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This article aims to address the history of the International Association of Workers for Maladjusted Children (IAWMC), which is an organisation often ignored in the field of history of transfers and circulations in the international specialised education. Yet this organisation, which was officially created in 1951 in the post-Second World War reconstruction period, quickly became a forum for exchange of experiences between éducateurs who were focused on the quest for models and methods. The IAWMC was created first during the beginning of the early Franco-German reconciliation, through annual meetings, especially initiated by French éducateurs. These existed in France from the early 1940s, working in the recently created institutions to support children and adolescents placed by the Justice and Child Care administration, and were looking for alter egos across borders. For example, many collective study tours structured such exchanges between éducateurs from different countries and shaped an organisation based in the Netherlands and France – where the first two Presidents, D. Q. R. Mulock-Houwer and Henri Joubrel, came from – and then in Belgium and Germany. In its own way, the IAWMC contributed towards debates on the role of the specialised éducateur in the institution, among pedagogues and therapists, which did not come without tension or resistance. The technical discussions of the association, held at conferences and annual workshops, reflected changes in the general design of the éducateur and in practices and knowledge upon which it was based. The IAWMC was a forum for clinical concepts from case-work and group-work, but also social psychology, sociometry and more generally methods inspired by the human and social sciences, which were expanding in international social work in the 1950s and 1960s. This was done through debates even within the international association, between a practitioner vision of the éducateur role, based on the group and whose leaders are French éducateurs, and a more technical vision based on psychology and psychoanalytic approaches more focused on personal interview and individual care. This contribution focuses finally on how IAWMC on the one hand was included in international organisations, e.g. UNESCO, and on the other hand forged the public recognition of the utility of éducateurs, even in the case of developing countries where they did not exist. Thus, in the late 1950s, the IAWMC was accredited consultative status by UNESCO and played an important role in the international expertise on maladjusted youth. This timing corresponds to the final extension of its audience, after decolonisation, to emerging countries and to what is termed the “Third World”. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article reviews the history of the International Labour Organization, which was founded in 1919 as specified in Section XIII of the Treaty of Versailles. According to the article, the impetus for the founding of the organization was a belief that fair and equitable labor laws, treating workers and management fairly, would lead to a "social peace"; this was seen, in the aftermath of World War I, as essential for lasting world peace. Particular attention is paid to legal and political aspects of the treaty and how international law that was related to labor law and legislation was conceived during the period from 1919 to 1939.

This work is based on a literature review and analysis of sustainable indicator proposals for transport policies from different countries and international organizations. Its aim was to propose an approach to qualify these experiences. Indicators are drawn up in support of a particular posture, a characteristic which is relevant for our analysis. Several political postures were found to underlie the production of indicators and their uses. We highlighted three argumentative postures. An integrative posture which seeks to internalize social and environmental externalities, its aim being to optimize transport policies. A critical posture which argues for a more reasonable and less aggressive transport policy. This posture is often environmentally-based. Last, a global posture based on the sustainable development movement at national or international scales. These experiences deal with different development aspects, transport being only one of their concerns. We were able to demonstrate the analytical interest of these three postures in a study of four experiences of public debate. To conclude, our paper calls for a better definition of the governance contexts in which the sustainable transport indicators are used. The indicators proposed in the experiences studied relate to different postures within the same framework of debates and are difficult to use in describing them. Working on the governance context is essential to ensure a proper use of indicators that will enrich concertation and debates among actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article the author examines issues surrounding economic development and ethnic identity in the foundation and maintenance of genuinely democratic institutions and governments. The author touches on a number of issues but central to the article is a focus on the history of global democracy and the factors that preserve and defend that system. Also discussed is the influence exerted by social science in the development of democracy and the part played by governments and by international agencies in the establishment of democratic organizations.

As is the case in most jurisdictions, French NGOs are not defined as such in French domestic law. They may be considered either associations or foundations. Moreover, their mandate is whatever their founding members have decided to make it. At the international level, the only international legal instrument that conveys a legal status to NGOs is the “Convention européenne sur la reconnaissance de la personnalité juridique des organisations internationales non-gouvernementales.” [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

NGOs, such as Médecins du Monde, are legitimate humanitarian actors because they provide aid based on populations' needs and have no hidden agenda. States, however, should not be considered humanitarian actors, even though they do provide humanitarian aid, because such aid is contingent upon each State's geopolitical interests. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

On 1 May 2004, the European Union underwent its fifth "enlargement' as ten new countries joined. Integrating the eight new members from central and eastern Europe represents an economic challenge, especially in environmental matters. By joining the EU, these countries have had to accept the acquis communautaire and adopt environmental regulations stricter than those already existing there. This bears a price, since industry must be brought up to par with EU standards, in particular with regard to waste management and the installation of appropriate administrative structures. However the introduction of these standards also brings along considerable economic advantages, mainly related to the saving of natural resources, the improvement of productivity thanks to innovation and an increase in market openings; A comparison of the costs and benefits of applying EU environmental standards shows that, in the middle or long run, the benefits will exceed the initial costs. Porter's hypothesis, which emphasizes the advantages of environmental policies, turns out to be true under condition that these policies are integrated as early as possible in economic strategies and are backed up by a precise assessment of a country's environmental and economic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OVER THE LAST FEW years, the activities of minimum wage commissions in the western provinces and in Ontario have been the subject of several historical studies. Inspired by these projects, this paper examines the work of the Quebec Women's Minimum Wage Commission, from its inception in 1925 to its dismantling in 1937. After giving reasons which forced the Quebec government to legislate on this issue, the author presents the position of international and catholic unions on women in the work force. In his analysis of the operating mode of the commission and, more precisely, his critical evaluation of its mechanism for enforcing the law, the author concludes that as with the other commissions across Canada, the Quebec Women's Minimum Wage Commission would not have allowed wage increases for women. In a socio-economic context where women on average made half of the salary of men, the decision to use the minimum wage as stool to fight the abuse of the capitalist system had the major consequence of keeping salaries low. In fact, the low rate of the minimum wage agreed to by the commission upheld the principle of pay inequity by gender, thus reflecting the dominant ideology of the era during which the work of women was considered marginal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lists the founding members of the International Association of Music Libraries. Friedrich Blume from Germany; Alberto Ginastera from Argentina; J.B. Hanson from Australia.

Presents messages from several members of the International Association of Music Libraries in commemoration of the association's fiftieth founding anniversary. Jon Bagues; Chris Banks; Paul Banks.

Although some may wonder whether there are too many NGOs, the proliferation of small NGOs is in fact positive as they bring a different dimension to the humanitarian field. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]