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AbstractThere is an ongoing academic debate about the question whether sub‐state nationalist parties should be considered as niche parties, focusing almost exclusively on their core issue of centre‐periphery relations, or whether their electoral appeal can be considered as multidimensional. In that case, these other dimensions can vary with regard to the specific ideological position, historical circumstances and strategic considerations. In this article, we address this theoretical question by relying on the case study of the sub‐state nationalist parties in the Flemish region of Belgium, where they jointly obtained 44% of the vote in the most recent elections. Comparing election surveys from 2009, 2014 and 2019 suggests that the electoral appeal of these parties rests on a mixture of nationalist issues, right‐wing economic policies and a restrictive attitude towards immigration. These results suggest that sub‐state nationalist parties are not purely niche parties, but should be seen as multiple issue parties, and this broader electoral appeal can explain the discrepancy between electoral results and public opinion on the core issues of these parties.

The article deals with a unique work of Rossica, the first in Western Europe detailed description of the northern Russian regions of Novgorod and Pskov, written by an eyewitness. Memoirs of the Flemish knight, which contain this description, have been known for a long time and have been repeatedly researched. But in the context of the regional imagology of Russia they are considered for the first time. The relevance of the problem is also related to the importance of the study of francophone Rossica, which has not yet been sufficiently studied, for imagology and the history of intercultural interaction.
The memoirs are valuable because they represent the only work describing these regions even before they were part of the Muscovite principality, and thus the "non-Muscovite" identity of their population is clearly visible. Despite considerable cultural and socio-political similarities between the regions, the observer knight notes well the specificity of each of them separately.
The question is raised that the "muscovite identity" was secondary and by no means the only one in the descriptions of the "Russian character" and Russian state in European Rossica, and that the earliest sources describe just a different alternative identity, apparently especially relevant for the northern regions and closer to the European than to the "Muscovite" identity. It is also concluded that it is necessary to attract more attention to the historical experience of these regions in the teaching of history and in the formation of the historical memory of contemporary Russians.

Catalogues of failure factors and descriptive accounts of failures are relatively easy to find in the information systems (IS) literature as are studies of IS success or technology adoption. In contrast, in-depth studies of failure are rare. What is more, most of the research into IS failure and success uses a positivist approach - two widely cited examples of the latter being the Delone and McLean IS success model and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology. Given this, an interesting question is whether an interpretivist approach can uncover aspects and causes of failure that might not be visible when viewed through a positivist lens. This paper seeks to answer this question by examining a failed e-government system in Flanders (Belgium) using Sauer's Information Systems failure process model. The analysis suggests that this model, and more generally an interpretivist approach, can provide a richer and more insightful understanding of the causes and the process of failure.

ABSTRACT. The ecological diversity of benthic invertebrates from bottom trawl surveys was mapped for the Flemish Cap, a plateau of ~200 km radius in the northwest Atlantic. Species density (SpD), the exponential Shannon diversity index (eH′) and Heip's index of evenness (E~') were measured at different spatial scales. Continuous surfaces of each were created to 2000 m depth using predictive distribution models based on random forest (RF) algorithms. When fishing effort was included as an independent variable in the RF models, it was the most important predictor of sample SpD but unimportant in predicting eH′ and only a minor predictor of E~'. In the absence of a historical baseline, we used a novel approach to evaluate spatial impacts of fishing on diversity by simulating and comparing spatial SpD prediction surfaces using response data associated with different levels of fishing effort. Although it is not possible to fully evaluate the precise nature of the impact of fishing on the ecological diversity, our models have identified Sackville Spur, Flemish Pass and south of Flemish Cap as the areas of greatest impact. Combining minimum bottom salinity, annual primary production range, fishing effort and biomass of sponges and small gorgonian corals, resulted in the best performing generalized additive model, explaining 73% of the total variance in SpD. Although current closures to protect vulnerable marine ecosystems from the adverse impacts of bottom fishing activities protect an important part of the ecological diversity associated with the deeper communities, unique and representative habitats on top of the Cap remain unprotected. HIGHLIGHTS • The structure-forming sponges and small gorgonian corals enhance biodiversity. • Chronic impact from fishing activities have negatively impacted benthic diversity. • Over 60% of the estimated number of benthic species of the Flemish Cap is under protection. • Biodiversity from shallow waters remains unprotected. ; ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. This research was funded by Fisheries ...

ABSTRACTThe authors attempted to find out to what extent and in which ways, in Belgium, have Flemish services for people with intellectual disability adapted to the specific needs of aging people. A study was undertaken and a questionnaire was developed to address the following research topics: (1) accommodations and personnel, (2) staff working methods, and (3) staff views and attitudes. The questionnaire was completed by 66 coordinating staff members in as many facilities. At the time of our study, these services supported 310 (27%) persons with Down syndrome age 40 years and older and 833 (73%) persons with intellectual disability (other than Down syndrome) age 55 years and older. Adaptations in accommodation and personnel management were obvious in the majority of the participating services. The working methods reflected a person‐centered philosophy, regardless of the age‐factor. An exploratory factor analysis revealed three different staff approaches: an activating/socializing, disengaging, and methodical. Participation in activities and involvement in social relations have a prominent place in the staff's views. In general, the authors found that about two‐thirds of the services have started to modify their accommodation and personnel to the needs of aging people with intellectual disability. The authors note also that the results suggest there is still a lot of work to do in improving staff training, introducing specific working methods, and in altering stereotypical staff attitudes to assure a good "aging in place."

The aim of this article is to study the way in which PSB - as a typical modernist project of a certain cultural elite - has tried to create and maintain a national identity using a uniform, high culture as a vehicle to `educate' its audience into being `citizens' of the community. In particular, the analysis will concentrate on the policy in this regard of Flemish public service television. Our hypothesis is that the (cultural elite within) Flemish PSB - and particularly television - tried for a long time to contribute to the recognition and development of Flemish identity and culture by offering a uniform Felmish culture. An analysis of Flemish public television between 1953 and 1960 is used to illustrate this.

This paper focuses on Flemish lyrical dramas of the nineteenth century with historical protagonists, both political figures and artists. It investigates how these lyrical dramas contributed to the discursive construction of a national, Belgian and a subnational, Flemish identity through the use (or manipulation) of the past, and how historical heroes were fit into nationalising strategies. Special attention is paid to the use of stereotypes and clich in characterising the historical protagonists, and to specific features of the lyrical dramas concerning style and content.

It is particularly interesting to investigate nationalising strategies and the functioning of historical heroes in those strategies in the genre of the lyrical drama, because of the broad and various audiences this popular genre reached, and because of its inherent interdisciplinary character. The integration of an oral art discipline (music) in a written (dramatic) text facilitates the transferal of a (nationalist) message and increases its impact. Furthermore, the genre of the lyrical drama has been notably understudied in scholarly research concerning Flemish music history and literary history of the nineteenth century.

AbstractFlemish nationalism is back on the scene. The Nieuw‐Vlaamse Alliantie (N‐VA), the political voice of democratic Flemish nationalism, emerged as the big winner of Belgium's 7 June 2009 regional elections. To a significant extent, the N‐VA owes its success to the charismatic leadership of its chairman, Bart De Wever. This article investigates the nature of De Wever's charismatic authority, as well as its tenability. As the N‐VA becomes a more prominent participant in the Flemish government, will the effect of De Wever's charisma wane? If the success of the N‐VA is not structural but tied to the charisma of its chairman, will the party lose its prominence if De Wever fades?

After the rejection of the European Constitution in 2005, questions were raised about if and how European citizens feel connected to the European Union (EU). This article examines the image young, Flemish people have of the EU and whether they feel some sense of belonging in the EU. The research draws upon a qualitative study in which Flemish young people were asked how they felt towards the EU and how they perceived it. Using a social-constructionist perspective, the first part of the article concentrates on the concept of European identity and the theoretical divide between a civic and a cultural European political identity, as proposed by Bruter (2004). The second part of the article focuses on the results of a series of focus groups with young people (aged 17 to 19), held in spring 2007. The article argues that no strong European identity is yet present in the hearts and minds of these young people, although contexts and interactions might evoke a limited notion of European identity. This article offers an empirical account of a theoretical debate and presents a critical understanding of the dynamics at play in European identity construction.