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This position paper recommends the stand that representatives from civil society from Africa should take on the fight against Illicit Financial Flows (IFF). It is envisaged that tackling IFF from Africa requires reform of international corporate taxation. This tax system has many loopholes, and Transnational Corporations (TNCs) have exploited them. Profit shifting, and transfer pricing remain the primary drivers of corporate tax practices that facilitate IFF. Yet, these practices have not been adequately dealt with at both the international and regional fora. Estimates from the African Development Bank reveal that IFF have resulted in corporate tax losses in excess of a trillion dollars from Africa since 1980. The Tax Justice Network (TJN) and the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department estimate these losses at $500bn and $200bn respectively per annum. In 2015, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) published its High Level Panel Report on Illicit Financial Flows (HLP Report) in which it reported that Africa is losing more than $50 billion annually in IFFs. The Report asserted that this estimate may well fall short of reality because accurate data does not exist for all African countries, and these estimates often exclude some forms of IFFs that by nature are secret and cannot be properly estimated, such as proceeds of bribery and trafficking of drugs, people and firearms as well as corruption. In July 2018, at the High Level Policy Dialogue on Development Planning in Africa the Head of Development Planning and Statistics at the Economic Commission for Africa reported that $100 billion a year is illegally earned, transferred, or used due to mis-invoicing. These Tax losses resulting from IFF have become too serious to neglect anymore.

The publication was issued within the project ‘Transfer of Know-How for Small and Mid-size Businesses in Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine’ which aims to assist SMEs in those countries by providing support to stakeholders in their efforts to develop analytical and policy advocacy capabilities and by opening new channels of communication between SMEs and NGOs in the Visegrad Four countries (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia) and the rest of the European Union.The objective of the study is to deliver the complete findings and outcomes of the project aimed at Ukraine. This White Paper serves as an authoritative document with action plans, budgets, and a tangible way for the beneficiary country stakeholders to move forward with the agenda of small and medium-sized business development.It presents an overview of the collected background information and contains basic data on the countries, including some key macroeconomic comparisons as well as rankings in major competitiveness reports (e.g. Doing Business report by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development), identifies the project stakeholders and provides an overview of the situation of small and medium-sized enterprises in Ukraine. It also includes the findings of two surveys implemented by the Slovak-Ukrainian team.Based on the findings, the “Discussion and Recommendations” section presents various perspectives on the problems of SMEs in Ukraine using the experience of the accession process of Slovakia, specific examples of key initiatives that led to the resolution of the problems, as well as case studies from various industries. It stresses the involvement of all parties including the EU, local governments, civil society, business associations, and the SMEs themselves.The key outcome of the paper is a road map – a very specific plan of actions including schedules, budgets, and other details within the scope of this project that will help the beneficiary country to cope with problems regarding the agenda of small and middle business development using the expertise and experience of institutions and stakeholders accumulated throughout the Slovak EU accession process. It includes a wide range of activities including a discussion of the project results with various Ukrainian stakeholders, workshops aimed at increasing knowledge about EU markets, legislation and standards, as well as strategic and institutional moves.

The Allens Hub for Technology, Law and Innovation is a community of scholars at UNSW Sydney aiming to add breadth and depth to research on the interactions among law, legal practice and technological change in order to enrich scholarly and policy debates and enhance understanding and engagement among the legal profession, the judiciary, industry, government, civil society and the broader community. The views of those participating in this submission are our own, based on our research, and do not represent the official views of UNSW Sydney or Allens. We were grateful for the opportunity to present our views at a consultation on 30 July 2018; this document attempts to summarise these in writing, taking account of the subsequent discussion at that event and conferral with colleagues after the event.

What will the “data revolution” do? What will it be about? What will it count? What kinds of risks and harms might it bring? Whom and what will it serve? And who will get to decide? This brief discussion paper is intended to advance thinking and action around civil society engagement with the data revolution. It looks beyond the disclosure of existing information, towards more ambitious and substantive forms of democratic engagement with data infrastructures. It concludes with a series of questions for discussion about what practical steps institutions and civil society organisations might take to change what is measured and how, and how these measurements are put to work.

Since the 1990s the literature on CSR has given extensive framework of theories and illustrated various implications of CSR practices. Both the government and business/market have participated in developing CSR products, including sustainability programs. However due to a variety of economic, social and political factors there are certain limitations which constraint business-society-government relationship. In the last decade social scientists have advocated a concept of social enterprise as a potentially viable alternative to the government and market failures. The notion of social enterprise as it developed in the recent times has demonstrated a significant scope for innovations in products, services and process. In this sense social enterprise as an alternative conception has highlighted the need for social innovations in the decentralized process of economic and social governance. This paper briefly provides an overview of the concepts, practices, together with illustrations of innovations in CSR by corporations as also innovations by civil society organizations. Towards the end in place of conclusion the paper reflects on future directions.

The development of drug policies in Malaysia has historically relied on harsh punitive measures, including widespread arrest and incarceration of users, and the continuing use of the death penalty for trafficking offences. However, since 2005, the introduction of harm reduction services as well as the more recent initiation of a process to transform compulsory drug treatment centres into voluntary needs-based services for people who use drugs indicates that Malaysia’s response to drug-related issues has become increasingly health focused. This paper provides an insight into Malaysian drug policies and the environment in which the national response to drugs has been developing in terms of harm reduction, prisons, drug treatment, law enforcement responses and civil society participation. An analysis of the situation concludes with recommendations for further drug policy development.

In August 2010, before a meeting of academics and representatives of civil society organizations, Mexican President Felipe Calderon declared that the legalization of illicit drugs could contribute to reducing the power held by organized crime. He quickly added, however, that this was not an option that would be considered by his own administration.His statements unleashed a series of comments from politicians, the media and many sectors of Mexican society that had until then remained silent. Among noticeable politicians’ remarks was the statement by former President Vicente Fox, who declared that the only way to solve the serious security problems faced by Mexico was to legalize illicit drugs. As such, he joined his own predecessor, Ernesto Zedillo, who, as a member of the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy, has pushed for drug policy reform in the region, particularly with regards to cannabis.As we shall see in this paper, the drugs debate in Mexico is not a new topic for the political agenda. This document presents a general overview and analysis of the cannabis debate in Mexico.

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.

The paper draws upon ideas of decentred security, and governance and security assemblages, to explore the gendered nature of countering violent extremism. The paper focuses on the UK as an example of decentred CVE and concentrates on two areas. First, the paper looks at the evolution of modes of governing Muslim women in CVE initiatives. Second, the paper explores the tensions and frictions involved with the state and civil society using ‘formers’ (men who were previously involved in violent extremism) to engage in countering violent extremism community and de-radicalisation work. The paper finds that a decentred security governance approach to understanding CVE reveals how CVE is productive of MuslimWomen, of Muslim Communities and Violent Extremism. It also reveals CVE to operate not only according to formal documents and programmes but through an assemblage of beliefs, traditions and practices of everyday security.

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.

The need to transition towards more sustainable futures is evident. This paper explores the role of social enterprise in urban sustainability transitions. Using the UP Bike Share (UPBS), a university-based bicycle-sharing social enterprise (in Metro Manila, Philippines) as a case study, this paper aims to bring a more explicit social entrepreneurship perspective towards sustainability transitions research as well as draw insights from social enterprise as a social innovation to challenge existing sociotechnical regimes. Existing operator models of bike-sharing systems in other countries are predominantly for-profit vendors, publicly-owned entities and non-profit organizations. Emerging from civil society, UP Bike Share, on the other hand, is a social enterprise that grew into a social movement with a well-defined advocacy, and became part of a bigger social movement of sustainability advocates. Where previous attempts to establish a bike-sharing program by the local government, international development institution and public transport agency in Metro Manila failed, the UP Bike Share represents the first bike-sharing system in the Philippines that was successfully piloted, implemented and sustained. We then expound on three mechanisms by which UP Bike Share can achieve such transformation, namely: market formation, insertion into the broader social movement, and replication of innovation in other localities, supporting wider sustainability goals. We end with agenda for future research.

The figure of the older volunteer involved with the civil society of rural communities is written onto by the dual demands to age well and productively; to benefit themselves but also to be a good citizen and to contribute to their communities and to wider society. Considering this popular narrative in depth, this paper brings two bodies of literature into useful dialogue. First, we consider the re-emerging interest in the geographies of ageing and, in particular, the role of place and environment in shaping the process of how we experience growing older and the later stage of our lives. Second, we consider that expanding body of work which focuses on the geographies of volunteering, and particularly those studies which account for the shifting landscape of volunteering and the increasing role of voluntary organisations in rural communities. Our entry point into both of these sets of literature is through the emotional and affective experience of both volunteering and rural ageing. The paper draws on case study data gathered in rural Wales to demonstrate how individuals actively strive to maintain their sense of self-identity and continuity of place through the voluntary work they are engaged in. In doing so, the paper makes the argument that ageing in rural places can be understood as a type of stewardship of place wherein the need to preserve continuity of the self in later life becomes intertwined with a desire to support the continuity of place(s).

This paper explores what constitutes meaningful participation of women in community consultation processes of extractive operations, through a case study of the Mes Aynak Copper Mine resettlement in Afghanistan. It aims to better understand the factors that enable and constrain women’s agency and ability to effectively influence decisions; and how the understanding of gender and culture in Afghanistan by key stakeholders’ influences women’s participation in the sector. Through a review of the literature and key Mes Aynak project documents, as well as interviews with experts, practitioners and civil society, the paper unpacks women’s participation in community engagement processes, drawing on Arnstein’s ladder of participation ( Arnstein, 1969 ) as a basis to explore women’s participation. It explores the role of gender and culture in determining outcomes and provides reflections on how to improve women’s meaningful participation in Afghanistan’s extractive industries. Crucially, it was found that there is a need to critically examine how key sector stakeholders understand and engage with cultural norms around women’s participation in the sector; as well as the need to work with the Citizens Charter programme to reinforce inclusion and avoid the sector exacerbating existing inequalities.

Recent discoveries of natural gas in Tanzania have generated optimism and reignited hopes for socio-economic transformation. While extractive companies have not yet announced their investment decisions, the government has anticipated future activities by putting in place institutional, policy and legal frameworks to ensure that there is a stable basis for the development of the subsector. These measures aim to ensure a vibrant level of industrial development. However, it is not clear whether they will be sufficient to enable Tanzania to avoid the fate that has befallen some other resource rich African countries, namely the resource curse. Hence it is imperative that Tanzania finds a way to prevent potential adverse effects from becoming realities that eventually turn into a resource curse. This paper considers the role and significance of active community participation in natural gas decision making and governance processes. The paper draws on government documents for the energy sector and forty-four semi-structured interviews conducted between July 2016 and February 2017 with community members, religious leaders, local government officials, central government bureaucrats, civil society organisations and political representatives in Mtwara, Lindi and Dar es Salaam. The paper argues that active community engagement in decision-making and governance processes is as important as economic participation. This calls for a re-think of local content policy and regulations to ensure that communities not only participate in natural gas value and supply chains but also have the opportunity and capacity to influence decisions about how they participate and benefit from extractive resources.

Electricity access in sub-Saharan Africa is the lowest amongst all regions of the world. In response, since the 1990s, the World Bank and other donors have pushed African countries to reform their electricity sectors. While a “standard model” of liberalization reforms has been endorsed, the timing, pace and extent of reform adoption and implementation undertaken by countries varies significantly. This paper asks: why do some countries adopt electricity sector reforms more quickly and more fully than others? The paper uses a comparative historical analysis of Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda to answer this question. Each country’s experience with reform varies. Our study finds that the timing of reform was largely contingent on economic factors, primarily the need for financing to improve sector efficiency. The pace of reform was shaped largely by international political considerations, namely differences in the countries’ reliance on aid from key donors, especially the World Bank. And the extent of reform was determined primarily by internal national political factors. Specifically, where elite decision-makers faced a historically-grounded national ideology that created citizen expectations that the state provide electricity, a competitive democratic regime, and stronger civil society, electricity sector reforms were less extensive. The paper makes an important contribution to understanding the politics of institutional change. We show how African governments exercise autonomy and resistance, both internationally with donors, and domestically, in the rewriting of institutional rules; that reforms are contingent on political calculations by national political elites about domestic conditions and needs; and that global norms are not sufficient to cause policy change. Overcoming energy poverty in Africa is expected to remain a challenge for the foreseeable future. As new development partners replace or complement the World Bank’s role in African energy sectors, attention to how domestic institutions and politics engage with global norms is critical.

This paper explores NGO participation within the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a multi-stakeholder governance arrangement focused on generating greater transparency in the governance of extractive industries, and in particular in fiscal arrangements around mining, oil and gas operations. Using the cases of Peru and Colombia, we examine what motivates NGO participation in EITI, how NGOs have pursued innovations within EITI, the extent to which they have succeeded in achieving their goals, and the factors limiting or shaping their achievements. We draw on interviews conducted between 2013 and 2018, participation in global EITI meetings, and secondary material. The paper examines political and conceptual discussions regarding the opportunities that EITI may or may not afford to NGO-led innovation, while linking these to more general debates on achieving progressive or even transformative change through reformist institutions, as well as the roles of NGOs in multi-stakeholder governance processes.

This paper maps the policy actors and their networks in the European Union’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan and the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) process in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). It analyzes power relations in the FLEGT VPA process, as well as actors’ preferences in relation to a number of policy issues dealt with in the FLEGT VPA. To provide contextual understanding, the paper explores pathways of policy influence along which international actors influence domestic decision-making processes within the FLEGT VPA. We find that in the Lao FLEGT VPA policy process, power is held by the traditionally most powerful policy actors, the central governmental agencies, donor community and international development partners, while the private sector, civil society organizations and actors from subnational levels are substantially less powerful. Strong policy preferences were noted for all aspects of timber legality, except for the legality of non-timber forest products (NTFPs). Similarly, strong preferences were observed for considerations of transparency and accountability, while preferences were comparatively weaker for issues concerning i) forest communities' rights to forest and land, ii) livelihood impacts on small-scale operators and family businesses as well as those of forest communities, and iii) the involvement of civil society organizations in the VPA process. The most dominant pathways through which VPA influences domestic policy-making is the direct access to domestic policy-making, followed by the international rules pathway of influence. Based on our analysis, we argue that imbalance in distribution of power and in representation of actors in the VPA policy network may obstruct the intended outcomes and progress on important policy issues, despite the stated policy goals and resources provided by the donor community. This in turn fosters perpetual dominance of the traditionally powerful policy actors, which is likely to lead to further marginalization and disempowerment of the less powerful actors, such as forest communities and informal operators.

Agro-food sustainability transitions refer to fundamental changes necessary to move towards sustainable agriculture and food systems. The young field of research on sustainability transitions in agro-food systems is still largely ill-defined. In order to delineate its contours, this paper provides a critical review of the main research themes and highlights research gaps. A search carried out on Scopus in January 2018 yielded 549 records and 111 research articles were included in the systematic review. Research gaps were identified through an analysis of the alignment of the research field with the research agenda of the Sustainability Transitions Research Network (STRN) and its research themes i.e. implementation strategies for managing transitions; power and politics; civil society, social movements and culture in transitions; role of industries and firms in transitions; transitions in everyday life and practice (sustainable consumption); geography of transitions; and modelling transitions. The strand of research on agro-food sustainability transitions is multifaceted and diverse; it addresses all the themes of the STRN's research agenda. However, it focuses on transition management and sustainable consumption, while it largely underserves the themes dealing with the role of civil society and firms in transitions as well as the geography of transitions. Therefore, research on agro-food sustainability transitions should fill research gaps relating to agency (cf. role of social movements and civil society, firms and industries, etc.) and spatiality/geography in transitions. The paper suggests that these two research topics should be addressed in an articulated research agenda that accommodates the peculiarities of sustainability transitions processes in the agro-food system.

This paper explores how mining multinational enterprises (MNEs) manage risk in local communities with weak institutional environments by providing public good services to nearby towns and villages. When MNEs support institutions, community dependence grows stronger as they become increasingly reliant on the resource commitment. This is the case even though the study finds that local communities are experiencing serious health and social issues directly linked to the local mining project. The paper argues that, by solidifying their legitimacy in support of the institutional environment, MNEs reduce the risk that communities will engage with civil society actors who can threaten business continuity. The resource commitment thus serves a dual purpose by making communities reliant on MNEs that strengthen the institutional environment in the absence of a fully functioning state and acting as an effective risk mitigation tool that keeps civil society actors from collaborating with local communities. While the strategy does not guarantee a ‘license to operate’, it is seen as an effective risk mitigation tool and a precondition for ensuring legitimacy. Using cases from the Armenian mining industry, the paper contributes to the MNE risk management literature by highlighting the role of institutions.

While vaccine-critical activism has been widely documented and discussed, comparatively little has been said about the concerted response of pro-vaccine activists defending the majority view. This paper explores two case studies of pro-vaccine activism in Australia and the United States (US). It shows how pro-vaccine views and behaviours can take varying forms due to different aims and methods of engagement – oppositional counteractivities in favour of vaccination in Australia, and issue-based advocacy as part of a political alliance in the US. The focus in Australia comes from a pro-science stance and includes ‘skeptics’ against pseudoscience directly opposing vaccine-critical groups. In the US, the focus takes the form of an issue-specific campaign that has arisen from existing pro-vaccine parent blogs and discussion groups pushing for policy change rather than public confrontation. These case studies exemplify how pro-vaccine activism can take varying forms of either reinforcing the mainstream view or countering digression from it. Drawing on qualitative research, this paper aims to examine the types of practices and strategies employed by activists to voice their support of vaccination, and discusses the means, messages, and motivations of pro-vaccine activism. It ends with an argument for why a study – of public support for in addition to studying public opposition to vaccination – can help to better understand vaccination views and behaviours. These findings have wider implications for the study of counter-activism and the polarisation of civil society groups.

This paper discusses how the internationalization of the Brazilian mining corporation Vale S.A, particularly its incursion into Mozambique, has given rise to transnational contestation efforts to resist extraction, from below and along a South-South axis. It does so by approaching the politics and practices of mobilization of the International Articulation of those Affected by Vale (AV), paying special attention to the ties forged between Mozambican and Brazilian civil society. This paper contends that the AV’s transnational activism and mobilization strength is context-dependent and defined by given political opportunities, which affect actors’ capacity and propensity to mobilize against Vale. Focusing on the determinants shaping the AV’s engagement in contentious politics, this paper analyzes which political opportunities have contributed to its establishment, how resources were mobilized to pursue transnational collective action and to push for change, and to which extent shifting political and economic circumstances in Brazil and Mozambique have affected mobilization prospects. This paper provides a critical, bottom-up perspective on the outward expansion of Vale as a Southern mining multinational and contributes to the literature on resistance to extractivism, exploring such dynamics in a transnational and South-South configuration.

Degrowth thought and strategies suffer from a tension between viewing the state as incapable of initiating transformational change and making a political appeal to it to do precisely this via targeted eco-social policies. While a small number of academic papers has theoretically addressed this tension, there is a lack in research on the strategic implications arising from conceptualizations of the state and state-civil society relations within degrowth/postgrowth approaches. Responding to the generally increased interest in strategic reasoning within the degrowth movement, the present paper examines the state theories of Antonio Gramsci, Nicos Poulantzas and Pierre Bourdieu under these auspices. It first compares and contrasts the three theories in respect to general characteristics of state-civil society relations. Subsequently, the paper addresses principles of domination, crisis and corresponding openings for oppositional movements. The discussion reflects on the main findings and identifies critical strategic implications.

There are two axioms that have shaped the degrowth discussion, namely one on the reduction of production and consumption and one on the necessity of value and attitude change in society to respect environmental limits. Surprisingly little research has focused on the role of technology in connection to value change, consumption behavior and degrowth. This gap is linked to a widely held assumption of technological innovation acting contrary to degrowth. In contrast, this paper suggests that technological innovation needs to be connected to degrowth. In particular, the fast evolution of information and communication technologies in recent years points to their importance for the global civil society. Given the scope of sustainability challenges connected to these technologies and smartphones in particular, this paper argues that a degrowth movement going hand in hand with technological development is only made possible, if sustainable alternatives for highly demanded products are offered. Specifically, this study draws on lifestyle movements as the nexus between consumption, degrowth and technology. Three core concepts are found to influence the attendance to degrowth-related consumer movements: a sustainable lifestyle, alternative forms of consumption and social commitment, all of which are assumed to have a positive effect. Empirically this paper draws on the case of the Fairphone, a company that applies sustainable characteristics to a smartphone. Data collected in a survey via online fora of the Fairphone from November 4–29, 2015 are analyzed using a structural equation modeling with partial least squares. Results indicate that a sustainable lifestyle represents the dominant factor explaining the involvement with the Fairphone. Surprisingly, the findings show that alternative consumption seems to negatively influence the involvement with the Fairphone and social commitment seems to play a minor role in the model. These aspects point to the Fairphone as a technical artifact, centered on a choice for a sustainable lifestyle. Future research needs to reach clarification on the relationship of alternative consumption and degrowth related movements and whether the negative effect is case specific or beyond. Furthermore, future studies need to delve deeper into lifestyle decisions as a leverage point towards degrowth, especially on lifestyles understood as a from of activism to change contemporary society.

The Indian border region of Ladakh, in Jammu and Kashmir State, has a sensitive Himalayan ecosystem and has experienced natural hazards and disasters of varying scales over the decades. Ladakh is also situated on a fault-line of multiple tensions, including ongoing border disagreements and intermittent conflict with China and Pakistan. The Indian army has thus become a permanent fixture in the region. This paper examines the implications of the intersection of these environmental and security factors for disaster governance in the region. Using Social Domains theory, the paper argues first, that a hazard-centred paradigm of ‘universal’ disaster science emerges from the colonial period, which has continued to dominate disaster management in the region today. Secondly, it argues that, as the border military complex expanded significantly in Ladakh from independence in 1947 and the region faced a number of conflicts, disaster governance has been additionally shaped by national security priorities. The paper then examines the impacts of that hazard-centred, military-led disaster governance for the population of Ladakh. These include: a relief-orientated disaster management approach, reduced civil society presence and capacity in the region, and limited local ownership of disaster risk reduction activities. This case study provides important insight into why disaster risk reduction has been slow or absent in conflict zones.

Growing adoption of the right to information in Africa should, in theory, improve access to government data, reduce corruption and expand the frontiers of democracy. Yet studies demonstrate that the right to information has contributed little if not nothing to improve the fledgling democracy in Africa. This paper investigates whether the implementation of the Right To Information law in Africa is a paradox? The paper contends that that corruption, human rights abuses, restrictive media, absence of media pluralism, denial of access to information, lack of transparency and accountability continue to undermine the very ideals of Right To Information Law. To resolve this paradox, the paper argues that the passage of the right to information is just one of the democratic tests to a country and will require far more than a passage to ensure its success. It argues that making information available will not prevent corruption if the conditions for publicity and accountability are weak. The paper contends that the RTI is dependent on a number of factors which may take long period to have an impact. Political leadership, civil society involvement and a balancing act that would address both access to government records and the protection of individual privacy are possibly the cure to this growing paradox.

Sustainable agricultural development that prioritizes the needs and respects the rights of smallholder farmers is widely framed as a societal goal by both national governments and international institutions. However, in many places this remains an elusive goal, not least in sub-Saharan Africa. The past decades have seen new types of rural social movements emerge, demanding socially just and environmentally sustainable trajectories of agrarian change. But there are also places where this is seemingly not the case, Uganda being one. Based on qualitative research involving civil society organizations at the national and regional level, this paper analyzes contemporary civil society dynamics around agriculture in Uganda against a historical backdrop. Social division and civil society NGOization have contributed to unfavorable conditions for rural social movement emergence, but not irreversibly. Systematic policy advocacy engagement appears to be on the rise amongst agriculture-oriented NGOs, and while it is generally non-confrontational, contentious claims-making does happen. NGOs also aspire to facilitate farmer-led mobilization, although their logics of intervention differ and would benefit from more dialogue and theoretical grounding. For moving forward in NGOized contexts like Uganda, three points are emphasized: NGO-led and farmer-led mobilization is not a simple dichotomy; their relationship need not be antagonistic and there are several possible ways to seek synergies; and fostering capacity for farmers' contentious claims-making must involve counterhegemonic struggle. The paper ends by suggesting three areas for agri-food scholars interested in the complex interactions between NGOs and rural social movements.

Acceleration of the applications of cutting edge science is often most likely in situations involving conflict and warfare between different groups. That is the focus of this paper. It asks what we know of the past, present and possible future applications of advances in our understanding of the brain in the development of chemical weapons, and what might best be done to moderate the most dangerous aspects of that process at the present time, particularly by members of civil society. The paper therefore begins by examining this possibility of hostile manipulation of the brain in some detail. It then briefly reviews the current state of the chemical and biological arms control and disarmament regime as embodied in the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) and the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) following the 2016 8th Five Year Review Conference of the BTWC and in the lead up to the 2018 4th Five Year Review Conference of the CWC. Finally, our civil society initiative to assist in achieving a successful outcome of the 2018 CWC Review Conference is described. This initiative involves the production of a multi-authored edited book, to be published in advance of the Review Conference by the UK Royal Society of Chemistry that explores many of the critical issues facing the CWC States Parties as they seek to agree effective measures to prevent the development and use of chemical weapons, as the life and chemical sciences advance.

What explains the existence of humanitarian concerns in decisions involving arms transfers? This paper examines the potential influence of democratization and civil society activities on arms transfer policies and practice through a case study on Brazil. Brazil's re-democratization in 1985 provides an opportunity to test whether a change of regime type influences arms export behavior and whether civil society groups can influence it in newly democratized countries. Based on evidence collected mainly through archival research at Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and semi-structured interviews, this paper argues that transitioning to democracy had an immediate effect on arms transfer policies and practice in Brazil. After the end of Brazil's military regime, arms export policies and practice changed due mainly to reputational concerns: a stricter arms control could provide reputational gains to Brazil in an international norm environment where liberal values were perceived to be cascading. In addition to this immediate effect, democratic institutions created better conditions for the emergence of civil society groups campaigning for a stricter arms control, which emerged in the late 1990s. The paper studies a campaign and network led by the civil society group Viva Rio, which led to the introduction of a stricter policy on arms sales to most Latin American and Caribbean countries. These findings imply that democratization has both short- and long-term effects on arms transfers and that democratic institutions can influence state behavior regarding arms transfers even in countries with little tradition of civil society groups working with arms control.

What can be learned from a detailed reading of the statements made by firms in response to Section 54 of the UK’s Modern Slavery Act 2015? This paper presents an in-depth analysis of the development of the statements over time for two large companies in different sectors and with contrasting characteristics. We show that the statements progress in sophistication over time, but have serious limitations. We demonstrate that although they present interesting information about the management of working conditions in the firms’ supply chains, they do little to address the problems of modern slavery per se. Furthermore, we show that the statements can contrast strongly with other documents published by the firm, and with established patterns of business practice. For both firms, we show that a deep understanding of the context of the organization is essential for interpreting the statements – but this contextual information is unlikely to be available to the casual reader. We conclude that the statements, as they are currently specified may in fact provide a way of deflecting the engagement of Civil Society Organisations, in a way not envisaged in the formulation of the Act. This paper is an extended version of a section of the report Hsin, L., New, S.J., Pietropaoli, I. and Smit, L. (2021). Accountability, Monitoring and the Effectiveness of Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act: Evidence and Comparative Analysis. London: Modern Slavery Policy and Evidence Centre, providing greater detail than was possible to include in that report.

Deep decarbonisation of energy-intensive industries, such as steel production, will be required to achieve the European Union’s climate targets. Green hydrogen technology has the potential to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions from iron and steelmaking to nearly zero and mitigate climate change from the industrial sector. The paper is based on an ongoing case in Sweden, where the established firms SSAB, LKAB, and Vattenfall are operating the HYBRIT joint venture. This paper aims to explore the conditions for transferring this technology from Sweden to three primary steel producing countries in Europe: Germany, France and Italy. As a theoretical point of departure, we integrate some concepts from the multi-level perspective and technology transfer theories to better understand transition pathways for hydrogen-based steel production in Europe. We use a case study methodology, including the analysis of more than 20 qualitative interviews and secondary data. The findings of the study conclude that the Swedish iron and steel industry is unique in many ways, yet other European countries are rapidly catching up in hydrogen-based steel production, particularly Germany. Sweden however remains unique in its nearly zero carbon electricity generation and low-cost electricity prices, which can enable green hydrogen production throughout the country. In order to overcome the barriers and create an enabling environment for hydrogen-based steel production, it is key that energy and industry transitions are aligned, that a policy framework that supports these transitions is in place, and that key actors representing all aspects of these transitions cooperate, from industry and research, to academia, policymakers, and civil society.

Urban food policies (UFPs) have emerged as a key mechanism to drive the transition towards more sustainable food systems, with cities as the appropriate scale for their implementation. The aim of the paper is analysis of the boost that UFPs have given to one of the most widespread forms of Alternative Food Networks, these are Territorial Short Food Supply Chains (TSFSCs). For this, the territorial factors that strengthen TSFSCs in the cities of Bogota (Colombia) and Cordoba (Spain), one being UFP, are prioritised using a multi-criteria model based on the Analytic Network Process. Based on this prioritisation, the way the UFPs interrelate with the other prioritised territorial factors in both cities is identified. Consequently, the influence of UFP implementation on social capital of TSFSCs is analysed through Social Network Analysis. The results indicate that there are four types of priority territorial sub-factors on which UFPs should have an impact in order to promote TSFSCs in the two cities. The first group is classified as means to achieve the other sub-factors. The other sub-factors are classified as ends. The main means are UFPs and partnership linkages. The territorial sub-factors included in the UFP are in the design and implementation phases of the policy cycle. Furthermore, UFPs foster bridging social capital, with actors connecting unconnected nodes. Finally, some of the reflections on the implications of UAPs indicate that the promotion of participatory governance mechanisms involving civil society is an important element to include in UFPs, given their influence on strengthening collective action and social capital in cities. This shows that a territorial approach in UFPs can have greater results in policy implementation. In this way the paper contributes, at the theoretical and empirical level, to recent debates on UFP approaches and the integration of key factors for food transformation in cities.

This paper argues that, while universities have a crucial role to play in social innovation by democratizing knowledge, fulfilling that role in the Global South requires them to partner with civil society actors such as NGOs. With their history of working with the socially disadvantaged, NGOs have a unique role in clarifying the nature of demand since social innovation must often address ill-formulated “wicked problems”. Similarly, NGOs can fill the “institutional voids” which limit socioeconomic transactions in the Global South. The paper discusses the wicked nature of visual-impairment, which is both widely prevalent and has biopsychosocial attributes i.e., the functional limitations are reinforced by the psychological perceptions of the blind and visually impaired (BVI), and the sociological stigma of impairment. The empirical setting is India where policies for the BVI population are being formulated within a broader framework of social inclusion. The paper investigates how the International Institute of Information Technology Bangalore (IIITB) has taken advantage of state policies to embrace an academic mandate which includes social innovation. Specifically, it explores IIITB's incubation of the NGO Vision Empower, and the partnership that has followed, to overcome the neglect of the BVI in science and mathematics education.

The initiatives on Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) have gained momentum in Asia-Pacific and are actively pursued by civil society, taken up in policy discussions, and advocated by international bodies. Cooperatives which constitute the largest base in the SSE have been working on the basis of their identity since the 1830s. Many of the emerging SSE initiatives are close to cooperatives in their governance and management. This paper presents perspectives of cooperative apexes/federations from India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines and South Korea who represent close to 140 million members on the SSE. While the overall outlook of regional cooperatives towards engagement within the SSE is positive, their involvement is limited. The strength of cooperatives lies in their history, presence across countries and sectors, and the Cooperative Identity. However, the perception about cooperatives and their chequered performance is seeing the rise of SSE organisations (SSEOs). Cooperatives as people-centred organisations with a strong foundation in their identity, have the power to steer SSE initiatives in the post-pandemic world. This paper makes the case for centering cooperatives and Cooperative Identity within the SSE but is limited to the views of nine cooperative apexes/federations from seven countries. It could also have benefited from the direct views of non-cooperative SSEOs on cooperatives. Further research can look into how cooperatives and non-cooperative SSEOs can collaborate to strengthen SSE and the opportunities and bottlenecks for people-centred businesses post COVID-19.

Human trafficking (HT) is a major international problem that states still struggle to tackle. Against this backdrop, this working paper aims at analysing the architecture of HT global governance and at suggesting ways for improvement. It, among others, gives recommendations for actors such as the European Union, which is very active in HT governance. In order to do so, the working paper focuses on the participation of civil society organisations in HT global governance, seeing them as important drivers of governance at the global level. After presenting the phenomenon of HT and its governance puzzle, a first section characterises such governance, identifying and describing the HT regime complex by using civil society participation as a proxy. A second section analyses the main actors of the regime complex. The conclusion draws recommendations and identifies paths for further research.

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security was a landmark resolution passed in 2000 that, for the first time, recognised the differing impact of conflict on women and girls and called for greater participation of women in conflict resolution and peacebuilding. This Resolution has now been followed by a further 8 Resolutions, which, together, make up the Women, Peace and Security Agenda. This paper examines United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security through the lens of the three GLOBUS conceptions of justice: justice as non-domination, justice as impartiality and justice as mutual recognition. The paper argues that in the process and adoption of the 2018 EU Strategic approach to UNSCR 1325, the EU has demonstrated a shift towards an approach to gender justice that is more closely assigned to justice as mutual recognition than in its previous approach to Women, Peace and Security, found in the 2008 Comprehensive Approach to UNSCR 1325 and 1820. Using empirical data from meeting notes and qualitative interviews, this paper demonstrates how the EEAS engaged in a surprisingly inclusive process within the consultations that led to the adoption of the new 2018 Strategic Approach, which enjoyed extensive inclusion of a diversity of civil society voices in the process. As a result, the document shows a shift towards a greater focus on (1) diversity, (2) civil society inclusion and (3) a gendered analysis. From the perspective of gender justice, this shows a shift from an approach previously aligned with justice as impartiality in the text of the 2008 document, but in actuality, through a lack of implementation, an approach more akin to non-domination, towards an approach to gender justice that can be more firmly associated with justice as mutual recognition.

This paper investigates legal and political advocacy of lawyers and civil society organisers in the United Kingdom on behalf of unaccompanied children seeking international protection. In 2015, civil society activists and lawyers in London partnered to assist children in Calais, France, who made the harrowing journey to reach Europe in the hopes of reuniting with family residing in the UK. By turning to the UK courts and engaging in public advocacy, lawyers and activists united hundreds of unaccompanied children with their family members, achieving remarkable legal mobilisation success, despite the country’s antagonistic environment for asylum seekers. Drawing on socio-legal scholarship and empirical studies of effective legal mobilisation, this paper explores whether partnership between lawyers and civil rights activists makes overcoming structural and cultural barriers to accessing courts, winning in court, and attaining practical policy change more likely. It highlights the benefits of lawyer-civil society collaboration and identifies the hazards of invoking unaccompanied children’s vulnerability as a means to achieve far-reaching political change.

The tussle between CSOs and governments on foreign funding is not going anytime soon. As long as the mandate of most CSOs remains to hold governments accountable, governments will look for ways to retaliate. Most African governments hate to account and it is for this reason that the tension will continue. These governments react by enacting restrictive laws on the funding of CSOs which should be viewed as a declaration of war on CSOs. In response, the CSOs must adopt a strategic response that is multifaceted and people-centred. This paper dismantles the smokescreen that governments use to hide their sinister motives in restricting CSOs' funding. It posits that the many reasons such as monitoring terrorism financing are pretentious. The paper also asses the effect of restriction on CSOs funding. It concludes the restriction though adverse to CSOs has no capacity to extinct them.

The scathing report of the American Congress in September 2020 on the Boeing 737 Max crashes and regulatory fiasco underlines the risks and dangers that result from governments and their regulatory authorities, regulated entities, the academic community and the media focusing solely on the business costs of regulatory compliance – while ignoring the costs of regulatory non-compliance for firms, the national economy and society. The purpose of the author’s research program and this working paper is to bring a behavioral economics lens to identifying the true and full opportunity costs of non-compliance by corporations and other regulated entities. The paper argues that the conventional economics, and law and economics, approaches badly underestimate the net economic and social benefits from compliance and the true and full opportunity costs of non-compliance with laws, regulations and social norms. These more conventional approaches do not meet the interests and requirements of: governments and their regulatory authorities, civil society groups, potential and actual victims, and the overall society and national economy. Most importantly, this narrow benefit-cost approach and related metrics fall far short of satisfying the longer term regulatory requirements of regulated entities and their senior executives, managers, and employees, their compliance and corporate social responsibility advisors and divisions, and their supply chain and other business partners. The working paper employs recent advances in the social psychology, behavioral economics, behavioral ethics, neuroscience, behavioral benefit-cost, and related less conventional economics literatures in order to identify twenty quite diverse but still interrelated sources and drivers of the true and full opportunity costs of non-compliance. These behaviorally informed sources and drivers are divided into three categories: (i) bounded rationality, cognitive scarcity, cognitive misers, and other system 1 attributes of the human brain; (ii) the financial, economic and social costs incurred and generated by non-compliant regulated entities; and, (iii) transaction, relationship and networking costs and related negative externalities. The paper as well offers proposals on how: (i) state and non-state regulators can apply these behavioral insights on the opportunity costs of non-compliance when designing, implementing and framing their enforcement, deterrence, compliance promotion, communication, outreach and other activities; (ii) regulated entities can employ these insights when designing and implementing their corporate strategies on innovation, product development, marketing, voluntary compliance, and corporate social responsibility; (iii) consumers associations, environmental groups and other civil society groups as well as the academic and consulting communities can employ these insights in their analytical, advisory and advocacy functions; and (iv) more principles and outcomes based, inclusive, polycentric and shared accountability regulatory, legal and policy regimes can make the true and full opportunity costs of non-compliance more vivid, tangible, salient, and actionable for regulated entities and all other regulatory actors.

African countries have been among the last to be hit by the global coronavirus pandemic. Yet, as the cases rise and governments rightfully take the necessary measures to slow the spread of the virus, the continent is likely to face widespread economic fallout as business slows to a near halt. (Ndedi, 2020) The emerging evidence of the impact of the recent global pandemic of COVID-19 on violence against women and girls needs some attention. In this paper, we are making recommendations to be considered by all sectors of society, from governments to international organisations and to civil society organisations in order to prevent and respond to violence against gender-based violence, during, and after the public health crisis with examples of actions already taken. In view of economic impact of the pandemic and its implications for violence against women and girls in the long-term. This paper draws upon the knowledge and experience of a wide range of experts who support solutions to end violence against women and girls.

This paper aims to develop characteristics of a health regionalism and to find first indications of the extent to which regional organizations increasingly shaping international health policy. Since institutional tensions between nation-state interests and regional bodies often arise at the regional (supranational) level, this paper discusses the extent to which regional health governance is characterized by organized civil society as well as state actors. In addition, initial considerations are made as to the extent to which regional and interregional cooperation between state and civil society actors (bipartism) and, beyond that, cooperation with commercial enterprises/business (tripartism) characterize regional governance and thus deviate from "state-led regionalism". The role of the WHO in this rise of regions thesis will also be discussed. On the one hand, the WHO's ability to develop a comprehensive impact as an institutional entrepreneur ends at its budget limits, which means that it only has the necessary resources to take the lead in a few policy areas. On the other hand, the WHO is in a position to act as a "political entrepreneur", above all because it is heard as a mouthpiece in global health protection. With its effective instruments for proclaiming global health threats and praising or criticizing states, it is taken seriously and is thus given a power-political instrument to exert pressure on states and their health policies. This observation is of relevance to the question of how the WHO positions itself among rising regions.

This paper tracks how the Patriotic Front (PF) – Zambia’s main opposition from 2006 to 2011, when the party won power – shifted its strategies of dealing with the urban poor, civil society and the middle class, in order to manage its vulnerability. While all three groups fully supported the PF in 2011, they are now in a more ambivalent position, thereby creating insecurity for the ruling regime. We contextualize these dynamics vis-a-vis Zambia’s broader political landscape, from 2001 to date, relying on historical processing tracing, in-depth interviews with key elite actors and a survey with informal traders. Using the case study of the PF, the paper demonstrates how political settlements can deepen the analysis of how and why particular strategies for dominance emerge in a given context, where the threats to this dominance emerge, and why governing elites target particular groups for co-optive or coercive interventions. It concludes that, due to its size and influence, the PF’s hold on Lusaka is crucial to its survival past the 2021 elections. Consequently, it is anticipated the party will continue to exert repressive pressure on sources of countervailing power and opposition and co-opt poorer but numerically large support bases (e.g. marketeers and vendors)

In an age where online systems are more important than ever, mis-application of digital infrastructures by governments erodes public trust and undermines legitimacy. This paper seeks to investigate the question of how governments can cooperate with civil society to build trust in the online space of digital infrastructures. This paper explores the case of Tai-wan’s policy approach to combating online misinformation during COVID-19 by investigating the initiatives that the government took to collaborate with civil society and leverage the advantages of digital infrastructures to bolster public trust and democratic stability.

With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, women’s organizations, human rights activists, governments, non-governmental organizations and even the United Nations are decrying the surge in incidences of violence against women and girls all over the world. Though African countries have been among the last to be hit by the global coronavirus pandemic, evidence from Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, etc, demonstrate increase in the prevalence of domestic, sexual and other types of violence against women as governments enforce measures to curb the pandemic. As these measures hit more and more on restrictions of movement, lockdowns with widespread socio-economic fallout and business slows to a near halt the continent is beginning to register more cases of gender related violence. (Ndedi, 2020). The emerging evidence of the impact of the pandemic of COVID-19 on violence against women and girls, therefore, needs urgent attention regarding prevention and response. In this paper, we are strengthening existing strategies to end VAW with innovative, practical but transformative actions to be considered by all sectors of society, from households, to civil society organisations, governments to international organisations, in order to prevent and respond to violence against women, during, and after this public health crisis. The paper draws upon the knowledge and experience of a wide range of experts who support solutions to end violence against women and girls, on the ground, including during this time of covid19 management.

Since the adoption of the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) in 2003, public health professionals have debated similar conventions covering other health risks, including potentially a Framework Convention on Alcohol Control. Much of this debate has focused on the merits of binding versus non-binding instruments in terms of commitments at the international level. In this paper, I draw on lessons from the WHO FCTC to discuss instead what the difference between binding and non-binding international legal instruments might mean for domestic legal frameworks for implementing regulatory measures for alcohol control. The paper looks at possible impacts on the authority of various national authorities to implement new measures, the ability of civil society to bring cases compelling more comprehensive regulatory measures and the defence of litigation brought by commercial-sector actors to prevent, delay or weaken the implementation of laws and regulations. It reflects on what lessons these might have for alcohol control governance.

City governments in sub-Saharan Africa have historically been beholden to national governments. Lack of national urban policies and tensions between national and city governments are common. Yet, for decades, research has identified small-scale innovations at the urban scale. Rarely, however, are policy innovations in African cities so influential as to lead national governments to scale up city based actions. This is particularly true in sectors that have been the dominant purview of central governments. This paper examines how citizens, civil society organizations, city governments and national bureaucrats in two cities of East Africa – Kampala and Nairobi – have interacted to produce policy innovation in agriculture. Agriculture has always been a sector of high national importance in Africa, but increasingly cities are becoming focal points for agricultural policy change. The two cities compared in the paper are unusual in having a collection of interests who have been advocating for improved support and recognition of urban food production. Indeed, these cities are rare for having continually promoted the formalization of urban agriculture in local and national policy. While advocacy for urban agriculture is common globally, what is not clear is under what conditions local advocacy produces policy uptake and change. What are the conditions when city-based advocacy deepens the institutionalization of policy support locally and nationally? Drawing from theory and research on policy change and African urban politics and governance, and qualitative data collection in each country, this paper argues that while external, international assistance has helped initiate policy dialogue, domestic civil society organizations and their engagement with local and national bureaucrats are key to policy support at the local and national scales.

Seafarers make a critical contribution to the entire civil society, but their welfare has not addressed sufficient attention in the maritime world. The implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (hereinafter MLC 2006) has made a significant contribution to the improvement of living and working conditions of seafarers. However, seafarers’ welfare is still compromised in many aspects, such as social isolation, fatigue, stresses and feeling that their occupation might be criminalised and targeted in many places around the world. While there is a considerable volume of published work related to shipping and seafarers, the availability of literature specifically on seafarers’ welfare is significantly limited. Bases on the existing knowledge and scholarship available in the public domain, and the primary data collected in several phases of fieldwork, this paper aims to critically review a number of major issues relating to seafarers’ welfare under the regulatory framework of MLC 2006. The paper concludes that a continuous revision in maritime legislation is imperative to reduce incidents of unfair treatment and exploitation of seafarers.

Despite the considerable challenges posed by artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM), it remains part of our lives. Conflict between ASM miners as well with large-scale mining companies, civil strife, social unrest, and corruption to mention a few problems are the order of the day in ASM. Environmental damage and possible contribution to economic meltdown are a cause for concern. The main thrust of this paper is to discuss the challenges posed by ASM across the whole spectrum of political, social, economic, and environmental and health and safety issues. The paper also proposes some proactive and realistic approaches to resolve the challenges discussed in order to move from conflict to sustainability in mine planning. ASM is characterized by relatively uneducated and unregistered miners, and policies targeting ASM miners should be disseminated in a comprehensible manner lest such policies remain in our dreams and the policy books. Since it is the government that funds clean-up of the mess from ASM, one of the best ways to avoid this expenditure is developing cooperative approaches through different governmental instruments, persuading the ASM miners to mine responsibly. The contribution of ASM to unemployment reduction cannot be ignored, but being mainly an informal sector, it is very difficult to quantify its contribution to economic development. Capturing meaningful rent from these miners may also remain a dream if non-consultative policies are imposed on this sector. Tracing the miners can be a nightmare when reactive approaches are implemented. Large-scale mining companies, government, and civil society at large have to adopt a cooperative approach to devise sustainable, workable, and realistic ways to convert ASM miners into contributors to sustainable development.

In this paper, an analysis of civic initiatives to collectively realise a particular community ambition amongst informal settlers in a Ghanaian metropolitan area is presented. This community ambition is grounded in collective intent with no government or city authority intervention. Using secondary data review and interviews conducted in two selected neighbourhoods in the Accra Metropolitan Area, the findings show that self-governance mechanism has the potential to support informal settlers' capacity in terms of adapting to changing environmental situations by mutual cooperation and consensus building. The paper recommends a relook of planners' role in spatial planning in Ghana, emphasising a shift from development decision making to actors and facilitators of socio-spatial initiatives by community residents. This changing role may lead to suppression of the negatives and maximisation of the positives of self-governed initiatives for the benefit of society.

The global migration of academic researchers and staff tends to follow a geographical hierarchy that has the USA at its centre. In this paper, we apply Gramsci’s concept of hegemony to explore the way in which the geo-scientific imagination of mobile researchers endorses hierarchies and asymmetries of the international academic system. While academic institutions and practices can be considered instruments for the organization and reproduction of hegemonic relations in civil society, this paper addresses hegemonic relations within the international academic system itself. An analysis of 42 interviews with mobile academics based in Canada and Germany affirms how mobile academics consent to the reproduction of a hegemonic academic hierarchy of countries. At the same time, however, the analysis reveals differentiated views that nest individual universities, departments, and disciplines in the context of national academic systems. The analysis also uncovers interesting shifts in the geo-scientific imagination of global academic hierarchies.

Since 1980, there has been a stark increase in the number, scale, and significance of international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), who operate in culturally complex contexts and have huge influence as actors in global civil society. Understanding the best practices and the challenges of their organization-public relationship (OPR) management is increasingly important, yet the existing literature does not offer adequate guidance. With INGO publics growing more diverse and global than ever, holistic evaluations of OPRs that consider a public perspective as well as the influence of external relationships are necessary. This paper addresses the need to further public relations’ understanding of OPRs on a global scale between diverse publics and non-traditional, multinational organizations. To do so, this paper undertakes a qualitative case study of CISV International in order to shed light on how the unique characteristics of an INGO impact our conceptualizations of OPRs.