Substantive Concept Research Articles

ТЕОРЕТИКО-МЕТОДОЛОГІЧНІ ЗАСАДИ УПРАВЛІННЯ ВІЙСЬКОВИМ ПІДРОЗДІЛОМ

Such complex formations as a collective and a person not only demonstrate their many aspects and possibilities of development, but also need a different methodology for their comprehension. The concept of complexity enables to analyze existing problems in a different way, considering them in the context of probability and chance. Complexity is understood as a universal, not a substantive concept. In other words, it is not applied to something specific, nominal, but is a property of various objects, phenomena, systems and subsystems of the world. This is one of those intuitive concepts that can be hardly formalized. Simplified understanding of complexity (squeezing it within the limits of one definition), causes the loss of its multifaceted nature and methodological potential in solving problems of the modern world and man. Management environment in a military unit cannot be reduced to clearly defined rules, recipes, which are effective and efficient in solving any problem. On the contrary, accurate and strict adherence to rigid schemes and defined frameworks invariably results in unjustified simplification of the situation, distortion of its true picture, as well as to illusions and errors. It is emphasized that management is a complex sphere of human activities, which involves taking into account the diversity and individuality of characters, worldviews and values of the management subjects, their diverse and conflicting needs and interests, etc. The complexity of management activities indicates their open nature. This transparency symbolizes the capability of a military organization to attract some external resources in its activities, use them in its internal organizational activities and adapt to a number of different external circumstances and peculiarities. The manager has the ability to solve complex specialized problems and to solve practical problems of professional activities in the field of military management or training, which involves the application of theories and methods of military sciences and is characterized by complexity and uncertainty. As a result, a manager should master the methods, techniques and technologies of military cybernetics, logistics, a system approach to solving problems in the field of military management.

RECONSTRUCTION OF QUASI-PRACTICAL STUDENT ACTIONS AS A WAY OF DESIGNING A DEVELOPING DIGITAL RESOURCE IN SCHOOL TEACHING

To make the global digitalization of education more than just a change in the format of education it is necessary to equip the developers of digital educational resources (DER) with an understanding of the creation principles that organize meaningful learning activities. The aim of the study was to create the design of a digital resource aimed at the development of a scientifi c concept and testing of its effect. The methods of the research were: • subject and logical-psychological analysis of the concept (osmosis), • case study: the construction and testing of DER in experimental teaching, • diagnostics of the concept development using SAM method ( thirteen-fourteen years old students of a Moscow school). It was shown that identifying the substantive concept content and defi ning actions in the course of which a student is able to make the necessary distinctions, test hypotheses, fi nd language adequate to their actions, and receive meaningful feedback on their actions, makes it possible to create a scenario of DER that effectively and consistently supports the formation of a scientifi c concept. The effectiveness of the formation was confi rmed by comparing the solvability of the three-level task on the concept of osmosis (using the SAM methodology) - % in the experimental classes and, respectively, % in the control classes. The effectiveness of DER is also confi rmed by its long-term demand in teaching: all teachers working with this programme use it systematically. Thus, the following principles should underlie the design of effective DERs that support scientifi c concepts formation: • subject analysis, determining the ways of concept development; • logical-psychological analysis, identifying the possible structure of children’s actions; • determining the place of the digital resource, i.e. those quasi-practical actions that should be supported by it, as opposed to actions that do not require virtual substitution; • designing meaningful feedback on the child’s actions.

Визуальная интерпретация парадигмы управления организационной системой c разнородными производственными ресурсами

The object of the study is developing a formalized mechanism for managing an organizational system that implements complex production activities, including different types of industrial production, and applies the corresponding heterogeneous resources. The subject of the article is an important intermediate stage of this development, which is an abstract interpretation of the optimal management paradigm of limited resources of such an organizational system, proposed earlier by the authors. The interpretation will allow reasonably forming a strict mathematical model of objects and control processes. The management mechanism in any subject area, providing for adopting management decisions by people authorized to do so, must have an ergonomic development and appropriate information support for these decisions. The so-called result information plays the role of such support, that is the information on the characteristics of the current and planned states of the management object in the problem being solved which is the productivity of the organizational system resources. It seems advisable to carry out such ergonomic and information development of the designed problem-oriented management mechanism in the form of a visual interpretation of its substantive concept. The prototype of such interpretation tools is graphic images used in modelling and designing technical systems, developed in this work in the field of management in organizational systems with heterogeneous resources. The article provides examples of their application, demonstrating the possibility of visual representation of the current state of the organizational system and the set of its possible controlled states.

A Palimpsest of Practice-led Inquiry: A Conversation

This paper aims to interrogate a writer-researcher’s journey through practice-led inquiry (Gray, 1996) within a broader discourse that acknowledges academic writing as contested. Indeed, the quest of a migrant writer for recognition of their writing in another land requires a deep understanding of the many layers that make up the provenance of their writing practice: A second language, and both their cultural identity and literary background, provide layers of knowledge and experience that fuse to form a 'style' and ultimately a writing ‘niche’. The readership of their writing carries its own provenance and therefore the additional bias of ‘the home ground’. As it reads in the title, palimpsest, in its figurative sense, is a notion that implies levels of meaning in a literary work. Although not the first writer to use the concept figuratively, it was Thomas De Quincey who wrote an essay entitled “The Palimpsests” (1845), which would inaugurate “the substantive concept of the palimpsest” (Dillon, 2005, p. 243). Similarly, Barthes (1989, p. 99) referred to a text as a layered discourse, an onion, a superimposed construction of skins (of layers, of levels, of systems) whose volume contains, finally, no heart, no core, no secret, no irreducible principle, nothing but the very infinity of its envelopes—which envelop nothing other than the totality of its surfaces. As a writer surfaces, discriminates, and understands the different layers that fashion their writing, and wields their particular use of English as a second language, their practice becomes more authentic. That authenticity becomes a dual threshold element of an exegesis argument, representing faithfulness to the practitioner, and translating or bridging the gap between first language readers and second language voices.

Constitutional identity as a normative constitutional concept

AbstractAlthough constitutional identity is nowadays invoked by European states primarily against the extension of the powers of the EU institutions, it can also be understood as a substantive concept of national constitutional law. This article deals with constitutional identity as a normative constitutional concept. In this respect, the problem is the same as that which arises in the relationship between EU law and domestic law: namely, its fundamental indeterminacy and the possible arbitrariness of its application. The author argues that, therefore, constitutional identity can only be plausibly invoked if satisfactory answers can be given to the questions of exactly whose identity it is, what its source is, who and how its content may define, and what the constitutional function of this category is. The second part of the study examines the Hungarian constitutional identity according to this analytical framework, and concludes that, although its subject is the Fundamental Law, its definition, content and constitutional function are unclear and contradictory. Consequently, the current concept of constitutional identity in Hungary raises a number of problems for which no plausible answers have yet been found, and it is highly doubtful whether the doctrinal and practical difficulties related to it can be resolved at all.

Carácter procedimental del non bis in idem en la Unión Europea

After several years under harsh criticism, the Court of Justice of the European Union has finally accepted to review its case law on the idem condition in the ne bis in idem doctrine. In bpost and Nordzucker & others, the ECJ has adjudicated that the idem condition must be understood as idem factum in every field under EU Law, including competition law. The grounds for this decision remain unclear. This paper suggests that a clear distinction between a procedural and a substantive concept of non bis in idem and, specially, the acknowledgment of the ECJ’s endorsement of the latter, may help to understand its most recent case law.

Antitrust Regulation in the Field of IP of MNEs in the New Era: Starting with the Patent Tying Behaviour from the Perspective of Comparative Law

With the vigorous development of patented technology, the problem of some large multinational enterprises implementing monopoly behaviour by abusing intellectual property rights such as patent tying is becoming more and more prominent. This has had a great impact on fair market competition, especially in those developing countries. Combined with the regulation of China’s Antitrust Law and other legal systems on this issue at the present stage, and based on the analysis of its imperfections, this paper explores the excellent achievements in international attempts such as the principle of the rationality of the United States and the comprehensive analysis method of the European Union. In the context of TRIPS, countries all over the world need to pay close attention to how to regulate the monopoly caused by the abuse of intellectual property rights, including patent tying. It is concluded that to better resist the monopoly of abusing intellectual property rights and develop the new driving force of a domestic innovative economy, China needs to start with the substantive concept and clarify the clear meaning, definition standards, and rank order of relevant legal concepts and systems. It also needs to up special authoritative law enforcement agencies to regulate the monopoly of multinational enterprises abusing intellectual property rights, innovate their punishment methods, strengthen the punishment, and better ensure fair market competition.

Ideological and artistic concept of “The Tale of the Destruction of Riazan”

The article reveals the ideological and substantive concept of one of the most striking monuments of Old Rus’ (medieval) writing “The Tale of the Destruction of Riazan”. This old Rus’ tale has often become the subject of study of literary scholars and historians. At the same time, it was extremely popular among the Old Rus’ scribes. More than a hundred copies of this “Tale” have survived. The article draws attention to previous research. Some conclusions are described and unresolved questions are raised. Then the content of the “Tale” itself is gradually and consistently examined. The generalisation of the epic image of the feast battle is made. Its existence is proved not only in the indicated formula of the “death cup”, but as the idea of the whole work. It was this image that ultimately influenced its structure, subordinated the ideological and artistic conception of the author. Thus, “The Tale of the Destruction of Riazan” is a thoughtful heroic story about the past. It contains a holistic picture of the life of the people and presents in harmonious unity the original artistic concept – the description of the battle as a feast. At the same time, the entire “Tale” being analysed, according to the evidence presented in the article, turns into Praise, and not just its last panegyric part. The main meaning of the whole work transforms the story of the death of Riazan into a description of the glory and greatness of the entire Riazan land. The author of the “Tale” surrounds the Riazan princely family with an aura of holiness. He glorifies them, triumphing on the last sweet-voiced chords of the whole story, full of “inner pathos”.

Quantum Bose–Einstein Statistics for Indistinguishable Concepts in Human Language

We investigate the hypothesis that within a combination of a ‘number concept’ plus a ‘substantive concept’, such as ‘eleven animals’, the identity and indistinguishability present on the level of the concepts, i.e., all eleven animals are identical and indistinguishable, gives rise to a statistical structure of the Bose–Einstein type similar to how Bose–Einstein statistics is present for identical and indistinguishable quantum particles. We proceed by identifying evidence for this hypothesis by extracting the statistical data from the World-Wide-Web utilizing the Google Search tool. By using the Kullback–Leibler divergence method, we then compare the obtained distribution with the Maxwell–Boltzmann as well as with the Bose–Einstein distributions and show that the Bose–Einstein’s provides a better fit as compared to the Maxwell–Boltzmann’s.

ОБЛІКОВА КАТЕГОРІЯ «ЕКОСИСТЕМНІ ПОСЛУГИ»: СУТНІСТЬ ТА АТРИБУТИ

The article is devoted to the study of the categorical apparatus of accounting for ecosystem services. The different approaches of the authors to the interpretation of the concepts «service» and «ecosystem» are analyzed, the structuralfunctional classification of ecosystems is developed. The terminology used to form the definition of «ecosystem services», as well as the components of a comprehensive identification of this accounting category. The definition of ecosystem services as an economic category becomes a central element of a comprehensive system of relationships between the functioning of ecosystems, the activities of economic entities and the welfare of society. Despite the significant number of scientific and practical work aimed at studying ecosystem services, there is still no single approach to the interpretation of their substantive basis and the definition of unified approaches to their classification. It is proved that ecosystem services should be defined as flows of economic benefits and values received by stakeholders from the use of existing ecosystem functions, as well as those formed as a result of generating, restoring, regulating ecosystem processes formed as a result of targeted activities. economic entities of different forms of ownership and levels of hierarchical management. However, it has been established that this stage of identification of ecosystem services is distinguished by cognitive aspects to demonstrate the impact of natural capital on ecosystem functions and, as a consequence, human well-being. It is important to note that the list of specific instruments varies depending on the perturbations in the global ecosystem market, the emergence of new tools, the improvement of the basic elements of the accounting category «ecosystem service», ie the objective process of renewal.The relationship between ecosystem functions, ecosystem benefits, ecosystem assets and ecosystem properties has been established. Tasks, principles and classification features of ecosystem services as an accounting category are highlighted. As a result, the formation of subjects and objects of accounting for ecosystem services, which deepens the substantive concept and helps to identify «ecosystem services» as an accounting category.

IMAGINING M. GORKY: TOUCHES TO THE SOVIET MYTH OF THE «STORMY PETREL OF the REVOLUTION»

At the time of the appearance in the press of The Song of the Stormy Petrel, M. Gorky was addressed to wide democratic circles. However, the Bolsheviks, using Gorkys proximity to his party, monopolized the multi-valued images of this work, securing the writer the title of Stormy petrel of the proletarian revolution. It was most fully represented in the essay-book of the famous journalist M. Koltsov The Stormy Petrel. Life and death of Maxim Gorky (1938). Describing the life of Gorky, Koltsov combined in it the socialist realistic canon of a native of the people and a fighter of the proletariat with the modernity of the enlightener and the encyclopedic, the man who made himself. Although the influence of the cult of the leader and political repression on the ideological and substantive concept of the book was strong, it offered the correct version of Gorkys death, and Koltsov in his journalistic practice himself contributed to the formation of the Gorky myth, thanks to his close personal friendship with Gorky. He touched upon aspects of creative collaboration and his literary talent, especially those that stirred the writer in his search for a new person the antipode of the tradesman.Gorky appears as a cultural hero of the era in the apotheosis of youth, energy, movement. At the same time, Koltsov integrated into the essay important for the social practice of his time questions of searching for the past, meeting the needs of socialist construction, and ways of narrating about it. The essay reflected the nomination for the first in politics of the national-patriotic version of the past and the transition to the second plan for its revolutionary version.

The spatial value of local houses around Islamic Boarding School in Mlangi Moslem settlements, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Many houses around Mlangi Muslim settlement refer to the historical aspect of settlement in its spatial layout as the Moslem settlements. Mlangi well known as Kampung Santri - village with many of Islamic Boarding Schools (Pondok Pesantren in Indonesia term) where students live in there- since 1920an. This paper will describe how the spatial value of local houses around Islamic Boarding Schools in Mlangi Moslem settlements. The naturalistic-phenomenology method was the research method for data collection. Data got from subsequent interview after the appearance theme from one research object to the next. Any argument that correlated with the spatial value grouped as the same theme and analyzed as the substantive concept about the spatial value in the houses. The room layout from each home drawn one by one as the existing condition and the value of the room got from the comments of the owner. Cross-checking information technic from the members in the house helped the research to mention many spatial values in-house and then conclude as the room concept and its correlation to the stigma as the Kampung Santri and Moslem Settlements. It also compares the similarity of the indoor room layout and zone in Pondok Pesantren. From existing condition and interviews found that all the houses have the similar function and room layout with the Pondok Pesantren around it. 6 observed houses and 15 interviewed owners stated that they want to make their house as the places and spaces for teaching holy Al Qur'an same like in Pondok Pesantren. That is like a dream come true if a house can hold any recitation and teach holy Al Qur'an and Islamic Knowledge to the neighbor. From this condition, researchers conclude that there is close relation about the significance building in one settlement to their neighbor building, not only in the activity in each house but also in room layout and zone. Religious value and people understanding and dream about the ideal space even get impact from it.

IMBRICAÇÕES ENTRE GOVERNANÇA PÚBLICA E GOVERNABILIDADE PARA A IMPLEMENTAÇÃO DA REFORMA ADMINISTRATIVA: O CASO DA GESTÃO PARA A CIDADANIA EM MINAS GERAIS (2011-2014)

The New public management paradigm was diffused in Brazil as a multiplicity of practices in search of the increase of efficiency, efficacy and effectiveness in the public sector’s actions. Nevertheless, as administrative reforms advanced their goals towards the substantive concept of effectiveness, they have been embedded in a broader context of public governance. The present work seeks to analyze the possible inherent tensions between public governance and governability and its implications for the implementation of 3rd generation administrative reforms, based on the study of Management for Citizenship in Minas Gerais state government, from 2011 to 2014. For this purpose, the paper performs a documentary analysis, as well as the analysis of institutional databases. In general, several potential conflicts are presented, particularly in the setting of clear government priorities, in the promotion of intragovernmental consensus and cooperation, and in the use of social participation mechanisms.

THE UNRESOLVED PROBLEMS OF LATE CRITICAL THEORY

Martin Jay's sweeping account of reason in Western philosophy provides the context for understanding the crisis that the Frankfurt School thinkers faced when they spoke of the “eclipse of reason.” In the background of the thinking of the first generation of Frankfurt thinkers such as Max Horkheimer, Theodor Adorno, and Herbert Marcuse is a hankering for a more substantive conception of reason that bears affinities with what Hegel called Vernunft (reason), which he contrasted with Verstand (understanding). According to Jay, the first generation of Frankfurt thinkers never quite succeeded in elaborating this substantive concept of reason and grew increasingly pessimistic in the face of the self-destruction of reason. Habermas sought to elaborate a communicative theory of rationality that did not fall into the misleading promises of Hegelian Vernunft but could nevertheless provide a normative basis for the critique of instrumental, strategic, and systems rationality—a normative basis for critical theory. Jay presents an extremely lucid account of Jurgen Habermas's theory of communicative rationality. He concludes by reviewing some of the outstanding problems and questions that have been raised about the adequacy and success of Habermas's project. I seek to do justice to the strengths and weaknesses of Jay's narrative, and I focus on a number of deep, unresolved issues that confront the future of critical theory in its attempt to develop an adequate conception of rationality. I also raise concerns about what precisely is distinctive about critical theory today.

General Tendencies in Creating Terms with Greek and Latin Elements in the Forestry Field

According to the genetic classification of borrowings, one of the largest groups of foreign language vocabulary in European languages is formed by lexemes of Latin origin. They are the result of interaction between languages, which are often characterized by a significant degree of genetic and temporal distances. In the article the terminology of Forest industry with the most common terminological elements of Latin and Greek origin is analyzed. Element – is not a word, but a part of the word (prefix, suffix, root), which is being in grammatical relationship with the other elements, forms independent words-terms. Thus, the element “micro” has no complete meaning of the words but it has the specific semantic loading, which is transferred by the concept “small, not big one”. In words-terms, it indicates the correlation of those words and constant objects, phenomena. And the precise scientific definition is received by term in the process of studying the specific scientific discipline. Knowledge of the structure of term’s elements explains the meaning of foreign language term, it helps in better understanding. It is well-known that the terms reflects either one dominant or secondary, or occasional feature, underlying the phenomenon, which reflects, such as color, shape etc. Terminology concept with elements of Greek and Latin origin in the Forest field, can be grouped into major thematic sections. The initial point for placing elements is a substantive concept, followed by an element that expresses this concept, the indicator of the origin of element, its importance in translation. Elements are usually placed according to antonymous meaning (micro – macro). Due to the polysemy some elements get into different sections. The group of terms, in which ancient Greek and Latin term elements are distinguishes is very numerous. Terms, formed with the help of classical elements, reflect the process of adaptation (in bigger or less degree) by modern languages. Thus, the group of terms with the initial parts, the etymons of which are Greek and Latin languages, get into synonymous relations, varying, intersecting or overlapping each other . The doublet terms – are the words or phrases that are combined by special terminological correlation with the same scientific concepts and object of reality. Thus, a large part of Greek and Latin elements in the terms and terminological combinations function as units of scientific style (root words, derivation and other elements) have the ability to influence the linguistic and cultural nature of language, and, thanks to aesthetically complete words, they intellectualize both speech and a speaker, the a specialist of the field.

The Frame as a Special Type of Structural and Substantive Concept

The article investigates the frame as a special type of structural and substantive concept. It states that the term frame is correlative to the notion of the concept. The differences between the terms of the frame and the concept is analysed by the author as well. Investigating the sources the author claims that these two objects don’t have significant differences between themselves. The frame is expected to show certain extend of the sphere, though the concept shows the image presented in the area of historical and cultural identity. The concept is realised in the minds of the humans, and they are associated with tokens. The author also refers to the opinion of F.de Saussure about the language and points out the distinguishing features of signifier and signified. F.de Saussure considered those two terms as ideal entities; and he spoke the perfect nature of signified than the signifier. Investigating these notions the author ties to find out some connection between those notions and the notions of the frame and the concept. The author uses various linguistic sources for to prove her opinion about the pecularities of the concept. The reliable sources have been referred to in the article by the author.

The Gauweiler Judgment in View of the Case Law of the European Court of Justice on European Central Bank Independence

This article attempts to highlight the difference between the form and the substance of the Gauweiler judgment on the OMT programme undertaken by the European Central Bank. While the case is based upon a formal interpretation, reference to the substantive concept of independence of central banks is analyzed only indirectly by the Court of Justice. The author tries to reconstruct the essence of the Court's reasoning by resorting to the doctrinal concept of central bank independence, the previous case law of the Court of Justice concerning central bank independence, the judgment of the German Constitutional Court, the Opinion of the Advocate General, and the case law of the US Supreme Court, for comparative purposes.

Macroeconomic policies and economic democracy in neoliberal Brazil

Abstract The objective of this paper is to investigate some of the forms of conduct of macroeconomic policies related to a substantive concept of democracy, characterized by popular participation - direct or through representatives - in decisions that unevenly affect the material well-being of the entire Brazilian population. Special attention is given to decisions about the country's public indebtedness in the years following the launching of the RealPlan. Empirical evidences show a limited democracy, revealed by the material inequality, which in turn reproduces political inequality and restricts real freedom. This is combined with the selective bureaucratic insulation of economic policy decisions, and the parliament's failure to deal with the macroeconomic agenda. The latter is thus left to the control of the executive branch's economic apparatus, which on one hand submits itself to substantial political influence from finance and, on the other hand, restricts popular participation in decisions on both fiscal and monetary policies.

Contractual Autonomy Unpacked: The Internal and External Dimensions of Contractual Autonomy Operating in the Post-Apartheid Constitutional Context

ABSTRACTThe concept of contractual autonomy comprises two essential dimensions, namely the internal (content) and the external (reach/scope of operation) dimensions. The former dimension focuses on the substantive concept of the constitutionalised, contracting self and the latter on the extent to which contract law gives, and ought to give, credence and effect to the exercise of autonomy, as defined by the internal content dimension. In relation to contractual autonomy, the question of how to conceive of contractual autonomy in the post-apartheid constitutional context must extend both to these internal and external dimensions. Upon perusal of the cases however, one finds that not much attention has been paid to the internal (content) dimension of the above question. The courts have focused on the external (reach) dimension of this question; the stated rationale being that striking a constitutional balance between the classically individualist and collectivist ideologies re-defines the contractual doctrine of legality and thus contract law as a whole. In this article, I show how the courts’ limited approach to the concept of contractual autonomy continues to entrench a fixed (neo-) classical liberal conception of contractual autonomy within our common law of contract, which, in turn, impedes transformative constitutionalism in the private sphere of contracts.

Review: Theories of Sustainable Development

Book Review Copyright Information: All rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. Contact the author or original publisher for any necessary permissions. eScholarship is not the copyright owner for deposited works. Learn more at http://www.escholarship.org/help_copyright.html#reuse Review: Theories of Sustainable Development Edited By Judith C. Enders and Moritz Remig Reviewed by: Yves Laberge Centr'ERE, Quebec. G1V 0A6, Enders, Judith C. and Remig, Moritz (eds.), Theories of Sustainable Development. Abingdon: Routledge, 2015, x+201 pp. ISBN: 9781138796362, hardcover, US $140.00. This book is part of the Routledge Studies in Sustainable Development. Theories of Sustainable Development does not pretend to present all the existing theories of Sustainable Development, but these thirteen essays undoubtedly induce a fundamental theoretical discussion, not aiming for “the drafting of a comprehensive theory of sustainability, but rather the creation of a fruitful relationship between practice and theory,” as claimed by Armin Grunwald in the second chapter (titled “What kind of theory do we need for Sustainable Development?”) (p. 25). Most contributors to this collective effort are working in German institutions; here, they present their research in English but often rely on German authors and German theoretical frameworks which are probably unknown to most Anglophone researchers in our field, and that is what makes this book relevant. Incidentally, many bibliographical references at the end of chapters are in German, but English-speaking readers can now benefit from these lesser-known perspectives and thoughts with these essays. For example, discussions and references based on the writings of thinkers such as Lothar Kuhne and Martin Warnke about landscapes conceived as “always historical places” can be seen as an interesting renewal for non-German scholars in domains like the philosophy of the environment (p. 158). As an elusive concept, “Sustainable Development” is defined in many interesting ways by various contributors in about every chapter; many experts reaffirm the importance for sustainability to always be critical and aware of the social dimensions of the environment. For example, Armin Grunwald conceives Sustainable Development firstly “as a process” (Armin Grunwald, p. 27). Elsewhere, in his excellent essay on “Transdisciplinary humanistic sustainability theory” (Chapter 6), Felix Ekardt gives a rich and detailed definition of Sustainable Development, covering almost two pages, “as the establishment of a permanent, globally practicable and future-capable mode of life and economics” (Felix Ekardt, pp. 65-66), but also as “a complex array of problems, involving a wide range of social-scientific and humanistic disciplines” (Felix Ekardt, pp. 65-66). On a related topic, Thomas Jahn sees sustainability as “a relational, not a substantive concept” (p. 33) as he provides a detailed and nuanced articulation of this core concept that can be characterized “as a normative category,” that “triggers a specific complex of integration problems” (p. 33). At the center of every chapter, theory itself seems to be the neglected dimension of most studies in sustainability, although its real importance remains debatable for some experts like Armin Grunwald: “...the fact that virtually no theoretical debate on sustainable development has been carried out during the past ten years is not necessarily a problem” (p. 17). Laberge: Review: Theories of Sustainable Development