Nordic States Research Articles

Utzon: The defining light of the Third Generation

In Space, Time, and Architecture, Sigfried Giedion identified Jørn Utzon as one of the proponents and leaders of what Giedion regarded as the Third Generation of modern architecture in the 20th century. This article considers how Utzon subsequently further exemplified in later works the principles Giedion had identified as essential to that Third Generation and discusses, as Giedion did not explicitly, the significance of light in Utzon’s architecture, which plays a key role in underpinning and articulating these defining principles. This article addresses how the principles Giedion attributed to Utzon and his defining consideration of light, derived from his interpretations of his many transcultural sources of inspiration, notably including from, China, Iran, Japan, Hawaii, Mexico, and Morocco, as well as from his own Nordic realm and Europe, as can be seen in the Sydney Opera House, Can Lis in Mallorca, Melli Bank in Tehran, Kuwait National Assembly, and Bagsværd Church in Denmark, among others.

Varieties of capitalism and East Asia: Long-term evolution, structural change, and the end of East Asian capitalism

Literature on varieties of capitalism (VoC) argues that capitalist economies can be classified into several types, which include liberal and coordinated market economies. The present study revisits such an argument in light of the trend of increasing globalization and inequality, which may be a force toward the convergence of different varieties of capitalism. This study conducts cluster analysis to analyze the dynamic evolution of economies using the criteria of GDP growth rate, employment rate (employed/population), and top 10% income shares. The analysis first identifies four important types of capitalism: Anglo-Saxon (i.e., low growth and high inequality), Continental Europe (i.e., low growth, low inequality, and low employment), Nordic Europe (i.e., medium growth, low inequality, and high employment), and East Asia (i.e., high growth and low inequality). East Asian economies converged to either the Anglo-Saxon or European capitalism, which may be attributed to its short history. However, many European countries did not converge to Anglo-Saxon capitalism, which supports the VoC hypothesis on the stability of capitalism varieties.

Change in Insulin Dose and HbA1c by Geographical Region—Results from the Diabetes Unmet Need with Basal Insulin Evaluation (DUNE) Study

DUNE, a 12-week, prospective, observational study (Feb 2015–Jul 2016) of 3139 people with T2DM, either newly (at enrollment) or recently (<12 months, mean 5.7 months) initiated on basal insulin (BI), aimed to assess the impact of symptomatic hypoglycemia on individualized HbA1c target achievement. Only 27.9% and 26.8% of newly and recently initiated participants, respectively, achieved individualized HbA1c targets. This analysis investigated the regional variations in BI dose and HbA1c change from baseline, which may help characterize treatment practices associated with improved target achievement. Mean baseline daily BI dose across regions ranged from 0.14 to 0.21 U/kg for newly initiated and 0.25 to 0.39 U/kg for recently initiated participants. Mean baseline HbA1c ranged from 8.94 to 9.44% (newly initiated), and 8.39 to 8.78% (recently initiated) across regions. In general, HbA1c reductions were greater in newly vs. recently initiated participants, and accompanied by greater increases in daily insulin dose (Figure), except in Nordic Europe, where HbA1c reductions were similar despite a ∼3-fold difference between groups in BI dose increases from baseline. These results show that the relationship between BI dose increase and HbA1c reduction can be variable, potentially reflecting regional differences in practices or populations that warrant further analysis. Disclosure D. Mauricio: Advisory Panel; Self; AstraZeneca. Research Support; Self; AstraZeneca. Speaker's Bureau; Self; Eli Lilly and Company, GlaxoSmithKline plc.. Research Support; Self; GlaxoSmithKline plc.. Advisory Panel; Self; Janssen-Cilag Pty Limited. Speaker's Bureau; Self; Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.. Board Member; Self; Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.. Research Support; Self; Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.. Advisory Panel; Self; Novo Nordisk A/S. Speaker's Bureau; Self; Novo Nordisk A/S. Advisory Panel; Self; Sanofi. Board Member; Self; Sanofi. Speaker's Bureau; Self; Sanofi. Research Support; Self; Sanofi. L. Meneghini: Advisory Panel; Self; Novo Nordisk Inc., Sanofi US. Consultant; Self; Sanofi US, Novo Nordisk Inc.. Advisory Panel; Self; Intarcia Therapeutics, Inc.. Other Relationship; Self; American Diabetes Association. E. Orsi: None. V. Klimontov: None. J. Westerbacka: Employee; Self; Sanofi. Stock/Shareholder; Self; Sanofi. L. Melas-Melt: Consultant; Self; Sanofi. V. Pilorget: Employee; Self; Sanofi. Stock/Shareholder; Self; Sanofi. R. Perfetti: Employee; Self; Sanofi. Stock/Shareholder; Self; Sanofi. K. Khunti: Advisory Panel; Self; AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly and Company, Sanofi-Aventis, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Novo Nordisk A/S. Consultant; Self; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, Eli Lilly and Company, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Novartis AG, Novo Nordisk A/S, Sanofi-Aventis, Takeda Development Centre Europe Ltd., Servier. Research Support; Self; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, Eli Lilly and Company, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Novartis AG, Sanofi-Aventis, Pfizer Inc.. Speaker's Bureau; Self; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, Eli Lilly and Company, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Novartis AG, Novo Nordisk A/S, Sanofi-Aventis, Takeda Development Centre Europe Ltd., Servier. Research Support; Self; Novo Nordisk A/S. Consultant; Self; Pfizer Inc.. Research Support; Self; Novo Nordisk A/S.

A small state in world politics: Iceland’s search for shelter

The aim of this paper is to determine Iceland’s foreign policy options in relation to shelter theory. Iceland has been seeking political and economic shelter ever since the United States deserted it in 2006, by closing its military base, and in 2008, by refusing to provide it with assistance following its economic collapse. Iceland has made several new security and defence arrangements with its neighbouring states, applied for membership of the European Union and was the first European country to make a free-trade agreement with China. Moreover, the president of Iceland pressed for closer political and economic ties with Russia. Prominent Icelandic politicians frequently claim that Brexit will create a number of opportunities for Iceland and lead to closer cooperation with Britain. However, Iceland has not yet secured shelter of an extent comparable to what it had enjoyed from the United States. In this paper, we will answer questions such as: What does shelter theory tell us about Iceland’s overseas relations with the US, NATO, the EU, Britain, Russia, China, and the Nordic states? Will Iceland receive more reliable shelter provided by multilateral organizations than by a single shelter provider?

A THEORY OF SHELTER: ICELAND’S AMERICAN PERIOD (1941–2006)

This article is predicated on the assumption that small states need economic, political and societal shelter in order to prosper, and applies this theory to the case of Iceland in the period 1941–2006 – from the American occupation of Iceland to the closure of the US military base in the country. The authors argue that Iceland enjoyed essential shelter, for its development and prosperity, from the United States. The US also provided extensive diplomatic and military backing to Iceland, and profoundly influenced societal affairs in the country. Furthermore, Iceland received extensive societal shelter from the Nordic states, and economic and political shelter from international organizations. However, American and Nordic shelter did not come without costs.

Burden Sharing, Burden Shifting, and Strategy in the Nordic States

Scholars and policy-makers continue to debate transatlantic burden-sharing. While economists have shed much light on cross-country variation in burden-sharing behavior, only qualitative work in the security studies field has addressed the nature of contributions to shared priorities, and neither field has adequately addressed sources of within-country variation, which is of primary interest to policy-makers aiming to mitigate burden-shifting tendencies in alliances. Using a mixed-methods approach, I find that among the Nordic states, NATO membership appears to mitigate such tendencies, and that supranational fiscal rules, as well as national strategies and political economies, shape burden-sharing choices.

Viewing Nordic Public Management

How do Nordic states conduct policies in order to bring people closer to the socio-economic realm, in the sense that they, being social capital, tend to be integrated as active and participatory citizens? How do the interventionist and expensive Nordic welfare states survive in the global age, with demanding and ever changing claims to international competitiveness? This paper addresses these questions. Social capital and partnership building are introduced as terms and policy concepts in order to find answers in the framework of intended or unintended strategic taming endeavours. As a critical approach claims a contextual conceptualisation, we shall here view different European social models and administrative traditions in relation to comparative basic contexts in order to arrive at analytical answers. Leaning especially on the Anglo-Saxon model, the traditional Scandinavian universal welfare state model of the post-war Keynesian order has gradually been transformed into the contemporary Nordic model (Veggeland 2007). Contextual regulatory innovations and path-dependent processes have generated the survival of universal welfare state arrangements and collective action but with the mixed use of Market-Type Mechanisms (MTM) in the public sector of Anglo-Saxon origin. In summary, this blending of policies has resulted in the advantageous social capital of what is called flexicurity , social security combined with a flexible participatory labour market. We shall discuss both flexicurity policy and participatory subsidiarity defined downwards as contributions to an explanation of why the expensive welfare states of the Nordic type have not only so far been doing well but have also sustained both democratic and output-side legitimacy.

Nordic states and European integration: awkward partners in the north?

Nordic states and European integration: awkward partners in the north?

Nordic or Not: Examining the Future of Canada’s Prostitution Legislation

I will inquire into the future of prostitution legislation in Canada, given the recent Supreme Court decision to strike down the Criminal Code provisions restricting practices around the sale and purchase of sex. I will consider three models for Canada’s new laws: criminalization, legalization/regulation and the “Nordic model”. I will outline the features of each system, with a particular focus on the Nordic model which many have proposed as the best avenue for Canadian legislators to take. In both Canada and places where a Nordic Model has been implemented, I will account for the legal provisions regarding prostitution, associated laws related to labour, public health, zoning and public nuisance, political factors including the presence and strength of a social safety net and the sort of government that oversees the administration of said social safety net, and the sorts of people who practice prostitution. I will compare the social factors and demographic information from the Nordic states with the Canadian context, establishing similarities and differences between the situations. Ultimately, I will discuss the implications each system in the Canadian context, addressing the likelihood of each model’s implementation, its efficacy at achieving its stated aims and what sorts of conditions it creates for people engaged in prostitution.

An Empirical Examination of the Dissemination of Equity Price Innovations Between the Emerging Markets of Nordic-Baltic States and Major Advanced Markets

ABSTRACT: We employ three econometric models to examine the relative influence of the stock markets of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany on the stock markets of the Nordic-Baltic states. The results show that the Nordic-Baltic markets respond to price innovations from the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany in diverse ways in the period 2001–2013. Response patterns for Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and Denmark are more significant to market innovations from the United States, the United Kingdom, and France, and less significant to those from Germany. German influence is more significant over Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia than the rest of the advanced markets. While the dynamics of the Nordic-Baltic markets exhibit a dominance of own price innovation, the influence of the United States is stronger than that of France, the United Kingdom, and Germany. These results imply that investors from the Nordic States may derive greater benefits by diversifying into Germany and vice versa, rather than diversifying into the United States, the United Kingdom, or France. Investors from the Baltic States may obtain greater advantages by adopting portfolio strategies that take advantage of potentially better diversification benefits obtainable from the United States, the United Kingdom, and France rather than from Germany, and the reverse will also be in order.

The Rationale for the Duty to Consult Indigenous Peoples: Comparative Reflections from Nordic and Canadian Legal Contexts

Although the standard of consulting Indigenous peoples in decisions affecting them is well rooted internationally as well as in national legal systems, different views and patterns of problems are associated with the concept and its practice. This paper briefly analyses and contrasts the duty to consult Indigenous peoples through a comparison of the three Nordic countries Norway, Finland and Sweden, and Canada. Based on domestic legal sources, the focus of the paper is to explore the legal foundation that has given rise to the specific set of rules for the duty to consult, that is, the rationale behind the evolving of the rules. The first finding is that the rules differ among the three Nordic countries, with Sweden being the only country that lacks specific rules. Secondly, whereas Canada has developed its own duty to consult primarily through domestic case law, in the Nordic countries, duty to consult is related to international law obligations. Consultation duties that have evolved from domestic law may be easier to accept than “foreign” regulations imposed on national legal systems. This could explain the reluctance among the Nordic States to accept specific consultations with the Sami Parliament and other Sami groups, particularly in Sweden.

Alternativne krivične sankcije u pravima Nordijskih država

The specifcity of the criminal law of the Nordic states is reflected in the fact that, in the trend of expanding punitiveness in the world and intensifcation in penal policy, one of the key features is avoiding the application of the prison sentence wherever it is possible and turning to its alternatives. Namely, the Nordic countries have remained on the same course for decades as regards the sanctioning of perpetrators of criminal offenses, and their mild penal policy, especially in the eyes of the Anglo-Saxon countries and countries under their influence, is directly related to high social spending in these societies and the existence of real social egalitarianism among citizens. The aim of this paper is to present a system of criminal sanctions in the law of the Scandinavian countries, with a key review of alternatives to prison sentence and their practical application, as well as to point out the reasons for the existence of such a system of sanctioning and its advantages in relation to legal systems with highly repressive elements in criminal policy.

Wind from the North, don’t go forth? Gender equality and the rise of populist nationalism in Finland

The article considers the future prospects of the struggle for gender equality in light of the growing appeal and electoral success of parties embracing populist nationalism and anti-immigration as their platform. Considering many such parties are known for viewing the promotion of gender equality as unnecessary or even harmful – except when they highlight immigration as a threat to female emancipation – it is important to explore what, if anything, the electoral success of populist-nationalist parties means for the direction of gender equality policies. The article examines this question in the Finnish context. Though the Finnish state’s commitment to gender equality is well-established, questions can be asked about the future prospects of gender equality policies in light of the electoral rise of the populist anti-immigration party Perussuomalaiset (or ‘True Finns’), especially since the party joined government in May 2015. The article scrutinises the recent record of PS in parliament and government, elucidating on the challenges that populist-nationalist parties create for gender equality in (allegedly) ‘women-friendly’ welfare states. The case study particularly focuses on gender equality in the context of balancing work and family and freedom from violence, discrimination and harassment. It raises questions that are of broader relevance to the future of gender equality in Europe, considering the Nordic states have been viewed as models for a gender egalitarian society and frontrunners in the promotion of gender equality within the EU.

Open data and e-government – related or competing ecosystems: a paradox of open government and promise of civic engagement in Estonia

ABSTRACTThe article analyzes an open data movement in an unusual context of highly developed digital economy and widespread popularity of e-government services in a country that is universally well-known as one of the global leaders in promoting information society and electronic democracy, but paradoxically demonstrating modest results in propagating a presumably related concept of open government data. In this regard, paying special attention to the investigation of main drivers, stakeholders and challenges of the open data movement in Estonia, the author argues that a highly centralized administrative policy that has been widely used previously by authorities in advancing various technology-driven public reforms, which partly explains a truly impressive advance of this Nordic state in e-government, e-commerce, e-banking and evoting, does not necessarily lead to same effective results in the open data domain. On the contrary, the presence of established democratic institutions and developed civil society as well as an incredibly advanced and dynamic private ICTindustry that values competition and professional curiosity along with a very strong sense of patriotism and adherence to a particular neighborhood deeply rooted in Estonian society has played a much more important role in diffusing the concept rather than just traditional government directives and strategies.

The Reluctant Activists: The Nordic States and International Human Rights

How to account for the Nordic states’ varying commitment to international human rights (IHR) norms? Previous scholarship has pointed to values of solidarity and equality prevalent in domestic culture to explain why the Nordic states are – supposedly – exceptionally supportive of IHR. This paper instead argues that states’ participation in IHR regimes is shaped by how governments assess the domestic consequences of commitment, which may change due to both international and domestic developments. Against this theoretical backdrop, the paper analyses how Denmark, Norway and Sweden have interacted with the global and European human rights regime over the longue duree: After the Second World War, they cautiously participated in founding the United Nations’ and Council of Europe human rights regimes, and ratified human rights instruments on the presumption that they would not disrupt internal affairs. From the 1960s, Scandinavian governments increased their internationalist activism, while mobilizing the doctrine of dualism to shield the domestic sphere against international law. However, following the increased domestic impact of IHR law and the incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights in the 1980s and ’90s, strengthened domestic rights enforcement has made Scandinavian governments more reluctant to expanding their IHR commitments.

The What, Why’s and How’s of Constituency Service

This Special Issue addresses the ‘what’, ‘why’s’ and ‘how’s’ of constituency service in the five Nordic states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. Whilst there are some Nordic answers to the ‘who?’ question, there is virtually nothing on the ‘how’ question, namely how MPs represent the citizenry and the role constituency service may or may not play in the representation process. In this Introduction we (1) define the term and identify four main aspects of constituency service; (2) draw on the comparative literature to consider the institutional and non-institutional variables that might be expected to prompt parliamentarians to undertake constituency service and shape the form it takes; (3) view the ‘how question’ from a comparative perspective and consider ways in which it might be anticipated that Nordic legislators would undertake constituency service.

Bandwagon for Status: Changing Patterns in the Nordic States Status-seeking Strategies?

ABSTRACTWhy do the small Nordic states engage themselves in militarized interventions alongside the United States? The article argues that the Nordic states gradually have begun to perceive militarized coalition participation as an important tool to gain reputation and improve their status position. A good relationship with the United States is considered as a means to either consolidate or improve their relative status position and also secure protection or ‘shelter’ against regional competitors by improving their reputation. Empirically, the article contributes to our understanding of the status-seeking strategies of the Nordic countries and how they might have utilized a more militarized activism to seek status that departs from the traditional Nordic internationalism. Theoretically, the article contributes to our understanding of the concept of ‘status’ in international relations by offering a new explanation of the puzzling willingness of small states to use military means in international conflicts where immaterial gains play a larger role than otherwise assumed in the realist small-state literature.

Understanding transparency of government from a Nordic perspective: open government and open data movement as a multidimensional collaborative phenomenon in Sweden

ABSTRACTAs the historical homeland of the first freedom of information law, Sweden is universally well-known for its centuries-long traditions of government transparency and respect for individual freedoms and liberties that have been deeply rooted in public mentality of people since medieval times. Today, this nation is also emerging as a global leader in advancing open data phenomena, launching an extremely wide range of public platforms in the sphere. In this respect, this article is mostly presented as a policy review of the open data movement in this Nordic state through the prism of its traditional inclination toward philosophy of open government, open economy, open source software, open science, and even pirate politics. In an attempt to understand a highly context dependable and truly multidimensional nature of the phenomena, the research analyzes various political and socioeconomic backgrounds of the open data movement, tracing interesting patterns and promising networking trends that could be observed today in the communication between its key stakeholders and demonstrating in an intrinsically empirical and illustrative manner how its fundamental pillars such as civic engagement, direct participation and public-private partnerships are exactly promoted within one given society.

A dark imaginarium: The Bridge, Malmö and the making of a ‘non-existent’ place

Abstract The article assesses the role of (hyper-)mediatized placemaking on the city of Malmö, Sweden, contextualizing the creation of an imaginary ‘southern Scandinavian city’ on top of a real urban zone with exceptional attributes and serious challenges. Paying close attention to Malmö’s image within and beyond Nordic Europe, I draw on three sets of artefacts to interrogate this phenomenon: (1) the visual and narrative content of the Swedish Danish television series The Bridge (2011–present), (2) tourism development strategies and tactics employed by the city of Malmö and (3) museological interpretations of the interplay between the conceived, lived and perceived spaces and places of Malmö. In doing so, this article seeks to advance and deepen of the discussion of screen tourism in influencing geographical imagination and place branding.

Local social services in disaster management: Is there a Nordic model?

The Nordic states have extensive welfare systems in which the local social services are an important component. Despite a growing research on disaster resilience, we lack research examining in systematic way whether and how local social services in the Nordic countries contribute to resilience. Aiming to fill this gap, this article asks whether we can identify a common Nordic model of the role of local social services in disasters, or whether the countries have taken different paths. We use policy documents and legislation to examine the extent to which roles for local social services are embedded in the disaster management systems of the five Nordic countries. We analyze the institutional organization in each country, as well as the models of social services related to disasters from a comparative perspective. We find that the Nordic countries have chosen quite different paths regarding local social services’ role in disaster management and conclude that there is no Nordic model. Another general conclusion is that a more robust position of local social services within the disaster management system might enhance disaster resilience in the Nordic countries as a whole.