Tu Globalista: Lo que sucede en el mundo.

Under complex systems theory, there is the idea that complex systems evolve and are created due to the interaction of agents. This also brings another element, that of horizontal organization. In other words, there is not a central planner to determine how a system should behave; rather, is the interaction of the agents that causes the system’s behavior. And that form of looking at complex systems sounds a lot like international law.

International law, seen from complex systems theory, could be thought of as a type of horizontal system, one that there is no central planner. A type of system without a central planner, but then, how does international law find a type of plan or order?

If there is no central planning, how do the myriad of international law agents organize to reach an element of stability?

Such a question brings two further notions that might seem contradictory at first, for one side is the element of hierarchy and the other the element of feedback.

To talk about horizontal organization in international law, and hierarchy in international law, seems to be contradictory. However, they are not. Complex systems are created due to the interaction of many agents, which causes a system to emerge. In the case of international law, the interaction of states and non-state actors causes international law to emerge. Such notions direct us to the phenomena of horizontal organization since there is no central planner. The element of hierarchy correspond to the notion that states are composed of individuals in a certain given territory, which create a government to run such a state. Individuals interact with each other creating a state. Also, international organizations are composed by individuals, having different departments. So, instead of looking at states and non-state actors from top down, is to look at them from the bottom up. That is how you get the notion of hierarchy at the micro-level and horizontal interaction at the macro-level.

The element of feedback in international law is the one that helps in understanding how the agents in international law tends to organize itself without a central planner. Feedback can be understood as the information an agent recovers from the interaction or lack of it with other agents and with the system of international law. The most basic element of feedback is the aim to survive in a system and the whole environment.

The element above brings the notion of Darwin’s evolvability. Agents have the capacity to evolve. Such capacity to evolve is translated by the notion of the agent’s capacity to improve its internal models. Which means, a given agent, at the macro-level structure, say a state or a non-state actor like an international organization, tries out some models, and if they don’t work they ditch them, and if some models do work they adopt them. The ones that did not work would be change in order to find gradual adjustment of their given models.

When agents interact with each other, they tend to dance in a tune of cooperation and competition. Which causes the system to stay constantly in change, were the agents, in this case, the states and non-state actors, will create agreements, alliances, resulting in a type of an organized system without a central planner. A program without a central programmer.