Suchergebnisse

The purpose of this thesis is to map and assess the organisational and ideological development of the European Liberal Democrat and Reform party, the ELDR. More specifically, it seeks to analyse the degree of integration between the members of the ELDR over time, to identify factors that may or may not generate integration, to relate the development of the ELDR to earlier research about European parties, and finally to contribute to the ongoing debate about whether or not the traditional national party families are about to establish parties at the European level. The thesis is based on the assumption that parties adapt to their environment, in this case, the system of multi-level governance that characterises the European Union. As the European parties are composed of national parties, they are also dependent on the member parties' opportunities and motives for cooperation. If there is integration, we can, however, not only expect the European parties to adapt to their environment. As they become independent actors, they may also influence their environment. In other words, we can anticipate interaction between the European and national levels that leads to mutual adaptation, or Europeanisation. To be able to capture the interaction between the two levels, theories from international relations and comparative politics are combined. Based on interviews, participant observation, documentary research and content analysis of European election manifestos, the analyses shows that the members of the ELDR have over time reached a rather advanced level of integration, both organisationally and ideologically. Although it is possible to identify constraining factors to this development, the ELDR has, at least from what is known from literature, reached about the same level of development as the two other European parties, the Christian democratic EPP and the Social democratic PES. The internal integration of the ELDR is the outcome of a successive transfer of power from the member parties to the ELDR. By now, the ELDR can therefore be defined as a rather independent actor and as a type of party at the European level. This type of party is, however, not comparable to national parties. It is instead adapted to the institutional structure of the European Union, with, at least partly, a different organisation and different functions from those of national parties. ; digitalisering@umu

Source separation of urine for recycling has been applied in small-scale and decentralized wastewater systems in Sweden for the past 25 years and for blackwater for pollution control even longer. The Swedish experience with source separating nutrient recycling systems is relatively well documented; however, few reports have specifically studied the potential for expansion of this practice. The aim of this study is to fill this knowledge gap by assessing the status of source-separating technologies in Sweden based on transition theory. This study uses a multi-level perspective to determine how ready the Swedish wastewater sector is for transitioning to alternative systems. Given the stability of the existing sewage wastewater regime, it seems unlikely that changes within the regime will lead to a quick and large-scale transition to source separation. Instead, the initiative must come from the niche itself, exploiting institutional cracks in the regime and opportunities from shifting trends in the landscape. If source separation is to be mainstreamed in Sweden, it will need to break into markets within the wastewater jurisdictions. In order to do so, further knowledge needs to be developed that will overcome glitches with immature technologies, uncertain legal conditions/status, investigate potential risks, and clearly define complementary system advantages. This may require the use of new perspectives that focus on holistic sustainable use of resources, including other nutrients than phosphorous, and taking into account global issues such as planetary boundaries and effects from climate change, such as water scarcity. This knowledge can then be used to establish guidelines, norms, and standards, as well as clarify the legislative structures that can support such a transition. There is also a strong need to improve knowledge dissemination regarding best-practices for implementing source-separation technologies and supporting organizational structures. Similarly, support for entrepreneurial activities within the niche needs to increase, not least through strengthening social networks and communication platforms.