained in such a territorial or conceptual area on behalf of all since a commons area is considered to belong to everyone; this practically necessitating a special agency to coordinate shared management. Third, all nations must actively share with each other the benefits acquired from exploitation of the resources from the commons heritage region, this requiring restraint on the profit-making activities of private corporate entities; this linking the concept to that of

global public good In traditional usage, a global public good (or global good) is a Public good (economics), public good available on a more-or-less worldwide basis. There are many challenges to the traditional definition, which have far-reaching implications in the ...

. Fourth, there can be no weaponry or military installations established in territorial commons areas. Fifth, the commons should be preserved for the benefit of future generations, and to avoid a "

tragedy of the commons The tragedy of the commons is the concept that, if many people enjoy unfettered access to a finite, valuable resource, such as a pasture, they will tend to overuse it and may end up destroying its value altogether. Even if some users exercised vo ...

" scenario. Academic claims have been made that where the principle requires the establishment of an international resource management regime, prior to establishment of such a regime a moratorium on resource exploitation should be enforced. Such a position does not appear to have been supported by most states during the respective drafting negotiations.

World Heritage Conventions

A similar principle of international law holds that the world's

and natural heritage (as nominated for listing by nation states) must be protected by states parties to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Convention. A case study in the use of these provisions was provided by the Franklin Dam

non-violent protest Nonviolent resistance, or nonviolent action, sometimes called civil resistance, is the practice of achieving goals such as social change through symbolic protests, civil disobedience, economic or political noncooperation, satyagraha, construct ...

campaign against the construction of a dam of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

's last wild river; they being held by the Australian High Court to provide a valid basis for legislation protecting the

Franklin River The Franklin River is a major perennial river located in the Central Highlands (Tasmania), Central Highlands and Western Tasmania, western regions of Tasmania, Australia. The river is located in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park at ...

. Justice Lionel Murphy wrote in that case ('' Commonwealth v Tasmania'') about the Common Heritage of Humanity principle: "The preservation of the world's heritage must not be looked at in isolation but as part of the co-operation between nations which is calculated to achieve intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind and so reinforce the bonds between people which promote peace and displace those of narrow nationalism and alienation which promote war ... e encouragement of people to think internationally, to regard the culture of their own country as part of world culture, to conceive a physical, spiritual and intellectual world heritage, is important in the endeavour to avoid the destruction of humanity."

UNESCO Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights

The UNESCO ''Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights'' declares in Article 1 that: "The

human genome The human genome is a complete set of nucleic acid sequences for humans, encoded as the DNA within each of the 23 distinct chromosomes in the cell nucleus. A small DNA molecule is found within individual Mitochondrial DNA, mitochondria. These ar ...

underlies the fundamental unity of all members of the human family, as well as the recognition of their inherent dignity and diversity. In a symbolic sense, it is the heritage of humanity." Article 4 states: "The human genome in its natural state shall not give rise to financial gains." Such Declarations do not create binding obligations under

(unless over time there is sufficient '' opinio juris'' and state practise to make them part of

international customary law Customary international law consists of international legal obligations arising from established or usual international practices, which are less formal customary expectations of behavior often unwritten as opposed to formal written treaties or c ...

) so the impact of such principles of

commercialisation Commercialisation or commercialization is the process of introducing a new product or production method into commerce—making it available on the market. The term often connotes especially entry into the mass market (as opposed to entry into ea ...

of the

will be problematic. Whether the principle prohibits the

patenting A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...

of the

is contested by the corporate sector.

UNESCO Declaration on the Responsibilities of the Present Generations Towards Future Generations

Proclaimed on November 12, 1997, the

''Declaration on the Responsibilities of the Present Generations Towards Future Generations'' is an international agreement (potentially part of international customary law) which includes provisions related to the ''common heritage of mankind''.

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

The declaration affirms in its

preamble A preamble () is an introductory and expressionary statement in a document that explains the document's purpose and underlying philosophy. When applied to the opening paragraphs of a statute, it may recite historical facts pertinent to the su ...

that Indigenous Peoples contribute to humanity's common heritage.

Potential applications

It was argued at the

World Summit on the Information Society The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) was a two-phase United Nations-sponsored summit on information, communication and, in broad terms, the information society that took place in 2003 in Geneva and in 2005 in Tunis. WSIS Forums hav ...

and has been advocated by academics that global communication between individuals over the

internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

should be regarded as part of the Common Heritage of Mankind. Equatorial countries have proposed that the

geostationary orbit A geostationary orbit, also referred to as a geosynchronous equatorial orbit''Geostationary orbit'' and ''Geosynchronous (equatorial) orbit'' are used somewhat interchangeably in sources. (GEO), is a circular orbit, circular geosynchronous or ...

over the

high seas The terms international waters or transboundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water (or their drainage basins) transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed regiona ...

should be declared the ''common heritage of mankind''.

Controversies about the principle

Kemal Baslar has stated that the Common Heritage of Mankind principle "is a philosophical idea that questions the regimes of globally important resources regardless of their situation, and requires major changes in the world to apply its provisions. In other words, the application and enforcement of the common heritage of mankind require a critical reexamination of many well-established principles and doctrines of classical

, such as acquisition of territory, consent-based sources of international law,

sovereignty Sovereignty can generally be defined as supreme authority. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within a state as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the person, body or institution that has the ultimate au ...

equality Equality generally refers to the fact of being equal, of having the same value. In specific contexts, equality may refer to: Society * Egalitarianism, a trend of thought that favors equality for all people ** Political egalitarianism, in which ...

resource allocation In economics, resource allocation is the assignment of available resources to various uses. In the context of an entire economy, resources can be allocated by various means, such as markets, or planning. In project management, resource allocatio ...

and international personality." The ''common heritage of humanity'' principle in international law has been viewed as one solution to the

dilemma described in an influential article by that name written by

Garrett Hardin Garrett James Hardin (April 21, 1915 – September 14, 2003) was an American ecologist and microbiologist. He focused his career on the issue of human overpopulation, and is best known for his exposition of the tragedy of the commons in a 1968 p ...

in the journal ''

Science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

'' in 1968.Garrett Hardin
"The Tragedy of the Commons"
''Science'', Vol. 162, No. 3859 (December 13, 1968), pp. 1243–1248. Also availabl
here
an

/ref> The article critically analyzes a dilemma in which multiple individuals, acting independently after rationally consulting self-interest, ultimately destroy a shared limited resource even when each acknowledges that outcome is not in anyone's long-term interest. Hardin's conclusion that commons areas are practicably achievable only in conditions of low population density and so their continuance requires state restriction on the freedom to breed, created controversy particularly through his deprecation of the role of

in achieving justice and equality in society. Hardin's views have been noted by scholars and policy-makers supporting privatization of common spaces and suggesting economic rationalism on such social and ecosystems. The extent to which the Common Heritage of Mankind principle does or should control the activities of private

multinational corporations A multinational corporation (MNC; also called a multinational enterprise (MNE), transnational enterprise (TNE), transnational corporation (TNC), international corporation, or stateless corporation, is a corporate organization that owns and cont ...

as well as

, particularly with regard to

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

activities, remains controversial. Least developed nations often see the principle as a means of protecting critical resources from exploitation by capitalist nations and their corporations. As world oil, coal and mineral reserves are depleted there will be increasing pressure to commercially exploit Common Heritage of Mankind areas. It appears at the present time that exploration of outer space is unlikely to initially proceed under the jurisdiction of a supranational organization, but rather through the coordination of national space programs. It has been argued that photosynthesis in its natural or artificial forms should be considered the common heritage of humanity.Faunce TA. (2011) Will international trade law promote or inhibit global artificial photosynthesis. Asian Journal of WTO and International Health Law and Policy (AJWH) 6: 313–347 https://ssrn.com/abstract=1935748 accessed 25 November 2011

References

{{Authority control Space law Law of the sea 1967 in law United Nations treaties Cultural heritage International sustainable development Environmental law 1967 in international relations International law Global politics