The EU’s hegemonic interventions in the South Caucasus: Constructing ‘civil’ society, depoliticising human rights?

This article draws upon poststructuralist and postcolonial theories to examine the European Union’s (EU’s) policies of human rights promotion in the South Caucasus – notably, the EU’s engagement with local human rights activists and organisations in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Contrary to most literature, which has been concerned with policy (in)effectiveness, this article is interested in problematising the discursive foundations of this EU-civil society ‘partnership’ in the realm of human rights promotion, as well as in retrieving the agency of actors who are ‘at the receiving end’ of EU policies. It is argued that the discursive construction of ‘civil’ society as a ‘good-Other’ of the EU-Self serves as a means to depoliticise the EU’s interventions, aiming at the approximation of ‘transitioning’ countries to the EU’s human rights standards. Although the hegemonic relation requires subaltern actors to perform the ‘civil’ society identity, processes of hybridisation and subversion arise as external interventions interact with local realities and meanings. Building on in-depth interviews and ethnographic observations, the article shows how the hegemonic identity of ‘civil’ society is negotiated by South Caucasus ‘not-quite-civil’ actors striving for local legitimacy, financial survival or ownership of their human rights work.

Thyroid cancer incidence in India between 2006 and 2014 and impact of overdiagnosis.

e18574 Background: Increases of thyroid cancer (TC) incidence emerged in the last decades in several countries. This study aimed to estimate time trends of TC incidence in India and the proportion of TC cases potentially attributable to overdiagnosis by sex, age, and area. Methods: TC cases aged 0-74 years reported to Indian cancer registries during 2006- 2014 were included. Age-standardized incidence rates (ASR) and TC overdiagnosis were estimated by sex, period, age, and area. Results: Between 2006-2008 and 2012-2014, the ASRs for TC in India increased from 2.5 to 3.5/100,000 women (+37%) and from 1.0 to 1.3/100.000 men (+27%). However, up to a 10-fold difference was found among regions in both sexes. Highest ASRs emerged in Thiruvananthapuram (14.6/100,000 women and 4.1/100,000 men in 2012- 2014), with 93% increase in women and 64% in men compared to 2006-2008. No evidence of overdiagnosis was found in Indian men. Conversely, overdiagnosis accounted for 51% of TC in Indian women: 74% in those aged < 35 years, 50% at ages 35-54 years, and 30% at ages 55-64 years. In particular, 80% of TC overdiagnosis in women emerged in Thiruvananthapuram, while none or limited evidence of overdiagnosis emerged in Kamrup, Dibrugarh, Bhopal, and Sikkim. Conclusions: Relatively high and increasing TC ASRs emerged in Indian regions where better access to healthcare was reported. In India, as elsewhere, new strategies are needed to discourage opportunistic screening practice, particularly in young women, and to avoid unnecessary and expensive treatments. Present results may serve as a warning also for other transitioning countries.

Exploring the Socioeconomic Co-benefits of Global Environment Facility Projects in Uganda Using a Quasi-Experimental Geospatial Interpolation (QGI) Approach

Since 1992, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) has mobilized over $131 billion in funds to enable developing and transitioning countries to meet the objectives of international environmental conventions and agreements. While multiple studies and reports have sought to examine the environmental impact of these funds, relatively little work has examined the potential for socioeconomic co-benefits. Leveraging a novel database on the geographic location of GEF project interventions in Uganda, this paper explores the impact of GEF projects on household assets in Uganda. It employs a new methodological approach, Quasi-experimental Geospatial Interpolation (QGI), which seeks to overcome many of the core biases and limitations of previous implementations of causal matching studies leveraging geospatial information. Findings suggest that Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) GEF projects with initial implementation dates prior to 2009 in Uganda had a positive, statistically significant impact of approximately $184.81 on the change in total household assets between 2009 and 2011. Leveraging QGI, we identify that (1) this effect was statistically significant at distances between 2 and 7 km away from GEF projects, (2) the effect was positive but not statistically significant at distances less than 2 km, and (3) there was insufficient evidence to establish the impact of projects beyond a distance of approximately 7 km.

Thyroid Cancer Incidence in India Between 2006 and 2014 and Impact of Overdiagnosis

Context/Objective Increases of thyroid cancer (TC) incidence emerged in the past several decades in several countries. This study aimed to estimate time trends of TC incidence in India and the proportion of TC cases potentially attributable to overdiagnosis by sex, age, and area. Design TC cases aged 0 to 74 years reported to Indian cancer registries during 2006 through 2014 were included. Age-standardized incidence rates (ASR) and TC overdiagnosis were estimated by sex, period, age, and area. Results Between 2006-2008 and 2012-2014, the ASRs for TC in India increased from 2.5 to 3.5/100,000 women (+37%) and from 1.0 to 1.3/100,000 men (+27%). However, up to a 10-fold difference was found among regions in both sexes. Highest ASRs emerged in Thiruvananthapuram (14.6/100,000 women and 4.1/100,000 men in 2012-2014), with 93% increase in women and 64% in men compared with 2006-2008. No evidence of overdiagnosis was found in Indian men. Conversely, overdiagnosis accounted for 51% of TC in Indian women: 74% in those aged &lt; 35 years, 50% at ages 35 to 54 years, and 30% at ages 55 to 64 years. In particular, 80% of TC overdiagnosis in women emerged in Thiruvananthapuram, whereas none or limited evidence of overdiagnosis emerged in Kamrup, Dibrugarh, Bhopal, or Sikkim. Conclusions Relatively high and increasing TC ASRs emerged in Indian regions where better access to health care was reported. In India, as elsewhere, new strategies are needed to discourage opportunistic screening practice, particularly in young women, and to avoid unnecessary and expensive treatments. Present results may serve as a warning also for other transitioning countries.

Internationalization of Higher Education in Romania and Portugal—Strategies and Transitions at the (Semi-)Periphery

Governments and higher education institutions see internationalization of higher education as one of the main factors that influence their strategic endeavors in the years to come. When looking at the national level, the drivers of internationalization are linked to economic and geo-political positioning, cultural influences, as well as international competitiveness for knowledge and human capital. Party politics, foreign affairs, economy and immigration policies also play a big role in shaping country level approaches. For universities, prestige factors, disciplinary or constitutive groups’ interests and financial imperatives predominantly drive internationalization policies. In this context, the paper will look at national and institutional strategic pursuits in the field of internationalization of higher education, in the case of two countries geographically (and perhaps economically) positioned at Europe’s periphery: Romania and Portugal. The choice of these two countries relies on their recent transition from totalitarian regimes to democracies, coupled with similar trends of massification and underfunding of the higher education sector. The conclusion will include policy lessons for decision-makers, especially with a view on whether well-established global models of internationalization of higher education are fit for purpose for transitioning countries. The author’s work for this article was supported by the scholarship for a post-doctoral research fellowship, provided by the New Europe College (NEC), during the 2018–2019 academic year.

Management and Organization Review Special Issue ‘Social Networks ‒ The Dark and Bright Sides of Informal Networks’

Research on the mechanisms of organizing and managing via interpersonal relations has a rich history in the management and organization-oriented literature. So far, however, the informal dimension of managing and organizing by drawing on informal networks in an international context has received comparably less attention. Recent research has pointed out that social capital and network theories have largely been developed by Western scholars based on circumstances and social structures that are typical of Western societies. Thus, current theory takes into account to a lesser extent their character and nature and the way in which informal ties and networks are formed in other parts of the world (Ledeneva, 2018; Li, 2007b; Qi, 2013; Sato, 2010). Besides the growing body of literature concerned with informal ties and networks in emerging and transitioning countries, for example guanxi (China), blat/svyazi (Russia), and wasta (Arab World), a trend for analyzing pervasive informal networks in advanced and industrialized economies, such as yongo (Korea), has arisen. While insights from the latter research stream indicate that informal networks persist, the results generated in both research streams will help in developing the extant informal network theories further.

Management and Organization Review Special Issue ‘Social Networks ‒ The Dark and Bright Sides of Informal Networks’

Research on the mechanisms of organizing and managing via interpersonal relations has a rich history in the management and organization-oriented literature. So far, however, the informal dimension of managing and organizing by drawing on informal networks in an international context has received comparably less attention. Recent research has pointed out that social capital and network theories have largely been developed by Western scholars based on circumstances and social structures that are typical of Western societies. Thus, current theory takes into account to a lesser extent their character and nature and the way in which informal ties and networks are formed in other parts of the world (Ledeneva, 2018; Li, 2007b; Qi, 2013; Sato, 2010). Besides the growing body of literature concerned with informal ties and networks in emerging and transitioning countries, for example guanxi (China), blat/ svyazi (Russia), and wasta (Arab World), a trend for analyzing pervasive informal networks in advanced and industrialized economies, such as yongo (Korea), has arisen. While insights from the latter research stream indicate that informal networks persist, the results generated in both research streams will help in developing the extant informal network theories further.

The NGO Game

In most post-conflict countries nongovernmental organizations are everywhere, but their presence is misunderstood. This book investigates the unintended outcomes of what it calls the NGO boom in Bosnia and Kosovo. The book argues that when international actors try to rebuild and reconstruct post-conflict countries, they often rely on and look to NGOs. Although policymakers and scholars tend to accept and even celebrate NGO involvement in post-conflict and transitioning countries, they rarely examine why NGOs have become so popular, what NGOs do, or how they affect everyday life. After a conflict, international NGOs descend on a country, local NGOs pop up everywhere, and money and energy flow into strengthening the organizations. In time, the frenzy of activity slows, the internationals go home, local groups disappear from sight, and the NGO boom goes bust. Instead of peace and stability, the embrace of NGOs and the enthusiasm for international peacebuilding turns to disappointment, if not cynicism. For many in the Balkans and other post-conflict environments, NGOs are not an aid to building a lasting peace but are part of the problem because of the turmoil they foster during their life cycles in a given country. This book will be useful to practitioners and policymakers interested in improving peacebuilding, the role of NGOs in peace and development, and the sustainability of local initiatives in post-conflict countries.