Metropolitan University Prague

Purpose: The study aims to: (1) identify and analyze the framework for non-financial reporting, particularly regarding anti-corruption information, in Czechia and Slovakia, (2) examine its application by the largest Czech and Slovak companies, and (3) identify the characteristics of compliant and non-compliant companies. Methodology/approach: First, based on the academic and policy background provided via literature and contextual analysis, data about the EU, Czech, and Slovak legislative frameworks are extracted, teleologically interpreted, and critically juxtaposed. Second, a two-stage longitudinal dual-jurisdiction content analysis is performed by examining the reports of the 20 top companies by revenue and assessing their compliance with the anti-corruption reporting duty for 2017 and 2022. Thirdly, a logical and snowballing examination of the characteristics of compliant companies is conducted to holistically reveal shared features. Findings: Although the EU law requiring the reporting of anti-corruption information by large companies is fully transposed into Czech and Slovak law, its primary targets – Czech and Slovak companies with the highest revenues – generally do not comply with it. Nonetheless, compliance is better in the Czech jurisdiction, improves with time – in particular after the implementation of the CSRD – and raises questions regarding motivations. Research limitations/implications: The research sample includes only the reports of the 20 largest Czech and Slovak companies in terms of revenue in 2017 and 2022. Such a pilot content analysis should be expanded to include more jurisdictions in the EU, more accounting periods, and more companies. Originality/value: This is a pioneering endeavor to deepen the understanding of non-financial reporting duty and its compliance in Czechia and Slovakia.

One of the fundamental features of contemporary media education and one of the generally accepted areas of media literacy is strengthening orientation in political communication, i.e., in the methods by which political representatives address the public and try to attract the attention of potential voters, and in the processes by which the media present and moderate political events, or the ability to engage in this communication actively. Those who introduce elements of media education into formal education and other areas of education are facing the problem of how to grasp this trend and process it within school education, i.e., how to incorporate the manifestations of these trends into the general education curriculum. Political communication is clearly defined by its persuasiveness and situationally conditioned by a high emphasis on context. This paper attempts to explain these aspects of political communication as a topic of media education using examples from the current revision of the Framework Educational Program of the Czech Republic.

The book covers an issue of topical importance: how presidents and prime ministers (and governments) manage their relationships to formulate foreign policy, and especially its security aspects, in times of international conflict. The significance of the topic was increased by the Russian attack on Ukraine in February 2022, which provoked a strong international response. This was especially intense in Central European countries such as Poland, Hungary, Czechia, and Slovakia. Their similar experience of occupation by the Soviet Union, during which their national existence was repeatedly threatened and the memory of which, unlike the Nazi occupation of the 1940s, still plays a major political and societal role today, gave them reason to empathise with the people of Ukraine. At the same time, however, a phenomenon of pro-Russian executive actors was visible in part of the region, which is related, among other factors, to Moscow’s efforts in recent decades to influence Central Europe.

Abstract The article presents two case studies—the 2017 and 2022 elections and subsequent post‐election protests in Kibera, one of the largest informal settlements in Nairobi. Diverging from the dominant narratives surrounding urban protests in sub‐Saharan Africa, which often concentrates on structural causes, security issues, and violent aspects categorising these events as riots, this paper offers an alternative perspective. It provides an in‐depth analysis of the protests within a broader socio‐cultural context, highlighting the role of humour and playfulness, thereby pointing out elements of resistance existing beyond the traditionally recognised forms of protesting. Drawing on Mikhail Bakhtin's theory of carnival, the study interprets the elections in Kibera as a festival, challenging the established hierarchies in Nairobi through its grotesque character. The festival thus represents an integral part of the culture of the postcolony, where people from the lower strata of society mock and ridicule the officialdom of the postcolonial state.

Abstract The text identifies the main issues that undermine the position of the Czech Political Science and International Relations journals. We argue that structural factors such as the delayed start of the discipline, lack of contact with the international environment, the transfer of inadequate theoretical and methodological knowledge has significantly affected the functioning and development of professional journals in the Czech Republic. The authoritarian regime limited the development of the social sciences, and Czech (Slovak) Political Science endured an extremely negative attitude from the authorities. Thus, journals in the field of Political Science and International Relations were founded without deeper insight into Western practice. Furthermore, their strive to move from the scientific periphery has also been limited by the lack of human capital and financial constraints. To close the gap, which persists even today, the authors came up with a series of recommendations, such as the language of publication, topic specialisation, insisting on scientific rigour, and emphasising communication with the academic community, both domestic and international. By discussing the practice and the meaning of ‘catching up with the West,’ the paper contributes to understanding hierarchies and dependencies between the global Political Science and International Relations core and CEE as a scientific semiperiphery.

ABSTRACT Scholarship and policy documents largely explain the use of private military and security companies (PMSCs) in the European Union's (EU) Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) missions based on cost-savings and lack of in-house resources by member states (MSs). In this article, we develop a more comprehensive explanation of the EU's increasing use of PMSCs in CSDP missions as the outcome of three overlapping gaps: those between capabilities and expectations, consensus and expectations, as well as intentions and implementation. To probe our multiple gaps argument, we analyse security privatisation during CSDP missions, focusing on Operation EUBAM Libya. Our plausibility probe shows that contractor support was hardly efficient or effective and covered capabilities that MSs' security forces widely possess. However, the EU is often unable to activate and deploy national forces due to disagreements between MSs and bureaucratic constraints within MSs.

Introduction Cervical spinal cord injury (CSCI) without major bone injury is increasing among older adults, particularly in aging societies like Japan. The optimal treatment strategies remain unclear, with conservative therapy often preferred, especially for older patients. However, surgery is frequently necessary due to poor improvement or progression of paralysis during conservative treatment. This study investigated the characteristics and outcomes of older patients with CSCI without major bone injury who transitioned from conservative treatment to surgery. Methods This nationwide, retrospective study examined data from patients aged ≥65 years with CSCI without major bone injury. The patients were categorized into 3 groups: conservative treatment, planned surgery, and those who switched from conservative treatment to surgery. The study aimed to identify the risk factors for conservative therapy failure that necessitate surgical intervention and to compare the outcomes between patients who had planned surgery and those who required surgery after conservative management failed. Results Among 615 patients, 422 (68.6%) received conservative treatment, 193 (31.4%) had planned surgery, and 116 (18.9%) transitioned from conservative to surgical treatment. Transition to surgery was mainly due to poor improvement or progression of neurological deficits. Significant risk factors for transitioning to surgery included younger age, presence of ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament, and spinal cord signal changes on magnetic resonance imaging. Comparative analysis showed no significant differences in neurological outcomes between patients who had surgery as planned and those who required surgery after failed conservative treatment. Conclusions A significant proportion of older patients with CSCI without major bone injury who were initially managed conservatively eventually required surgery due to insufficient neurological improvement. The outcomes of patients who transitioned to surgery were similar to those who had surgery as initially planned, indicating that careful monitoring of conservative treatment followed by surgery, if necessary, may be an effective approach.

In the International Relations (IR) literature, inequality has been identified as a major inf luence on climate policy cooperation and implementation. Identities formed by the multiple inequalities in the global order have become key organizing principles for climate negotiation and significantly affect whether policies are seen as fair. We focus on these inequality related identities (IRIs) and present an analytical framework that translates concepts from Social Identity Theory for use in IR to systematically examine how IRIs affect perceptions of policy fairness and implementation. We contend that this framework is cross-scalar in character; that is, given the social basis of climate politics, the dynamics can be understood as social processes regardless of whether they are undertaken by states, international organizations, or individuals. We offer this framework as a tool for mobilizing insights from social psychology into IR research and understanding the ways social identities affect collective climate action.