scholarly journals Images of Nature as Designs for Czech Post-Socialist Society

2004 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Birgit Müller
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Resource Use ◽  
Foreign Capital ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Limited Resource ◽  
Environmental Conflict ◽  
Political Context ◽  
Socialist Society ◽  
Citizen Initiatives

The environmental conflict about the construction of a large cement factory in Tmaň, a small town South of Prague, bordering the nature protected area of the Česky Kras, embodies some of the central features of post-socialist society: the privatisation of state-owned firms by foreign capital, the emergence of citizen initiatives, the formation of new democratic structures on the local level, and the creation of a public sphere through independent media. Nature conservation and limited resource use entered as new elements into the debates of opposing political fractions that had previously turned around concepts of planned and market economy. Differences of worldviews and projects for society that went beyond the divide into capitalist or socialist ideas took shape and became visible. The article analyses the arguments of the proponents and opponents of the project and examine what ideas about society the images of nature recreated and nature preserved evoke. It then shows in what larger historical and political context these ideas inscribe themselves and how they are negotiated and transformed in the current local political context. Key words: post-socialist society, privatization, conservation of nature, images of nature, local politics, Czech Republic. 

The Development of Initiatives and Municipal Referendums in Germany

2022 ◽  
pp. 41-65
Author(s):  
Christophe Emmanuel Premat
Keyword(s):  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Local Level ◽  
The State ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Approval Rate ◽  
Minimum Number ◽  
Local Initiatives ◽  
Citizen Initiatives ◽  
Political Decisions

Direct democracy offers possibilities for citizens to influence political decisions especially at the local level. In Germany, the local political systems have been affected by the introduction of direct democratic tools such as citizen initiatives and local referendums since the Reunification. The state legislations defined new conditions for citizen initiatives and municipal referendums with a minimum number of valid signatures for initiatives and a minimum approval rate for referendums. The chapter evaluates the practice of local initiatives and municipal referendums in Germany and examines the routinization of these tools in local politics.

scholarly journals Politisering av religion i norske kommuner? En undersøkelse av religionens rolle i lokale feiringer

Politik ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pål Ketil Botvar
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Public Sphere ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Multicultural Society ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
The Public ◽  
Local Municipalities ◽  
The Public Sphere

In this article I will take a look at how local municipalities deal with religion when the topic is brought up in local politics. e development towards a multicultural society leads to religion having a more prominent place in the public sphere. During the last 10 years religion has become a theme in public policy at the local level. Such examples are the provision of special rooms or buildings for religious groups to have their ceremo- nies. School children visiting church sermons during school hours is another issue that leads to controversies. In this article I will focus on how representatives for the local community deal with topics related to religion in local festivities and celebrations. e data material relates to how municipalities organize the national day celebration and interact with civil society actors in the preparation of this celebration. 

Attracting foreign capital as a factor in ensuring the country's economic growth

2020 ◽  
pp. 34-41
Author(s):  
Taras Malyshivskyi ◽  
Volodymyr Stefinin
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Foreign Direct Investment ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Direct Investment ◽  
Foreign Capital ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Current Trend ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Foreign Capital Inflows

The article examines the relationship between attracting foreign capital in the form of foreign direct investment and ensuring economic development. In particular, the analysis of the current structure of the economy is indicated, its raw material character is pointed out and, based on other researches, the necessity of its reform is substantiated, as Ukraine will remain a low-income country if the current trend continues. This is due to the fact that countries with a raw material structure of the economy are characterized by a low level of economic complexity, and therefore are not able to generate high levels of income in society. As a result, the expediency of stimulating the attraction of investment resources into the country’s economy, in particular in the form of foreign direct investment, is substantiated. The dynamics of attracting foreign direct investment to Ukraine and a number of other countries for the period from 1991 to 2019 is analyzed and the key negative factors that deter foreign investors from investing in the economy of Ukraine are indicated. As a result of the analysis, divergent trends in the economic development of Ukraine and other analyzed countries (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Turkey, Romania, Hungary) were identified, which contributed to economic stagnation and restrained economic growth and development. Taking into account the analysis, as well as based on the concept of investment and innovation growth, it is proposed to use the experience of Israel to improve the country’s investment attractiveness and stimulate foreign capital inflows by adapting the Yozma program to Ukrainian realities. According to our estimates, the adaptation of this program to the Ukrainian economy will attract about $ 350 million over a five-year period of venture capital alone. In addition, programs such as YOSMA can also be implemented at the regional or even local level. We believe that the use of this tool will improve the investment attractiveness of the country, as well as provide sufficient financial resources to modernize the domestic economy and ensure rapid economic growth.

scholarly journals Making Whiteness Visible and Felt in Fairview

Humanities ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 81
Author(s):  
Michael Pearce
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
White Privilege ◽  
Political Context ◽  
White People ◽  
The Public ◽  
Black Lives Matter ◽  
Audience Responses ◽  
The Public Sphere

In this article I analyse how Jackie Sibblies Drury’s play Fairview makes white audience members feel white. As a play that exposes whiteness and calls white people to account for their racism, Fairview speaks to contemporary global antiracist activism efforts. Therefore, I begin by situating Fairview in the transatlantic cultural and political context of Black Lives Matter. I then discuss the theatrical devices Drury employs in Fairview in order to make whiteness felt before going on to analyse a range of white audience responses to the production at London’s Young Vic Theatre in 2019/2020. I reflect on these responses in relation to how white people react to accusations of white privilege and power in the public sphere and identify shared strategies for sustaining whiteness. In conclusion, I consider Fairview as a model of affective antiracist activism.

scholarly journals Local-Level Democratic Backsliding? The Consolidation of Aspiring Dominant-Party Regimes in Hungary and Poland

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Conor O'Dwyer ◽  
Matthew Stenberg
Keyword(s):  
Local Politics ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Local Level ◽  
National Level ◽  
Dominant Party ◽  
Mayoral Elections ◽  
Political Reforms ◽  
Strategic Coordination ◽  
The Future ◽  
Two Factors

Abstract Aspiring dominant-party regimes often institute major institutional and political reforms at the national level to ensure they retain control. However, subnational politics is an important, under-studied, component of regime consolidation. This study uses mayoral races in Hungary and Poland from 2006 to 2018 to examine two factors that may inhibit dominant-party regime consolidation in local politics: the use of two-round, i.e. runoff, electoral systems and strategic coordination among opposition parties. While we find little evidence that strategic coordination can lead to widespread opposition success in single-round systems, we do find that increasing the number of candidates decreases the likelihood of the nationally dominant party winning in the first round while not affecting the second round. As such, two-round mayoral elections may be an important buffer to dominant-party regime consolidation and may provide a training ground for the future opposition.

From Local Activism to Local Politics: The Case of Moscow

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 577-604 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yana Gorokhovskaia
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Local Level ◽  
The State ◽  
Political Candidates ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Private Realm ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
Local Problems ◽  
Training And Support

Conventional wisdom holds that civil society is a sphere of activity separate from the state and the private realm. Due to a combination of historical, developmental and institutional factors, Russian civil society today is dominated by the state. While not all interactions with the state are seen as harmful, scholars acknowledge that most politically oriented or oppositional non-governmental organizations today face difficult conditions in Russia. In response to the restrictions on civil society and the unresponsive nature of Russia’s hybrid authoritarian regime, some civil society actors in Moscow have made the transition into organized politics at the local level. This transition was motivated by their desire to solve local problems and was facilitated by independent electoral initiatives which provided timely training and support for opposition political candidates running in municipal elections. Once elected, these activists turned municipal deputies are able to perform some of the functions traditionally ascribed to civil society, including enforcing greater accountability and transparency from the state and defending the interest of citizens.

scholarly journals Assessing the Impact of Deliberative Democratic Initiatives at the Local Level: A Framework for Analysis

2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 749-769 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ank Michels ◽  
Harmen Binnema
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Direct Impact ◽  
Indirect Impact ◽  
The Impact

Although deliberative reforms have been proposed to strengthen democracy, little is known about their impact on politics, public policies, and society. This article develops a framework to systematically assess this impact, differentiating between direct and indirect forms of impact. We apply this framework to two cases of deliberative citizens’ summits in the Netherlands. Our analysis reveals that these summits have a limited direct impact on local politics and policy making, but a relatively strong indirect impact on the local community. The article also discusses some conditions that mediate the impact of the forum.

scholarly journals Analysis of the Influence of Local Politics on Implementation SDGs 4 Policy for Quality Education

2021 ◽  
pp. 196-204
Author(s):  
Wilda Rasaili ◽  
Dafik Dafik ◽  
Rachmat Hidayat ◽  
Hadi Prayitno
Keyword(s):  
Policy Implementation ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Quality Education ◽  
Local Democracy ◽  
Public Meetings ◽  
A Value ◽  
Political Interests

SDGs-4, the quality education is one of the factors in achieving the goals of the SDGs. The problem is that the SDGs look ambitious in integrating local level policies that are responsive to political interests. The research used a mixed method of exploration, searching for interview data and questionnaires. The results showed that the implementation of the SDGs was strongly influenced by local democracy. The implementation of the promotion of SDGs requires strengthening local politics and democracy, including; the quality of the Pilkada, the role of the community, political parties, media control, and public meetings. The influence of local democracy on policy implementation is 51.5%. Policy implementation has a positive effect on the implementation of the SDGs with a value of 0.187. The influence of local democracy and policy implementation on the promotion of SDGs-4 is 64.2% and the remaining 35.8% is influenced by other factors.

scholarly journals The Winning of the Partai Aceh in a Psychological Political Approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. PROOFREAD
Author(s):  
Mukhrijal Mukhrijal ◽  
Saddam Rassanjani ◽  
Herizal Herizal ◽  
Afrijal Afrijal
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Local Politics ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Political Campaign ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
Political Candidates ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Political Approach ◽  
Free Aceh Movement ◽  
Identification Approach

Partai Aceh is one of the local political parties in Aceh that able to win the first political contestation they participated in in 2009, even though it was born two years before in 2007. Since then, they have continued to dominate elections at the local level. Partai Aceh was established because of the peace agreement between GAM-RI as a post-conflict political agreement. The purpose of this study was to determine the victory of the Partai Aceh in the local realm. The method used is descriptive qualitative through interview techniques. The results of the study state that the Partai Aceh's victory in the context of Acehnese local politics cannot be separated from political psychology, such as the Partai Aceh identification approach through political socialisation, political candidates, and the Partai Aceh political campaign. The Partai Aceh approached the community involving the former Free Aceh Movement in conducting campaigns. The Partai Aceh's foresight in carrying the figure of a former GAM combatant impacted the Partai Aceh's victory.

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