Public policies, interfaith associations and religious minorities: a new policy paradigm? Evidence from the case of Barcelona

2012 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 570-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mar Griera
Keyword(s):  
Religious Diversity ◽  
Local Level ◽  
New Governance ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
Religious Minority ◽  
The Public ◽  
Policy Paradigm ◽  
Governance Tools ◽  
Solid Foundation ◽  
The Public Sphere

Religious diversity is posing new and urgent challenges to local authorities and there is no solid foundation of expertise in dealing with this issue at the local level. In some European cities, interfaith platforms are providing local authorities with new governance tools to cope with the challenges of religious diversity and are generating new ways of framing and representing religion in the public sphere. The author takes the city of Barcelona as a case study with the aim of exploring the emergence of a new model for dealing with religious minority issues that goes beyond State–Church relations and the political legacies in this area.

Tolerance and Accommodation

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lori G. Beaman
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Religious Diversity ◽  
Religious Minorities ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Public Sphere

This chapter problematizes the notions and language of tolerance and accommodation in relation to religious diversity, and traces their genealogy both as legal solutions and as discursive frameworks within which religious diversity is increasingly understood in the public sphere. The problem they pose is that they create a hierarchy of privilege that preserves hegemonic power relations by religious majorities over religious minorities. Tolerance in this context might be imagined as the broadly stated value that we must deal with diversity and those who are different from us by tolerating them. Accommodation might be seen as the implementation of this value—that in order to demonstrate our commitment to tolerance we must accommodate the ‘demands’ of minority groups and those individuals who position themselves or align themselves with minorities.

scholarly journals Renewable Energy Attitudes and Behaviour of Local Governments in Poland

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 2765
Author(s):  
Joanna Rakowska ◽  
Irena Ozimek
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
The Public ◽  
Energy Behavior ◽  
Public Aid ◽  
Energy Projects

The deployment of renewable energy at the local level can contribute significantly to mitigating climate change, improving energy security and increasing social, economic and environmental benefits. In many countries local authorities play an important role in the local development, but renewable energy deployment is not an obligatory task for them. Hence there are two research questions: (1) Do local governments think investments in renewable energy (RE) are urgent and affordable within the local budgets? (2) How do they react to the public aid co-financing investments in renewable energy? To provide the answer we performed qualitative analysis and non-parametric tests of data from a survey of 252 local authorities, analysis of 292 strategies of local development and datasets of 1170 renewable energy projects co-financed by EU funds under operational programs 2007–2013 and 2014–2020 in Poland. Findings showed that local authorities’ attitudes were rather careful, caused by financial constraints of local budgets and the scope of obligatory tasks, which made renewable energy investments not the most urgent. Public aid was a factor significantly affecting local authorities’ behavior. It triggered local authorities’ renewable energy initiatives, increasing the number and scope of renewable energy investments as well cooperation with other municipalities and local communities. Despite this general trend, there were also considerable regional differences in local authorities’ renewable energy behavior.

Framing and Exposing Community Issues through Video Participatory Research

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 42-53
Author(s):  
Sarah A. Mathews ◽  
Maria K. Lovett
Keyword(s):  
Participatory Research ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Visual Methods ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Public ◽  
Key Stakeholders ◽  
Crisis Of Representation ◽  
Community Issues ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Perspective Analysis

Video participatory research (VPR) is an emergent methodology that bridges visual methods with the epistemology of participatory research. This approach is motivated by the “crisis of representation” or “reflective turn” (Gubrium & Harper, 2013) that promotes research conducted with or by participants, conceptualizing research as praxis (Lather, 1991). In this manuscript, the authors argue that VPR can be used to explore issues directly impacting individuals involved with adult education and vocational training. Primary investigators work with community co-researchers to document issues in the community, analyze this audio-visual material, and produce and distribute video projects, exposing policy makers and key stakeholders to a community's concerns. When implementing the VPR process research teams account for intentionality of form and content, apply a multi-perspective analysis to the complex layers of data produced by video, and plan for distribution of work on the personal and local level as well as in the public sphere (i.e., at the micro and macro level).

scholarly journals Routes and relations in Scandinavian interfaith forums: Governance of religious diversity by states and majority churches

2018 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lise Paulsen Galal ◽  
Louise Lund Liebmann ◽  
Magdalena Nordin
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Religious Diversity ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Policy Documents ◽  
The Public ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Unique Aspect ◽  
Interreligious Relations ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
State Relations

In the Scandinavian countries of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, as elsewhere in Europe, governance of religious diversity has become a matter of renewed concern. A unique aspect of the Scandinavian situation is the hegemonic status of the respective Lutheran Protestant majority churches, usually referred to as ‘folk churches’, with which the majority of the population associates, alongside a prevalence of high degrees of regional secularism. As such, the majority churches have played a key role as both instigators and organisers of several interfaith initiatives, and have thereby come to interact with the public sphere as providers of diversity governance. Based on country-level studies of policy documents on majority-church/interreligious relations and field studies, this article sets out to explore the prompting and configuration of majority-church-related interfaith initiatives concerning church–state relations and the governance of religious diversity.

scholarly journals Control ciudadano a la gestión de las regalías: ¿nuevas condiciones de gobernanza en el sector petrolero colombiano?

2010 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Carolina González Espinosa
Keyword(s):  
Local Level ◽  
Social Accountability ◽  
New Governance ◽  
Accountability Standards ◽  
The Public ◽  
Palabras Clave ◽  
The Social ◽  
New Type ◽  
Oil Sector

RESUMEN: El objetivo de este artículo es analizar la introducción de criterios de transparencia y rendición de cuentas en la gestión de las regalías petroleras en Colombia. A través del estudio de los Comités de Seguimiento y Evaluación a la Inversión de Regalías (CSIR), se intenta indagar si los dispositivos de control ciudadano implican nuevas condiciones de gobernanza en el sector petrolero. Para ello, se presentan primero los argumentos que facilitan la inscripción de la gestión local de las regalías como un tema problemático en la agenda pública. Posteriormente, se describe el surgimiento de los CSIR en respuesta a dicho problema, se analizan los factores que permiten su desarrollo y el nuevo tipo de interacciones Estado-Sociedad que genera su implementación en el ámbito local. En el último aparte, se presentan las inquietudes que suscitan estas nuevas condiciones de gobernanza en términos de su contenido democrático y de sus alcances. Palabras clave: gobernanza, gestión de regalías petroleras, accountability social, democracia local, Colombia. ABSTRACT: This article aims at analyzing the introduction of transparency and accountability standards for oil royalties’ management in Colombia. Through the study of the Royalties’ Investment Evaluation and Follow-Up Committees (CSIR), the article intends to understand if the social accountability mechanisms create new governance conditions in the oil sector. The first part presents the arguments that support the positioning of royalties’ management as a problematic topic on the public agenda. Then, the emergency of CSIR is described as a response to such problem, analyzing the elements that make possible its development and the new type of State- Society interactions engendered through its implementation at the local level. Finally, the article presents some questions about the democratic content and the real scope of these new governance conditions. Key words: governance, oil royalties’ management, social accountability, local democracy, Colombia.

Continuity and Change in American Religion, 1972–2008

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Chaves ◽  
Shawna Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Religious Diversity ◽  
General Social Survey ◽  
Religious Involvement ◽  
Religious Service ◽  
Religious Service Attendance ◽  
The Public ◽  
Continuity And Change ◽  
Religious Conservatism ◽  
The Public Sphere

This chapter describes eight trends evident in the General Social Survey (GSS) between 1972 and 2008: (i) increased religious diversity; (ii) increased affiliation among Protestants with conservative and evangelical denominations; (iii) softening involvement with congregations; (iv) reduced belief in an inerrant Bible; (v) reduced confidence in the leaders of religious organizations; (vi) reduced tolerance of certain kinds of religious involvement in the public sphere; (vii) a tighter connection between religious service attendance and political, social, and religious conservatism; and (viii) the somewhat higher levels of diffusely spiritual attitudes. Some trends are indicated by a single repeated GSS item while others represent interpretations of a set of similarly trending items.

Good Things Worth Sharing?

2020 ◽  
pp. 140-150
Author(s):  
Méadhbh McIvor
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
Religious Diversity ◽  
Value Pluralism ◽  
The Public ◽  
Paradoxical Situation ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Evangelical Protestants ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Religious Nature

This concluding chapter addresses the following themes: evangelism in the public sphere, emergent trends in Christian activism, and the changing place of Christianity in English law. It highlights the almost paradoxical situation in which English evangelical Protestants feel themselves to live: one in which Christianity is valued as an aspect of heritage, but rejected as a living faith. Those looking to protect England's Christian heritage are, in part, responding to social and demographic changes beyond their control: increasing ethnic, cultural, and religious diversity; decreasing adherence to traditional forms of authority, whether religious, political, social, or generational; value pluralism; and other challenges to Protestant hegemony. These shifts all impact the place of majority religion in contemporary England. Yet, by stressing the particularly religious nature of the words, beliefs, and actions for which they seek protection, Christian activists also contribute to these changes. Pursuing their claims under religious freedom legislation works to confirm that these are niche interests set apart from the everyday, thus invoking a secular distinction between the 'religious' and other spheres of life.

scholarly journals The making and unmaking of ethnic boundaries in the public sphere: The case of Norway

Ethnicities ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 344-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnfinn H Midtbøen
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Religious Minority ◽  
The Public ◽  
Ethnic Boundaries ◽  
Ethnic Boundary ◽  
Boundary Making ◽  
Negative Comments ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Made In

This article employs theories of ethnic boundary-making to explore when and under what conditions ethnicity and religious background shape minorities' experiences when participating in the public sphere in Norway. Drawing on in-depth interviews with elite individuals with various ethnic and religious minority backgrounds, the analysis calls into question interpretations made in other studies, which tend to imply an all-encompassing significance of race, ethnicity or religion. Although the analysis support previous findings in that negative comments and harassment do occur, the interviews demonstrate a variety of experiences and positions and that several individuals are able to strategically cross existing ethnic boundaries. Overall, the findings suggest that important changes are occurring in Norway's mediated public sphere. The question is whether these changes point to broader, societal processes of boundary-blurring or rather are opportunities offered to exceptional individuals while the existing hierarchy of ethnic categories stays intact.

State Phobia, Then and Now: Three Waves of Conflict over Wisconsin's Public Sector, 1930–2013

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane L. Collins ◽  
H. Jacob Carlson
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Local Level ◽  
National Level ◽  
New Governance ◽  
Size Of Government ◽  
The Public ◽  
Material Resources ◽  
Local Initiatives ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

While state legislative rollbacks of public-sector workers’ collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin and other US states in 2011 appeared to signal an unprecedented wave of hostility toward the public sector, such episodes have a long history. Drawing on recent work on “governance repertoires,” this article compares antistate initiatives in Wisconsin in 2011 to two previous periods of conflict over the size and shape of government: the 1930s and the 1970s. We find that while small government advocates in all three periods used similar language and emphasized comparable themes, the outcomes of their advocacy were different due to the distinct historical moments in which they unfolded and the way local initiatives were linked to political projects at the national level. We explore the relationship of local versions of small government activism to their national-level counterparts in each period to show how national-level movements and the ideological, social, and material resources they provided shaped governance repertoires in Wisconsin. We argue that the three moments of conflict over the size of government are deeply intertwined with the prehistory, emergence, and rise to dominance of neoliberal political rationality and can provide insight into how that new “governance repertoire” was experienced and built at the local level.

scholarly journals Socjalizm, świeckość, wolny rynek i hindutwa. Indyjska narracja o państwie i jego ideologii w perspektywie historycznej

2019 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 91-113
Author(s):  
Piotr Kłodkowski
Keyword(s):  
Free Market ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Religious Minority ◽  
The Public ◽  
Gradual Process ◽  
The Republic ◽  
To Come ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Jawaharlal Nehru

The Republic of India, as probably the most culturally and religiously diverse country in the world, has built a very unique socio-political system which is based on cross-cultural compromises between various  communities. The ideological foundations of secularism and socialist development were implemented by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. For almost half a century, they symbolised the identity of the state and constituted the essential elements of every official narrative by the Indian National Congress. Nehru was also the maker of India’s main foreign policy vectors, which were generally approved by subsequent  governments. Although the ideology of socialist development was eventually replaced with a free market economy, the concept of secularism remained relevant in the public sphere. The author presents the gradual process of socio-economic transformation and describes the international context of building the image of the country in the 20th century. With the Bharatiya Janata Party coming to power in 2014, the old philosophy of Nehruvian secularism is gradually being undermined by the followers of Hindutva, Hindu fundamentalists. The author analyses the three-layered narratives constructed by the ruling coalition and widely promoted both at home and abroad. The third layer, being most radical, is directed against the Muslim community which is the biggest religious minority in India. The Hindutva ideology, although not always clearly postulated by the current government, may contribute to communal polarisations and the eruption of interfaith violence in the years to come.

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