Collective Action In Response Research Articles

Legitimacy and place leadership: responding to and recovering from disruption in regional soft spaces

ABSTRACT This article explores through interviews the influence of legitimacy on place leadership within regional soft spaces in England during the COVID-19 pandemic. Legitimacy is an important yet underexamined facet of place leadership. Employing a tripartite legitimacy framework – input, throughput and output legitimacy – we illuminate novel insights on the nature of legitimacy relationships at different boundaries of regional soft spaces and how they shape place leadership over time in a changing context. We further argue that political astuteness is vital for multi-hatting leaders within regional soft spaces to enable cross-boundary mobilisation for collective action in response and recovery from disruption.

Educating the temporal imagination: Teaching time for justice in a warming world

Climate change has been called both a ‘slow emergency’ and an ‘urgent crisis’, it creates tensions between human and non-human temporalities, it asks some communities to ‘speed up’ and demands others slow down, and requires choices between present needs, historical responsibilities and future consequences. If students are to understand and confront climate (in)justice, then a ‘temporal imagination’ (Adam, 1998) is required that is alert to the ways that time is central to the politics of a warming world. This paper therefore explores how ‘teaching time’ can support the awareness of and attention to (in)justice. The paper discusses the limits of current approaches to teaching time in education and explores a range of practices for developing ‘temporal attunement’ (Jensen, 2023) that can be found in public arts, Indigenous education, educational philosophy, futures studies and decolonial praxis. It maps out five temporal educational practices of: relational time; rhythm; anticipation and reparation; temporal suspension; and critical time keeping. It argues that these practices can be put into dialogue as a basis for a ‘temporal pedagogy’ that comprises three moves: interruption (of habitual and dominant temporal frames and their production of injustice), attention (to the latent, situated, plural timings and rhythms of the situation), and encounter (through invitations to judgement about the temporal practices that should govern more just collective action in response to climate change). It concludes by working through an example of how such a pedagogy might be deployed to negotiate the conflicting temporalities of socio-ecological change.

Climate change resilience and social capital: Insights from informal urban neighbourhoods in Kumasi, Ghana

This research addresses the pressing need to strengthen climate change resilience of the urban poor living in informal settlements by leveraging social capital - skills and networks. This research builds upon existing works to understand how social skills and networks contribute to building climate resilience in two informal settlements of Kumasi, noted to have diverse and strong community skills and networks. Through a qualitative research approach encompassing household surveys and focus group discussions, we gathered data from residents of Aboabo and Asawase, two of Ghana's largest informal neighbourhoods in Kumasi. We observed a strong presence of social bonding among the residents, characterized by tight-knit networks and reciprocal relationships. This form of social capital played a critical role in facilitating information sharing, resource pooling, and collective action in response to climate hazards. Despite limited government support, residents demonstrated a remarkable capacity for self-organization and community resilience-building, leveraging their social ties and local knowledge to address climate-related risks. However, we identified that the insular nature of these networks may hinder the inclusion of marginalized or vulnerable groups within the community, potentially exacerbating existing inequalities in climate resilience outcomes. These findings highlight the implications of our research for policy and practice, emphasizing the need for inclusive and participatory approaches and multi-scalar responses that involve local, national, regional, and global actors to climate resilience in informal settlements.

Application of empathy theory in the study of the effectiveness and timeliness of information dissemination in regional public health events.

This study examines the role of empathy theory in enhancing the effectiveness and timeliness of information dissemination during regional public health events, with a focus on the SARS and COVID-19 pandemics as case studies. Utilizing an anthropological interview method, the research delves into the public's transformation from passive recipients to active participants in information dissemination, emphasizing the impact of empathy. The study aims to evaluate the application of empathy theory in the context of public health emergencies and to determine its influence on the quality of information dissemination and public engagement. The research involved two distinct surveys, each collecting 50 questionnaires from participants in different regions, to capture a diverse range of perspectives. The surveys assessed participants' views on information dissemination, their levels of empathy, and their behaviors in receiving and sharing health-related information. The findings indicate that empathy plays a crucial role in facilitating the active involvement of the public in information dissemination. There is a notable difference in the public's emotional response and information sharing behaviors between regions with direct experience of the health events and those less affected. The study concludes that empathy theory, when applied to information dissemination during public health emergencies, can significantly improve the public's engagement and the overall effectiveness of communication strategies. The results underscore the need for empathetic communication to foster a sense of solidarity and collective action in response to public health crises.

The 2030 Agenda in Uruguay: critical aspects of its implementation during the period 2015-2020

We are facing a time of multidimensional crisis that demands new policy responses that place sustainable development at the centre. The 2030 Agenda was born in 2015 as a framework for collective action in response to the challenge of the multidimensional crisis, with the aim of serving as a guide for all countries to move towards sustainable development. This article addresses this challenge by studying the implementation of the 2030 Agenda in Uruguay between 2015 and 2020. It analyses the deployment of this agenda with reference to six critical areas for the success of the 2030 Agenda: the visions and narratives of the agenda, the institutional framework, the strategic vision, coordination and coherence between actors, the role of civil society and the specific instruments for its implementation. The article focuses on the strengths and weaknesses of this process, highlighting the excessive focus on the dynamics of technocratisation and accountability that can undermine efforts for achieving sustainable development.

The Politics of Doulas: Black Feminist Collective Action in Response to “Birthing While Black”

AbstractA central function of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement in the United States has been to center and express the lived experiences of Black people within the social and political framework of white supremacy. Regarding reproductive justice, BLM, as well as organizations like the Black Mamas Matter Alliance and Sistersong, have drawn political attention to the oppressive parameters existing for pregnant people “birthing while Black.” Attention to disparities in health and birth outcomes for Black persons has necessary positive effects, such as the ability to produce data on the deleterious effects of anti-Blackness. However, discourses surrounding Black birthing persons can function to obfuscate the collective action undertaken by Black women and non-Black women of color. In this paper, I argue the hyper-focus on the problems Black pregnant/birthing persons face has at least four issues: (1) it encourages an ontological collapse wherein Black birthers are positioned as problems, rather than human beings facing problems; (2) obscures the collective action and care Black women undertake to support one another; (3) results in state solutions that rely on underpaid and volunteer labor of Black and non-Black women of color; and (4) focuses myopically on the time period of pregnancy and birthing for Black persons.

Towards a Safe and Secure Global Information Technology Ecosystem

Cyberspace, an expanding and boundless platform created by a vast network of interconnected devices, has caused a fundamental change in communication, work, and information accessibility. The unprecedented potential of this platform, however, also poses major challenges in terms of privacy and security. Due to its multinational nature, cyberspace transcends the sovereignty of any one government and therefore evades exclusive ownership by a nation-state. Although the growth of digitalization has simplified many processes and increased productivity in daily life, this exponential growth has rendered the digital ecosystem more vulnerable to a wide range of cybersecurity threats. The increasing frequency and sophistication of cyberattacks and operations carried out by both state and non-state actors highlight the need for better international cooperation to help protect critical infrastructure from malicious actors. Collective action in response to global cyber threats requires consistency and adherence to ethical principles within the international community. Ethical approaches to leadership and international cooperation can play an important part in resolving global cybersecurity issues by paving the way for the development and adoption of better and more effective cybersecurity policies that can help mitigate the risk more optimally. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the possibilities of bolstering global solidarity via the use of ethical methods to combat the challenges posed by digital technology. The intricate and interconnected nature of cyber issues underscores the cruciality of ethical governance in the identification and implementation of practical solutions. The present study seeks to examine and assess the practicality, applicability, and efficiency of various ethical frameworks in addressing issues pertaining to digital platforms, thereby contributing to a better understanding of the interplay between ethics and cybersecurity. This study would contribute to the development of strategies for inspiring ethical and responsible behavior from public and private sectors regarding cybersecurity, and to the promotion of international solidarity and cooperation in addressing global cyber threats.

Research Paper on Security Threats from Temperature Changes Occurrence by using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)

In the past, climate change has been a significant problem all over the world; nonetheless, it has been challenging to mobilize collective action in response to the problem. In spite of the knowledge that climate change is a threat to our species as well as the life that already exists on our planet, this continues to be the case. The researchers who have looked into this phenomenon have come to the conclusion that effective communication regarding climate change is predicated on messages that are both emotionally charged and personally meaningful, and that pictures, in particular, are essential in order to generate awareness and concern about the subject. In spite of the widespread belief that this is the case, the majority of the conventional modes of communication that professionals employ when interacting with members of the general public are frequently founded on discoveries made in the scientific community. These studies, on the other hand, typically fail to convey either the urgency or the relevance of this huge occurrence. Utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning Is the Purpose of Our Report So That We Can Help Bridge This Gap And Build A Tool To Promote Awareness About The Effects Of Climate Change The purpose of our report is to use AI and ML so that we can help bridge this gap and build a tool to promote (ML).

Death of a child, birth of a guild: Factors aiding the rapid formation of online support communities

In this article, we examine how a loosely knit, mediated community in the massively multiplayer online game EverQuest II rapidly coalesced to carry out collective action in response to a request to help a terminally ill child. We examine the factors that motivated hundreds of people to donate their time, expertise, and in-game resources to people they had never met. These factors included specific affordances of the many technologies relied upon, the emotional weight and urgency of the initial post, both trusted and well-connected actors in the network, and a sense of belonging to the greater community by many of those who helped. Furthering our knowledge on how rituals surrounding death and mourning work in digital networks can provide insights into the continued health of online communities in general.

Covid-19 Salgınında Çok Taraflılık ve ABD Liderliği Sorunu

The COVID-19 pandemic has had major implications on the global economy, international politics and societies. Even though the pandemic is a global issue, states have turned inwards, proposed national solutions and have failed to coordinate a global response. The United States, as the predominant global power with its leading material capabilities has been expected to lead collective international effort and to solve collective action problems during the current pandemic. However, the Trump administration has been showing a lack of global leadership. Drawing on theories of hegemonic leadership and Hegemonic Stability Theory, this article focuses on the global role has been played by the United States during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Whereas classical realism emphasizes that national interests are determinant of states’ foreign policies, dominant powers have responsibilities beyond their nations. The pandemic demands the dominant power to bear the main responsibility and lead a collective response to mitigate impacts of COVID-19. Based on this claim, this paper argues that U.S President Donald Trump’s America First approach failed the United States to commit to multilateralism and to organize a collective action in response to the pandemic which in turn has put U.S. global leadership at stake.

Gender roles in Nigeria’s non-violent oil resistance movement

ABSTRACT Since the 1980s, Nigerians have engaged in non-violent protests against oil exploitation polluting their lands. This qualitative case study asks why Niger Delta women came to engage in seemingly separate, all-female protests starting in 2002, mobilizing in a long-standing resistance previously led by men. Using grounded theory methods, this multi-site ethnography draws on one-on-one interviews, participant observations, and university and non-governmental organization archival data. It finds that although women were indeed aggrieved by oil, their protests from 2002 to 2012 did not emerge autonomously from those of men, as described in scholarship elsewhere. Rather, these findings indicate that male elites may have had a role in initiating women’s collective action in response to their own failed prior negotiations, to increase the number of protesters, and to bolster men’s dialogue. This study provides a nuanced corrective to the Niger Delta narrative and expands our understanding of gender dynamics in social movements.

“We Are All Broncos”: Hockey, Tragedy, and the Formation of Canadian Identity

There exists a broad body of scholarly work that focuses on how communities, and individuals therein, mobilize, respond, and harvest collective action in response to tragedy. Despite this interest, there remains a dearth of empirical investigation into the complex intersections of tragedy, sport, and community. Utilizing qualitative approaches to discourse analysis and quantitative measures of sentiment, semantic, and content analysis of news media articles (n = 151) and public tweets (n = 126,393), this paper explores the ways in which public responses to the 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash present a relatively narrow representation of both Canadian and local Prairie identity. We conclude with a discussion of some of the implications of collective action in response to specific forms of tragedy.

El organizar espontáneo: narrativas de los vecinos de Nueva Córdoba ante situaciones amenazantes

Situations of tension and social chaos are extremely unfortunate; however, they offer opportunities to contribute to organizational studies. In this paper, through the analysis of a particular case, we study how the process of organizing between neighbors is originated in one of the most significant neighborhood in Cordoba- Argentina. Through narratives in their spontaneous interaction, neighbors enacted a collective action in response to threatening events they faced.

Collective Action in Response to Microaggression: Implications for Social Well-Being

Discrimination towards various minority groups can now be found to have subtler manifestations. These forms can be described as microaggressions—the brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioural and environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, which communicate hostile, derogatory or negative racial slights and insults to the target person or group (Sue et al. in Am Psychol 62(4):271–286, 2007). In order to delineate the process involved in the tendency to act in response to perceived discrimination, researchers have distinguished two distinct routes: an emotional route which explores the role of anger in response to injustice in triggering action and an efficacy route where the conviction that problems can be solved collectively motivates group members to act against discrimination (Van Zomeren et al. in J Personal Soc Psychol 87(5):649–664, 2004). The present research adopts and extends this model to explore how Northeasterners in Delhi respond to microaggression experiences and further what implication this has for their social well-being. Not just in Delhi, but all over the country Northeasterners face prejudice due to their looks and different lifestyle. However, the concerns of this group have not been the focus of much academic research. Two hundred and fourteen (109 females; 105 males) Northeasterners residing in Delhi for a minimum of 1 year at the time of the study in the age group of 19–31 years took part in this research. Results provide evidence for the emotional pathway. The results are discussed in the light of existing work on discrimination, collective action and social well-being as well as the unique context of Northeasterners in Delhi.

Collective action, mobility, and shared struggles: how the so-called model minority can come to deny the myth

The model minority remains one of the most durable images assigned to immigrant groups despite ample critiques of it. Those persons considered to be a model minority often promulgate the myth themselves. Common arguments against the stereotype do not effectively speak to these people. In this article I demonstrate the disconnect between the critiques of the stereotype and the views of Indian American professionals, a group widely considered to be a model minority. I then offer an alternative approach to dismantling the stereotype that can resonate more with those invested in it. This approach highlights groups’ history of collective action in response to racialised and class obstacles. Three case studies illustrate this approach: study of Indian American motel owners, of physicians, and of taxi drivers. Taxi drivers are thought to be on the opposite end of the model minority binary than doctors and successful motel owners. The case studies highlight the grassroots activism shared by all three groups.

Emergent Leadership in Extreme Events: A Knowledge Commons for Sustainable Communities

Extreme events create extraordinary demands on public managers, particularly at national and international scales of operation. The rapid escalation of demand in contexts of urgent need, scarce resources, and cascading, interdependent consequences challenges the physical, intellectual, technical, and social skills of public managers in profound ways, with high potential for failure at sobering costs. We examine this process of evolving leadership in two different disaster contexts, Haiti and Japan, and conclude that developing a “knowledge commons” or interactive information infrastructure offers a constructive means of improving decision processes for public managers by engaging a wider exchange of knowledge and skills in situations of deep uncertainty. Timely, valid information becomes the key resource in mobilizing collective action in response to disaster in both developed and developing countries.

Land expropriation and displacement in Bangladesh

This paper examines land grabbing in Bangladesh and views such seizures through the lens of displacement and land encroachment. Two different but potentially interacting displacement processes are examined. The first, the char riverine and coastal sediment regions that are in a constant state of formation and erosion, are contested sites ripe for power plays that uproot small producers on their rich alluvial soils. The second examines new patterns of land capture by elites who engage gangs, corrupted public servants and the military to coerce small producers into relinquishing titles to their ever more valuable lands in and near urban areas. These historically specific and contingent land grabs draw attention to in situ displacement, where people may remain in place or experience a prolonged multi-stage process of removal. This contrasts with ex situ displacement, a decisive expulsion of people from their homes, communities and livelihoods. In both the char and peri-urban case, we signal new forms of collective action in response to involuntary alienation of land resources in a rapidly and violently transforming political economy. We conclude with a caution against naturalizing displacement, casting it as an ‘inevitable’ consequence of changing weather conditions in the former and population dynamics in the latter.

The International Energy Agency in Global Energy Governance

Abstract The International Energy Agency (IEA) is the organization that, despite its constrained membership, is as close as the world currently comes to a global focal point on the key energy governance arenas. Although when the IEA was established in the 1970s it had the specific and limited purpose of enabling the world’s leading oil consumers to undertake collective action in response to oil supply shocks, it now finds itself at the center of many of the key developments in global energy governance. Its evolution and current challenges reflect the key themes of this special issue: the competition between state and market, the emergence of multipolarity, the particular growing importance of Asia and the rise of climate change on the agenda of key tasks needing governance. The article focuses on where the agency now fits in the larger global energy governance panoply. Policy Implications • The IEA’s highly successful partnership with the G8 will not easily extend to the G20, given the latter’s much more diverse membership and interests. Both the IEA and the G20 governments should look to the experience of the G8’s ‘tasking’ of the IEA for ideas about how to advance the G20 agenda on energy. • The IEA’s governing board should systematically assess the agency’s role as a linchpin in a variety of energy-related regimes and consider how to ensure that the IEA is adequately resourced so that it can fill these multiple roles. • The IEA’s affiliation with the OECD should be reassessed to facilitate the agency’s engagement with major emerging oil consumers, particularly India and China.

The determinants of vulnerability and adaptive capacity at the municipal level: Evidence from floodplain management programs in the United States

This article provides a quantitative test of the relationship between adaptive capacity and socio-economic status (SES) at the municipal level. Local participation in a U.S. floodplain management program, the Community Rating System (CRS), is used as an indicator of adaptive capacity. The relationship between aggregated measures of SES and CRS participation is tested using probit, OLS and tobit models. The analysis indicates that socio-economic characteristics of a municipality's population are associated with the capacity of municipal leaders to effect collective action in response to environmental challenges. More theoretical work and case studies are needed to fully explain the reasons for this association.

The Social Construction of Welfare Control

This article aims to track and examine the social construction of state—voluntary sector relationships in the mixed economy of welfare in Korea. Against the prevailing perception that welfare contributions of Korean voluntary organizations began with the emergence of civil society in the democratization period of the late 1980s, it is claimed that the Korean welfare system has always contained a mixture of welfare providers, in which the state and the voluntary sector have played different parts at different historical junctures, even if the power balance between the two sectors has been challenged and changed over time. The main analytical tools are based on the historical institutionalist approach with an emphasis on both how the state controlled and regulated the voluntary sector through institutional adaptations, and how the voluntary sector marshalled its collective action in response to state intervention. It is concluded that the historiography of the Korean welfare system can be rewritten by varying but subsequent phases of social control, which are socially constructed by the different combinations of political and economic power between the state and the voluntary sector: legitimization, mobilization, cooptation and accommodation.