Enabling Entanglements to Emerge

From October 5 to 10, 2020, Performance Curators Initiative (PCI),1 a network of artists, curators, performance-makers, cultural workers, educators, practitioners, and enthusiasts based in the Philippines, held their third conference online via Zoom and streamed it on YouTube. Entitled “Conversations on Curation and Performance in the Time of Halting and Transformation,” I participated in this conference that opened a digital space for curators and performers around the world to talk about the effects of the global pandemic on the live arts. Connections, conversations, creative research, collaborations—as PCI founder and conference organizer Roselle Pineda notes—are the main focus of the network, which seeks to look at the relationship between “[p]erformance and curation, the role of curation in performance and role of performativity in curatorial practice” (from the network’s website). Pineda had invited me to register for the conference, which was focused on the role of curator as one who activates enabling spaces.

Review of Coronavirus disease- 2019 (COVID-19) in Iraq

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV 2) or 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is quickly spreading to the rest of the world, from its origin in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. And becoming a global pandemic that affects the world's most powerful countries. The goal of this review is to assist scientists, researchers, and others in responding to the current Coronavirus disease (covid-19) is a worldwide public health contingency state. This review discusses current evidence based on recently published studies which is related to the origin of the virus, epidemiology, transmission, diagnosis, treatment, and all studies in Iraq for the effect of covid-19 diseases, as well as provide a reference for future researchers. The findings of this review show significant differences across gender, age group, area of residence, environmental agents (temperature, humidity), and people with chronic diseases (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, heart disease, respiratory disorders, and immunocompromised disease). To control the pandemic, information about COVID-19 was disseminated to people, including wearing a face mask and using a social distancing strategy as an effective tool for controlling COVID-19. More education and progress are required to convince the public that the vaccine is both effective and safe.

Adaptive practices in SMEs: leveraging dynamic capabilities for strategic adaptation

PurposeA global pandemic, broken supply chains, workforce constraints, technological advancements in artificial intelligence, etc. illustrate the continual threats that SMEs face. Extending the dynamic capability concepts of sensing, seizing and transforming, this research investigates practices by which SMEs successfully adapt over time.Design/methodology/approachA comparative case study method was employed using a purposive sample of SMEs, consisting of three American firms and one Canadian firm.FindingsThree sets of organizational practices, termed adaptive practices, that underlie dynamic capabilities for successful adaptation were identified: (1) continuous learning and process improvement, (2) leveraging reciprocal relationships and (3) communicating effectively.Research limitations/implicationsThe selected cases are from two countries in North America. Using a qualitative, inductive process, the authors are able to identify patterns of actions within various organizations; however, they are not able to establish causality.Practical implicationsThis study provides practical guidance for leaders to take action to improve their SME's dynamic capabilities for adaptation through creating coherent bundles of specified adaptive practices.Social implicationsBetter understanding of how SMEs successfully adapt to high uncertainty and business viability threats can result in multidimensional (e.g. financial, emotional) and multi-level (individual, family, community), positive outcomes for societal stakeholders.Originality/valueThe findings of this study build on the literature of dynamic capabilities and organizational practices and provide a practical foundation for effective adaptation, labeled as adaptive practices.

Covid-19 global pandemic, workplace spirituality and the rise of spirituality-driven organisations in the post-digital era

PurposeDespite the growing importance of workplace spirituality, organisations have been reluctant to integrate spirituality into their workplaces; this paper discusses how to integrate spirituality into the workplace.Design/methodology/approachThis is a theoretical paper that builds its arguments on the synthesis of workplace spirituality and contemporary management paradigms.FindingsThe study argues that workplace spirituality is an extremely important driving force for the sustainable and healthy growth of any organisation; however, infusing workplace spirituality into companies in the industrial and digital eras would be a futile effort, as industrial organisations are built on an ethos highly incongruent with spiritual principles. Therefore, in the post-digital era, spirituality-driven organisations (SDOs) will emerge, marking the beginning of a true “spiritual paradigm” for business and human society at large. The study also elaborates on the characteristics of the post-digital era and the nature of SDOs.Originality/valueWorkplace spirituality has been a research topic for years but has never gained sufficient momentum. The Covid-19 global pandemic has made workplace spirituality a more pertinent issue on corporate agendas. Therefore, this paper provides the theoretical foundation to embed workplace spirituality in contemporary management thoughts and practices.

Strengthening Indonesia-Russia trade economy relations: Indonesia’s effort to access Eurasia market

The article discusses economic cooperation between Indonesia and Russia, as well as the possibility of Indonesia entering the Eurasian market. Indonesia is recognized as the largest economy of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the leader of Southeast Asian countries with high rates of economic growth. The growth of the regional economy is expected to support global economic stability. Russia is an unconventional market for Indonesia's main goods in the Eurasian region, so Indonesian goods can be found quite rarely on Russian markets and in supermarkets. In this regard, it is important to understand which Indonesian export goods are of interest to Russians and how these goods can fall into Russia. To do this, it is necessary to study the business potential of partners with whom you can start working together. Since 2016, Indonesia has been emphasizing the importance of cooperation and trade and economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region, Eurasia and Southeast Asia. In the midst of a global pandemic, it is necessary to develop diplomacy and economic cooperation between Indonesia and Russia in order to prevent potential conflicts in the South China Sea involving the United States and China. At the same time, Indonesia should develop its economy and trade through bilateral and multilateral cooperation in international organizations. The study showed that economic cooperation between the two countries should contribute to strengthening trade relations, increasing investment and increasing the competitiveness of Indonesia's export products.

A semiotic cultural psychology theory analysis of the signs ‘We’, ‘Us’, ‘I’ and ‘Me’

Relevant to the emerging field of semiotic cultural psychology theory (SCPT), the present paper considers ‘We’, ‘Us’, ‘I’ and ‘Me’ as semiotic and cultural psychology phenomena. Drawing on the semiotics of Saussure, Peirce, Jakobson, and Cousins, a semiotic dynamic ‘double-dyadic’ model of the signifier and the referent is proposed. For each ‘We’, ‘Us’, ‘I’ and ‘Me’, the COVID-19 global pandemic related cases are used to analyse and illustrate the signifier-referent model. Implications are drawn from the new model for the complex systems entailed in organizing self and culture. Finally, suggestions are made for testing the model.