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Populist parties are on the rise. But what happens when they are in government? In order to grasp the effect of populist parties in government systematically, the paper includes all 28 EU member states in an analysis which estimates the effect of populist parties in power on the increase of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The results show that depending on their ideological orientation populist government participation is clearly associated with increasing GHG emissions. Furthermore, the analysis shows that the effect is quick. This is above all true for right-wing populist parties in government. Furthermore, the analysis shows that populist parties have different impacts in various regions of the EU. While right-wing populist governments are associated with an increase of GHG emissions in North Western and Eastern Europe, left-wing populist governments in Southern Europe have the opposite effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the termination of nuclear energy in Germany. It states that the nuclear power conflict is a major reason for the establishment of one of the strongest Green parties in the world. It mentions that the Green challenges the opposition Social Democratic Party (SPD), which leads to SPD's shift from a pro-nuclear power position in 1979 to its 1986 decision to give up nuclear power within 10 years. It also adds that Germany is the first country to change its energy model, and is going to be a laboratory for the energy mix of the future. Moreover, a specific challenge is to advance small-scale technologies such as solar and wind power to a scale which can satisfy the needs of an industrial society.

Compares the ideological positioning of social democratic-labor parties (SDLP) in Western Europe. Dominance of welfare state discourse in SDLP; Evaluation of the programmatic changes in the Labour Party in relation to the Swedish and German Social Democratic Party; Relevance of socialist, welfare state, neo-liberal and ecological discourses in election campaigns of SDLP.

The article describes a theoretical framework in relation to the notion of labor society in response to an article by Simo Aho that was published in a 1985 issue of Acta Sociologica. The term labor society has caused a lot of misunderstanding as one can see from Aho's article. Concerning his criticism of the term labor society, Aho searches for the order principle of labor society, and finds it in the position that work has as the basis of reproduction, socialization, integration and interest articulation of the population in society. He also looks for signs of an erosion of this order principle but cannot find them. The term labor society should be integrated into a socio-theoretical framework which analyzes the order principle of the development of modern industrial societies and its limits. This will help to identify the axis of conflict in these societies, which is where the discussion of labor society should begin. To understand better the nature of conflict, the social development of rationality should be related to the area of work. Finally, an appropriate concept of crisis is needed which allows to interpret some empirical tendencies. The notion labor society emphasizes a special feature of present societies, but it does not provide the order principle of society. If we desire such a principle we have to go back to the Positive Utopists, who were convinced that one could increase individual and social welfare by controlling nature with the help of science, technology and planning. The limits of this principle are becoming obvious in two ways: on the one hand in terms of material limits and on the other hand in terms of social limits. Work in the form of wage labor connects the described order principle of society with reality, and only in this context can the debate of labor society be understood.

The article speculates on some of the consequences of the changes in the character of the all-German Green Party. It is noted that the changes have been brought by unification of the West German Green Party and the citizen initiative under the name Alliance 90. The position of the Greens after the first al-German election in 1990 and the ideological stand of Alliance 90 are discussed. It is concluded that the future of Germany and Alliance 90/The Greens depends on resolving the symbolic struggle between competing answers to the problems facing a unified Germany.

Over the last two decades new values, new social movements and green parties have become a common feature of most Western industrialised nations. Simultaneously, it has been claimed that these nations have reached the limits of growth. The two aspects are interrelated and can be spelled out in terms of the politicising of production. However, the degree to which production is politicised varies among nations. The literature in the field postulates that Sweden might be a country that departs from this productionist development. This article discusses this hypothesis by comparing (nuclear) energy policy on the one hand, and the attitudes to, and movements against nuclear energy in Sweden and Germany on the other. The analysis arrives at the conclusion that Germany is much more exposed to the politicising of production than is Sweden. These conclusions imply that new politics might have a greater chance of being institutionalised in Germany than in Sweden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The end of the Cold War made it possible for some neutral countries to join the European Union. However although the European integration promotes economic co-operation it also reveals problems concerning national and regional identity. In order to legitimise EU-membership, the new potential member states Austria, Finland, Sweden and Norway conducted referendums on whether or not they should join EU. These referendums, although different in some national aspects, are an example of an international synchronisation of the political establishments. This synchronisation is discussed in light of a 'Domino-Strategy' of the referendums. Furthermore, the article describes some aspects of the referendum campaigns by stressing the importance of geographical differences, organisational standpoints, public opinion and discourse which shows astonishing similarities but also decisive differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]