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Copyright of Canadian Journal of Latin American & Caribbean Studies (Canadian Association of Latin American & Caribbean Studies (CALACS)) is the property of Canadian Association of Latin American & Caribbean Studies (CALACS) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: Using the Kobe earthquake of 1995 and the Mid-Java earthquake of 2006 as case studies, this paper discusses the process of providing cultural recovery assistance; it also analyses the term ‘civil society’, a term that reflects efforts to make assistance activities sustainable. The Kobe earthquake should be seen as a point of departure for citizen activism by volunteers; because of it, cultural recovery support was vigorously provided. Since people influenced by those support efforts later became involved in providing Mid-Java earthquake recovery assistance, both earthquake recovery support initiatives can be seen as part of an ongoing chain of events. In analysing the Kobe earthquake, it becomes clear that while there are many semantic meanings for and usages of the term ‘civil society’, it was incorporated into policy guidelines for recovery during a period of low economic growth, and a new civil society was envisioned in this period of social transformation. Organisations participating in assistance efforts following the Mid-Java earthquake sought to make ‘civil society’ a reality; this continued after the earthquake recovery was complete, and it comprised an attempt to build the connections within a civil society by looking to overcome many persistent social problems. The power of communication that ‘culture’ holds plays a large role in this. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recommender systems are used to provide relevant suggestions on various matters. Although these systems are a classical research topic, knowledge is still limited regarding the public opinion about these systems. Public opinion is also important because the systems are known to cause various problems. To this end, this paper presents a qualitative analysis of the perceptions of ordinary citizens, civil society groups, businesses, and others on recommender systems in Europe. The dataset examined is based on answers submitted to a consultation about the Digital Services Act (DSA) recently enacted in the European Union (EU). Therefore, not only does the paper contribute to the pressing question about regulating new technologies and online platforms, but it also reveals insights about the policy-making of the DSA. According to the qualitative results, Europeans have generally negative opinions about recommender systems and the quality of their recommendations. The systems are widely seen to violate privacy and other fundamental rights. According to many Europeans, these also cause various societal problems, including even threats to democracy. Furthermore, existing regulations in the EU are commonly seen to have failed due to a lack of proper enforcement. Numerous suggestions were made by the respondents to the consultation for improving the situation, but only a few of these ended up to the DSA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper emphasizes the contemporary relevance of civility, understood as a respectful way of treating the other and recognition of people’s differences and sensibilities. It outlines the sociological importance of civility as being connected with its role as both a normative guidance orienting us towards prescriptive ideals and as an empirical concept with important social impact on identities and actions. The paper examines Adam Smith’s theory which roots civility in a commercial society, analyses Elias’s (1994) history of civility as the folding of the logic of the civilizing process, and it debates theories linking the idea of civility to civil society. In conclusion, emphases are put on the importance of civility, seen as the act of respectful engaging with people across deep divisions, for the quality of democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

THIS PAPER CRITICALLY EXAMINES THE MULTIFACETED IMPLICATIONS OF RUSSIA'S AGGRESSION TOWARDS UKRAINE POST-FEBRUARY 2, 2022, ON EUROPEAN BORDER DYNAMICS. THE PAPERS BRINGS TO OUR ATTENTION THE ROMANIA-UKRAINE BORDER INTERACTIONS. BEGINNING WITH A HISTORICAL CONTEXTUALIZATION, THE STUDY EXPLORES UKRAINE'S EVOLVING TIES WITH EUROPEAN ENTITIES IN LIGHT OF RUSSIA'S ANNEXATION OF CRIMEA. FOCUSING ON THE ROMANIA-UKRAINE FRONTIER, AN ESSENTIAL PART OF THE EU'S EASTERN BORDER, THIS PAPER HIGHLIGHTS ITS SHIFT FROM A RESTRICTIVE BOUNDARY TO A BUSY TRADE HUB, FACILITATED BY EUROPEAN LEGISLATION AND UKRAINE'S GROWING ECONOMY. FURTHERMORE, IT ASSESSES THE EUROPEAN UNION'S ADJUSTMENT OF BORDER SECURITY MEASURES IN RESPONSE TO THE UKRAINIAN REFUGEE CRISIS, PRIORITIZING HUMANITARIAN AID OVER STRICT CONTROLS. THE PAPER ALSO POINTS OUT THE CRUCIAL ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETIES IN AIDING REFUGEES. IN CONCLUSION, WHILE ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES CAUSED BY RUSSIAN ACTIONS, THE PAPER IDENTIFIES A POSITIVE OUTCOME: ENHANCED COOPERATION BETWEEN ROMANIA AND UKRAINE. THE ARTICLE ADVOCATES FOR ONGOING SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE'S EUROPEAN AMBITIONS AND PROMOTES INCREASED CROSS-BORDER COLLABORATIONS TO FOSTER REGIONAL PEACE AND PROSPERITY. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Foreign Policy Journal (CFPJ) is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: This paper investigates the roles and activities of the orchestrators of innovation networks constituted within cities. In this sense, the authors expected to contribute for research related to the roles and activities of the orchestrators of innovation networks constituted in the scope of cities given the large number and diversity of complex and multiple dimensions social actors (Castells & Borja, 1996; Reypens, Lievens & Blazevic, 2019). Design/methodology/approach: The authors conducted an exploratory research with a single case study in depth. The case chosen for the paper is the case of Pacto Alegre. The case selection criterion was the relevance of the Pacto Alegre Case in the construction of an innovation network in the city of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The Pacto Alegre network was proposed by the Alliance for Innovation (composed of the three main Universities in the city: UFRGS, PUCRS and UNISINOS) and by the Municipality of Porto Alegre. In addition to these actors, the network counts on financial and development institutions as sponsors, with media partners, with design partners, with an advisory board (composed of five professionals considered references in different themes) and composed by more than 100 companies, associations and institutions from different areas (Pacto Alegre, 2019). Data were collected from 09/20/2020 to 11/30/2020 through in-depth interviews, documentary research and non-participant observation. Findings: In this research, the authors highlighted the city as a community that involves and integrates various actors, such as citizens and companies, to collaborative innovation activities. For this, they proposed a framework on innovation networks and network orchestration. In this direction, seven dimensions of the "orchestration of innovation networks" were assumed as a result of the combination of previous studies by Dhanaraj and Parke (2006), Hurmelinna-Laukkanen et al. (2011) and da Silva and Bitencourt (2019). In the sequence, different roles of orchestrators associated with the literature were adopted based on the work by Pikkarainen et al. (2017) and Nielsen and Gausdal (2017). Research limitations/implications: The authors' results advance in relation to other fields by promoting the expansion of the "orchestration of innovation networks" model with the combination of distinct elements from the literature in a coherent whole (agenda setting, mobilization, network stabilization, creation and transfer of knowledge, innovation appropriability, coordination and co-creation) and in the validation of its applicability in the context of the innovation network studied. In addition, when relating different roles of orchestrators to the seven dimensions studied, it was realized that there is no linear and objective relationship between the dimensions and roles of the orchestrator, as in each dimension there may be more than one role being played in the orchestration. Practical implications: Therefore, the findings suggest two theoretical contributions. First, the authors identified a role not discussed in the literature, here called the communicator. In the case analysis, the authors observed the communicator role through functions performed by a media partner of the innovation network and by a group of civil society engaged in the city's causes. Second, the authors indicated a new dimension of orchestration related to the management of communication in the innovation network and its externalities such as p. ex. civil and organized society, characteristic of an innovation network set up within a city. Originality/value: Although several studies have proposed advances in the understanding of the orchestration of innovation networks (Dhanaraj & Parkhe, 2006; Ritala, Armila & Blomqvist, 2009; Nambisan & Sawhney, 2011; Hurmelinna-Laukkanen et al., 2011), the discussion on the topic is still a black box (Nilsen & Gausdal, 2017). More specifically, the authors identified a gap in the literature about the role and activities of actors in the city level. Few studies connected the regional dimension with the roles and activities of the orchestrators (Hurmelinna-Laukkanen et al., 2011; Pikkarainen et al., 2017), raising several challenges and opportunities to be considered by academics and managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper presents the experience and situation of third country nationals living in Timisoara, Romania. Their experience is relevant to the region of Banat, in the West of the country, but broadly speaking, also mirrors the situation of various types of migrants who come to Romania. Through both individual interviews and focus groups, we obtained information concerning 4 main topics that are relevant to integration: education, health, housing, and employment. The respondents were adults who came from a background that is diversified professionally, culturally, and geographically. Thus, the sample, consisting of a total of over 50 persons, is relevant to our purpose: finding out what the needs of the third country nationals are and how can both state institutions and civil society organizations better meet those needs. After having studied material stemming from previous research and after having analysed the discourse of those whom we have encountered, we conclude that, though the Romanian state has the legal basis and premises to ensure the successful integration of TCNs in Romania, there is still work to be done in the field of putting the theoretical framework into common practice on the ground, thus ensuring the fair access of the TCNs to the tools and support they need to successfully integrate in the Romanian society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigated the disposition and leadership approach to corruption and anti-corruption agenda in Nigeria during Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari civilian administrations. The adopted theoretical framework is leadership personality approach while a comparative research design was utilised. Data were collected from primary and secondary sources. Primary data were collected through Key Informant Interviews (KIIs). In all, twelve KIIs were conducted with different categories of people from civil society organisations, media personnel, scholars, and retired officials of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC). Secondary data were obtained from the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CSLAC) and the Transparency International's (TI) Corruption Perception Index. Also, books, newspapers, journals, internet source were used. Findings revealed that Jonathan's approach to corruption lacked lustre while Buhari's was mild. In terms of disposition, Jonathan was tolerant towards corruption while Buhari's disposition was intolerant but still condoned it like Jonathan. Factors accounted for differences in their depositions to corruption and anticorruption agenda are background of the leaders, party ideology and implementation of inherited measures while similarities in their dispositions are related to party politics, lack of political will and serious minded prosecution. The paper concluded that the approaches employed in combating corruption was whittled down by the dispositions of the two civilian presidents. It is recommended among others that intra-party favoritism should be separated from anti-corruption agenda in Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of policy capacity is often used to explain the success or failure of governments or countries in conceiving of, developing, and implementing policies, but is often poorly systematised. Wu et al provide a framework for understanding types of policy capacity, arguing that three kinds of capacity, distributed across policy systems, are needed for effective implementation. This paper applies that framework to a discussion of China, a country that has been managing a fundamental transformation since at least the late 1970s, which has underpinned the country's growth and development. The paper focuses on a subset of China's reforms - reforms to the healthcare system since the 1990s. Discussion of policy capacity shows (1) that policy capacity is dynamic and adaptive, in response to changing challenges due to rapid transformation in the country; (2) that the development and distribution of capacities has, overall, been government-directed, with strong research and analytical support from public think tanks and universities; (3) that understanding of policy capacity is evolving, with government paying increasing attention to the need to develop a learning state and society in response to increasingly complex problems of development. Examination of the Chinese case has relevance for how other countries develop and adapt policy capacities over time to manage rapid transformation, uncertainty and shocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the period from 2013 to 2017, the Czech Parliament passed five bills against corruption. A civil initiative called Reconstruction of the State was heavily involved in the process. Before the 2013 elections, the initiative prompted the candidates running for an MP mandate to publicly commit to supporting selected legislation proposals. The initiative used a variety of advocacy and campaign tactics to support passing the bills after the elections. This paper uses process tracing to answer the following research questions: (1) What path led to this success?, (2) Is there sufficient evidence about the actual role of the initiative in seeing the proposals passed by the Parliament? and (3) What has determined the initiative's advocacy decisions? The first research question is treated descriptively, focusing on the key milestones in this historically unique advocacy campaign. To answer the second question, we conducted a non-formal counterfactual assessment of whether the absence of the initiative would have resulted in passing fewer proposals. This is important for evaluating civil society's potential to effectively influence the political process. Finally, in answering the third question, we show that advocacy tactics have markedly changed throughout the Reconstruction of the State campaign. Building on this observation, we argue that tactics are not only policy- or campaign-specific but also change within a single case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In my paper, I use Jon Stewart's recent analysis of the relationship between Hegel's and Marx's philosophy concerning the issues of alienation and recognition as a starting point for tackling the issue of alienation within civil society. I present key issues in Hegel's presentation of civil society in the Philosophy of Right and Marx's critique of this presentation. I argue that although both accounts are deficient, together they eloquently present the contradictory features of civil society once it attains political character. Ultimately, I concur with Stewart's thesis about the long-term Hegelian influence, and I argue that the rival explanations of civil society of Hegel and Marx are still revealing even today and can significantly contribute to self-understanding within contemporary liberal democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kenya's new energy legislation provides a framework for participatory national energy planning. This planning process is intended to formulate a vision for the energy sector, and identify and prioritize energy programmes, projects and/or facilities that contribute to realizing the vision. This paper describes an initiative to structure and operationalize the participation of private sector, civil society, and development organizations in this new energy planning process. The initiative leverages knowledge from the field of sustainable transitions research; the transition management approach is applied to establish a transition arena where non-state actors in the energy sector deliberate and develop visions, pathways, and interventions to be presented for consideration during the preparation of the integrated national energy plan. A structure to institutionalize and operationalize the participation of private sector, civil society and development organizations in Kenya's national energy planning process is developed, as well as a standardized approach to develop non-state actor inputs for the preparation and cyclical review of Kenya's national energy plan. The focus of this paper is the inputs developed by non-state actors for Kenya's integrated national energy plan under the electricity access thematic area. • Knowledge, information & expertise amongst non-state actors to inform energy planning. • Need to structure and institutionalize participation of non-state actors in energy planning • Transition management approach facilitates participatory national energy planning. • Transition agenda developed for electricity access in Kenya. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a corpus of knowledge on the challenges of regional integration (RI) in Africa, and Southern Africa in particular. What emerges from this body of knowledge is that the key issues pertaining to RI are not uniformly addressed, and they are largely framed from state-centric thinking, which is mostly rooted within a Westernised worldview. This paper argues that civil society has a significant role to play in the realisation of the full potential of RI in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The authors concede that there are numerous challenges to the envisaged role of civil society. As such, they use the findings of the research for this paper to propose solutions for consideration by policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Civil society and the protection of civil liberties are essential for the establishment and fortification of democracy. This essay is desktop-based, utilising both theoretical and historical approaches to explore how these crucial conditions for democracy have met with state-sponsored indifference and even hostility in Nigeria. One major reason behind this is that for almost half of its existence as an independent country, Nigeria has been under military rule. Periods of military rule usually conduct politics in a manner typical of military inflexibility and an almost innate hostility to dissent. Thus, under such circumstances, civil society organisations and civil liberties are frowned upon, and democracy is occluded. The paper noted, however, that even under elected or civilian governments, civil society participation and contestation have suffered. This could be down to at least two factors: the first is the influence of long episodes of military rule, and the second is that some elected leaders, now outfitted as civil leaders, are former military men forged in the same ilk as military rulers with an instinctual antipathy to civil society participation and dissent in political matters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1976, two people's tribunals took place which considered issues relating to non-normative sexuality. 'People's tribunals' are civil society initiatives that assert a popular jurisdiction which operates outside of both the state and international institutions. In Brussels, there was the International Tribunal on Crimes against Women, which treated 'compulsory heterosexuality' as a crime. On the other side of the world, in Sydney, there was the Tribunal on Homosexuals and Discrimination. These people's tribunals are sometimes treated as forerunners to later developments relating to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) rights in international law. In this paper, by contrast, I engage in a queer reading of the Brussels and Sydney Tribunals, whereby I consider how the legal framings and procedures adopted by the two tribunals diverged from the LGBTI rights framework that would later develop. In doing so, my aim is to shine a light on alternative, queerer legal possibilities, as well as to open up a conversation about using people's tribunals as a mode of queer activism into the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper explores the politics of scale associated with the top-down planning of large hydraulic infrastructures in the Tigris--Euphrates basin. Against the backdrop of a worsening water crisis and the lack of cooperation between riparian countries, dams and reservoirs across the transboundary river system are sites of contestation between competing claims over dwindling and disputed resources. Drawing on post-structuralist insights from human geography on the politics of scale and the literature on megaprojects, it is argued here that hydraulic infrastructures are materially and discursively implicated in the construction of waterscapes at different scales to sustain broader political imaginaries. Based on ethnographic fieldwork and with a focus on the autonomous Region of Kurdistan in Iraq, the analysis juxtaposes the narratives deployed by state- and non-state actors to support or counter the development of additional dams. While, on the one hand, the Kurdistan Regional Government portrays hydraulic infrastructures as a vital source of security and well-being within the overarching nationalist narrative of Kurdish self-determination, on the other hand, transnational civil society groups under the umbrella of the Save the Tigris and Iraqi Marshes Campaign have mobilized against the adverse impact of megaprojects and appealed to the common Mesopotamian heritage in order to de-escalate political tensions within the transboundary river basin. In both cases, hydraulic infrastructures provide a framework for political action to secure recognition of rights and assert the appropriate scale of governance. Furthermore, bottom-up resistance is accompanied by the promotion of a participatory and inclusive approach to shared waters. From this perspective, the spatial politics of megaprojects intersect with issues of identity, equity, and sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Sociology & Space / Sociologija i Prostor is the property of Institut za drustvena istrazivanja u Zagrebu (Institute for Social Research of Zagreb) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper is concerned with the reproduction of rural elites and the role of volunteering and participation in rural civil society institutions. Set in the context of popular discourses of the gentleman farmer and the agricultural elite as historic (as opposed to contemporary) leaders in the countryside, this research extends longstanding debates on rural class politics and gentrification, and resonates with a renewed sociological interest in the elites in society. Focusing on senior volunteer roles in the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society (RWAS), we explore the connections between social and cultural capital, the maintenance of moral boundaries, and the relationship of these processes with recruitment at the committee level. Our findings indicate that systems of patronage remain significant in rural contexts, and that these systems interrelate with professional and business fields, and with embedded social and intergenerational networks. Data depicts an organisation that is looking to balance the sustained benefits to organisational capacity brought through longstanding obligations of public service, duty, and family ties, with an acknowledged need to recognize diversity and foster inclusivity. This requirement, however, is largely articulated and confined to considerations of gender, age and to a lesser extent, multiculturalism. • This paper pulls together debates in rural studies concerning discourses of power and the production of rural elites, symbolic components of class politics, and the role of 'elite volunteering' in civil society institutions. • We present an in-depth empirical case study of the Royal Welsh Show and explore the reproduction of patronage and positions of authority in this established Welsh rural institution. • We discuss the shifting leadership profile of the show and the organisation's role in embodying and facilitating civic exclusion and expansion in rural space, inclusive of attitudes towards equality, diversity and associated institutional restructuring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past three decades, a system of European-Union mental health governance (EUMHG) has emerged that incorporates a wide variety of stakeholders and consists of soft law instruments like Green Papers, Joint Actions, and Frameworks for Action. This paper applies actor-network theory (ANT) to EUMHG as it operated between 1999-2018, to understand its operation and significance. ANT is a process of identifying the moments of 'translation'--the means and processes that integrate disparate actors--into networks. Such moments in EUMHG include the problematisation of mental health, the enrolment of actors and actants in EU-level governance processes, and the use of obligatory passage points through which actors must mediate their actions and views to join a network. This analysis shows that three distinct though sometimes concurrent actor-networks have operated within EUMHG from 1999-2018, distinguishable by their core problematisations of mental ill health and its role in European societies: a public health actor-network, a disease-burden actor network, and a de-institutionalisation and Community Mental Health actor-network. This analysis shows that the Commission of the European Union has acted as actor-network builder in the former and last networks, but not the middle, where international health organisations have played that role. In each network, different actors are the recognized experts. The paper therefore indicates that because mental health and mental ill health have not been stable scientific concepts, a specific 'epistemic community', e.g., of psychiatrists or psychologists, has not held a definitive role in EUMHG. Indeed, it shows that EUMHG has produced varying constellations of actors, actions, and expertise at any given time, and that they may contradict each other's purposes. These findings contribute to scholarly understanding of changes in EU governance from the early 2000s, specifically in terms of the Commission's role as an executive body, its engagement of scientific expertise, and its relations to civil society and international organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the formation of a transnational secret police corps in the Habsburg Empire in post-Napoleonic Europe. It shows that widespread anxieties in imperigal Austria following several nineteenth-century revolutions (1830, 1848) led to the recruitment of secret police agents, who operated across Europe. These agents were used to keep track of revolutionaries and radical organizations beyond the empire's borders, who – in the authorities' perception – might be detrimental for state security. The article uses a microhistorical approach to analyse this state institution and follows closely the lives and careers of several such agents. It thus delivers a transnational and 'from below' perspective on nineteenth-century Austrian state formation. This perspective, the paper argues, underlines the blurred and complex relations between state and society, and highlights the personal agency of obscure figures such as secret agents and police informers.1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When in 2015/16 around 890,000 asylum seeking migrants moved to Germany, rural regions came to the attention of science and politics as possible places of accommodation and long-term integration. Public debates highlighted certain structural factors such as more relaxed housing markets as advantages of rural regions, but also social aspects such as the social density of rural communities was brought to the fore. This however stood in contrast to assumptions that few diversity and a rather conservative rural population could hamper place-making processes of refugees. Based on a heuristic model of local receptivity, this paper conducts a comparative case study on the reception of refugees in Germany. The empirical comparison highlights the range of local resources and resource utilisation and finds correlations with the peripherality of the municipalities on the one hand, and the demographic structure, political culture and social climate on the other. In addition to typical fields of integration such as education, housing and the labour market, the contribution finds the development of personal ties between refugees and the local population as crucial for successful integration. Volunteer work played a decisive role in this, and it also had a socially integrative effect on the local population. The article therefore argues for a broader understanding of community-oriented work by and with refugees, through which their potential for local development can be unlocked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Soziale Welt is the property of Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In recent years, various revelations about government malfeasances have highlighted the vulnerability of civil society actors who work on surveillance by intelligence agencies. Simultaneously, new technologies and overburdened state oversight bodies clarify how relevant citizen scrutiny of intelligence is. Both of these factors have led to the emergence of scrutiny by civil society actors as a research subject. This paper contributes to such scholarship by presenting data collected through surveys addressed at journalists and professionals from civil society organisations (CSOs) in France, Germany, and the UK to comparatively characterize the forms, scope, and constraints of the scrutiny they perform. Indicated differences across countries highlight variances in the practices of civic intelligence oversight. These variances indicate that there is room to manoeuvre for civic forms of holding intelligence agencies to account, counteracting the primacy of security and the secrecy of intelligence. Yet, similarities of civic oversight practitioners’ perspectives across all three countries are also distinct and informative; in particular, across all three countries, journalists and CSO professionals who work on surveillance by intelligence agencies worry they are under surveillance themselves and express dissatisfaction with safeguards at work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Paper explores the local state, a framework to connect analyses of state, market and civil society in communities below the national level. • The local state concept is employed here to assess climate change adaptation (CCA), focusing on a case study of water resources in Tucson, AZ. • The Tucson case examines rainwater harvesting and the role of the water industry, local government organizations and civil society groups. • Barriers to CCA can be explained in the context of pre-existing policies and the complex dynamics of the local state. As climate change becomes a more obvious existential threat to many communities, sharper tools are needed to analyze policymaking and especially the variations in effective adaptive planning. While policy creation, preparedness and disaster management are essentially local activities, much analysis simply focuses on cities and overlooks robust tools to understand what happens within communities of all types. This paper explores the local state, an analytical framework which can connect our understanding of state, market and civil society within communities below the level of the nation state. The local state concept is resurgent within the academic literature and this paper shows the potential of this analysis, drawing on empirical examples of climate change adaptation from Tucson AZ and New Orleans, coupled with broader discussion from several countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Sociology & Space / Sociologija i Prostor is the property of Institut za drustvena istrazivanja u Zagrebu (Institute for Social Research of Zagreb) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The fall of communism in Eastern Europe in 1989 marked the beginning of a new era for the countries in the region. Romania, Poland, and Hungary are the three Eastern European countries that have undergone significant transformations since the fall of communism in 1989. The post-communist period in Romania was characterized by political instability, economic hardship, and social tension. The transition from a communist system to a democratic one was a complex and challenging process that required significant political, economic, and social changes. The experiences of these countries highlight the importance of civil society, active opposition, and a commitment to economic reform and privatization in achieving a successful post-communist transformation. While the transition to democracy and a market economy is a complex and challenging process, it is essential to address a plethora of intricate challenges in order to establish a stable democracy and achieve sustained economic growth. This paper compares the post-communist transformation in Romania to that of Poland and Hungary from a political, economic, and social perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Religião e Sociedade is the property of Instituto de Estudos da Religiao and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake, the first novel in her dystopian MaddAddam trilogy, narrates the events that unfolded before humanity is purged off by a massive extinction on an apocalyptic scale. This paper acknowledges the issues of terrorism, media, technology and ecology when looking into the cause for the apocalypse. In the process, this paper also addresses Atwood’s fears of the negative consequences of violent material on the internet, the ease of access to such inappropriate material and the threats posed by using the internet to instigate acts of violence. Attention will be focused on the modern fear of the evolution of terrorism with advancements in science and technology, the potential use of biological warfare, the perverse use of genetic engineering as well as the suppression of the green agenda by capitalist authoritarianism. It will also attempt to better understand Atwood’s enigmatic Crake, who has been pigeon-holed into a one-dimensional ‘evil-scientist’ characterisation. Linking Crake’s adolescent immersion into a simulacrum of violent virtual reality with the evolution of his dark utopianism allows for his act of genocide to be read as the real-life manifestation of the game-play of the virtual game-cum-chat-room that is Extinctathon. Within the speculative nature of the novel, Atwood accomplishes in exposing the truth of the historical repetition and future reproduction of atrocities, revealing glaring insights into the dystopian aspects present in the current state of society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How have modern threats and challenges manifesting during the COVID-19 pandemic affected the Republic of Cyprus at state and societal levels? What are the links between new security challenges and existing conventional conflicts? COVID-19 has spread anxiety, fear, and misleading information, and it has brought forth new challenges and concepts in how we understand security. This paper examines how these challenges are rooted in a security struggle of hybrid-threat entanglement in the Republic of Cyprus during the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically in the first two waves from March to October 2020. Specifically, the paper views COVID-19 itself as a hybrid threat that has bred a range of security issues of the Republic of Cyprus. Hybrid threats are of a multitudinous nature. When hybrid threats like a pandemic virus disrupts the wider security and routinised processes in everyday life, states and societies become trapped in a process of security entanglement: one type of threat becomes interlinked with other processes. When this process of security entanglement is neglected or overlooked (thereby avoiding disentangling), policy at large is affected, be it a State's foreign, economic, or security policy. As a result, society itself is affected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accelerating social and environmental change raises pressing questions about how existing institutions can be reformed to mount a more effective response. In this context, goal-based governance has been widely adopted in order to mobilise existing bodies to agree shared goals and develop common purpose. Increasingly employed in sustainability governance at the international scale, goal-based governance concerns setting pan-organisational goals and mobilising to deliver them. There is growing recognition that this approach needs to be downscaled to the local level in ways that can increase democratic engagement in order to realise significant change. This paper examines the opportunities and challenges involved in doing this in Cornwall, UK. We draw on collaborative research with representatives from statutory organisations as well as civic and civil society to highlight: (1) the significance of institutional structures, culture and relationships; (2) the need to adopt innovative participatory methods to engage and enlist civic and civil society organisations in goal-setting; and (3) the importance of ensuring delivery. The paper explores the extent to which local institutions can engage in goal-based and collaborative governance to respond to the challenges of sustainability in ways that reflect specific geo-political and cultural contexts as well as responding to international demands for greater sustainability. The findings provide insights that have relevance for other contexts as local leaders experiment to better recognise, reflect and respond to the social, ecological and political challenges of our time. • Goal-based governance for sustainability is yet to be adequately implemented on local scales. • Actors often excluded from sustainability governance decisions can help enact meaningful and transformational change. • Institutions need to be more reflexive if goal-based governance is to be locally relevant and democratic. • Our study offers insight into the practical realities of localising and democratising goal-based governance in rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Calls for greater transparency in fisheries are becoming increasingly common. They promise better evaluation of management interventions, more participatory decision-making, effective monitoring and surveillance, and sustainable and equitable exploitation of shared resources. However, there is often a lack of clarity regarding what is meant by 'transparency' and how it is best achieved. This term is often used interchangeably, by both decision-makers and civil society, and sometimes inappropriately when a more specific term may be called for. This can lead to the propagation of sweeping assumptions and reductive views on what fisheries transparency is, what it can achieve, what the costs and benefits will be, and to whom. As such, attempts to realize the benefits that transparency promises for fisheries often struggle once they are systematically applied from concept through legislation to practice. This paper explores the various manifestations of transparency in the context of fisheries governance and management as well as its limitations. Subsequently, to provide clarity and broaden the transparency-related discourse, a simple framework is presented of the multifaceted nature of transparency in fisheries. This exploration is crucial because, when harnessed correctly, transparency has the potential to support a more sustainable and equitable future. However, realizing this potential requires deeper appreciation of the intricacies of transparency beyond surface-level interpretations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large-scale transition of food consumption in high-income countries is required to mitigate adverse impacts on the climate and the environment. To further understand which actions can contribute to triggering societal tipping in sustainability transitions empirical observations and a closer link to existing theories is urgently needed. We integrate renowned models of behavior change, food consumption, and marketing into the framework of positive tipping points in sustainability transitions using an empirical analysis of four case studies from Denmark. The proposed framework specifies enabling conditions, interventions, and reinforcing feedback. The case studies suggest that the factors identified from existing consumer-oriented theoretical frameworks can lead to societal tipping points. Also, the transition to sustainable food consumption requires not only engagement from all groups of actors—business/industry, policy, civil society, and consumers—but also pooling and aligning the available resources to trigger a societal tipping point. The case studies provide interesting examples of how influential single players can scale up system change. The paper concludes with a critical reflection of tipping points in sustainability transitions of the food system. • Transition research benefits from insights on consumers' behavioral drivers. • A mix of interventions is needed to accelerate the transition of the food system. • Level of policy commitment determines the speed of the transition. • A radical step by a large retail chain will likely cause positive cascading effects. • Strong formalized networks foster vertical and horizontal cooperation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

»Die Influenza-Pandemie 1918/19 und COVID-19 in Irland und dem Vereinigten Königreich«. The global spread of the coronavirus pandemic has prompted inevitable comparisons with the flu pandemic of 1918--1920. However, in order for such comparisons to be fruitful, it is necessary to acknowledge the similarities between the two outbreaks and their differences. This paper compares different aspects of the "Spanish" flu and coronavirus pandemics in Ireland and the UK during the two periods. The first part of the paper provides a general overview, taking account of the nature of the two diseases and the contexts in which they occurred. The following two sections explore the extent to which both outbreaks exposed underlying social and economic inequalities and the measures taken by central and local government, as well as civil society, to combat the spread of disease. The final section examines the extent to which both pandemics highlighted existing failures and sparked demands to "build back better." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poland is often viewed to as a special case of transition from state socialism: it was early in developing counter-hegemonic forces and in forcing the regime into negotiations, but late with the conduct of foundational elections. This paper addresses the question of why and how democratic elections played this rather marginal role in early post-socialist Poland, in particular with a view to the role of political conceptions with a neoliberal genealogy that factored into those elections and their interpretation by politicians, theorists, and political commentators. Thereby, the article will discuss three such conceptions: the legacy of Milton Friedman's thoughts on elections and the competitive market, a legacy whose influence can be traced in the ways in which elections in Poland became imbricated with the 'shock doctrine'; the significance of a counter-hegemonic discourse on 'civil society' in Poland and East Central Europe that radically juxtaposed state and society, leaving virtually no role for elections as a legitimate and reasonable hinge between society and the political system; and the structural presence of neo-liberal frame conceptions that guided important critiques of the non-foundational and no-choice elections between 1989 and 1991. In conclusion, the paper suggests that the traces of neoliberalism in the processes that ended state socialism in Poland be understood in a twofold way: first, as doctrinal artifacts that could be connected to quite heterogeneous political motivations and serve both hegemonic and counter-hegemonic aims; second, as ideas that by far surpass the realm of economic policies or the economy as such, amalgamated as they are with fundamental axioms regarding human decision-making and social coordination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a critique to the present-day biomedical health care system in Equatorial Guinea. It argues that biomedical care represents a failure to meet its people's needs. A preliminary research study and the collection of published work and data drawn from observations during 2017 and 2018 concluded that the current Equatoguinean dictatorship has negatively influenced the development and success of biomedicine as a model of equitable and accessible medicine, and quality health care for all. Despite the investments of global health organizations and the government's commitments, the rates of maternal, child, and infant mortality remain high while the prevalence of endemic and epidemic diseases, such as malaria and HIV/AIDS, continues to rise. In addition, biomedical infrastructures lack committed and caring medical personnel, efficient technological environments, accessible and affordable health care programs, and awareness campaigns that reach out to the population. This paper highlights the reasons why biomedical care in Equatorial Guinea fails to meet its people's needs. Biomedicine was rooted and developed within a social, political, and economic terrain dominated by colonialism and two consecutive dictatorships. All of the institutional mechanisms that sustain the country are controlled by the head of state. Under the reigns of the head of state, international agencies and non-independent medical institutions lead the practice and development of biomedical care. There is real lack of incentive for Equatoguineans to participate in educational and practical enterprises that may lead to a better understanding of the roles that biomedicine can play in daily life. Health care programs and awareness campaigns fail to reach the population due to a lack of full commitment to involve communities. Biomedical care in Equatorial Guinea constitutes a failure on the part of international agencies and non-independent medical institutions to meet people's needs, due, first and foremost, to the marginalization of the civil society and other healing systems, as well as to unlawful tendencies to fulfill obligations, limited investment, control over non-independent institutional spheres, disparity in care, and medical and educational maldistribution. This paper intends to foment further investigation into the social, economic, and political contexts of the diseases, endemic illnesses, and epidemics that are currently impacting bodies in Equatorial Guinea. This paper encourages further inquiry into the ways in which learning about perceptions, healthcare-seeking trajectories, and health care systems can support solving health and healthcare problems. The goal is to open debate over possible ways in which medical anthropologists can support rising mechanisms for quality health care, inclusivity, community, and freedom of expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural areas in the Nordic countries often face challenges such as demographic change and the closure of public services. To address this situation, some rural communities have developed solutions which can be characterised as social innovation. This paper analyses 18 such community-driven social innovation projects across the Nordic countries and seeks to examine the importance of different actors in the initiation and implementation phases of such projects. Based on qualitative analysis, focusing on the different stages of community-driven social innovation, the paper assesses the importance of different actors in developing each of the projects. The analysis demonstrates the relative importance of community members, civil society organisations, the local public sector, the private sector, and regional and national authorities, in terms of their respective involvements in the initiation and implementation processes for these projects. The key findings from this paper emphasise the differences between initiation and implementation for each of these community-driven social innovation projects. The initiation phase is highly dependent upon community members, civil society organisations and the local public sector, whereas it is primarily civil society organisations which dominate the implementation phase. Central to initiating and sustaining community-driven projects is the capacity of local actors to develop ideas, to find resources and to manage decision-making. • Community-driven social innovation (SI) can be characterised by new models of collaboration across spaces and beyond the community level. • Functional networks, upskilling in a supportive environment and community members banding together are crucial for SI. • There is a shift in the involvement of actors from the initiation phase to the implementation phase in the SI process. • Central to initiating and sustaining SI is the capacity of local actors to develop ideas, collect resources, and manage decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study explores the role of the local community level in a transition to long term sustainable development. • It places a focus on institutional capacity (frames of reference, relational resources and mobilization capacity) • Empirical work was carried out in two small Swedish municipalities: Alingsås and Övertorneå. • The work illustrates the importance of individuals with often overlapping roles. • The work identifies the need for a broader consensus that sustainable development requires radical change. This study explores the local municipality as an important arena for developing and implementing initiatives for a transition to long-term sustainable development. It focuses on institutional conditions that support the integration of 'radical', transition-oriented perspectives and ideas (i.e. perspectives stressing the need for changed social power relations and 'other' norms and visions for the future,) in local governance, with a specific focus on small municipalities. Inspired by transition literature and theory on institutional capacity, the paper explores frames of reference, relational resources, and mobilisation capacity. Empirically, the paper builds on research in two small municipalities in Sweden, where we studied documents on policy for local development, and energy and land-use planning, and carried out qualitative interviews with politicians, planners, and actors from local industry and civil society. The study provides a rich empirical illustration of specific conditions that affect the possibilities to work with transition-oriented perspectives in small municipalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

War in Afghanistan in new millennium is referred to America’s counter-terrorism operation in Afghanistan. It had threefold objective to dismantle Al- Qaeda’s safe heavens in Afghanistan, oust Taliban from power and combat terrorism in Afghanistan. Author has applied the International Alert Conflict Assessment Framework for the completion of this paper. Taliban defied their words to provide protection to women, girls, allow media to function, amnesty to former government employees and interpreters. After Taliban’s violent take over on August 15, 2021 targeted campaign was launched to kill civil society members, former government workers, prevent girls’ school education. Afghanistan today is the second country where girl’s secondary education is banned. The regime stopped women from working. Eighty five percent of women working in media have quit jobs. Former government employees e.g. police officials, judges, army officials are primary target of the repressive regime. Women workers, journalists, human rights defenders, ordinary and notable Afghans daring to raise voice against Taliban are under threat in Afghanistan. Coercive policies are creating psychological problems in the suppressed community particularly female. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The promotion of sustainable consumption in developing countries in a systematic perspective is still an unexplored topic in the literature. This paper identifies the central role of stakeholders in promoting sustainable consumption. From a first literature review, an initial set of parts in promoting sustainable consumption was extracted - subsequently, qualitative research using the policy Delphi method. Based on a panel of experts' perceptions, an integrated model of the roles of promoting sustainable consumption was validated. The panel consisted of 40 experts in the field distributed into four groups: scholars, government, firms, and civil society. The results suggested that sustainable consumption issues include both consumption and production, imposing the necessity of action and articulation among distinct groups to obtain necessary changes. However, there is a concentration on the meso-level and government to promote sustainable consumption in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 crisis could act as a catalyst for a series of social, economic, and political changes since it has sensitized governments and institutions on the need for a structural paradigm shift in their growth models from a triple economic, environmental and social perspective. This article offers a case study of the Spanish island of Menorca and its incidence rates in comparison with other territories of the European Union and Spain. Furthermore, we offer a brief description of the current context of the island and its function during the 19th century as a point of control and containment of infectious diseases in the Lazaretto of Maó. This study intends to interpret how the COVID-19 management has been carried out considering the actions made at the State, regional (autonomous community), insular and local levels. The paper is focused principally on the preventive actions at the insular level to know if some of these actions made during the crisis Covid and insular particularities before the start of the pandemic are conditions for the control of the COVID-19 and its incidence rates on the island. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper highlights different facets of public space in Indian cities by examining contestations and conceptualizations of a maidan (open ground) in Bangalore. Since the early 1980s, the Post Office Ground, a master planned open space in an upper-class neighbourhood of Bangalore, was used as a place for exercise and recreation by local residents and visitors. Local residents contested and stopped government attempts to build quasi-public buildings on the maidan. The protracted battles for the Ground, resulting in its partial conversion to a gated park, reveal Bangalore’s complex state–society–space dynamics where contestations and negotiations between actors of state and society compete with the master plan in shaping public space. This article concludes that the open maidan presents a more inclusive, though contentious, terrain for such contestations and negotiations than the gated park. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Social Affairs is the property of Journal of Social Affairs and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)