Struggling Mideast states will call on Arab identity

Significance The League itself has long been a talking-shop with minimal influence, and Arabism has declined sharply in salience since its heights in the 1960s. Nonetheless, references to common Arab identity are still an important policy tool in the region, used in multiple different contexts. Impacts At a local level, land disputes between Arabs and Kurds in Syria and Iraq will become more explosive. The language of Arabism will often be used to justify decisions made for interest-based reasons. Identity issues are used to stir constituencies in Libya too, as some western Libyans are often referred to as 'Turks'.

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 434-445 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angelo Jonas Imperiale ◽  
Frank Vanclay

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to reflect on what can be learned about disaster risk reduction (DRR) from the L’Aquila trial of scientists. The court case was initiated because of a controversial meeting on 31 March 2009 of the Major Risks Committee (MRC), held under the auspices of the Italian Department of Civil Protection. The purpose of the meeting was to consider (prior to the fatal earthquake of 6 April 2009) disaster risk in the L’Aquila area, which was being affected by an earthquake swarm since October 2008. Design/methodology/approach The authors undertook a document analysis of trial materials, and a review of academic and media commentary about the trial. Findings The legal process revealed that disaster governance was inadequate and not informed by the DRR paradigm or international guidelines. Risk assessment was carried out only in a techno-scientific manner, with little acknowledgement of the social issues influencing risks at the local community level. There was no inclusion of local knowledge or engagement of local people in transformative DRR strategies. Originality/value Most previous commentary is inadequate in terms of not considering the institutional, scientific and social responsibilities for DRR as exposed by the trial. This paper is unique in that it considers the contents of the MRC meeting as well as all trial documents. It provides a comprehensive reflection on the implications of this case for DRR and the resilience of peoples and places at risk. It highlights that a switch from civil protection to community empowerment is needed to achieve sustainable outcomes at the local level.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-180
Author(s):  
Janne Ikäheimo

Purpose As Finland became an associate member of the European Free Trade Association in early 1960s, the domestic brewing industry faced a new threat posed by imported beer. It was neutralized effectively with joint and individual efforts of the breweries. This paper aims to analyze the maneuvers taken by Tornion Olut Oy to brand its new product, Lapin Kulta, which ultimately became the most popular beer in Finland. In addition, the contemporary changes in the Finnish society with related social tensions are shown to have contributed to its success significantly. Design/methodology/approach Archival research focusing on primary sources complemented with biographies, historical newspaper and magazine articles as well contemporary research papers with an aim to reconstruct and better understand the historical and social context of the events. Findings The success of the Lapin Kulta beer in 1960s was not only based on the effective marketing, although a well-thought name, the successful participation in international beer “competitions” enhancing the brand and both improved distribution and logistics certainly contributed to it. Instead the success is shown to have depended also on seemingly odd collection of external factors. However, when put together, the success is shown to have been based on brand's capability to address the social tensions present in Finland during 1960s. Originality/value The importance of the context reconstruction in historical marketing research is underlined as developments traditionally attributed solely to product qualities and marketing may equally stem from a multitude of external factors. As a case study, the research represents a fresh take on the subject through a variety of previously neglected sources.


2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 221-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alistair Brown

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the level of reporting compliance achieved by the National Housing Corporation (NHC) of Papua New Guinea in terms of local indigenous reporting expectations. Design/methodology/approach Testing of a framework of indigenous accountability through indigenous enactments and regulations is conducted by textual analysis, which is informed by the theory of indigenous alternatives to assess the financial reporting compliance of the NHC of Papua New Guinea’s financial statements for years ending 2004-2013. Findings Documentary evidence of the state auditor reports of the NHC’s financial statements reveals that the corporation’s financial reports are not submitted for audit on a timely basis and receive disclaimed audit opinions. Despite the clear indigenous reporting expectations raised by local legislative and regulatory instruments, the NHC is unable or unwilling to provide an accurate account of their activities. Practical implications The lack of compliant reporting suggests that the planning, management and monitoring of the housing needs of residents of Papua New Guinea are compromised. There also appears merit in asking why parliament continues to fund the corporation given its difficulties in meeting local-level reporting expectations. Social implications The results have wider implications for the reporting ideologies of indigenous-run housing corporations operating in other developing countries. It might be fruitful to meet local reporting expectations before taking on the specialized reporting that accompanies introduced western-oriented policies on housing. Originality/value Accountability in relation to indigenous property management is constructed through a lens of reporting issues facing a developing country housing corporation.


2015 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-127
Author(s):  
John P. Hughes

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to scrutinize the avowedly progressive curriculum delivered in the 1930s at the Enmore Activity School. Through this examination it delineates a gap in Australia between the theoretical formulations of progressive education and school practice. The study of this curriculum is used to locate historical trends and influences that aided or hindered the application of progressive education in Australia during the 1930s. Design/methodology/approach – Through a review of the archival and historical literature on the curriculum at the Enmore Activity School the paper defines the ways progressive education was understood in Australia at that time. Findings – The analysis reveals that Enmore delivered a type of progressive education Tyack dubs “administrative progressivism” in a programme that remained essentially orthodox. Yet although an authentically progressive curriculum proved elusive at Enmore the school did, by example, influence several later curriculums. Originality/value – This close up study provides insights into how central tenets of progressive education were understood, accepted, or rejected at the local level in Australia in the 1930s. It offers fresh perspectives on contemporary educational debates about progressive education.


Author(s):  
George Acheampong ◽  
Raphael Odoom ◽  
Thomas Anning-Dorson ◽  
Patrick Amfo Anim

Purpose The study aims to determine the resource access mechanism in inter-firm networks that aids SME survival in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach The authors collect census data on a poultry cluster in Ghana and construct a directed network. The network is used to extract direct and indirect ties both incoming and outgoing, as well as estimate the structural holes of the actors. These variables are used to estimate for survival of SMEs after a one-year period using a binary logit model. Findings The study finds that out-indirect ties and structural hole have a significant influence on SME survival. This works through the global influence and the vision advantage that these positions and ties offer the SMEs. Originality/value The study offers SMEs a choice of whom to collaborate with for information (resources) in the form of outgoing and incoming ties at both the global and local level.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bertrand Pauget ◽  
Ahmed Dammak

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to work on the relational innovation. Innovation is a key factor in understanding organizations. Emerged as a growth paradigm, it is a good indicator of their priorities. Considered in a more pragmatic way, it has been noticed that other forms of innovation linked to relationships are developing alongside the most formal technological one. Findings Highlighted in the 1960s, administrative innovation aimed to account for the stakeholders involved and how, by modifying the relationships, they were able to change the configurations of the organization. Since then, the authors mentioned the concept of organizational innovation which has been extended and modified. The term is still being discussed, but it has already appeared in the continuation of previous research. Originality/value The authors put forward a related and different form of organizational innovation: a relational innovation. This one seems to be linked to relational patterns of the organization. This theory paper aims to present relational innovation.


2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 106-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Lichrou ◽  
Lisa O’Malley ◽  
Maurice Patterson

Purpose Strategic analyses of Mediterranean destinations have well documented the impacts of mass tourism, including high levels of seasonality and landscape degradation as a result of the “anarchic” nature of tourism development in these destinations. The lack of a strategic framework is widely recognised in academic and popular discourse. What is often missing, however, is local voice and attention to the local particularities that have shaped the course of tourism development in these places. Focusing on narratives of people living and working in Santorini, Greece, this paper aims to examine tourism development as a particular cultural experience of development. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted narrative interviews with 22 local residents and entrepreneurs. Participants belonged to different occupational sectors and age groups. These are supplemented with secondary data, consisting of books, guides, documentaries and online news articles on Santorini. Findings The analysis and interpretation by the authors identify remembered, experienced and imagined phases of tourism development, which we label as romancing tourism, disenchantment and reimagining tourism. Research limitations/implications Professionalisation has certainly allowed the improvement of quality standards, but in transforming hosts into service providers, a distance and objectivity is created that results in a loss of authenticity. Authenticity is not just about what the tourists seek but also about what a place is or can be, and the “sense of place” that residents have and use in their everyday lives. Social implications Local narratives offer insights into the particularities of tourism development and the varied, contested and dynamic meanings of places. Place narratives can therefore be a useful tool in developing a reflexive and participative place-making process. Originality/value The study serves the understanding of how tourism, subject to the global-local relations, is a particular experience of development that shapes a place’s identity. The case of Santorini shows how place-making involves changing, multilayered desires and contradictory visions of tourism and development. This makes socio-cultural and environmental challenges hard to resolve. It is thus challenging to change the course of development, as various actors at the local level and beyond have diverse interests and interpretations of what is desirable for the place.


2015 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farinaz Fassa

Purpose – Discussing the Swiss case, the purpose of this paper is to examine how gender equality policies deal with the present requirements for scholars to be considered “excellent”. It aims to pinpoint the lines of tension or coherence between excellence, meritocracy and gender politics. Design/methodology/approach – In order to specify the norms of academic careers and their different renditions, the author draws on two studies (at local and national levels) to illustrate where the changes and resistances are taking place. Findings – The translations of a number of demands of feminist movements into the policies set up to favour equality between the sexes may combine to challenge the norms of academia as a gendered realm. Nevertheless, without strong pressure from feminists at local level and the conduct of research pursuing the enterprise of deconstructing norms, top-down policies may prove less “corrective” than affirmative action. This pressure is not only useful to build gender equality in science but also to broaden the spectrum of knowledge that can become a common good. Research limitations/implications – As neither the names nor the positions of the experts who select the candidates at national level are made public, we had to opt for other, less satisfactory means. Originality/value – The originality of the paper lies in the link made between the enhancements brought by Equalities policies and the changes they bring. It attempts to bring to light the extent to which gender equality policies conform to the neo-managerial order or challenge its norms to build a world that is more just.


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 260-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew R. Fairholm ◽  
Michael K. Dzordzormenyoh ◽  
Godlove A. Binda

Purpose Trust and culture are common themes in leadership literature and research. The purpose of this paper is it to describe an emergent model of trust-culture leadership from the comments of local government managers in the USA. The environment of local government requires a level of trust between government and citizens. Comments from local government managers suggest trust is also a component of leading public organizations. The elements of the model culled from practical insights serve to both verify and elucidate much of what is found in leadership theory in a local government context. Design/methodology/approach This research is based on qualitative interviews of practicing local government managers coupled with an analysis of essays on leadership also written by local government managers. Findings The research indicates eight elements of a model divided into three categories (descriptions of leadership in practice, tools and behaviors, and approaches to followers) that help to both describe and perhaps prescribe the work of trust-culture leadership in a local government context. Originality/value While some of what is summarized below is found in leadership literature already, the fact that these elements of leadership are intuitive to local government managers and internalized in their practice is significant. Linking both trust and culture in leadership literature is limited, and linking them both to the practical insights of public managers is even more unique. The findings verify that public leaders at the local level actually engage in leadership of a particular sort, that of trust-culture leadership. It highlights the priority of trust in local government administration. The elements of the model serve to offer public managers specific things to focus on to promote trust-culture leadership and suggest to public leadership scholars specific avenues for further investigation.


Headline IRAQ: Islamic State will trade on ethnic land disputes


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