Inequality of children’s opportunities in extracurricular education in post-Soviet countries

The article considers the problem of inequality of opportunities for children’s participation in extracurricular education in the countries of the former Soviet Union. The differences in the general coverage of extracurricular education and the peculiarities of participation due to the territory of children’s residence (urban and rural) are presented and analysed. There is also a discussion of the trends and causes of changes in extracurricular education’s availability in the post-Soviet period. The article analyses the legislative regulation of the issues of extracurricular education’s accessibility and the content of national policies to ensure the fair and inclusive nature of extracurricular education. An attempt is made to correlate the level of institutionalisation of national regulation of extracurricular education with the participation rate. The article is based on quantitative and qualitative data collected during a two-year study of the institutional transformation of the extracurricular education sector in the countries of the former Soviet Union.

Digital citizens’ participation right in defense of the environment

The Aarhus Convention of June 25, 1998, of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters, introduced the commitment of each signing State to ensure, within the framework of its national regulation, that citizens could suit and appeal any decision, or any action or omission that falls within the scope of public participation regarding issues on environmental matters. Hence, citizens are entitled to appeal administratively and judicially against public environmental decisions if they invoke a legal infringement in relation to this issue. Access to justice for violation of the rights of public participation are set out in the same terms on Regulation (EU) number 1367/2006, of September 6, relating to the application, to the institutions and community bodies, of the provisions of the Aarhus Convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice on environmental matters. Although the right of access is quite broad, it is not exempt from exceptions, such as those indicated on the Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, of January 28, on public access to environmental information, which has recently been interpreted by the Court of Justice of the European Union on the Judgement (First Chamber) of January 20, 2021 in the Land Baden-Württemberg case (Communications internes). However, all this is not useful if citizens are not granted with the possibility of accessing to control judicially administrative decisions that do not comply with environmental policies with the same extension, because the opportunity for any citizen to be entitled to effectively control these actions is being excluded. This paper aims to analyze the extent of the right of citizens to participate digitally in public decision-making of an environmental nature, and determine if such right is consistent with the possibilities of access to justice in this matter, since only through judicially control of the administrative decisions it is possible to make the participation right effective.

The need for regulation in the practice of human assisted reproduction in Mexico. An overview of the regulations in the rest of the world

Background The emergence of assisted reproductive technology (ART) in humans has been an important tool for the treatment of infertility. The number of treatments performed in Latin America has been increasing, and Mexico is the third country with the most assisted reproduction cycles performed in the region. However, Mexico lacks a national regulation for assisted reproduction. Therefore, it is necessary to implement regulations that allow for a safe clinical practice based on ethics which can be available to any social group. Main body The aim of this review was to examine the existing legislation that regulates human assisted reproduction practices in Mexico, but also to examine the legal analysis of the policies, laws, and regulations in effect in some countries in Latin America, North America, and Europe. For this, seven databases were consulted, and 34 articles from 2004 to 2021 referring to the practice of ART within the legal framework and the anthropological analysis that this entails were analyzed. Eight documents were also consulted such as the Mexican General Health Law of the Official Journal of the Federation (February 7, 1984) with its last published reform (DOF 01-06-2021). And three official agency websites were also consulted. No specific legislation was found for human assisted reproduction practices in Mexico; however, assisted reproduction clinics are ruled under some agreements implemented by national organizations such as the Mexican Association of Reproductive Medicine and, at the Latin America level, the Latin America Network of Assisted Reproduction (abbreviated REDLARA in Spanish); in addition, the practice of ART is considered, although not explicitly, in the General Health Law. Conclusion In Mexico, there is no legal regulation in charge of assisted reproduction practices, which is why there is an urgent need to establish human assisted reproduction laws without incurring discriminatory and unconstitutional acts, and at the same time, be in accordance with scientific advances. This will allow a considerable reduction in the violation of human rights.

PHOTOCATALYTIC TREATMENT OF WATERS, POLLUTED WITH PHENOLS

The analysis of the environmental and human health threats imposed by phenols was conducted to show the need for further improvement of methods of their destruction. Being toxic in their initial composition and precursor to toxic metabolites in human body, phenols should be controlled in natural water and waste waters. They are listed as priority pollutants in most national regulation around the world and are the initial compounds for the formation of persistent organic pollutants in the environment, polluted with other active radicals. A variety of physical and chemical methods were offered for the destructive or non-destructive removal of phenols and their derivatives from water. The comparative study of possible methods, described in research papers, was conducted in terms of their efficiency and complexity to define benefits and drawbacks. The analysis showed the need for development of low energy consuming method, which needs minimal equipment and can be run under industrial condition for phenol contaminated wastewaters. Among the possible methods which meet the mentioned criteria photocatalytic destruction of phenols was showed to be perspective. A series of experiments was conducted using a range of water solution of phenol and different dosage of catalysts. The catalysts used in experiments were made of 6 modification of titanium oxide and bismuth ferrite. The initial and residual concentration of phenol was controlled by the means of high-performance liquid chromatography. The duration of the exposure and the type of light were other independent variables. The results of the whole sequence of experiments demonstrated higher efficiency of rutile under visible light and one hour of exposure. The tested photocatalytic system is simple and therefore technically and economically feasible.

Genetic/genomic testing: defining the parameters for ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI)

Background Genetic/genomic testing (GGT) are useful tools for improving health and preventing diseases. Still, since GGT deals with sensitive personal information that could significantly impact a patient’s life or that of their family, it becomes imperative to consider Ethical, Legal and Social Implications (ELSI). Thus, ELSI studies aim to identify and address concerns raised by genomic research that could affect individuals, their family, and society. However, there are quantitative and qualitative discrepancies in the literature to describe the elements that provide content to the ELSI studies and such problems may result in patient misinformation and harmful choices. Methods We analyzed the major international documents published by international organizations to specify the parameters that define ELSI and the recognized criteria for GGT, which may prove useful for researchers, health professionals and policymakers. First, we defined the parameters of the ethical, legal and social fields in GGT to avoid ambiguities when using the acronym ELSI. Then, we selected nine documents from 44 relevant publications by international organizations related to genomic medicine. Results We identified 29 ELSI sub-criteria concerning to GGT, which were organized and grouped within 10 minimum criteria: two from the ethical field, four from the legal field and four from the social field. An additional analysis of the number of appearances of these 29 sub-criteria in the analyzed documents allowed us to order them and to determine 7 priority criteria for starting to evaluate and propose national regulations for GGT. Conclusions We propose that the ELSI criteria identified herein could serve as a starting point to formulate national regulation on personalized genomic medicine, ensuring consistency with international bioethical requirements.

On the Legal Consequences of Brexit (on the example of personal data protection)

The article explores the legal consequences of the UK's withdrawal from the European Union. The scope of personal data protection was taken as an example. The purpose of the article is to study and analyze the legal aspects of the termination of the UK's membership in the European Union, its impact on the cross-border transfer of personal data between the parties, as well as the development of legal regulation in this area. The article shows that, despite the signing of the Withdrawal Agreement, as well as the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, there is a complication of legal regulation, as well as the emergence of potential contradictions and threats to the interests of interested parties. The sphere of personal data protection clearly demonstrates that despite the desire for the sovereignization of legal regulation on the part of the UK, its legal system remains dependent on the legal order of the European Union. The UK's national regulation on personal data will be under constant monitoring by the competent EU authorities, which indirectly confirms the failure to achieve the goals of the full return of the UK's delegated sovereign powers. It is concluded that the EU Court of Justice still retains its jurisdiction over the United Kingdom, in particular, in connection with possibility to challenge decisions on adequacy, as well as through the adoption of its own practice on issues related to personal data protection.

Towards an Australian social housing best practice asset management framework

This research examines social housing asset management (AM) in Australia and develops a best practice framework that outlines AM processes and criteria for making decisions; is suitable to the unique aspects of social housing; is flexible enough to be used by different types of social housing providers; provides metrics to drive organisational excellence; and provides the basis for national regulation and policymaking.

DELIVERY OF PUBLIC SERVICES BY LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT UNITS SUPPORTED BY PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP

Contents included in this paper relate to problematic of delivery of public services on the principles of cooperation between public party and private party. The aim of this article comes down to assessment of development of public-private partnership in Poland from the realization of public services point of view. At the beginning of this consideration the role of self-government in process of satisfying common citizens’ needs has been highlighted. In this area particular attention has been paid to issue of public services, within which definition and their classification have been shown. Possibility of external entities’ participation in the process of public services realization has been also underlined. Emphasis has been placed on public-private partnership. In this context theoretical assumptions of this cooperation form have been presented, moreover current, national regulation and cooperation categories widespread in EU countries have been highlighted. Analysis of public-private partnership market in Poland with regard to contracts concluded in order to delivery of public services by local governments has been carried out. At the end conclusions and directions of further research have been indicated.

International legal and national regulation of digital currency: the experience of China and the EU

The article discusses the issue of legal regulation of the digital currency of central banks. The experience of international organizations, as well as the fi rst steps in this direction from China, represented by the People’s Bank of China and the European Union, represented by the European Central Bank, are examined.