Symposium: ‘The BRICS, Global Governance, and Challenges for South–South Cooperation in a Post-Western World’

Over the past decades, the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) countries have experienced significant economic growth. However, their political voices in global governance have not grown on par with their economic surge. The contributions to the symposium ‘The BRICS, Global Governance, and Challenges for South–South Cooperation in a Post-Western World’ argue there is a quest for emerging markets and developing countries to play a more significant role in global governance. There is a widening gap between the actual role of emerging markets and developing countries in the global system and their ability to participate in that system. However, for the moment, various domestic and international political-economic challenges limit this quest. To understand why this is the case, one should understand the BRICS phenomenon in the broader context of the global power shift towards the Global South.

Why Thucydides’ Trap Misinforms Sino-American Relations

Thucydides Trap has become a familiar term in scholarly and even popular discourse on Sino-American relations. It points to the ancient rivalry between Athens and Sparta as an analogy for contemporary relations between China and the United States. This analogy warns about the increased danger of war when a rising power catches up to an established power. This essay raises concerns about (mis)application of historical analogy, selection bias, measurement problems, underspecified causal mechanisms, and so on that undermine the validity of the diagnosis and prognosis inspired by this analogy and other similar works. My objection to this genre of scholarship does not exclude the possibility that China and the U.S. can have a serious conflict. I only argue that this conflict can stem from sources other than any power shift between them or in addition to such a shift. By overlooking other plausible factors that can contribute to war occurrence, a monocausal explanation such as Thucydides Trap obscures rather than clarifies this phenomenon. Because it lends itself to a sensationalist, even alarmist, characterization of a rising China and a declining U.S. (when the latter in fact continues to enjoy important enduring advantages over the former), this perspective can abet views and feelings that engender self-fulfilling prophecy. Finally, as with other structural theories of interstate relations, Thucydides Trap and other similar formulations like power-transition theory tend to give short shrift to human agency, including peoples ability to learn from the past and therefore to escape from the mistakes of their predecessors.

„Dumna dziewczyna w bieli"

The article is part of the discussion on women’s political participation, their involvement in social movements and protests which are concentrated on the power shift and democratisation of the political system. The text focuses on the case study of Belarusian women’s participation in anti-regime and pro-democracy protests following the rigged presidential election of 9 August 2020.The aim of the article is to answer questions about the reasons for women’s involvement in the 2020 protests in Belarus and the methods of action used by them. The article also analyses the differences and similarities between the women’s protests in Belarus and pro-democracy protests oriented towards power change in other countries.

Neurofeedback Training Based on Motor Imagery Strategies Increases EEG Complexity in Elderly Population

Neurofeedback training (NFT) has shown promising results in recent years as a tool to address the effects of age-related cognitive decline in the elderly. Since previous studies have linked reduced complexity of electroencephalography (EEG) signal to the process of cognitive decline, we propose the use of non-linear methods to characterise changes in EEG complexity induced by NFT. In this study, we analyse the pre- and post-training EEG from 11 elderly subjects who performed an NFT based on motor imagery (MI–NFT). Spectral changes were studied using relative power (RP) from classical frequency bands (delta, theta, alpha, and beta), whilst multiscale entropy (MSE) was applied to assess EEG-induced complexity changes. Furthermore, we analysed the subject’s scores from Luria tests performed before and after MI–NFT. We found that MI–NFT induced a power shift towards rapid frequencies, as well as an increase of EEG complexity in all channels, except for C3. These improvements were most evident in frontal channels. Moreover, results from cognitive tests showed significant enhancement in intellectual and memory functions. Therefore, our findings suggest the usefulness of MI–NFT to improve cognitive functions in the elderly and encourage future studies to use MSE as a metric to characterise EEG changes induced by MI–NFT.

Educating for complexities: Using future focus education to approach the wicked problem of climate change

<p>Climate change is a wicked problem. It is one that, among other things, is caused by those trying to solve it, is a symptom of deeper problems, and is complicated and full of uncertainties. Future focus education approaches are designed to enable learners to work within those complexities. This thesis looked at the 2012 NZ/Pacific Power Shift conference as an example of a future focus education approach to climate change education. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews and Power Shift participant questionnaires allowed for the development of five theoretical constructs; Complexity, Connections, Collaboration, Confidence, and Commitment. Wicked problem literature showed that framing climate change as ‘wicked’ enables learners to deal with the underlying issues associated with the complexities of climate change. Power Shift as an example of a future focus education approach to climate change education created engaged thinkers and participants. It embraced complexities and did not let them get in the way of creating positive and ambitious solutions to climate change issues. Learners benefited from Power Shifts future focus approach to climate change education in four interconnected ways. Firstly, it provided educational processes that could lead to the development of more capable learners. Learners were able to approach the wicked problem of climate change at localised levels. Secondly, it provided solutions-based approaches to working towards climate change actions. Thirdly, it increased self-confidence within some participants. And lastly, it created connections between participants that developed into a climate change action community.</p>

Democratic Transition in the Development Context: The Case Study of Tonga

<p>In 2010 the Kingdom of Tonga experienced a democratic transition that saw the balance of power shift from a hereditary monarchy to the people. Elections were held that for the first time would result in a majority of Tonga’s Parliament comprising of democratically-elected politicians. Parliament was given the responsibility of nominating a Prime Minister from amongst its own ranks, who would in turn became responsible for nominating the Cabinet. These powers were formerly held by Tonga’s hereditary monarchy, whose role was reduced to one more akin to that performed by the modern monarchs of Europe. Since the 1960s, Tonga has received an increasing amount of overseas aid, especially from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and, latterly, China. Historically, donors have not been overtly concerned with issues of democracy in developing countries, instead relying on the modernist notion that economic development would lead to democratic development. Since the 1980s, however, donors have become increasingly interested in the issue of democracy in developing countries, as a result of the good governance agenda and its successor paradigm, the aid effectiveness agenda. This thesis explores the impact of donors on Tonga’s 2010 democratic transition, concluding that the effect of donors manifested in a variety of direct and indirect ways. A retrospective analysis identifies aspects of Tonga’s 2010 democratic transition that could have been improved, and actions that donors should consider taking if faced with similar circumstances in the future. Finally, the thesis considers how donors can assist the consolidation of Tongan democracy, concluding that support should be targeted towards sustainable economic development, the rule of law, and the public service.</p>

Democratic Transition in the Development Context: The Case Study of Tonga

<p>In 2010 the Kingdom of Tonga experienced a democratic transition that saw the balance of power shift from a hereditary monarchy to the people. Elections were held that for the first time would result in a majority of Tonga’s Parliament comprising of democratically-elected politicians. Parliament was given the responsibility of nominating a Prime Minister from amongst its own ranks, who would in turn became responsible for nominating the Cabinet. These powers were formerly held by Tonga’s hereditary monarchy, whose role was reduced to one more akin to that performed by the modern monarchs of Europe. Since the 1960s, Tonga has received an increasing amount of overseas aid, especially from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and, latterly, China. Historically, donors have not been overtly concerned with issues of democracy in developing countries, instead relying on the modernist notion that economic development would lead to democratic development. Since the 1980s, however, donors have become increasingly interested in the issue of democracy in developing countries, as a result of the good governance agenda and its successor paradigm, the aid effectiveness agenda. This thesis explores the impact of donors on Tonga’s 2010 democratic transition, concluding that the effect of donors manifested in a variety of direct and indirect ways. A retrospective analysis identifies aspects of Tonga’s 2010 democratic transition that could have been improved, and actions that donors should consider taking if faced with similar circumstances in the future. Finally, the thesis considers how donors can assist the consolidation of Tongan democracy, concluding that support should be targeted towards sustainable economic development, the rule of law, and the public service.</p>

Possible scenarios for China-U.S. Relations by 2030

<p>The rise of China and relative decline of the United States have caused a heated debate on a possible power shift in the Asia-Pacific. Whether China and the U.S. will become friends or enemies remains an unanswered question. This necessitates a thorough study on the future of China-U.S. relations and how they will affect the strategic chessboard in the region. This Thesis examines the possible scenarios of China-U.S. relations by 2030. It argues that while the nature of China-U.S. relations is characterized by strategic competition, increasing interdependence between the two countries requires them to cooperate and co-exist with each other. If current trends continue, by 2030, the most likely scenarios for China-U.S. relations will, in descending order, be a continued China-U.S. strategic competition in peaceful co-existence, a new Cold War, a G-2 style condominium, and a predominance by China over the U.S. in the Asia-Pacific. The Thesis also finds that unlike the past, China-U.S. relations will be increasingly influenced by external factors and unpredictable events or crises. Each of the scenarios in China-U.S. relations will have a different but equally profound impact on the security architecture in the region, especially the ASEAN-led mechanisms for regional security cooperation. These results suggest that at times of power shifts between the U.S. and China, scenario-based planning can be a viable policy option for countries in the Asia-Pacific.</p>