AbstractIt has often been said that the closest thing we have to an empirical law in international relations is that democracies do not fight against each other. This study adds to the literature on democratic peace by focusing on the crisis behaviour of democracies and nondemocracies. International Crisis Behavior (ICB) Project data are used to conduct a quantitative analysis of states' crisis activity from 1918 to 1988. Strong support emerges for the three hypotheses of the study. First, it is clear that democracies initiate fewer crises than nondemocracies. However, democracies tend to escalate crises to higher levels of severity. Finally, democracies eventually win the crises in which they become involved. The conclusion is that democratic leaders face strong incentives to "select" winnable crises against nondemocratic states because of the audience costs they face, but when the opponent is another democracy, the domestic audience expects leaders to compromise.
Construction contract general condition clauses have a major influence on the likelihood and degree of project success. This paper is about comparison between FIDIC and PPA Conditions of Contract. To achieve the objective of the study a desk study has been conducted to identify the similarity and differences of the clauses in FIDIC (1999) and PPA-ICB (2011) conditions of contracts and due to different limitations the study focuses on few of the clauses. Consequently, interview questionnaires are prepared and distributed to Consultants, Contractors, Lawyers, concerned government bodies and individual professionals. Accordingly, from the feedback of the respondent, this paper uses qualitative method of analysis, frequency method, and I come up with my conclusions. The major findings and recommendations of the study are (1) Most of my respondents agreed that FIDIC provisions are the one which clearly indicate the rights, obligations, and remedial rights of each contracting parties.(2) our local conditions of contract are in some way adapted from FIDIC conditions of contract in such a way to keep government , public interests and also to substantiate control of the government financed projects.(3) Our condition of contract has to be upgraded with certain time, because it has some short coming and gap with FIDIC Condition of contract. Finally, I emphasis that because of the limitations faced during the study the conclusion given on this paper are not binding and it is used for educational purpose only. Hence I recommend further detailed study has to be conducted on the topic to clearly conduct holistic conclusions that all could explore a positive output.
Construction contract general condition clauses have a major influence on the likelihood and degree of project success. This paper is about comparison between FIDIC and PPA Conditions of Contract. To achieve the objective of the study a desk study has been conducted to identify the similarity and differences of the clauses in FIDIC (1999) and PPA-ICB (2011) conditions of contracts and due to different limitations the study focuses on few of the clauses. Consequently, interview questionnaires are prepared and distributed to Consultants, Contractors, Lawyers, concerned government bodies and individual professionals. Accordingly, from the feedback of the respondent, this paper uses qualitative method of analysis, frequency method, and I come up with my conclusions. The major findings and recommendations of the study are (1) Most of my respondents agreed that FIDIC provisions are the one which clearly indicate the rights, obligations, and remedial rights of each contracting parties.(2) our local conditions of contract are in some way adapted from FIDIC conditions of contract in such a way to keep government , public interests and also to substantiate control of the government financed projects.(3) Our condition of contract has to be upgraded with certain time, because it has some short coming and gap with FIDIC Condition of contract. Finally, I emphasis that because of the limitations faced during the study the conclusion given on this paper are not binding and it is used for educational purpose only. Hence I recommend further detailed study has to be conducted on the topic to clearly conduct holistic conclusions that all could explore a positive output.
AbstractThis study focuses on forced migration and interstate violence during international crises, as a major security concern with salient implications for international relations stability. The empirical data consists of 229 crises designated as Forced Migration Crises (FMC), identified within the 374 crises of the International Crisis Behavior (ICB) project. The study outlines a framework for analyzing FMC compared with Non-Forced Migration Crises (NFMC), presents an index of Forced Migration Magnitude (FMM), and probes three hypotheses. It points to transformations in forced migration since WWII, compares crises with and without forced migration, and explores patterns of FMM and violence. Results lead to rejection of hypothesis 1 on similarities between FMC and NFMC, supporting hypothesis 2 on considerable diversity between them. Findings on extended scope, strategic locale, enduring forced migration problems and increased violence support hypothesis 3, challenging the placement of forced migration merely as a social or humanitarian domestic concern. Instead, results show a salient increase in FMM, coupled with more severe interstate violence and war, dangerously destabilizing regions worldwide. These patterns require the integration of forced migration within crisis frameworks, as a new research agenda, to understand the nature of forced migration in the 21st century and its impact.
The objective of this paper is to address the methodological process of a teaching strategy for training project management complexity in postgraduate programs. The proposal is made up of different methods —intuitive, comparative, deductive, case study, problem-solving Project-Based Learning— and different activities inside and outside the classroom. This integration of methods motivated the current use of the concept of "learning strategy". The strategy has two phases: firstly, the integration of the competences —technical, behavioral and contextual—in real projects; and secondly, the learning activity was oriented in upper level of knowledge, the evaluating the complexity for projects management in real situations. Both the competences in the learning strategy and the Project Complexity Evaluation are based on the ICB of IPMA. The learning strategy is applied in an international Postgraduate Program —Erasmus Mundus Master of Science— with the participation of five Universities of the European Union. This master program is fruit of a cooperative experience from one Educative Innovation Group of the UPM -GIE-Project-, two Research Groups of the UPM and the collaboration with other external agents to the university. Some reflections on the experience and the main success factors in the learning strategy were presented in the paper
The objective of this paper is to address the methodological process of a teaching strategy for training project management complexity in postgraduate programs. The proposal is made up of different methods —intuitive, comparative, deductive, case study, problem-solving Project-Based Learning— and different activities inside and outside the classroom. This integration of methods motivated the current use of the concept of ―learning strategy‖. The strategy has two phases: firstly, the integration of the competences —technical, behavioral and contextual—in real projects; and secondly, the learning activity was oriented in upper level of knowledge, the evaluating the complexity for projects management in real situations. Both the competences in the learning strategy and the Project Complexity Evaluation are based on the ICB of IPMA. The learning strategy is applied in an international Postgraduate Program —Erasmus Mundus Master of Science— with the participation of five Universities of the European Union. This master program is fruit of a cooperative experience from one Educative Innovation Group of the UPM -GIE-Project-, two Research Groups of the UPM and the collaboration with other external agents to the university. Some reflections on the experience and the main success factors in the learning strategy were presented in the paper.
Research on enduring rivalry has received considerable theoretical and empirical attention in the last few years. As scholars begin to relax assumptions regarding event independence and historical memory, rivalry has emerged to explain dependencies across countries and over time. Despite the evidence to date, some scholars challenge the rivalry distinction and suggest that a stochastic model may explain the distribution of militarized disputes equally as well. However, if the pairings of states that define the list of enduring rivals are fundamentally different than other pairs of states, differences in behavior should be evident in crisis situations. For rival states in crisis, conflict patterns should vary systematically across conflicts. The likelihood of military action should be lower in dispute one compared to dispute six, or eight, or twelve. Moreover, the conflict strategies of rival states in crisis should differ from the conflict strategies of nonrival states in crisis. Using data from the Interstate Crisis Behavior (ICB) Project, the evidence uncovered here supports the conjecture that states in rival contexts tend to behave differently in crises than their nonrival counterparts, although an indirect effect of rivalry is observed as well. Rival states in crisis frequently resort to a military response against nonrivals. The evidence also provides empirical support for the evolutionary model of rivalry, rather than the punctuated equilibrium model.
Ethnic conflict is prominent and recurrent in contemporary world politics, expressed in both internal and international disputes. The main goal of this study is to link ethnic conflict at the state level and its spillover to international conflict and crisis. More specifically, it examines the relationship between particular ethnic dimensions and international crises. The examination focuses on ethnic diversity among adversaries and ethnic issues within interstate confrontations, and their effects on crisis dynamics. The analysis links two major datasets: the Minorities at Risk (MAR) Project, which characterizes worldwide ethno-political actors of several types, and the International Crisis Behavior (ICB) Project, which analyzes international conflicts and crises across the world. Analyses of 133 ethnic-related international crises in the period 1918-2002, in which 67 ethno-political actors were involved, reveal the multidimensional impact that ethnicity has upon international conflict. Ethnic conflict increases the complexity and danger inherent in international crisis. The presence of ethnic diversity extends crisis duration, increases the level of its violence, and impedes accommodative crisis outcome. Moreover, the changing world order is characterized by a shift in the issue agenda. Ethnic issues related to identity and to political and economic status, which mainly concern non-state political actors, create both intrastate and interstate confrontations and shape the behavior of major actors on the world stage. Different ethnic issues in crises have diverse influences on crisis process and outcome.
The literature on international conflict is divided on the impact of nuclear proliferation on state conflict. The optimists' argument contends that nuclear weapons raise the stakes so high that states are unlikely to go to war when nuclear weapons enter the equation. The pessimists rebut this argument, contending that new proliferators are not necessarily rational and that having nuclear weapons does not discourage war but rather makes war more dangerous. Focusing on one observable implication from this debate, this article examines the relationship between the severity of violence in crises and the number of involved states with nuclear weapons. The study contends that actors will show more restraint in crises involving more participants with nuclear weapons. Using data from the International Crisis Behavior (ICB) project, the results demonstrate that crises involving nuclear actors are more likely to end without violence and, as the number of nuclear actors involved increases, the likelihood of war continues to fall. The results are robust even when controlling for a number of factors including non-nuclear capability. In confirming that nuclear weapons tend to increase restraint in crises, the effect of nuclear weapons on strategic behavior is clarified. But the findings do not suggest that increasing the number of nuclear actors in a crisis can prevent war, and they cannot speak to other proliferation risks.
In childcare institutions (CCIs) in India, children with mild or moderate levels of disability are often placed with non-disabled children for care and protection. Generally, children with intellectual disability (ID), learning disability, hearing and speech impairment and multiple disabilities with ID are found to be living in these CCIs. In this best practice article, the challenges faced by these children with disabilities and the potential for inclusion within the CCI are discussed based on the field action project intervention of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, with selected government CCIs. The article suggests a multi-pronged intervention approach for the Children with disability (CWD) at the levels of the individual CWD, peer group, CCI and the juvenile justice (JJ) System, which are together recognised as the stakeholders of an 'inclusive ecosystem'. The article arrives at the 'Inclusive Ecosystem Model of Rehabilitation' by drawing from the individual–environment interaction model of disability.
In Egypt, there are 12,000 children in residential care; however, this figure is underestimated due to the number of unregistered care homes. Like elsewhere in the world, children raised in residential care in Egypt usually receive inadequate quality of care. Nevertheless, when they reach 18–21 years old, they are abruptly required to leave care and manage all the details of their lives, while often unsupported, unprepared and unequipped to make the move. In addition, they carry the burden of a strong societal stigma, affecting them psychologically and standing in the way of their personal, social and professional well-being. To support youths' transition to independence, Wataneya Society launched the 'Youth Forum' in 2017. To date, the Youth Forum targets youth aged 18 and above with the following objectives: (a) providing a safe space for the youth to exchange their thoughts and experiences; (b) enabling youth to discuss the challenges they face and come up with possible solutions; and (c) empowering youth to communicate their voice to the concerned authorities and equipping them with the needed skills to become agents of change to their cause. Years of regular meetups imprinted the Youth Forum's ripple effects on Wataneya Society's different projects, such as Sanad Conference in 2019, which was the first regional conference on leaving care in the Arab World; the Care Leavers independence programme, which is a programme to develop the after-care system in Egypt; and Mobader (meaning 'being proactive') programme, which is led by the youth to enable them to practise community leadership skills. This article will highlight case studies of two of the Youth Forum's participants to demonstrate: (a) the main challenges children and youth in residential care in Egypt face that affect their transition to independence; (b) how the Youth Forum tackles those challenges through its main objectives, activities and development processes; (c) the main outcomes of the Youth Forum and how it is connected to Wataneya Society's different projects and the reform of the alternative care system in Egypt; and (d) key learned lessons from the process of implementation of the Youth Forum. The article will employ a framework adopted from the World Health Organization (2017).
SOS Children's Villages work to protect and improve the lives of children and young people placed in alternative care system. The goal is to break the cycle of family and social disadvantage within this framework, it is essential to provide tools to professionals to support young people path towards autonomy and social integration as active citizens in civil society. This article aims to present and discuss the preparation and transition into adult life—A guide for professionals recently implemented in SOS Children's Villages, Portugal, within the context of Project PORTA. Educating for autonomy arises as the main concern for the organization, individually and collectively, since it is responsible for the care and support of development needs of children and young people in its programmes. With this aim, this guide helps professionals and young people to promote better practices for developing autonomy skills and preparing transition to adult life, through the explanation of resources and structured intervention individual plans. Thereby, knowledge and practices are shared, expecting to be useful for others as well. A special focus is dedicated to the reinforcement of specific skills, protective factors and social areas, aiming the preparation for autonomy people in close collaboration with all the intervenient and, in particular, with the participation of young people.
COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented human and health crisis and has been affecting lives in many forms. What seemed to be a health crisis eventually became a major ongoing global economic crisis. Sector-wide disruptions are threatening both short- and long-term livelihoods and well-being of millions of youth around the globe, especially youth from vulnerable communities. Business closures threatened the operations and soundness of the enterprises resulting in layoffs and wage losses, affecting a major chunk of youth including the young care leavers of alternative care programmes in Asia. This called for customised interventions and support for such young care leavers. Immediate actions were needed for managing their mental health, for maintaining education continuity and for reskilling of such young care leavers to prepare them to cope with the pandemic. This article is based on the learning and experiences of SOS Children's Villages responses to supporting nearly 1,500 care leavers in various Asian countries. SOS Children's Villages is committed to ensuring quality care and protection of children and youth through its various alternative care programmes in 15 countries in Asia region. SOS Children's villages responded to COVID-19 pandemic by supporting youth and care leavers in SOS family-like care. Primarily, these countries reported that the school closures mandated to combat the spread of the virus affected the education and learning of all the children and youth in their care. All projects in Asia started reaching out to the care leavers and started extending a wide range of support to them with both short- and long-term interventions. This article covers SOS Children's Villages youth programmes, especially from 11 countries of Asia region—Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Mongolia, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.
Widely across the globe, COVID has placed massive strain on various parameters of life, including child protection, health, education and economic systems. Apart from these visible threats, this situation has an ongoing devastating impact on the mental health and psychological well-being of people. The word of the law enforces care and support for children with disadvantages, disabilities and vulnerabilities on caregivers, Managers and Staff, managing Alternative Care programmes, but the spirit of such child protection laws also underlines the importance of caring for caregivers, especially in childcare institutions (CCIs). The well-being of the caregivers is the cornerstone of every well-functioning childcare institution and other residential care spaces. This article is designed to document the mental health status of caregivers (residential staff staying with children), in residential care spaces in the COVID times and to determine how the new stresses impacted them and the coping patterns they acquired in current situation; across different countries of South Asia, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. This exploratory rapid assessment project aimed to reach out to the registered childcare homes/ institutions, across the South Asian region, with the help of different NGOs, as well as Government mechanisms. The data was collected through purposive sampling and analysed quantitatively where the sample included the selected caregivers of participating CCIs across these nations. This study aimed to synthesize the responses of caregivers across the region; develop an analysis, which may help authorities to rethink, reform and strengthen the current practices, in order to develop approach-centred strategies for improving the well-being of caregivers as this has a direct bearing on the well-being of children in their care. Since the start of the COVID pandemic, for the residential caregivers, the access to external resources, including physical support from professional staff, has become restricted to bare minimum, due to lockdown and quarantine measures. Any interventions to prevent, treat and mitigate the effects of COVID among caregivers needed to be taken at the ground level by the care team management.
