This book presents us with an exhaustively researched discussion of several dimensions of the regulation of a particular industry, placed in the context of scholarship on regulatory competition. The research is original, and the conclusions well argued, persuasive, and important.
David Vogel, Haas School of Business and Department of Political Science, University of California, Berkeley
This is a novel and important book. It makes a set of strong and compelling arguments, supported by solid empirical evidence, about the effects of globalization on environment, seaman safety, and fishing. It makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the means by which states can control, rather than be victimized by, the process of globalization.
Ronald B. Mitchell, Department of Political Science, University of Oregon
Regulation of oceangoing vessels is the perfect domain in which to study the complex interplay of sovereignty, globalization, and international rulemaking. Flagging Standards takes good advantage of the opportunity, replacing simple bromides about 'rising tides' and 'races to the bottom' with careful scholarship that yields powerful insights. DeSombre's political-economic analysis of the goods (and bads) of international shipping suggests a way forward in the effort to respond to the environmental pressures of globalization.
Ken Conca, Department of Government and Politics, University of Maryland, author of Governing Water: Contentious Transnational Politics and Global Institution Building
