Suchergebnisse

Sub-Saharan Africa is a very diverse region with extensive natural wealth, great human potential, and a rich history. However, the majority of its countries are among the poorest in the world and about half of its 800 million inhabitants live in extreme poverty. Sub-Saharan Africa produces only 1.5% of the world's GDP and its share in world trade has fallen from 6% in 1980 to 2% today. The region's exports remain dominated by primary goods (fuels, ores, and agricultural products). The roots of the region's economic weakness lie variously in the past colonial relationships with European countries and in unjust global trade patterns as well as in misuse of power by ruling political elites in the post-independence era. Numerous civil wars and other conflicts have fragmented the sub-Saharan countries into many factions and parties fighting for domination. The region is lagging behind developed countries because of corruption, lack of infrastructure, weakness of its institutions, heavy indebtedness, lack of education and health services, and unfavorable natural conditions, among other factors. Subsistence agriculture is the source of livelihood for most Africans. Nevertheless, average yields per hectare are low and heavily dependent on climatic conditions. Compared to urban areas (except for slums), people living in rural areas have worse infrastructure and are further from achieving the UN's Millennium Development Goals. The recent increase in food prices is threatening the limited progress in reducing hunger and malnutrition (28% of children under age five are underweight and particularly vulnerable to infectious diseases). Little progress has been made in reducing child and maternal mortality; mortality rates remain the highest in the world. In the previous decade, life expectancy in sub-Saharan countries has fallen due to the spread of HIV/AIDS and it still remains below fifty. In addition, many negative socioeconomic effects are the result of malaria, which kills approximately one million people every year, 91% of whom live in sub-Saharan Africa. In order to promote gender equality and empower women, education is of vital importance. Compared to other (especially developed) regions, school enrollment rates are considerably lower and dropout rates considerably higher, particularly for girls. The majority of countries in subSaharan Africa will not be able to achieve their educational goals by 2015. Despite the fact that the region is not exceeding the carrying capacities of its environment (as measured by its ecological footprint), environmental problems in some areas are severe. Deforestation, desertification, coral bleaching, negative effects of climate changes (sea level rise, reduced freshwater availability, extreme weather events, etc.), loss of biodiversity, and soil degradation are the most worrying. Population growth is exacerbating these environmental problems and is making it more difficult to achieve a higher standard of living for all. Owing to the complexity of developmental problems, sub-Saharan Africa will have to use its own resources very wisely and make the most of development aid from developed countries.

Razvoj družbe je nujen in za dosego razvoja je treba največ pozornosti nameniti ravno razvoju ljudi. Če konceptu razvoja ljudi dodamo mednarodno perspektivo, dobimo celosten pogled na trenutno stanje v družbi. Ravno mednarodna perspektiva razvoja ljudi in celotna obravnava tematike sta botrovali k izvedbi analize razvoja ljudi v izbranih državah. Z metodo analize so bili pridobljeni vsi potrebni podatki, ki so celotno analizo zaokrožili. Prek analize pridobljenih podatkov so bile države razvrščene v tri skupine. Pri tem so vse razvite in tranzicijske države zajete v vzorec, v primeru razvijajočih se pa so bile države izbrane tako, da so zajeti predstavniki vseh delov Afrike, Azije ter Latinske in Karibske Amerike. Rezultati analize so precej nedvoumni. Izkazalo se je, da samo indeks razvoja ljudi in politična stabilnost države ne zagotavljata močne medsebojne povezave. Pomembno vlogo igrajo tudi pretresi iz začetka 90. let 20. stol. in t. i. svetovni policisti razvitih držav, kar vnaša določeno mero neravnovesja. Na drugi strani pa je bilo pričakovati padec moči povezanosti med razvojem ljudi in izobraževalnim indeksom od razvitih k razvijajočim se. Izkaže se, da je moč povezave največja v tranzicijskih državah, sledijo razvite in na koncu razvijajoče se države. Ugotovitve analize imajo širše učinke za družbeno okolje. Razvoj omogoča oblikovanje razvite družbe in uveljavitev človeku dostojnega življenja. Na osnovi tega bo v prihodnosti mogoče prilagoditi programe razvoja ljudi predvsem v tranzicijskih državah in ostalih delih sveta, ki so precej nestabilni in brez zunanje pomoči. Dejstvo pa je, da so nekatere razvijajoče se države lahko zgled kakovosti primarnih razvojnih programov. ; Development of the country is necessary and for achieving it the biggest focus must be on human development. If we add international perspective to human development, we get a fairly comprehensive view of the current situation in society. It was precisely the addition of an international perspective to the human development and the overall treatment of the topic that contributed to the design of the analysis of human resource development in selected countries. Using the analysis method all necessary data were obtained, which rounded the analysis into a whole. By analysing the data obtained, the countries were classified into three groups. In this, all developed and transition countries are included into the sample, and in the case of developing countries, the countries have been selected to include representatives of all parts of Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. The results of the analysis are quite unequivocal. It turned out that only human development index and the political stability of the country do not guarantee a strong interconnection. Shouts from the early 90s of the 20th century and the role of so-called world-wide police officers of developed countries also play an important role, which introduces a certain amount of imbalance. On the other hand, the drop in the strength of the relation between the human development index and educational index from the developed to the developing was expected. It turns out that the power of connections is greatest in transition countries, followed by the developed and ultimately developing countries. The findings of the analysis have broader effects on the social environment. Development enables the creation of developed society the promotion of a decent man's life. On this basis, in the future, human development programs can be adjusted in the transitional countries and other parts of the world, which are rather unstable and without external assistance. It is true that some developing countries can serve as an example of the quality of primary development programs.

Evropska unija se je na pragu leta 2011 začela srečevati s prvimi begunci, ki so pribežali z bojnih območjih Sirije in drugih držav Bližnjega vzhoda ter islamskih držav Severne Afrike in skušali ujeti svojo svobodo, osebno varnost in prihodnost prav v državah članicah Evropske unije. Politična kriza in vojna na Bližnjem vzhodu nista pojenjali, še več, vsak dan je na tisoče ljudi po sredozemskih in balkanski poti skušalo prebežati v Evropo. Evropska unija je leta 2015 z vrhuncem migracijskih tokov v Evropo doživljala najhujšo begunsko krizo po drugi svetovni vojni. Znašla se je pred hudim migracijskim vprašanjem, na katerega pa je sama našla odgovor v pomoči in sodelovanju Turčije – države, ki je pred 69 leti zaprosila za članstvo v Evropski uniji, vendar do danes še ni postala njena polnopravna članica. Turčija danes gosti največji delež sirskih beguncev na svetu – 3,6 milijona. Z Evropsko unijo sta po mnogih letih njunega intenzivnega političnega delovanja in diplomacije odprli novo poglavje sodelovanja, lahko bi ga poimenovala kar migracijsko sodelovanje, skovali sta skupno migracijsko politiko, le ta pa je bila ovekovečena 18. marca 2016 s podpisom izjave EU-Turčija, katere namen je bil ustaviti tok nedovoljenih migracij preko balkanske poti iz Turčije v Evropsko unijo in ga nadomestiti z organiziranimi, varnimi in zakonitimi potmi v Evropo. Seveda ni ostalo zgolj in samo pri turški uslugi Evropski uniji, le-ta je bila za to pripravljena dobro plačati, skupno je Turčiji namenila tri milijarde evrov in ji obljubila še druge ugodnosti, med drugim vizumsko liberalizacijo. V Evropski uniji se danes nahaja več kot 1,8 milijona beguncev. Mnoge Evropejce skrbi za osebno varnost, Evropsko unijo pa za nacionalno in mednarodno, med najbolj rizične varnostne implikacije, ki so jih s seboj prinesli begunci, se najpogosteje uvrščata terorizem in organiziran kriminal - tihotapljenje migrantov. ; At the beginning of 2011, the European Union faced the first refugees fleeing from the war-torn areas of Syria, other Middle East countries and Islamic countries of North Africa, trying to secure their freedom, personal safety and future in the member states of the European Union. The political crisis and war in the Middle East did not subside, on the contrary, every day thousands of people took the Mediterranean and Balkan routes to reach Europe. In 2015, when migration flows into Europe peaked, the European Union experienced the worst refugee crisis after the Second World War. The EU had to face a grave migration issue and eventually settled it with the help and in cooperation with Turkey – country that 69 years ago applied for the membership in the European Union but has not become its full member to this day. Turkey today hosts the largest share of Syrian refugees in the world – 3,6 million, and after many years of intensive political activity and diplomacy, it started a new chapter of cooperation with the European Union, we could call it migration cooperation. Together, they forged a common migration policy by signing the EU-Turkey Statement on 18th March 2016. Its aim was to put a halt to the irregular migration flows on the Balkan route from Turkey to the European Union and to replace it with organised, safe and legal ways to enter Europe. Of course, Turkey was not merely doing a favour to the European Union and the EU was ready to pay well in exchange, sending 3 billion euros to Turkey and promising other benefits, including visa liberalisation. Today, there are more than 1,8 million refugees in the European Union. Many Europeans worry about their personal safety and the European Union is concerned about the national and international security. As the riskiest security implications brought by refugees are most often mentioned terrorism and organised crime – smuggling of migrants.

Ekonomski interesi treh ključnih velikih sil, Združenih držav Amerike, Rusije in Kitajske, ki se uveljavljajo oziroma uresničujejo skozi njihove konkretne politike in dejanja, imajo pomemben, če že ne velik vpliv na varnost in politične razmere drugih držav. Ker so ekonomski interesi ključni za katerokoli državo, so medsebojna dinamika, prepletanje in vplivanje teh interesov izrednega pomena za razumevanje trenutnih razmer v mednarodnih odnosih. Analiza primarnih in sekundarnih virov, predvsem pa poglobljeni intervjuji s strokovnjaki nakazujejo, da se politične in varnostne posledice ekonomskih interesov velikih sil največkrat manifestirajo na regionalni ravni. Izjema pri tem so ZDA, ki za doseganje svojih ekonomskih interesov politično in varnostno spreminjajo razmere na globalni ravni. Pri tem so najbolj osredotočene na širitev neoliberalnih ekonomskih praks in zagotovitev energetske varnosti, ki velikokrat poteka s pomočjo znatne uporabe vojaške moči. Rusija, po drugi strani, je trenutno še osredotočena na svojo vlogo energetskega velikana, pri čimer najbolj konkretno vpliva na države iz bližnje soseščine, tudi preko političnih pritiskov in industrijskih sabotaž. Analiza trendov sicer kaže, da bo cilj ekonomske diverzifikacije postajal še pomembnejši v prihodnosti. V osnovi ta zaključek pomeni, da bo Rusija skušala zmanjšati svojo odvisnost od izvoza energentov in na tak način zagotoviti večjo ekonomsko, kot tudi politično in varnostno stabilnost države. Ključna karakteristika ekonomske politike Kitajske je usmeritev v zagotavljanje energetskih virov za rastoče gospodarstvo. V ta namen se poslužuje multisektorske politike, ki je najbolj jasno vidna v Afriki. Ta poseben, quid pro quo pristop se kaže v velikih infrastrukturnih investicijah na strani Kitajske, v zameno za zagotovitve izvoza energentov iz določenih afriških držav. Analiza vse treh držav jasno kaže, da ekonomski interesi vidno vplivajo na odnose med državami v mednarodni skupnosti in usodno določajo dinamiko in ravnovesje sil. ; Economic interests of great powers, specifically United States of America, Russia and China, and the process of attaining these interests through the set of concrete policies and actions has considerable, if not predominantly important effects on political and security situation of other countries. Since economic interests are of pivotal importance for any state, the recognition and understanding of intertwined dynamics and cross-section of these interests is essential for establishing an accurate perception of the current situation in contemporary international relations. Analysis of primary and secondary resources, and especially the in- depth interviews with experts revealed that the majority of political and security implications of the process of attaining economic interests have been manifesting on the regional level. An exception to this rule is the United States, which is affecting political and security characteristics around the globe. In doing so, it is mostly concentrated on continuous expansion of neoliberalism, as well as ensuring energy security, often through utilization of military power. Meanwhile, Russia is currently still focused on its role as an energy giant, and has the ability to strongly influence the countries in its near vicinity through considerate political pressures and industrial sabotage. Many trends within the country and its internal policies seem to suggest that this is likely to change in the near future, and the goal of economic diverzification will become even more important. Essentially, this means that Russia will attempt to reduce its dependence on energy exports, and thus ensure far greater economic, but also political and security stability of the country. Finally, we analyzed China. The key characteristic of its economic policy is focus on ensuring energy resources for its growing economy. In order to succeed, China has been utilizing a multisectoral approach, most clearly visible in Africa. These quid pro quo deals were realized through large infrastrucral investment on the Chinese side, and accompanying insurance of energy exports on the side of the African countries. The analysis of all three states draws the conclusion that economic interests are thus visibly affecting the nature of the intra- state relationships in the international community, and faithfully account for the ultimate dynamics and balance of world powers.

Predmet doktorske disertacije je upravljanje zunanjetrgovinske politike države ob upoštevanju delovanja nadnacionalnih entitet, pri čemer je naš osrednji cilj identificirati optimalen način realizacije nacionalnih interesov v okviru nadnacionalne entitete (tj. Evropske unije). Zunanjetrgovinska politika je eno izmed najstarejših ekonomskih področij, o katerem so tekle resne akademske razprave že v Antični Grčiji pred več kot 2000 leti. Vendar o razvoju svetovne trgovine kot sistematičnem globalnem načinu trgovanja govorimo šele od 15. stoletja dalje. Za boljše razumevanje področja v doktorski disertaciji najprej opredelimo teoretska izhodišča, v okviru katerih predstavimo teorije mednarodne menjave ter analiziramo vlogo države in ekonomske diplomacije skozi različna zgodovinska obdobja (merkantilizem, liberalizem, protekcionizem, intervencionizem ter obdobje liberalizacije in globalizacije). Kot najpomembnejše teoretično izhodišče od Davida Ricarda dalje identificiramo ugotovitev, da svet ni ničelna vsota – vse države z zunanjo trgovino pridobivajo. Kljub temu da so države skozi različna zgodovinska obdobja (glede na gospodarske razmere) vodile različne zunanjetrgovinske politike (protekcionistične ali liberalne), teorija in praksa potrjujeta, da liberalna zunanjetrgovinska politika povečuje konkurenčnost gospodarstva. Študije ekonomistov (Sachs in Warner 1995, 35 ; Frey v Pruslecki 2008, 5 ; Krueger 1980, 289) namreč kažejo, da države z liberalno zunanjetrgovinsko politiko dosegajo višjo gospodarsko rast od tistih s protekcionistično. Kot potrditev teze navajamo izsledke analiz, ki kažejo na višje stopnje gospodarske rasti v t. i. hitro rastočih gospodarstvih (državah BRIICS ‒ Braziliji, Rusiji, Indiji, Indoneziji, Kitajski in Južni Afriki). Slednje so na podlagi liberalizacije trgov v zadnjih dvajsetih letih dosegale višje stopnje gospodarske rasti od razvitih gospodarstev. Glede na to da je predmet disertacije zunanjetrgovinska politika v okviru Evropske unije (EU), ki jo Slovenija sooblikuje, se v okviru analize ukrepov osredotočimo na ukrepe zunanjetrgovinske politike EU, vlogo nacionalnih in nadnacionalnih (vladnih in nevladnih) akterjev ter povezavo vsebin z drugimi politikami. Ključni akterji v procesu formalnega delovanja na področju zunanjetrgovinske politike EU so: Evropska komisija (Direktorat za trgovino), Svet EU (Odbor za zunanjetrgovinsko politiko, Coreper in Svet za zunanje zadeve), Evropski parlament ter nevladni akterji (združenja, nevladne organizacije) kot nadnacionalni akterji in (vladni in nevladni) akterji na nacionalni ravni držav članic EU. Prioriteta zunanjetrgovinske politike EU je multilateralna zunanja trgovina, vzporedno pa potekajo pogajanja s številnimi državami oz. regijami za sklenitev preferencialnih trgovinskih sporazumov. Med ukrepi zunanjetrgovinske politike EU je pomembna še Strategija dostopa na trg, v okviru katere se dosegajo sinergije na podlagi okrepljenega partnerstva med Evropsko komisijo, državami članicami in gospodarstvom. Ugotavljamo, da postaja v obdobju globalizacije zunanjetrgovinska politika izrazito večplastna ter da izginjajo meje med zunanjimi in notranjimi politikami. Na primeru pogajanj t. i. Razvojne agende iz Dohe, ki potekajo v okviru Svetovne trgovinske organizacije, potrdimo tezo o prepletanju pogajanj na različnih ravneh (bilateralni, regionalni in multilateralni) in vsebinski povezanosti zunanjetrgovinske politike z drugimi politikami (z razvojno, s kmetijsko ipd.). Slednje potrjujejo tudi strateški dokumenti EU (Strategija Evropa 2020 ; Trgovina, rast in svetovne zadeve ter Globalna Evropa: konkurenčna v svetu), v katere je zunanjetrgovinska politika vključena kot pomemben sestavni del politike konkurenčnosti. ; The doctoral thesis focuses on a country's external trade policy management in relation to the processes witin subnational entities. Our main goal is to identify an optimal approach to realizing national interests in the context of a subnational entity (i.e., the European Union). External trade policy is one of the oldest economic policies. The first discussions on trade issues started among philosophers in Greece 2000 years ago, but global trade as a systematic process emerged in the 15th century. At the beginning of the doctoral thesis, the focus is on the theoretical background ‒ theories of external economic co-operation. We analyse the role of the state and economic diplomacy in different historical periods (mercantilism, liberalism, protectionism, interventionism, liberalisation and globalisation). The most important theoretical finding is (discovered by David Ricardo and confirmed in subsequent theories) that all states, engaged in external trade, gain (we talk about the so called positive sum). Although countries led different external trade policies during various historical periods (liberal or protectionist), theory and experience show that the liberal external trade policy increases competitiveness of an economy. Studies of several economists (Sachs and Warner 1995, 35 ; Frey 1984 ; Pruslecki 2008, 5 ; Krueger 1980, 289) also confirm, that countries with a liberal external trade policy record higher growth rates than those in favour of protectionism. Emerging economies (the so called BRIICS countries ‒ Brasil, Russia, India, Indonesia, China, and South Africa) record higher growth rates in the last twenty years – after liberalising their markets. We analyse the European Union (EU) external trade policy measures, the role of national and subnational (state and non-state) actors, and the interconnectedness of the external trade policy and other national policies. The key actors in the formal process of creating EU external trade policy are: European Commission (Directorate General for Trade), Council of the EU (Trade Policy Committee – formerly 133 Committee ; Coreper, Foreign Affairs Council), European Parliament, non-state actors (associations, non-governmental organisations (NGOs)) as well as actors in the member states (state and non state actors: ministries, diplomatic network, business associations, chambers of commerce, NGOs, etc.). The priority of the EU external trade policy is multilateral trade – successful conclusion of the WTO Doha Development Agenda. In parallel, EU is negotiating preferential trade agreements with several countries and regions. One of the most important trade policy measures is also Market Access Partnership, where active involvement of member states and the business sector is expected. Globalisation has changed the patterns of global economic co-operation and global trade. External trade has become more complex (linked to the competition, energy, environment and sustainable development policies) and the number of actors (state and non-state) involved in the policy has increased significantly. The boundaries between external and internal policies disappear as well. We show the interactions between different actors, negotiating levels, and policies on the World Trade Organisation Doha Development Agenda case, where the positions of the negotiations have to be agreed on at different levels: national, bilateral, regional, and multilateral. External trade policy is an important part of the EU strategic documents (Global Europe: competing in the world, EU 2020), and therefore an important element of the competitiveness policy. The thesis also confirms that the role of economic diplomacy in trade issues has gained importance during the last twenty years. Saner and Yiu (2003) argue that the main function of the post-modern economic diplomacy is representation in the international organisations and influence on other countries' policies.

Temporary or permanent, local or international, voluntary or forced, legal or illegal, registered or unregistered migrations of individuals, whole communities or individual groups are an important factor in constructing and modifying (modern) societies. The extent of international migrations is truly immense. At the time of the preparation of this publication more than 200 million people have been involved in migrations in a single year according to the United Nations. Furthermore, three times more wish to migrate, mostly from sub-Saharan Africa towards some of the most economically developed areas of the world according to the estimates by the Gallup Institute (Esipova, 2011). Some authors, although aware that it is not a new phenomenon, talk about the era of migration (Castles, Miller, 2009) or the globalization of migration (Friedman, 2004). The global dimensions of migration are definitely influenced also by the increasingly visible features of modern societies like constantly changing conditions, instability, fluidity, uncertainty etc. (Beck, 2009; Bauman, 2002).The extent, direction, type of migrations and their consequences are affected by many social and natural factors in the areas of emigration and immigration. In addition, researchers from many scientific disciplines who study migrations have raised a wide range of research questions (Boyle, 2009, 96), use a variety of methodological approaches and look for different interpretations in various spatial, temporal and contextual frameworks. The migrations are a complex, multi-layered, variable, contextual process that takes place at several levels. Because of this, research on migrations has become an increasingly interdisciplinary field, since the topics and problems are so complex that they cannot be grasped solely and exclusively from the perspective of a single discipline or theory. Therefore, we are witnessing a profusion of different "faces of migration", which is reflected and at the same time also contributed to by this thematic issue of the journal Ars & Humanitas.While mobility or migration are not new phenomena, as people have moved and migrated throughout the history of mankind, only recently, in the last few decades, has theoretical and research focus on them intensified considerably. In the last two decades a number of research projects, university programs and courses, research institutes, scientific conferences, seminars, magazines, books and other publications, involving research, academia as well as politics and various civil society organizations have emerged. This shows the recent exceptional interest in the issue of migration, both in terms of knowledge of the processes involved, their mapping in the history of mankind, as well as the theoretical development of migration studies and daily management of this politically sensitive issue.Migration affects many entities on many different levels: the individuals, their families and entire communities at the local level in the emigrant societies as well as in the receiving societies. The migration is changing not only the lives of individuals but whole communities and societies, as well as social relations; it is also shifting the cultural patterns and bringing important social transformations (Castles 2010). This of course raises a number of questions, problems and issues ranging from human rights violations to literary achievements. Some of these are addressed by the authors in this thematic issue.The title "Many faces of migration", connecting contributions in this special issue, is borrowed from the already mentioned Gallup Institute's report on global migration (Esipova, 2011). The guiding principle in the selection of the contributions has been their diversity, reflected also in the list of disciplines represented by the authors: sociology, geography, ethnology and cultural anthropology, history, art history, modern Mediterranean studies, gender studies and media studies. Such an approach necessarily leads not only to a diverse, but at least seemingly also incompatible, perhaps even opposing views "on a given topic. However, we did not want to silence the voices of "other" disciplines, but within the reviewing procedures actually invited scientists from the fields represented by the contributors to this volume. The wealth of the selected contributions lies therefore not only in their coherence and complementarity, but also in the diversity of views, stories and interpretations.The paper of Zora Žbontar deals with the attitudes towards foreigners in ancient Greece, where the hospitality to strangers was considered so worthy a virtue that everyone was expected to "demonstrate hospitality and protection to any foreigner who has knocked on their door". The contrast between the hospitality of ancient Greece and the modern emergence of xenophobia and ways of dealing with migration issues in economically developed countries is especially challenging. "In an open gesture of hospitality to strangers the ancient Greeks showed their civilization".Although the aforementioned research by the United Nations and Gallup Institute support some traditional stereotypes of the main global flows of migrants, and the areas about which the potential migrants "dream", Bojan Baskar stresses the coexistence of different migratory desires, migration flows and their interpretations. In his paper he specifically focuses on overcoming and relativising stereotypes as well as theories of immobile and non-enterprising (Alpine) mountain populations and migrations.The different strategies of the crossing borders adopted by migrant women are studied by Mirjana Morokvasic. She marks them as true social innovators, inventing different ways of transnational life resulting in a bottom-up contribution to the integrative processes across Europe. Some of their innovations go as far as to shift diverse real and symbolic boundaries of belonging to a nation, gender, profession.Elaine Burroughs and Zoë O'Reilly highlight the close relations between the otherwise well-established terminology used in statistics and science to label immigrants in Ireland and elsewhere in EU, and the negative representations of certain types of migrants in politics and the public. The discussion focusses particularly on asylum seekers and illegal immigrants who come from outside the EU. The use of language can quickly become a political means of exclusion, therefore the authors propose the development and use of more considerate and balanced migration terminology.Damir Josipovič proposes a change of the focal point for identifying and interpreting the well-studied migrations in the former Yugoslavia. The author suggests changing the dualistic view of these migrations to an integrated, holistic view. Instead of a simplified understanding of these migrations as either international or domestic, voluntary or forced, he proposes a concept of pseudo-voluntary migrations.Maja Korać-Sanderson's contribution highlights an interesting phenomenon in the shift in the traditional patterns of gender roles. The conclusions are derived from the study of the family life of Chinese traders in transitional Serbia. While many studies suggest that child care in recent decades in immigrant societies is generally performed by immigrants, her study reveals that in Serbia, the Chinese merchants entrust the care of their children mostly to local middle class women. The author finds this switch of roles in the "division of labour" in the child care favourable for both parties involved.Francesco Della Puppa focuses on a specific part of the mosaic of contemporary migrations in the Mediterranean: the Bangladeshi immigrant community in the highly industrialized North East of Italy. The results of his in-depth qualitative study reveal the factors that shape this segment of the Bangladeshi diaspora, the experiences of migrants and the effects of migration on their social and biographical trajectories.John A. Schembri and Maria Attard present a snippet of a more typical Mediterranean migration process - immigration to Malta. The authors highlight the reduction in migration between Malta and the United Kingdom, while there is an increase in immigration to Malta from the rest of Europe and sub-Saharan Africa. Amongst the various impacts of immigration to Malta the extraordinary concentration of immigrant populations is emphasized, since the population density of Malta far exceeds that of nearly all other European countries.Miha Kozorog studies the link between migration and constructing their places of their origin. On the basis of Ardener's theory the author expresses "remoteness" of the emigratory Slavia Friulana in terms of topology, in relation to other places, rather than in topography. "Remoteness" is formed in relation to the "outside world", to those who speak of "remote areas" from the privileged centres. The example of an artistic event, which organizers aim "to open a place like this to the outside world", "to encourage the production of more cosmopolitan place", shows only the temporary effect of such event on the reduction of the "remoteness".Jani Kozina presents a study of the basic temporal and spatial characteristics of migration "of people in creative occupations" in Slovenia. The definition of this specific segment of the population and approach to study its migrations are principally based on the work of Richard Florida. The author observes that people with creative occupations in Slovenia are very immobile and in this respect quite similar to other professional groups in Slovenia, but also to the people in creative professions in the Southern and Eastern Europe, which are considered to be among the least mobile in Europe. Detailed analyses show that the people in creative occupations from the more developed regions generally migrate more intensely and are also more willing to relocate.Mojca Pajnik and Veronika Bajt study the experiences of migrant women with the access to the labour market in Slovenia. Existing laws and policies push the migrants into a position where, if they want to get to work, have to accept less demanding work. In doing so, the migrant women are targets of stereotyped reactions and practices of discrimination on the basis of sex, age, attributed ethnic and religious affiliation, or some other circumstances, particularly the fact of being migrants. At the same time the latter results in the absence of any protection from the state.Migration studies often assume that the target countries are "modern" and countries of origin "traditional". Anıl Al- Rebholz argues that such a dichotomous conceptualization of modern and traditional further promotes stereotypical, essentialist and homogenizing images of Muslim women in the "western world". On the basis of biographical narratives of young Kurdish and Moroccan women as well as the relationships between mothers and daughters, the author illustrates a variety of strategies of empowerment of young women in the context of transnational migration.A specific face of migration is highlighted in the text of Svenka Savić, namely the face of artistic migration between Slovenia and Serbia after the Second World War. The author explains how more than thirty artists from Slovenia, with their pioneering work in three ensembles (opera, ballet and theatre), significantly contributed to the development of the performing arts in the Serbian National Theatre in Novi Sad.We believe that in the present thematic issue we have succeeded in capturing an important part of the modern European research dynamic in the field of migration. In addition to well-known scholars in this field several young authors at the beginning their research careers have been shortlisted for the publication. We are glad of their success as it bodes a vibrancy of this research area in the future. At the same time, we were pleased to receive responses to the invitation from representatives of so many disciplines, and that the number of papers received significantly exceeded the maximum volume of the journal. Recognising and understanding of the many faces of migration are important steps towards the comprehensive knowledge needed to successfully meet the challenges of migration issues today and even more so in the future. It is therefore of utmost importance that researchers find ways of transferring their academic knowledge into practice – to all levels of education, the media, the wider public and, of course, the decision makers in local, national and international institutions. The call also applies to all authors in this issue of the journal. ; Začasne ali stalne, lokalne ali mednarodne, prostovoljne ali prisilne, legalne ali ilegalne, registrirane ali neregistrirane migracije posameznic in posameznikov, celih družbenih skupnosti ali posameznih skupin predstavljajo pomemben dejavnik v konstruiranju in spreminjanju (sodobnih) družb. Razsežnosti mednarodnih migracij so resnično ogromne, saj je bilo vanje v času nastajanja te publikacije po ocenah Združenih narodov v enem letu vključenih več kot 200 milijonov ljudi. Po ocenah Gallupovega inštituta pa se jih še trikrat toliko želi preseliti, največ iz podsaharske Afrike ter proti nekaterim gospodarsko najbolj razvitim območjem sveta (Esipova, 2011). Nekateri avtorji zato, čeprav ob zavedanju, da ne gre za nov fenomen, govorijo o dobi migracij (Castles, Miller, 2009) ali o globalizaciji migracij (Friedman, 2004). Zagotovo je na globalne razsežnosti migracij vplivalo tudi to, da so vse bolj vidne značilnosti sodobnih družb nenehno spreminjanje razmer, nestabilnost, fluidnost, negotovost ipd. (Beck, 2009; Bauman, 2002).Na obseg, smeri in vrste migracij ter na njihove posledice vplivajo številni družbeni in naravni dejavniki, tako na območjih odseljevanja kot tudi na območjih priselitev. Poleg tega si raziskovalke in raziskovalci iz številnih znanstvenih disciplin, ki proučujejo migracije, v raziskavah zastavljajo »neverjetno raznovrstna« vprašanja (Boyle, 2009, 96), uporabljajo različne metodološke pristope in iščejo različne interpretacije, in sicer v različnih prostorskih, časovnih in vsebinskih okvirih. Vse bolj prihaja do izraza, da so migracije kompleksen, večplasten, spremenljiv in kontekstualen proces, ki poteka na več ravneh. Prav zaradi tega spoznanja je raziskovanje migracij postajalo vse bolj interdisciplinarno polje, saj so teme in problemi tako kompleksni, da jih ni mogoče zagrabiti zgolj in izključno iz perspektive ene same znanosti ali teorije. Zato smo priča pravemu bogastvu »obrazov migracij«, ki ga odraža ter obenem k njemu tudi prispeva pričujoča tematska številka revije Ars & Humanitas.Čeprav mobilnost oziroma migracije niso nov pojav, saj so se ljudje selili in preseljevali skozi celotno zgodovino človeštva, pa se šele v zadnjem času, v zadnjih nekaj desetletjih, z njimi resno teoretsko in raziskovalno ukvarjamo. V zadnjih dveh desetletjih so se pojavili številni raziskovalni projekti, univerzitetni programi in predmeti, raziskovalni inštituti, znanstvene konference, posveti, revije, knjige in druge publikacije, pri katerih sodelujejo tako raziskovalna in akademska sfera kot tudi politika in različne civilnodružbene organizacije. To priča o v zadnjem času izjemnem zanimanju za vprašanje migracij, tako kar zadeva poznavanje samih procesov in njihovo mapiranje v zgodovini človeštva kot tudi teoretski razvoj migracijskih študij in vsakodnevno urejanje tega politično občutljivega vprašanja.Migracije zadevajo številne subjekte na številnih ravneh: posameznice in posameznike, njihove družine ter celotne skupnosti tako na lokalni ravni v družbi emigracije kakor tudi na vseh teh ravneh v imigrantski družbi. Z migracijami se spreminjajo ne samo življenja posameznikov in posameznic, ampak se spreminjajo celotne skupnosti oziroma družbe in družbeni odnosi, zamikajo se kulturni vzorci, prihaja do pomembnih družbenih transformacij (Castles, 2010). Ob tem se seveda odpirajo številne teme, problemi in vprašanja, ki se gibljejo v širokem razponu od kršenja človekovih pravic do literarnih presežkov. Nekaterih od njih se dotikajo tudi prispevki v pričujoči tematski številki.Povezovalni naslov prispevkov v tej tematski številki revije, »Številni obrazi migracij«, smo si sposodili iz že omenjenega poročila Gallupovega inštituta o globalnih selitvah (Esipova, 2011). Temeljno vsebinsko vodilo pri izbiri prispevkov je bila raznovrstnost, kar nakazuje tudi pregled znanstvenih disciplin, iz katerih prihajajo avtorji: sociologija, geografija, etnologija in kulturna antropologija, zgodovina, umetnostna zgodovina, sodobne sredozemske študije, študiji spola in medijski študiji. Tak pristop nujno pripelje ne le do raznolikih, ampak tudi do vsaj navidezno neskladnih, morda celo nasprotnih pogledov na obravnavane tematike. Vendar nismo želeli utišati glasov iz »drugih« znanstvenih disciplin, temveč smo raje v recenzentske postopke povabili znanstvenike s področij, s katerih so tudi avtorji. Bogastvo zbranih prispevkov torej ni v njihovi medsebojni skladnosti in potrjevanju, temveč prav v mnogoterosti pogledov, zgodb in interpretacij.Prispevek Zore Žbontar obravnava odnos do tujcev v antični Grčiji, kjer je bilo gostoljubje do tujcev tako častivredna vrlina, da je vsak moral »izkazati gostoljubje in zaščititi kateregakoli tujca, ki je potrkal na vrata«. Zlasti je izzivalen kontrast med gostoljubjem v antični Grčiji in sodobnim pojavljanjem ksenofobije ter načini soočanja z migracijsko problematiko v gospodarsko razvitih državah. »Antični Grki so v odprti gesti gostoljubja do tujcev prepoznali svojo civiliziranost.«Čeprav omenjene raziskave Združenih narodov in Gallupovega inštituta podpirajo nekatere uveljavljene stereotipe o glavnih globalnih tokovih migrantov ter o območjih, o katerih »sanjajo« potencialni migranti, Bojan Baskar opozarja na sočasen obstoj tudi drugačnih migracijskih želja, tokov migracij in njihovih interpretacij. Posebej se osredotoči na preseganje in relativizacijo stereotipov in teorij o nemobilnem in nepodjetnem (alpskem) hribovskem prebivalstvu in migracijah.O tem, kako različne strategije pri prehajanju, prestopanju in prečkanju meja razvijejo migrantke, piše Mirjana Morokvasic. Označi jih kot prave socialne inovatorke, ki izumijo različne načine transnacionalnega življenja in tako od spodaj navzgor prispevajo k integrativnim procesom po vsej Evropi. V svoji inovativnosti gredo nekatere tako daleč, da premikajo različne, tako realne kot simbolne meje pripadanja naciji, spolu in poklicu.Elaine Burroughs in Zoë O'Reilly izpostavita tesno povezanost med sicer uveljavljeno terminologijo, s katero v statistiki in tudi znanosti označujejo imigrante na Irskem in širše v EU, ter negativnimi reprezentacijami nekaterih tipov migrantov v politiki in javnosti. Razpravo navežeta zlasti na iskalce azila in nezakonite priseljence, ki pridejo iz držav zunaj EU. Raba jezika lahko hitro postane politični način izključevanja, zato predlagata razvoj in uporabo obzirnejše in pravičnejše migracijske terminologije.Za spremembo izhodišča opredeljevanja in interpretacije sicer dobro proučenih selitev v nekdanji Jugoslaviji se zavzame Damir Josipovič. Predlaga zamenjavo dualističnega pogleda na te migracije s celostnim. Namesto njihovega poenostavljenega razumevanja kot mednarodnih in notranjih ali prostovoljnih in prisilnih migracij pa se zavzema za koncept psevdoprostovoljnih migracij.Na zanimiv fenomen zamikanja ustaljenih vzorcev spolnih vlog opozori tekst Maje Korać-Sanderson, katere zaključki izhajajo iz študije družinskega življenja kitajskih trgovcev v tranzicijski Srbiji. Medtem ko številne študije ugotavljajo, da skrbstveno delo v zadnjih desetletjih v imigrantskih družbah v glavnem opravljajo migrantke, njena študija ugotavlja, da v Srbiji kitajske trgovke skrb za svoje otroke večinoma zaupajo lokalnim ženskam srednjega razreda. Ta obrat vlog pri »delitvi dela« v skrbstveni sferi, ugotavlja avtorica, je v prid obema vpletenima stranema.Specifičen del mozaika sodobnih migracij v Sredozemlju, bangladeške skupnosti imigrantov na visoko industrializiranem severovzhodu Italije, razkriva Francesco Della Puppa. Izsledki poglobljenega kvalitativnega proučevanja odstirajo dejavnike, ki oblikujejo ta segment bangladeške diaspore, izkušnje migrantov ter učinke selitve na njihove družbene in biografske trajektorije.Izsek iz bolj tipičnih sredozemskih migracijskih procesov na primeru priseljevanja na Malto predstavita John A. Schembri in Maria Attard. Ugotavljata zmanjševanje števila selitev med Malto in Veliko Britanijo ob hkratnem povečevanju priseljevanja iz ostalih držav Evrope in podsaharske Afrike. Med učinki priseljevanja na Malto izpostavita izredno zgoščenost priseljenega prebivalstva, ki presega gostote celotnih prebivalstev v nekaterih evropskih državah.Miha Kozorog obravnava povezavo med migracijami in konstruiranjem krajev, iz katerih te migracije izvirajo. S pomočjo Ardenerjeve teorije »odročnost« izrazito emigracijske Benečije izrazi ne toliko v topografskem kot v topološkem smislu, v razmerju do drugih krajev. »Odročnost« nastaja v razmerju z »zunanjim svetom«, s tistimi, ki govorijo o »odročnih krajih« iz privilegiranih središč. Na primeru umetniškega dogodka, s katerim želijo organizatorji »odpreti tak kraj zunanjemu svetu« in »spodbuditi produkcijo bolj svetovljanskega kraja«, pokaže zgolj začasnost učinka tega dogodka na zmanjšanje »odročnosti«.O temeljnih časovnih in prostorskih značilnostih selitev »prebivalcev z ustvarjalnim poklicem« v Sloveniji piše Jani Kozina. Pri opredeljevanju tega specifičnega dela prebivalstva in pristopa k proučevanju njegovega migriranja se opre zlasti na dela Richarda Floride. Ugotavlja, da so prebivalci z ustvarjalnim poklicem v Sloveniji prostorsko zelo nemobilni in po tem kriteriju precej podobni ostalim poklicnim skupinam v Sloveniji, obenem pa tudi prebivalcem z ustvarjalnimi poklici v južni in vzhodni Evropi, za katere velja, da so med najmanj mobilnimi v Evropi. Podrobnejše analize pokažejo, da se ustvarjalci bolj razvitih regij načeloma intenzivneje selijo in so tudi v večji meri pripravljeni na selitev.O izkušnjah migrantk pri dostopu do trga delovne sile v Sloveniji govori članek Mojce Pajnik in Veronike Bajt. Obstoječa zakonodaja in posamezne politike namreč migrantke potiskajo v položaj, ko, če hočejo priti do zaposlitve, pristajajo na manj zahtevna dela. Pri tem so tarče stereotipnih reakcij in praks diskriminiranja tako na podlagi spola kot tudi starosti, pripisane etnične in religiozne pripadnosti ali kakšne druge okoliščine, še posebej dejstva, da so migrantke. Obenem pa prav zadnje vpliva na to, da s strani države niso deležne nikakršne zaščite.Migracijske študije pogosto domnevajo, da so ciljne države »moderne«, države izvora pa »tradicionalne«. Razprava Anıl Al-Rebholz ugotavlja, da takšna dihotomija pojmovanja modernega in tradicionalnega dodatno spodbuja stereotipne, esencialistične in homogenizirajoče predstave o muslimanskih ženskah v »zahodnem svetu«. Na podlagi biografskih pripovedi mlade Maročanke in Kurdinje ter razmerij med materami in hčerami prikaže raznolike strategije opolnomočenja mladih žensk v transnacionalnem migracijskem kontekstu.Specifični obraz migracij prinaša tekst Svenke Savić, namreč obraz umetniških migracij med Slovenijo in Srbijo po drugi svetovni vojni. Avtorica v njem ugotavlja, da je v treh ansamblih (opernem, gledališkem in baletnem) več kot trideset umetnic in umetnikov iz Slovenije s svojim pionirskim delom pomembno zaznamovalo razvoj gledališke umetnosti v Srbskem narodnem gledališču v Novem Sadu.Verjamemo, da nam je uspelo v pričujočo tematsko številko ujeti pomemben del sodobnega evropskega raziskovalskega utripa s področja migracij. Poleg uveljavljenih znanstvenikov s tega področja se je v ožji izbor prispevkov uvrstilo tudi več mladih avtoric in avtorjev, ki začenjajo raziskovalne kariere. Njihov uspeh nas veseli, saj obeta živahnost tega raziskovalnega področja tudi v bodoče. Obenem nas veseli, da so se vabilu odzvali predstavniki tako številnih znanstvenih disciplin ter da je število prispevkov, ki smo jih prejeli, znatno presegalo največji možni obseg revije. Spoznavanje in razumevanje številnih obrazov migracij sta pomembna koraka proti celovitemu znanju, potrebnemu za uspešno soočanje z izzivi migracijske problematike danes in, kot kaže, še posebej v prihodnosti. Zato je izjemnega pomena, da raziskovalci najdemo načine prenosa svojih znanstvenih spoznanj v prakso – na vse ravni izobraževanja, v medije, širše strokovne javnosti ter seveda tudi odločevalcem v lokalnih, državnih in mednarodnih ustanovah. Poziv velja tudi vsem avtorjem prispevkov v tej številke revije.