Nation Branding in the Andean Community: Decision 876 of 23 April 2021 for a Common Nation Brand Regime

On 23 April 2021, the Andean Community, comprised of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, adopted and published Decision 876 regulating the common nation brand regime for its territory. As a result, this integrated bloc of Latin American countries became a pioneer in this area. Decision 876 establishes a common regime for protecting country brands against any possible unauthorized registrations or the use of identical or similar signs in the Community’s Members Countries. It is interesting to note that, unlike other integration blocs in Latin America, the Andean Community has made notable progress in harmonizing regional regulations on intellectual property. In this sense, Decision 876 adds to its extensive legal corpus on the topic, with no similar rule existing in the other integration processes in the region. The Decision sets out the basic criteria related to Member Countries’ and third countries’ nation brands, the procedure for their protection and enforcement, and infringements.

Observations on the Talk and the Walk

This chapter provides basic definitions of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and identifies skills and competencies necessary for the chief diversity officer (CDO) in higher education, post-2020. Specific concepts from research and industry provide strategies and tactics for the professional stepping into “the work.” This chapter enters the dialogue about DEI from the entry point of consulting as change manager with faculty experience. It proceeds from there to discuss the five terrains of inclusive excellence that offer a new foundation for equity of policy and practice in higher education. The terrains lead into an examination of intersectionality and the work of creating an intentionally diverse community. Decision quality and critical thinking and other competencies for inclusive excellence leadership, such as emotional intelligence and cultural competence, round out the dialogue with specific observations from and suggestions for research and practice.

From Hell to High Water: The Life of Rohingya Refugee Women in Bangladesh

Bangladesh is currently hosting nearly a million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar and more than half of the refugee population comprises women. In Myanmar, due to the government-imposed securitization and relatively conservative culture, Rohingya women were not able to enjoy their rights and freedom and were mainly confined to their homes. Upon arriving in Bangladesh, they are facing additional challenges. This article aims to find the underlying causes that alienated women from enjoying their rights and whether the life of the Rohingya women has improved or not in Bangladesh. This article shows that, due to the lack of a women-friendly environment inside camps, gender norms and malpractices, breakdown of family ties, and increased number of gender-based violence against women, they are more vulnerable than ever. This paper argued that humanitarian organization and the government should promote gender mainstreaming towards bringing refugee women into the community decision-making process along with raising awareness among the Rohingya community.

Community decision-making and privatised spaces: A case study of suburban shopping malls in the Wellington Region

<p>Shopping malls are a widely disparaged urban form, particularly when these have been built in favour of traditional public spaces. Critiques have ranged from their aesthetic to the impact they have on civic life and broader democracy. However, despite being in private ownership, they have been found to play crucial community functions. This is particularly true in suburban communities which often lack alternative forms of community infrastructure. Concurrently, across the globe, a number of malls are in decline and some communities are losing the only form of community space available to them. Moreover, they are often unable to contribute to decision-making regarding these spaces due to their private ownership. This thesis examines the role that suburban shopping malls, in Aotearoa New Zealand can, and do play as community spaces. It assesses decision-making mechanisms, questioning how communities can participate in the development of what they conceive of as their community spaces. Two cases of declining malls in the Wellington Region– the Johnsonville Shopping Centre and the Wainuiomata Mall were selected and 12 semi-structured interviews and three focus groups were conducted. This research found that these malls played an important role as spaces where communities were built and members socially engaged in often ad-hoc, but significant ways. However, due to the private nature of these spaces, community members often felt powerless and unable to participate in decisions relating to this space. This thesis demonstrates the ways in which the legal binary of public and private fails to encapsulate the nature of modern spaces, which in reality, typically exist as a socially constructed hybrid of both. It challenges the existing framework of property rights based on this binary, and subsequent wider community exclusion from decision-making. In response, this thesis offers policy recommendations around community decision-making in order to stimulate vital suburban community space into the future.</p>

Community decision-making and privatised spaces: A case study of suburban shopping malls in the Wellington Region

<p>Shopping malls are a widely disparaged urban form, particularly when these have been built in favour of traditional public spaces. Critiques have ranged from their aesthetic to the impact they have on civic life and broader democracy. However, despite being in private ownership, they have been found to play crucial community functions. This is particularly true in suburban communities which often lack alternative forms of community infrastructure. Concurrently, across the globe, a number of malls are in decline and some communities are losing the only form of community space available to them. Moreover, they are often unable to contribute to decision-making regarding these spaces due to their private ownership. This thesis examines the role that suburban shopping malls, in Aotearoa New Zealand can, and do play as community spaces. It assesses decision-making mechanisms, questioning how communities can participate in the development of what they conceive of as their community spaces. Two cases of declining malls in the Wellington Region– the Johnsonville Shopping Centre and the Wainuiomata Mall were selected and 12 semi-structured interviews and three focus groups were conducted. This research found that these malls played an important role as spaces where communities were built and members socially engaged in often ad-hoc, but significant ways. However, due to the private nature of these spaces, community members often felt powerless and unable to participate in decisions relating to this space. This thesis demonstrates the ways in which the legal binary of public and private fails to encapsulate the nature of modern spaces, which in reality, typically exist as a socially constructed hybrid of both. It challenges the existing framework of property rights based on this binary, and subsequent wider community exclusion from decision-making. In response, this thesis offers policy recommendations around community decision-making in order to stimulate vital suburban community space into the future.</p>

The effect of community mediations in the practice through an analysis of two municipal case studies

This study presents the continuously spreading municipal mediation in Hungary through two community mediations as good practice. It analyses theoretical and practical course of proceedings in community decision-making processes. It presents each practical phase of community mediations, analysing the practical effects of them. It compares them with other forms of decision-making, highlighting clear advantages of community mediation both for the leadership and the given community. Through presenting the process of two case studies, two model projects are analysed in details from the perspective of the municipal decision-making organs, civil organisations and the local population. In both presented cases different problems of the community are solved through the same process protocol.

k , l -Anonymity in Wheel-Related Social Graphs Measured on the Base of k -Metric Antidimension

For the study and valuation of social graphs, which affect an extensive range of applications such as community decision-making support and recommender systems, it is highly recommended to sustain the resistance of a social graph G to active attacks. In this regard, a novel privacy measure, called the k , l -anonymity, is used since the last few years on the base of k -metric antidimension of G in which l is the maximum number of attacker nodes defining the k -metric antidimension of G for the smallest positive integer k . The k -metric antidimension of G is the smallest number of attacker nodes less than or equal to l such that other k nodes in G cannot be uniquely identified by the attacker nodes. In this paper, we consider four families of wheel-related social graphs, namely, Jahangir graphs, helm graphs, flower graphs, and sunflower graphs. By determining their k -metric antidimension, we prove that each social graph of these families is the maximum degree metric antidimensional, where the degree of a vertex is the number of vertices linked with that vertex.

Social Norms Structuring Masculinities, Gender Roles, and Stereotypes: Iraqi men and boys’ common misconceptions about women and girls’ participation and empowerment

The limited participation of Iraqi women in community decision-making in Kirkuk and Diyala is the result of various intertwined factors. This study explores emerging opportunities for social transformation in the context of sedimented layers of male privilege and the questioning of restrictive gender norms in the two governorates. With this report, Oxfam and its partners aim to dismantle barriers to women’s active participation, which is currently constrained by stereotypes and restrictive ideas about gender. Among the promising pathways for change are awareness-raising activities with male allies, alongside other longer-term efforts advancing transformative change in attitudes, practices, and behaviors.

Stormwater Pond Management: What You Need to Know about Aeration

This new 6-page document is intended to provide Floridians and their communities with information on a specific management practice in stormwater ponds: the use of fountains and other aeration approaches. These practices may provide opportunities both to improve water quality within the pond and protect downstream water quality. Specifically, this document gives basic information on fountains and the pros and cons of fountain installation and use. In addition, we provide information for pond managers or community decision makers on how to best manage ponds for effective pollutant removal in the pond and downstream water quality protection. Written by Samantha T. Howley, Steven P. Hohman, and Alexander J. Reisinger, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Soil and Water Sciences.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ss695

Engagement and social acceptance in genome editing for human benefit: Reflections on research and practice in a global context

While there are both practical and ethical reasons for public engagement in science and innovation, real-world detailed examples of engagement practice and the lessons to come from these are still hard to find. This paper showcases three contextually diverse case studies of engagement practice. Case 1 recounts the experiences of a government-funded initiative to involve scientists and policy makers as science communicators for the purpose of engaging the Argentine public on gene editing. Case 2 describes the research methodologies used to elicit diverse stakeholder views in the face of political uncertainty and institutional distrust in India. Finally, case 3 unpacks the tensions and gaps with existing international guidelines for ensuring local voices are respected in community decision-making in Burkina Faso. Each case shares its own compelling rationale for selecting the engagement method chosen and details the challenges encountered along the way. Each case shares its vision for creating legitimate opportunities for broader societal involvement in the planning, conduct and delivery of responsible science. These cases demonstrate the nuances, sensitivities and challenges of engaging with publics and broader stakeholders in discussions about genome editing for human benefit.