Topic: - CIAO Search Results

38401. European integration and the problem of the state: universality, particularity, and exemplarity in the crafting of the European Union

Author:: Stefan Borg
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: The European Union is often presented as an entity that has 'moved beyond' the model of organising political life along the way of the modern sovereign state. This paper questions this understanding by engaging a set of texts that could be understood as exemplary of the EU's official discourse of Europe: EU's failed Constitutional Treaty and Javier Solana's collected speeches. A paradox is herein identified: the values that are said to sustain Europe's identity and upon which Europe is founded are simultaneously presented as distinctly European and universal. It is suggested that Europe is being crafted in a pendular oscillation between particularising and universalising the values upon which Europe allegedly rests. By drawing on critical International Relations theory, the paper suggests that this very contradictory oscillation between particularising and universalising Europe's values to an important extent mirrors modern statecraft. One should therefore think twice before announcing the construction of the European Union as something qualitatively different from, or 'gentler' than, modern statecraft.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Political Theory, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:: Europe

38402. The West: a securitising community?

Author:: Gunther Hellmann, Gabi Schlag, Benjamin Herborth, and Christian Weber
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: The primary objective of this article is to theorise transformations of Western order in a manner that does not presuppose a fixed understanding of 'the West' as a pre-constituted political space, ready-made and waiting for social scientific enquiry. We argue that the Copenhagen School's understanding of securitisation dynamics provides an adequate methodological starting point for such an endeavour. Rather than taking for granted the existence of a Western 'security community', we thus focus on the performative effects of a security semantics in which 'the West' figures as the threatened, yet notoriously vague referent object that has to be defended against alleged challenges. The empirical part of the article reconstructs such securitisation dynamics in three different fields: the implications of representing China's rise as a challenge to Western order, the effects of the transformation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) towards a global security actor, and the consequences of extraordinary renditions and practices of torture for the normative infrastructure of 'the West'. We conclude that Western securitisation dynamics can be understood as a discursive shift away from a legally enshrined culture of restraint and towards more assertive forms of self-authorisation.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Political Theory, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:: Europe

38403. 'Moral power' as objectification of the 'civilian'/'normative' 'EUlogy': the European Union as a conflict-dealer in the South Caucasus

Author:: Syuzanna Vasilyan
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: This article develops a new conceptual framework of 'moral power' by arguing that the 'civilian'/'normative' power Europe paradigms are insufficient for understanding the essence of the conflict resolution policy of the European Union (EU) in the South Caucasus. Analysing the conflicts of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno-Karabakh, the study reveals that until the August 2008 war, the EU was an incoherent actor in terms of the interplay among its institutions and member-states. The EU's policy has been devoid of a long-term peace-focused strategy, making it inconsequential; as a result, the EU has merely dealt with, rather than managed, the conflicts. Its rhetoric has been inconsistent with practice. Often the EU has subordinated its values to material and power-related interests. Moreover, the EU has hardly been normatively stable in its approach to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Bypassing inclusiveness until the launch of the Geneva talks pertaining to the Abkhazian and South Ossetian conflicts, the EU has not enjoyed much legitimacy by the de facto states. Whereas the EU has largely failed to resolve the South Caucasian conflicts, it has achieved partial success by putting a halt to the 2008 hostilities between Russia and Georgia. Overall, having faltered as a 'civilian'/'normative' power it still has to fare as a 'moral power'.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Political Theory, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Georgia, South Caucasus, South Ossetia, and Abkhazia

38404. Looking back: communist melancholia and post-socialist pains

Author:: Anca Pusca
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: Remembering communism in Central and Eastern Europe is a tricky business, as memories are increasingly put on display through practices of museumisation, collective and personal biographies and official investigations. Everything — from former factories to architecture, monuments and statues, to secret service files and other material reminders — is carefully reshaped into politically convenient, or in some cases inconvenient, discourses.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Political Theory, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:: Europe

38405. Invisible legacies: Brazil's and South Korea's shift from ISI towards export strategies under authoritarian rule

Author:: Vinícius Rodrigues Vieira
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: Between the 1960s and the 1970s, Brazil and South Korea adopted similar strategies of development under authoritarian rule: an import substitution industrialisation (ISI) programme later replaced by export strategies (ES), namely, export promotion (EP) in Brazil and export-led growth (EG) in Korea. However, whereas Korea was successful, Brazil began the 1980s facing socio-economic crisis because of imbalances in external accounts. Through the analysis of institutions, organisations, and economic indicators, I conclude that the social-political structure (defined as the institutions and organisations within the economic, political, and social levels) of each nation shaped differently the opportunities given by changes in the organisation of the domestic economy and international contexts between 1945 and 1985. The social-political institutions, which last longer than organisations, come mainly from Portuguese (in the case of Brazil) and Japanese (in the case of South Korea) colonisation. Therefore, the impact of historical junctures, such as economic transformations influenced by changes at the international level, might be restricted to organisations at the domestic level as institutions related to pre-industrial periods persist and constrain the reach of modernisation.
Topic:: Development, Economics, and Politics
Political Geography:: South Korea, Brazil, and Korea

38406. The developmental state is dead, long live the developmental regime! Interpreting Néstor Kirchner's Argentina 2003–2007

Author:: Christopher Wylde
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: The post-crisis administration of Néstor Kirchner (2003-2007) saw significant changes in the political economy of Argentina. After characterising these changes this article attempts to place the evidence within an appropriate meta-theoretical interpretation. The article concludes that while elements of historical forms of political economy exist in Néstor Kirchner's regime - elements of populism, elements of neoliberalism - in its entirety, one must look to other explanations not traditionally associated with Latin America, that is, the developmental regime. Such a conclusion facilitates both an enhanced understanding of post-crisis Argentine political economy, and an opportunity to further develop a developmental regime approach.
Topic:: Development and Political Economy
Political Geography:: Argentina and Latin America

38407. Local orders in international organisations: the World Health Organization's global programme on AIDS

Author:: Tine Hanrieder
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: In 1990, the World Health Organization (WHO) started to downsize its renowned Global Programme on AIDS, despite continued donor and member state support. This turnaround has decisively contributed to WHO's loss of leadership in HIV/AIDS politics. From the viewpoint of both rationalist and constructivist theories of international organisation (IO) agency, an IO engaging in 'mission shrink' is a striking irregularity. In order to account for such apparently self-defeating behaviour, this article adopts an open systems view of IOs and identifies trans-organisational coalitions as important agents of IO change. I argue that subunit dynamics rather than systemic conditions drive IO behaviour, in particular where member states' material power and their formal control of organisational veto positions do not coincide. This approach will be used to retrace the changes in subunit coalitions that drove WHO's erratic HIV/AIDS programme and thus to solve this puzzle of 'mission shrink'. On the basis of insights from the WHO case, the article concludes by offering a heuristic of trans-organisational coalitions and the types of IO change associated with them.
Topic:: International Organization, Politics, World Trade Organization, and World Health Organization

38408. Democracy, social welfare and political violence: the case of Latin America

Author:: Davide Grassi
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: The return of democracy in Latin America has been associated with a decline in political violence, but also with a failure to redress welfare troubles or restore social justice. This essay provides an exploration of these problematic relationships. It argues that the impact of democracy on social welfare and internal civil violence is complex, develops unevenly and is mediated by a host of contributing factors. The bearing of democracy on political violence has been especially weak. In some countries democratic elites played a role in reducing or eliminating armed conflicts by offering a series of political concessions to the opposition, in particular communication channels with the government and social and political rewards. However, political violence survived or intensified under democracy elsewhere, while it was eradicated by force and (less frequently) by concessions in a number of authoritarian settings. Democracy has also affected welfare policies, through the appearance and progressive strengthening of social organisations and political parties that favoured channelling benefits towards the less advantaged. Yet, welfare protection also took place under populist and authoritarian governments, and it was influenced by a series of additional economic, political and social factors.
Topic:: Political Violence, Economics, and Government
Political Geography:: Latin America

38409. Imperialism or globalisation? ... Or imperialism and globalisation: Theorising the international after Rosenberg's 'post-mortem'

Author:: Ray Kiely
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: This article examines the concepts of globalisation and imperialism, both in terms of their explanatory status, and in the light of changes in the international order since the end of the Cold War. It does so both through detailed theoretical and empirical analysis, and in part through focusing on a key contributor to this debate, Justin Rosenberg. It is argued that Rosenberg's theoretical post-mortem for globalisation is correct. However, it is also argued that Rosenberg's historical post-mortem is far less convincing, not least when related to his subsequent attempts to draw on the concept of uneven and combined development in order to explain the reality of geopolitical conflict in the international order. It is here that the concept of imperialism enters the picture, and the article suggests that attempts to update theories of geopolitical competition based on Lenin and Bukharin's work on imperialism are unconvincing, as they fail to take full account of the changes in the international order since 1945. These changes - the internationalisation of capital and rise of global production networks, the rise of manufacturing in the developing world, the internationalisation of the state, cooperation between developed capitalist powers, and US hegemony - are well described, if not necessarily explained by the concept of globalisation. However, this does not mean that the concept of imperialism is no longer of use, and the idea is defended through a discussion of the hierarchies associated with the globalisation of production. It is further illustrated by relating liberal military intervention to this continued reality of global hierarchy and inequality in the international order. The article concludes by defending the ideas of imperialism and uneven and combined development, but argues that these cannot be used to explain the nature of the international state system (or geo-politics), but rather the hierarchies associated with the international capitalist order (or political economy).
Topic:: Globalization and Imperialism
Political Geography:: United States

38410. Russia's energy relations in Europe and the Far East: towards a social structurationist approach to energy policy formation

Author:: Pami Aalto, David Dusseault, Michael D Kennedy, and Markku Kivinen
Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: In this article, we examine the formation of Russia's energy policies vis-à-vis Europe and the Far East. As energy policy is a very complex field, we propose a new structurationist analytical model to deal with that complexity. Our model highlights the practices by which actors acquire information of their policy environments, which are conceptualised as structures enabling and constraining their actions. These practices involve intentions, interests and schemata. In our case analyses - the Nord Stream pipeline project and the Sakhalin Island's energy politics - we find that profit interests, as part of a wider business frame, most centrally guide Russian actors. The often-hyped energy superpower frame is found to be ambiguous. It generally does not bring the intentions of Russian actors together well, even if such a frame resonates with some of Russia's European customers. Energy security frames are found to be prevalent among Russia's customers and are highly differentiated. Environmental frames are mostly instrumentally deployed. Russian energy actors are capable of displaying collective intentionality, but are incapable of fully controlling the various dimensions of the complex policy environment.
Topic:: Security, Energy Policy, and Environment
Political Geography:: Russia and Europe

38411. Defending state-centric regionalism through mimicry and localisation: regional parliamentary bodies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Mercosur

Author:: Jürgen Rüland and Karsten Bechle
Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: The creation of parliamentary bodies for regional organisations such as Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) or Mercosur seems to be at odds with the intergovernmental logic on which these organisations rest. We approach this puzzle from the perspective of norm diffusion theory. In the article we argue that transnational legislative bodies in Southeast Asia and South America have been primarily established to retain the respective organisation's 'cognitive prior', which in both cases rests upon deeply entrenched corporatist norms and ideas. We test our theoretical claims by a comparative study on the emergence and evolution of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly and the Mercosur Parliament.
Topic:: Government
Political Geography:: America and Southeast Asia

38412. Actor-networking the 'failed state' - an enquiry into the life of concepts

Author:: Christian Bueger and Felix Bethke
Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: Concepts such as the 'failed state' are jointly produced by academics and political actors and hence connect academia and global politics. Little attention has been spent to study such concepts and the practices that create them and sustain their relevance. We develop an innovative framework for studying concepts. Relying on actor-network theory, we suggest studying concepts as effects of relations between different actors building an actor-network. We introduce actor-network theory and demonstrate its value for international relations (IR) research. Our empirical case study of the concept of failed states combines bibliometric analysis and qualitative text analysis. We show how various actors have brought the concept of failed states to life; analyse how actors transformed because of their participation; and investigate the persistent struggles to define and homogenise the concept. In summary, this is an article about the life of the failed state, the discipline of IR and its relations to other actors, and an introduction of the actor-network theory toolbox to the sociology of IR.
Topic:: International Relations and Politics

38413. Expanding the Expansion of International Society: a new approach with empirical illustrations from West African and European interaction, 1400-1883

Author:: John Anthony Pella, Jr.
Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: The purpose of this article is to expand upon Hedley Bull and Adam Watson's work The Expansion of International Society (1984a), initially theoretically and thereafter through empirical illustrations. The premise is that Bull and Watson's approach can only take study of the expansion so far, as it creates silences that neglect aspects of international history that were central to the expansion process. As such, I initially focus on three features of Bull and Watson's theoretical approach that are thought to create these silences and a problematic Euro-centrism: historical periodisation, a neglect of non-European regions and the system/society distinction. I thereafter argue that the original Expansion's periodisation scheme needs to be broadened, that research into non-European regions before European contact is necessary and that interaction at the world society level should be considered. The benefits of this new approach are then illustrated, first in a study of the West African international society in its own right, and then in a study of the Afro-European interaction that took place in the context of that society. Ultimately, this new approach suggests that the expansion process was driven largely by the exchange of norms and ideas at the world society level and by the emergence of mutually constructed institutions over the course of several centuries.
Political Geography:: Africa and Europe

38414. Theorising the use of private military and security companies: a synthetic perspective

Author:: Andreas Kruck
Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: This article seeks to systematise and advance the theoretical debate on the causes and conditions for the privatisation of security. Drawing on previous research on private military and security companies (PMSCs) and theories from International Relations and Comparative Politics, it reconstructs functionalist, political-instrumentalist and ideationist explanations for why and under what conditions even 'strong' and democratic Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development states (extensively) use PMSCs. An analysis of inter-temporal and cross-national (United States, British, German and French) patterns of security privatisation indicates that all the three theoretical models point out causes and conditions that are relevant for a comprehensive explanation, but none is sufficient alone. Therefore, the article uses both the models and the empirical evidence to propose a synthetic perspective, which treats different explanatory conditions and logics as complementary, rather than rival. Going beyond the atheoretical conclusion that a multitude of disconnected factors are in some way relevant for a comprehensive explanation of security privatisation, I develop a thin and a thick synthesis that rely on a domain-of-application approach and sequencing, respectively. The thin synthesis spells out how different explanatory factors operate in specific domains, whereas the thick synthesis elaborates how different conditions and mechanisms apply to different phases of security privatisation and how they interrelate.
Topic:: International Relations, Security, Economics, and Politics
Political Geography:: United States and Germany

38415. Replies to Chris Brown's '"Human Nature", science and international political theory'

Author:: Stefano Guzzini, Ewelina Sokolowska, Daniel Jacobi, and Stephen J Rosow
Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of International Relations and Development
Institution:: Central and East European International Studies Association
Abstract:: 'Human Nature' is back—and not only in JIRD, which had a special Symposium on the topic several years ago (Freyberg-Inan 2006; Hall 2006; Mercer 2006; Sterling-Folker 2006). Two reasons seem particularly relevant for the discussion here and now. First, and for quite a while now, our normative discussions struggle with or indeed vacillate between a universalism with problematic foundations and a pluralism suspect of relativism. Second, our theories of action smuggle in assumptions about human nature upon which the impetus for a certain behaviour is to be understood, but which are often conveniently left out of the analysis. For instance, with the advent of constructivism in International Relations, the existence and explanatory status of 'rump materialism' is again up for discussion. More fundamentally, the classical dichotomies of 'mind/body' and of 'reason/emotion' have been found wanting. In this context, finding some kind of foundation in a potentially universal Human Nature would be a help welcomed by many.

38416. Making the Case: Congress Should Pass New Authorization for Use of Force Against ISIS

Author:: Mieke Eoyang and Peter Billerbeck
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Third Way
Abstract:: Congress should pass a new, specific authorization for the President to act against ISIS. ISIS represents a substantial threat, and left unchecked, could launch attacks against the US. Because defeating ISIS will be a long-term effort, it is incumbent on Congress to pass a new authorization for the use of force. Unlike previous authorizations, this one should be carefully tailored and come in the context of a broader strategy.
Topic:: Security
Political Geography:: United States, Iraq, Middle East, and Syria

38417. The consensus on Mali and international conflict management in a multipolar world

Author:: Xenia Avezov and Timo Smit
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Abstract:: The transition towards multipolarity in the international system has concerned many observers in recent years. They fear'an era of disorder and greatly diminished multilateralism owing to miscalculation, uncertainty and distrust between the new and established powers'. This is based partly on the assumption that multipolarity will create competition rather than cooperation as international actors promote or object to intervention in conflicts based on their own geostrategic, economic or political interests.
Topic:: Security and United Nations
Political Geography:: Russia, United States, China, and Syria

38418. Trends in world military expenditure, 2013

Author:: Sam Perlo-Freeman and Carina Solmirano
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Abstract:: Global military expenditure fell in 2013, by 1.9 per cent in real terms, to reach $1747 billion. This was the second consecutive year in which spending fell, and the rate of decrease was higher than the 0.4 per cent fall in 2012.
Topic:: Security and Military Strategy
Political Geography:: United States, Europe, and Asia

38419. Trends in international arms transfers, 2013

Author:: Siemon T. Wezeman and Pieter D. Wezeman
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Abstract:: The volume of international transfers of major weapons in 2009–13 was 14 per cent higher than in 2004–2008 (see figure 1). The five biggest exporters in 2009–13 were the United States, Russia, Germany, China and France and the five biggest importers were India, China, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, War, and Military Strategy
Political Geography:: Pakistan, Russia, United States, China, India, Paris, France, Germany, and Saudi Arabia

38420. Russia's Evolving Arctic Strategy: Drivers, Challenges and New Opportunities

Author:: Ekaterina Klimenko
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Abstract:: Russia has identified the Arctic as both a strategic priority and a resource base for the 21st century. Against a backdrop of expectations about the opportunities available in the Arctic, Russia has primarily pursued a policy focused on strengthening national sovereignty in the region. However, despite the considerable attention given to the development of the Arctic by the Russian leadership, progress in achieving Russia's goals in the Arctic has been slow.
Topic:: Migration
Political Geography:: Russia and China

38421. Governance Transfer by the Southern African Development Community (SADC)

Author:: Anna van der Vleuten and Merran Hulse
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Collaborative Research Center (SFB) 700
Abstract:: As early as 1992, the Treaty of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) already included a commitment to human rights, democracy, and the rule of law as governance standards in its member states, but it was in 2001 that SADC significantly broadened its efforts at governance transfer. SADC focuses in particular on standards related to gender, (socioeconomic) human rights, and (electoral) democracy, which are promoted and protected through various instruments including military interventions and sanctions in the framework of security cooperation. While the rule of law and good governance have also gained a more prominent place on the agenda since 2001, standards and instruments are less developed. Overall, there is a significant gap between the prescription of standards and policies on the one hand and the implementation of measures on the other. The suspension of the SADC Tribunal in 2010 following its rulings on human rights issues clearly shows the limits of SADC as an active promoter vis-à-visits member states.
Topic:: Democratization, Gender Issues, Human Rights, and Governance
Political Geography:: Africa and South Africa

38422. Is There a Role for Mobiles to Support Sustainable Agriculture in Africa?

Author:: Batchelor Simon, Scott Nigel, Valverde Alvaro, Manfre Cristina, and Edwards David
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: This paper from the Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on ICTs for Sustainability (ICT4S 2014) reviews findings from detailed consultation with 50 global experts in Agriculture and Information Communication Technologies (ICTs). The study explores how ICTs (particularly mobile phones) could be used to accelerate the uptake of sustainable agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa. The paper develops a detailed conceptual model, built around the smallholder farmer, for understanding the flow of information through the agriculture sector.
Topic:: Agriculture, Human Rights, Human Welfare, and Science and Technology
Political Geography:: Africa

38423. Climate Shocks, Food and Nutrition Security: Evidence from the Young Lives cohort study

Author:: Dornan Paul, Ogando Portela, Maria Jose, and Pells Kirrily
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: Drawing on survey data from Young Lives, an international study of childhood poverty involving 12,000 children in four countries, this paper examines the effects of environmental shocks on food insecurity and children‟s development. The data, from children and their families living in rural and urban locations in Ethiopia, the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, Peru , and Vietnam , provide information on the same individuals over time, allowing consideration of how earlier incidences of food insecurity and exposures to environmental shocks shape later outcomes. Regression analysis is used to estimate the relationships between these and other relevant factors.
Topic:: Security, Climate Change, Human Welfare, and Food
Political Geography:: India, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Andhra Pradesh, and Peru

38424. The UN Climate Summit's Public–Private Action Announcements: Sorting the promising from the greenwash

Author:: Hanks Kiri
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: UN Secretary - General Ban Ki - moon invited business leaders to bring to the Climate Summit the bold actions they are undertaking to address climate change. These public – private initiatives are touted to be a key outcome of the summit – especially given that few governments will be in a position to make major new commitments. The hope is that they will inject some positive momentum into the global talks by showing that business is already ' getting on with it ' and leading the way.
Topic:: Climate Change, International Cooperation, and International Political Economy
Political Geography:: United Nations

38425. A Sign of Things to Come? Examining four major climate-related disasters, 2010–2013, and their impacts on food security

Author:: Coghlan Christopher, Muzammil Maliha, Ingram John, Vervoort Joost, Otto Friederike, and James Rachel
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: From 2010 to 2013 the world experienced a number of extreme weather events, several of which were notable for their intensity, duration, and impacts on livelihoods and food security. This report focuses on four case studies – a heat wave in Russia, flooding in Pakistan, drought in East Africa, and a typhoon in the Philippines – that represent a range of extreme weather. It analyses the impact of these extreme weather events on food security, by considering when and why threats emerge. This involves characterization of the weather events, examination of the vulnerable groups affected, and analysis of livelihoods and the role of governance and capital.
Topic:: Security, Climate Change, Environment, and Food
Political Geography:: Pakistan, Africa, Russia, and Philippines

38426. The G20 and Gender Equality: How the G20 can advance women's rights in employment, social protection and fiscal policies

Author:: Wakefield Shawna
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: In its 'World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development', the World Bank asserted that gender equality was a core development objective in its own right and also 'smart economics' The same year, in their Los Cabos Declaration, G20 leaders committed to tackling the barriers to women's full economic and social participation and to expanding opportunities for women in their countries. Oxfam supports this commitment, and calls on the G20 to go further and assess the entirety of their agenda and actions in the light of development and rights-based commitments to women's rights and gender equality.
Topic:: Economics, Gender Issues, Politics, Labor Issues, and Sociology

38427. Beyond Safe Land: Why security of land tenure is crucial for the Philippines' post-Haiyan recovery

Author:: Daniel Fitzpatrick and Caroline Compton
Publication Date:: 08-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: Following the devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan in November 2013, the Philippines authorities pledged to 'build back better' – a vision designed to ensure that affected communities were stronger and more resilient in the face of future storms. Significant efforts and some important steps have been taken by various authorities to begin fulfilling that vision.
Topic:: Security and Environment
Political Geography:: Asia and Philippines

38428. Cease Failure: Rethinking seven years of failing policies in Gaza

Author:: Lani Frerichs, David Andrés Viñas, and Nicola Bay
Publication Date:: 08-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: The most recent escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel has come at an unacceptable human cost. To date, it has resulted in the deaths of more than 2,100 Palestinians, with roughly 85 per cent of those identified thought to be civilians. Six civilians in Israel and 64 Israeli soldiers have been killed. More than 10,000 Palestinians, the vast majority civilians, and more than 500 Israelis have been injured. Vital infrastructure in Gaza has been extensively damaged, with initial estimates for reconstruction well into the billions of dollars and 100,000 Palestinians left without a home.
Topic:: Security and War
Political Geography:: Israel and Palestine

38429. Delivering Prosperity in Myanmar's Dryzone: Lessons from Mandalay and Magwe on realizing the economic potential of small-scale farmers

Author:: Jodie Thorpe
Publication Date:: 08-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: Myanmar is undergoing intense and rapid changes. Policies formulated today will determine the future path of political and economic development. Modernization of the country's agricultural sector is, rightly, a priority. However, mechanization and large–scale agricultural investment is not the only option. Small farm development provides a commercially viable option with better outcomes in terms of poverty reduction and positive impacts on other sectors. Small farms absorb labour, allow communities to build assets and help local markets flourish. It is crucial that Myanmar promotes the right type of agricultural investment – that which supports the country's millions of small-scale farmers and farm labourers, as well as their families.
Topic:: Agriculture, Economics, and Food
Political Geography:: Myanmar

38430. Moral Hazard? 'Mega' public-private partnerships in African agriculture

Author:: Robin Willoughby
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: After decades of underinvestment in agriculture, African governments are rightly looking at how best to mobilize funding for the sector. Donors in turn are keen to reverse a trend of neglect and to support initiatives that are simultaneously likely to enhance productivity, improve livelihoods and increase private sector investment. Private investors, concurrently, are looking for new consumer markets and production opportunities in Africa.
Topic:: Agriculture, Food, Famine, and Foreign Direct Investment
Political Geography:: Africa

38431. A Fairer Deal for Syrians: International commitments needed to arrest the deepening crisis in Syria and the region

Author:: Daniel Gorevan
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: While the world's attention is on crises in Gaza, Ukraine and elsewhere, the humanitarian crisis in Syria continues to deteriorate beyond anything that could have been envisaged when protests broke out over three years ago. A staggering 190,000 people have been killed and 6.5 million displaced inside the country, and the conflict shows little sign of abating. There are three million registered refugees from Syria in neighbouring countries and an unknown number who have not registered. Jordan's planning minister has highlighted the fact that the presence of Syrian refugees in Jordan is akin to 'the United States absorbing the entire population of Canada'.
Topic:: Security and Defense Policy
Political Geography:: Iraq, Canada, Syria, and Jordan

38432. Investing for the Few: The IFC's Health in Africa initiative

Author:: Anna Marriott and Jessica Hamer
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim has publicly stated that achieving universal health coverage (UHC) and equity in health are central to reaching the two new overarching World Bank Group goals to end extreme poverty by 2030 and boost shared prosperity. Jim Kim has also rightly emphasized the need to close the gap in access to quality health services for the poorest 40 percent of the population and to eliminate point-of-service payments that impoverish people in every country.
Topic:: Government, Health, Foreign Direct Investment, World Bank, and Health Care Policy
Political Geography:: Africa

38433. Fiscal Justice to Reduce Inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean

Author:: Itriago Déborah
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: Despite economic growth and the reduction of both poverty and inequality that Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has experienced during the last decade, it still remains the most unequal region in the world.
Topic:: Economics, Political Economy, and Sociology
Political Geography:: Latin America and Caribbean

38434. Trading Away Access to Medicines - Revisited: How the European trade agenda continues to undermine access to medicines

Author:: Sophie Bloemen, Tessel Mellema, and Leïla Bodeux
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: The failure of the current pharmaceutical research and development (R) system is revealed by the World Health Organization (WHO) alert about the lack of effective medicines to address antimicrobial resistance, and the absence of a treatment for the deadly Ebola virus that is ravaging communities in West Africa at the time of writing.
Topic:: Health, International Trade and Finance, and Health Care Policy
Political Geography:: Europe

38435. The reverse home market effect in exports: A cross-country study of the extensive margin of exports

Author:: Medin Hege
Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: This paper presents a simple new trade theory model with results that contradict those from standard model. A home market effect in domestic sales of manufactured goods is found to co-exist with a reversed home market effect in exports of manufactured goods. In consequence, for a small country the number of manufacturing firms that sell in the domestic market is lower than proportional whereas the number of exporters is higher than proportional to country size. The proportion of firms that export, decreases with relative size of the home market. Empirical support for the latter prediction is found in a cross-sectional dataset on firm level exports for 116 countries.
Topic:: International Relations, Economics, International Political Economy, and International Trade and Finance

38436. Regional Trade Agreements in East Asia

Author:: Innwon Park
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: Both intra - and inter-regional trade agreements are proliferating in East Asia. Deepening regional interdependence through trade and investment, and the necessity for stability and revitalization of the regional economy since the East Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s led the East Asian countries to adopt discriminatory RTAs. Accordingly, East Asian commercial policy stance has shifted from unilateral to bilateral to mega-lateral liberalization. This report attempts to assess the East Asian countries' efforts to liberalize the regional market by cooperating with each other. We investigate (i) why RTAs have been proliferating in East Asia, (ii) what the main characteristics of East Asian RTAs are, (iii) whether the East Asian countries are natural trading partners for each other to enhance welfare gains from RTAs, and (iv) whither East Asian RTAs. From our analysis, we recommend following policy options. First, East Asian RTAs should follow an expansionary RTA path (for example, AFTA and five ASEAN+1 FTAs → RCEP and/or TPP → FTAAP). Second, as we consider the high dependence on external economies through global trade and investment, East Asia needs to cooperate with major external trading partners by forming cross-regional RTAs with the EU and US. Third, in order to enable East Asian economies to take the more desirable expansionary RTA path, harmonizing or simplifying ROO, the cumulation of value contents among the RTA members in East Asia, and enhancing trade facilitation should be a prerequisite considering the complicated web of RTAs, regional production networks, and the consolidation of the FTAAP.
Topic:: Economics, International Trade and Finance, and Regional Cooperation
Political Geography:: East Asia and Asia

38437. The governance of global value chains for live butterflies

Author:: Rich Karl, Magda Rich, and P.G. Chengappa
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: Despite estimates that the global butterfly trade generates over US$100 million annually in sales of pupae for exhibitions and deadstock for a range of collector and artisanal uses, almost no research has been conducted that unpacks the dynamics of these value chains. This paper remedies this gap by highlighting the governance structure of the value chain, with important implications on the benefits for chain participants, upgrading strategies, sectoral sustainability, and the potential for new market entrants. This research on live butterfly chains reveals the fragility of current modes of economic organization that promote overproduction as threatening the long-term viability for the industry as a whole. The authors propose an alternative governance model based on the use of individually transferrable quotas, or ITQs, as a means of improving the performance of certain butterfly value chains.
Topic:: Economics, Government, International Trade and Finance, and Governance

38438. Improving livelihoods through conservation and education

Author:: Rich Karl, Magda Rich, Ganga Changappa, and Babu Raghavan
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: In many parts of the developing world, those with physical or mental handicaps are often considered to be a burden on society, with limited to no remunerative activities available in the workforce. Activities such as butterfly farming, which require precision and attention to detail, are potentially relevant for disadvantaged groups as a source of livelihoods. At the same time, such activities can be integrated with community-led conservation efforts as well. We provide a case study of the development of a butterfly garden at the Swastha Centre for Special Education and Rehabilitation in the Kodagu area of Coorg, a region in the state of Karnataka in India through which conservation-based activities are integrated with special education in a manner than builds skills, improves livelihoods, and serves as an important resource for environmental education. Our case demonstrates a scalable means by which butterflies can be used to educate, improve the environment, and offer livelihoods to the disadvantaged in a country where such opportunities are greatly needed.
Topic:: Economics, Education, Environment, and Governance
Political Geography:: India and Karnataka

38439. Sustainability Coffee Certification in India

Author:: Rich Karl, Magda Rich, P.G. Chengappa, Arun Muniyappa, Yadava C.G, Ganashruthi M.K., Pradeepa Babu B.N., and Shubha Y.C.
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: Certification programs has been employed in many agricultural products as a means to encourage and communicate compliance with standards associated with various attributes, such as organic, fair-trade, GMO free, and eco-friendly, among others. Such programs further seek to provide added value, through a price premium, to producers and supply chain actors associated with the label. In this paper, we review a number of global labeling and certification programs that could add value for coffee farms in India through the promotion of conservation and environmental protection. We provide results from a survey conducted on a sample of coffee farms in Coorg district, India to assess their awareness and perceptions related towards certified coffee and environmental conservation in general. Survey results illustrate strong positive associations with the environment by coffee planters, particularly among certified and organic producers. However, price premiums for certified and organic coffee are relatively small. While the potential of conservation-oriented certification for coffee in Coorg could be relatively limited outside of a few individual-level niches, branding Coorg more generally as a conservation-oriented region could hold promise, leveraging and personalizing the uniqueness of the natural offerings from Coorg and tapping into burgeoning associations with place and region in India.
Topic:: Agriculture, Economics, Environment, and International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:: India

38440. Promoting conservation in India by greening coffee

Author:: Magda Rich, P.G. Chengappa, Arun Muniyappa, Pradeepa Babu B.N., Karl M. Rich, and Yadava C.G.
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: The Indian coffee sector is at an important transition point, increasingly stuck in the middle between quality and value segments of the market. A potential niche for India is in the development of eco-friendly (green) coffees, leveraging the natural environment and biodiversity present in many regions. In this study, we conducted a value chain assessment of the coffee sector in Coorg, a major production area in India, to identify the potential entry points and constraints to a conservation-oriented strategy of upgrading. The results highlight that coffee value chains in Coorg are fragmented and largely uncoordinated, with innovative upgrading efforts largely individually motivated. This suggests that integrating conservation principles in a broad-based branding strategy could be difficult at the level of the chain without institutional support or the entry of chain champions. On the other hand, integrating conservation as a diversification activity e.g. through the development of butterfly gardens for tourism, could provide a low-cost way of adding value for farmers while promoting good environmental stewardship.
Topic:: Economics, Environment, and Biosecurity
Political Geography:: India

38441. New trade theory: implications for industrial policy

Author:: Medin Hege
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: The new trade theory, which emerged in the early 1980s, emphasised economies of scale and market failures as driving forces behind international trade. As opposed to the earlier theory, which mainly assumed perfect competition, the new trade theory provided a rationale for industrial policy. This article shows how industrial policy targeting specific firms or industries may be socially desirable within the new trade theory framework. Models from new economic geography and the more recent 'new' new trade theory with heterogeneous firms are also discussed. The main focus is put on models with pecuniary externalities.
Topic:: Economics, International Cooperation, International Trade and Finance, Political Economy, and Politics

38442. A Political Economy of Slum Spaces: Mathare Valley

Author:: Tiberius Barasa and Andvig Jens Chr
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: The starting point of the paper is the spatial characteristics of slums when it seeks to explain why rulers tend to neglect the welfare of their dwellers: they don't have to. Their economies are fairly closed. While located close to the centers of power, their high population density implies that they cover small space and are easy to cordon off in case of danger. The ease of control from the outside allows rulers to spend less attention to the control of their complex inside. Particularly when a slum is based on shack architecture, the high degree of mutual monitoring among dwellers may cause sharp shifts in the control regime of crime. The emphasis on spatial configurations motivates the focus on one specific slum: Mathare Valley. Paths back to colonial rule are outlined. The paper is stylistically unkempt.
Topic:: Economics, Human Rights, Human Welfare, and Politics
Political Geography:: Europe and Eastern Europe

38443. The Governance of Global Wealth Chains

Author:: Leonard Seabrooke and Duncan Wigan
Publication Date:: 08-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: This working paper creates a theoretical framework to explain how Global Wealth Chains are created, maintained, and governed. We draw upon different strands of literature, including scholarship in international political economy and economic geography on Global Value Chains, literature on finance and law in institutional economics, and work from economic sociology on network dynamics within markets. This scholarship assists us in highlighting three variables in how Global Wealth Chains are articulated and change according to: (1) the complexity of transactions, (2) regulatory liability and (3) innovation capacities among suppliers of products used in wealth chains. We then differentiate five types of global value chain governance - market, modular, relational, captive, and hierarchy - which range from simple 'off shelf' products shielded from regulators by advantageous international tax laws to highly complex and flexible innovative financial products produced by large financial institutions and corporations. This paper highlights how Global Wealth Chains intersect with value chains and real economies, and provides three brief case studies on offshore shell companies, family property trusts, and global-scale corporate tax avoidance.
Topic:: Economics, International Cooperation, Politics, and Governance

38444. Zimbabwe: Waiting for the Future

Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: The July 2013 election victory of the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) failed to secure broad-based legitimacy for President Robert Mugabe, provide a foundation for fixing the economy, or normalise external relations. A year on, the country faces multiple social and economic problems, spawned by endemic governance failures and compounded by a debilitating ruling party succession crisis. Both ZANU-PF and the Movement for Democratic Change-Tsvangirai (MDC-T) are embroiled in major internal power struggles that distract from addressing the corrosion of the social and economic fabric. Zimbabwe is an insolvent and failing state, its politics zero sum, its institutions hollowing out, and its once vibrant economy moribund. A major culture change is needed among political elites, as well as commitment to national as opposed to partisan and personal interests.
Topic:: Economics, Politics, and Governance
Political Geography:: Africa and Zimbabwe

38445. Kenya: Al-Shabaab – Closer to Home

Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: One year after the Westgate Mall terrorist attack in Nairobi, Al–Shabaab is more entrenched and a graver threat to Kenya. But the deeper danger is less in the long established terrorist cells that perpetrated the act–horrific as it was–and more in managing and healing the rising communal tensions and historic divides that Al- Shabaab violence has deliberately agitated, most recently in Lamu county. To prevent extremists from further articulating local grievances with global jihad, the Kenyan government–including county governments most affected-opposition politicians and Kenyan Muslim leaders, must work together to address historical grievances of marginalisation among Muslim communities in Nairobi, the coast and the north east, and institutional discrimination at a national level, as well as ensuring that counter-terrorism operations are better targeted at the perpetrators and do not persecute wider ethnic and faith communities they have purposefully infiltrated.
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, Terrorism, and International Security
Political Geography:: Kenya

38446. Venezuela: Dangerous Inertia

Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: The streets of Venezuela's major cities are now largely calm, following several months of violent clashes between opposition demonstrators, security forces and civilian gun- men that left more than 40 dead. The crisis, however, is not over. The opposition is demanding freedom for several dozen activists jailed during the unrest and an end to the threat of prosecution against more than 2,000. The underlying causes have not been addressed, and calls to restore autonomy and independence to the justice system and other key institutions have not been heeded. Living standards continue to decline due to economic recession; violent crime remains at record levels, and labour unrest and protests over poor-quality public services are often dealt with harshly. Greater international efforts are required to bring the sides back to the negotiating table, since the alternative to dialogue is likely to be further violence sooner or later.
Topic:: Security, Economics, and Sociology
Political Geography:: Venezuela

38447. North America Time for a New Focus

Author:: Shannon K. O'Neil
Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Council on Foreign Relations
Abstract:: North America was once called the New World. The people, their ideas, and the resources of the continent shaped the histories of the Old World—East and West. Today, North America is home to almost five hundred million people living in three vibrant democracies. If the three North American countries deepen their integration and cooperation, they have the potential to again shape world affairs for gen-erations to come.
Topic:: Security, Economics, Energy Policy, and International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:: United States and America

38448. Food prices and how people are eating: Views from 'Life in a Time of Food Price Volatility'

Author:: Nick Chisholm
Publication Date:: 08-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: On food prices: The case studies on food prices and how people are eating in Bangladesh, Kenya, and Pakistan confirm that price changes, and the impacts of such changes on households, are far more varied in space and time than national average data reveal. In turn, national price movements can clearly diverge from global prices due to a variety of country - specific factors. The case studies also demonstrate that politics and policies have a significant impact on prices: governments can directly (for good or ill) influence the wellbeing of the poor thro ugh decisions on policy instruments such as taxation and levels of subsidies. Finally, there is some evidence that prices in rural agricultural areas are more influenced by seasonal supply and demand factors than are prices in urban areas. In principle, rural producers may benefit from higher prices, but that is not usually the case for small producers, who are still net consumers of basic food commodities.
Topic:: Food
Political Geography:: Pakistan, Bangladesh, Kenya, and Vietnam

38449. Women's Economic Leadership in Asia: A review of WEL programming

Author:: Bowman Kimberly
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: This report summarizes an internal review of Women‟s Economic Leadership (WEL) programming in Asia. Conducted by an internal MEL advisor in 2013–2014, the review draws upon project documentation, evaluation reports, site visits and staff and partner interviews to try and reflect how WEL programming is being implemented by Oxfam and partners in Asia. Part of a formative evaluation activity, the report aims to help gather and consolidate good practice, based on what Oxfam project teams and partners have learned through recent experience and evaluation. There are at least four distinct topics covered in this report that may be of specific interest to readers.
Topic:: Economics, Gender Issues, and Sociology
Political Geography:: Asia

38450. Ressourcensegen – Ressourcenfluch? Fallstudie der entwicklungspolitischen Chancen und Risiken des Ressourcenbooms in der Mongolei

Author:: Paul Kriews
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Institute for Development and Peace
Abstract:: Natural resources play a significant role for a country's development: The beneficial dynamics of a prosperous commodity sector have therefore long been considered as a key factor for a country's positive economic development. Paradoxically, however, one can observe frequently in resource-rich countries that the commodity sector has no positive effect, but rather fatal implications for a country's development. The assumption that resource-rich countries use their wealth for the advancement of sustainable development appears to be incomplete. This paper identifies the basic problems and dangers associated with resource wealth; possible options for action are identified and traced, using the example of Mongolia. The central question is whether Mongolia can escape the so-called resource curse. In this paper, a set of criteria is used, to elaborate whether the necessary conditions for a responsible use of the existing resource wealth in Mongolia are given.
Topic:: Economics, Environment, Natural Resources, and Governance

38451. Hezbollah in Syria

Author:: Marisa Sullivan
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Institute for the Study of War
Abstract:: Hezbollah's deepening involvement in Syria is one of the most important factors of the conflict in 2013 and 2014. Since the beginning of 2013, Hezbollah fighters have operated openly and in significant numbers across the border alongside their Syrian and Iraqi counterparts. They have enabled the regime to regain control of rebel-held areas in central Syria and have improved the effectiveness of pro-regime forces. The impact of Hezbollah's involvement in Syria has been felt not just on the battlefield, where the regime now has momentum in many areas, but also in Lebanon where growing sectarian tensions have undermined security and stability.
Topic:: International Relations, War, and International Security
Political Geography:: Lebanon and Syria

38452. Iraq's 2014 National Elections

Author:: Ahmed Ali
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Institute for the Study of War
Abstract:: Iraq's 2014 national elections are taking place at a difficult time. The country is at a crossroads, presented with the possibility of widely different futures. Deteriorating security conditions frame political thought in ways that harken back to Iraq's first national elections in 2005. The Iraqi state does not hold control of territory in some of Iraq's key political provinces, such as Anbar, Ninewa, and Diyala. The disenfranchisement of Iraq's Arab Sunnis; the rising threat of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS); and the activation of Ba'athist groups collectively discourage electoral participation.
Topic:: International Relations, International Political Economy, and Politics
Political Geography:: United States, Iraq, Ninewa, Anbar, and Diyala

38453. ISIS Governance in Syria

Author:: Charles C. Caris and Samuel Reynolds
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Institute for the Study of War
Abstract:: The Islamic State's June 2014 announcement of a “caliphate” is not empty rhetoric. In fact, the idea of the caliphate that rests within a controlled territory is a core part of ISIS's political vision. The ISIS grand strategy to realize this vision involves first establishing control of terrain through military conquest and then reinforcing this control through governance. This grand strategy proceeds in phases that have been laid out by ISIS itself in its publications, and elaborates a vision that it hopes will attract both fighters and citizens to its nascent state. The declaration of a caliphate in Iraq and Syria, however, raises the question: can ISIS govern?
Topic:: Security, Islam, and Terrorism
Political Geography:: Iraq and Syria

38454. A strategy to defeat the islamic state

Author:: Frederick W. Kagan, Kimberly Kagan, and Jessica D. Lewis
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Institute for the Study of War
Abstract:: The Islamic State poses a grave danger to the United States and its allies in the Middle East and around the world due to its location, resources, the skill and determination of its leaders and fighters, and its demonstrated lethality compared to other al Qaeda-like groups. In Syria, the Assad regime has lost control of the majority of the state, and the regime's atrocities and sectarianism have fueled violent Islamists, particularly ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra (JN). In Iraq, the government has lost control over large portions of territory that the Iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Peshmerga are incapable of retaking without significant foreign support. The Sunni Arabs of Iraq and Syria are the decisive human terrain. Al-Qaeda and similar groups can only flourish in distressed Sunni communities. Any strategy to counter al-Qaeda requires working with these communities, as the U.S. and the Iraqi government did during the Awakening in 2007. Having neglected Iraq and Syria, the U.S. currently lacks the basic intelligence and contextual understanding to build a strategy. The U.S. must adopt an iterative approach that tests assumptions, enriches understanding, builds partnerships with willing Sunni Arabs, and sets conditions for more decisive operations.
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, and Islam
Political Geography:: United States, Middle East, and Syria

38455. Editorial

Publication Date:: 01-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Abstract:: No abstract is available.
Topic:: NATO

38456. Sergio Cabral Filho, former Governor of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Author:: Sergio Cabral Filho
Publication Date:: 05-2014
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Columbia University World Leaders Forum
Abstract:: This World Leaders Forum program, titled "Rio de Janeiro: from Ostracism to Protagonism" features an address by Sergio Cabral Filho, former Governor of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Introduction and Moderated by Lee C. Bollinger, President, Columbia University in the City of New York.
Topic:: Development, Emerging Markets, Political Economy, and Foreign Direct Investment
Political Geography:: New York, Brazil, and Latin America

38457. Foreign Fighters in Syria

Author:: Richard Barrett
Publication Date:: 06-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The Soufan Group
Abstract:: Over 12,000 fighters from at least 81 countries have joined the civil war in Syria, and the numbers continue to grow. Around 2,500 are from Western countries, including most members of the European Union, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. There are also several hundred from Russia. But the great majority are from the Arab World. Most are fighting with rebel groups, and increasingly with the most extreme among them; but many are also fighting with the Government, or with ethnic or faith communities that are trying to protect themselves from both sides. A lot are young, often teenagers, and a fair percentage of those arriving from non-Muslim majority countries are converts to Islam. These and others who share their faith commonly express their motivation as a religious obligation to protect fellow Muslims from attack. This sense of duty is captured by their loose use of the word 'jihad'.
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, and International Security
Political Geography:: Russia, United States, Europe, Middle East, Canada, Arabia, Australia, Syria, and New Zealand

38458. The "Home Game" Counting Violent Extremism within NATO

Author:: Jacqueline Page
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: NATO Defense College
Abstract:: As the complex global security environment faced by NATO members continues to evolve in the coming years, terrorism – waged by actors both in and outside of their borders – will remain a vexing challenge. For over a decade, NATO's counterterrorism strategy has been built on taking the fight abroad. Member nations have been intimately involved in this effort as contributors to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, to the Multi-National Force in Iraq and in a variety of smaller missions around the globe. In recent times, however, there has been growing attention to the threat posed by “homegrown” terrorism and foreign fighters returning from Syria and elsewhere to their home countries throughout the Euro-Atlantic area.
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, NATO, and International Security
Political Geography:: Afghanistan, Iraq, Middle East, and Syria

38459. Five Long-Term Challenges for NATO beyond the Ukraine Crisis

Author:: Karl-Heinz Kamp
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: NATO Defense College
Abstract:: Moscow's aggression against Ukraine has truly been a “game changer” for the Atlantic Alliance. Its implications for NATO's further evolution can hardly be over-estimated and after the likely shoot-down of a Malaysian civil aircraft over Ukrainian territory, controlled by pro-Russian rebels, the situation is even more unpredictable. Even if the catastrophe has put heavy political pressure on President Putin to reduce Russian involvement in Ukraine, Moscow is still not likely to revert the annexation of the Crimean peninsula. As a result, the crisis will dominate the international security debate for a long time to come. Thus, signs of resolve directed at Russia, measures to reassure the NATO members in Eastern Europe and indications of further cooperation with Ukraine will rank very high on the agenda of the NATO summit in Wales in September 2014. With the draw-down of the operation in Afghanistan, some Allies tend to see NATO's future role as primarily to preserve the territorial integrity of its member states. Hence, they argue in favour of a “back to basics” approach with an Alliance concentrated on its defence mission, according to Article 5 of the Washington Treaty.
Topic:: Security, Terrorism, and International Security
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Malaysia, Ukraine, Asia, and Moscow

38460. NATO Enlargement and Russia: Die-Hard Myths and Real Dilemmas

Author:: Michael Ruhle
Publication Date:: 05-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: NATO Defense College
Abstract:: The crisis in Ukraine, which culminated in Russia's annexation of the Crimea, marks a new low in NATO-Russia relations. While this relationship had been deteriorating for quite some time, Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis revealed a geopolitical agenda that caught many observers by surprise. In the course of just a few weeks Russia clearly emerged as a revisionist power, behaving in a manner reminiscent of the "predatory nation-states from the 19th century" and changing borders by force in order to deny a neighbouring country the choice to determine its own alignments.
Topic:: Security, Political Violence, and Defense Policy
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Ukraine, Asia, and Moscow

38461. Cold War Déjà Vu? NATO, Russia and the Ukraine Crisis

Author:: Roger McDermott, Brooke Smith-Windsor, and Heidi Reisinger
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: NATO Defense College
Abstract:: Russia's behaviour in the Ukrainian crisis has been described by some as giving rise to “the most dangerous situation in East-West relations since the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968.” For one, NATO's recently retired Supreme Allied Commander has called for immediate action in response. This could include, for example, bringing the NATO Response Force – a sea, air, land, special forces capability – to a higher state of alert, and sailing NATO maritime forces into the Black Sea.
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, and NATO
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Ukraine, and Asia

38462. Ukraine's Euromaidan: Questions from the (R)evolution

Author:: Hanna Shelest
Publication Date:: 02-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: NATO Defense College
Abstract:: The pictures of Kyiv on fire in early 2014 have attracted attention of the world's media, with Molotov cocktails, barricades and injured journalists making headlines. This is in sharp contrast to the previous two months, when hundreds of thousands of people were coming every Sunday to the main square – Maidan Nezalezhnosti – in peaceful protest.
Topic:: Security, Politics, and Social Movement
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Ukraine, and Asia

38463. Does Russia Matter? Purely Political Relations Are Not Enough in Operational Times

Author:: Heidi Reisinger
Publication Date:: 02-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: NATO Defense College
Abstract:: On 27 January 2014, the NATO Defense College Research Division hosted its Russia Roundtable, where international experts from various research institutions meet senior practitioners from the International Staff and International Military Staff from NATO HQ.
Topic:: Security, Defense Policy, NATO, and Politics
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, and Asia

38464. TSG IntelBrief: Foreign Fighters in Syria: A Growing Threat

Publication Date:: 06-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Soufan Group
Abstract:: The number of foreign fighters is high, 12,000 and counting, and the spread of countries they come from covers much of the globe. Two recent events involving foreign fighters show the radicalizing influence of the war. With the support to bolster Syria's more secular rebel forces at times inconsistent and tepid, the lack of an alternative has accelerated a natural gravitation towards extremist elements. It will be hard to know which returnees pose a threat, and harder still to deal with them. Given that the number of foreign fighters already exceeds those that went to Afghanistan, government resources will be severely strained to monitor all returnees and will have to rely on the help of local communities.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Foreign Policy, Islam, Terrorism, and Counterinsurgency
Political Geography:: Afghanistan, United Kingdom, Middle East, and Syria

38465. TSG IntelBrief: Boko Haram Takes, Holds Territory

Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Soufan Group
Abstract:: Like its putative Islamic State counterparts in Iraq and Syria, the Nigerian terror group Boko Haram has in recent weeks accomplished an alarming expansion of its territorial control The downing of a Nigerian fighter jet-and the videotaped beheading of its pilot-also suggest a quantum leap in the group's offensive and propaganda capabilities The Nigerian state's attempts to counter the Boko Haram narrative through positive public relations have yet to yield positive results The government's latest claim of killing the militants' leader, Abubakar Shekau, remains unsubstantiated, thus creating another public relations challenge for Nigerian security officials.
Topic:: Islam, Terrorism, and Counterinsurgency
Political Geography:: Africa

38466. TSG IntelBrief: : Foreign Fighters from North Africa in Syria and Iraq

Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Soufan Group
Abstract:: No region has seen more of its people travel to fight in Syria than North Africa; more than 3,000 Tunisians have traveled there as of last April, and more than 1,500 Moroccans This is a repeat of a decade ago when large numbers of North Africans traveled to Iraq to fight there as well, in proportions far above those of neighboring countries A significant number of recent North African fighters have conducted suicide bombings in both Iraq and Syria, highlighting that the deadly ideological message of the so-called Islamic State (IS) and other extremist groups is finding purchase in North Africa The reasons for this export of extremists include incomplete political reforms that have failed to redress serious societal issues, persistent high youth unemployment, and a failure to cope with the apparent high levels of disaffection, despair, and anger that drive people to choose violent extremism.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Islam, Terrorism, and Counterinsurgency
Political Geography:: Iraq, Middle East, Arabia, North Africa, and Syria

38467. TSG IntelBrief:: The Bomb-Proof Finances of the Islamic State

Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Soufan Group
Abstract:: Attacking the finances of the so-called Islamic State (IS) with limited collateral damage will be orders of magnitude more difficult than attacking its military factions The group has thoroughly embedded itself into local and regional economies in Syria and Iraq, and damaging its finances while not devastating civilian populations will be as difficult as it is necessary IS oil revenues might be the easiest to disrupt but such action comes with significant collateral economic damage, while taxes, tolls, extortion, and food sales generate more income while remaining highly resistant to external forces In the areas under its control, IS has been providing social services as well as delivering levels of fuel, electricity, and food to populations utterly without recourse, meaning the group needs to be replaced and not simply removed.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Islam, Terrorism, Insurgency, and Counterinsurgency
Political Geography:: Middle East and Arabia

38468. TSG IntelBrief: Turkey Steps In: A Good Thing?

Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Soufan Group
Abstract:: The Turkish parliament's vote to authorize the deployment of military forces in Syria and Iraq provided a legal and official framework for such action It may appear to be a positive step in degrading and destroying the putative Islamic State (IS), however, the parliament in its vote used the broader term "terrorist organizations," thus the landscape for Turkey, Syria-Iraq, and regional states and interests remains exceptionally complex Though there is nearly universal and implacable opposition to IS among all actors in Syria and Iraq, Turkey's future role-depending on steps taken-could aggravate tensions not only with Arab Gulf states and Kurdish elements in Syria and Iraq, but Iran, Russia, and the Iraqi government Turkey's desire to create a buffer zone on the Syrian side of its common border remains one of the most sensitive issues Amid reports of increased IS pressure on Kobani, Kurdish PKK has insinuated Turkey will be to blame-not IS-for creating conditions for the refugee crisis, and threatens to resume opposition activity in Turkey. The Turkish parliament's vote Thursday to authorize use of its army and military facilities in the fight against the so-called Islamic State (IS) may appear at first look to be a positive step for the broader coalition. The measures-to be determined-are in addition to any financial, diplomatic, humanitarian, and support activities for the anti-IS coalition. However, parliament's vote did not entail Turkey's officially joining the coalition. After the recent deal-details yet to be revealed-to bring home over 40 hostages IS had taken from Turkey's consulate in Mosul, Iraq, in June 2014, pressure increased for Turkey to take military steps in the anti-IS fight. A factor increasing the possibility of military action is Turkish special operations forces' guarding the tomb of Suleyman Shah, a Turkish enclave in Syria reported to be increasingly surrounded by IS. Though there is almost universal animus toward IS in the region, there is also nearly uniform resistance to Turkey's perceived unilateral military involvement in Syria and Iraq, outside the framework of the anti-IS coalition. Turkey's next moves may cause more conflict than benefit in the anti-IS fight. Indeed, the political landscape for Turkey's moves at home and abroad remains extraordinarily complex.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Foreign Policy, Islam, and Terrorism
Political Geography:: Iraq, Turkey, Middle East, and Syria

38469. TSG IntelBrief: The Umbrella Revolution: Students Protest in Hong Kong

Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Soufan Group
Abstract:: The student-led, pro-democracy 'Umbrella Revolution' currently underway in Hong Kong is the most significant uprising within the sphere of the People's Republic of China since the Tiananmen Square demonstrations in 1989 Angered by Beijing's restrictions to candidate choices for the upcoming 2017 election, Hong Kong's citizens are massing by the thousands to protest As the pro-democracy protests grow, the government's reaction threatens to becomes more aggressive, possibly bringing the situation to a tipping point reminiscent of Tiananmen Square The Chinese government believes it can't afford to back down-with a wariness influenced by events in Ukraine and the 'Arab Spring'-but it also can't afford another massacre; the world is watching and plays a much larger role in the Chinese economy than it did in 1989.
Topic:: Conflict Prevention, Democratization, Human Rights, and Political Economy
Political Geography:: East Asia and Hong Kong

38470. Mediating Transition in Yemen: Achievements and Lessons

Author:: Steven A. Zyck
Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Peace Institute
Abstract:: Yemen remains the only site of an Arab Spring uprising that has ended in a negotiated agreement and a structured, internationally supported transition process. As Jamal Benomar, the United Nations Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Yemen, stated, “Yemen was definitely heading towards a Syria-type scenario” before international actors, including the United Nations (UN), helped to shepherd a complex transition process, which continues at the time of writing. Benomar, with support from a wide array of stakeholders, helped avert an escalating conflict in Yemen by stepping in to offer the good offices of the UN secretarygeneral without waiting for the UN Security Council or the embattled Yemeni regime to demand UN action. Benomar's interventions— including bringing Yemen's major political parties together amid the uprising—helped ensure that the country did not devolve into civil war when President Ali Abdullah Saleh stepped down after thirty-three years in power. That is, the UN opened a space for dialogue where none had previously been considered possible.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Democratization, Treaties and Agreements, and Popular Revolt
Political Geography:: Middle East, Arabia, and Syria

38471. We Will Stop Here and Go No Further: Syrian University Students and Scholars in Turkey

Author:: Keith David Watenpaugh, Adrienne L. Fricke, and James R. King
Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Institute of International Education (IIE)
Abstract:: On a warm June afternoon in Reyhanlı, Turkey, more than 30 displaced and refugee Syrian university students, some with their parents, gathered in the living room of the apartment that serves as the headquarters of the Union of Free Syrian Academics (UFSA). They had assembled to talk with our research team about their efforts to finish their university studies. Before the war in Syria Began, Reyhanlı had been a sleepy border town on the road between Antakya and Aleppo, frequented by smugglers. Today, it hosts tens of thousands of Syrians who have crossed into Turkey at one of the few border crossings that remain in the hands of the Western and Turkish-supported Free Syrian Army. Parts of Reyhanlı now feel like a refugee camp – with the sense of boredom, frustration, and expectation one finds in camps – but without barbed wire and restrictions on movement. We were visiting the town because it is home to several initiatives and programs related to higher education and other necessary support for Syrian students and scholars.
Topic:: Education and Human Rights
Political Geography:: Turkey, Middle East, and Syria

38472. America the Vulnerable: Our Military Problems And How To Fix Them

Author:: John F. Lehman (ed) and Harvey Sicherman (ed)
Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Book
Institution:: Foreign Policy Research Institute
Abstract:: A decade has passed since the end of the Cold War. The demise of the Soviet Union concluded the most vulnerable period in American history, a time when the possibility of nuclear attack threatened the very existence of the United States. No wonder then that Americans heaved a mighty sigh of relief, having survived to watch the fall of their country's most powerful enemy.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, and Terrorism
Political Geography:: United States and America

38473. Afghanistan's Political Transition

Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: Ashraf Ghani was inaugurated as president of Afghanistan on 29 September, under difficult circumstances. He inherited a government that is running out of money and losing ground to a rising insurgency. His ability to confront those problems and other challenges as foreign troops withdraw will be shaped by the aftermath of the political contest that brought him to power. Forming a national unity government with his election rival Abdullah Abdullah presents opportunities to stabilise the transition, preventing further erosion of state cohesiveness. Yet, it also poses risks, particularly of factionalism within Kabul, which could undermine urgently needed reforms. Given the international role in developing the agreements that have created this new partnership, and the absence of mechanisms to resolve internal differences, the international community should serve as a guarantor of Kabul's new political order and, if necessary, mediate any serious disputes that arise.
Topic:: Corruption, Democratization, Islam, and Governance
Political Geography:: Afghanistan and Central Asia

38474. The Korean Peninsula: Yesterday and Today

Author:: Paul Dickler
Publication Date:: 06-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Foreign Policy Research Institute
Abstract:: This article will take a snapshot of Korea today and look back to the past to see the origins. It will offer many comparisons between North and South Korea. Why have North Korea (The Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea--DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea—ROK) become what they are in the present, and what are the most likely scenarios for their future? Is reunification likely, or even desired by Koreans today? Are the troop commitments from the United States going to last another 60 years, or will events change that dynamic?
Topic:: Conflict Resolution and Foreign Policy
Political Geography:: Israel

38475. From Black Boots to Desert Boots: The All-Volunteer Army Experiment Continues

Author:: Leonard Wong
Publication Date:: 05-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Foreign Policy Research Institute
Abstract:: In 1970, the President's Commission on an All-Volunteer Armed Force delivered its report to the President of the United States, Richard Nixon. In the report, better known as the Gates Commission due to the leadership of former Secretary of Defense Thomas Gates, the members of the Commission stated, "We unanimously believe that the nation's interests will be better served by an all-volunteer force, supported by an effective stand-by draft." They added, "We have satisfied ourselves that a volunteer force will not jeopardize national security, and we believe it will have a beneficial effect on the military as well as the rest of our society." In June of 1973, after years of debate, the statutory authority for the draft expired and the all-volunteer force became a reality.
Topic:: Defense Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, and Governance
Political Geography:: United States

38476. Ratings and Regulation: A Case of an Irreversible Marriage?

Author:: Giulia Mennillo and Suryapratim Roy
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:: What are the rationales for policymakers to rely on putatively disinterested actors such as credit rating agencies (CRAs) for financial regulatory input? This paper draws on perspectives from International Political Economy and Comparative Legal Studies to analyze the reasons behind the use and retention of external ratings as an indirect instrument of financial regulation. We find that allowing `market practice' to determine the relationship between ratings and regulation creates tautological justifications of the CRAs' authority, and raises compelling questions in terms of legitimacy.
Topic:: International Trade and Finance, Political Economy, Governance, and Law

38477. Problem Discovery as a Collaborative, Creative, and Method-Guided Search for the "Real Problems" as Raw Diamonds of Innovation

Author:: Gerald Steiner
Publication Date:: 08-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:: This paper poses that the creative search for frequently hidden “real” problems is critical if innovation aims at comprehensive system improvements and changes in thinking paradigms, rather than simple, incremental changes. These hidden real problems can perhaps best be symbolized by raw diamonds, which one strives to find in order to then grind them into sparkling diamonds, i.e. innovation. Currently, problem solving-related research focuses on the analysis and solution of predefined problems, with little emphasis on problem reframing and systemic discovery; moreover, inter- and transdisciplinary collaborations for problem finding and the application of convoluted methods receive little attention. To illustrate the search process for raw diamonds, i.e. the real problem, by way of example, a comprehensive “toolbox of convoluted methods” is applied as part of a comprehensive problem discovery process. The Planetary Model of Collaborative Creativity (PMCC) serves as the conceptual basis for this method-based search for the real problems. It shows that this toolbox requires 1) Collaborative effort; 2) Comprehensive competences (personal, professional domain, systemic, creativity, and sociocultural competences); and 3) A circular creative problem solving process, which is embedded within a sequential working process.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Political Theory, and Natural Resources

38478. Licensing Afghan Opium for Medicinal Use: Why It Won't Work

Author:: David Mansfield and William A. Byrd
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: With large increases in Afghan opium cultivation and production in 2013 and 2014, there is a risk that resulting frustration may give rise to a search for extreme but unproductive solutions. There are no easy solutions to the illegal narcotics problem. The proposal that Afghanistan could shift to licensed production of opium for pain medications will not work. Due to severe problems with governance, rule of law and security, opium licensing in Afghanistan would be subject to extremely high leakages. Afghanistan's comparative advantage in supplying the illicit market means that it would likely expand cultivation to meet demand in both markets. Afghanistan is a high-cost producer of opium, and prices for licensed opium are much lower than on the illegal market, so profits might well be marginal or even negative. Existing producers of licensed opiates— Australia, Turkey, India, France and others—would strongly oppose any move to let Afghanistan become a competitor on the licensed market. Even if a more liberalized market for opiates is envisioned, technological advances and modern techniques in other countries mean that Afghanistan could not be a competitive producer.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, International Trade and Finance, Markets, and Narcotics Trafficking
Political Geography:: Afghanistan, Turkey, India, France, and Australia

38479. Using Special Envoys In High-Stakes Conflict Diplomacy

Author:: Princeton N. Lyman and Robert M. Beecroft
Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: Special envoys or representatives (SE/SRs) have been used by nearly every administration to address high-stakes conflicts. They are most useful when a conflict situation is of major importance to the United States, has strong regional as well as bilateral aspects, and exceeds the State Department's capacity to address it. To be effective, an SE/SR must be recognizably empowered by the president and the secretary of state, have clear mandates, and enjoy a degree of latitude beyond normal bureaucratic restrictions. While the secretary of state needs to be actively engaged in the conflict resolution process, the envoy should be sufficiently empowered to ensure that the secretary's interventions are strategic. Chemistry matters: in minimizing tensions between the SE/SR and the relevant State Department regional bureau and with ambassadors in the field, in overcoming State- White House rivalries over policy control, and in mobilizing support of allies. There are no “cookie cutter” solutions to overlapping responsibilities and the envoy's need for staff and resources; rather, mutual respect and flexibility are key. Senior State Department officials have the required skills for assignments as SE/SRs. Enhancing the department's resources and reinforcing the ranks of senior department posi¬tions would increase such appointments and the department's capacity to support them.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, International Relations, Foreign Policy, and Diplomacy
Political Geography:: United States

38480. Oh! The Places You'll Go

Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: In most countries the process isn't always clear or direct. Who does it, how to do it and how long it can take varies from country to country—a refl ection of the vagueness of ILO 169 and the uneven development of government regulations across the hemisphere. To compare, here are the steps you would need to take in Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, and Peru.
Topic:: Government
Political Geography:: Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Guatemala

38481. Social Conflict Ilo 169

Author:: Rebecca Bintrim
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: Across the Andes, land-and natural resource-related conflict has been increasing in the past 10 years, with only minor fluctuations from year to year. In the past six years, those conflicts have occurred against a backdrop of discussion, adoption and refinement of International Labour Organization Convention 169 (ILO 169) and consulta previa regulations to govern it. While not necessarily related, the long-term trends in conflict and the adoption of consulta previa raise important questions. Can consulta previa address or contain long pent-up frustrations and conflicts? Or will the rising expectations they bring to communities, if the laws are imperfectly or subjectively implemented, lead to even more conflict? The Charticle here shows the risks of the latter.
Topic:: Government

38482. Country Study: Peru

Author:: Cynthia Sanborn and Alvaro Paredes
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: During his 2011 presidential campaign, Peruvian President Ollanta Humala promised a new relationship between the Peruvian state and Indigenous peoples, in which the rights of the latter would be guaranteed and their participation in government would be treatedas fundamental.
Topic:: Government
Political Geography:: Latin America and Peru

38483. Country Study: Chile

Author:: Jerónimo Carcelén Pacheco and Valentina Mir Bennett
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: While Chile has recognized and supported Indigenous rights through a variety of constitutional, legal and statutory norms, one of the most central—especially given the country's extractive industry—is one of the least settled.
Political Geography:: Chile

38484. Country study: Guatemala

Author:: Geisselle Sánchez and Silvel Elías
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: Although they constitute 40 percent of Guatemala's population, Indigenous Guatemalans face great inequality in terms of access to health, education, housing and—most critically—political representation.
Topic:: Politics
Political Geography:: Guatemala

38485. Migrant and Refugee Integration in Global Cities: The Role of Cities and Businesses

Author:: Teressa Juzwiak, Elaine McGregor, and Melissa Siegel
Publication Date:: 05-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: This policy brief considers how businesses and governments in global cities contribute to the integration of migrant and refugee populations, either through outreach, specialized programmes, the provision of services, or targeted funding of non-governmental organizations (NGOs); and to what extent these contributions can be deepened or expanded. The research involved the study of eight cities around the world representing a diversity of immigration experiences: Auckland (New Zealand), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Chicago (USA), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Lisbon (Portugal), Nairobi (Kenya), Rotterdam (The Netherlands), and São Paulo (Brazil).
Topic:: Non-Governmental Organization, Immigration, and Governance
Political Geography:: Kenya, Malaysia, Brazil, Lisbon, Portugal, New Zealand, Chicago, and Kuala Lumpur

38486. Country Study: Colombia

Author:: Sebastian Agudelo and Diana María Ocampo
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: In Colombia's 2010–2014 National Development Plan, President Juan Manuel Santos listed the mining sector as one of the five engines of the country's economic growth, alongside infrastructure, housing, agriculture, and innovation. At the same time, the government recognized the need for regulatory, legal and policy instruments to make Colombia a regional powerhouse for mining and infrastructure.
Topic:: Agriculture, Economics, and Government
Political Geography:: Colombia

38487. Reducing the Financial Risk of Social Conflict

Author:: Daniel M. Schydlowsky and Robert C. Thompson
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: The Peruvian economy has experienced exceptional growth in the past 10 years, with its GDP expanding at an average yearly rate of 6.5 percent. Much of this growth is due to the mining sector, which in 2012 accounted for 9.6 percent of Peru's GDP, 1.3 percent of its employment and 56.9 percent of its exports.
Topic:: Economics and Communications
Political Geography:: Peru

38488. Business Responsibility to Respect Indigenous Rights

Author:: Paloma Muñoz Quick
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: While numerous United Nations mechanisms have addressed the impact of business activities on Indigenous rights, it was only in 2011—with the UN Human Rights Council's unanimous endorsement of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights—that the role of businesses in respecting, or abusing, these rights was officially acknowledged.
Topic:: Human Rights
Political Geography:: United Nations

38489. Contested Lands, Contested Laws

Author:: Carlos Andrés Baquero Díaz
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: The right to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC), or consulta previa, has expanded throughout South America. Nine states have ratified the International Labour Organization's Convention 169 (ILO169)— the principal treaty regarding consulta previa. But regulations created by four of those states— Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Ecuador—contradict the commitments they accepted when they ratified the treaty, in effect violating the right of Indigenous people to be consulted on administrative and legislative measures that could directly affect them.
Political Geography:: Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Ecuador

38490. Contradiction in International Law

Author:: Angela Bunch
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: Indigenous peoples' control over natural resources continues to be one of the most controversial issues in international law. Numerous international human rights treaties recognize Indigenous communities' right to be consulted over the use of resources on or beneath their communal lands. But international law tends to consider third parties' exploitation of natural resources on Indigenous land to be legal—as long as Indigenous rights to consultation, participation and redress, among other rights, are met.
Topic:: International Law and Natural Resources

38491. Two Views of Consulta Previa in Guatemala: A View from the Private Sector

Author:: Cementos Progreso S.A.
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: Guatemala ratified International Labour Organization Convention 169 (ILO 169) on June 5, 1996, more than a year after Guatemala's Constitutional Court, the highest court in the country, ruled in Document 199-95 that the Convention did not contradict the Guatemalan Constitution.
Political Geography:: Guatemala

38492. The Rise of Popular Consultations

Author:: Diana Rodríguez-Franco
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: On a hot Sunday morning in July 2013, the inhabitants of Piedras, a small municipality in the Colombian Andes, gathered to decide whether large-scale mining activities should be permitted in their territory.
Political Geography:: Colombia

38493. Getting to the Table

Author:: Diana Arbeláez-Ruiz and Daniel M. Franks
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: Mining is a lot more than complex technology, logistics and finance. While mineral extraction does require an amazing array of machinery, computers, and processes for transporting and treating the materials, it is just as much a social project that is negotiated and conducted within a social context.
Political Geography:: Latin America

38494. Speaking a Common Language with Latin America: Economics

Author:: Jose W. Fernandez
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: United States-Latin American relations have often suffered from a disconnect. While we stress security issues, the region's leaders speak of poverty reduction and trade. They resent being seen as afterthoughts to U.S. policies focused elsewhere. As a result, the region is sporadically open to new suitors, such as Spanish investors 15 years ago, or the Chinese today.
Topic:: Economics and Poverty
Political Geography:: United States, China, Latin America, and Spain

38495. Elections in Colombia

Author:: Francisco Miranda Hamburger
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: On May 25, 32 million Colombians will vote in one of the most important presidential elections in the nation's recent history—an election that will turn on the issue that remains Colombia's greatest challenge: putting an end to the armed conflict.
Political Geography:: Colombia

38496. Ask the Experts: Consulta Previa

Author:: Sonia Meza-Cuadra, Katya Salazar, César Rodríguez-Garavito, and Roberto Junguito Pombo
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Americas Quarterly
Institution:: Council of the Americas
Abstract:: Governments aim to make decisions that will improve the economic and social development and welfare of their citizens. But historically, decisions affecting Indigenous and tribal people's culture, ancestral lands and habitats have too often been made without their participation. ilo 169 and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples seek to redress this situation.
Topic:: Economics, Government, Human Welfare, and Culture
Political Geography:: United Nations

38497. Complete Edition An Interdisciplinary Journal Of Public Policy Analysis

Author:: James A. Dorn
Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: The Cato Journal
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: This article deals with the main problems and proposed solutions with respect to the euro. I start with what I perceive to be confusion in the debate on the euro. The next section shows a large variation in the growth performance in the eurozone, and more broadly in the European Union (EU). This should make us skeptical when hearing about the crisis of the euro, or of Europe. I then proceed to discuss what the problem countries in the eurozone suffer from. The next section deals with a more difficult question: What are the links between the euro architecture and the accumulation of these problems—that is, the imbalances and structural barriers to economic growth in some members of the eurozone? I then proceed to discuss the adjustment under the euro after 2008, focusing on the weaknesses of the policies of the crisis management. The article ends with a critical discussion of the problems and solutions put forward in the debate on the euro.
Political Geography:: Europe

38498. Thirst For Power: Turkey's Relationship With Water

Publication Date:: 05-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Turkish Review
Institution:: Turkish Review
Abstract:: No abstract is available.
Political Geography:: Turkey

38499. Complete Edition

Publication Date:: 10-2014
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: The Goettingen Journal of International Law
Institution:: The Goettingen Journal of International Law
Abstract:: The atrocities committed by Isis in Iraq and Syria, the conflict between Israel and Gaza, the crisis in the Ukraine: Rarely has the international news been almost completely dominated by topics related to international law as it is at the moment. The international community has been observing each of the three hot spots with utmost alertness. As different as these conflicts may be, they have in common that mid- or even long-term adjustments currently seem hardly feasible.

38500. Women in the Informal Economy: Experiments in Governance from Emerging Countries

Author:: Shyama V. Ramani, Ajay Thutupalli, Sutapa Chattopadhyay, Veena Ravichandran, and Tamás Medovarszki
Publication Date:: 05-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: Women entrepreneurs in the informal economy need business engagements with other women (and men) that offer 'spaces' for dialogue to learn and build business capabilities. While formalization of entrepreneurial activity is favourable under some circumstances, it can be detrimental under others, necessitating a case-by-case evaluation. Many top-down actions for women's empowerment in the informal sector are only effective in gender-neutral economic development programmes. In this Policy Brief, we argue that although policy interventions may be favourable, they are neither necessary nor sufficient for change, as successful women role models are often the best agents for sweeping change.
Topic:: Development, Diplomacy, Gender Issues, and International Trade and Finance

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