Suchergebnisse

Anotācija Mazie uzņēmumi veido lielāko daļu uzņēmumu Latvijā, un tajos ir nodarbināti vairāk nekā puse iedzīvotāju darbspējīgā vecumā. Mazo uzņēmumu attīstības jautājumi ir īpaši aktuāli situācijā, kad globalizācijas rezultātā pieaugusi starptautiskā konkurence, augušas kvalitātes prasības produktiem un pakalpojumiem, pieaudzis bezdarbs. Pasaulē veiktie zinātniskie pētījumi liecina, ka vāja mazo uzņēmumu vadīšana ir viens no galvenajiem iemesliem, kādēļ uzņēmumu darbības rezultāti pasliktinās un uzņēmumi tiek likvidēti. Promocijas darba mērķis ir izpētīt mazo uzņēmumu vadīšanu nozīmīgi ietekmējošos faktorus un to savstarpējās ietekmes kopsakarības, izpētīt mazo uzņēmumu vadītāju uzskatus par izglītības un prasmju uzņēmuma vadīšanā nozīmīgumu, atklāt iespējas mazo uzņēmumu vadīšanas pilnveidošanai. Promocijas darba pirmajā nodaļā analizēta akadēmiskā literatūra un jaunākie zinātniskie pētījumi par mazo uzņēmumu vadītāju zināšanu un prasmju nozīmīgumu uzņēmuma vadīšanā, vadītāja personisko īpašību nozīmīgumu, mazo uzņēmumu vadīšanas īpatnībām, kā arī ārējās vides ietekme uz mazo uzņēmumu vadīšanu. Nodaļā analizēti zinātniskie pētījumi par uzņēmuma klimata nozīmīgumu uzņēmumos un to ietekmējošiem faktoriem, kā arī par zināšanu vadības nozīmīgumu organizācijās un zināšanu vadības nepieciešamību mazos uzņēmumos. Otrajā nodaļā pētīta mazo uzņēmumu attīstība un īpatnības Latvijā, izpētīta valdības politika mazo uzņēmumu atbalstam, analizēti valsts atbalsta pasākumi un ES fondu atbalsts maziem uzņēmumiem, analizēta uzņēmējdarbības izglītības īstenošana augstākās izglītības iestādēs. Promocijas darba trešajā nodaļā autore pētījusi, kā uzlabot mazo uzņēmumu vadīšanu Latvijā. Izpētīti ir mazo uzņēmumu vadītāju uzskati par uzņēmējdarbības izglītības un pieredzes nozīmīgumu. Noskaidrots, kādi ir mazo uzņēmumu vadītāju uzskati par apmācību, motivācijas un komunikācijas nozīmīgumu uzņēmumā. Analizētas vadītāju uzskatu atšķirības Latvijas reģionos, kā arī tautsaimniecības nozaru griezumā un arī atkarībā no uzņēmuma lieluma un vadītāja dzimuma. Izpētītas vadītāju apmācību, motivācijas, komunikācijas nozīmīguma vērtējumu savstarpējās sakarības un saistība ar uzņēmuma inovatīvās darbības vērtējumu. Pētīta interneta lietošanas aktivitāte mazos uzņēmumos, sīkāk izpētītas interneta lietošanas aktivitātes atšķirības Latvijas reģionos, kā arī atkarībā no nozares un uzņēmuma lieluma. Nodaļā analizēti mazo uzņēmumu vadītāju viedokļi par valsts atbalsta pasākumu, nodokļu politikas, finanšu resursu pieejamības, ārējās vides stabilitātes, administratīvo procedūru, kā arī informācijas pieejamības atbalsta pasākumiem nozīmīgums. Noteikti galvenie spēki, kas ietekmē mazos uzņēmumus. Pamatojoties uz zinātniskās literatūras analīzi un empīriskā pētījuma rezultātiem, atklātas mazo uzņēmumu vadīšanas pilnveidošanas iespējas. Promocijas darba pamata saturs ir izklāstīts 194 lappusēs. Darbā ievietoti 28 attēli un 11 tabulas. Literatūras un avotu sarakstā iekļautas 228 vienības. Promocijas darbam ir 7 pielikumi. Atslēgvārdi: mazo uzņēmumu vadīšana, uzņēmējdarbības izglītība, apmācība, motivācija, komunikācija ; Abstract Small enterprises account for the majority of enterprises in Latvia and employ more than a half of the working age population. The development issues of the small enterprises are particularly topical in the situation when as a result of globalization international competition has increased, higher quality is required from products and services, qualification requirements towards businesses are becoming tenser, and there has been a rise in unemployment. The globally conducted scientific research suggests that poor management of small businesses is one of the key reasons why the performance of these enterprises is deteriorating and the businesses are liquidated. The aim of the promotion paper is to study the factors which considerably influence the management of small businesses and regularities of their mutual interaction and to study the opinions of the managers of small businesses about the role of education and skills in corporate management and identify the opportunities for the improvement of corporate management. The first chapter of the promotion paper analyses academic literature and latest scientific research on the role of a small business managers' knowledge and skills of corporate management, the importance of the manager's personal qualities, key actions of small business managers in managing their enterprises as well as the influence of the external environment on the management of small businesses. The chapter analyses the research on the corporate climate in small enterprises and the factors influencing the climate as well as the importance of knowledge management as well as the role of knowledge management in organizations and the need for knowledge management in small businesses. The second chapter explores the development and peculiarities of small businesses in Latvia and studies the government policy for the support of small businesses as well as analyses the national support measures and EU support to small enterprises. The chapter also deals with the implementation of business administration education in the tertiary and vocational education institutions in the study programmes not focusing on economics and business administration. In the third chapter of the promotion paper the Author has studied the possibilities of improving the management of small businesses in Latvia. The research has also been made of the opinions of the small business managers about the importance of business management education and experience. The Author has studied and identified the opinions and differences in the opinions of small business managers about the role of training, motivation and communication in an enterprise. The differences of opinions have been examined in the cross-section of the regions of Latvia and industries as well as depending on the size of the enterprise and the manager's gender. The Author has studied the mutual correlations and relations of the assessments of training, motivation and communication importance on the innovative performance of a company. Other aspects under study are the intensity of the use of the Internet in small enterprises, differences in the intensity of using the Internet in the regions of Latvia as well as depending on the industry and size of the enterprise. The chapter analyses the opinions of small business managers about 54 the influence of state support measures, tax policy, availability of financial resources, stability of the external environment, influence of administrative procedures as well as availability of information on support measures. The Author has identified the key forces influencing small enterprises. Based on the analysis of scientific literature and empirical research results improvement opportunities of small business management have been revealed. The main contents of the promotion paper covers 190 pages. It contains 28 figures and 11 tables. The list of references contains 228 items, the promot

Over the past decade, return migration has generated increasing public and policy attention. It is often believed that African migrants travel one-way to Europe and never return home. Policy makers think that it is necessary to encourage and to force migrants to return. However, because of the dearth of data, the return of African migrants to their origin country remains poorly understood. Using a mixed methods approach, this research consists in a comparative analysis of Senegalese and Congolese migrants' return migration from Europe to their origin country. Building upon existing theories, a new conceptual framework is developed, encompassing three phenomena related to return migration at different stages of the migrant's life history: the initial intention to return, the return and the reintegration process in the origin country after having returned. This framework highlights the role of migrants' projections about their potential reintegration for return as well as the importance of the circumstances of return for reintegration. It also emphasizes the importance of the context in origin and destination countries. The quantitative data for this study comes from the Migration between Africa and Europe (MAFE) project, which collected life-histories of migrants and return migrants in origin and destination countries. The findings are interpreted in the light of qualitative analyses of nearly one hundred semi-structured interviews conducted with returnees in the regions of Dakar and Kinshasa. The results are consistent with the conceptual framework. It appears that the intention to return and the return are influenced by the motive for migration, by their family location, but also by the contexts both in origin and destination countries. Context in origin countries has an effect on migrants' strategies regarding return to their origin country. Migrants are less likely to intend to return at the beginning of their migration when the conditions in their home country are deteriorating, which is especially the case in DR Congo after 1990. Similarly, migrants are less likely to return when the situation in their country is becoming more difficult. Context in destination countries also plays an important role for the intention and the realisation to return. Given the restrictive immigration policies, migrants know that it will be difficult to migrate again if they chose to return and if their reintegration process is problematic. The research reveals that the hardest it is to migrate to Europe and the less migrants intend to return and do return. Besides, preparation of return plays a key role for the decision to return and the reintegration after the return. Migrants who prepared their return have higher chances to return, and those who were forced to return are more likely to leave their origin country again to migrate to Europe. ; Depuis la dernière décennie, la question du retour des migrants a de plus en plus attiré l'attention de l'opinion publique et du monde politique. Les migrations africaines sont souvent perçues comme n'ayant lieu qu'à sens unique vers l'Europe, comme si les migrants ne retournaient pas dans leur pays d'origine. Selon les décideurs politiques, il est nécessaire d'encourager et de contraindre les migrants à retourner, et ils mettent en place des dispositifs dans ce sens. Cependant, du fait du manque de données, la question du retour des migrants africains est largement méconnue. Adoptant une méthodologie mixte, cette recherche consiste en une analyse comparative de la question du retour pour les Sénégalais et les Congolais qui ont migré en Europe. A partir de théories existantes, un nouveau cadre conceptuel est élaboré, englobant trois phénomènes liés à la question du retour qui se situent à différents moments dans la trajectoire de vie des migrants : l'intention initiale de retour, la réalisation du retour et la réinsertion dans le pays d'origine après le retour. Ce cadre conceptuel souligne le rôle de l'anticipation de la réinsertion dans le pays d'origine pour la décision du retour ainsi que l'importance des circonstances du retour pour la réinsertion. Il insiste également sur le rôle du contexte dans les pays d'origine et de destination. Les données quantitatives qui sont mobilisées pour cette étude proviennent du projet « Migration between Africa and Europe » (MAFE), qui a collecté des données sur les histoires de vie de migrants et de migrants de retour dans les pays d'origine et de destination. Les résultats sont interprétés à la lueur de l'analyse qualitative de près d'une centaine d'entretiens semi-directifs réalisés avec des migrants de retour dans les régions de Dakar et de Kinshasa. Les résultats sont en adéquation avec le cadre conceptuel. Il apparaît que l'intention de retour et le retour sont influencés par le motif de la migration, par la situation familiale des individus, mais aussi par les contextes dans les pays d'origine et de destination. Le contexte prévalant dans les pays d'origine a un effet sur les stratégies des migrants vis-à-vis du retour. Les individus sont initialement moins susceptibles d'envisager un retour lorsque les conditions dans leur pays d'origine se détériorent, ce qui est particulièrement le cas en RD Congo à partir des années 1990. De même, dans les faits, les retours des migrants sont moins fréquents lorsque la situation dans leur pays d'origine se dégrade. Le contexte dans les pays de destination joue aussi un rôle important pour l'intention et la réalisation des retours. Avec la mise en place de politiques migratoires de plus en plus restrictives, les migrants retournent moins car ils savent qu'il leur sera difficile de migrer à nouveau par la suite s'ils font le choix de retourner et qu'ils éprouvent des difficultés pour se réinsérer. La recherche révèle que plus il est difficile de migrer en Europe, moins les migrants ont l'intention de retourner et moins ils effectuent un retour. En outre, la préparation du retour joue un rôle clé pour la décision du retour et la réinsertion. Les migrants qui ont préparé leur retour ont des chances plus importantes de retourner, et ceux qui ont été contraints de retourner sont les plus susceptibles de quitter à nouveau leur pays d'origine pour migrer en Europe. ; (POLS - Sciences politiques et sociales) -- UCL, 2013

Rosi Braidottis Deliberation über das Posthumane ist angesichts gegenwärtiger Bewegungen in den Geistes- und Kulturwissenschaften – oder, um den von der Autorin bevorzugten Begriff ins Treffen zu führen: den 'Humanities' – keine Zufälligkeit; vielmehr entspricht sie haargenau einer umfassenden Dynamik, die sich vor allem im anglo-amerikanischen Kontext seit einigen Jahren rapide und reich entfaltet: nämlich einer affirmativen Abkehr vom Menschen als dem Maß der Dinge, dem Nonplusultra aller Aneignung von Geist und Welt. Die Konsolidierung des Fachs 'Animal Studies', die hohe Konjunktur des Begriffs der Ökologie im Theoretischen, die Hinwendung zu sogenannten 'objekt-orientierten' Ontologien mögen diese Tendenz symptomatisch charakterisieren. In diesem Sinne schreibt sich Braidotti in ein weites Feld posthuman(istisch)er Forschungsanstrengung ein. Die Autorin selbst, wollte man eine Schublade für ihr Werk bereithalten, würde sich am ehesten das Etikett des 'Neo-Materialismus' gefallen lassen: Eine Denkbewegung mit stark feministischer Schlagseite, die für gewöhnlich mit den Namen Elizabeth Grosz, Jane Bennett, Karen Barad und Manuel De Landa assoziiert wird. Die Motivation dahinter besteht darin, Materie in ihrem auto-poietischen Charakter, also in ihrer unabhängigen, physischen Entfaltung zu denken. Nicht umsonst verweist Braidotti, im Rechtfertigen ihres Tuns, gerne auf die sogenannte 'Gaia-Hypothese' (S. 84), derzufolge, zurückgehend auf Lynn Margulis und James Lovelock, die Biosphäre als selbstorganisierter Lebenszusammenhang begriffen wird, innerhalb dessen einzelne Lebensformen nur in Relation zu den jeweils übrigen vorgestellt werden können. Welcher Name philosophiegeschichtlich für diese Art von Argument geradezustehen hat, liegt auf der Hand: Spinoza. Und zwar ein durch das jüngere französische Denken gefilterter. So versteht sich Braidotti zunächst als Schülerin von Deleuze und Foucault – und, durch die interpretativen Linsen des Ersteren hindurch – als Auslegerin des spinozistischen Immanenzgedankens: "The 'Spinozist legacy' […] consists in a very active concept of monism, which allowed these modern French philosophers to define matter as vital and self-organizing, thereby producing the staggering combination of 'vitalist materialism'. Because this approach rejects all forms of transcendentalism, it is also known as 'radical immanence'" (S. 56). Die berühmte Frage des Althusser-Schülers Pierre Macherey, 'Hegel oder Spinoza?', entscheidet sich bei Braidotti demnach zweifellos zugunsten des Letzteren – die Arbeit der Theorie müsse sich heute von der Einheit der Substanz und der Multitude ihrer lebendigen Ausdrücke, vor deren Hintergrund die Einmaligkeit des Menschen radikal an Boden verliert, her bestimmen. Das Fragwürdig-Werden des Menschen als Brennpunkt unseres Weltverständnisses ist dabei natürlich keine revolutionäre Nouveauté. Spätestens seit Heideggers "Brief über den Humanismus", in dem Jean-Paul Sartre höflich aber bestimmt ausgerichtet wird, dass der Existenzialismus eben kein Humanismus sein könne, arbeitet sich die Kontinentalphilosophie am Abschied vom Menschen ab. So folgten auf Heidegger Foucaults 'Ende' und Derridas 'Enden des Menschen', in jüngerer Zeit etwa Peter Sloterdijks Menschenpark-Fantasie und Donna Haraways Mediationen über den Cyborg-Charakter des Lebendigen; mit Judith Halberstam, Ira Livingston (Posthuman Bodies) und N. Katherine Hayles (How We Became Posthuman) erfuhr das Posthumane in den 1990er-Jahren schließlich seine begriffliche Prägung. Warum sie ihren Gegenstand dennoch als ganz zeitgeistig und dringend begreift, erklärt Braidotti im ersten Viertel ihres Traktats, worin gefordert wird, das Neinsagen einzustellen und über die Humanismus-Kritik des 20. Jahrhunderts noch ein Stück weit hinauszugehen: "Posthumanism is the historical moment that marks the end of the opposition between Humanism and anti-humanism and traces a different discursive framework, looking more affirmatively towards new alternatives" (S. 37). In dergestalt effektvoller Assertorik kommt der deleuzianische Spinozismus, durch den sich dieser Text animiert sieht, unumwunden auf seine Kosten. So firmiert 'Affirmation' – und zwar durchweg – als jene Kampfvokabel, in die Braidottis gesamte Argumentation ihr unbeschränktes Vertrauen investiert: Wo sich endlich die Epoche dekonstruktiver Melancholie ihrem Ende zuneigt, kann Politik als Handlung wieder bejaht werden – doch Handlung braucht, per definitionem, ein Subjekt. Genau dieses versucht die Autorin aus den Überresten des, nach den legitimen Anschlägen der anti-humanistischen Kritik, in Trümmern liegenden humanistischen Wertegerüsts zu retten. Zwischen dem humanistischen Angebot einer subjektiven Ipseität, die eher modellhaft ausschloss als dass sie eine menschliche Gemeinschaft beschwor (und letztlich die radikale Unterdrückung aller geschlechtlichen, rassischen, ökonomischen etc. Abweichungen vom europäischen weißen Mann programmatisch mit sich führte), und seiner ersatzlosen Abschaffung, soll demnach eine dritte Option sich auftun – eine Art von Subjektivität, die keinen universalen Standard ins Recht setzt, sondern sich relational (Deleuze würde schreiben 'transversal') vorstellt, das heißt: als differentieller Bezugspunkt inmitten der Multiplizität von Lebensformen unseres ökologischen Zusammenhangs. "Posthuman subjectivity expresses an embodied and embedded and hence partial form of accountability, based on a strong sense of collectivity, relationality and hence community building" (S. 49). Die Lücke, die diese feierliche Einsetzung einer neuen Handlungsmacht offen lässt, bezieht sich dabei auf das 'Wie' des Umsetzens. Politik als Handlung bedarf einer strategischen Disposition, zumindest eines Plans, der Richtung und Vorgehen determiniert. Weil Braidottis Gedankengang sich an diesem Dilemma der Praxis vorbeizustehlen scheint, entsteht eine unweigerliche Ratlosigkeit darüber, auf welche Weise sich das posthumane Subjekt denn nun konkret manifestieren soll. Noch diffiziler wird der Status dieser Subjektivität, wenn nach der Umwelt gefragt wird, innerhalb derer ihre Realisierung statt hat. Braidotti schlägt vor, einen singulären, allumfassenden Lebenszusammenhang zu denken, der sich in seinem Zentrum nicht mehr auf die Figur des Menschen als 'anthropos' hin zuspitzt; stattdessen soll das Leben selbst als kreative Kraft affirmiert werden, die den Rahmen der Spezies übersteigt, um den kosmischen Zusammenhalt an sich zu garantieren: "As a brand of vital materialism, posthuman theory contests the arrogance of anthropocentrism and the 'exceptionalism' of the Human as a trancendental category. It strikes instead an alliance with the productive and immanent force of zoe, or life in its non-human aspects" (S. 66). 'Zoe', der griechische Term für eine Lebendigkeit, die allen Lebewesen gemeinsam ist, wird von der Autorin in Stellung gebracht, um den verbrauchten, anthropozentrisch justierten Begriff des 'Bios' abzulösen (womit auch eine Substitution des foucaultschen 'biopouvoir' durch eine vitalistische 'Zoe'-Politik einhergeht). Dem posthumanen Subjekt inhäriert mithin ein Solidaritätsverhältnis der Arten untereinander, die Teilhabe an einem produktiven Lebensprozess, der mehr ist als bloß menschlich. Jedwedem Naturalismusverdacht soll dabei allerdings postwendend der Wind aus den Segeln genommen werden, da Braidotti die Effekte der Technik selbst dem monistischen Relationsgeflecht der Lebensressourcen zuschreibt. Was nichts anderes bedeutet, als dass das technologische Artefakt der Physis nicht mehr gegenübersteht, sondern selbst als intelligent und vom generativen Lebensprozess beseelt verstanden wird. Damit geht der Zusammenbruch der Natur-Kultur-Distinktion einher, die sich in das Kontinuum eines einzigen energetischen Kontexts, in welchem natürlicher und technischer Substanzsausdruck ineinander übergehen, auflöst: "A rather complex symbiotic relationship has emerged in our cyber universe: a sort of mutual dependence between the flesh and the machine" (S. 113). Allein, bei aller Emphase für den medial-technischen Charakter der von ihr vorgeschlagen relationalen Subjektivität wehrt sich Braidotti vehement, den Immaterialitätsphantasien des Transhumanismus nachzugeben und betont wiederholt die unabweisbare Körperlichkeit ('embodiment') des Lebendigen. Nicht zuletzt, reflektiert Braidotti im letzten Teil des Buchs, nimmt die posthumane Kondition die Arbeit der Universität in die Pflicht. Die traditionellen Geistes- und Kulturwissenschaften, die sich – der anglo-amerikanische Begriff der 'Humanities' lässt da keine Zweifel aufkommen – vom gesicherten Status des Subjekts Mensch her derivieren, riskieren ihre absolute Geltungseinbuße, gelingt es nicht, den disziplinären Anthropozentrismus zu brechen und zugleich das Nachmenschliche auf den zeitgemäßen Begriff zu bringen: "As a vitalist and self-organizing notion of 'matter' comes to the fore, the Humanities need to mutate and become posthuman, or to accept suffering increasing irrelevance" (S. 147). Ein Festhalten an den rigiden Grenzen der klassischen Disziplineneinteilung sei dabei mindestens kontraproduktiv, wenn nicht gefahrvoll. Um den Geist der Zeit zu fassen bedarf es einer grenzüberschreitenden Begriffsarbeit, die Braidotti vor allem in den am akademischen Rand florierenden 'Studies'-Formationen realisiert sieht (vgl. das gegenwärtige Interesse an den erwähnten 'Animal Studies', 'Disability Studies', 'Critical Science Studies', 'Extinction Studies' etc.) – das heißt in dynamischen Denkfeldern, die flexibler manövrierbar und methodisch offener sind als das traditionelle Fach es zulässt. Damit einher geht die vehemente Forderung der Autorin nach einer Neudefinition (besser: einem Sich-neu-etablieren) des Verhältnisses zwischen Geistes- und Naturwissenschaften. Dass Braidotti dem nüchternen Titel The Posthuman keinen Untertitel beifügt, gibt dem Werk eine enzyklopädische Note und kreiert den Eindruck, der Diskurs über das Nachmenschliche sei hier ganz konvenient eingerahmt und auf den Punkt gebracht worden. Während es zutrifft, dass die Autorin sich sehr bemüht zeigt, etwas wie eine posthumanistische Ideengeschichte möglichst umfassend wiederzugeben, darf dabei nicht übersehen werden, dass sich Braidotti einem spezifischen philosophiepolitischen Programm verschreibt, das im Lichte eines post-marxistischen Materialismus alles daran setzt, den 'Linguistic Turn' zu Grabe zu tragen: "The posthuman subject is not postmodern, because it does not rely on any anti-foundationalist premises. Nor is it post-structuralist, because it does not function within the linguistic turn or other forms of deconstruction" (S. 188). Was dabei unbeantwortet bleibt, ist die Frage, wie eine Theorie des Posthumanen an gesellschaftlicher Relevanz gewinnen soll, wenn sie die Analyse der Sprache – unhintergehbares Moment jedwedes Repräsentationsprozesses – dem Nichts überlässt.

This report aims at highlighting the political ideology of Hamas in a comparative approach through critical analysis and researches, based on a historical methodology. We followed this political movement through its religious ideology and Islamic references, from its position as a Palestinian opposition to the reached power itself. We tried to achieve the following objectives:Describing the emergence and evolution of the movement, the living embodiment of the Muslim Brotherhood in Palestine, as well as the factors and circumstances that led to its decline and its rise at certain periods of the History. We also seek to know the roots of this movement before and after 1948 and until the outbreak of the intifada in 1987.Identifying the factors that influence the policies and decision making of the Movement, espacially the ideological and partisan aspect, as a matter of fact that Hamas is a fundamental element of the international movement Muslim Brotherhood, where Islam is the ideological and political reference. The report tackles the aspect of the national Palestinian actions and partisan interests who have imposed their own visions and pragmatic positions. In addition, it is necessary to analyze the division of leadership between the inside and outside group, but also the important influence of the military wing in the Policy building and decision making.Identifying the positions of Hamas movement towards the Palestinian political system into its two components – the PLO and the Palestinian Authority – towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its settlement options and therefore towards the political settlement, compared to the PLO positions and other Palestinian factions. This research seeks to determine the position of Hamas on the principle of the Palestinian liberation and towards the political PLO initiatives, the Arab States, the organizations and the friendly countries, such as the International Conference, and to bring out the political initiative of Hamas and comparing it to the other forces' positions.Identifying the relation between the Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, the degree of autonomy that Hamas has in the organization and its international framework. The research tries to study the nature of the relations of the movement with the international, regional and Arab organizations. A special attention is given to the United States, the European Union, Russia and the other regional countries in order to understand its place and position in the axis of the region. The attention is especially focused on the « axis of the resistance » and the kind of relations Hamas has with the Arab countries of Palestine, like Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and States who have an big impact on the regional policies, particularly Iran and Saudi Arabia.Exploring the experience of Hamas in the transitional period, from the opposition to the takeover and parallelly with the experience in the political aspect of Islam with the Muslim Brotherhood, the Salafi Jihad, Al-Qaida, Hezbollah and the Turkish Party of Justice and Development, from its inception until its accession in power. ; Cette étude vise à faire la lumière sur le discours politique du mouvement Hamas, dans le cadre d'une approche comparée critique qui s'appuie sur une méthodologie historique dans la recherche et l'analyse. Nous suivons le passage de ce Mouvement, aux références idéologiques religieuses islamistes, de l'opposition palestinienne au pouvoir. Nous essaierons d'atteindre les objectifs suivants :Décrire l'émergence et l'évolution de ce Mouvement, incarnation vivante des Frères musulmans en Palestine, ainsi que les circonstances et facteurs qui ont conduit à sa régression à certains moments de l'histoire et à sa montée en puissance à d'autres. Nous cherchons également à connaitre les racines de ce mouvement avant et après 1948 et jusqu'au déclenchement de l'Intifada en 1987.Identifier les facteurs qui influent sur les politiques et la prise de décision de ce Mouvement, notamment le facteur idéologique et partisan, étant donné qu'il fait partie intégrante du Mouvement international des Frères musulmans dont l'Islam est la référence idéologique et politique. Il existe également le facteur de l'action nationale palestinienne et les intérêts partisans qui lui ont imposé des visions et des positions pragmatiques. De plus, il convient d'analyser la division du leadership entre intérieur et extérieur et enfin l'influence extraordinaire de l'aile militaire dans la formulation des politiques et dans la prise de décision.Identifier les positions du mouvement Hamas vis-à-vis du système politique palestinien dans ses deux composantes - l'OLP et l'Autorité nationale palestinienne - mais aussi vis-à-vis du conflit israélo-palestinien et les options de règlement de celui-ci, et donc de sa position vis-à-vis du règlement politique, comparée aux positions de l'OLP et des autres factions palestiniennes. Cette étude cherche également à connaître la position du Hamas sur le principe de la libération de la Palestine et vis-à-vis des initiatives politiques de l'OLP et des Etats arabes, et celles des organisations ou des pays amis, comme la Conférence internationale, et à faire la lumière sur l'initiative politique du Hamas en comparaison avec les positions des autres forces.Identifier la relation entre le Hamas et les Frères musulmans et le degré d'autonomie dont jouit le Hamas dans le cadre de sa relation avec l'organisation mère, de caractère internationaliste. L'étude tente aussi d'étudier la nature de la relation de ce mouvement avec les organisations internationales, régionales et arabes, en particulier avec les Etats-Unis d'Amérique, l'Union européenne, la Russie, les autres pays de la région et de connaitre sa place dans les axes dans la région, notamment « l'axe de la résistance », à la lumière de ses relations avec les pays arabes voisins de la Palestine (Egypte, Jordanie, Syrie et Liban) et ceux qui influent sur les politiques régionales et arabe en général, et l'Arabie Saoudite et l'Iran en particulier.Explorer l'expérience du Hamas dans sa transition de l'opposition au pouvoir et faire un parallèle avec l'expérience l'Islam politique, en particulier le mouvement des Frères musulmans, le courant salafiste jihadiste, Al-Qaïda, le Hezbollah libanais et enfin le Parti de la Justice et du développement turc, depuis sa création jusqu'à son accession au pouvoir.

Dottorato di ricerca in Storia d'Europa: società, politica, istituzioni (XIX-XX secolo) ; Alcune biografie di giornalisti, risalenti alla stagione di studi a cavallo tra gli anni '70 e '80, sono ormai accreditate come lavori di chiara valenza storica. Tra le analisi più significative si annoverano quelle sulle figure di Luigi Abertini, Alfredo Frassati e Alberto Bergamini. In questo filone vuole inserirsi il presente studio, che ha come scopo di fornire uno sguardo di insieme sulle esperienza di vita, professionali e personali, di un giornalista finora poco conosciuto, Mario Borsa. Formatosi sin da giovane negli ambienti del giornalismo milanese di matrice socialista e radicale, Borsa fu per 14 anni il corrispondente estero del "Secolo", che era considerto allora il giornale di riferimento della democrazia cittadina e nazionale. Entrata in crisi la popolarità della testata, nel 1911 egli venne richiamato in Italia per rinnovarla secondo i metodi anglosassoni e se ne assunse di fatto la responsabilità fino al 1918 quando passò a seguire i lavori della Conferenza di Versailles. Sotto la sua guida il giornale si oppose coraggiosamente alla guerra di Libia, fu tra i principali fautori dell'ingresso dell'Italia nella Prima guerra mondiale a fianco dell'Intesa e si spese attivamente per il raggiungimento di una pace giusta e durevole. Nel dopoguerra, come la maggior parte delle testate italiane, anche "Il Secolo" subì la lenta penetrazione delle forze capitalistiche e la seguente fascistizzazione. Borsa venne esautorato e costretto a dimettersi, ma potè testimoniare, i momenti cruciali dell'instaurazione della dittatura, attraverso le colonne del "Times", di cui divenne corrispondente da Milano. Antifascista della prima ora, in Italia prese parte a tutte le maggiori iniziative dell'opposizione liberale e democratica senza abbandonare mai, per quanto pericolosi, i contatti con l'antifascismo di ispirazione giellista e azionista. Continuò perciò a rappresentare per tutto il Ventennio una spina del fianco del Regime, tanto che, dopo essere stato diffidato e ammonito, venne internato nel 1940 per le sue idee, che lo rendevano un "Italiano pericoloso". All'indomani della Liberazione, il prestigio e l'integrità accumulati nel corso della lunga carriera, fecero di Borsa il candidato ideale alla direzione del "Corriere della sera". La sua conduzione del giornale di via Solferino, per quanto breve e sottoposta a diverse influenze, ebbe una grandissima importanza: si caratterizzò soprattutto per aver contribuito a ristabilire un clima di ordine e di fiducia costruttiva e per aver saputo sfatare le paure alimentate dalla propaganda monarchica favorendo la vittoria della Repubblica al referendum istituzionale del 2 giugno; un risultato che il direttore pagò nuovamente di persona, con l'allontamento. Queste sono solo alcune delle molteplici battaglie che Borsa intraprese, con coerenza personale e integrità professionale costanti, che lo fanno ricordare come un difensore intransigente della libertà di stampa, uno dei maggiori esponenti del democratismo, un personaggio che andrebbe giustamente inserito tra gli interpreti di quella che viene indicata come "l'età d'oro" della stampa, in cui i giornalisti italiani non furono solo osservatori, bensì protagonisti della storia politica e sociale del Paese. ; Some biographies of journalists, dating back to the series of studies spanning the '70s and '80s, are now accredited as works of clear historical importance. Among the most significant analysis, those about Luigi Abertini, Alfredo Frassati and Alberto Bergamini. In this line wants to enter this study, which aims to provide an overall look on the professional and personal life experience of a little-known journalist, Mario Borsa. Trained from his youth in the areas of radical and socialist journalism of Milan, for 14 years Mario Borsa was foreign correspondent for "Il Secolo", which was considered as a reference for democracy in the city and the all nation. Fallen the newspaper into a crisis of popularity, Borsa was recalled to Italy to renew it according to Anglo-Saxon's methods and to assume also its editorial responsibility in the crucial years between 1911 and 1918. Under his guidance the newspaper courageously opposed the war in Libya, was a major proponent of Italy's entry into the First World War alongside the Entente and worked actively to achieve a just and lasting peace. After the war, like most of Italian newspapers, "Il Secolo" had the slow penetration of capitalist forces first and of fascists then. Mario Borsa was ousted and forced to resign, but he could testify, the moments of the establishment of the dictatorship, through the columns of the"Times", for wich he became correspondent for Milan. Staunch antifascist, in Italy he tooks part in all the major initiatives of the opposition Democratic-Liberal and never left, even if dangerous, his connections with the Lombard antifascists of "Giustizia e libertà" or of "Partito d'azione". Therefore he always continued to represent a thorn in the side for the Fascist regime, so, after being warned, was interned in 1940 for his ideas, that made him a "dangerous Italian". After the Liberation, the prestige and integrity built up over the long career, made of Mario Borsa the ideal candidate to the direction of the "Corriere della Sera".His management of the newspaper of "Via Solferino", however brief and subjected to different influences, had a great importance because it has been characterized for having helped to restore a climate of order and confidence and for having favored the victory of the Republic to the institutional referendum; a result that the responsable paid again in person, by moving away. These are just some of the battles that Mario struggled with constant personal and professional integrity. For these reasons he should be remember as an uncompromising defender of press freedom, one of the greatest exponents of democratism, and a personality who should be rightly placed between the interpreters of what is referred as "the golden age" of the press, in which Italian journalists were not only observers, but protagonists of the political and social history of the country.

I take humans to basically strive toward a condition of peace enabling human flourishing. Yet human groups and individuals alike have an extraordinary wide range of understandings of such a condition. If hope for lasting peace and joint cooperation is to emerge from rule of law or otherwise underpin global harmony, first these very concepts need to be unpacked in proper detail. Given the remarkable diversity of legal practices across societies, simply looking at our own will prove insufficient. I suggest building on both Eastern and Western traditions of thought, as well as looking at contemporary practices across the globe in an attempt to enquire into the nature and historical background of the two key notions: rule of law (section 1) and harmony (section 2). Some concluding remarks are then drawn (section 3).First, we focus on "rule of law" (ROL): Is it a likely candidate to set the foundations of global harmony? Looking at the meaning that "rule of law" has acquired within a broad range of fields (legal theory, law and jurisprudence, political philosophy, political science, international relations, sociology and social theory), the first striking aspect is that it does not seem to be the monopoly of technical definitions (principles of legality and impartiality). Historically, the appeal of ROL derived from the distinction between "empire of laws" (rule by law) and "empire of men" (rule under men). Today, both practitioners and scholars refer to ROL as an aggregate of legal rules and institutions, but also as a variety of informal discursive practices aimed at legitimising those rules and institutions.One-size-fits-all definitions can obviously be found, but they suffer from tremendously high levels of generality. Once we acknowledge the need for distinctions, however, we find too many. The long-standing distinction between thin (or procedural) and thick (or substantive) conceptions of ROL has been debated at great length, as has the difference between rule of law, rule by law etc. At this point there is little to be gained by further restatements of these basic distinctions. However, abandoning this debate will not reduce the number of competing conceptions: Rechtsstaat, État de droit, Estado de derecho. Moreover, the continental civil law tradition also developed other concepts that are smeared into the Anglo-Saxon formula, including certezza del diritto, sécurité juridique, etc. We should also ask whether Chinese fazhi is or might be a Far Eastern equivalent to rule of law.A promising start is then to go beyond the consensus omnia of international declarations and shed light on the arguments of those who do not estimate that rule of law enhances concord. ROL appears to be equivocal and often (covertly) value-laden both in ordinary language and scholarly literature. Three criticisms of rule of law are taken into consideration. One criticism holds it to be a case of law-fare: Not a mere technical device, ROL is rather an instrument for hegemony. Another criticism holds ROL to be a Western invention (legal Occidentalism): What is being questioned is not a specific set of institutions that may, rightly or wrongly, be identified as "Western (rule of) law." The challenge goes deeper and concerns the epistemological status of law itself. A third criticism comes from "global constitutionalism." The ideal of ROL is not questioned as much as the way it is currently practiced: Since it lacks effectiveness, it is unsatisfactory. Given that constitutionalism, at state level, implied that constitutions made legislative power respect the constitution, advocates of international constitutionalism calls for such a paradigmatic change in the international arena.These arguments show that ROL is no "magic bullet" : Its banner was used as a synonym for an independent judiciary, but came to include democracy, rights, civil society and many more. This conceptual overstretch explains why rule of law is not likely to promote global concord.In section two, it seems prima facie that "harmony" has much higher odds for being a stepping stone for lasting peace: The concept has figured prominently in both Eastern and Western philosophical traditions where it indicates concord, equilibrium between forces resulting in peace, in opposition to disorder (chaos in the Greek tradition and luan in the Chinese tradition). The order emerging from harmony is a composition of differences and not merely a sum of unities. On a social level, harmony is a relational concept and hints to concert or absence of contradiction in relationships between individuals and/or groups. Contrarily to rule of law, we do not deal with an essentially contested concept: its structure is not seriously questioned. Moreover, contrarily to ROL, we have a clear referent: The CCP's commitment to "building a harmonious society" was officially announced in 2002 and has since been added to the basic line in its constitution.Here, the arguments of those who disbelieve the emancipating strength of harmony have to be addressed. First, there is the legal positivist's objection: Harmony amounts to natural law-talk that suffers, ultimately, from abusing Hume's principle. Secondly, there is the criticism of the liberal democrat: Let aside the epistemological and theoretical nature of the concept, in the realm of practical reason harmony implies an essential (and fix) hierarchy of people that will inevitably lead to autocratic political regimes. The overall idea is that the harmonious order does not take controversy seriously: contradictions have to be eradicated or hidden in order to promote (apparent) stability. Harmony would then only amount to a cover-up status quo, based on manufactured consensus.In conclusion, I suggest that there are two lessons to be learnt if we want to overcome the cultural divides of the West-östlicher Diwan: From the rule of law, we must hence learn again the fundamental lesson of impartiality as an indispensable element in applying the principle of justice. From harmony, we must refine our understanding of the complex ways in which social cohesion is enhanced and without which no order is sustainable.

Oggetto della ricerca è l'analisi del quadro normativo comunitario e interno relativo alla circolazione delle libere professioni, e, in particolare, al reciproco riconoscimento dei titoli accademici e professionali sia in generale, sia con particolare riguardo a talune categorie professionali: i medici e i docenti universitari. Nel primo capitolo, dopo aver analizzato l'istituto della libertà di circolazione delle attività professionali nell'economia del disegno comunitario originario, vengono ripercorse le tappe attraverso le quali si è giunti al mercato unico delle attività autonome, quale punto di arrivo, peraltro non definitivo, di un percorso al quale hanno contribuito sia l'attività legislativa che la giurisprudenza della Corte di Giustizia Europea. In particolare si analizza come il legislatore comunitario ha abbandonato il primo approccio c.d "settoriale", a favore di uno "generale" che prevede il reciproco riconoscimento dei titoli con potere di adattamento (o diritto di compensazione) da parte dello Stato ospite. La parte centrale del capitolo è incentrata sull'esame della direttiva 2005/36/CE con la quale si è inteso ampliare le ipotesi di esercizio della professione in virtù del titolo originario. La direttiva, che contiene il regime disciplinare attualmente vigente in tema di riconoscimento delle qualifiche professionali è stata recepita in Italia con il d.lgs. 9 novembre 2007, n. 206, al quale è dedicato l'ultimo paragrafo del capitolo. Nel secondo capitolo l'attenzione si sposta sulle professioni mediche, sulla considerazione che, in quest'ambito, il tema del riconoscimento dei titoli professionali riveste profili di particolare interesse, in quanto connesso con la tutela di un diritto fondamentale quale quello della salute. Il terzo capitolo è incentrato sul tema dell'internazionalizzazione dell'università e della mobilità dei docenti. Il sistema dell'alta formazione è un nodo strategico per l'integrazione sociale e culturale europea: infatti, le università svolgono un ruolo fondamentale nell'azione di promozione e garanzia della crescita e dell'arricchimento intellettuale della società. Nel primo paragrafo vengono sono descritti i principali interventi delle Istituzioni comunitarie che, sulla base dei suddetti presupposti, mirano alla promozione e al miglioramento della qualità e della competitività fino alla "modernizzazione" dei sistemi di istruzione superiore; viene, poi, esaminata l'azione del cd. Processo di Bologna, un progetto intergovernativo finalizzato alla costruzione del cd. Spazio europeo dell'istruzione superiore e della ricerca. Vengono, infine, trattate le questioni del riconoscimento dei titoli accademici per lo svolgimento di una professione non regolamentata o per la prosecuzione degli studi e ripercorsi i diversi programmi di mobilità europea rivolti ai docenti universitari. Al fine di rivedere i punti di criticità del sistema di riconoscimento, previsto dalla direttiva 2005/36/CE, è, attualmente, in corso un processo di revisione della stessa: il 19 dicembre 2011 è stata, infatti, pubblicata una proposta di modifica. La promozione della libera circolazione delle professioni è, infatti, considerato come uno strumento essenziale del potenziale di ripresa economica, dell'incremento occupazionale e della crescita sociale dell'Europa di oggi. ; The research focuses on the anlysis of the EU and the internal regulatory frameworks concerning free movement of liberal professions and, in particular, the mutual recognition of academic and professional qualifications both in general and with particular regard to certainf professional groups: doctors and university teachers. In the first chapter, after analyzing the institution of freedom of movement of professional activities within the original EU outline, the author thinks back to the steps through which the single market of the autonomous activities has been reached, as a point of arrival, however not definitive, of a path which both the legislative activity and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice have contributed to. In particular, the analysis shows how the Community legislator has abandoned the first approach, the so-called "sectoral" approach, in favour of a "general one" which envisages mutual recognition of qualifications with power of adjustment (or right of set off) by the host Government. The central part of the chapter focuses on the examination of Directive 2005/36/EC with which it was intended to broaden the assumptions of practice of profession under the original title. The Directive, which contains the regulatory regime currently in force in terms of recognition of professional qualifications has been implemented in Italy by Legislative Decree of 9 November 2007 n. 206, which the last paragraph of the chapter is dedicated to. The second chapter focuses on the medical professions, considering that in this context the issue of recognition of professional qualifications is of particular interest, as it is related to the protection of a fundamental right, namely the right to health. The third chapter focuses on internationalization and mobility of university teachers. The system of higher education is a strategic hub for the European social and cultural integration: in fact, the universities play a key role in the activities of promotion and guarantee of intellectual growth and enrichment of society. The first section describes the main steps of the Community institutions: on the basis of the above-mentioned assumptions, they aim at promoting and improving the quality and competitiveness in order to fulfill the "modernization" of higher education systems; furthermore, the so-called Bologna Process is examined: it is an intergovernmental project aimed at building the so-called European area of higher education and research. The issue of recognition of academic qualifications for carrying out unregulated professions or continue their studies is eventually dealt with, together with the various European mobility programs addressed to university teachers. The Directive 2005/36/EC is currently undergoing a review process in order to review the critical points of its recognition system: on 19 December 2011, in fact, a proposed amendment was published. The promotion of free movement of professionals is, in fact, regarded as an essential tool of the potential for economic recovery, increase employment and social growth of today's Europe. ; Dottorato di ricerca in Persona, impresa e lavoro: principi e tutele di diritto interno, internazionale, comunitario e comparato (XXIII ciclo)

Struggle for a Constitutional Regime:Armenian-Young Turk Relations in the Era of Abdulhamid II, 1895 -1909Although scholars have devoted substantial attention to Armenian revolutionary movements, the treatment of the subject of relations between various Armenian organizations and the Young Turks and their leaders, both individually or through various institutions, have received tangential consideration at best. This is largely due to the paucity of original sources for the second half of the reign of Sultan Abdulhamid II given that most Ottoman, Armenian Revolutionary Federation's (ARF, also referred to as Tashnagtsutyun) as well as the Social Democratic Hnchagyan Party's archives were very hard, if not impossible, to access. These hardships were partially resolved when the Ottoman Archives were opened to the academic public in 2005, while ARF archives became accessible through special permission only. There still remains the Archives of the Armenian Patriarchates of Constantinople and Jerusalem, as well as the archives of the Social Democratic Hnchagyan Party that remain closed to the general public. Two seminal studies by a leading Turkish historian, Şükrü Hanioğlu, provided the first careful assessments regarding the Young Turks, albeit from the Turkish perspective, which relied heavily on Ottoman archival materials. Yet, while both studies have added to our knowledge of what transpired at the time, they skirted much of the critical Armenian contributions that assisted the Young Turks to attain power. Hence, It is the overall purpose of this dissertation to address precisely the significant relationships between various Armenian leaders, political parties, and revolutionary movements with their Ottoman counterparts to clarify what actually occurred on the ground and to capture the reasons as to why these relations did occur. This study aims to shed light on some of the reasons that motivated Armenians and Ottomans alike to collaborate and, to the degree that it may be possible to ascertain, to identify causes for their failures.The dissertation opens with an analysis of long-promised reform efforts, ostensibly to benefit Armenian inhabitants of the Ottoman Empire after the Treaty of Berlin (1878), and the skillful manipulations by Sultan Abdulhamid II to dilute them. An effort is made to assess carefully the palace's reliance on the Kurdish Hamidiye Regiments, which were used to sabotage reforms, and to understand better Constantinople's political intrigues. Because it was during this process that the Armenian Millet [nation]--hitherto known as the Millet-i Sadika (Loyal Millet)--was transformed into a Millet-i Asiya (Rebel Millet), the introduction examines how revolutionary agitations led to profound socio-political schisms.Much of this rich history is described and analyzed in the six chapters that follow. In Chapter One, the history from the "May Reform Project of 1895" to Abdulhamid II's abdication in 1909 is thoroughly discussed, placing the agitations for reforms within the overall tensions that affected the Ottoman Empire. In fact, as the Armenian Millet faced its conundrum at a time when Turks themselves wished to establish a constitutional monarchy to unite the empire and its peoples, the roles played by Armenian subjects were especially important. In turn, this vital position of instituting a constitutional regime attracted Armenian revolutionary movements to Young Turk leaders, who promised that their own revolution against the sultan would open a new era in Ottoman history. The Young Turks assured their European critics that their objective was to restore the 1876 Constitution, which was promulgated at the same time Abdulhamid II acceded the throne, but which was suspended as a result of the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-78. Several maintained that they were following in the footsteps of the reformist Midhat Pasha and his disciples, who became better known as the Yeni Osmanlılar (New Ottomans. Also known as Young Ottomans).Despite the Young Turks initial enthusiasm to establish cordial relations with their Armenian revolutionary counterparts, strong elements of suspicions and mistrust were present. These important differences are discussed and analyzed in Chapter Two. By December 1907, Armenian and Young Turk forces managed to overcome political hurdles to form a united front, whose declared goal was to topple Abdulhamid II. How the two sides tried to overcome their mutual reservations and doubts, which colored future ties, are assessed in Chapter Three. Inasmuch as one of the chief disputes between Armenian revolutionary and Young Turk leaders were the conditions of the Armenian inhabited provinces, Chapter Four provides an examination of the situation in the eastern provinces and how the Armenian revolutionary movement was able (or at least tried very hard) to revolutionize the Kurdish and Turkish populations there, in accordance with the directives of the first anti-Hamidian conference held in Paris in 1902. Along the same lines, the study further tackles the issue of Armenian-Macedonian relations in Chapter Five, which were blessed, and to a certain degree manipulated, by the fledgling state of Bulgaria for its own political and national gains. In fact, one could naturally speak about a Bulgarian connection vis-à-vis this cooperation, which is seldom addressed in scholarly sources. Finally, Chapter Six brings forth a reevaluation of the reasons behind the April 1909 Adana Massacres and illustrates why the ARF continued to cooperate with the Young Turks despite the slaughters, if for no other reason than to give the fledgling constitutional-revolutionary movement an opportunity to succeed. The dissertation closes with an assessment of Armenian-Young Turk relations. Despite outrageous developments, the CUP (Committee of Union and Progress, Ittihad ve Terakki Cemiyyeti) leadership covered up the vagaries of bewildered officials, confused by the desire to investigate wrongdoings, while seeking Armenian political assistance against the Sublime Porte. Both at the official as well as the popular levels, Armenian ties with Ottoman leaders disintegrated, which planted the seeds for fresh animosities. By 1913, the gap that separated the two nations enlarged, and while few anticipated future catastrophes, revealing signs were present that tensions simmered. Regrettably, hardly anyone exercised the foresight to prevent new tragedies.

La terra Jacii, caratterizzata dalla presenza di diversi casalia, subì nel XIV se¬colo gli esiti degli scontri fra Aragonesi e Angioini, della faida fra i baroni siciliani, nonché di varie catastrofi naturali. Un forte calo della popolazione è attestato dai dati che emergono dai prelievi dei collettori pontifici, incaricati, nel 1376, di riscuotere il «sussidio caritativo» concordato fra Roma e il sovrano aragonese di Sicilia, Federico IV. Proficua fu, invece, l'attenzione riservata al territorio acese dalla famiglia degli Alagona, a lungo titolare nel Trecento del castrum di Aci. Le risorse che gli Alagona investirono nella zona favorirono la riqualificazione della proprietà agricola; in particolare fu privilegiata la coltivazione della vite, destinata a caratterizzare quelle contrade anche nei secoli successivi. Presenti nell'area da noi considerata tanti fra i milites, notarii e iudici che furono fedeli sostenitori della famiglia degli Alagona anche durante la ribellione di fine secolo contro i Martini e che furono ricompensati con la concessione di fondi: si possono segnalare per consistenza patrimoniale i Ruvilenti, i de Herbis, i de Tarento, i Pesci, i Rizzari ecc. Assieme formavano il patriziato cittadino o la nobiltà urbana, «tipica¬mente siciliana», e costituivano «uno dei poli della società del regnum» che, in particolare a Catania, gli Alagona avevano contribuito a far crescere anche politicamente affidando loro la gestione delle cariche publiche. L'economia della terra di Aci poggiava quasi per intero sul settore trainante dell'agricoltura. Assieme al vigneto furono favorite tutte le colture ad alta intensità produttiva, e quindi «giardini» – in un atto notarile è citato un aranceto –, oliveti, ma anche orti, i cui prodotti erano specialmente utili a garantire l'approvvigionamento del mercato catanese. La manodopera agricola era costituita in gran numero da salariati, ma resisteva la schiavitù, nonostante le difficoltà sempre maggiori di rifornire il mercato schiavile, cosicché in età aragonese le fonti riferiscono quasi esclusivamente di schiavi saraceni, «tartari» e «greci de Romania». Da un punto di vista squisitamente commerciale, è probabile che la terra di Aci abbia usufruito della congiuntura favorevole che contraddistinse in quei decenni i centri politici e finanziari dell'isola e dunque anche l'area catanese, laddove si verificò una continuità della vita economica e commerciale, pur in quei momenti gravi vissuti dal Regnum. Ad alimentare gli scambi interni e specialmente il mercato cittadino era soprattutto lo smercio del vino. Per quanto attiene, invece, al comparto artigianale, la diffusione di talune attività è riferibile alla presenza nelle contrade di Santa Venera al Pozzo – in contrata flomarie sancte Venere o in contrata sancte Venere seu de Piscana – e Reitana di sorgenti e torrenti. Prevalenti sono la trasformazione della canna da zucchero, con l'impianto di «trappeti», e la lavorazione della canapa e del vino nelle gurne. L'indagine delinea, dunque, una situazione tale da poter concludere che la terra Jacii è stata – in positivo e in negativo – testimone privilegiata, con le sue vicende politiche, ma anche economiche e sociali, del travaglio istituzionale del XIV secolo. The Aci territory, characterized by the presence of several casalia, suffered, in the XIV century from the results of the clashes between Aragonese and Angevins and the feud among the Sicilian barons, as well as from various natural catastrophes. A large drop in population is confirmed by the data gathered by the papal collectors, who, in 1376, were tasked with collecting the «charitable subsidy» agreed on between Rome and the Aragonese sovereign of Sicily, Frederick IV. Profitable attention, on the other hand, was given to the Aci territory by the Alagona family, who were, for a long time in the 1300s, owners of the castrum at Aci. The resources which the Alagonas invested in the area favoured the re-qualification of agricultural land; vine cultivation in particular was privileged, and this was to char¬acterize the area in following centuries. In the area considered there were many milites, notarii and iudici who were faithful supporters of the Alagona family, even during the end-of-century rebellion against the Martini, and who were rewarded with the concession of lands: the Ruvilenti, de Herbis, de Tarento, Pesci and Rizzari families also had considerable patrimonies. Together they made up the town patriciate or the urban nobility, 'typically Sicilian', and constituted «one of the poles of the society of the regnum». In Catania in particular, the patriciate had grown politically, due to the Alagona family who had assigned to them the running of public offices. The economy of the Aci territory was based almost entirely on agriculture, which was the leading sector. Alongside the vineyards, preference was given to all the highly productive cultivations, and therefore to groves and orchards (in a notarial deed an orange grove was quoted), olive groves, but also market gardens whose produce was particularly useful to guarantee supplies to the Catania market. The agricultural labour force was made up of many paid hands, but slavery still endured, notwith¬standing the increasing number of difficulties in stocking the market with slaves, so that, in the Aragonese period, sources refer almost exclusively to Saracen slaves, Tar¬tars, and Greeks from Romania. From a strictly commercial point of view, it is probable that the Aci territory had taken advantage of the favourable economic situation that characterized the political and financial centres of the island in those decades, and therefore the Catania area, where economic and commercial activities continued even in the critical moments the Regnum went through. Internal exchanges and especially the town market consisted, above all, on the sale of wine. As regards the craft sector, the spread of certain activities is attributable to the presence of springs and streams in the country areas of Santa Venera al Pozzo – in contrata flomarie sancte Venere o in contrata sancte Venere seu de Piscana – and Reitana. The processing of cane sugar by means of the press system («trappeto»), and the manufacture of hemp and linen in pools of stagnant water («gurne») were widespread. The study outlines, therefore, a situation allowing us to conclude that the Aci territory, has been – positively and negatively – a privileged witness, through its political but also economic and social events, to the institutional development during the XIV century.

El presente artículo trata de responder a la pregunta de cuáles deben ser las indicaciones geográficas (IG) más pertinentes durante las primeras décadas del siglo XXI, en las regiones cafetaleras pobladas por pequeños cultivadores de café en el estado de Veracruz, México. El dilema se plantea en la selección de modelos que exclusivamente protegen el origen geográfico o los que, además, pueden ser utilizados para contribuir al encadenamiento de procesos participativos a favor de mejorar las condiciones de vida de las localidades campesinas. La metodología utilizada combina la investigación de campo a trasluz del enfoque SIAL y del análisis histórico estructural. La estrategia de impulsar la denominación de origen del Café Veracruz aprobada en el año 2001 no logró sus objetivos de posicionar el producto entre los cafés internacionales de calidad, ni tampoco agrupar a los caficultores para obtener un sobreprecio en los mercados de exportación. El mal resultado tuvo entre sus causas fundamentales el funcionamiento ineficiente del Consejo Regulador del Café Veracruz, órgano operador de la denominación de origen. El Consejo no fue dirigido acertadamente y encubrió la desigualdad que pretendía combatir al someter las políticas agrícolas a los intereses del capital agroindustrial y comercial, que opera monopsónicamente en dicho estado, es decir, fue incapaz de generar una gobernanza que garantizara condiciones propicias al desarrollo de Sistemas agroalimentarios localizados. No obstante, frente a la correlación de fuerzas desfavorable, algunos campesinos cafetaleros proponen impulsar «subdenominaciones» de origen sustentadas en estudios regionales, que muestran la existencia de productos específicos diferenciados ligados al territorio. La insistencia de los actores más débiles en el uso de indicaciones geográficas es un indicio de sus posibilidades como estrategia de resistencia y de resiliencia en el neoliberalismo. Palabras clave: indicación geográfica, denominación de origen del Café Veracruz, sistema agroalimentario localizado, subdenominación de origen, Consejo Regulador del Café Veracruz, México. ; This research paper aims to discuss the most effective types of geographical indications (GI) to protect small farmers growing coffee in the province of Veracruz, Mexico, in the first decades of the 21 st century. The current dilemma resides on whether to select a model that exclusively protects the geographical origin versus a model that can also be used to protect the chain of participants in the agro-industrial processes to improve the quality of life of coffee farmers' communities. The methodology combines the fieldwork through the scope of Localized Agri-food Systems and historical-structural analysis. Approved on 2001, the strategy to propel the geographical indication of «Café Veracruz» failed to achieve the objectives of product placement among other international high quality coffee geographical marks and group the coffee farmers in the region in order to obtain a surcharge price for the export markets. This inadequate outcome is in part due to the inefficient functioning of the Café Veracruz Regulatory Council, the agency responsible to operate this Geographical Indication. The Council was mismanaged and played down the inequalities that it aimed to eliminate in the first place as it used the agricultural policies to favor the monopsony of agro-industrial and commercial capital interests in such region. In other words, it was unable to establish the type of governance that could guarantee adequate conditions for the development of Localized Agrifood Systems. Despite the disadvantaged position of coffee farmers in Veracruz, some of them have proposed to prompt sub-denominations of origin based on regional studies that demonstrate the existence of differentiated products linked to specific geographical locations. The demand made by the small farmers -the weakest social players- to insist on using geographical indications reveals the possibility to use these as a resistance and resilience strategy on the neoliberal environment. Key words: geographical indication, denomination of origin Café Veracruz, localized agri-food system, sub-denomination of origin, Café Veracruz Regulatory Council, Mexico. ; Cet article tente de répondre à la question de ce que devraient être les indications géographiques (IG) plus pertinent au cours des premières décennies du XXI siècle, dans les régions productrices de café peuplées par des petits producteurs de café dans l'État de Veracruz, au Mexique. Le dilemme se pose dans la sélection de modèles qui ne protègent que l'origine géographique ou ceux qui peuvent également être utilisés pour contribuer au processus participatifs pour améliorer les conditions de vie dans des localités rurales. La méthodologie qu'a été utilisée combine entre l'approche de recherches sur le terrain à la lumière du SYAL et l'analyse historique structurelle. La stratégie de promotion de la dénomination d'origine du café de Veracruz a été approuvé en 2001 mais elle n'a pas atteint son objectif de positionner le produit entre les cafés internationales de bonne qualité, ni à regrouper les agriculteurs du café afin d'avoir de bon prix sur les marchés d'exportation. Le mauvais résultat a été causé fondamentalement par de profonds fonctionnements inefficaces du conseil régulateur du café de Veracruz, l'opérateur de la dénomination d'origine. Le Conseil n'a pas été réalisé correctement et caché la lutte contre les inégalités prévue en soumettant les politiques agricoles aux intérêts du capital agro-industriel et commercial, qu'opère monosoniquement dans cet Etat, c'est à dire, il n'est pas réussi à générer une gouvernance qui lui permettrait d'assurer des conditions propices au développement de les systèmes agroalimentaires localisés. Toutefois, par rapport à l'équilibre des forces défavorable, certains producteurs de café ont l'intention de renforcer les «sub-dénominations» d'origine soutenue dans les études régionales, qui montre l'existence de certains produits différenciés liés au territoire. L'insistance des acteurs les plus faibles dans l'utilisation des indications géographiques est une indication de son potentiel en tant que stratégie de résistance et de résilience dans le néolibéralisme. Mots-clés: indication géographique, dénomination d'origine Café Veracruz, Système Agroalimentaire Localisé, subdénomination d'origine, Conseil Régulateur du Café de Veracruz, le Mexique. ; 105-121 ; rlarroa@yahoo.com ; semestral

In this e-book I have collected some papers written for and presented at conferences and seminars during the latter years. Together with Working Papers published at the Department of Thematic Studies–Technology and social change, Linköping University, they were all part of a larger scheme of writing a history of the Swedish electricity system circa 1880–2010. That project sought to fulfil three aims: A discussion around Hughes' theory of "system" and "momentum"; A critical focus on deregulation; A critical study of the role of electricity in the conversion of the Swedish energy system towards "sustainability". As that book was intended to be written in Swedish, and papers have been written in English, it seems as a good idea to collect the English papers in one volume. So, the following texts can be seen as a draft of a book yet unwritten, but they are too disparate to be completely integrated. Therefore, papers are still individual papers in this volume. The first two papers deals with the long-term development of Swedish electricity production and the advantages and short-comings of Hughes' theory on sociotechnical systems: Did the electricity system become an unstoppable and growing force in society? Well, yes, but it met resistance. The following two focuses on deregulation: What happened when expectations of homo economicus hit real consumers? And: Can theory become reality? In short, my answer is that institutions changed, but people did not, at least not very much. The last one focus on total energy use and the role of electricity in that: Are improvements in energy efficiency useless? No, energy use has stagnated since the 1970s. After the papers I have added some afterthoughts. The main points of the first paper is that I present the many different meanings Thomas Hughes put into the concept of "momentum". Here I suggest that one of these is the most promising, but also that optimization through the pooling of power resources is based on fundamental characteristics of power production which I call "coping with variations". Another aspect on investments in electric power facilities, especially during the early period, was the heavy prime costs for the network, which explains why cables were laid out first in densely populated areas. I try to explain why these distribution costs fell dramatically from the 1920s to the 1950s. This has implications for the diffusion of the use of electricity outside big consumers like large industries, but also for pricing and purposes of pricing. The second paper is quite close to the momentum-discussion of the first paper, but here I suggest a distinction between "system growth" on one hand and "capacity growth" on the other. The basic idea is simple: The former refers to extensions of the electricity network from local to regional to national and international levels, the latter refers to the growth in size and capacity of power stations. While the network has continued to grow through interconnections without interruption, capacity growth met resistance from the environmental movement, especially in the 1960s and 1970s. This calls for a change in Hughes' idea of momentum as a purely internal mechanism leaving the relation to the political environment aside. The third and fourth papers discusses deregulation of the electricity industry in Sweden. The third has a focus on households as customers, and their propensity to act as the homo economicus expected of them. This analysis is done in terms of transaction costs. The result is, of course, a contrast to the abstract consumer in the liberal economic and neoclassical vision. There are always transaction costs, this is no surprise really, but it is still necessary to point at this fact as liberal and neoclassical economics has no room for such costs. However, I also point at the possibility of householders adapting to homo economicus. As this abstraction is necessary for the alleged self-regulating mechanisms of the perfect market, learning to act on the deregulated market opens for the neoclassical market to be realized despite its unrealistic character. The fourth paper takes this idea further. In discussion with the concept of "performativity" I point at facts supporting the notion of implementation of neoclassical ideas into the real market. There was close interaction between the practice of pricing electricity within the industry and academic economist's ideas of pricing principles. However, interactions does not necessarily lead to complete integration, there seem to be a fundamental difference between a preference for stable prices among "engineer-economists" and the preference for fluctuating prices in the short term among academic economists. The last paper is focused on the problems of energy efficiency. Improving efficiency is often mentioned in policy documents and research reports as one of the most important areas of action to solve environmental problems of today. Let me remind the reader here that I do not reduce environmental problems to the problem of global warming as "sustainable" energy sources also have negative environmental effects, albeit of a milder kind. In this paper I point at the role of all those energy-converting gadgets that we use daily, at least in the Western world, such as cars, dwellings and lamps. This study has its origin in my project on efficient lighting and the phase-out of the incandescent light bulb. The phase-out solves the problem of lock-in to a preferred and low-cost technology, and directs the change of the lighting stock to low-wattage alternatives. The paper is an effort in generalization to cars and heating of dwellings of this focus on a changing stock. The reason for doing so is that data on energy intensity falls in many countries from the 1970s onwards, at a time when environmental problems became prominent in policies. After the fifth paper follows a few afterthoughts brought to mind when papers were put together: On the character of sociotechnical system; On the role of the environmental movement and policies; And on the alleged importance of householders' "behaviour" when improvements in energy efficiency is discussed.

Die vorliegende Doktorarbeit befasst sich mit dem dynamisch-strategischen Aufbau europäisch- japanischer Diplomatie nach dem Ende der Ära des Kalten Kriegs im Zeitraum der Jahre 1991 bis 2006. Erforscht wurden die ersten fünfzehn Jahre sicherheitspolitischer Interaktion der aufstrebenden Partner Europäische Union (EU) und Japan mit Hilfe herausgearbeiteter "drei Dimensionen". Die erste Dimension deckt seit 1991 den rein bilateralen Auf- und Ausbau institutioneller Strukturen mittels aktiver Gipfeldiplomatie auf höchster, nämlich der Ebene der Staats- und Regierungschefs ("Institutionelle Dimension") ab. In der zweiten Dimension wird die sich seit 1996 herauskristallisierende europäisch-ostasiatische interregionale Sicherheitskooperation ("Regionale Dimension") dargestellt, in deren Kontext wechselseitigem multilateralen Krisen- und Aufbauengagements Nippon sich als einer der größten Geber auf dem Westbalkan (Europas damals "brennender Hinterhof"), und im Gegenzug die EU sich als nicht minder gewichtiger Stabilitätsakteur in Nordkorea und Ost Timor (inklusive Aceh/Indonesien, Japans zu jener Zeit "bedrohlicher Krisenbogen") im Rahmen des "Cross Regional Support" bewährte. Die dritte Dimension etablierte sich seit der Millenniumswende im globalen multilateralen Kontext ("Globale Dimension"). Im Zuge des "Managing Global Order" wurde diesbezüglich u.a. in den geostrategisch wichtigen Krisenherden Sri Lanka und Afghanistan (Friedens- und Wiederaufbaudiplomatie) sowie sektoralen Zukuftsfeldern wie (vorlaufend) bei der Bewältigung der Asienfinanzkrise (globale Finanzstabilitätsdiplomatie), der Etablierung des Kernfusionsversuchsreaktors "ITER" (Diplomatie für künftige Energiesicherheit), der Umsetzung des Kyoto Protokolls (Weltklimadiplomatie) und des Internationalen Strafgerichtshofs (Diplomatie für Weltstrafgerichtsbarkeit und Menschenrechte) maßgeblich kooperiert, wenn nötig sogar ohne den beiderseitigen trilateralen Sicherheitsgaranten USA. Die Arbeit ist überdies eingebettet in einen historischen Kontext (1543-1945/90) europäisch- japanischem Werte- und Kulturaustauschs, dessen Fortsetzung im Ausblick der Arbeit mit Blick auf mögliche Varianten fortgeführter, mittel- bis langfristig ausgerichteter sicherheitsstrategischer Fundamentalkooperation (Stichwort "Vista-Verschiebung von Europa nach Ostasien" - Aufbauend auf Nippons direkter, maßgeblicher und nachhaltiger Föderung europäischer regionaler Integration im Zeiraum 1991 bis 2006 durch "Fittrimmen" des Balkans -wie auch anderer im Jahr 2004 beigetretener Staaten des einstigen Warschauer Pakts und des Baltikums- für einen künftigen EU-Beitritt: Welche Rollen für Japan und die EU bei der Schaffung einer Ostasiatischen Gemeinschaft ab 2006/11 im wirtschaftlich boomenden, sicherheitspolitisch jedoch stets auch fragilen Fernost?) anskizziert wurde. ; European Union - Japan. The strategic build-up of political relations in three dimensions : Studia Diplomatica 1991-2006: A review with outlook in a historical context The given German language PhD-thesis, supervised by Prof. Dr. Ludger Kuehnhardt (Head of the Center for European Integration Studies "ZEI", University of Bonn), co-supervised by Prof. Dr. Michael Reiterer (Head of the European Union Delegation to Switzerland and Liechtenstein, University of Innsbruck) and sponsored by the Canon Foundation in Europe (Amstelveen, the Netherlands), was thoroughly being dealt with from mid 2006 onward, officially submitted end of 2009 and -after successful oral examinations in mid 2010- published online end of 2010. The research covers European Union (EU) - Japan security diplomacy between 1991 and 2006, i.e. the era in international relations following suit the "cold war". Whilst focusing these initial 15 years on "forward, upward, onward together" striving for political interaction between Brussels and Tokyo, with help of "three dimensions" discovered, verifiable evidence was to finally be delivered that the given process had been a deliberate product of a mutually pursued systematic and strategic approach. Whereas the first dimension, focusing the uppermost top level of summit meetings of the heads of state and government, scrutinized the establishment and expansion of purely bilateral institutional structures ("Institutional Dimension") since 1991, within the second dimension a special focus had been placed on multilateral European-East Asian interregional cooperation ("Regional Dimension") shaping out since 1996 the interplay of crisis prevention- and development commitment by Japan as the world`s third biggest peace building donor in the Western Balkans (Europe`s these days burning backyard) and -in return- of the EU as a by no means less counting stability actor in North Korea and particularly in East Timor (including also successful peace diplomacy for Aceh/Indonesia: East Asia`s then most destabilizing crisis spots) within the frame of "Cross Regional Support". With the millennium turn and also propelled by the September 2001 terrorist attacks in the USA, the third dimension was born offering the stage for the meanwhile grown up security actors Brussels and Tokyo to proactively strive for roles of wider global stability and peace. In five researched upon significant fields of multilateral global cooperation ("Global Dimension"), both new strategic partners closely cooperated and remarkably succeeded inter alia in delicate areas and subjects of crisis within the framework of "Managing Global Order". Often, but not always (!) in accordance with both side`s trilateral security guarantor Washington, these were taking place in Sri Lanka and Afghanistan (geopolitical peace diplomacy) and also covered concerted and massive efforts to master security challenges such as tackling the Asian Financial Crisis 1997/98 (world financial stability diplomacy), establishing the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor "ITER" in France (future energy security diplomacy) and the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands (global criminal jurisdiction diplomacy), and finally pushed crucially for implementing the Kyoto-Protocol to help save the world´s climate (counter-global warming diplomacy). Framed in a historical context dating back some 400 to 450 years (1543-1945/90) linked with an outlook covering options for continued exchange of stability values between "East and West" (such as parliamentary democracy, balance of powers, rule of law, human and civil rights, market economy, free media and citizens` principles) in the future (shifting the security focus from Europe towards East-Asia, and centering from the year 2011 onward around the potential mid to long term build-up of an East-Asian Community with debatable roles of Tokyo and -community building experienced- Brussels as a lively and expected response to Nippon`s proactive Western Balkan peace building activities 1991-2006, which for its part had aimed to essentially and strongly help the "black sheep" of Europe to get -meanwhile each by each- mentally prepared and physically fit to join successfully the rules -and interests- based peace project and actor EU one day, like Nippon`s beforehand offered generous and strategic economic aid mainly to the former Warsaw Pact -and to some extent also Baltic- states promoting their final EU-accession in 2004), the PhD-thesis further attempted to answer the following key questions: 1) Who was the holder of ownership, the "driving force" behind the strategic build-up of political relations?, 2) have political dialogue and cooperation up to the year 2006 made the EU and Japan (starting out 1991 and labeled "nobody") finally arrive as credible political-security actors (individually as well as in partnership) on the stage of international relations?, 3) what was the proper share of the USA?, and 4) what were the results delivered by the continuous interplay of mutual perceptions displaying the grand lines of European-East Asian intercultural divides and conflict?

El origen del auge económico de 1983 a 1989 se encuentra en el mecanismo de déficit del tesoro norteamericano, que alcanzó la cifra de 134 billones de dólares en 1982; 230,8 billones en 1983, manteniéndose en este escalón hasta 1989 (237.8 billones); este déficit se habían elevado en la década de los 70 en torno a los 50 billones de dólares anuales, lo que llevó a un amplio movimiento por la contención de los gastos o por el aumento de los impuestos en el país. Reagan eliminó la segunda hipótesis (llegando inclusive a reducir los impuestos sobre el capital y las rentas elevadas) y realizó cortes en los presupuestos, solamente de los gastos sociales, bajo la presión del establishment de investigación y desarrollo militar dedicado a la tecnología; aumentaron drásticamente los gastos militares y en particular aquellos relacionados con investigaciones de las tecnologías de punta que se sintetizaron en la iniciativa de la defensa estratégica, la ridícula guerra de las galaxias que se convirtió en objeto de crítica de las mayores autoridades científicas del país por su inviabilidad y por el desperdicio de recursos que representaba y aún representa. De alguna manera, podemos comparar la guerra de las galaxias con el papel económico que Keynes atribuía a las pirámides egipcias: un enorme gasto estatal para generar empleo y renta y permitir así el funcionamiento de la economía. El diagnóstico neoliberal coincide en que una de las causas inmediatas de la crisis económica de América latina se encuentra en la recesión internacional de los años ochenta, en especial por la combinación de caídas acentuadas en los precios de las exportaciones y agudas alzas en la tasas de interés reales en el mercado internacional, lo que provocó un cuantioso déficit en las cuentas externas de la región. La actual corriente de pensamiento denominada neoestructuralismo afirma, en lo fundamental, que los problemas económicos principales y la condición de subdesarrollados que aún prevalece en los países latinoamericanos no se debe tanto a distorsiones inducidas por la política económica sino que, más bien, son de origen histórico y de índole endógena y estructural. A juicio de Rosales (1988), una muestra palpable de esta * Economista, profesor investigador del Grupo de realidad subyace en tres características cruciales de la economía latinoamericana de fines de los años ochenta: a) la vigencia de un patrón de inserción externa que, dadas las tendencias del comercio y el sistema financiero internacional, conduce a una especificación empobrecedora; b) el predominio de factor productivo desarticulado, vulnerable y muy heterogéneo y concentrador del progreso técnico, incapaz de absorber productivamente el aumento de la fuerza de trabajo; y c) la persistencia de una distribución de ingreso muy concentrada y excluyente, que evidencia la incapacidad del sistema para disminuir la pobreza.El presente documento se presenta en tres partes, iniciando por un acercamiento al modelo que hoy conocemos como neoliberal; para posteriormente hacer un intento de comparar el modelo neoestructuralista con el modelo neoliberal, teniendo como hecho presente que este intento está enmarcado en los años noventa; y finalmente se esboza un marco teórico en cuanto a la posición del neoestructuralismo frente a los problemas del desarrollo latinoamericano; este documento solamente intenta dar una breve mirada al neoliberalismo en América latina, sin desestimar los alcances del mismo dentro y fuera de nuestras latitudes. ; The origin of the economic boom between 1983 to 1989 is found in the mechanism of the American Treasury deficit that reached the amount of US$ 134 billion in 1982, US$ 230.8 billion in 1983, this level was kept until 1989 (US$237.8 billion) this deficit had increased in the seventies around US$50 billion on a yearly basis which allowed a wide movement in favor of the reduction of expenditures or the increase of taxes in the country. Reagan eliminated the second hypothesis (getting to reduce moreover the taxes on capital and high incomes) and made cuts in the budgets exclusively of social expenditures under the pressure of the research establishment and military development devoted to technology, increasing drastically military expenditures and in particular those related to high technology research that turned out to be the initiative of strategic defense, the ridiculous Stars War that became the target of criticism of major scientific authorities of the country for its unfeasibility and waste of recourses involved and that still involves. In any manner, we can compare Stars War with the economic paper that Keynes attributed to the Egyptian Pyramids: a huge state expenditure to generate employment and income allowing in that manner the economy to function.The neo-liberalism diagnostic agrees to the fact that one of the immediate causes of the economical crisis in Latin America is found in the international recession of the eighties in special for the combination of falling down in the prices of exports and sharp increases in the real interest rates in the international markets generating a big deficit in the external accounts of the region. The present current of thinking named neo-structuralism affirms fundamentally that the main economical problems and the condition of underdevelopment that still prevails in the Latin-American countries are not due to induced distortions by the economical policy but they are based on historical reasons and have an endogenous and structural origin. In the opinion of Rosales (1988), a noticeable sample of this reality underlines in three crucial characteristics of the Latin-American economy at the end of eighties: a) the patron still in effect of external insertion that given the trade tendencies end the international financial system conducts to an impoverished specification, b) the predominance of a disarticulated, vulnerable and very heterogeneous productive factor concentrating the technical progress, and unable to absorb increases of labor force on a productive manner; and c) persistence of a very concentrated and excluding income distribution that makes evident the incapacity of the system to reduce poverty.

The study results reported here refer to devising improved ways of monitoring the considerable urban residential form changes that have resulted from implementation of the Victorian urban consolidation policy during the intercensal period 2001-2006. The policy applies to the Melbourne Metropolitan Area (MMA) and was designed (among other things) to de-emphasise urban sprawl while facilitating the construction of new dwellings during a time of rapid population growth. Thus, accommodation has involved not only greenfield land development but also population densification via brownfield and infill (re)development in Local Government Areas (LGAs) that were first populated during earlier city expansion phases when the extent of the metropolitan area was smaller than today. The policy is designed to improve the return on investment in existing infrastructure and services, as well as housing affordability and residential liveability. Most of the infill has taken place in the suburbs that were zoned/designated greenfield sites four to five decades ago. Here, both strategic (redevelopment around designated activity centres and around principal public transport networks) and dispersed "infill" development have been facilitated in policy implementation. Most of the "infill" is in the form of backyard developments/land-parcel-sub-division or replacement of old housing to make room for two or more new dwellings. The pattern of change due to this indicates that it has evolved as opportunity presented itself in a booming MMA land and property market. This "retro-fit" of extra dwellings is such that the capacity of some extant infrastructural (e.g. the storm water pipe network) and social service (e.g. schools and clinics) assets may be exceeded while that of others (e.g. the transport network) is likely to become better exploited. In contrast, the liveability and social sustainability of dwellers in newly-developed greenfields is dominated by the lack of access to the public transport network and further distance to public services (i.e. schools and public hospitals). A high level of automobile dependence is imposed on them by the persistence of the traditional urban sprawl approach to land-use planning, even though semi-detached houses and apartments have become included in the dwelling stock, thereby mitigating this tendency somewhat. In all cases of residential urban form change, the social, institutional and environmental impacts spawn a need for site selection for implementation of targeted mitigation measures. The pre-requisite for this task is detailed residential urban form mapping and monitoring. However, at policy launch, and even after eight years of implementation, the traditional approach to urban growth analysis using spatially-aggregated data had not been complemented by the detailed geographies that would serve the necessary monitoring. Thus geographical variation in the pattern of urban form change across a metropolitan area accommodating nearly four million people and governed by thirty one local government areas (LGAs) is undocumented in terms of the pattern of relative significance of greenfield, brownfield and infill development. Accordingly, both statutory and strategic decision support systems lack data and information that would serve them well. The lack of adoption of the full power of digital spatial data handling implied by this, is despite the fact that the various Australian state geographical data coordination committees charged with promoting the analogue-to-digital conversion of public sector mapping were established nearly two decades ago. By way of mitigation, the study reported here is designed to develop a Geographical Information Systems (GIS) parcel-based method for identifying and mapping the extent and location of infill development using various spatial datasets acquired and accessible from local and state government departments. Thus has emerged a method for detailed mapping of not only the pattern changes in the infill development pattern, LGA by LGA, but also the pattern of social impacts, identifiable in terms of census geography. Project results (e.g. as summarised in thematic maps) show that the success of Melbourne 2030 implementation varies across the MMA. For the study period, the trend was that LGAs offering room for new dwellings by brownfield and infill re-development did not see Activity Centres favoured by infill developers. Accordingly, such data integration and analysis as exemplified by this study will be useful in both strategic and social planning, because in both cases, it is important to monitor the actual outcomes for comparison with policy goals. In addition, those involved in site selection and prioritising for the provision of new or up-graded infrastructure, facilities and amenity can be better informed and, thereby, more effective. It is shown that the data streams currently accessible to LGA planning departments in the cities dominated by residential areas established four or five decades ago support the application of spatial statistics and modelling in ways that would allow the relative significance of driving forces and of densification impacts to be derived if the necessary data sharing arrangement can be established. Indications from the present study are that dwelling renewals within a 600 to 800 meter zone buffering the railway stations, or 400 meters of activity hubs like Colleges/University, define most of the infill developments, and that this is more marked if the re-developed housing stock is old enough to have been part of the traditional post WWII quarter acre block greenfield developments. Clearly, those interested in predicting future (opportunistic) infill pattern change trends will be planning spatial queries dominated by interest in documenting the condition (including age) of housing stock in the vicinity of transport network nodes. Adoption for decision support up-grade for further implementation of Melbourne 2030 may be inspired by this study. However, it requires that the stakeholder representatives (e.g. LGAs, community associations, and state government authorities) can agree to sharing the necessary data maintenance and processing costs. It is argued that there is no longer any reason for the detailed geographies exemplified here to be ignored in urban residential form change monitoring in Melbourne, or any other metropolitan area faced with accommodating population growth while maintaining livability without unmitigated urban sprawl with its continuous call for infrastructure subsidy.

La situación energética actual está dominada por los combustibles fósiles, especialmente por el petróleo. Esta dependencia se está conviertiendo en arriesgada debido a las decrecientes reservas, a la incertidumbre de los recursos de petróleo y a las consecuencias económicas y políticas de una concentración de reservas en países de Oriente Medio. El sector transportes tiene una particular dependencia del petróleo como combustible y es una fuente de contaminación debido a su combustión. De cara a reducir esta dependencia se están introduciendo energías renovables como fuentes alternativas de energía. Las más comunes son la eólica y la fotovoltaica, aunque existen otros tipos, como las energías mareomotriz, de gradiente térmico, biomasa o undomotriz. El principal inconveniente de estas energías es su carácter no programable, que fomenta el uso de sistemas de almacenamiento de energía. Las energías renovables mencionadas no son aplicables a vehículos, por lo que para el sector transportes es más interesantes el uso de vectores energéticos tales como el hidrógeno. El hidrógeno puede ser un sustituto del petróleo para aplicaciones vehiculares, pero primero se han de resolver ciertos problemas, como son el elevado coste, la seguridad y el establecimiento de una infraestructura de distribución de hidrógeno. Como en el caso de los sistemas estacionarios renovables, las pilas de combustible de aplicación vehicular necesitan sistemas de almacenamiento de energía que sean capaces de suministrar picos de potencia durante la aceleración o subiendo una pendiente. Esta situación energética ha provocado un incremento del desarrollo e investigación de sistemas electroquímicos, tales como las pilas de combustible, las baterías y los supercondensadores. Sobre todo, se está realizando un esfuerzo en el diseño, modelado, control y fabricación de estos sistemas, que permita su implantación tanto en aplicaciones estacionarias como vehiculares o portátiles. Esta Tesis presenta el modelado dinámico no lineal de sistemas electroquímicos tales como las pilas de combustible, las baterías y los supercondesadores a través de ensayos en el dominio de la frecuencia, además de su validación con resultados experimentales. Se propone un sistemas por unidad para aquellos sistemas electroquímicos activos (pila de combustible y batería). Estos sistemas son una herramienta útil para el diseño y comparación, debido a la gran variedad de tensiones y capacidades que pueden encontrarse, por ejemplo, en las baterías. Además, se ha propuesto un método de ensayo de espectroscopía de la impedancia para supercondensadores durante elevadas corrientes. Los resultados obtenidos y la comparación con resultados experimentales son muy positivos. Por último, se ha realizado una simulación hardware-in-the-loop de sistemas híbridos de energía. La simulación realizada presenta un coste y complejidad menor que otros tipos de simulaciones. Esto es debido a que los elementos más caros, como es la pila de combustible, son sustituidos por una fuente de potencia programable capaz de reproducir la dinámica de tensión y corriente de la pila de combustible. Además, se propone un simulador de vehículo, capaz de reproducir, tanto la potencia demandada por el vehículo como el frenado regenerativo. La pila de combustible simulada y una batería real alimentan en paralelo al vehículo simulado, permitiendo llevar a cabo una simulación por unidad del conjunto y la prueba de diferentes estrategias de control para un determinado ciclo de conducción. ___________________________________________________ ; The current energy situation is dominated by fossil fuel, especially oil. This dependency is turning critical due to the reducing reserves, uncertain oil resources, and political and economical ramifications of a concentration of fossil fuel reserves on the Middle East countries. The transportation sector is especially dependant on oil, and the combustion of oil produces environmentally harmful emissions. Renewable energies are being introduced to reduce this fossil fuel dependency and emissions. The most extended are wind and solar photovoltaic, but other types such as tidal, thermal gradient, biomass or wave energy are also under research. The principal disadvantage of these renewable energies is its non-dispatchable nature, which forces the use of energy storage systems. The renewable energies mentioned are not viable for the transportation sector, which considers more interesting other energetic vectors such as hydrogen. Hydrogen could substitute oil, but must first overcome cost, safety and hydrogen filling stations infrastructure problems. Just as in the case of stationary systems, fuel cells need energy storage systems, in this case to supply high power peaks during acceleration. This energetic situation has caused an increase of the research and development of electrochemical systems, such as fuel cells, batteries and ultracapacitors. Intense research is being carried out in modeling, control and manufacture in order to apply them to both vehicular and stationary applications. This Thesis presents the nonlinear dynamic modeling of electrochemical systems, such as fuel cell, batteries and ultracapacitors, through frequency domain tests and its validation with experimental tests. A per-unit system has been proposed for the active electrochemical systems: fuel cell and battery. This per-unit approach has revealed as a useful tool for comparison and design, due to the great disparity of voltages and capacities, e.g. in batteries, which can be found. Moreover, an experimental setup has been proposed in order to allow the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy tests of ultracapacitors during high current loads. Tests were carried out satisfactorily and a precise model was obtained. Finally, a hardware-in-the-loop simulation for hybrid energy sources is presented. The simulation carried out has a lower cost and complexity compared to the real system. This is due to the fact that the higher cost system, the fuel cell and hydrogen installation, was substituted by a controlled dc power source able to reproduce its current and voltage evolution. Moreover, a vehicle simulator, able to reproduce the vehicle power demand and regenerative breaking is proposed. The simulated fuel cell and a real battery are connected to the simulated vehicle, allowing to carry out a per-unit simulation of di®erent control strategies for a particular driving cycle.