Political Approach Research Articles

Re-presencing telematic dreaming – awakening a critical feminist phenomenology

ABSTRACT This article enacts a re-presencing of Telematic Dreaming, the influential telepresence art installation by Paul Sermon from the 1990s. Revisiting an often-cited text I wrote in 1994 called ‘Spacemaking', which spoke from the experience of being a performer in the installation, I fill in what was missing, downplayed or unwelcome in the discourses of the time: that nobody is anybody (i.e. in technological environments bodies are never neutral or universal); and that artistic works are deeply contextual and intersectional. Taking a strongly political and contextual approach to Telematic Dreaming, I first reflect on the dual states of wonder & entitlement characterising digital experimentation of the 1990s then I consider the cultural structures and material infrastructures of the installation, assessing the scope for ontological expansiveness and gender crique they afforded. Beyond a particular instance of time-travel, this article proposes a new methodological framework for examining past performances. By turning to critical phenomenology, with contributions from feminist archaeology, media archaeology, and an unexpected appearance of Sara Ahmed’s feminist killjoy, I offer an approach that paves the way for future researchers interested in engaging reflexively and critically with historical phenomenological analyses of artistic performance and of wider lived experiences.

Place-making and place-taking: memories from Tirana

ABSTRACT Multidisciplinary studies try to explain the complexity and the effects of political processes, such as how decision-making, and socio-political transition are connected with urbanism, and activism. Tirana has faced numerous changes over the years, from urbanism, to political landscapes, to economics, to social aspects, and to public spaces within the city (for example, squares and buildings), all of which are key points towards achieving sustainable transformation. This paper tries to explain and understand the political processes and informal placemaking (public space, buildings, activism) following three main perspectives: a) ontologies on political processes approach, the environment, and urban planning; b) activism and protest events; and c) the legal framework on urban planning and activism. Based on previous studies, experiences from the past and these three perspectives, this paper emphasizes the connection between political processes and informal placemaking by answering the questions: “What is the role of urban transformation in activism in Tirana? What are the implications of political processes on activism and urban transformation? The key studies in this paper focus on public spaces around culture heritage buildings in Tirana, such as the National Theatre building and the “Qemal Stafa” National Stadium.

Sports as placemaking: critical reflections on a community-engaged campaign

ABSTRACT Community-engaged scholarship has largely neglected the potential of sports to construct progressive forms of community and mobilize disparate interests. In this article, we critically reflect on how sports were used for placemaking purposes in the Friendship and Hope Campaign, an annual event that is driven by residents of Thembelihle, a low-income community in South Africa. The Campaign is a participatory and community-based intervention that seeks to strengthen community relations and mobilize resources to build peaceful, nonracial, and nonsexist communities. Although the Campaign hosted several sports tournaments and cultural events, its attempt to strengthen community cohesion for the purposes of making democratically-led change renders it a political approach to placemaking. Yet, as with all community-engaged work, this was far from a simplistic process. The Campaign’s deployment of sports as a placemaking practice was complicated by a multitude of political interests that oftentimes contradicted the community-oriented values and aims of the Campaign. We reflect on how patronage politics can assist us in understanding such internal contestations and conflicting interests, and how community campaigns can work to move through and hold complexity in a democratic fashion, rather than attempt to settle such complexity altogether

Placing African Cities in Chinese Lives: A Comparative Study of Migrant Geographies

Based on ethnographic research on Chinese migrants in Nigeria, Botswana, and Namibia from 2011 to 2015, this article has three lines of argumentation and contribution. First, it proposes a framing of migrant geographies from a humanistic comparative perspective in order to complement the political economy approaches in geographies of migration. Second, lying in the intersection of urban studies and migration studies, it illustrates the different positionalities of cities in three aspects of migrant geographies – migrant space, network, and belonging – echoing the multiscalar analysis of city-making in migration processes. Third, specifically in the context of Chinese migrant geographies, three African cities, Lagos, Gaborone, and Windhoek, are placed in three migrants’ geographic worlds, not always according to their positions in multiscalar power structures, but partly through migrant experiences in which top-down power horizontally works.

The Political Economy of Contemporary Insecurity in Nigeria: Theoretical Issues and Explanations

This paper examined the nature of contemporary insecurity in Nigeria. The paper adopts a qualitative methodology, and the data were gathered using documentary sources. It anchors on political economy approach using game theoretic modeling as theoretical framework. The paper argued that Nigerian state is currently facing internal security threats from separatist demands and ethnic militias to terrorism, cattle rustling, kidnapping for ransom, armed banditry, and armed robbery among others. It further stressed that Nigeria's frighteningly high level of insecurity makes its citizens live in constant fear. That Nigeria's socio-economic development has been badly impacted by this insecurity, which also has an influence on the credibility of Nigeria's international image. In order to address Nigeria's worries about insecurity, this paper concluded with policy recommendations, primarily for the National Assembly that corrupt practices must be addressed in order to restore peace in Nigeria. Also, to facilitate effective governance, which is necessary for upholding peace and stability in the country, the National Assembly must use the power of the legislative power derived from the constitution to improve responsiveness, transparency and accountability.

Diversifying News Sources as Multicultural News Production: Critical Political Economy Approach to Sourcing Practices in Ethiopian Mainstream TV Channels

This study examines the diversity of news sourcing in Ethiopian TV channels, utilizing Critical Political Economy approach. It analyses 1167 news stories from 2019 to 2021 and interviews with 25 journalists. The study reveals disparity in the representation of peripheral communities, despite the utilization of various news sources. This indicates that diversifying news sources alone does not guarantee equal representation of diverse voices. Economic limitations, editorial decisions, and language barriers confine news gathering to specific geographic regions. Journalists’ limited autonomy and newsroom culture contribute to prioritizing government affairs thereby limiting diversity of voices. The study suggests collaborative efforts among news editors, managers, and political authorities, and policy framework for multicultural news production, to achieve content and voice diversity. It emphasizes the need to combine normative principles with real-world practices and the impact of resource constraints on media reception and viewer choices in future research.

Corruption, unemployment, and clientelism: A Political Economy approach

We present a theoretical general equilibrium model that incorporates capital allocation dynamics between licit and illicit activities, endogenous unemployment, idiosyncratic moral costs, and the influence of corrupt political power. Our inquiry focuses on the endogeneity of corruption, highlighting its reciprocal relationship with political power, which is mediated through clientelist practices. Using data from Sub-Saharan African countries, our model reveals multiple equilibria, establishing a negative correlation between output and corruption and a positive correlation between corruption and unemployment. In addition, our analysis suggests that implementing appropriate tax rates to fund unemployment benefits can effectively alleviate corruption by transforming unemployed individuals’ perception of subsidies; this shift in perspective diminishes their susceptibility to corrupt practices, underscoring the significance of policy interventions targeting unemployment reduction to weaken clientelist mechanisms and reduce corruption. This study enriches our comprehension of the nuanced impact of corruption on economic outcomes and offers valuable insights for formulating effective anti-corruption policies.

The difficulties and path of China’s NGOs participating in marine plastic waste governance

The problem of marine plastic waste is one of the most urgent issues in global ocean governance and has received much attention from the international community. In the marine plastic waste governance system, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are indispensable actors with various advantages, playing a crucial role in mobilizing, supplementing, and implementing marine plastic waste governance. In China, NGOs have achieved rapid development over the past two decades and have participated in China’s marine plastic waste governance using political, social, and institutional approaches. However, compared with Western countries and large international NGOs, China’s NGOs still face many difficulties in participation, such as a shortage of funds and personnel, insufficient internal coordination and cooperation, limited participation channels, and a low level of internationalization. Therefore, the Chinese government and China’s NGOs should work together to take various measures to eliminate these difficulties to promote greater development of NGOs and better realize their contributions to marine plastic waste governance.

Integration perspectives for improving regional policy in rural areas of Bulgaria

Purpose. The purpose of the research is to determine the degree of implementation of specific regional policies in rural areas in the context of Bulgaria’s integration into the European Union through the prospects of the changing economic situation and new trends in the implementation of regional policy. Methodology / approach. The focus of the research is the need for a working regional policy that gives importance to the development of rural areas and influences the demographic and socio-economic processes in Bulgaria. The study is defined by comparative analysis, reference to expert assessment, use of statistical data, and analysis of strategic documents and programs related to regional development. Results. This research has shown that the applied regional development policies within the European Union have partial success. At the same time, the problems and emerging deficits are successfully defined, but it is more difficult to find optimal solutions that can be applied in more than one municipality. In this direction, regional policy has its achievements in its development, but new solutions are still being sought for several spatial and territorial problems in connection with integration into a common European market. This means a comprehensive process of functional impacts in the socio-economic development of nearly 281 regions. In Bulgaria, the situation is even more complicated, because it is necessary to have a dual approach in regional politics. On the one hand, the development of the most urbanised regions, and on the other hand, the development of the rural areas, which are decisive for the development of the greater part of the territory of Bulgaria. Originality / scientific novelty. The regional development policy carried out in the years after 2007 has a static and spontaneous character, the new approach of the measures and programs after 2023 are based on new concepts and elements in line with information technologies, development of intelligent systems, economic connectivity to overcome the backward development of rural areas. New approaches and moments are proposed in the construction of a regional policy, which has a new framework and provisions for the development of the European economic space. In this direction, the need for expert decisions related to the management of regional development comes to the fore. Practical value / implications. It is necessary to make regional development a national priority. In addition, governments should facilitate access to young people and medium-sized businesses for the use of inputs and the promotion of projects. Access to financing, strategic, and planning activities, which have their characteristics at different levels, must be further developed.

Теоретико-методологические основания изучения процесса восприятия студенческой молодежью мировоззренческих курсов вузов (на примере курса «Основы российской государственности»)

This research paper is devoted to the study of the theoretical and methodological foundations of the perception of university worldview courses by students on the example of the course “Fundamentals of Russian State-hood”. The paper examines the key theoretical approaches to the analysis of the perception process, the socio-psychological features of the formation of the worldview of students, as well as the main political and psycho-logical approaches to assessing and measuring this perception. Particular attention is paid to the political con-text and the role of knowledge in the construction of objective reality. It is assumed that the study of the course “Fundamentals of Russian Statehood” can contribute to the formation of students not only an understanding of the state system as a whole, but also the development of critical thinking, traditional value orientations and pat-riotic civic identity. The results of the study will be of practical importance for improving the educational process and stimulating an active civic position, taking into account the specific features of the youth audience.

Reforms and coalition building around the reindeer pastoralism of the Indigenous Sámi people in Sweden, 2012–2022

In Sweden, Indigenous Sámi reindeer pastoralists must find effective ways to improve ecological conditions conducive to natural pasture-based reindeer pastoralism in a rapidly changing environment. In particular, they must challenge the conventional climate policy agenda of the dominant economic and political actors. This paper seeks to contribute to the emergence of a social movement that can push for reforms towards such improvements. Theoretically, we combine a theory of hegemony and counter-hegemonic politics, and the contentious politics approach to social movement theory, to discuss how meaningful reforms could be achieved by assembling a broad social coalition. Empirically, we examine 10 years of data from a public media outlet that reports on Sámi issues to show what demands are being made, who is making them, and the reforms and changes in social relations that they imply. The analysis identifies current coalitions and demand clusters. We discuss potential opportunities for a new reform agenda and actor constellations, with a focus on rural and Indigenous cultures and livelihoods, in relation to a broader environmental movement.

Financialization and labor discipline in contemporary capitalism

PurposeDrawing upon a political economy approach, this article aims to analyze the transformations in the labor market within the context of contemporary capitalism, focusing on the phenomenon of financialization.Design/methodology/approachFinancialization is defined as a distinct wealth pattern marked by a growing proportion of financial assets in capitalist wealth. Within financial markets, corporate performance is continuously assessed, in a process that disciplines management to achieve expected financial results, with consequences throughout corporate management.FindingsWe find that this phenomenon has implications for labor management, resulting in the intensification of labor processes and the adoption of insecure forms of employment, leading to the fractalization of work. These two mechanisms, added to the indebtedness of workers, constitute three elements for disciplining labor in contemporary capitalism.Originality/valueWe argue that these forms of discipline constitute a subsumption of labor to finance, resulting in an increase in labor exploitation. This formulation of the relationship between financialization and changes in the realm of labor also contributes to understanding the unrealizing potential of social free time in contemporary capitalism.

EUROPEAN UNION-UKRAINE AGRICULTURAL TRADE DURING THE RUSSO-UKRAINIAN WAR: A POLITICAL ECONOMY PERSPECTIVE

The article analyzes the consequences of the Russian armed invasion of Ukraine, initiated in February 2022, for the EU’s trade policy towards this country and for the changes in mutual foreign trade in agri-food goods due to its temporary, exceptional liberalization, with particular emphasis on the imports of these products into the EU. The study uses the political economy approach (including interest group theory) to explain the premises of the EU’s specific trade policy towards Ukraine and the crisis in mutual trade relations between Ukraine and its neighboring countries, caused by the excessive inflow of Ukrainian grain into their territories. Large agri-food corporations are identified as potential interest groups monopolizing economic power, influencing the use of agricultural land, the export of agricultural products, and Ukraine’s domestic and foreign policy. The measures of temporary liberalization of trade in agricultural products applied by the EU to Ukraine in response to the war situation resulted in a significant increase in their imports into the EU, while in the case of Poland its share in the volume of EU imports of sensitive products (wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower) in the 14 months since the beginning of the war was several to over a dozen times higher than in the 11 months preceding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

How Political Dynasties Concentrate Advantage within Cities: Evidence from Crime and City Services in Chicago

Abstract Classic models of urban inequality acknowledge the importance of politics for resource distribution and service provision. Yet, contemporary studies of spatial inequality rarely measure politics directly. In this paper, we introduce political dynasties as a way of integrating political economy approaches with ecological theory to better understand the political construction of urban spatial inequality. To do so, we examine the case of political dynasties within the Chicago city council. We show that, from 2011 to 2018, blocks in dynastic wards saw fewer homicides, assaults, robberies, and thefts relative to those in non-dynastic wards. We then leverage the 2015 ward redistricting to provide evidence that dynastic effects play some role in producing these outcomes: blocks annexed into dynastic wards experienced a decline in assaults and robberies and an increase in pothole coverings. While dynastic politicians improve outcomes for blocks they annex, they also withdraw power from those they displace; and displaced blocks had relatively higher levels of crime than annexed blocks in 2015. Taken together, our findings provide evidence that dynastic politicians are contributing to spatial inequalities within Chicago.

Higher education cooperation at the regional level

PurposeThis article focuses on regional-level cooperation in higher education by examining the functional, organizational and political approaches (FOPA) framework for higher education regionalization and using supra-national regional universities as established and successful examples of regional-level higher education cooperation among countries.Design/methodology/approachA conceptual framework is used to provide the structure for analyzing the key approaches to higher education regionalization, followed by an analysis of supra-national regional universities to demonstrate the application of the model.FindingsThe FOPA framework for higher education regionalization includes three approaches. The first is the functional approach, which includes both collaborative academic and research activities among higher education institutions as well strategies and policies to help align systems across a region. The second is the organizational approach, which focuses on networks, organizations, institutions and programs, which facilitate partnerships. The third is the political approach, which includes regional-level agreements, declarations and strategic plans to promote higher education collaboration. Key higher education activities for each approach are discussed in generic terms, with examples provided from major regions of the world.Research limitations/implicationsThe research was based on desk research only. No interviews were conducted.Practical implicationsA conceptual analysis and a model were provided for the concept of regionalization of higher education and for regional universities, which can help readers locate their interests and research in the regionalization of higher education. Examples of three different types of regional universities were provided to give concrete illustrations of a regional university.Social implicationsOne of the rationales driving regional universities is to address and increase a sense of regional identify and to meet the social, economic and educational needs of the specified region.Originality/valueRegional universities, such as the University of West Indies, Arab Open University and the Pan-Africa University, are an understudied phenomenon. Using them as innovative and sustainable examples of higher education regional cooperation and the FOPA model, this study illustrates how single-campus, multiple-campus and virtual regional universities are functioning to meet the diversified needs and priorities across a region through cooperation among countries.

The awkward rhetoric of Spanish liberalism

Abstract This article explores the ideological controversies around Spanish liberalism through the story of the Citizens party – from its rise in 2006 through 2023, after a sequence of electoral defeats that almost certified its demise. Born as a regional party in Catalonia with an anti-nationalist platform focused on linguistic policies, in national politics it fostered a liberal agenda. The article examines Citizens’ politics of language hiding the party’s liberal identity because of its association to right-wing outlooks. At its founding documents there was an amalgam of liberal and social democratic constitutional values inspiring the party’s political approach. No earnest question was made of their difficult accommodation, given their disparity at the policy level. In 2017 an internal debate arouse, and from 2019 a number of electoral setbacks accelerated it. By then the liberal language legitimizing its passage from regional into a national party had lost its civic appeal.

The Omnibus Law on Job Creation and its potential implications for rural youth and future farming in Indonesia

Indonesian rural youth face challenges accessing farmland and sustaining an agricultural livelihood while their labour is not necessarily absorbed by other sectors. In that context, the Omnibus Law on Job Creation (Law 11/2020) promises to liberalise trade and investment across multiple sectors, including agriculture and food security. Combining legal research and political economy approaches to youth and agrarian challenges, we identify amendments to legislation that reduce safeguards for the environment, workers' and farmers' rights and their livelihoods. If fully implemented, the legislative amendments could further narrow youth's options both for secure formal work and futures in farming by accelerating the expansion of infrastructure, industrial plantations and extractive industries that utilise low‐wage labour and huge areas of land. This exposes inconsistencies in the government's approach to increase future food security by promoting intensification of agriculture and attracting youth to farming, while enabling agro‐ and resource extraction that absorbs land yet offers limited and precarious employment prospects.

Spiritism in Germany: A Resource of Integration for Brazilian Migrants?

This account of qualitative anthropological field research in Brazil and Germany explores the importance of translocal Spiritist/Kardecist networks as resources for Brazilian migrants in Germany. It focuses on aspects of integration with the host society and conflicts arising from divergent expectations and habits. It introduces the author’s multi-sited investigation within the DFG-funded research project “Diversification of Mental Health: Therapeutic Spaces of Brazilian Spiritism” (implemented by Prof. Dr. Helene Basu 2015–2018) and elaborates on the approach of “translocal relations” as crucial for the theoretical discussion before introducing relevant literature reviews and original research data. Case studies confirm the supportive functions of Brazilian Spiritist centers in Germany for migrants but also illustrate that they serve integration only to a marginal degree. Brazilians use Spiritist centers as a resource for not having to integrate and instead staying among themselves. Being aware that this habit contradicts adaptation to new environments and serves critical political approaches, a small group of Brazilians and Germans establish contested integrative practices. In conclusion, this contribution discusses conflicts emerging from Brazilian migration to Germany in religious-spiritual contexts and illustrates that integration is a multi-directional task.

The Identity of Political Islam in a Democratic Regime: The Ideology of the Prosperious Justice Party (PKS), Indonesia and the Justice and Development Party (AKP), Turkey

This study focuses on the identity and ideological orientation of two Islamic political parties, as well as their steps towards ideological moderation and specific electoral strategies within the political landscapes of two different countries. This is a library-based research that explores the identity of political Islam ideology in secular democracies, utilizing a combination of historical and political approaches. The sources include literature and writings about political Islam groups in Indonesia and Turkey, specifically PKS and AKP, derived from reputable books and scholarly articles. The study concludes that both PKS and AKP are moderate in ideology and politics. PKS, especially in post-New Order, transformed through moderation and inclusion, maintaining its Islamist identity while forming coalitions with nationalist parties for survival. Meanwhile, AKP combines moderate Islamism with conservative democracy, though Erdogan’s dominant leadership tends toward authoritarianism.

Platforms, people and politics: The challenges for public service media in Ireland

This article assesses the viability of RTÉ, Ireland’s main public service media (PSM) organization, as an institution and media organization against the backdrop of the largest challenges affecting PSM today. It questions the extent (1) the presence of global platforms, (2) shifting media use and (3) (continued) government support have affected the programming, structure and legitimacy of the Irish public broadcaster. The analytical framework that serves as the basis for our analysis combines a media policy and political economy approach with cultural-sociological analysis. Using expert interviews and document analysis, we show that many of the challenges of RTÉ are generalizable in a European context and a wider international context. We argue that while the government may not be directly undermining RTÉ, its funding position may become so eroded that it would no longer be able to deliver what one of our interviewees describes as a ‘BBC-sized mission in a small jurisdiction’.