Geopolitical Issues Research Articles

How natural resource consumption, trade, energy transition, and geopolitical risk drive sustainable development in G20 nations?

AbstractThe members of the G20 have seen remarkable fiscal growth in recent years, along with a rise in the demand of consumers for energy. The G20 countries, however, use a significant amount of energy products derived from fossil fuels, which could be harmful to the sustainable development goals. This paper assesses the complex relationships between commerce, the energy transition, the use of natural resources, banking development, monetary development, geopolitical issues, and ecological deterioration. For our statistical analysis, this study employed extensive fiscal models and empirical datasets covering the years 1990–2020. The statistical findings using the Moments Quantile Regression method show that breakthroughs in finance and energy transition guarantee sustainable development. The geopolitical risk, economic expansion, and use of natural resources all contribute to the decline of ecological conditions. But trading's overall effect on the health of the world was not consistent. Our thorough empirical study makes it possible for governments to recommend effective laws to solve environmental issues.

The Gaza War: Text Analysis

The objective of this paper is to conduct a text analysis of 40 BBC News broadcasts from the year 2024. Notably, the term "Gaza" appears with the highest frequency, totaling 335 tokens, and occupies a significant proportion of the coverage. This prominence is further illustrated by its substantial representation in a word cloud, suggesting its status as a pivotal topic. Additionally, the term "Israel" ranks second in prominence, indicating its relevance, though slightly less so than Gaza. Other noteworthy keywords include "homes," "base," "campaign," "attack," "conditions," "group," "leader," and "ceasefire," all of which contribute to the narrative surrounding the conflict. The data reveals that "Gaza" has a 10.5% likelihood of being identified as a main topic, while "Israel" has an 8.4% likelihood. Moreover, the similarity index indicates that the terms "Gaza" and "BBC" share the highest degree of similarity, followed closely by "Hamas" and "Gaza." These findings underscore the importance of language in shaping public perception and discourse surrounding complex geopolitical issues. In conclusion, BBC News does not take a stance in favor of either Israel or Hamas; rather, it maintains a neutral position. This impartiality is effectively illustrated through various analytical methods, including term frequency analysis, word cloud analysis, network analysis, topic analysis, and similarity analysis.

Information-Mental and Socio-Evolutionary Contexts of the Dynamics of War and Peace

The fi rst decades of the XXI century are marked by processes of turbulence, multiple tensions and dramatic events. In this context, the issues of geopolitics, war and peace play a particularly signifi cant role. On the basis of synthesis and clarifi cation of fundamental concepts and principles of social anthropology, psychology, sociology, political sciences, we present a holistic dynamic model of factors of emergence, escalation and termination of wars, and their macro-social consequences. Taking into account these provisions, we provide theoretical answers to fundamental questions about the causes of war. The study is based on the following methods: analysis and synthesis, conceptual study of basic concepts from different spheres of social and humanitarian knowledge, formulation and substantiation of fundamental principles of war and peace dynamics, theoretical comprehension of heterogeneous empirical generalizations. Wars are always related to concerns and social universals: violence/ security, power-power, resources-wealth, and prestige-legitimacy. At the same time, wars are triply related to information, cognitive processes, and, in the modern world, new media and propaganda technologies. Powerful decisions on the use of military force, leading to wars, are made on the basis of “fast” or “slow” thinking according to Kahneman. The course of war itself, apart from the “material” component of mobilization and mutual destruction, always includes a struggle of wills – attempts by each side to impose a ritual scenario of the inevitability of its defeat on the enemy. The outcome of the war is always the subject of a struggle of interpretations and narratives on the part of the strongest post-war political-ideological forces. The specifi c role of war in the co-evolution of social, mental and techno-natural orders is presented with these provisions in mind. The constructed conceptual apparatus, formulated principles and ideas of the holistic dynamic model of the emergence, course and termination of wars are intended for deeper theoretical and empirical research in this important and relevant subject area. In addition, they should contribute to the analysis, design and implementation of such objective and subjective conditions that will not ensure the proverbial “eternal peace”, but will minimize the factors of new wars.

Urbanization governance approaches for the sustainability of WEF resources: a cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT Urbanization is a socioeconomic and geopolitical issue that affects the sustainability of resources. Therefore, this study uses Mean Item Score (MIS) and structural equation modelling (SEM) to analyse urbanization governance for the sustainability of WEF resources. The study established urbanization measures that significantly affect the WEF nexus and the urban governance approaches for WEF Nexus sustainability. The research findings revealed that urbanization has a statistically significant effect on the sustainability of the WEF nexus through indicators of urban place (population size and employment status), over-urbanization (overpopulation) and urban primacy. Moreover, the study revealed three urban governance approaches to ensuring the sustainability of the WEF nexus: Circular economy business models in the CBD, migration-orientated urban infrastructures and demand–pull governance modes for urban poverty. This study concludes with two policy recommendations for redesigning migration documents with WEF statistics and repurposing urban areas.

Algae‐Derived Precursors for Sustainable Electrochemical Energy Storage

The simple production and harvesting of algae, along with its lower environmental impact and fewer geopolitical issues, make it a viable precursor for electrochemical energy storage devices. Algae represent a promising biomaterial for electrode materials in electrochemical energy storage devices, including hard carbon, sol–gel‐based anode batteries, sodium batteries, oxygen reduction reaction catalysts in zinc–air batteries, and cathode materials in zinc‐ion and lithium‐ion batteries. Algae‐based batteries are fabricated using methods like pyrolysis, hydrothermal processes, agar‐aided dissolution, electrolysis, annealing, and sol–gel methods. Among these, the sol–gel method using agar to construct refillable hydrogel batteries stands out. Agar's compatibility with acetylene black enhances electrochemical properties and offers the advantage of refill ability, which is challenging in metal‐ion batteries. Algae carbons have demonstrated enhanced specific capacity and cyclic performance, paving the way for their use in both medical and industrial applications. The article reviews the utilization of algae‐based batteries in different industrial and medical pacemaker applications as well as examines the feasibility of the operation of algae‐based batteries synthesized through various parameters and precursors.

Analysis of the Fluctuations of ASEAN Currencies Against the US Dollar

At the beginning of 2024, from January to April, there was a downward trend in the rupiah exchange rate against the United States dollar. This downward trend also occurred in various countries in ASEAN. This trend is of course influenced by several factors, both internal and external. This research aims to analyze the internal and external factors that cause this tendency. The data in this research is secondary data and comes from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at CEIC. This research uses descriptive analytical-qualitative methods. The results of this research show that interest rates, inflation, and net exports in the short term do not have a significant effect on exchange rate movements. However, this depreciation factor trend is more influenced by global geopolitical problems and the size of a country's economy. Geopolitical issues and the size of the economy affect a country's balance of payments (BOP) and foreign exchange reserves, which in turn influence exchange rate movements. Researchers hope that this research can provide new information for the academic community and become material for consideration, suggestions, and input for government authorities who have internal decision-making authority regarding exchange rates.

Continuing ‘reforming’ policies in teacher education internationally: what can we learn from current accounts?

ABSTRACT This article discusses common geopolitical issues, such as globalisation, decolonialisation, and economic pressure that affect the development of teacher education policy in England, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, Russia, Israel, Jamaica, Portugal, Japan, Poland, and China. It goes on to describe these nations’ responses to these pressures and the challenges that they have and continue to face in developing their teacher education systems and building the profession. The article concludes with consideration of the ongoing struggle for the soul of teacher education, especially in England.

Peace Brand Activism: Global Brand Responses to the War in Ukraine

Following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in February 2022, many global brands took a stand on the crisis, which often elicited polarized consumer responses. This study explores this phenomenon—peace brand activism (PBA)—by conducting an inductive analysis of global brands’ responses to the Russia–Ukraine war as disclosed on social media channels across three different platforms: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The analysis highlights the range of PBA tactics that global brands employ, revealing diverse action- and statement-based forms that they can adopt, including instances of pseudo-activism. In addition, this study identifies seven key characteristics of PBA: substantiality, nature, side-taking, location specificity, responsiveness, persistence, and diversity, each manifesting across spectra of differential ends. This work elucidates the evolving role of businesses in promoting peace and offers valuable guidance for managers navigating the complex terrain of PBA, emphasizing the importance of brands being cognizant of the various PBA options and thoroughly weighing the implications of taking a stand on sensitive geopolitical issues. The findings bear important policy implications, suggesting that policy makers must consider PBA's impact on bilateral relations and collaborate with brands to develop informed, strategic PBA initiatives. Finally, the authors outline important avenues for future research.

A Review on Alternative Fuels Use in Internal Combustion Engines

The worldwide issues include rising fuel prices, air pollution, and global warming. As mineral fuels deplete, alternative fuels become increasingly significant in internal combustion engines. This article discusses liter-ature analysis to demonstrate the different types of renewable energy used worldwide. Alternative fuels can replace fossil fuels if their availability is limited by worldwide geopolitical issues. Its main objective is to review and identify the various types of alternative fuels which can be used for internal combustion en-gines to reduce emissions of CO2 into the atmosphere. Alcohols, LPG, biodiesel, natural gas, DME, fuel cells, hydrogen, and electricity are some alternative energy sources. Alternative fuels for both CI and SI engines are becoming more popular due to socioeconomic and environmental reasons. It involves transition-ing society from its dependence on petroleum and increasing concerns about sustainability. Natural gas, alcohol, hydrogen, fuel cells, and electricity are some alternative fuels that are getting much attention. These alternative fuels can minimize harmful emissions as well as operating costs.

Combining energy generation and radiant systems: Challenges and possibilities for plus energy buildings

Radiant heating and cooling (RHC) systems are being more widely adopted considering the well-known technical advantages: increased thermal comfort, space saving, and reduced energy use. Since the building sector is currently one of the largest consumers of fossil fuels, many directives and regulations have been enacted to address the intense concern about energy use for space conditioning.Even though radiant systems are considered as an energy efficient technology for building heating and cooling, more effort is needed to fulfil the zero energy requirements outlined by recent standards and directives. Renewable Energy Sources (RES) are an effective solution to avoid using finite fossil fuels and related geopolitical issues enhanced by the recent world conflicts. Despite being primarily intermittent and subject to economic and regional constraints, RES offer suitable temperature levels to supply low temperature heating and high temperature cooling operation, a major advantage of RHC system.Although a limited number of studies directly report energy savings or CO2 emission reduction as the main outcomes of the research related to this combination, valuable insights have been obtained for the present review. Primary energy can decrease between 40% and 80% with different integration of RHC, photovoltaic, heat pumps and district heating. TABS can lead to load shifting up to 100%, allowing an increased self −consumption of renewable energy.This paper provides evidence on whether coupling radiant systems with renewables is a promising strategy for achieving nearly-zero annual energy balances in building stocks. It investigates recent trends, limitations and potential to support decarbonization goals.

21st Century Geopolitical Doctrine for Bangladesh to Become a Smart Power: A Bangladeshi Perspective

After a grueling nine-month conflict with Pakistan, Bangladesh gained independence as a sovereign nation on December 16, 1971. The economically successful South Asian nation that was previously known as the "bottomless basket" has become known as a "development miracle." The country has regained geopolitical significance both within and outside the area due to its proximity to other countries and strategic location, which has been supported by astounding economic development. Bangladesh is faced with several geopolitical issues amid a changing regional and global geopolitical scene, the mitigation of which calls for prudent actions. But Bangladesh, as a contemporary geopolitical actor, lacks a wise geopolitical philosophy that could serve as a guide for dealing with those problems. This study proposes the creation of a coherent and pertinent geopolitical ideology that can help a nation achieve geopolitical graduation as a Smart Power and address current geopolitical issues shortly. Int. J. Soc. Sc. Manage. Vol. 11, Issue-4: 106-114.

A Review of the Sustainability of Helium: An Assessment of Its Past, Present and a Zero-Carbon Future

Helium, as a by-product of the natural gas industry, will be impacted by the decline in consumption of fossil fuels as the world moves towards net-zero carbon emissions. In September 2022, all assets relating to the US government’s previous helium industry were sold. In the US, helium is now only available from private suppliers. In June 2022, Russia banned the export of helium to “unfriendly” countries, highlighting the geopolitical issues surrounding the industry. In the past, helium was popularized, and the industry was supported by its military applications (filling dirigible aircraft, welding fighter jets and purging rocket engines). It also plays an important role in supporting present-day technologies (e.g., MRI machines and spectroscopy) and will also be important for a high-tech future (e.g., in quantum computing, fusion power, and space exploration). Shortages of helium will inevitably cause skyrocketing prices and consequently lead to significant challenges for research and development (as has happened in the past) and technological progress, as well as a slowdown in world economic growth and prosperity. Anticipated declines in natural gas production, associated with moves towards net-zero carbon emissions targets, make helium less accessible. While this is problematic for industry in the short term, it perhaps preserves some low entropy helium within the ground, making it more accessible to future generations. Given anticipated limitations to the future supply of helium, technological developments are currently focused on a few areas: the replacement of helium by other gases in industrial applications, changing technological approaches to not require helium, and reducing the cost of obtaining helium from the atmosphere. This paper explores the past, present and future of helium, focusing on the sustainability of the helium industry.

Частные военные компании как инструмент продвижения геополитических интересов

Private military companies (PMCs) are increasingly becoming the focus of various mass media outlets today, whereas 20–30 years ago they were perceived as something exotic. The disclosure of such entities’ activities has led to the formation of an entire segment of opinions-ranging from their omnipotence to a fashionable trend that holds little interest for the public. However, the emergence of geopolitical issues, the escalation of global tensions, and the active engagement of PMCs cannot be seen as coincidental. Furthermore, these entities themselves are not homogeneous; they perform a wide range of tasks and services, allowing for classification based on the sphere and geography of their activities. Particularly noteworthy is the role of PMCs in promoting the geopolitical and economic interests of states and transnational corporations. In this context, it is crucial to examine the reasons states opt to utilize such structures in place of conventional national military formations, as well as the future prospects for businesses seeking their services. As globalization accelerates, the intertwining of business and security interests becomes more pronounced, leading to a scenario where PMCs serve as facilitators for resource extraction and protection in volatile regions. This interplay raises questions regarding accountability, legality, and the ethical implications of employing private entities for missions traditionally held by state actors. In conclusion, the augmentation of PMCs in modern geopolitical landscapes presents a complex and multifaceted issue. Their growing prominence as instruments for advancing national and corporate interests warrants further investigation, as it bears significant implications for international relations, security policies, and the ethical considerations surrounding the privatization of military force.

Gaming the conflict: Fursan Al-Aqsa’s narrative of the Israeli-Palestinian struggle and its reception through moral disengagement

This study explores Fursan al-Aqsa: The Knights of the Al-Aqsa Mosque (developed by Nidal Nijm Games in 2022) highlighting its role in the portrayal of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a paradigm between propaganda and entertainment. By examining the game’s discourse, and its impact on player perceptions, this research sheds light on how video games can shape understanding and engagement with geopolitical issues. The research utilises Albert Bandura’s concept of moral disengagement to analyse the game’s content and its reception on platforms like Twitch and YouTube. By assessing how the game frames moral considerations through its narrative and gameplay, this study reveals the potential of digital games to affect player perceptions and contribute to the broader media landscape surrounding political issues. The analysis also explores the reception and re-interpretation of the game by players and content creators, thus offering insights into the complex interplay between video game content, ideological influence, and audience engagement.

Feasibility study of underground CO2 storage through Water Alternative Gas (WAG) operation: A case study in Southwestern Ontario

Geological CO2 storage (GCS) offers a promising, low-risk, long-term solution for carbon sequestration. This study assesses the feasibility of GCS water-alternating-gas (WAG) operations in a brine formation targeted for the Western Ontario GCS plan. The Cambrian strata shows potential for CO2 storage but faces challenges like limited lateral extension and geopolitical issues from plume migration. To mitigate these risks, a deep evaluation of CO2 trapping mechanisms is crucial. CO2 dissolution into brine provides secure storage by reducing the free plume. The proposed WAG operation promotes dissolution, using a vertical equilibrium model coupled with a black oil model to estimate CO2 trapping proportions during and post-injection. The Taguchi design of experiments investigates various WAG scenarios with minimal simulations, reducing numerical costs. Sensitivity analysis/optimization of WAG parameters, including water extraction rate (WER), water injection rate (WIT), and CO2 injection time (CIT), ranked their effectiveness in CO2 dissolution. Optimal WAG operations can reduce the free plume by 49 % and increase the dissolution ratio from 0.26 to 0.52. CIT and WIT were found to be the most influential factors, contributing 42 % and 31 % to CO2 dissolution, and 43 % and 34 % to overall CO2 trapping, respectively, while WER exhibited a lower impact of 8–9%.

Embracing methodological evolution and diversity in logistics and supply chain management research

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to highlight the significance of advancing research methodologies in logistics, operations and supply chain management. It seeks to expand the scope of research questions and explore areas previously constrained by traditional methodological approaches, thereby enhancing the exploration of complex, real-world business issues.Design/methodology/approachThis commentary introduces and discusses the special issue on “Advances in Research Methodologies for Logistics and Supply Chain Management,” exploring methodological innovations, diversity and their potential to address complex business and disciplinary challenges. The commentary assesses a broad spectrum of methodologies, ranging from traditional qualitative and quantitative approaches to overlooked methods such as qualitative comparative analysis, netnography, design science, Bayesian networks, machine learning and repertory grid technique. This diverse methodological approach enables a comprehensive examination of emerging and ongoing challenges in the supply chain. In the final summary section, we highlight additional areas of research method innovation not covered in this special issue, offering a broader perspective on future directions for methodological advancements in SCM research.FindingsThe findings suggest that integrating less explored methodologies from various disciplines encourages a richer, multi-level analysis of the supply chain management landscape. This integration facilitates a deeper understanding of emerging challenges, such as geopolitical issues, global supply chain disruptions and the integration of new technologies. Additionally, the exploration of ‘white space' in research methodologies indicates significant potential for discovering new insights that bridge practical problems with theoretical contributions.Originality/valueThe value of this methodological diversity extends beyond academic enrichment. It catalyzes the generation of innovative insights crucial for business practitioners, policymakers, consultants and academics. By adopting varied research designs and methodologies, the research note can offer a broader spectrum of analytical perspectives, crucial for uncovering nuanced insights into complex, cross-cultural and relationship-based dynamics in supply chain research.

Public Sentiment Analysis of the Israel-Palestine Conflict on Social Media Using BERT

General background Israel-Palestine conflict has drawn significant global attention, particularly in how it is perceived and discussed on social media platforms. Specific background understanding public sentiment surrounding such geopolitical issues is crucial for media monitoring, diplomatic efforts, and reputation management. Knowledge gap previous sentiment analysis studies often lack the ability to accurately handle multilingual and context-rich datasets, especially in analyzing neutral sentiments, which are commonly overlooked. This study aims to apply the Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) model to analyze public sentiment towards the Israel-Palestine conflict on the X platform, focusing on Indonesian users. Results Using BERT, the model achieved 93% accuracy, with a precision of 0.95, recall of 0.93, and F1-score of 0.94. The model performed well in predicting positive and negative sentiments but showed room for improvement in handling neutral sentiment. Novelty this study introduces the implementation of the BERT Transformer model for the multilingual and context-sensitive sentiment analysis of tweets, specifically addressing a high-stakes geopolitical conflict. Implications the findings demonstrate the potential for using advanced natural language processing techniques like BERT for monitoring public opinion, brand management, and detecting societal tensions on social media, offering valuable insights for stakeholders involved in conflict resolution and diplomatic strategies. Highlights: Achieved 93% accuracy in sentiment analysis using BERT on X platform. Identified strengths in predicting positive/negative sentiments, with challenges in neutral sentiment. Demonstrated BERT’s effectiveness in handling complex geopolitical social media data. Keywords: Sentiment Analysis, BERT Transformer, Israel-Palestine Conflict, Social Media, NLP

"Data Free Flow with Trust": Japan's struggle to integrate democracy and human rights into digital trade policy.

A powerful regime for regulating trade, the Group of Seven (G-7) has increasingly negotiated its digital trade through bilateral and preferential trade agreements, including with non-member states in the Global South. Focusing on the dominant concept shaping these agreements, Japan's "Data Free Flow with Trust" (D.F.F.T.), we trace its discursively contested emergence and meaning within a national ("Society 5.0") vision for Japan's digital transformation, and its subsequent transnationalization in international fora and institutionalization in global digital trade policy. Drawing on our interviews with Japanese government ministers, business elites, and legal experts who contributed to the processual development of D.F.F.T., as well as diverse additional primary sources, we find that the D.F.F.T. has become more than a trade policy, covering a wider range of social and geopolitical issues. In particular, we show that contention over "data localization measures" has restructured international relations of trust, especially across the Global North/South divide. Ultimately, this research report contributes to our understanding of how D.F.F.T. poses threats to human rights, democracy, and the global knowledge economy that may undermine its goals of enhancing innovation capacity and economic growth.

Quran Desecration Rallies in Scandinavia and the Netherlands: The Formation and Transnational Diffusion of an Anti-Muslim Protest Tactic

ABSTRACT Since 2019, Quran desecration rallies have proliferated across Northern Europe, leading to geopolitical tensions with Muslim-majority countries and domestic debates about freedom of speech. This article traces the diffusion trajectories of Quran desecration acts from their initiation in 2019 until November 2023 across Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and the Netherlands. Combining protest event analysis and process tracing based on mainstream media reporting and far-right social media, it shows how the desecration tactic spread from Denmark to remnants of the transnational Counter-Jihad Movement through a within-movement diffusion process involving both indirect and direct channels. Following Rasmus Paludan’s Quran-burning outside Turkey’s Embassy in Stockholm in January 2023, the tactic attracted massive international media attention. In Denmark and Sweden, the tactics’ repurposing toward geopolitical issues led to a spillover to actors unaffiliated with the far right, while in Norway and the Netherlands, the tactic hardly diffused beyond the anti-Islam activists. Drawing on far-right transnational diffusion literature, the article provides an empirically grounded and theoretically informed mapping of the recent wave of Quran desecration rallies, showing the various ways the same tactic spread throughout and into different domestic settings.

From Ancient Threads to Colonial Commerce: The Evolution of West Bengals Silk Industry from Mythical Origins to Independence

Silk production, or sericulture, has a rich history that is frequently eclipsed by its modern applications. Sericulture began in ancient China approximately 3000 BC and this was a well held secret until it spread to Korea, India and eventually the West through a variety of causes, including royal intrigue and missionary endeavours. By the Han Dynasty, silk had evolved from a luxury item to a valuable economic asset, impacting trade and culture throughout Asia and Europe. India's silk industry, as documented in ancient scriptures, progressed from early wild silk production in the Himalayan foothills to sophisticated mulberry sericulture by the 2nd century BCE. The Mughal dynasty improved Indian silk traditions by incorporating several weaving techniques and nurturing a thriving business in Kashmir and Bengal. From 1612 to 1858, the East India Company capitalised on Bengal's silk potential by building trading centres and using Piedmontese reeling technology to improve quality. Despite initial hurdles, Bengal silk became a major export commodity, but colonial policies and technological shifts eventually led to its demise. Silk output fell dramatically after independence due to a variety of economic and geopolitical issues. This article investigates the growth of India's silk industry, focussing on Bengal's key role and examines the effects of colonial control, technological advancements and the sector's trajectory up to Independence.