International Investment Law, Reframed for Policy and Practice

Research on International Investment Law, focusing on investment governance, ISDS, and sustainable development, with particular attention to Africa and Global South.

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About

diana kanyuithia

Diana Kanyuithia

PhD Researcher in International Economic Law | Arbitration | Investment & Development

Rules That Move the World is an independent platform that explores how international investment governance can better reconcile investment, sustainable development and the interests of local communities. It focuses particularly on the procedural visibility of communities across the investment cycle, from pre-arbitral governance and project development to investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS), and considers reforms that strengthen participation, accountability, regulatory autonomy and access to justice. The research approaches ISDS as an evolving component of investment governance and considers reform options without presupposing a particular institutional outcome. All content is based on publicly available sources and peer-reviewed research and is provided for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice.

Thematic Areas

Law and Arbitration

01. Law and Arbitration.

Investment law, arbitration and dispute settlement.

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Law and Arbitration

02. Sustainability and Communities

Investment, sustainable development and the people and places affected by it.

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Law and Arbitration

03. Investment Governance

Rules, institutions and policies that govern investment and its relationship with the State and society.

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Featured Posts

  • The Future: Reforming ISDS for a Changing World

    The Future: Reforming ISDS for a Changing World

    Reforming ISDS: From Dispute Settlement to Dispute Governance Investor–State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) is no longer a settled field. For much of its modern history, investment arbitration developed through a network of bilateral investment treaties, multilateral…

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  • Communities Left Behind: Power and Investment Projects

    Communities Left Behind: Power and Investment Projects

    Investment law is often described as technical, specialised, even neutral. Yet the rules that govern cross-border investment are not impartial; they reflect particular interests and priorities, protecting capital while leaving communities vulnerable to disruption. Large-scale…

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  • The Future: Reforming ISDS for a Changing World

    The Future: Reforming ISDS for a Changing World

    Reforming ISDS: From Dispute Settlement to Dispute Governance Investor–State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) is no longer a settled field. For much of its modern history, investment arbitration developed through a network of bilateral investment treaties, multilateral… Read more…

  • Case File 11 | Vattenfall v Germany

    Case File 11 | Vattenfall v Germany

    When the Energy Transition Meets Investment Protection Vattenfall v Germany rose from Germany’s decision to accelerate the phase-out of nuclear power following the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. Vattenfall and its co-investors held interests in… Read more

  • How Treaty Power Structures State Authority

    How Treaty Power Structures State Authority

    Investment treaties do not merely regulate economic activity; they structure political and economic power. Through cases such as Bear Creek v Peru, Cortec v Kenya, and Nachingwea v Tanzania, this analysis examines how… Read more

About Author

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Investor–State Dispute Settlement (ISDS).

International Investment Law (IIL) reform.

Sustainable development and SDGs in investment governance.

Land, livelihoods, and community inclusion in large-scale investments.

East African legal and institutional frameworks.

  • International Investment Law (IIL) — investment treaties, protection standards, investment governance and regulatory frameworks.
  • Investor–State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) — dispute settlement, procedural access, power and State regulatory autonomy.
  • Investment Governance — the legal and institutional frameworks governing foreign investment.
  • State Regulatory Space — balancing investment protection with legitimate public-interest regulation.
  • Local Communities — participation, land, livelihoods, displacement, consultation, compensation and access to justice.
  • Environment & Sustainable Development — investment protection, environmental governance, climate investment and sustainability.
  • Human Rights & Investment — rights, accountability, participation and access to justice within investment governance.
  • State–Investor–Community Relations — the distribution of investment benefits, risks, responsibilities and decision-making power.
  • Global South Perspectives — investment governance and dispute settlement from the perspective of developing States and affected communities.
  • Africa & East Africa — with particular focus on Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
  • Investment Law Reform — rethinking IIL and ISDS to better accommodate sustainable development, community interests and legitimate State regulation.

My professional background spans public-sector legal practice, regulatory and investment governance, policy development, and international commercial arbitration. This experience grounds my research and analysis in the institutional and political realities through which investment frameworks are designed, implemented, challenged, and reformed, and in the broader relationship between law, investment and sustainable development.

Recent Activities

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Publications

Journal Article and Chapter

International Investment Law

conferences

International Conference

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