This month Lisbeth Zimmermann’s new book, „Global Norms with a Local Face: Rule-of-Law Promotion and Norm Translation" has been published with Cambridge University Press. It is part of the series “Cambridge Studies in International Relations” - the most renowned book series in the field of International Relations. This book offers a new approach to the debate about how the dilemma between the diffusion of global norms and their localization is dealt with in global politics.
Studying the promotion of children's rights, access to public information, and an international commission against impunity in Guatemala, Lisbeth Zimmermann demonstrates that rule-of-law promotion triggers domestic contestation and thereby changes the approach taken by external actors, and ultimately the manner in which global norms are translated. However, the leeway in local translation is determined by the precision of global norms. Based her empirical case studies, Zimmermann argues for a shift in norm promotion from context sensitivity to democratic appropriation.