Somaltex / Praxy Fernandes -- Jowhar Sugar Factory / Ales Vahčič -- The cigarette and match factory / Vladimir Kreačić -- The Foundry and Mechanical Workshop / Zia Uddin Ahmed -- Cyprus Telecommunications Authority / Ales Vahčič ... [et al.] -- The Electricity Authority of Cyprus / Praxy Fernandes, Costakis Panayiotou and John Charalambides -- Air Jamaica / Praxy Fernandes and Marie Slyfield -- Jamaica Railway Corporation / Vladimir Kreačić and Phyllis Green
Abstract. The challenge of ensuring the space environment's long-term sustainability in the context of the exploration and commercialisation of outer space raises several important issues and dimensions with respect to both international environmental law and sustainable development. The research question analyses the extent to which such exploration benefits humanity and expands the province of all humankind. In this article, historical achievements of the international legal framework governing the area of space exploration are presented. Opportunities for further developing and strengthening this framework to ensure the cooperative, transparent, inclusive and equitable development of space exploration are deliberated, notably those that do not limit the interests and opportunities of space-faring countries. The key finding and proposition of this article is that while discussing the need to improve and strengthen the international regulatory framework, developing countries' needs and interests should also be effectively incorporated. More equitable, inclusive and sustainable development is as much in the interest of developed countries as it is of developing countries. Keywords: The Outer Space Treaty, space law, UNCOPUOS, space commercialisation, Sustainable Development Goals, inclusive and balanced development, international environmental law
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.
The article analyzes three constellations of the notion we -- one coming from Hegel & two from Nietzsche. Their common feature is that in their inner sense, they should not be understood as something that designates a group of people, but rather instead as three different structures of nothing. By developing them, the author attempts to grasp some of the key differences between the two philosophical endeavors. Adapted from the source document.
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.
Abstract. The article reflects on a key category introduced by Adolf Bibič in his 1990 theoretical work Civil Society and Political Pluralism; namely, association pluralism. Bibič introduced this concept into Slovenian political thought to grasp the diverse social and political developments of the 1980s and to open up a new view of political pluralism that moves beyond party pluralism. The author therefore asks whether the notion of associational pluralism still holds sufficient explanatory potential and is worth preserving and developing further, or whether it can be used to deal with a new social and political reality, i.e., political pluralism, which is also strongly marked by multifaceted environmental issues. Keywords: associational pluralism, political pluralism, party pluralism, civil society, state.
Abstract. Firms of different business strategy types reveal different behavioural patterns in their innovation and business performance while facing various difficulties as they seek to adapt to a turbulent competitive environment. Accordingly, we want to make progress by using the dynamic view, which follows the Schumpeterian perspective of firm behaviour through innovation (business) strategy. We advocate a dynamic approach to the strategic and behavioural patterns influencing business performance that is appropriate for small and mediumsized firms as well as giant corporations in highly competitive industries and catching-up economies. Thus, by combining different theoretical approaches we develop an alternative conceptual 'cost-advantage leader-follower' (CALF) model of innovation for when firms are developing cost-cutting process inventions.
Abstract. The article deals with the wide range of mechanisms in support of civil society institutions–government interaction in the context of developing and implementing European integration reforms in Ukraine. The authors identified 6 strategic documents and 20 areas of reform related to the process of European integration, as well as the key issues concerning implementation of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU. The authors conclude that positive trends are visible in recent decades in the institutional development of Ukrainian civil society, which has become a driving force of the country's European integration aspirations. In this setting, civil society institutions (CSIs) work with government agencies, engage in informal advocacy, conduct monitoring policies, perform and publish policy analysis and recommendations, and work with and lobby international agencies and other actors.
Although the new international economic order (NIEO) has mostly been assessed as a failure, its ideas still seem relevant in today's crisis environment. The new context clearly shows that the existing liberal international order is ineffective and calls for deep changes like in the times of the developing countries' fight for the NIEO. The article considers whether its principles remain of relevance today, which ones have been amended and which should be newly introduced, all based on NIEO-related lessons. Dilemmas between international law or a rules-based order as a framework for global governance and whether the proposed new inclusive global economic order is to be based on values (and if so, which) are evaluated. Keywords: new international economic order, new inclusive global economic order, rules-based order, values, principles, international law, global governance, lessons
Abstract. Greenwashing has long been an issue in Western and developed countries. Yet, this matter regrettably remains quite underexplored among academics in developing and emerging markets, especially in Indonesia. The presented quantitative research focuses on the impact of greenwashing perception, green word of mouth ("green WOM") and green marketing on intentions to purchase items at H&M in Jakarta. Hypotheses were answered with the SEM-PLS model using SmartPLS3 software. Based on a questionnaire administered to 200 respondents, results show that the perception of greenwashing has a direct negative impact on consumers' purchase intentions and an indirect negative impact through green WOM, which can be influenced by the factor of lack of concern and awareness in Jakarta. These findings stand in contrast to several studies in Europe that were used as a reference while conducting this research. At the same time, green WOM strengthens the positive impact between green marketing and purchase intentions. Practical implications for companies include taking substantial steps towards sustainability and the need to adopt a fact-based approach without embellishment. Keywords: greenwashing perception, green word of mouth, green marketing, purchase intention
Perceptions of professional identity and its formation during education at the Faculty of Social Work, University of Ljubljana
Professional identity in social work can be described as a collection of identifiable and enduring professional qualities of social workers that bind them together as a professional group and make them different and unique compared to other professional groups. As the social work profession is devalued and stigmatized around the world, exploring the processes involved in developing a strong and positive professional identity is of great importance. The need to explore social work professional identity has been recognized in some places abroad and has mainly focused on researching professional identity formation during social work education. This paper presents findings on the definition and role of professional identity in social work, focusing on professional identity formation during education at the Faculty of Social Work, University of Ljubljana. Qualitative research on social work students' perceptions of professional identity is presented, as well as suggestions for a more frequent and discrete treatment of the topic during the education of future social workers.
The study in this article addresses three research questions: a) how do college students view the effectiveness of technology-mediated virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic; b) how does virtual learning impact their perceived mental health; and c) what is the mode of learning they most prefer? It follows an explanatory research design and survey method. Data are collected using a questionnaire with a purposive sample of 102 students and interviews with 20 students and 40 faculty members in India. The conceptual framework of this study is quite similar to the modified version of the Technology Acceptance Model (Venkatesh and Davis, 2000). The study reveals that 86% of the students find virtual learning to be ineffective. Such learning not only fails to provide adequate opportunities for experiential learning for developing knowledge, skills, and leadership abilities but also creates several perceived mental health problems. This study may help higher education institutions while designing and implementing virtual teaching-learning systems in order to prevent their negative impact on student's perceived mental health in future crises. Keywords: Virtual learning, perceived mental health, COVID-19 pandemic, Behavioural Intention, Perceived Usefulness
