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The duty of states to consult indigenous communities is a well-established legal principle, but its implications for practice remain uncertain. Sweden is finding itself at a particularly critical juncture as it prepares to legislate a duty to consult the Sami people in line with its international obligations. This paper explores the ability of Swedish state actors to implement the duty to consult, based on lessons from an already existing duty set out in Swedish minority law, namely to ensure the effective participation of minorities in land and resource decisions. Presenting novel empirical material on the views of Sami communities and state officials in ministries and agencies, we demonstrate the existence of considerable implementation gaps linked to practice, sectoral legislation, and political discourse. We argue that if state duties are to promote the intended intercultural reconciliation, then new measures are needed to ensure enforcement, e.g. via mechanisms of appeal and rules of nullification. In addition, sectoral resource regulations should be amended to refer to the duties set out in minority law and/or a potential new bill on consultation duty in a consistent manner. In the near-term, the state should ensure that Sami communities are adequately resourced to engage in consultation and should invest in state authorities' own ability to implement, i.e. through competence development, staffing, intersectoral coordination, and independent evaluation. Much could also be gained if state agencies and Sami communities worked together to develop detailed consultation routines for relevant resource sectors.

The article focuses on the theoretical and practical analysis of various levels of governance in higher education - at the systemic level, at the institutional level and at the level of public policy making in higher education system and universities. Both Poland and Ukraine are facing the common challenges of the urgent need to diminish bureaucracy at universities and to deregulate the system of higher education, which requires the necessary changes to the legal framework at the institutional and systemic levels. The article considers which tools in the process of transformation of higher education, both at the macro (governance in HES and public policy) and micro (governance and management in HEI) levels can be used in order to find effective solutions in the areas of management, governance and public policy in the higher education system.

Publikacja powstała w ramach projektu PO KL "PWP: PRZYSZŁOŚĆ EDUKACJI ZAWODOWEJ - lokalne partnerstwo na rzecz zwiększenia adaptacyjności nauczycieli zawodowych", realizowanego na zlecenie Wojewódzkiego Urzędu Pracy w Białymstoku. Publikacja prezentuje modernizację szkolnictwa zawodowego w modelach angażujących kapitał edukacyjny otoczenia szkoły oraz aspiracje rozwojowe kadry dydaktycznej, które należy traktować jako wyzwanie o charakterze strategicznym dla regionu i które powinno być podjęte równolegle i wspólnie przez organizacje pracodawców będących głównymi beneficjentami systemu kształcenia zawodowego.

New uncertainties in international relations have presented several states in the West with important choices regarding their national strategies for the Arctic. This article analyzes security challenges in the Arctic and North Atlantic region, as understood by some key North-Atlantic states, namely: the USA, Canada, Denmark, Norway, the UK, Germany and France. By analyzing how, or to what degree, the colder east-west security landscape since 2014 is reflected in these selected North Atlantic states' Arctic security strategies, this article seeks to improve our understanding of how the security situation in the northernmost part of the world is developing and being understood. Through applying a traditional understanding of security, the article identifies similarities but also significant differences among the Arctic and North-Atlantic states. Most notable when comparing the strategies is the rather unique global perspective laid out in the US security strategy for the region. The British, Norwegian, Danish and Canadian perspectives, on the other hand, stand out as more regional in nature. Germany displays a rather low profile in its approach to international security in the Arctic, considering its economic status in Europe. France reveals a strong concern for Arctic shipping and freedom of navigation, a perspective similar to the USA's, but with less global ambition.

The subject of the debate was the main elements of the reform in the way higher education functions, implemented from October 2019. The background of the reform was discussed, including the historical and mental conditions of the academic community, and then the reform programming phase (e.g. consultation procedures), the phase of implementing changes (including the issue of adjusting the publication of regulations) and the sphere of new or additional incentives were discussed. which introduced new regulations into academic life (e.g. new rules for obtaining points by scholars for publications, new evaluation rules to which universities are subject, rules for creating statutes).

The main objective of the article is to show that the temporary symbiosis between centres of political power and organized crime leads to the development of permanent, corrupt and opaque networks. Focusing on the countries of the Western Balkans, the author points to the reasons for the development of organized crime in the region and then to the conditions created in the post-conflict period that resulted in the failure of effective attempts to stop organized crime and the corruption that facilitates it in the these countries. The article also points out that the creation of symbiotic relationships between political elites and organized crime groups leads to a 'state capture.' The unresolved problems of corruption and organized crime, in turn, have a direct impact on these countries' EU-integration processes.

Education for safety is an exceptionally topical issue in the modern world. It is an indispensable tool for achieving the goals of sustainable development. Who, when and where to educate; what tools to use; and according to what idea – these are essential questions related to raising human awareness. The aim of the article is to analyze and assess the awareness of society in terms of knowledge and skills in the field of safe behavior and attitude, the perception of safety in the context of sustainable development. The results of the research presented in the articleclearly indicate a high level of public involvement in acquiring knowledge and skills on safe behaviours and attitudes. The conclusions obtained allow to develop a strategy that will permit to develop an education system for safety (that will consider formal and informal education) as well as self-education. These conclusions constitute the basis for building cooperation between central government and local government units, educational units, and non-governmental organisations.