Common Policy Research Articles

Historical and legal characteristics of the Act of Unity of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic and its state-building potential

The article is devoted to the study of the prerequisites and procedural aspects of the conclusion of the Act of Unity of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic on January 22, 1919, which was the culmination of centuries-old efforts of Ukrainians to unite their historical national lands within the boundaries of a single sovereign and independent state of Ukraine. The process of affirming the unity of the Ukrainian lands historically began with the search for support for the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic among the political elites of Trans-Dnieper Ukraine. The pre-accession agreement concluded between representatives of the Western Ukrainian political elite and the newly formed Directorate of the Ukrainian People’s Republic provided for the procedure for ratifying the union of the two parts of Ukraine. The aspirations of Western Ukrainian People’s Republic representatives regarding equal representation in the highest bodies of state administration, which they previously discussed with the Management, were not realized. In fact, the Directory recognizes the autonomous status of Western Ukrainian People’s Republic as one of the regions of Ukraine under the name Western Region of the Ukrainian People’s Republic. The management of the Directory was aware of the declarative nature of the connection. The paradigm of the historical perspective and parallels through the centuries brings us back to the need to constantly study the strengths and positive experiences of the past, study mistakes in order to avoid them in the future. The period of Ukrainian national development studied in the article went through many difficult trials, but this encouraged Ukrainians to raise national liberation ideas to a new level - awareness of the need for national and territorial unity. The leaders of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and Western Ukrainian People’s Republic failed to realize the positive aspirations that were laid down in their positive movement towards the unity of the state. The main drawback was that the main institutions of power of the Ukrainian People’s Republic remained formed according to the imperial model. There was a lack of professional and at the same time nationally conscious personnel. An important historical experience of the relationship between the two parts of Ukraine, which must be taken into account in the current conditions of Ukraine, is the development of a common national policy, the vector of which is national interests, sovereignty and protection of the independence and territorial integrity of the state.

Common policies of the European Union

Common policies of the European Union

A roadmap to reduce the risk of overexploiting EU marine living resources in a changing ocean

We provide a balanced overview of how risk assessment and management is being tackled in the European Union (EU) and beyond to address the challenges of overexploiting marine living resources in EU waters. We aim to guide EU fisheries and aquaculture policymakers towards key actions to foster the transition to responsible, sustainable, clean energy, and resilient fisheries and aquaculture sectors, aligning with EU environmental objectives under the European Green Deal and the Common Fisheries Policy. Despite progress in reducing fishing pressure on some stocks in recent years, most of the stated (single-stock) sustainability objectives still need to be met. The risk of overexploiting marine resources remains high, especially when combined with other pressures such as pollution and climate change. Risk is defined as the probability of an adverse event arising from natural or human activities and excessive pressures. Scientists have documented these pressures, proposing regional risk assessments to support adequate risk-based management of human activities impacting marine and coastal regions. As a next step, we recall actionable short- to long-term recommendations to reduce the risks associated with exploiting these natural resources and ensure their sustainability and resilience. This includes actions the EU can take to improve and implement fisheries policy while prioritising less harmful alternatives among current fishing methods and considering the three pillars of sustainability i.e. environmental, economic and social. Such actions include capturing in scientific advice the strong, causal links between pressures induced by human activities, natural disturbances and ecosystem states; such understanding can be used in an uncertain and changing environment, with ocean productivity possibly trending towards new levels. Finally, we restate that conserving by reducing pressures and restoring the integrity of marine ecosystems is crucial for minimising the risk of overexploitation and ensuring future fishing and farming opportunities. This is the aim of an Ecosystem Approach to fisheries and aquaculture – it should safeguard the long-term economic and social capital already invested by the public and private sectors in exploiting marine living resources to continue delivering healthy, low-carbon, low-impact seafood to EU citizens and beyond.

К ВОПРОСАМ О ДУХОВНОЙ КУЛЬТУРЕ В СЕВЕРОКИТАЙСКОЙ ПРОВИНЦИИ МАНЧЖУРИИ В НАЧАЛЕ XX в.

The paper touches on the processes of formation of the Russian population on the border territory of North-East China in the exclusion zone of the Chinese Eastern Railway, and reveals aspects of spiritual culture. The main emphasis is on creating a religiously tolerant environment for settlers in Manchuria, which was a common policy for the entire population of the Far Eastern Region. Particular attention is paid to Baptists, which took an active position in the Far East. Research is based on a wide range of sources, archival funds, personal archives, newspaper articles, research and general scientific literature. Some aspects of the work of Protestant missionaries are reflected only in confessional sources (in the books of V.I. Franchuk, Y.F. Sablin, G.P. Vince). Historical-systemic, comparative chronological, statistical and other methods made it possible to examine part of the spiritual culture in the designated area. The article examines aspects of the spread of evangelical doctrine at the beginning of the 20th century. As a result of the active work of Baptist churches and missionaries, the Far Eastern Union of Baptists (FEBL) was formed, which extended its activities to the border areas. Foreign missions provided personnel and financial support to fellow believers, this contributed to the spread of the gospel message in the 10s of the 20th century, but by the end of the 20s and 30s the situation had changed, and cooperation with foreign organizations was unfavorable. According to the author, the activities of the Manchu Baptist communities were closely connected with the Russian Far East, on the territory of which the governing body of the DVSB was located (initially in Blagoveshchensk, and then in Khabarovsk). The adherents of Evangelical Christian Baptists were mostly Russian-speaking, but work was also carried out with the Chinese population. In turn, the Far Eastern Union of Baptists, through the territory of Northern China, had the opportunity to more quickly and without control receive various types of assistance from European and American churches: funds and spiritual literature for the development of missionary activities.

Content comparison of campus medical amnesty policies

Objective: To describe common components of medical amnesty (MA) policies and examine how MA policies differ across institutions. Participants: 50 U.S. colleges and universities with current MA policies. Methods: A checklist was developed to compare and assess the campus MA policies of 50 institutions. Descriptive statistics, chi-square, and regression analyses were used to examine common policy components and differences across types of institutions. Results: 40% of policies did not include a purpose statement. 42% of policies had no mention about how to use the policy. 48% did not mention restrictions on amnesty. 32% did not mention follow-up actions. 24% of policies mentioned extending amnesty for additional person(s) present. There were no significant differences in policy components across school characteristics. Conclusions: Many policies lacked detail, highlighting the need for guidelines and best practices to develop MA policies. Future research could examine the effects of these policy components on help seeking intentions.

The misperception of organizational racial progress toward diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Despite a checkered racial history, people in the United States generally believe the nation has made steady, incremental progress toward achieving racial equality. In this article, we investigate whether this U.S. racial progress narrative will extend to how the workforce views the effectiveness of organizational efforts surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion. Across three studies (N = 1,776), we test whether Black and White U.S. workers overestimate organizational racial progress in executive representation. We also examine whether these misperceptions, surrounding organizational progress, drive misunderstandings regarding the relative ineffectiveness of common organizational diversity policies. Overall, we find evidence that U.S. workers largely overestimate organizational racial progress, believe that organizational progress will naturally improve over time, and that these misperceptions of organizational racial progress may drive beliefs in the effectiveness of diversity, equity, and inclusion policies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Diversity Balance in Centralized Public School Admissions

Parental choice over public schools has become a major educational reform throughout the United States and the world. Most district policies are implemented via admission priorities. Diversity in admissions is a common policy goal. However, it necessitates the violation of some priorities. We develop an axiomatic theory for meeting diversity objectives with a reserves system. We axiomatize the trade-off between diversity and priorities. We characterize the solution that uniquely and optimally achieves the diversity objectives via reserves by minimizing priority violations. The choice rule corresponds to a simple and natural implementation of application orders in a reserves system.

FINANCING THE DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS AND EXPERIENCE FOR UKRAINE

Current trends in the development of agricultural production necessitate the attraction of additional financial resources to finance the agricultural sector, which are specific to each national economy. The article examines the priority directions of development of the mechanism for financing agricultural production in Ukraine in the context of current trends in the implementation of the common agricultural policy in Europe. A comparative analysis of the mechanism of additional financing of agricultural production in the EU countries was carried out in the implementation of the common agricultural policy. Clustering of European countries was carried out while taking into account the existence of patterns in the agricultural market and it was confirmed that these patterns do not determine the features and volumes of additional financing of agricultural production. The existence of twelve possible types of markets of agricultural products in European countries is determined and the existence in practice of six of them is confirmed. It is determined that there are significant violations in the policy of convergence of financing of the agricultural sector declared by the OAP, which confirms the need to reform the Common Agricultural Policy of European countries in the direction of greater compliance with the national problems of the European agricultural sector.It has been determined that there is a specific list of development problems that is not repeated for any of the European countries for the agricultural sector of Ukraine, and its own type of agricultural market has been formed, which also has no correspondence. The article focuses on the need to form in Ukraine a specific mechanism of additional financing of agricultural production, taking into account the problems of development of the national agricultural sector and in the context of the Common Agrarian Policy of the Economic Community, its priorities and direction of reform.

Marilena Koppa. The Evolution of the Common Security and Defence Policy: Critical Junctures and the Quest for EU Strategic Autonomy

Marilena Koppa. The Evolution of the Common Security and Defence Policy: Critical Junctures and the Quest for EU Strategic Autonomy. St Antony’s Series. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2022 // https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-99158-6.

A Common Ground Gun Violence Prevention Policy Package.

In 2022 we conducted a literature review, surveyed 1078 gun owners, and conducted post-survey focus groups and interviews of gun owners and non-gun owners, to determine a common ground gun violence prevention (GVP) policy package. This allowed us to see policies that would save lives and be widely accepted: (1) violent misdemeanor laws, (2) state permit laws, combined with universal background checks; (3) red flag laws. Based on our review of relevant research, we conservatively estimate that in states without any of the policy package components, implementing this package would result in a 27.9% reduction in firearm deaths. We believe that polarization between firearm owners and non-firearm owners, which has thwarted a widely supported response to the problem of gun violence, is largely a harmful myth that can be overcome by including gun owners in the process of fashioning an effective policy approach.

The conundrum of sustainable fishery: fishers’ experiences of the exclusionary processes of the EU Common Fisheries Policy

This study delves into the effects of the European Union's (EU) quota-based regulations on fishers’ access to marine resources, focusing on the experiences of fishers from North Shields, UK. Employing Hall, Hirsch, and Li's framework of powers of exclusion, this study examines how fishers experience evolving access to sea resources within the EU CFP. The findings illuminate the intricate interplay of regulatory, market, and legitimization powers, which drive exclusionary processes and profoundly influence fishers' access to resources and livelihoods. Importantly, this research underscores the necessity of comprehending the complex dynamics of exclusion within quota-based fisheries management, particularity within the unique socio-cultural contexts of fishing communities. Based on this research, further investigation into the socio-cultural dimensions of fishing is advocated to foster more inclusive policies and practices in fisheries management.

A Scalable Pseudonymization Tool for Rapid Deployment in Large Biomedical Research Networks: Development and Evaluation Study.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has demonstrated once again that rapid collaborative research is essential for the future of biomedicine. Large research networks are needed to collect, share, and reuse data and biosamples to generate collaborative evidence. However, setting up such networks is often complex and time-consuming, as common tools and policies are needed to ensure interoperability and the required flows of data and samples, especially for handling personal data and the associated data protection issues. In biomedical research, pseudonymization detaches directly identifying details from biomedical data and biosamples and connects them using secure identifiers, the so-called pseudonyms. This protects privacy by design but allows the necessary linkage and reidentification. Although pseudonymization is used in almost every biomedical study, there are currently no pseudonymization tools that can be rapidly deployed across many institutions. Moreover, using centralized services is often not possible, for example, when data are reused and consent for this type of data processing is lacking. We present the ORCHESTRA Pseudonymization Tool (OPT), developed under the umbrella of the ORCHESTRA consortium, which faced exactly these challenges when it came to rapidly establishing a large-scale research network in the context of the rapid pandemic response in Europe. To overcome challenges caused by the heterogeneity of IT infrastructures across institutions, the OPT was developed based on programmable runtime environments available at practically every institution: office suites. The software is highly configurable and provides many features, from subject and biosample registration to record linkage and the printing of machine-readable codes for labeling biosample tubes. Special care has been taken to ensure that the algorithms implemented are efficient so that the OPT can be used to pseudonymize large data sets, which we demonstrate through a comprehensive evaluation. The OPT is available for Microsoft Office and LibreOffice, so it can be deployed on Windows, Linux, and MacOS. It provides multiuser support and is configurable to meet the needs of different types of research projects. Within the ORCHESTRA research network, the OPT has been successfully deployed at 13 institutions in 11 countries in Europe and beyond. As of June 2023, the software manages data about more than 30,000 subjects and 15,000 biosamples. Over 10,000 labels have been printed. The results of our experimental evaluation show that the OPT offers practical response times for all major functionalities, pseudonymizing 100,000 subjects in 10 seconds using Microsoft Excel and in 54 seconds using LibreOffice. Innovative solutions are needed to make the process of establishing large research networks more efficient. The OPT, which leverages the runtime environment of common office suites, can be used to rapidly deploy pseudonymization and biosample management capabilities across research networks. The tool is highly configurable and available as open-source software.

Withdrawn —Administrative Duplicate Publication— Judicial review of Common Foreign and Security Policy by the ECtHR and the (re)negotiation on the accession of the EU to the ECHR

Withdrawn —Administrative Duplicate Publication— Judicial review of Common Foreign and Security Policy by the ECtHR and the (re)negotiation on the accession of the EU to the ECHR

Differentiated Integration in the EU Regarding the Migration Crisis: Disputes Between the Member States

The European Union (EU) has been challenged by several crises lately. In addition to Brexit, the Euro crisis, and the migration crisis; global issues such as the coronavirus pandemic and the Russian attack on Ukraine affected the EU. The migration crisis, on the one hand, differs from the above-mentioned crises with one remarkable feature. The member states have no real consensus about forming a common migration policy. Besides, for geographic reasons, some member states put much more burden on immigrants. Agreeing on immigration becomes impossible for the border countries on the migration route and also transit countries. The paper argues that, unlike the other crises of the EU, the migration crisis reinforces EU integration in such a way that disputes between member states prevent the EU from making institutional changes about the issue. The study results assume that the other above-mentioned crises, on the other hand, stimulated institutional change throughout the EU. In light of this information, this study evaluates, using a method of relevant literature review and comparing the arguments of the researchers, how the migration issue became a subject of dispute between member states by evaluating the 2015 crisis.

Assessing the choice of smoke-free policies for multiunit housing and its associated determinants in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study

ObjectivesThis study aimed to assess the desire for smoke-free housing, determine the choice of smoke-free policies for multiunit housing (MUH), and identify the factors associated with policy choice among MUH...

Trends, main economic determinants of the e-mobility in the EU: Additional evidence and verification

The adoption of e-mobility in the countries of the European Union shows significant differences in terms of dynamics of electric car sales and in terms of differences in the share of electric cars in the total fleet of passenger cars in individual Member states. Despite the common European policy of transition to less emission-intensive car drives, the economic performance of countries, as well as other determinants, turn out to be the key drivers of differences in the sales and shares of electric cars on the car fleet within individual countries. In light of these findings, the paper contributes to the existing discussion and knowledge with additional recent findings and how intensive main consensual factors cause differences in the recent electric cars market shares in the EU countries.

Does government spending cointegrate with bank lending? Evidence from Eurozone panel data

PurposeOur purpose is the examination of the effects of fiscal policy on private lending for the Eurozone countries. The emphasis is on the identification of the time path of government spending and bank lending.Design/methodology/approachFiscal policy is a main factor of macroeconomic stability for the euro area economy. This paper, investigates the impact of government spending on bank lending. For this reason, we present a dynamic theoretical model with a perfectly competitive banking sector, estimated using panel cointegration for the Eurozone countries from 2000Q1 to 2022Q2.FindingsOur findings highlight that, in the long run, consistent management of government spending can have a beneficial multiplicative impact on bank lending for housing and business reasons. This finding is stronger in magnitude for business versus housing lending. The high level of homogeneity of our results across Eurozone countries has positive implications for a common fiscal policy in the future. Finally, authorities should know that policy adjustments are quicker in housing lending when compared to business lending.Originality/valueIn this paper, we contribute to the existing literature, concentrating on the investigation of any existence of long-run and short-run relationships between government spending and bank lending. Additionally, our analysis allows one to investigate the contribution of each Eurozone member state in the short-run and long-run model’s dynamics, providing significant outcomes for the implementation of economic policy and the need for fiscal discipline in the Eurozone.

Us and Ours

Abstract: In this work, we investigate how parochial concerns for common resources, such as tax-funded goods, relate to prejudice against immigrants. Previous experimental work showed majority groups assume minorities will exploit common resources without contributing toward their maintenance. We relate predictions about, and support for, various types of common resources to prejudice against immigrants in two correlational studies. Prejudice against immigrants was negatively associated with support for universal, but positively with security-related resources. Participants' prediction that minority groups would contribute less to the management of communally shared resources was reflected in the degree of negative attitudes they expressed against immigrants in particular. We discuss these results in view of political narratives about immigrants and common resource management policies.

Smart life and sustainable development: a comparative analysis on energy and water efficiency in China and the EU

Smart life relies on huge volumes of data analysis, which makes data centers become important infrastructure in smart city areas. Nowadays, data centers are constructed in many countries and have become increasingly large electricity consumers. The consumption of electricity is caused not only by the servers of data centers but also by the cooling systems. Meanwhile, data centers also demand water - cooling methods, which result in water consumption. As for sustainable development, water and energy consumption are huge challenges. Laws and rules are necessary for utilizing efficiently relevant sources. This paper will analyze China and the European Union (EU) as two examples of jurisdictions to compare how the governments regulate the construction of data centers to implement the thrift of electricity and water. In China, provinces and cities established diverse regulations based on their different natural and climate conditions, thus there is not a uniform model for the implementation in the country. In the EU, the amendment of Energy Efficiency Directive seeks to establish common policies. The difference of rules in these two jurisdictions reflects that China and the EU have their own principles and objectives: China attempts to balance the demand of developing smart city infrastructures and the consumption on natural resources, but the EU has strong ambition on low carbon emission in the whole Union. However, the two jurisdictions still have a common goal to maximize the efficiency of water and electricity consumption which is a fundamental issue for accelerating the transition towards sustainability.

Fishing Rights Procedure at the European Court of Human Rights: Spasov v Romania

In recent years, it has increasingly been recognized that work at sea often raises questions concerning the protection of human rights. This is also the case in the context of fishing. While human rights issues on commercial fishing vessels are gaining attention, fishing activities of individuals and small crews are also connected to human rights—for example, regarding the implementation of fisheries policies. In December 2022, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruled in the case of a fisherman from Bulgaria who had worked in Romania’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the Black Sea. Bulgaria and Romania are both members of the European Union (EU), and the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) applied to the applicant’s work. He alleged that Romania implemented the CFP incorrectly and, in doing so, violated his human rights. This article analyzes the case of Spasov v Romania, which, as of late 2023, is available on the ECtHR’s website in French. The core issues of the case are placed in the context of the CFP and the relationship between the EU and the ECHR. It will be shown that the ECHR remains a potent tool for the protection of human rights at sea as well, including in the EEZ, where the coastal State exercises jurisdiction within the meaning of Article 1 ECHR.