Systemic Crisis Research Articles

Reimaging, reallocating, and repositioning organizational resources with the inclusion of employee-centered CSR for organizational resilience

Background The COVID-19 pandemic being a systemic crisis shocked the world and underscored the critical need for organizations to reimagine, reallocate, and reposition their resources to ensure survival and resilience. An organization’s resources, particularly human capital, are crucial elements of its success and adaptability in the face of such challenges. The difficulties in obtaining external assistance during the pandemic have further highlighted the importance of innovative strategies like employee-centered CSR (ECCSR) in managing and optimizing organizational resources. Recent studies emphasize the strategic role of ECCSR in bolstering resilience, with a focus on leveraging human capital effectively. Objective This study addresses several key objectives. First, it seeks to establish the interrelation between the four types of organizational resources (i.e., economic, human, physical, and social capital) and organizational resilience. It also aims to unveil the connection between employee-centered CSR (ECCSR) and organizational resilience, as well as to examine the relationship between ECCSR and workplace well-being. Additionally, the study investigates the link between workplace well-being and organizational resilience, and lastly, it explores the mediating role of workplace well-being between ECCSR and organizational resilience. Methods This study utilized a quantitative research design and employed a purposive sampling technique. The direct and indirect relationships among organizational resources, organizational resilience, ECCSR, and workplace well-being were analyzed using a variance-based structural equation modeling approach. Results The results revealed that among the four types of organizational resources, human capital is the most vital resource for organizational resilience. The findings also affirmed the emerging importance of ECCSR for organizational resilience, directly and indirectly through workplace well-being. Conclusions The study concludes that in times of crisis when organizations think outside the box by reimagining their situation and reallocating internal resources, such as human capital, they can buffer external shocks. This approach enables organizations to reposition themselves to withstand challenges and develop a strategic competitive advantage. Additionally, the study finds that the presence of ECCSR can cultivate positive employee well-being and organizations can benefit from the reciprocal gains that help them navigate difficult times more effectively. Implementing ECCSR not only fulfills an organization’s role as a responsible employer but also fosters workplace well-being, ultimately strengthening organizational resilience.

Disruptions and adaptations of an urban nutrition intervention delivering essential services for women and children during a major health system crisis in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Systematic crises may disrupt well-designed nutrition interventions. Continuing services requires understanding the intervention paths that have been disrupted and adapting as crises permit. Alive & Thrive developed an intervention to integrate nutrition services into urban antenatal care services in Dhaka, which started at the onset of COVID-19 and encountered extraordinary disruption of services. We investigated the disruptions and adaptations that occurred to continue the delivery of services for women and children and elucidated how the intervention team made those adaptations. We examined the intervention components planned and those implemented annotating the disruptions and adaptations. Subsequently, we detailed the intervention paths (capacity building, supportive supervision, demand generation, counselling services, and reporting, data management and performance review). We sorted out processes at the system, organizational, service delivery and individual levels on how the intervention team made the adaptations. Disruptions included decreased client load and demand for services, attrition of providers and intervention staff, key intervention activities becoming unfeasible and clients and providers facing challenges affecting utilization and provision of services. Adaptations included incorporating new guidance for the continuity of services, managing workforce turnover and incorporating remote modalities for all intervention components. The intervention adapted to continue by incorporating hybrid modalities including both original activities that were feasible and adapted activities. Amidst health system crises, the adapted intervention was successfully delivered. This knowledge of how to identify disruptions and adapt interventions during major crises is critical as Bangladesh and other countries face new threats (conflict, climate, economic downturns, inequities and epidemics).

“Planetary phase shift” as a new systems framework to navigate the evolutionary transformation of human civilisation

Purpose The paper aims to address a gap in foresight study and practice relating to the lack of unifying theoretical systems frameworks capable of examining empirical data from across a wide range of different ecological, social, political and economic systems. It attempts to develop a new “collective forward intelligence” that can not only make sense of these disparate trends and processes as symptoms of a wider planetary system but also, on this basis, construct accurate and plausible future scenarios to underpin national and international decision-making. Design/methodology/approach This study conducts a transdisciplinary integration of C. S. Holling’s adaptive cycle with phase-transition phenomena across biology, physics and chemistry, applied on societal and civilisational scales. A systems methodology is then applied to integrate historical and empirical data across the energy, food, transport, materials and information sectors of civilisation’s production system. Findings The paper develops planetary phase shift theory as a new collective forward intelligence framework for foresight study and practice, formalising the notion that humanity has arrived at an unprecedented historic and geological turning point. It finds that multiple global crises across both earth and human systems are symptoms of the last stages of the life-cycle of global industrialisation civilisation, which is the potential precursor either for collapse, or for a new civilisational life-cycle that may represent a new stage in the biological and cultural evolution of the human species. Research limitations/implications The research sets out a new empirically grounded theoretical framework for complex scenario analysis. This can develop more robust approaches to foresight study and practice, scenario development and forecasting. It suggests the need for a new research programme to understand the dynamics of the planetary phase shift and its diverse implications for societies, industry, technology and politics. The research is limited in that the current paper does not explore how it can be applied in this way. It identifies broad scenarios for a post-industrial civilisational life-cycle but does not identify the variety of complex subsets of these. Practical implications The paper provides powerful practical implications to develop new methodology based on planetary phase shift theory for strategic planning, risk assessment and management, as well as public policy and decision-making. Social implications The paper suggests the urgency and necessity of bold and radical societal transformation and implies key areas for civil society to focus on in innovating new values, worldviews and operating systems with a focus on the next life-cycle. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this paper provides the first integrated transdisciplinary theoretical and empirical framework to understand how the interplay of earth system crises, societal change and technology disruptions is driving large-scale civilisational transformation with complex local ramifications.

Risk sharing framework and systemic tolerance in Indian banks: Double layer network approach

Interconnectedness spreads systemic risk and is critical in enhancing banks’ systemic tolerance through interbank liquidity and lines of credit. Literature on systemic risk has not considered the importance of interconnectedness in providing liquidity to improve banks’ systemic tolerance. As a bank’s resistivity towards systemic disruption depends on its tolerance, the current article develops a model to measure the systemic tolerance of individual banks in a two-layer interbank network using ΔCoVaR. It estimates systemic tolerance distance through a risk-sharing framework and analyzes the significance of macroeconomic and bank-specific factors in explaining systemic tolerance. The results support that systemic tolerance values are higher during the down-cycle than the up-cycle, signaling the importance of interconnectedness in protecting against systemic crises. The empirics further substantiate that risk-sharing distance is lower, and structure is complex with clusters during economic down-cycle. This highlights that banks couple with each other during stressful environments and empirically validate the importance of interbank and lines of credit in enhancing systemic tolerance and, therefore, possess the regulator to develop a robust interbank market through regulatory guidelines.

ANALYSIS OF INTERNATIONAL LEGISLATION REGARDING REGULATION OF THE MANIFESTATIONS OF CORRUPTION IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

The article is devoted to the analysis of international legislation on the regulation of manifestations of corruption in public administration. The introductory part states that corruption affects all spheres of social life, contributes to the spread of organized crime, creates social tension, creates uncertainty among the population in the ability of the authorities to implement organizational and practical measures to overcome the systemic crisis and revive Ukraine. Various approaches to the interpretation of the concept of «corruption» have been presented, in particular that it is both a «struggle for obtaining the maximum benefit» and «a social evil that spreads a negative image, or public crimes that usually intensively spread a negative image and practices», or «abuse state powers to create personal benefits» etc. It is noted that developing countries are more susceptible to the influence of corruption for various reasons, including the following: total poverty and low wages in the public sector; the absence of any risk-sharing mechanisms, such as insurance and a developed market; opportunities provided by complex, ill-defined, constantly changing and inadequate rules and regulations; lack of properly established laws and principles. A number of different international acts (conventions) adopted to combat corruption in a strategically planned manner are analyzed. It was emphasized that the introduction of changes in the legislative sphere took place on the basis of global surveys. It was concluded that the process of systematic updating and analysis of the international legal field contributes to the development of capacity, and also establishes benchmarks for the effectiveness of public administration, which can be monitored and measured. In view of global achievements, there is a need to develop and adopt a national system of integrity, which will provide a basis for analyzing both the causes of corruption and the adequacy and effectiveness of anti-corruption reforms.

СТРАТЕГІЧНЕ ПЛАНУВАННЯ ЯК ОСНОВА ВПРОВАДЖЕННЯ ЕКОЛОГІЧНОЇ ВІДПОВІДАЛЬНОСТІ ПІДПРИЄМСТВ ІНДУСТРІЇ ГОСТИННОСТІ В УКРАЇНІ

The hospitality industry, which is experiencing a crisis in Ukraine, today needs transformation and greening of its own activities. The implementation of environmental responsibility of hospitality service providers is not just a condition for their competitiveness, but opens up a wide range of directions for the development of industry enterprises in future. The purpose of the research: to analyze the existing documents of medium and long-term planning at the regional level on individual examples, to determine promising directions for the formation of environmental responsibility of enterprises in the hospitality industry. The subject of the study: practical experience of planning and implementation of environmental responsibility among hospitality service providers at the regional level. Research methods: in the research process, general scientific and special methods of scientific knowledge were used, namely abstraction, induction and deduction, analogy and qualitative comparison, analysis of causes and consequences. Research hypothesis: the only way to ensure environmental responsibility in the field of hospitality is a conscious attitude of regional authorities and owners of enterprises providing hospitality services to existing environmental problems. The main results of the research: the analysis of publications by domestic and foreign scientists, as well as strategic and programmatic documents of regional development in Ukraine allowed to draw conclusions about the state of social responsibility in the western and eastern regions, determining that most documents lack any measures regarding the environmental responsibility of service providers hospitality Originality and practical significance of the study: the proposed tree of goals for framework development strategy of environmental responsibility is an unified tool that can be detailed according to the stage of development and financial capacity of hospitality establishments. Conclusions: the proposals presented in the course of the study regarding the formation of environmental responsibility of hospitality service providers are appropriate according to the current situation and can be used to overcome the systemic crisis in the industry, to develop its competitiveness for attraction a new domestic and foreign consumers

How to make sense of the crisis of the international economic system: the emergence of the Group of Thirty and the debate on inflation (1978–81)

ABSTRACT This article explores the early history of the Group of Thirty (G30, 1978), which is an economic policy body committed to the analysis and spread of policy prescriptions as regards the evolution of the international economic and monetary system after the end of Bretton Woods. In so doing, this work represents the first critical recounting of the G30ʹs early experience from a historiographic perspective. The article frames the organizational roots and the early history of the G30 within the wider economic and political context that marked the transformations of the international system between the late 1970s and the early 1980s. Moreover, this article deals with one of the most challenging policy issues that characterized the international economic policymaking at that time: the spread of high inflation rates. The emergence of sustained inflation trends in Western Europe will receive specific attention. Finally, the article discusses the relevance that social and political concerns acquired in the very conceptualization of anti-inflationary and market-oriented measures, as these were promoted by the G30ʹs affiliates between the late 1970s and the early 1980s.

Conceptualising wellbeing among health-care workers during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since 2020 health workers everywhere have been challenged by the ongoing ramifications of the Covid-19 pandemic. This virus impacted all aspects of life but health-related workplaces particularly, were transformed virtually overnight. Demands were heightened and customary supports came under pressure presenting a huge crisis for health systems. The goal of this study was to explore how this catastrophic pandemic event impacted the wellbeing of healthcare professionals (HCPs) working through this time. Interviews with 57 HCPs from multiple countries and specialty areas were explored utilising inductive content analysis (ICA). Resulting data were then categorised into themes and deductively analysed utilising a method informed by Capability Theory. These were secondary data as the interviews were part of a larger set collected primarily for the purpose of a documentary being made about this experience. This study found that illbeing experiences were prevalent among HCPs. However, significant sources of wellbeing were also evident, and were instrumental in maintaining HCP resilience. Wellbeing was enhanced when HCPs experienced a small number of key capabilities that enabled a broad range of functionings. The capabilities were for (a) participation in positive relationships, (b) a sense of identity, purpose, meaning and value in relation to one's work and (c) ability to provide an appropriate level of medical treatment, care and other role related support. These capabilities were central to HCP wellbeing irrespective of the individual's location and specialty area, however the ability to realise these capabilities in desired functionings was differentially impacted by each individual's unique circumstances.

Research on the Bankruptcy Standard of Commercial Banks in China

Crisis of commercial banks has been reported frequently, and it is normal for them to fail and quit in the market competition. In order to maintain the national financial order and prevent systemic crisis, it is of great significance to improve the legal system of commercial bank bankruptcy to deal with the problematic commercial banks in a timely manner. Commercial bank insolvency standards as the application of commercial bank insolvency legal system, scientific and reasonable commercial bank insolvency standards is the key to commercial bank insolvency legal system to play a useful role. At present, the bankruptcy of commercial banks in China applies the general corporate bankruptcy standard. Based on the special characteristics of commercial bank insolvency, the introduction of regulatory standards and the establishment of diversified commercial bank insolvency standard system can be considered.

Abstract A088: Examining associations between objective and perceived stress and allostatic load in African American prostate cancer survivors

Abstract Background. Racial disparities in prostate cancer survivorship persist despite clinical advancements. Stress has been implicated as a potential driver of these disparities, with both chronic and perceived stress found to be associated with adverse cancer survivorship. Allostatic load (AL), one such marker of chronic stress, has been associated with decreased survivorship and worse quality of life (QoL) in cancer survivors. Perceived stress has also been associated with outcomes in cancer survivorship including increased symptom burden and worse quality of life. Despite this, few studies incorporate direct measures of stress or examine how these measures contribute to AL This study examines the relationship between AL, objective stress (as measured by occurrence of stressful life events), and self-reported perceived stress in a subset of African American prostate cancer survivors (N=59) enrolled in Men Moving Forward, a randomized trial to improve body composition through lifestyle change. Methods. At baseline, participants completed an adapted version of the Crisis in the Family Systems (CRISYS) survey, an instrument designed to measure recent (past 4 months) contemporary life stressors. The survey was tailored for AAPCS via feedback from the community advisory board. 41 items reflective of 11 domains were included. Overall CRISYS scores and scores by domain were calculated. Feelings of perceived stress in the past month were measured via the 10-item perceived stress scale, with higher scores reflecting higher perceived stress. AL scores used 15 criterion reflecting neuroendocrine, cardiovascular, immune, and metabolic systems. Each criterion was assigned a score of 0 or 1: 1 if in the high-risk range based on clinical guidelines. An index score was generated by summing high-risk indicators. Pearson correlations were used to explore the relationship between stress measures. Logistic regression comparing the those with highest quartile AL to lower AL was also performed. Results. The mean AL score was 5.6 (SD ± 2.4) of a maximum score of 15. The mean summative score for CRISYS was 4.8 (SD ± 3.3). The most common domains of stress experienced were safety in the community (67%), relationships (66%), and medical issues of loved ones (44%). The Mean PSS was 11.5 (SD ± 6.0), with 64% of men reporting low stress and 36% moderate stress levels. Significant correlations were found between CRISYS and PSS, however no correlations with AL were detected. No significant findings were identified in the regression analysis. Conclusions. Objective and perceived stress measures were correlated, but no associations were found between the perceived or objective stress measure and AL in this sample.. Given AL is meant to reflect the physiological impact of cumulative and chronic stress burdens, it is possible that the shorter-term context of the objective (past 4 months) and perceived stress (past month) measures were not sufficiently aligned with the longer-term context of AL. Citation Format: Iwalola Awoyinka, Deepak Kilari, Kathryn Bylow, Jennifer Knight, Alexis Visotcky, Anjishnu Banerjee, Patricia Sheean, Paula Papanek, Melinda Stolley. Examining associations between objective and perceived stress and allostatic load in African American prostate cancer survivors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 17th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2024 Sep 21-24; Los Angeles, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2024;33(9 Suppl):Abstract nr A088.

Narrating COVID and captivity in Italy: ‘no prison’ writings and the restorative potential of the penitentiary

Abstract Italy's prison overcrowding became world news in early March 2020, when the COVID-19 outbreak sparked riots in prisons across the country, causing the death of 13 inmates. As a crisis narrative, the COVID-19 pandemic made visible the deep, ongoing crisis of Italy's prison system and disclosed new conditions for critical thought on the restorative potential of the penitentiary system. This article first describes the impact of COVID-19 on Adriano Sofri's ‘no prison’ writings, starting from his column in Il Foglio on the prison uprisings in March that followed the announcement of the anti-COVID measures; it subsequently analyses the Italian response to the pandemic from an internal, practitioner-led perspective. By offering both a dialectic and an immanent perspective, it aims to develop new ways of understanding the detention system and enhance the social credibility of the penitentiary system in Italy beyond the constraints of COVID and the emergency logic.

President E. Macron and the French Political Crisis in the Aspect of the Legacy of “Gaullism”

Introduction. The presidency of Emmanuel Macron during 2017–2023 was marked by the crisis of the regime of the Fifth Republic in France. The authors propose an analysis of the origins and development of this crisis. They emphasize the complex nature of the crisis, which is not opportunistic but systemic. Materials. The research is based on the data of sociological surveys, periodical materials, and electronic sources that allow us to characterize the course and current state of the political crisis of the regime of the Fifth Republic during the presidency of Emmanuel Macron, as well as the processes accompanying it. Analysis. The authors identify and analyze the manifestations of Gaullism as an anti-crisis strategy in the policy of E. Macron. The authors are describing and analyzing the growing political crisis under the leadership of E. Macron and the causes of his government failure. The authors compare the policy of E. Macron and the political strategy of Charles de Gaulle. Results. The authors conclude that E. Macron’s selective use of elements of the Gaullist strategy in order to further legitimize and strengthen the regime of personal power does not bring final success and that French society’s trust in the current government is gradually decreasing, which contributes to the deepening of the systemic crisis of the regime of the Fifth Republic. Author’s contribution. Ahmad Mulyadi prepared a material on the use of elements of Gaullism in the politics of E. Macron, S. V. Biryukov, and S. N. Chirun – on the political process and the crisis in France.

A knowledge creation framework for academia toward agroecological transformations of food systems

Industrialized agriculture, characterized by high inputs, large-scale monocultures, and confined livestock production, with a narrow focus on profit, is a major transgressor of societal and planetary boundaries. It fuels climate change, biodiversity loss, water and soil degradation, nutritional deficiencies, public health issues, cultural erosion, and socioeconomic inequalities. As early-career researchers in agricultural sciences, we are concerned about these systemic crises and recognize that participating in normative academic practices without reflection may reinforce the prevailing industrialized food system. Motivated by the dissonance between the potential impact of our work and our vision of a better future, in this paper we describe and challenge academic praxis in agricultural sciences to tackle the interconnected crises. We do this by developing a framework of two drivers of academic knowledge production, power and values, and two mechanisms, motives and relationality. We argue that in the current dominant food system, power is consolidated and hierarchical, driven by the values of growthism and reductionism, motivated by efficiency and productivism, and characterized by extractive and anthropocentric relationality. Furthermore, we highlight evidence of the negative outcomes associated with this system, including the challenges we face and may potentially contribute to as participants. We then envision transformed food systems through examples of counter-hegemonic knowledge production systems, grounded in agroecological principles, in which power is distributed and horizontal, the primary values are solidarity and holism, motives enhance sufficiency and sovereignty, and relationality is reciprocal and based on care. By examining the current system and offering examples of alternatives, we aim to help distinguish between research that upholds the statu-quo and research that fosters change. We aim to inspire ourselves and others to reconnect with our agency and contribute towards transformed knowledge systems where food systems, underpinned by the values of agroecology, are more capable of sustaining life on this planet in an equitable and just manner.

ГИБРИДНАЯ ВОЙНА КАК СОВРЕМЕННЫЙ, ДЕСТРУКТИВНЫЙ ФЕНОМЕН

The article presents the author’s view of the extremely dangerous destructive phenomenon called hybrid war. It is noted that the struggle between or within a state at each historical stage has its own evolutionary stamp. It is shown that the hybridization of aggression, first of all, manifests itself in a simultaneous attempt to crush all significant geopolitical values and spaces. It is indicated that international legislation is powerless, from the point of view of available legal instruments, in countering hybrid wars. It is noted that the institutional crisis of the world geopolitical system forms the determinants of the hyperactive development of hybrid wars. The conceptually interrelated ideas of hybrid wars are highlighted, and the author’s concept is given. The following main vectors of the considered form of aggression have been identified: intensification of extremist and terrorist activities; destructivization of youth; transnational telecommunication crimes. Legal-technical and government directions for countering hybrid wars are proposed.

Post-Publication Review: Evolution of the Scientific Publishing Workflow

For a considerable period of time, peer review has been regarded as the cornerstone of academic journals and scientific communication, ensuring the high quality and reliability of published materials. However, in the early decades of the 21st century, a growing number of scholars began to challenge the traditional peer review procedure, questioning its efficacy. This study aims to provide a fresh perspective on the peer review mechanism, with the objective of enhancing the implementation of scientific communication's functionalities. The research employs historical analysis techniques and modelling methods based on Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) to compare diverse review models in terms of their influence on scientific communication. BPMN is a conventional tool employed for modelling and describing business processes. The evolution of the peer review procedure is explored, encompassing an examination of the factors contributing to current and future transformations in the publishing realm. The author refers to the crisis of the conventional peer review system and the growing prevalence of preprints, serving as exemplars of these transformations. Finally, suggestions for the implementation of the post-publication review workflow in Russia are provided.

"City upon a Hill" in the Face of Significant Challenges

The editor-in-chief proposes a context for examining the crisis processes in American society explored in the articles. The author suggests that this crisis should be viewed in the context of the American history cycles. Many of the current conflicts in the USA have a similar internal source, which is a sharp intra-elite conflict involving a significant part of society. This conflict is unusual in its depth, given that for many decades the «trademark» of the American political class has been its consensus character. One important element of this consensus can be seen as an unquestioned focus on global American leadership and a shared commitment among members of the community to the force imperatives in foreign policy – either the classic “hard” or “flexible” power. Among the sources of American foreign policy continuity are a number of factors. First, it is the stability of institutional mechanisms of decision-making, which, in turn, is based on a stable system of representation of dominant interests. Second, the stability of formal and informal institutions that ensure a high degree of elite cohesion; and the specificity of American political culture, which is based on a set of political and philosophical views of messianic nature. The consensual nature of the political elite was the system-forming basis of liberal democracy, so the breakdown of this consensus may entail – and partially has already entailed – a crisis of the US political system.

Main Directions of Modern Transformation and Modernization of Russian Society, Ways to Overcome the Systemic Crisis in the Context of Technological Revolution: Alternative Strategic Development Models

At the present stage of Russia’s development in the prevailing historical conditions, a period of deep conceptual transformations has begun, measures are being taken to free it from its continued dependence on crisis global processes, from the globalism policy of developed imperialist countries. Today, after three periods of permanent systemic crisis, through which Russia went from the early 80s to the early 2000s, the country is emerging from this dependence, returning to its mental ideological and cultural foundations, to state-political, economic, scientific, technical and technological sovereignty, to the status of a world power, renewed civilization, towards the consolidation of society. This period is characterized as a period of transformation and new modernization of society. The article, based on new approaches and methods of a comprehensive historical, sociological and formational-civilizational analysis of the problems of society’s development, examines the issues of the new modernization of society that has begun, analyzes and evaluates the persistent manifestations of the systemic crisis, issues of implementing an innovative anti-crisis management strategy, strategic planning and strategic management. Possible forecasts and alternatives for social development are considered. These processes require a clear, meaningful choice and implementation of a long-term strategy for the dynamic, innovative development of knowledge-intensive sectors of the economy, labor productivity growth, production recovery based on new reindustrialization and the industrial revolution, the development and implementation of achievements of the fifth technological order, scientific, technical, technological, information revolution, the formation of new scientific, human resources, including in the areas of governance of society and the state, ensuring comprehensive security and sovereignty of society and the state, regulatory support for these processes. This implies the choice of a new socio-economic, formational and civilizational model for further progressive development, taking into account positive domestic and foreign experience, and the corresponding ideological basis for these transformations. All this is becoming an urgent issue for the entire spectrum of social and social sciences, for educational practices.

Research on Interest Spread Risk of Commercial Pension Insurance in the Context of Negative Interest Rates

In the current low-interest-rate environment, the high-quality development of the life insurance industry faces many challenges. Among them, interest rate spread risk has a significant impact on the stable operation and long-term healthy development of the life insurance industry. Interest rate spread risk has characteristics such as long-term nature, hidden potential, and systematic impact. When severe, it can lead to the bankruptcy of insurance companies and bring about systemic crises in the industry. This article redefines negative interest rates and the risk of interest rate spread loss in commercial pension insurance, and reviews related literature.

Les Identitaires’ Impact on French Foreign Policy During the 2015 Crisis of the European Asylum System

ABSTRACT In 2015, the Common European Asylum System and the Schengen regime were placed under unparalleled strain by the mass arrival of 1.2 million asylum seekers. This event was followed by the failure of the EU Commission to promote a common approach. Within this context, this in-depth investigation explores the impact of the far-right social movement Les Identitaires on French foreign policy in the mid-2010s. Since the Front National contains clear roots in far-right social movements, Les Identitaires’ impact is closely entangled with Marine Le Pen’s party. Whereas past research concluded that the far right failed to directly influence key decisions in foreign policy, this study suggests that the French far right’s indirect impact fostered President Hollande’s unwillingness to welcome the refugees and France’s inactivity at the EU level. Thus, France’s cooperation with Germany foundered to unprecedented levels following President Hollande’s U-turn, with significant repercussions on EU integration on migration policy.

Culture-led regeneration and the contestation of local discourses and meanings: the case of European maritime port cities

ABSTRACT Culture-led regeneration, understood as a range of policies using cultural activity as a catalyst for urban regeneration, has been widely implemented by many European cities. The interest of local businesses and politicians in these processes seems undiminished despite the various systemic crises hitting European cities. In the meantime, the ways in which culture-led regeneration and its promoters interact with, shape and manipulate local discourses and meanings have become critical for its successful implementation. Drawing upon the literature on the politics of urban development, this paper looks at how culture-led regeneration promulgates, negotiates and manipulates local discourses and meanings. It takes the example of European maritime port cities, where these processes have often served as a means to address the challenges associated with shifting meanings and practices surrounding port-city relationships. We argue that culture-led regeneration schemes operating in port cities in the twenty-first century strive to engage directly with local discourses and meanings associated with past economic activities but, in doing so, renegotiate them, producing hybridized models of regeneration that mirror and align with the agenda of culture-led urban growth coalitions.