For several decades, social rights lacked proper recognition in international law, being qualified as aspirational goals rather than rights, and therefore not enjoying the same level of protection or status as other human rights. This comprehensive Research Handbook provides a comparative overview of the history, nature and current status of social rights at the universal and regional level. Tracing their evolution from rather modest beginnings, to becoming the category of rights responding most accurately to the 21st century's policy objectives of poverty eradication and equitable resource allocation, this Research Handbook assesses the mechanisms used to enhance the implementation and enforcement of social rights. Offering in-depth discussion of current debates in the field of social rights and international law, expert contributors analyse the ability of these rights to act as a tool to fight inequality, as well as to protect and ensure diversity. In so doing, they examine how social rights now play a central role in the shift from a state-centred to a value-based global order. This Research Handbook will be a useful resource for students and academics working on social rights in international human rights law and other fields of public international law. It will also be of value to lawyers, NGOs and state officials concerned with the enforcement and implementation of social rights. Contributors include: V. Bilkova, C. Binder, J.P. Bohoslavsky, D.M. Chirwa, A. Constantinides, J. Cortez da Cunha Cruz, E. De Brabandere, M. de Carvalho Hernandez, E. Dermine, M. Dobri , E. Ferrer Mac-Gregor, M. Goldmann, M. Gongora-Mera, J.A. Hofbauer, D. Ikawa, P. Janig, Z. K dzia, A. Kendrick, T. Kleinlein, E. Lopez-Jacoiste, K. Lukas, S. McInerney-Lankford, A. Mkhonza, M. Morales Antoniazzi, A. Muller, Y. Negishi, M. Nowak, K. Olaniyan, L.C. Pautassi, F. Piovesan, E. Schmid, J. Schoensteiner, F. Seatzu, A. Ubeda de Torre, F. Viljoen, R. Wilde, I.T. Winkler