Civil Society Networks Research Articles

Still Standing Defiantly: Guidelines for Reducing Inequality of Human capital in the Northeast of Thailand during the Covid-19 pandemic

This study aimed to develop an approach to reduce human capital inequality of marginalized people in the northeastern of Thailand during the Covid – 19 pandemics. This study employed a qualitative research methodology to collect data through focus group discussions with the focus group discussion guideline from a group of key informants who were stakeholders in urban development and the quality-of-life development in Nakhon Ratchasima Municipality, Khon Kaen Municipality, and Udon Thani Municipality, totaling thirty-six persons. The study results indicate that there were three approaches to reducing human capital inequality of marginalized people in northeastern Thailand during the Covid – 19 pandemic as were follows: a) Promote the civil society networks, 2) Develop Human capital of marginal households, and3) Develop a tripartite inequality reduction mechanism between government agencies, the public sector, and civil society to coordinate cooperation between agencies to share information and problems for further resolutions.

Toward the Institutionalization of a One Health Agenda: What the World can Learn from Bangladesh

Abstract In 2005 and 2007, prompted by Nipah and avian influenza outbreaks, respectively, faculties at Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (CVASU) in Bangladesh initiated a civil society network of researchers in animal and human health. This network led to the launch a year later of One Health Bangladesh (OHB), a platform with membership open to multi-disciplinary scientists, practitioners, and activists. Along with continued advocacy to advance One Health agenda, OHB partnered with government, UN agencies, and other stakeholders to develop, in 2012, a National One Health Strategic Framework and Action Plan. The National Plan was later endorsed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock (MoFL), and Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEFC) followed by its implementation which introduced a three-tier multi-sectoral coordination mechanism including the establishment of a One Heath Secretariat in 2016. In 2017, an operational budget for the One Health Secretariat (OHS) was allocated by the MoHFW and three mid-level government officers from three government agencies, and the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Department of Livestock Services (DLS), and Bangladesh Forest Department (BFD) were seconded to the OHS to make the Secretariat functional. OHB and the OHS now work together to advance the institutionalization process and implement One Health activities including One Health capacity building, joint surveillance, outbreak investigation and intervention, advocacy in the form of arranging dialogs, seminars, workshops, and conferences, and promoting cross sectoral and transdisciplinary collaboration, networking, and partnership nationally and internationally. Information © The Authors 2024

How Civil Societies Are Undermined

Several studies highlight the fact that the first decades of the 21st century are characterized by a resurgence of authoritarianism, which contradicts the optimistic visions of the 1990s regarding the so-called end of history. For instance, Freedom House argues, presenting relevant data, that since 2006, a process of democratic backsliding has been in place worldwide. Not only developing countries or regions are affected but also countries in Europe and Northern America, where democracy once seemed inexpugnable. This illiberal wave thrives on the weaknesses of civil societies and has the effect of further reducing the dimensions of the civic space. Although those who promote open societies are on the defensive, their cause is far from being an obsolete remnant of the second half of the 20th century. However, their endeavors can be ineffective if the causes of the antidemocratic forces’ success are not properly acknowledged. The main goal of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the factors that are vital for building or strengthening closed societies. To shape relevant conclusions, we analyze information from projects like People Power under Attack, realized by the CIVICUS global civil society network or V-Dem (The Varieties of Democracy), managed by an institute affiliated with the University of Gothenburg (Sweden). We focus especially on countries that experienced sharp transformations regarding the state of their civil societies in the last 3–5 years. Our findings underline, among others, the importance of the electoral process and foreign policy influencing the evolution of the civic space. Cases like the Czech Republic suggest that the decline of civil society can be stopped at the polls. The Russian Federation is an example of a successful suspension of civic freedoms under the pretext of protecting the population from toxic foreign interference.

The Illusion of Papuan Independence through Benny Wenda’s Transnational Advocacy Network Strategy during the #FreeWestPapua Campaign in 2020

This research reveals critically rather than using images of modern development and progress on Indigenous Papuans (OAP) who are often demanded to engage in social change by ignoring one's identity. The accumulation of OAP disillusionment that began in the history of the Act of Free Choice continued with the neglect of cultural rights as a reflection of the collective dignity that is still running. This triggered some OAP segments who called themselves independent Papuan groups to choose to garner international support in efforts to secede principles. As done by Benny Wenda as OAP through international forums to encourage the fulfillment of political rights caused by the closed access to the Papuan people's movement in fighting for the issue of Free Papua. He described the resistance of Papuan identity to expand the target domain of its supporter audience. Sporadically through the use of international civil society networks, the authors highlight the advocacy strategies undertaken Transnational Advocacy Network (TAN) through the #PapuanLivesMatter campaign that raised the existence of Benny Wenda in representing Free Papua in the midst of fragmentation that occurred. So the research questions in this study are: What is Benny Wenda's strategy in representing an independent Papua in the midst of fragmentation of separatist groups in Papua? The method for accessing the variables in the theory will be traced based on historical methods that are explained qualitatively.

Coping with old-age poverty – the role of agency and different forms of societal support

Abstract Across Europe, there is a substantial but varying number of older people struggling to make ends meet. We examine how older people with a low income make use of their individual resources and those that are available from their family and community as well as public support (in cash and in kind) when coping with poverty. This article is based on the experience of old-age poverty, drawing on 59 life-course interviews with low-income older people in Norway, Germany, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. We introduce a typology of coping strategies with two main dimensions: the capacity for agency and the capacity for transformation. We show that coping strategies vary not only based on individual factors and appropriate social policy support, but also on further societal support provided by civil society, families or social networks that supplements or compensates for gaps in social policy provision.

The social front door: the role of social infrastructures for migrant arrival

ABSTRACT Much research on migrant arrival and settlement has looked at these processes through the lens of ‘integration’, investigating how migrants access societal realms such as the labour market, education, civil society and social networks, and mostly focusing on individual migrants’ processes of incorporation. A complementary body of work has looked at how socio-economic contexts can shape integration and social mobility. This article expands on this work by highlighting the importance of place in migrant arrival and settlement. It builds on an emerging body of literature that has emphasised that where migrants arrive plays a crucial role in their ability to access resources. Drawing on two sets of ethnographic fieldwork in East London, the article presents a micro-analysis of how migrants make their way into the city with the help of publicly accessible social infrastructures (shops, libraries, barbers, parks, etc.) and individuals working within these. The article demonstrates that social infrastructures are a crucial element amongst a range of arrival infrastructures that can be found in urban areas of long-standing immigration and highlights the role of the built environment regarding opportunities for accessing information about settlement.

Trust is personal and professional: The role of trust in the rise and fall of a South African civil society coalition

This article explores trust dynamics among a coalition of civil society organizations called Unite Behind that formed in Cape Town, South Africa, in late 2017. Unite Behind was established to demand more accountability from a state marred by corruption—and specifically for the resignation of then President Jacob Zuma. When Zuma resigned, the coalition attempted to transition to a social movement campaigning for social justice but declined as a coalition into an organization of sorts. Taking trust as a positive belief in the reliability, truth or ability of an actor or entity, this article argues that conceptions of political and social/generalized trust are of less importance in explaining the rise and fall of Unite Behind than a combination of personal trust in particular leaders, and a form of particularized trust, namely, trust in other organizations. This notion of organizational trust as a form of particularized trust is of potential wider importance to the analysis of civil society network co-ordination.

Laki-Laki sebagai Sekutu Gerakan Feminis: Pelibatan Laki-Laki sebagai Strategi Gerakan Advokasi yang Dilakukan oleh Jaringan Masyarakat Sipil dalam Mendorong Pengesahan Undang-Undang Tindak Pidana Kekerasan Seksual

This research discusses the advocacy strategy carried out by the Civil Society Network (JMS) by involving men to push for the ratification of the TPKS Law. By referring to the theory of the strategic capacity of gender equality policy advocates by Htun and Weldon, JMS has used organizational capacity through strategies of (1) framing demands; (2) building networks, and (3) lobbying policymakers. This study uses a qualitative method by conducting in-depth interviews to obtain primary data and collecting secondary data through a study of documents including regulations, news, and previously existing scientific papers. The findings from this study indicate that JMS involves men in advocacy strategies that are carried out by utilizing the privileges of men. For instance, the involvement of male religious leaders to counter the narrative of rejection of the TPKS Law which considers the TPKS Law to be inconsistent with the religious and moral values of the Indonesian people. Apart from that, JMS also involves male legislators who have a strategic position as Chairperson of the TPKS Law Working Committee to help lobby other members of the Indonesian Parliament.

Making Global Governance Accountable: Civil Society, States, and the Politics of Reform

AbstractRecent decades have witnessed the adoption of unprecedentedly broad and inclusive accountability mechanisms by many major international institutions, from grievance redress systems to transparency policies. What explains the establishment of these mechanisms—and why have only some institutions embraced them? I argue that adoption is more likely when member states, in particular the most powerful, face “bottom‐up” pressures for accountability from dense transnational civil society networks—networks with the capacity to build leverage through agenda setting, coalition building, and advocacy strategies—and when institutions perform governance tasks that are costly to monitor. Analysis of a rich new dataset shows that adoption is positively related to the density of international nongovernmental organizations in an institution's issue area—including only those based in powerful member countries—and that this relationship is stronger when governance tasks entail high monitoring costs. Statistical tests are complemented by qualitative evidence from interviews and other primary sources.

Gender and local governance: Women’s participation in electoral politics, leadership positions, and decision-making process at local governments of Bench-Maji and Kaffa zones of southwest Ethiopia

The representation of women in administrative positions and local legislature in Ethiopia is very low. The average percentage of women in leadership positions and legislatures in the study area is 14.2% and 33.8% respectively. This study seeks to understand barriers to women’s participation in politics at the local government level in Ethiopia. To achieve this, cross-sectional research approach and probability sampling technique was used; accordingly, 399 sample households were selected. Quantitative data was gathered through a household survey questionnaire, and complimentary qualitative information was collected via key informant interviews and focus group discussions. The quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics whilst thematic analysis technique was used to deal with the qualitative data. The study highlights the prevalence of negative views on the capacity of women in leadership roles which adversely affects women’s ability to distinguish and manage societal affairs. The cumulative effect resulted in the thinking of women’s position in governmental offices at the lower level. The barrier that female political aspirants emphasised were: lack of experience, lack of confidence, low level of educational status, and domestic and societal responsibilities. Thus, the research recommends the need for strengthening women’s associations and civil society groups and networks that focus on local governance and citizen participation.

Bottom-up and bottom-top institutional changes in environmental management in the Niger Delta

Research into how changes occur in repeated human practices, or ‘institutions’, is expanding rapidly. Yet there is still only limited understanding of how institutional change involves social networks. To address this gap this paper proposes a new Network Communication Framework, which predicts how ‘bottom-up’ and ‘bottom-top’ institutional changes can arise through interplays between state and civil society networks. While ‘top-down’ institutional change requires perfect compliance with state policies by a civil society network in a ‘strong state’, bottom-up institutional change can occur in a ‘weak state’ when a civil society network has high autonomy and adapts to a vacuum in state institutions at local scale by devising new informal institutions itself. Bottom-top institutional change, proposed here for the first time, can occur when a state network has a moderate ability to enforce its formal institutions throughout a country and a civil society network has moderate autonomy, and members of the two networks jointly negotiate new hybrid informal institutions. This paper reports evidence from the Niger Delta region of Nigeria for: (a) a bottom-up change by a clan network in its traditional land rights institutions which enabled it to sell communal land to an oil company; and (b) a bottom-top change in timber harvesting institutions, negotiated between members of a logging network and an informal government network (comprising staff of the state forestry department), which allowed loggers to extract more timber than permitted under formal state institutions. The example of bottom-up institutional change reported here leads to higher environmental impacts than under the original informal traditional institutions, showing that autonomous bottom-up change is not always as environmentally benevolent as previously assumed, though environmental impacts will vary according to circumstances. The example of bottom-top institutional change has higher environmental impacts than under perfectly implemented formal state institutions. This is likely to be typical of bottom-top changes generally, and shows that it is difficult to treat overlogging as ‘illegal logging’ if state personnel are complicit in its operation.

Left Behind Together and Voting for Populism: Regional Out-Migration, Civic Engagement and the Electoral Success of Populist Radical Right Parties

According to the academic debate, the populist radical right is particularly successful in regions that have been left behind economically or culturally. Although civic engagement in networks of civil society, a specific form of social capital, seems important, its influence remains ambiguous. In contrast, regional out-migration as a social dimension of being left behind receives limited attention despite the relevance of internal migration to political geography. This study investigates two theoretically possible models to clarify the relationships between regional out-migration, civic engagement, and their impacts on voting for the populist radical right. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) and official regional statistics, logistic multilevel analyses are conducted for Germany and the election of the AfD (Alternative for Germany) in the 2017 federal election. The key finding of the cross-sectional analysis is that regional out-migration is a condition that moderates the relationship between civic participation and the election of the AfD. In general, civically involved individuals support established democratic parties, but in regions with high out-migration, they tend to vote for the populist radical right. However, there is no empirical evidence that regional out-migration contributes to the election of the AfD by reducing civic engagement and being mediated by it.

Transnational uncivil society networks: kleptocracy’s global fightback against liberal activism

What is the global social context for the insertion of kleptocratic elites into the putatively liberal international order? Drawing on cases from our work on Eurasia and Africa, we sketch a concept of ‘transnational uncivil society’, which we contrast to ‘transnational activist networks’. While the latter denotes the liberalizing practices of global civil society, the former suggests a specific series of clientelistic relations across borders, which open space for uncivil elites. This distinction animates a growing line of conflict in global politics. These kleptocrats eject liberal activists from their own territories and create new spaces to whitewash their own reputations and build their own transnational networks. To do so, they hire political consultants and reputation managers, engage in public philanthropy and forge new relationships with major global institutions. We show how these strategies of reputation-laundering are neither illicit nor marginal, but very much a product of the actors, institutions and markets generated by the liberal international order. We compare and contrast the scope and purpose of civil and uncivil society networks, we explore the increasing globalization of Eurasian and African elites as a concerted strategy to distance themselves from associations with their political oppression and kleptocracy in their home countries, and recast themselves as productive and respected cosmopolitans.

Far-right reflexology: a periphery-to-centre approach for the study of the far-right

ABSTRACT To address the problem of participant access, central in the study of the far-right, scholars of far-right mobilisations navigate between a methodological rock and a hard place. Either scholars produce in-depth qualitative accounts, putting their safety and ethical commitments at risk, or scholars study far-right mobilisations from a distance and produce limited externalist accounts that centre large surveys, quantitative studies and electoral analysis at the expense of granular detail. Inspired by the medical logics of reflexology, I propose one solution to this impasse that understands the impenetrable centres of far-right networks through their peripheries. I argue that far-right network peripheries—often more accessible to scholars—share personnel, information and resources with network centres, revealing much about these often secretive central organizational nodes. I advocate for deep qualitative work on the far-right (thus avoiding externalist pitfalls) but in the peripheries of far-right networks (thus avoiding safety and ethical risks). Refocusing on far-right peripheries opens a number of analytical doors that decentre the study of electoral politics and refocus on far-right embeddedness in civil society networks.

English Language Teachers’ Knowledge of SDGs and their Attitudes towards Incorporating SDGs in ELT in Myanmar

Numerous activities related to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been implemented by governments, development partners, civil society and university networks since 2000. In view of the preparations for the post 2015 education agenda, key stakeholders participated in global consultations and conferences that UNESCO organised to address the issues. At the regional level, UNESCO has been supporting the efforts of member countries by promoting a culture of patience, understanding and peace in formal and non-formal educational systems. The scope of involvement for peace education and democracy will be broadened by ensuring the integration in the national sector policy documents, learning/ training, curricula, teacher training and socio-cultural environment to mainstream peace education and conflict prevention and preparedness in the education strategic plans. The references will have been used in various countries, targeting different thematic areas. Thus, EFL teachers are currently also teaching literature with respect for all SDG 4 goal with the objective of strengthening educational responses to reduce poverty, within the nation-state and promote respect for all. Learners today are required to develop a comprehensive understanding of local, national, and global challenges, so that they can influence the political, social, cultural, economic, and environmental development both in their societies and their personal lives. This study discusses achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Myanmar in the post-pandemic era, with a particular focus on knowledge and attitudes of English teachers. A very good level of knowledge among teachers is limited to some topics, such as the Greenhouse effect (78.95%) and Resilience (10.53%), which may be better known due to wider media coverage. Sustainability issues are not yet considered as a shared responsibility, as teaching in designated hours was often suggested. The commitment of Myanmar teachers and universities to a stronger integration of sustainability issues into educational programmes still needs to be improved. A change of perspective is urgently needed, whereby sustainability education should be seen as a collective responsibility. As a result, there is a strong need for a forward-looking agenda that will complete the quality education while going beyond the current goals. A future education agenda must explore how education systems should adapt to tackle new challenges and contribute to peace and sustainable development.

The Migration Risk Environment: Challenges to Human Security for Venezuelan Migrant and Refugee Women and Girls Pre- and Post-Migration to Colombia

The Venezuelan crisis has unleashed multiple forms of sociopolitical violence against its population and created a context of unmet needs, insecurity, and human rights violations. Outward migration caused by this situation has been linked to health emergencies in neighboring countries. Venezuelan migrant and refugee women and girls (VMRWG) are among the most affected. We conducted a cross-sectional qualitative and Participatory Action Research (PAR) project to characterize the risk environments for VMRWG across migration phases, analyzing pre-departure, transit, border crossing, and resettlement risk factors for health and security through semi-structured interviews ( n = 30) and human cartographies ( n = 16). We found cross border risk and protective factors that inform cross-border health initiatives, migration policies, and human rights efforts for both the migrant and host communities. Findings and Recommendations Migratory trajectories of VMRWG from Venezuela to Colombia represent a risk environment for women and girls, connecting cross-border contexts through armed actors’ control, culturally reinforced gender roles and limited social and economic resources. Long-term sustainable migratory policies that are culturally sensitive and include a gender-approach to health should operationalize how gender roles are intimately connected to HIV risk and mental health disparities through reinforced structural factors. Such policies must address these structural factors. The public health system needs to incorporate and align with programmatic efforts implemented by international platforms (United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), AID4AIDS, and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) also known as Doctors Without Borders) targeting screening for infectious diseases (including HIV and mental health disparities) in border crossings and borderlands. Sustainable policies to bridge gaps between services and populations and to decrease growing HIV cases depends on these strategies. Policies and programs of local governments (city and municipality level) addressing mental health disparities need to be expanded through peer leaders and civil society networks of care to guarantee wellbeing and quality of life after resettlement. International efforts and collaborations should capitalize on the re-opening of the border to establish inter-sectoral collaborations with Venezuelan NGOs and civil society organizations on both sides of the border to address gender-based violence, follow-up of cases, and access to services in sending and receiving communities. In order to broach gaps and tackle access barriers in resettlement communities in Colombia, services must be provided in peripheric territories and neighborhoods where some vulnerable migrants resettle. These services must rely on health sector-community collaborations. Public health sector efforts should be integrated and coordinated with family and child services on a local and national level Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar Familiar (ICBF), gender working groups, shelters, and citywide supported initiatives like the House of Women) to provide and promote access to social resources (education, jobs, and housing) for migrant women. Health promotion strategies are necessary to decrease infectious diseases and violence-related trauma among migrants across borders. These strategies can include outreach through peer leaders, civil society organization campaigns, and HIV mobile testing and counselling. These services should be delivered in a culturally sensitive manner, capitalizing on in-place cross-border networks of support. In Colombia, sustainable efforts in policy and programs have been made to provide Venezuelans with access to health care and social services with the help of inter-sectoral working groups, national laws, and border commissions. However, there is an urgent need to expand the humanitarian response and the health sector coverage to gender-based violence impacting infectious disease risk and mental health trauma in host communities. Connecting pre- and post-migration contexts in South-to-South migration is paramount. Tackling these issues can improve the protection of human rights and resettlement conditions in host communities.

The international dynamics of counter-peace

Peace processes and international order are interdependent: while the latter provides the normative framework for the former, peacemaking tools and their underlying ideology also maintain international order. They indicate its viability and legitimacy partly by meeting local claims as well as though the maintenance of geopolitical balances. In the emerging multipolar order, the international peace architecture (IPA), dominated by the liberal international order (LIO), is contested through counter-peace processes. These processes contest the nature of the state, state-society relations and increasingly international order itself. This paper investigates the tactics and strategies of regional actors and great powers, where they engage in peace and order related activities or interventions. Given the weakness and inconsistency of the IPA and the LIO, such contestation leads to challenges to international order itself, often at the expense of the claims of social movements and civil society networks.

EcoSol-agroecology networks respond to the Covid-19 crisis: building an economy of proximity in Brazil’s Baixada Santista region

ABSTRACT In 2020–2021 the Covid-19 crisis worsened the harms from the hegemonic agribusiness model, while also providing opportunities for alternatives. Since long before the crisis, Latin American civil society networks had been building an agroecology-based solidarity economy (here EcoSol-agroecology for short). These networks have linked agroecological production methods with collective marketing through short food-supply chains (circuitos curtos), establishing closer relationships with consumers. Such initiatives have been expanded, despite adverse government policies and Covid-19 obstacles. This expansion has been widely understood as strengthening social proximities. As the analytical contribution here, EcoSol-agroecology networks build an ‘economy of proximity’, based on proximate purposes such as mutual aid, democratic self-management, women's leadership, food security and biodiverse resource conservation. These solidaristic purposes help to activate other proximities (geographical, organisational, institutional, and cultural), while also linking them. Collective capacities have developed those proximities in context-specific ways. This strategic perspective has informed EcoSol-agroecology networks in Brazil's Baixada Santista region, the site of grassroots voices in this case study. Diverse contributions have been integrated into a composite culture as a symbolic site of belonging. As global elites seek to restore the hegemonic agri-food system after the Covid-19 pandemic, a different future depends on building the social proximities of EcoSol-agroecology.

Lockdown, resilience and emergency statecraft in the Cape Town food system

Well before the Covid-19 pandemic, rapidly growing cities of the global South were at the epicenter of multiple converging crises affecting food systems. Globally, government lockdown responses to the disease triggered shocks which cascaded unevenly through urban food systems, exacerbating food insecurity. Cities worldwide developed strategies to mitigate shocks, but research on statecraft enabling food systems resilience is sparse. Addressing this gap, we analyse the case of the African metropolis of Cape Town, where lockdown disrupted livelihoods, mobility and food provision, deepening food insecurity. Employing a vital systems security lens, we show how civil society and state networks mobilised to mitigate and adapt to lockdown impacts. Building on preceding institutional transformations, civil society and state collaborated to deliver emergency food aid, while advocacy networks raised food on the political agenda, formulated proposals, and navigated these through a widened policy window. Emergency statecraft assembled networks and regulatory instruments to secure food systems, enhance preparedness for future disruptions and present opportunities for transition towards more sustainable food systems. However, current food systems configuration enabled powerful actors to resist deeper transformation while devolving impacts to community networks. Despite resilient vested interests and power disparities, advocacy coalitions can anticipate and leverage crises to incrementally advance transformational, pro-poor statecraft.

Gestão da sustentabilidade em cidades: uma perspectiva considerando a atuação de redes da sociedade civil no processo de análise de políticas públicas

Abstract Alongside the consolidation of the multicentric model of public management, new forms of organization have been structured to act in the public policy process, seeking to contribute to the development of the policies’ contexts and to direct this development toward a more sustainable trajectory. This research analyzes the relationship between civil society and the state, investigating how civil society networks aimed at sustainable development in cities act in the public policy analysis process. We studied four cases through an interpretative data analysis, researching how they act in the stages of problem identification, agenda setting, and formulation of alternatives. We concluded that the networks act in the three stages, and their contributions are represented by diagnoses about the city, events to debate themes, and explicit advocacy work with public managers. We assess that the systematized approach and the technical bias adopted by these networks contribute to them being considered an instance of support for local management by providing useful information to direct cities toward a more sustainable development trajectory.