Les Frontières de l'ordre concurrentiel et du marché : les Biens Publics Mondiaux et les patrimoines communs

The issue of International or Global Public Goods (IPG) and Common or shared heritage was recently brought to the fore following the relative decline of the public sphere and the rise of the market forces and the private sphere. ?Overwhelmed? States and the growing rivalry between common or shared heritage raise the question of a world-wide management of shared heritage such as the protection of the ozone layer or cultural diversity. Several theoretical arguments can be made, that distinguish shared goods and shared heritage, private or public, global or international. The first are part of the economy and the interests vested in them do not challenge the actual international relations. The latter concern cross-border political economy and raise the question of heritage and conflicts of values and end-use. These are political decisions that define the edges of both competition and world heritage.