Fluctuating capacity of policy advice in Russia: testing theory in developing country context

ABSTRACT

Theories and concepts developed and empirically tested in the context of North American and Western European countries do not always easily transfer to another political landscape. The concept of “policy advisory system” is not an exception. On the one hand, policy processes and policy styles are not unique for each country; therefore, some generalizations can be made. On the other hand, studding particularities of policy process in a specific country can enrich theories, developed for general cases. Applying existing theories to a new context also goes a long way in verification and potential falsification – the fundamental requirement for a scientific process. This article aims to contribute to the debate on the topic of policy advisory system by comparing the development of three policies in Russia, each involving policy advisors to some extent. Based on this analysis, lessons are drawn regarding the conditions under which policy advisors can impact policy changes in an environment, alternative to “western.”     

Climate justice and sustained transnational mobilization

ABSTRACT

Samir Amin’s final essay called for the creation of a new international organization of progressive social forces. Here I review evidence from twenty-first century transnational movements germane for understanding the likelihood of the emergence of such an international organization and the issues and sectors most likely to facilitate coalitional unity. More specifically, the ecological crises identified by Amin in the form of global warming and climate change have created an unprecedented global environmental threat capable of unifying diverse social strata across the planet. The climate justice movement has already established a global infrastructure and template to coordinate a new international organization for confronting neoliberal forms of globalization. Pre-existing movement organizing around environmental racism, climate justice in the global South, and recent intersectional mobilizations serve as promising models for building an enduring international organization that will represent subaltern groups and have a substantial impact on world politics.     

Is there a global super-bourgeoisie?

In recent decades, accelerating processes of globalization and an increase in economic inequality in most of the world's countries have raised the question of the emergence of a new bourgeoisie integrated at the global level, sometimes described as a global super-bourgeoisie. This group would be distinguished by its unequaled level of wealth and global interconnectedness, its transnational ubiquity and concentration in the planet's major global cities, its specific culture, consumption habits, sites of sociability and shared references, and even by class consciousness and capacity to act collectively. This article successively discusses how the social sciences have examined these various dimensions of the question and begun to provide systematic empirical answers.     

原产地多元化视角下的地方产业集群升级研究

地方产业集群升级是区域经济发展的重要研究主题,由于中国特别是东部地区产业集群具有"天生全球化"特质,基于价值链的集群升级理论在适用性上存在局限。本文以原产地多元化为切入点,依据产业集群嵌入全球价值链的程度,对其通过原产地多元化实现升级的途径进行探讨,并结合案例分析加以验证。进而提出基于原产地多元化实现地方产业集群升级的主要内容和政策建议,以期为现实的产业集群发展和区域经济政策制定提供启示。     

与国际行政法的产生有关的几个基本问题——基于全球化、全球治理的视角

全球治理的提出源于全球化的推动,而全球治理的提出及实践则使国际行政法的产生、形成成为可能。具体而言,全球公民社会的兴起与国际非政府组织的发展是国际行政法产生的两个现实驱动因素。国际行政法的产生路径可总结为"自下而上"和"自上而下"的路径。国际行政法具有区别于国内行政法的若干明显特征,国际层面相比国内层面的很多特殊性也使得国际行政法的体系化发展面临诸多挑战。这些问题虽然不能忽视,但它们也并非不可克服。虽然国际行政法不如国内行政法成熟,但是如能改进合法性,便能够将超国家机构的全球治理职能发挥得更好。全球治理语境下国际行政法体系的产生、形成是一种历史的必然趋势。     

加拿大环境保护法的变迁:1988—2008

加拿大环境保护法自1988年产生之后,随着社会环境的变化而不断更新,在正当的法律程序的指引之下,既重视法律文本的完善,又关注法律的实效,以此为借鉴,中国环境法在修改过程中,可以突出以下方面:一是进一步充实立法原则;二是建立环境保护责任制度;三是完善立法程序和立法技术.     

A comparison of social work education across South Africa and Japan in relation to the Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training

Sakaguchi H, Sewpaul V. A comparison of social work education across South Africa and Japan in relation to the Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training Int J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 192–202 © 2009 The Author(s), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare. This article draws on a one‐year study visit to the University of KwaZulu‐Natal, South Africa, interviews with field supervisors and students in Japan and reviews of the national frameworks of education in Japan and in South Africa. In doing so, the authors identify the similarities and differences in social work education across the two countries and they explore some of the historical and socio‐cultural factors that might account for the differences. There are some identifiable peculiarities in social work education in Japan, especially with the coalescing of care work and social work education. The lack of differentiation between care work and social work makes it difficult to narrow the scope of social work education and practice. National social work standards have been approved in South Africa and regulatory frameworks for social work education and practice have been long accepted, thus rendering ‘social work’ a protected title and a profession that is more entrenched compared with social work in Japan. The codes of ethics in Japan and South Africa are discussed with specific reference to their control functions in South Africa. The article concludes by discussing these comparisons in relation to the Global Standards for Social Work Education.     

音系表现是音系分析的重要依据

音系表现是音系成分在音系中的作用体现。本文首先简要阐述音系表现的实质内容,然后通过分析苏格兰英语口语和汉语潮州方言两字组连读变调,说明音系表现是确定音系成分性质、认识音系变化过程、比较和评价不同音系规律的重要依据。     

以尖团分混考察影响方言变异的语言因素

从分尖团到不分尖团,是汉语方言发展演变的大趋势。无锡方言尖团音似分又混的现象初露端倪,表明它正处在由分到混的初始阶段。它所体现出的参差不齐的语音现象,正是我们考察这一发展进程的活化石。本文采用随机抽样调查的手段,结合变项规则分析法来考察与无锡市区方言精组尖音字的变化相关的语言因素,从而揭示出方言在和普通话接触之下是如何逐渐向普通话靠拢的。     

非正式制度探析:乡村社会的视角

本文从非正式制度的概念出发 ,分析了非正式制度在乡村社会存在的社会基础和运行机制 ,并讨论了乡村社会非正式制度的变迁路径和目标 ,认为只有通过合理的制度安排 ,才能实现正式制度与非正式制度在乡村社会的相容 ,乡村社会走向现代化才能获得积极的制度支持。