Understanding Global Crises

From campus to campus, there is only modest variation in the core content of the introductory science or social science course, from anthropology to biology to physics to sociology. But what should the first course in political science include? Political scientists have less consensus on the content of their introductory course than teachers in any of these other disciplines. I have grappled with this question over the last 16 years in attempting to teach “Introduction to Political Science” at a large public university. The question became even more compelling when, during the last several years, I was writing a textbook (Danziger, 1990) for such an introductory course. This forced me to be more universal (or at least less idiosyncratic) in the choice of topics and examples.In fact, the first course in political science at most colleges and universities does not introduce students to “the discipline.” Rather, the course focuses on the American political system. It seems unimaginable that the first course in biology would center in American biology, or that the first course in economics would be a study of the economic system of the United States. In most fields, an introductory course aims to familiarize students with the basic theoretical and conceptual elements of the discipline, whether the discipline is paradigmatic or preparadigmatic (in Thomas Kuhn's terms).The tendency to begin political science with a course in American politics does have some reasonable justifications. First, it is possible to learn basic principles and ways of thinking within a discipline by the study of an exemplary case which is used to reveal those basics.

As the world considers how to deal with the impacts of a changing climate, it’s vital that we understand the ways in which the United States’ policymaking process addresses environmental issues. A mix of existing theory and original analysis, Environmental Policymaking in an Era of Climate Change applies recent policy scholarship to questions of environmental governance, with a particular focus on climate change. The book examines how competing political actors influence policies within and across institutions, focusing on both a macro-level, where formal bodies set the agenda, and a meso-level, where issues are contained within policy subsystems. Divided into two sections, the book incorporates insights from political science and public policy to provide the reader with a better understanding of how environmental policy decisions are made. Part I offers a framework for understanding environmental policymaking, exploring the history of environmental policy, and discussing the importance of values in environmental policy. Part II applies the framework to the issue of climate change, focusing on agenda-setting and the role of formal institutions in the policymaking process, covering topics that include Congress, the Executive and Judicial branches, and how climate change cuts across policy subsystem boundaries. By placing specific climate change case studies in a broader context, Environmental Policymaking in an Era of Climate Change will help students enrolled in political science, public administration, public policy, and environmental studies courses – as well as all those interested in the impacts of policy on climate change – to understand what is, and will likely continue to be, one of the most pressing policy issues of our time.

Facilities that emit hazardous toxins, such as toxic landfills, oil refineries, and chemical plants, are disproportionately located in predominantly Black, Latinx, and Indigenous neighborhoods. Environmental injustices like these threaten just distribution of health itself, including access to health that is not dependent on having the right skin color, living in the right neighborhood, or making the right amount of money. Facilities that emit environmental toxins wrongly make people's race, ethnicity, income, and neighborhood essential to who is allowed to breathe clean air and drink clean water, and thus, who is allowed to be healthy. This can be seen in the environmental crises in Louisiana; Mississippi; Houston, Texas; and Flint, Michigan. Since bioethics purports to concern itself with the principle of justice as applied to individuals and increasingly to populations, the field ought to concern itself more with environmental injustice.

Environmental crises will overwhelmingly impact Millennials and Generation Z. Most are aware of this reality and enthusiastic about finding and promoting policy solutions. However, many youths also lack the communication and collaboration skills necessary to implement change in their communities. The Green Ambassadors program is a collaboration between Science Voices (a nonprofit focused on improving science education) and a political science course at Arizona State University (ASU). The program provides space for students to practice deliberation and policy-making in an online role-playing game and then implement their own proposal to address an environmental problem in their community. We will report on the results of the pilot program we ran during Summer 2020, which included students from ASU (Phoenix, Arizona, USA) and Khairun University (KU - Ternate, North Maluku, Indonesia). ASU students participated as part of an online political science course. KU students were recruited by Science Voices. Students at both universities were assigned to fictitious nations and addressed analogous real-world environmental and political challenges through diplomacy between nations with various objectives. This summer’s cohort dealt with trade relationships, climate change, and plastic pollution. Students at both universities informally shared personal experiences with these topics and collaborated on related policy options. KU students additionally developed a proposal for addressing a local problem of importance (identified by the students as plastic pollution) and were provided with crowdfunded materials to implement their proposal. We will discuss the experiences of US and Indonesian students, as well as the implementation and results of the KU local project. We will additionally discuss developing this program as a collaborative space for students from the Global North and South to partner and co-mentor each other in developing local solutions to global challenges.

This article draws on a philosophical critique of the problems of denial in the face of the climate crisis and the call for an education that deals with the root causes of social and environmental injustice in depth. To respond to this radical critique in concrete educational practice, there is a need for an understanding of moral learning that also considers the problems of denial and the role of the teacher in these learning processes. We therefore propose a transactional model grounded in Dewey’s pragmatic philosophy that explains how denial hinders the process of moral learning but also describes how teachers can offer moments of resistance that interrupt denial and challenges and transform moral habits. Finally, we discuss the implications of a transactional perspective and the need for making moral progress by reflectively revising our moral habits in the face of overlapping environmental and social injustice crises.

The economics of gender

Color lines: Disparities in pharmacy treatment, education, and practice

From the rainforests of Costa Rica and the Amazon to the windswept lands of Tierra del Fuego, this book discusses natural settings within contemporary Latin American novels as they depict key moments of environmental change or crisis in the region from nineteenth-century imperialism to the present. By integrating the use of futuristic novels, the book pushes the ecocriticism discussion beyond the realm of "nature writing." It avoids the clichés of literary nature and reminds readers that today's urban centers are also part of Latin America and its environmental crisis. One of the first books to apply ecocriticism to Latin American fiction, this text argues that literature can offer readers a deeper understanding of the natural world and humanity's place in it. The book demonstrates that ecocritical readings of Latin American topics must take into account social, racial, and gender injustices. It also addresses postapocalyptic science fiction that speaks to a fear of environmental collapse and reminds North American readers that the environments of Latin America are rich and diverse, encompassing both rural and urban extremes.

To investigate behavioural and social characteristics of women who experienced a late stillbirth compared with women with ongoing live pregnancies at similar gestation. Case-control study. 41 maternity units in the UK. Women who had a stillbirth ≥28weeks' gestation (n=287) and women with an ongoing pregnancy at the time of interview (n=714). Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire which included questions regarding women's behaviours (e.g. alcohol intake and household smoke exposure) and social characteristics (e.g. ethnicity, employment, housing). Stress was measured by the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale. Late stillbirth. Multivariable analysis adjusting for co-existing social and behavioural factors showed women living in the most deprived quintile had an increased risk of stillbirth compared with the least deprived quintile (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 3.16; 95% CI 1.47-6.77). There was an increased risk of late stillbirth associated with unemployment (aOR 2.32; 95% CI 1.00-5.38) and women who declined to answer the question about domestic abuse (aOR 4.12; 95% CI 2.49-6.81). A greater number of antenatal visits than recommended was associated with a reduction in stillbirth (aOR 0.26; 95% CI 0.16-0.42). This study demonstrates associations between late stillbirth and socio-economic deprivation, perceived stress and domestic abuse, highlighting the need for strategies to prevent stillbirth to extend beyond maternity care. Enhanced antenatal care may be able to mitigate some of the increased risk of stillbirth. Deprivation, unemployment, social stress & declining to answer about domestic abuse increase risk of #stillbirth after 28weeks' gestation.

IntroductionThis study revisits the debate surrounding the security-development nexus by analyzing the motivations and impacts of two key insurgent groups: Boko Haram and the Niger Delta Avengers in Nigeria. It seeks to understand how socio-economic, ideological, and governance-related factors contribute to the existence of both groups in similar and/or different ways, and the overall implications for sustainable peace and development in Nigeria.Methodological and theoretical frameworksThe research employs a qualitative methodology, utilizing both primary and secondary data sources, including academic literature, policy reports, media analysis, and semi-structured interviews with experts. Thematic analysis is conducted within the conceptual framework of the “Greed, Need, and Creed Spectrum,” which categorizes the drivers of conflict into economic incentives (greed), socioeconomic deprivation (need), and ideological or religious motivations (creed). In addition, this study combines the analytical potential of the Rational Choice and Root Cause theories (2RCs) to illuminate how the greed-need-creed spectrum can help in deepening the understanding of the security-development nexus in Nigeria, especially regarding the two insurgencies in question.ResultsFindings reveal a complex interplay between economic inequality, underdevelopment, and governance deficits across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones. Boko Haram’s insurgency is primarily fueled by religious ideology and socio-political exclusion in the Northeast, while the Niger Delta Avengers capitalize on environmental grievances and resource control claims to justify economically motivated sabotage. Meanwhile, socioeconomic deprivation serves as a foundational grievance that enables both groups to mobilize support. Informed by the 2RCs, the study highlights that responses rooted solely in militarization fail to address the deeper structural causes of these similar but different insurgencies, considering relevant contextual factors. It re-echoes the calls for a shift toward integrated policy approaches that target the root causes of insecurity, including poor governance, youth unemployment, and environmental injustice, while considering the regional peculiarities of both insurgencies and like-minded groups.Conclusion and recommendationThis study essentially underscores how the Greed-Need-Creed framework provides a valuable perspective necessary for crafting multidimensional counter-insurgency strategies that align national security with human development objectives, including participatory governance, localized economic development, and community-driven deradicalization programs.

This given research paper explores the complex relationship between domestic violence and elder abuse, specifically, according to pertinent literature, the contribution of socio-economic status of individuals to the given types of abuse. The different categories of abuse include- physical, emotional, psychological, financial, and sexual, all of which and their dire effects manifest throughout the physical, psychological, social/political, economic, and legal realms. Literature review incorporated and data sources involve history, theories of feminism and social learning, and precedence. This highlights the need for a coordinated and multi-sector approach in designing and implementing prevention and elaborate interventions comprising of legal services, community oriented methods, medical instructions, social support services, and technological infrastructure. The author also provide examples of case studies in order to inform the reader of real-life examples that may be useful when hoping to implement these techniques, and reiterate that the strategies are not universal and must be tailored to the specific context. It reveal that various social determinants including poverty, unemployment, dependence on others for financial support, lack of social interactions, culture, and family background play an influential role in domestic violence and abuse of the elderly. Literate rates and education levels are some of the other factors at this phase that help in combating abuse. The prevention and control measures in the current generation are assessed to determine effectiveness, with the revelation of successful legal frameworks, community enlightenment, extensive public health programs, and campaigning as important aspects of the same. Finally, there are recommendations focusing on the need to utilize the multiple and complex responses in addressing issues of domestic violence and elder abuse. Policies should be geared towards the protection of victims, promotion of survivor agency, and provisions of adequate and timely services. Suggested future research areas include, multiple forms of abuse, Long-term impact and changes, and, again, Preliminary Outcome of innovation prevention approaches. This work academically intended to advance the methodological understanding and practice both to prevent and compare domestic violence and elder abuse when not, and in the process, improve support for victims.

Looking past limiting conditions: Prioritizing meaning in EAP

PurposeTeaching complex economic theories can be made relevant through everyday life experiences and current economic, social, and environmental crises can be used as vehicles for student learning. The purpose of this paper is to help students understand that the economy should be seen as a social system that evolves over time driven by conflictive and contradictory forces and enable them to develop the critical thinking skills needed to make better choices for a more equitable and sustainable future.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews the historical role played by neoliberalism on education in general and on the teaching of economics in particular. A historical/critical/action-learning approach discusses five pedagogical teaching methods that have been implemented in undergraduate economics courses and demonstrates how teaching social economics can be made possible by bringing the real world into the classroom and taking the classroom into the real world.FindingsThere is an urgent need to rethink the teaching of economics and the economics curriculum from one that stresses self-interest, profit maximization and cost minimization, to one that stresses cooperation, collaboration, fairness, and ethical values rather than economic value, as ways of satisfying society’s needs and addressing systemic issues of inequality, power and greed. Bringing teachers and students together in collaborative learning environments, thereby learning from the mistakes of the past and minimizing the impacts of the present so that future generations can also participate, is the much-needed change in how social economics can be taught post-financial crisis.Originality/valueThis paper is a response to the special issue on the theme teaching social economics during the global financial crisis. The authors have provided insights into their teaching pedgagogy in the context of this topic.

Hayes and Williams’ Family Law, now in its sixth edition, provides critical and case-focused discussion of the key legislation and debates affecting adults and children. The volume takes a critical approach to the subject and includes ‘talking points’ and focused ‘discussion questions’ throughout each chapter which highlight areas of debate or controversy. The introductory chapter within this edition provides a discussion of the law’s understanding of ‘family’ and the extent to which this has changed over time, a detailed overview of the meaning of private and family life within Article 8 of the ECHR, and a discussion of the Family Justice Review and subsequent developments. Part 1 of this edition, supplemented by the ‘Latest Developments’ section, outlines the most up-to-date statistics on the incidence of marriage, civil partnerships and divorce, discusses recent case law on the validity of marriage such as Hayatleh v Mofdy [2017] EWCA Civ 70 and K v K (Nullity: Bigamous Marriage) [2016] EWHC 3380 (Fam), and highlights the recent Supreme Court decision (In the Matter of an Application by Denise Brewster for Judicial Review (Northern Ireland) [2017] 1 WLR 519) on the pension rights of unmarried cohabitants. It also considers the litigation concerning the prohibition of opposite-sex civil partnership registration from the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Steinfeld and Keidan v Secretary of State for Education [2017] EWCA Civ 81 to the important decision of the Supreme Court in R (on the application of Steinfeld and Keidan) (Application) v Secretary of State for International Development (in substitution for the Home Secretary and the Education Secretary) [2018] UKSC 32. This edition also provides an in-depth discussion of the recent Supreme Court decision in Owens v Owens [2018] UKSC 41 regarding the grounds for divorce and includes discussion of Thakkar v Thakkar [2016] EWHC 2488 (Fam) on the divorce procedure. Further, this edition also considers the flurry of cases in the area of financial provision on divorce such as Waggott v Waggott [2018] EWCA Civ 722; TAB v FC (Short Marriage: Needs: Stockpiling) [2016] EWHC 3285; FF v KF [2017] EWHC 1903 (Fam); BD v FD (Financial Remedies: Needs) [2016] EWHC 594 (Fam); Juffali v Juffali [2016] EWHC 1684 (Fam); AAZ v BBZ [2016] EWHC 3234 (Fam); Scatliffe v Scatliffe [2016] UKPC 36; WM v HM [2017] EWFC 25; Hart v Hart [2017] EWCA Civ 1306; Sharp v Sharp [2017] EWCA Civ 408; Work v Gray [2017] EWCA Civ 270, and Birch v Birch [2017] UKSC 53. It also considers the recent decision of the Supreme Court in Mills v Mills [2018] UKSC 38 concerning post-divorce maintenance obligations between former partners, and the Privy Council decision in Marr v Collie [2017] UKPC 17 relating to the joint name purchase by a cohabiting couple of investment property.Part 2 focuses on child law, examining the law on parenthood and parental responsibility, including the parental child support obligation. This edition includes discussion of new case law on provision of child maintenance by way of global financial orders (AB v CD (Jurisdiction: Global Maintenance Orders)[2017] EWHC 3164), new case law and legislative/policy developments on section 54 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 (parental orders transferring legal parenthood in surrogacy arrangements), and new cases on removing and restricting parental responsibility (Re A and B (Children: Restrictions on Parental Responsibility: Radicalisation and Extremism) [2016] EWFC 40 and Re B and C (Change of Names: Parental Responsibility: Evidence) [2017] EWHC 3250 (Fam)). Orders regulating the exercise of parental responsibility are also examined, and this edition updates the discussion with an account of the new Practice Direction 12J (on contact and domestic abuse), and controversial case law addressing the tension between the paramountcy of the child’s welfare and the protected interests of a parent in the context of a transgender father’s application for contact with his children (Re M (Children) [2017] EWCA Civ 2164). Part 2 also examines the issue of international child abduction, including in this edition the Supreme Court’s latest decision, on the issue of repudiatory retention (Re C (Children) [2018] UKSC 8). In the public law, this edition discusses the Supreme Court’s clarification of the nature and scope of local authority accommodation under section 20 of the Children Act 1989 (Williams v London Borough of Hackney [2018] UKSC 37). In the law of adoption, several new cases involving children who have been relinquished by parents for adoption are examined (Re JL & AO (Babies Relinquished for Adoption),[2016] EWHC 440 (Fam) and see also Re M and N (Twins: Relinquished Babies: Parentage) [2017] EWFC 31, Re TJ (Relinquished Baby: Sibling Contact) [2017] EWFC 6, and Re RA (Baby Relinquished for Adoption: Final Hearing)) [2016] EWFC 47).

This paper seeks to develop a discussion on climate justice, taking into account the racial and geopolitical issues in Brazil. During the discussion, developed countries are identified as the main culprits of global warming and vulnerable groups, such as the black population in Brazil, are identified as the main victims of the consequences of climate change. By analyzing the literature that addresses the topic, the article discusses topics such as environmental racism, necropolitics, climate and racial justice. To develop this discussion, the importance of demarcating quilombola lands as a way of combating the impacts of global warming is highlighted. In addition, it emphasizes the importance of recognizing and valuing traditional knowledge in this struggle, and ensuring that the black population has an active voice in environmental discussions and in the creation of public policies related to climate issues in Brazil.