Social Investment

This chapter reviews the paradigm and spread of social investment policies, which come in many variants, and discusses them as key elements of the ‘knowledge economy welfare state’. Social investments are policies that aim to create, preserve, and mobilize human skills and capabilities. The chapter discusses the emergence of social investment as a new social policy paradigm, presents different variants of the social investment approach, provides a mapping of social investment policies around the globe, discusses effects of social investment policies, and weighs in on important debates regarding the politics of social investment. The chapter then closes with an outlook on avenues for future research.

THE CONCEPT OF THE “COMMUNITY OF COMMON DESTINY FOR MANKIND” AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF CHINA’S FOREIGN POLICY

The "community of common destiny for mankind" is a new concept in Chinese diplomacy, which has been increasingly used in the reports of the Chairman of the Communist Party of China Xi Jinping in the past five years. Given the small number of domestic academic studies dedicated to this concept, the relevance of considering its meaning, motives and implications is increased. Although the fundamental goal and task of the «community of common destiny for mankind» is not clear, and in the system of China's international relations it is considered as an important part of the long-term plan for reforming the global governance system, establishing China as a responsible power and using the period of "strategic opportunities" in the second and third decades of the XXI century. During the escalation of international conflicts, and ongoing financial and economic crisis, the proposed concept has attracted the interest of an international audience, but there are contradictions in its perception among developing countries, also the world’s leading actors. After examining the materials of researchers in the field of China studies and international relations, it is necessary to comprehensively consider the connection of the «community of common destiny for mankind» with other concepts under the foreign policy paradigm of China, also in the context of the transformation of China’s foreign affairs.

The Vital Center Reborn: Redefining Liberalism between 9/11 and the Iraq War

Following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a set of liberal intellectuals promoted a vision of liberal renewal at home and abroad, hoping to create a new political and foreign policy paradigm. They sought to revive a form of early Cold War “Vital Center” liberalism by supporting democratization and human rights, designing a liberal version of patriotism, and supporting confrontations with illiberal autocracies and radical Islamists. They hoped to reverse decades of liberal decline in domestic politics, to distance themselves from the political left, and to critique President George Bush's response to 9/11, which they viewed as unilateralist, militaristic, and intellectually vapid. This revival of optimistic, universalist liberalism represents the peak of liberals’ post–Cold War belief in the ability of U.S. power to spread presumably universal values. The failure of the Iraq War, which many of these thinkers supported, undermined this brief project and returned liberals to a more cautious, defensive mindset.

Food sovereignty and farmland protection in the Municipal County of Antigonish, Nova Scotia

This case study of the Municipal County of Antigon­ish (MCA) in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia assessed the extent to which agricultural land use planning accommodates those societal interests seeking to embed food sovereignty at the municipal level. Data were collected through content analysis of legislative documents, key informant interviews, and a review of the grey literature. Results suggest that the relatively weak municipal planning system in place prioritizes private interests over the public interest in farmland protection. The resultant gaps in the legislative setup in the MCA further reveal that food sovereignty actors and/or ideas have little influence over municipal governance of farmland protection. Broader historical and contemporary trends in Nova Scotia and Canada at large suggest that farmland will continue to lose ground to forces intrinsic to the dominant policy paradigm of market liberalism. Concluding thoughts call for “bringing back the (Canadian) state” itself as central to constituting a new agricultural policy paradigm.

The Failure of Lifestyle Environmentalism and the Promise of the Green New Deal for Working-Class People

There is an urgent need to address a range of environmental issues, including climate change, but the policies enacted to date have usually done nothing to address class inequities and have often led to increased working-class disadvantage. The causes of the climate and other environmental crises have often been located in problematic individual lifestyles, with little recognition of the time, economic and health constraints that make it difficult for working-class people to adopt green lifestyles. The Green New Deal (GND) presented an alternative policy paradigm that argued for environmental policies that, rather than increasing the pressure on disadvantaged groups, would have co-benefits for working-class people, low-income groups and communities of colour. However, the policy did not lead to electoral success for the political leaders that proposed it, in the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK), due to opposition representations of it as costly and threatening to working-class jobs. We interviewed 40 working-class people in the UK to find out how much they knew about the Green New Deal, what they thought about it as an environmental policy and how they felt about environmentalism, more generally. Our research indicates that there was a general lack of knowledge about GND, but great enthusiasm about it once explained, albeit with reservations about its implementation and limitations. The GND has huge potential to benefit the lives of working-class people but, we conclude, more, and better, outreach is needed for people to understand its potential to improve their lives.

Ukraine, Quo Vadis? Autonomous Navigation

The second article of the cycle, prepared by the Center of Ukrainian Studies IE RAS for the 30th anniversary of the state sovereignty of Ukraine, is devoted to foreign policy. What is its paradigm, is it there, has it changed, and if so, how and why? The article contests the view that Ukraine’s foreign policy has no strategy and is entirely subject to external influences. The author believes that Ukraine has it, and the experience of its formation is unique and therefore interesting. It is difficult to find in Europe another great nation-State, born for so long and so difficult, which would have to seek its place in the world at a time when the world itself and the institution of the nation-state have begun to change so profoundly. The article substantiates the view that Ukraine’s foreign policy paradigm was formed in these circumstances on objective internal grounds with strong external influences and, Despite the frequent changes in political leaders and the adjustment of external political discourse, this continued and is likely to continue in the future

Dieu et Mon Droit: The Marginalization of Parliament and the Role of Neoliberalism in The Function of the Ontario Legislature From 1971 to 2014

In recent years, considerable attention has been paid to the increasingly popular trend among western governments to use arcane parliamentary mechanisms to circumvent the legislative process. However, despite growing concern for the influence of parliament, there are few comprehensive studies that capture the evolution of this pattern in the detail necessary to draw substantive conclusions about why it is occurring. This dissertation seeks to address this gap in the literature by undertaking a detailed archival analysis of the evolution of the role and function of the Ontario Legislature between 1971 and 2014. Using an interpretivist approach, it draws upon the Marxist political economy literature to assess the nature of the relationship between the marginalization of parliament and the emergence of neoliberalism as the dominant policy paradigm in Ontario over the course of the same period. This project makes the case that the Ontario Legislature has undergone a profound shift from an assembly characterized largely by cooperation between the three major political parties in the 1970s, to one in which governments have routinely made use of all methods of parliamentary procedures to undermine the opposition. An important explanation for the emergence of this trend, it is argued, has been to insulate controversial neoliberal reforms from democratic control by hastening their passage through the legislature. The utilization of these restrictive instruments has been coupled with a growing tendency by governments to overcome institutional obstacles to the implementation of neoliberal restructuring measures by granting themselves increasingly significant powers to govern through regulation. Thus, while a confluence of factors have contributed to the marginalization of the legislature in Ontario, the compulsion to shield neoliberal reforms from exposure to institutional processes emerges as arguably the most significant explanation. It is hoped this dissertation will make several contributions to the literature. First, although the scholarship has largely ignored the role of parliamentary institutions to the implementation of neoliberalism, this study shows that they are central to the story of neoliberal restructuring in Ontario. Second, it shows that all three major parties have not only moved Ontario in a neoliberal direction, but have also been responsible for significant changes to the legislature’s procedures. Third, it provides a historical canvass of the evolution of procedure at Queen’s Park, demonstrating that while restrictive measures were initially exceptional, employed only to facilitate the passage of highly controversial measures, over time they have become commonplace, routinely used for all varieties of legislation.

Dieu et Mon Droit: The Marginalization of Parliament and the Role of Neoliberalism in The Function of the Ontario Legislature From 1971 to 2014

In recent years, considerable attention has been paid to the increasingly popular trend among western governments to use arcane parliamentary mechanisms to circumvent the legislative process. However, despite growing concern for the influence of parliament, there are few comprehensive studies that capture the evolution of this pattern in the detail necessary to draw substantive conclusions about why it is occurring. This dissertation seeks to address this gap in the literature by undertaking a detailed archival analysis of the evolution of the role and function of the Ontario Legislature between 1971 and 2014. Using an interpretivist approach, it draws upon the Marxist political economy literature to assess the nature of the relationship between the marginalization of parliament and the emergence of neoliberalism as the dominant policy paradigm in Ontario over the course of the same period. This project makes the case that the Ontario Legislature has undergone a profound shift from an assembly characterized largely by cooperation between the three major political parties in the 1970s, to one in which governments have routinely made use of all methods of parliamentary procedures to undermine the opposition. An important explanation for the emergence of this trend, it is argued, has been to insulate controversial neoliberal reforms from democratic control by hastening their passage through the legislature. The utilization of these restrictive instruments has been coupled with a growing tendency by governments to overcome institutional obstacles to the implementation of neoliberal restructuring measures by granting themselves increasingly significant powers to govern through regulation. Thus, while a confluence of factors have contributed to the marginalization of the legislature in Ontario, the compulsion to shield neoliberal reforms from exposure to institutional processes emerges as arguably the most significant explanation. It is hoped this dissertation will make several contributions to the literature. First, although the scholarship has largely ignored the role of parliamentary institutions to the implementation of neoliberalism, this study shows that they are central to the story of neoliberal restructuring in Ontario. Second, it shows that all three major parties have not only moved Ontario in a neoliberal direction, but have also been responsible for significant changes to the legislature’s procedures. Third, it provides a historical canvass of the evolution of procedure at Queen’s Park, demonstrating that while restrictive measures were initially exceptional, employed only to facilitate the passage of highly controversial measures, over time they have become commonplace, routinely used for all varieties of legislation.

Border Anxieties

Chapter 5 focuses on EU citizens’ border anxieties and vernacular narratives of ontological (in)security; it argues that such narratives offer insights into the everyday politics of desire for border security predicated upon fantasies of control. Analysis of group discussions centres on how citizens conceptualized ‘the border’, what they understood by ‘tougher’ borders, and why they found bordering practices—including walling—appealing as a policy paradigm for responding to migration in the contemporary EU context. The discussion engages critically with interdisciplinary debates about psycho-social approaches to bordering and the politics of ‘ontological security’. Work orientated by the dominant Laing–Giddens paradigm offers a conceptualization of the relationship between macro-level and micro-level bordering practices, notions of home and belonging, and the illusion of the bounded nation-state as the origin of a pure and stable identity, but it presumes that ‘more bordering’ equates to ‘greater security’. By contrast, Brown’s (2010) psychoanalytical approach to walling offers tools for understanding the counter-intuitive process whereby excessive bordering practices may result from and further stimulate the repression of anxieties, which leads to an obsessive drive that produces the very dangers it seeks to negate. But while Brown’s view helps in part to address the puzzle posed by the contemporary EU context, it ultimately leaves no possibility of escape, no potential for change, and no recognition of actually existing alternatives to ever more bordered states and lives, and yet these counter-narratives are also rendered visible by a vernacular approach to European border security.