International Debate Research Articles

Conceptualizing the state: tactical decisions and violence at the ZAD Lützerath

ABSTRACT This paper examines how activists' conceptions of the state shape – and are shaped by – their tactical decisions during violent confrontations, focusing on a partial eviction at the ZAD Lützerath, a protest camp in Germany. Drawing on ethnographic fieldnotes and internal debates, it shows how activists shift between viewing the state as socially accountable and as an autonomous, oppressive force. These views inform whether they pursue restraint or militant resistance. Crucially, lived experiences of eviction and police violence reinforce perceptions of the state's autonomy, prompting defensive, sometimes violent, responses – even when such actions may undermine public support and broader movement goals.

“Is it doing something to me?”: A qualitative study of the embodied experience of Irish women using the oral contraceptive pill

Background The oral contraceptive pill (OCP) is the most prescribed form of contraception worldwide and in Ireland. The common use of contraception in Ireland is noteworthy given the previous moral influences in Irish society. Research exploring the social and embodied experience of OCP users in this context is lacking. Methods Participants were recruited online and 11 female, Irish participants aged 23 – 29 years old took part in online, semi-structured video interviews to examine their lived experiences. Interviews were analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis (TA). Results Participants in this study experienced an undercurrent of tension from several directions and across interpersonal relationships. While they felt the OCP provided control over their bodies and their fertility, they also experienced negative side effects (both physical and mental) and felt that their experiences were not taken seriously by doctors. A perceived lack of support from parents and the education system in making decisions regarding contraception was also evident, resulting in a reliance on social and inter-generational knowledge and misguided concerns regarding potential damage or illness. Conclusions Using the OCP is a complex experience, and Irish women experience much tension and internal debate over their decision to begin using it. Information and misinformation regarding safety and impact is shared informally amongst close social networks. There is a need for more educational resources to ensure women are making informed decisions regarding contraception choice. This lack of accessibility of accurate knowledge is perceived as disinterest into the lived experiences of women by education and medical services. What is already known on this topic The physical health experience of taking the OCP is a universal one, but research into the psychological and embodied experience is lacking, particularly in an Irish context. What this study adds This study is the first to explore the experience of Irish women using the OCP, and highlights how the decision to use the OCP is a complex and stressful one. Participants highlighted how they felt unsupported by parents, doctors and the education system; they experienced a lot of method shopping; that they were reliant on informal networks to gain information; and that they still experienced a lingering effect of the strong influence from the role the Catholic Church played in Irish society. How this study might affect research, practice or policy Educators and medical professionals need to be aware of the importance of their role in providing information regarding discussions of contraceptive choice (including the OCP) and disseminating existing research. Researchers should continue to explore the effect of the OCP on mental health and wellbeing.

Analysis of the Concept of Obstetric Violence: A Combination of Scoping Review and Rodgers Conceptual Analysis Methodologies

(1) Background: Intrapartum obstetric violence has become increasingly visible and is portrayed as a cross-cutting and complex phenomenon. Despite numerous international debates and extensive reports in the literature, there is limited consensus on its definition, emphasizing the need to clarify the concept. The aim of this article is to analyze the concept of obstetric violence in the care of women in labor in health institutions; (2) Methods: Search and selection of studies using the scoping review methodology, based on the Joanna Briggs Institute guidelines and Rodgers’ conceptual review method for data extraction and analysis; (3) Results: A sample of 49 studies provided a comprehensive understanding of the concept, revealing in its conceptualization attributes of physical, verbal, psychological, sexual, institutional and structural violence. Identification of antecedents of gender inequality and failure of relational, technical and structural standards at the level of health institutions and their professionals, as the main triggers of obstetric violence. Reporting of consequences with a negative impact on maternal and child health; (4) Conclusions: Conceptual analysis with important contributions to the paradigm shift in the work of health professionals. Multiple dimensions, cultural differences and variations in the concept should continue to be examined to improve its research and application.

Investigating a new energy justice index on carbon emissions: A global study of 95 economies during 1996-2021.

Investigating a new energy justice index on carbon emissions: A global study of 95 economies during 1996-2021.

Is social theory losing its relevance? A call for social impact and cocreation from dialogic sociology

Currently, the interest in and use of social theory by policy-makers, organizations, and citizens have decreased worldwide. While excellent research focuses on the social influences of social theory and teaching methods, the research often neglects the link between social theory and contemporary societal needs. This gap is addressed by examining the social impact and effects on the motivation for using dialogic theory, which emphasizes dialog and consensus building. Following a communicative methodology approach, this study includes nine communicative interviews and three participatory observations: two in seminars with readers of The Dialogic Society (TDS) (“duihuashehui (《对话社会》)”) by Flecha, and one in an online, international debate about the book. The findings reveal a fourfold impact: First, increased motivation for sociology and social theory; second, deeper comprehension of the theory; third, potential for transforming social contexts; and fourth a shift toward cocreation and social impact. This study highlights key aspects of dialogic theory to address contemporary needs and to bridge the gap between theory and practice to revitalize the field of social theory in diverse contexts, highlighting the way the dialogic theory contributes and could contribute to different countries, including China. In doing so, this study helps advance the development of an independent knowledge system in philosophy and social science in China, which China proposed in 2024.

Digital reality, indirect taxation and international trends

Digitalization is reshaping global consumption patterns and exposing the limits of value-added tax (VAT) regimes designed for an analogue economy. While Brazilian tax-reform proposals focus on merging six cascading levies into a single VAT-style tax, this structural simplification alone will not align the system with the realities of cross-border electronic commerce. Drawing on OECD guidelines and the BEPS Action 1 report, this article reviews two decades of international debate on destination-based VAT, especially for business-to-consumer supplies of intangibles. It highlights the practical impasse surrounding customer identification, jurisdictional allocation and collection in high-volume, real-time digital marketplaces. The paper argues that recent suggestions to shift liability to dominant e-commerce platforms, although politically feasible, still rely on “verified self-identification” and fragmented registration procedures that are ill-suited to the velocity of automated transactions. As a forward-looking alternative, the study explores how distributed-ledger technology—particularly smart-contract-enabled split-payment mechanisms executed on blockchain networks and settled with central-bank digital currencies—could embed compliance by design, enhance traceability, and lower administrative costs for both taxpayers and revenue authorities. Implementation prerequisites (digital identities, standardized e-invoicing, regulatory sandboxes) and technological hurdles (scalability, interoperability, tokenization) are mapped, providing a research agenda for a VAT 4.0 architecture. The conclusion contends that harnessing blockchain’s immutability and programmability is essential for a resilient, fraud-resistant indirect-tax system capable of addressing the borderless nature of 21st-century commerce.

Flags and the Politics of Pageantry in Colonial Uganda

Abstract This article explores the politics of pageantry in colonial Uganda. As activists looked toward independence, they engineered competing visions of national material culture. Creating political emblems raised complex questions about the moral and theological significance of party colours. Throughout Uganda’s colonial history, debates about flags reflected sectarian struggles between Protestant and Catholic communities that dated to the late nineteenth century. In imperial and Ugandan history writings, flags are often associated with the pageantry of conquest or eventual post-colonial state building. But we know very little about the internal debates that accompanied the invention of the state’s material culture. This article pushes us past a superficial association of flags with either colonial conquest or Cold War liberation and into the conceptual and religious worlds that undergirded the hoisting of flags. Arguments about flags propelled Ugandan politics throughout the twentieth century. By looking at the varied ways that activists imagined the materiality of post-colonial Uganda, we can develop new approaches to intellectual history writing, moving into highly contested visual terrains where patterns, theologies of colour, and struggles to standardize party and national flags animated political mobilization and dissent.

The Politics of Inter-Korean Dialogue during the Moon Jae-In Administration

The election of President Moon Jae-In in 2017 opened an opportunity to improve inter-Korean relations. North Korea’s participation in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, became a turning point in the warming of relations between the two Koreas. The aim of the article is to present selected problems related to inter-Korean dialogue during the administration of President Moon Jae-In, which consisted of many initiatives aimed at undertaking negotiations for dialogue, understanding and cooperation. The theoretical tool used to analyze the above issues is the historical method and the comparative method. The first part of the article presents an outline of the history of inter-Korean dialogue, presenting the positions of the South Korean presidential administrations from President Park Chung Hee to Park Geun Hye. This part is a retrospective evaluation of the previous South Korean policies that sought to engage and cooperate with the North, with special attention to Kim Dae Jung’s ‘Sunshine Policy,’ and Roh Moo Hyun’s ‘Peace and Prosperity Policy,’ with both administrations engaging in inter-Korean dialogue and cooperation to resolve the problem of North Korean nuclear weapons through diplomatic means. The last half of the article describes Moon Jae-In’s Korean Peninsula Peace Initiative (KPPI) and Inter-Korean Summits in 2018. Diplomacy between North and South Korea continued at a brisk pace in 2018, and concluded with the Fifth Inter-Korean Summit in Pyeongyang. President Moon served as a direct mediator between the United States and North Korea. The similarities and differences between conservatives and progressives and their policies toward North Korea, and the elements of the Inter-Korean Summits in 2000, 2007, and 2018, followed by subsequent successes and failures of each administration, reveals vulnerabilities in the policies of reconciliation and openness with the North, the internal debates in South Korea derived from a contestation between ideological elements of ethno-centric nationalism and state-centric nationalism, and the structural factors leading to North Korean belligerence.

Robert Triffin’s analysis of the role of sterling in the international monetary system

Robert Triffin was one of the main protagonists in the international monetary debates in the post-war period. He became famous with his book Gold and the Dollar Crisis, published in 1960, in which he predicted the end of the Bretton Woods system. In his analysis there, Triffin was very much marked by the 1931 sterling devaluation and the breakdown of the gold exchange standard. In his view, the growth of foreign exchange reserves after World War Two, primarily dollar and sterling, repeated, but on a much larger scale, their similar expansion after the First World War. This paper focuses on Triffin’s analysis of the role of sterling in the international monetary system, from his early articles on the 1935 Belgian franc devaluation to the collapse of the Bretton Woods system. The paper does not only go into Triffin’s famous books (Europe and the Money Muddle and Gold and the Dollar Crisis), but also into lesser-known episodes, such as his involvement, especially via Jean Monnet’s Action Committee for the United States of Europe, in the negotiations of the British accession to the European Economic Community, based on new archival research.

The right to speak: exploring academic freedom in turbulent times

Abstract The concept of academic freedom remains contested globally, with increasing threats to academic expression appearing across different national contexts. New Zealand offers a unique case study as one of the few countries with comprehensive legal protection of academic freedom enshrined in education legislation. This paper examines how legislative protection of academic freedom has functioned in practice by comparing academic freedom controversies before and after its introduction into New Zealand law. Despite detailed legal provisions, we find that unclear definitions, inadequate guidelines, and the neoliberal restructuring of higher education have created persistent challenges in distinguishing between individual expertise and opinion and between institutional and individual responsibilities. These findings provide important insights for international debates about academic freedom, suggesting that legislation alone is insufficient protection without clear operational guidelines and protections from economic pressures that create conflicting institutional priorities. The paper contributes to a global understanding of how academic freedom can be better protected in increasingly polarised political environments.

Generative Artificial Intelligence: New dilemmas for intellectual property law

This paper evaluates how generative artificial intelligence (AI) has altered the extent of the legal system of intellectua property relevant to education and business in Georgia. Using an interdisciplinary approach, the effect of AI on the generation of legal works, including copyright gaps, infringement and liability contracts, is examined in detail. It also addresses the transforming duties of AI developers, legal persons and various individual persons about automated content generation pertaining to primary intellectual authorship and ownership in light of the law. The article highlights these challenges from both global and local law borders and contends that laws to regulate the bounds of creative freedoms, clarity of law and technology, respectively, must advance simultaneously. Recent court rulings, changes in international legal policy and academic debate among scholars show a lack of clear standards for asserting ownership of content, data and algorithm manipulation. It finally outlines suggestions meant to improve legal incongruity and policy alignment. Keywords: Copyright; Trademark Protection; Contractual Liability; AI Governance.

By Hook or By Crook: A History of the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Chapter 8: Growing Pains

Internal debates over the focus of the Clearwater organization again came to a head in 1977 and 1978. During that time, several attempts were made to more clearly define the organization's role in the environmental movement, and in each case controversy erupted. These cases included proposals to align the group with advocates of organized labor or civil rights. The largest issue in question was whether or not the Clearwater should sail to Seabrook, New Hampshire to take part in large protests against the construction of a nuclear power plant. At the heart of each of these controversies was the question of whether the Clearwater organization should identify with the more mainstream elements of the American environmental movement or the more radical elements, as well as whether its focus should be strictly regional or more broad. In the minds of many Clearwater members, the debate went to the core of the organization's mission, and each issue prompted passionate arguments on all sides of the issue. Because these debates came about in quick succession and lasted for several months, it seemed to many that too much effort was spent arguing and a bad impression was left in the minds of many casual participants in the organization. The Seabrook controversy and others hurt the organization in terms of its reputation for uniting people with mixed interests, but at the same time the organization was strengthened by establishing a more clear focus and mission as it approached the end of the Clearwater's first decade on the Hudson River.

The Intellectual Controversy Between Abraham Geiger and Al-Ghazali in Interpreting Islam

The differences in thought between Abraham Geiger and Al-Ghazali in understanding Islam reflect two contrasting approaches to the Qur’an and the influence of tradition in religious education. This study aims to analyze how their intellectual perspectives have shaped theological development within their respective traditions and their impact on the broader study of religion. The research employs a qualitative method, focusing on an in-depth analysis of Geiger’s and Al-Ghazali’s works, alongside a comprehensive literature review to contextualize the historical and philosophical dimensions of their arguments. The findings indicate that Geiger, through his historical-critical approach, presents a more flexible interpretation of sacred texts, whereas Al-Ghazali upholds the authority and wisdom of the Qur’an as the primary foundation of Islamic knowledge. This intellectual discourse highlights the tension between rationalism and traditionalism in Islamic studies while illustrating the dynamic interplay between radicalism and religiosity within the Muslim world. Furthermore, this controversy underscores internal debates across various religious traditions and offers valuable insights into how interfaith dialogue can enhance the understanding of Islam and spirituality in the modern era. Ultimately, this study aims to contribute to a broader academic discourse on the interaction between religious tradition and critical thought in a global context.

The importance of water-sensitive planning and design approaches for resilience to flood disaster risk in Istanbul: Evaluation of examples in Çatalca and Beykoz districts

Nowadays, climatic changes are coming to the forefront of the global agenda due to their significant impact. Effects can be seen on rainfall and the hydraulic cycle, the number of disasters such as landslides, floods, and flash floods, which are especially increasing in cities. In recent times, flood and flash flood events have adversely affected many settlement areas in Istanbul. Istanbul, which is the main agglomeration of the country, has expanded spatially towards the urban peripheries due to population growth. The study focuses on the innovative basic principles of water-sensitive planning and design approaches for flood risk reduction, which have gained importance in light of international debates. In this context, the study examines the conditions for developing water-sensitive planning and design approaches in Istanbul and makes recommendations. For this purpose, a comprehensive and detailed literature review was conducted and scientific documents such as articles, international-national conventions, institutional research reports and national legislation were utilized. The study aims to determine the current situation in the areas where flood disasters occur in Istanbul, to identify the causes of the disasters, to question whether the land use decisions and urban planning approaches in the existing legal-administrative structure consider the risk factors for reducing flood disasters. Çatalca district, which is located on the urban periphery of the European side of the city, is very rich in water resources and is where the highest loss of life and material damage occurred in the flood disaster of 2009, was selected as the sample area in the study. Beykoz district, which is located on the periphery of the Anatolian side of Istanbul and very rich in water resources, was selected as another sample area. Within the scope of the study, data were obtained through interviews with relevant local institutions and organizations. Previous studies and existing data on the sample areas have been compiled and evaluated. When the practices of the institutions in the sample locations are examined, it is understood that the method of protection distances determined by legislation for the prevention of flood risk in stream beds is insufficient. In areas where flood risk is experienced, it is tried to be prevented by rehabilitation of streams. There is no holistic approach with planning decisions at the basin scale. As the population, settlement area and impervious surfaces increase in the basins where stream rehabilitation is carried out at high costs, these projects will be insufficient to prevent flood risk. Water-sensitive urban planning and design approaches with participatory and collaborative processes in basin scale should be start for resilience to flood disaster risk in Istanbul.

Ensino de História da Psicologia na Argentina. Um estudo de caso

With the aim of contributing to the history of psychology teaching in psychology programs, this paper explores historical, epistemological, institutional and pedagogical problems that arise when planning a course. As a case study, we describe the required undergraduate course of the Degree in Psychology at the National University of San Luis, Argentina. This description is framed in international debates on the relevance of teaching the history of psychology and in the regulations of the National Commission for University Evaluation and Accreditation – CONEAU from Argentina. From there, dialogues are opened with some of the current approaches in the historiography of psychology, both national and international.

Conceptual Development in Higher Education Sustainability Initiatives: Insights from a Change Laboratory Research Intervention

An international debate is taking place about embedding sustainability in higher education institutions (HEIs). Separate strands of literature address the importance of sustainability concepts and strategic change approaches. This paper explores conceptual development as an unfolding process within sustainability change initiatives. Data are derived from nine Change Laboratory workshops, conducted over 6 months, in which 20 stakeholders of varying backgrounds worked to create “a sustainable campus” in an HEI in Ireland. Transcribed video recordings and artefacts produced in workshops are analysed using activity theory principles to examine conceptual development, identifying four novel concepts created by stakeholders. The development of the Campus Sustainability Statement (CSS) concept is analysed in depth. It was produced in four stages of development—pursuing, in turn, a purposeful definition of “sustainability”, a shared framework to contextualise different actions, a mission statement for the campus, and the CSS proper. Each stage arose from a conflict of motives expressed within the coalition of participants, which was addressed by suggesting an abstract idea and considering its implications, with the latter stages also including attempts to embed and objectify the concept. Successive ideas were challenged, refined, and/or abandoned by participants on the grounds of ethics, fit with the institution, and relevance to subsequent action, with the eventual CSS judged to be an acceptable basis for institutional work. This paper emphasises the processual importance of developing sustainability concepts within institutions, including the creative potential for addressing value tensions and the possibility for nurturing new forms of collective agency.

Health Concepts in Medicine and the Role of Philosophy

Philosophers interested in medicine and healthcare research should focus on the choice of health concepts. Conceptual choice is akin to conceptual engineering but, in addition to assessing whether a concept suits an objective, or offering a better one, it evaluates objectives, ranks them, and discusses stakeholders’ entitlement. To show the importance of choosing health concepts, I summarize the internal debate in medicine, showcasing definitions, constructs, and scales. To argue it is a philosophical task, I analyze the medical controversy over health as adaptation and self-management. I conclude with a to-do list of conceptual choice tasks, generalizable beyond medicine.

Romantic racism: A reassessment of Carl Gustav Carus’s writings on race and human inequality

This paper aims to provide the first comprehensive evaluation of Carl Gustav Carus’s writings on race and human inequality. We demonstrate that Carus, an eminent nineteenth-century physician emblematic of romantic medicine, was deeply engrossed in racial science, exploring anatomical, anthropological, and craniological dimensions of race across no less than twenty-five works spanning three decades. Carus’s engagement with race stemmed from naturphilosophisch anatomical and physiological considerations, which evolved into physiognomic and psychological inquiries. While previous research has construed Carus as a precursor of Arthur de Gobineau, we argue that he was intellectually much more closely aligned with the ‘American School’ of ethnology, represented by figures such as Samuel G. Morton, George R. Gliddon, and Josiah C. Nott. Closely monitoring international discourses of scientific racism, Carus sought to propagate these notions among German readers and position himself within international debates. The international reception, however, was limited by the Romantic framework of Carus’s scientific racism, which was unintelligible to contemporaries. While sharing an implicit methodological bias with Morton and his followers, affirming white superiority and legitimising colonisation, the Romantic underpinning of his race treatises made it difficult for mid-nineteenth-century race theorists to fully endorse him. Nonetheless, Carus, often lauded as polymath with a humanistic orientation, besides his achievements, helped to create a theoretical basis for the othering and dehumanisation of large parts of the global population.

국가경쟁력 세계 10위권 도약을 위한 중장기 고등교육 투자 목표와 확충 전략

This study aims to set medium- to long-term tertiary education investment targets to secure the country's competitiveness in the world. To do so, we first reviewed the domestic and international debate on the level of adequate funding for higher education, including key indicators of OECD country average levels that have been discussed as targets for higher education financing. Second, we analysed the significant higher education expenditure variables that affect national competitiveness, focusing on the higher education-related indicators used in the IMD Country Competitiveness Ranking, and estimated the amount of total higher education expenditure that should be secured in the medium to long term to strengthen national and university competitiveness. The results of the study showed that the variables related to higher education finance that have a significant impact on national and university competitiveness are public education expenditure per higher education student at the average level of OECD countries and the proportion of higher education expenditure to government expenditure. The results of the estimation of the amount of financing for higher education in the mid- to long-term are as follows. First, an additional 7 trillion won is needed for universities to become internationally competitive. Next, it was estimated that 15 to 18 trillion won would be required for university competitiveness leading national competitiveness, and about 37 trillion won would be required for national competitiveness within the top 10 in the world. To this end, it was proposed to dramatically improve the financial structure of the Special Account for Higher and Lifelong Education Support and establish a separate securing strategy such as the Higher Education Financial Grant.

Колумбийская Коммунистическая партия, FARC и проблема вооруженной борьбы в 1980-е годы

In the history of Latin American radical left movements in the second half of the twentieth century, one of the key themes is the importance of armed struggle as an instrument of revolu-tionary activity. The 1980s became an important stage in their development, when many rebel groups embarked on the path of legalization. The article examines the experience of Co-lombia, which experienced the slow formation of a pluralistic political system during this period. The object of the study is the relationship of the Colombian Communist Party (Partido Comunista Colombiano, PCC) with the rebel movements, primarily the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia–the Army of the People (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – Ejército del Pueblo, FARC–EP). It is noted that the commitment to the principle of "combining all forms of struggle" has led to the preservation of close ties with the FARC, despite the distancing of the two organizations from each other in terms of governance and goals. In the 1980s. The PCC intensified its efforts to strengthen cooperation with broad strata of the left, including with the aim of creating elec-toral associations, which ensured the emergence in 1985. The Patriotic Union (Unión Patriótica, UP). This association was intended to serve as a channel for the FARC to enter political life. The issue of the truce between the FARC and the gov-ernment, as well as the relationship to other rebel movements, has become an important subject of internal debate in the PCC ranks against the background of the large-scale terror un-leashed against the UP and the problem of democratizing the Communist Party. In conclusion, it is concluded that the slow ideological evolution of the PCC has become one of the rea-sons for the difficulties in ending the armed conflict in Colombia.