Polity Atlas
05 · Future Observatory

Watching society transform

Research, technology shifts, AI governance, post-labour economics and digital statehood — each item tagged with its status and the claims it changes.

Get the fortnightly digest →RSS feed

News

Verified by editors
2025-09-28NewsSwiss voters approve a state-issued e-ID by a narrow marginOn 28 September 2025 Swiss voters accepted the federal e-ID Act by 50.39% to 49.61%, four years after rejecting an earlier e-ID law that would have relied on private issuers.Swiss Federal Statistical Office / Federal Chancellery (Popular Votes Dashboard)Established2025-07-03NewsInter-American Court recognises Nature as a subject of rightsIn Advisory Opinion OC-32/25, adopted on 29 May 2025 and notified on 3 July 2025, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights states that recognising Nature as a subject of rights is compatible with the inter-American system.Inter-American Court of Human RightsEstablished2025-02-26NewsICSID tribunal lets the Próspera arbitration against Honduras proceedOn 26 February 2025 the tribunal in Honduras Próspera Inc. v. Honduras rejected Honduras' objection that local remedies had not been exhausted. It is a ruling on admissibility, not on the merits.International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)Established2024-10-01NewsHonduras' Supreme Court rules ZEDE framework unconstitutionalThe 2024 ruling removes the legal basis on which Próspera and other ZEDEs were created; their future now runs through politics and international arbitration.Corte Suprema de Justicia de HondurasEstablished2024-09-05NewsFirst binding international treaty on AI opens for signatureThe Council of Europe Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law opened for signature on 5 September 2024 in Vilnius.Council of EuropeEstablished2024-08-01NewsEU AI Act enters into forceRegulation (EU) 2024/1689 entered into force on 1 August 2024. Many public-sector uses of AI, including in access to public benefits and the administration of justice, are classed as high-risk.Official Journal of the European UnionEstablished2023-12-07NewsEU court: an automated credit score can itself be an 'automated decision'In SCHUFA (C-634/21), decided on 7 December 2023, the Court of Justice held that an automated score can fall under GDPR Article 22 when a third party draws strongly on it for a contract decision.Court of Justice of the European UnionEstablished