ABSTRACT
The chapter describes the role of states and regional organisations as central protection actors. The chapter describes the role of states as norm entrepreneurs and key drivers of normative change. Next, the chapter turns to norm contestation, exploring both reasons for, as well as strategies of, norm contestation. The chapter then turns to the role of regional organisations, particularly with regard to norms advocacy. Two cases, Sri Lanka and Somalia, are explored in further detail to describe the concepts and theories discussed in this chapter. The chapter closes with a discussion of the ‘subsidiarity’ principle and the extent to which it is able to assist cooperation among actors at the regional and international levels.
