Suchergebnisse

International Relations (IR) needs democratising. Currently, IR theorising remains under the hegemony of a singular worldview (`warre of all against all') with a singular logic (`conversion or discipline') for all actors and activities. This top-down, state-centric and exclusivist approach is fundamentally anti-democratic for a field of inquiry and practice crowded with multiple worlds. The Humanities, we propose, will help to mitigate these totalitarian tendencies by expressing and examining what hegemonic IR cannot but must: that is, a richness of being in global life. We present Ang Lee's Lust/ Caution (2007) as an example. If seen as an allegory for Taiwan—China relations, this film shifts attention from the national security state, a defining concern for hegemonic IR, to the transnational solidarities that bind peoples and societies despite inter-state conflicts, thereby offering a way out of the statist impasse that incarcerates the region. This approach extends beyond recent calls for a `linguistic' or `artistic' turn in IR. Culture, we argue, can serve as a method.

Following its election in 2007, the Labour government imposed a moratorium on export of Australian uranium to India. This article argues that with the Indo-US deal and concomitant agreements now in place, Australia should agree to export uranium to India. It does so on the grounds that the agreements will adequately protect Australian uranium from misuse, will not unduly test the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) regime, could open out opportunities to meet important safety concerns, could help stabilise potentially dangerous vertical and horizontal proliferation and could also mitigate the region's burgeoning production of greenhouse gases. In supporting the agreements through nuclear trade with India, however, Australia should use any influence it is able to garner thereby to ensure that the Indo-US agreement itself is not seen as part of an attempt on the part of the United States (US), or any other power, to harness India as a means of containing China, and thus exacerbating what could become a destabilising tendency in the region.

One critical proposition in normative strategic management research is that an accurate perception of the environment by top managers is a prerequisite to attaining better organizational performance. However, recent entrepreneurship studies suggest that entrepreneurs are often leading or even causing environmental changes, and thus they may perceive greater industrial instability than there actually is. In this project, we examine if an over-perception of industrial instability exists among entrepreneurs. If it does, which perceptual mode (accurate perception versus over-perception) will benefit firm performance? We conducted the study in a highly volatile environment — China — and found that entrepreneurial orientation (EO) had an inverse U-shape relationship with perceptual acuity of industrial instability, indicating that a greater level of EO indeed led to an over-perception of industrial instability. However, we found that although perceptual acuity of industrial instability improved firm sales, it was negatively associated with organizational effectiveness evaluated by top managers. Additional analyses were conducted and implications were provided in the end.

This lesson seeks to delve into the minds of 3rd- and 4th-grade students for their grasp of the concept of patriotic symbols. Reading The Impossible Patriotism Project by Linda Skeers is beneficial for students as they compare and contrast their own emotions and processes of learning associated with the concept and usage of patriotic symbols to those of Caleb, the book's main character. Students conduct research using the Internet to find patriotic symbols representing views of patriotism in various countries, such as China, Japan, Australia, England, France, or Canada. In the writing assignment, students will discuss their definitions of patriotic symbols and why the symbols are important to them. Students design and present their patriotic symbols to the class and explain their choices of design. Two rubrics have been designed and for assessment purposes: Rubric One assesses students' written knowledge of patriotic symbols, and Rubric Two assesses students' methods of arriving at what patriotic symbols are through artistic, visual, and creative models.

Language is not only a method of communication, but also a mechanism of power. The ethnographic research reported in this article documents how a group of Korean students, who are participating in a bilingual Korean school in Northeast China, construct their language attitude and practice. Research findings indicate that the Korean students value both Korean and Chinese language acquisition, and adopt the two languages for self-empowerment in the academic hierarchy of the Korean school. The positive attitude and practice of Korean students towards Korean and Chinese language studies highlight the politically and economically functional power of Korean and Chinese languages as a means of acquiring a larger benefit from China's economic marketisation, especially increasing business contacts with South Korea. This article argues that the increasing significance of transnationalism for ethnic minorities within globalisation emphasises bilingual proficiency, or even trilingualism in China's reform period which implies the necessity of relevant policy initiations for the increasing needs of language acquisition. ; postprint

In November 2009 U.S. President Barack Obama travelled for the first time to Japan, attended the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Singapore, met the heads of state of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) - including the representative of the Burmese military junta -, spent three days in Shanghai and Peking, and concluded his trip in South Korea. Presenting himself as the first 'Pacific' U.S. president and presenting the United States as a central actor in the region, he communicated three messages: The United States will uphold and strengthen the traditional bilateral alliances in Asia, get more involved in the existing multilateral organisations, and is ready to co-operate with China on today's global challenges. In the American and European media, the trip received a predominantly negative response, since it had not produced any tangible results, but instead had signalled the decline of the United States and its influence in the region. Behind this verdict stands the - misguided - expectation that Obama's new approaches would instantly lead to changed positions among U.S. partners

Pampanga's lantern industry lacks the impetus for innovation strategy to become globally competitive, and make significant contributions to local economy. It has lost to China in terms of market share; thus, it has to employ appropriate marketing strategy in order to produce and sell premium products focusing on design and craftsmanship. Furthermore, the lantern industry in Pampanga is dominated by micro enterprises with a few which can be classified as small to medium enterprises. Despite the spanning production and sale of holiday decor for several decades already, the product is still in the transitional stage. This can be attributed to the state and condition of the firms in the industry, the small-scale production capabilities of the firms, and the lack of significant local government support through policy. Given these factors, an innovation strategy is developed in the following contexts: the characteristics of the firms, the environment of the firms, and the technology available to the firms. This innovation strategy is also developed using a relevant innovation theory.

Die Frage nach der Kausalität fällt in die Methodologie. Methodologie ist in den Wirtschaftswissenschaften ein Bereich, der sowohl bei Ökonomen als auch bei Philosophen kaum Beachtung findet. Ökonomik hat sich ursprünglich als eine kausal erklärende Wissenschaft verstanden. Sie wollte für die Wirtschaft zeigen, dass das scheinbar Zufällige dort einem notwendigen Gesetz gehorcht. Denn in moderner Auffassung meint Kausalität nicht, dass eine Ursache A eine Wirkung B herbeiführt; vielmehr liegt das Wesen der Kausalität in einer notwendigen Verknüpfung zeitlich getrennter Ereignisse oder Zustände der Welt miteinander durch universell geltende Gesetze. Wir wollen zur Klärung der Frage beitragen, welche Rolle kausale Erklärungen in den zeitgenössischen Wirtschaftswissenschaften spielen können. Wir untersuchen diese Frage am Beispiel der gegenwärtigen Finanzkrise. Nach einer kurzen Beschreibung der Entstehung der Finanzkrise (Abschnitt 2) und einer Klärung des Begriffes Krise" (Abschnitt 3), erläutern wir ausführlich die Ursachen für die gegenwärtige Finanzkrise (Abschnitt 4), wobei auch kapitaltheoretische Überlegungen wie der Begriff des natürlichen Zinssatzes, unterschiedliche Fristigkeiten und Grade der Risikoscheuheit berücksichtigt werden. Da wir zeigen, dass die Krise sich nicht kausal erklären lässt, sprechen wir nicht von Ursachen, sondern von Gründen dieser Krise, von denen wir folgende nennen: die exzessive amerikanischen Geldpolitik, das Handelsbilanzungleichgewichtes zwischen USA und China, das amerikanische Haftungsrecht,die zunehmende Komplexität der Finanzinstrumente, systemischen Risiken, das mangelnde Wissen der Bankmanager um vergangene Krisen sowie ihr Entlohnungssystem. In Abschnitt 5 fragen wir, was Kausalität in den Wirtschaftswissenschaften und speziell in der gegenwärtigen Finanzkrise bedeuten kann? Wie wirken objektive Faktoren und subjektive Faktoren (wie Vertrauen) zusammen? Es zeigt sich, dass in den Wirtschaftswissenschaften nur unter ganz bestimmten Bedingungen kausale Gesetze abgeleitet werden können; es können dagegen sehr wohl Regeln abgeleitet werden, die im Allgemeinen gelten. Abschließend diskutieren wir in Abschnitt 6 die Frage, ob Finanzkrisen unvermeidlich sind.

Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs), government-owned investment funds, are of growing importance in international finance. They are a vehicle to manage foreign exchange reserves and wealth which have been accumulating in the emerging world, particularly in the BRICs. However, while China and Russia set up SWFs over the last decade, India and Brazil still lack such funds. In analysing thoroughly the Indian case, this paper seeks to contribute to recent literature on the determinants of SWFs with two main findings: First, it confirms conventional economic theory which shows the requirement of excessive foreign reserves for the set-up of SWFs. Second, it suggests that political systems matter, as demonstrated by the lively debate in India on whether that country should have such a fund. In this way, influential societal actors, in particular the central bank and regulating agencies as well as business associations, have dominated the public discourse and successfully lobbied the government to waive initial plans in support of an alternative wealth management scheme.

Why many transition economies succeeded by pursuing policies that are so different from the radical economic liberalization (shock therapy) that is normally credited for the economic success of central European countries? First, optimal policies are context dependent, they are specific for each stage of development and what worked in Slovenia cannot be expected to work in Mongolia. Second, even for countries at the same level of development, reforms needed to stimulate growth are different; they depend on the previous history and on the path chosen. The reduction of government expenditure as a share of GDP did not undermine significantly the institutional capacity of the state in China, but in Russia and other CIS states it turned out to be ruinous. It is the growth diagnostics that should reveal the missing ingredient for economic growth. Finally, and most important, introducing this missing ingredient should not result in the destruction of other preconditions for growth. The art of the policymaker is to create markets without causing the government failure, as happened in many CIS countries.

AbstractA multi-levelled hegemonic encounter has developed in Central Asia, in which a global hegemon, the USA; a regional hegemon, the Russian Federation; an aspirant sub-regional hegemon, Uzbekistan; and an emergent regional and global hegemon, China, co-exist within the framework of Central Asian security politics. Where these hegemons' interests do not conflict this can be characterised as a matrioshka model of hegemony: the different level hegemons can accommodate one another peacefully and where their interests coincide they can form alliances. The model of multi-levelled hegemony developed here highlights the simultaneous presence of competition and cooperation. This article explores the way in which the various bilateral hegemonic relations in the region also indicate that actual and emergent hegemonic states at different levels can cooperate as hegemons in order to challenge, or to respond to challenge, by hegemonic states at other levels. This helps to clarify the question of whether the increasingly competitive interaction between these states is likely to lead to conflict.

Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs), government-owned investment funds, are of growing importance in international finance. They are a vehicle to manage foreign exchange reserves and wealth which have been accumulating in the emerging world, particularly in the BRICs. However, while China and Russia set up SWFs over the last decade, India and Brazil still lack such funds. In analysing thoroughly the Indian case, this paper seeks to contribute to recent literature on the determinants of SWFs with two main findings: First, it confirms conventional economic theory which shows the requirement of excessive foreign reserves for the set-up of SWFs. Second, it suggests that political systems matter, as demonstrated by the lively debate in India on whether that country should have such a fund. In this way, influential societal actors, in particular the central bank and regulating agencies as well as business associations, have dominated the public discourse and successfully lobbied the government to waive initial plans in support of an alternative wealth management scheme.

In an uncertain energy international context, the Arab States as of many emergent countries have to face human and economic development critical challenges with limited natural resources. Because of lacks of oil and gas resources, or - for others - demonstrating their will put more oil on the market, these countries officially stated that they are interested in acquiring nuclear power plants and know-how to ensure a sufficient and quite cheap electricity production. Therefore, although progress as regards renewable energies was carried out, nuclear energy appears to be an interesting alternative in this relative instable energy market framework. To handle successfully their nuclear development project, these States must, however, carry on their current efforts regarding training, industrial co-operation with the major nuclear powers, and collaboration with the specialized international institutions. This cooperation gives to this major actors (the United States, France, Russia and China), a room for implementation of a "nuclear diplomacy" as means to capture these emerging markets, and so beyond the traditional friendships. (Maghreb-Machrek/GIGA)

As tensions mount over natural resources, in a world where developing countries are increasingly the new engines for global growth, energy is more than ever at the heart of the question. In this special energy survey, political leaders, eminent specialists & key players in the energy sector debate the major issues -- at stake is the very future of our planet. While China & India continue to bet on voracious fossil fuel growth, some countries, like Brazil, are choosing a more sustainable development, while others are favoring nuclear energy. Energy can also be a weapon. Russia has certainly understood this, & has not hesitated to trigger "gas wars" to pressure its closest neighbors. But the biggest geopolitical upheavals are yet to come -- although perhaps not for some time -- & they will be centered on the Arctic. The melting of the Arctic cap will be a game-changer, opening up new sea lanes & enabling new oil deposits to be exploited. Adapted from the source document.

Over the past decade, multiple attempts have been made to curb North Korea's development of a nuclear program. Major world powers such as the United States and China have reached out to Pyongyang through bilateral and multilateral negotiation processes. The Six-Party Talks, the current negotiation mechanism used to discuss options for a potential denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, have brought back hopes that a deal might one day be reached. What type of framework is provided by the Six-Party Talks? How have parties' negotiation behaviors been influenced by the Talks, and how have they in turn impacted the process? Could this negotiation mechanism eventually become more institutionalized? Although this process has not yet emerged as a successful example of an institution that can influence North Korea's determination to become a nuclear power, it has moved beyond its infancy and should be considered a viable tool within foreign policy options.