From June 29 to July 1, 2026, the annual conference of the International Society of Public Law — ICON•S 2026 — was held in Dublin, Ireland. Over the course of three days, 2,088 participants presented reports across 601 sessions.
The academic team of the Law School at the University of Georgia participated in the conference. The university was represented by Law School Professors Ana Pirtskhalashvili and Malkhaz Begiashvili, Associate Professor Irakli Samkharadze, and PhD candidate Magda Japaridze.
Representatives of the University of Georgia presented papers on current topics in modern public law, constitutional rights, freedom of expression, environmental law, and children's rights across various panels:
Prof. Ana Pirtskhalashvili presented on the panel "Courts and the Right to a Healthy Environment" with her report "The Human Right to a Healthy Environment: Between Legal Principles and Practical Enforcement", addressing the constitutional significance of the right to a healthy environment and the practical challenges of its enforcement.
Prof. Malkhaz Begiashvili delivered a report titled "Legislative Competence to Prohibit the Expression of Certain Opinions" on the panel "Technologies and Fight Disinformation and Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference Against the EU and Its Values in Georgia".
Assoc. Prof. Irakli Samkharadze presented "Climate Governance Across Borders: The Transformation of EU Public Law in Southeast Europe" on the panel "Inscribing Sustainability in Law".
PhD Candidate Magda Japaridze presented her report "Challenges to the Rights of the Child to Freedom of Opinion, Information and the Internet in Georgia".
The participation of the University of Georgia's academic team in ICON•S 2026 underscores the Law School's active engagement in the international scientific arena and its ongoing contribution to global academic discussions on public law and human rights.
