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The article considers one of the most relevant and, at the same time, the most controversial topics of international politics – tackling climate change (global warming). The author attempts to answer a question: is the global climate agenda a natural priority, or is it being promoted intentionally? On the one hand, global warming is a scientifically acknowledged process, encouraged by industrial emissions of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, etc.), which may be harmful and dangerous for the environment and for humanity. On the other hand, climate change is one of many serious environmental problems that require urgent solution (such as water and soil pollutions, deforestation and desertification, loss of species, plastic waste and other). The question is: for what reason has the global warming been gaining increased attention for the last decades, primarily from Western states which not only proclaimed it their chief political goal, but have also been consequently promoting this agenda in the international arena? The Framework Convention on Climate Change (UN FCCC) adopted in 1992 at the UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, with the additional Kyoto Protocol of 1997 and then the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015, aimed mainly at the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, undergo a yearly "stock-taking" and promotion at the UN Climate Conferences. The European Union and its leading states (Germany and France) as well as the United States were the first to declare a "green transition" meaning a full decarbonization of their economies by 2050, expecting the rest of the world to follow this path as well. They have already spent billions of dollars for climate aims, including direct assistance to "fragile states", and are ready to spend much more in the near future. Regular informal meetings at high level (the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Bled Strategic Forum) have also been mostly devoted to the climate agenda in recent years. Analyzing the results of climate-related events of the last decades and especially the last years, the author comes to a conclusion that the global climate agenda in its current form is being promoted intentionally and is a new form of struggle for world economic and political leadership.

The article examines the connection between the environmental processes during the COVID‑19 pandemic (2019–2022) and the "greening" of the political sphere. A specific feature of environmental policy is its close linkage with the economy, since economic activity is the direct cause of anthropogenic pollution of natural environments. The environmental changes that have arisen in response to economic realities of the pandemic period have led to transformation of socio-political attitudes towards strengthening the "green" direction in the policies of the world's leading states – the European Union member countries, the United States, Russia, China and other. The global "green agenda" was substantiated at the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2020 and 2021, as well as at the following 26th UN Climate Change Conference 2021 (COP26) in Glasgow, actually shaping a new world order based on the environmental goals and obligations. In West European countries, with prominent green parties' political positions, the environmental policy is formed largely from grassroots. In the United States, it depends entirely on the political situation (mostly on the sitting president's party affiliation). Whereas the European Union and the EU states (primarily Germany and France) have seized the initiative of directing the world environmental policy, striving to take the lead in this sphere (particularly, in climate protection), the new U.S. government is now seriously challenging the European leadership. Noteworthy is that the COVID‑19 crisis has updated the green political and economic agenda globally, regardless of differences between the states, which verifies the importance and necessity of agreeing a conceptually new common approach to interaction with the environment in the short and long term.

Received 26.01.2021. The article investigates the role of new digital technologies during a crisis period on the example of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Considering the methods used by different states to prevent the spread of the virus and its consequences, the author analyzes the advantages of the impelled rapid digitalization, scrutinizes its negative aspects, and discusses perspectives. Although the digital transformation had already been taking place before the pandemic actually started (2019), the current crisis facilitates the unprecedented digitalization breakthrough in all life spheres, which will have delayed consequences. The short-run effects are already obvious: deepening of virtual communication; advancement of electronic document flow systems and online-services (including E-Government, public health service, etc.); virtualization of education, culture, sports, leisure activities; transformation of labour market towards distance employment, an outburst of electronic commerce and services, robot automation in economy; virtualization of political life (online-meetings, online-debates, online-summits, etc.), and, moreover, a transfer of power struggle and geopolitical struggle itself to digital platforms. Greater convenience and effectiveness are the most vivid advantages of digital technologies development, which plays the key role in crisis periods. Better access of disabled persons and people living in geographically remote places to medical aid, education, cultural objects, etc. also belongs to important achievements of the rapid digitalization. At the same time, there are significant negative aspects of this process, both general and specific. The violation of democratic rights and freedoms (primarily, of personal data security and individual privacy) is unavoidable in the light of the necessary "digital control" from the state to contain the spread of infection. Private IT companies participating in the process of the virus spread control due to their products (mobile applications, Internet platforms, etc.) also benefit from access to personal data. Whereas this issue is not central in authoritarian regimes like China, it becomes very challenging for democratic societies of the West. The digitalization of services gives wide room for irregularities and fraud in general. A growing "digital exclusion" is another concern: the greater dependency on technical means excludes certain parts of the population unable to use them for different reasons. An increasing individualization and solitude amid the lacking real-life communication gives rise to complicated psychological issues and mental disorders. Among specific negative side-effects of digitalization there are obstacles in personal electronic verification, worsening in the quality of remote medical assistance and online-education, unemployment growth and smashup of offline-businesses in economy, and some other. The most complicated question of the current crisis and the next "post-COVID" period is how serious the above-mentioned negative consequences of the rapid digitalization will be, to what extent they may devaluate its advantages, what sacrifice will be made by humanity to pay for comfort and effectiveness. Acknowledgements. The article was prepared within the project "Post-Crisis World Order: Challenges and Technologies, Competition and Cooperation" supported by the grant from Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation program for research projects in priority areas of scientific and technological development (Agreement № 075-15-2020-783).

The article investigates the changes in environment that occurred in response to economic processes during the COVID‑19 pandemic (2019–2021), and related transformation of socio-political attitudes towards Green Policy and Green Economy. From the environmentalistic point of view, the pandemic played a twofold role. On the one part, it allowed the nature to "take a break" from an excessive anthropogenic pressure on the atmosphere and hydrosphere, and once again mobilized the humanity to reconsider the principles of interaction with the environment. On the other part, different types of pollution (daily and medical waste, plastic) increased dramatically; funding of international and national environmental programs was cut due to the economic recession worldwide. Nevertheless, the multidimensional crisis caused by the pandemic gave a new chance to the Green Economy. The most influential states of the world (the EU countries, USA, China and Russia) actively implement the Green Economy instruments at the state level. This process incorporates all economy sectors: finances, energy, industry, transport, agriculture and other. The European Union which had taken this path before the pandemic started is in an advanced position. At the same time, the foundations of the future environment-oriented economic policy are already enshrined in official documents (strategies, action plans, legislative acts, etc.) adopted by the leading nations thus far. Noteworthy is that the COVID‑19 crisis has updated the green political and economic agenda globally, regardless of differences between the states, which verifies the importance and necessity of agreeing a conceptually new approach to interaction with the environment in the short and long term.

The article deals with the environmental ideology evolution and the Green Movement political development – from groups of activists and ecological non-governmental organizations to influential political parties, at both national and international level (mainly in the Western Europe). The overlook covers the period from early 1970s to present. The mass political Green Movement arose in early 1970s in the Western Europe, USA and Australia in response to vivid ecological threats and the inability of national and international authorities to offer effective solutions. From the very beginning, the Greens declared their commitment to the principles of environmental responsibility, global sustainable development, inclusive democracy, consideration for diversity, personal freedom, gender equality and non-violence. In the political field, the Greens meet two main challenges: formation of political agenda with regard to environmental issues; promotion of effective political decisions and economic mechanisms to protect the environment from an anthropogenic impact. Ecological NGOs, especially large international organizations (like Greenpeace) perform public protest actions against the transnational and state corporations' economic activities violating the environment (f.e. Arctic oil extraction, radioactive waste storage, gene engineering in agriculture etc.). But beyond the active political lobbying and drawing of wide public support to acute environmental issues, NGOs are not able to involve into political process directly. Within 1970s–1980s (and also later on) ecological political parties were formed in most Western European countries, with a target to participate in official parliamentary elections at local, regional, national and supra-national level. Many of them succeeded and became influencing in their countries. Political methods used by the Greens are thoroughly analyzed in the paper. Special attention is paid to political strategy and tactics of the German ecological party Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, as well as to participation of the European Union Green parties in work of the European Parliament. German Greens count for the most successful ecological party not only in Europe, but also worldwide. Using flexible tactics of parliamentary coalitions, they managed to facilitate a general turn of the German policy toward ecologization (renunciation of the atomic energy development in Germany, conservation of energy and renewable energy sources programs, ecological taxes implementation, prohibition on gene engineering in agriculture etc.). Being a part of the governing coalition, the "Bündnis 90/Die Grünen" were also involved in many other sociopolitical and international issues. Since 1984, many European ecological parties are present in the European Parliament. In 2004, the European Green Party was created to consolidate electoral efforts of the Greens at the European level. Almost all EU ecological parties are also members of the international Global Greens organization. Owing to activities of the Green Movement as a whole, state authorities of many countries (primarily in the Western Europe) adopted environment friendly legislation and state programs. Despite short periods of reverse, the general development of Greens is progressive and prospective.

The paper thoroughly examines the ideological essence, political goals, structure, electoral achievements and international protest activities of the Pirate Movement, consisting of national Pirate Parties worldwide and the Pirate Parties International. The Pirate ideology arose in mid-2000s in response to information society biases, and is paying special attention to the freedom of non-commercial information exchange in the Internet, individual privacy, transparency of state politics and direct citizens' involvement with flexible Internet-tools (Liquid Democracy concept). This relatively new political force has made a vivid progress in electoral field within a short time (since 2006 till present). The representatives of the most successful Pirate Parties (in Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Switzerland, France, Spain, Croatia and Iceland) hold deputy's seats in municipal, regional, national and supranational state agencies, including the European Parliament. In many other countries of the world the "Pirates" are also registered officially and participate in elections; in some countries the Pirate Parties are active, though not yet registered. Except for electoral activity, the Pirate Parties organize joint protest campaigns against national laws/state programs and international agreements that violate the information freedom and civil rights (i.e. PRISM, ACTA). These campaigns also serve for unification and growth of the international Pirate Movement. The Pirate Parties have quickly transformed from populist groups into a political force aspiring to equitable participation in political process along with traditional political parties, challenging them in a certain way. The Pirate ideology will be in demand as long as it will give a resultative solution for specific problems of a post-industrial society in the context of democracy.

The article analyses special features and the prospects of E-Democracy (in particular E-Government) mechanisms development in Russia in the context of world trends. Two parallel processes are being thoroughly examined. The official state E-Democracy development policy (E-Democracy "from above") covers objections, statements, official documents and institutions created by the Russian Government in the described field. These achievements reflect Russia's positions in international ratings. As concluded, the Russian Government mostly focuses on E-Government development, though also declares the implementation of the real E-Democracy mechanisms (like E-Elections, E-Participation in political decision-making) in the future. The so called E-Demoracy "from below" consists of the civil society initiatives in forcing political and financial transparency of the state affairs, fighting corruption. Individuals and civic organizations in Russia develop the network of related Internet-sites focusing on different e-democratic mechanisms. It compensates and sometimes replaces the official state policy in this field. The future of E-Democracy in Russia depends not only on technical progress, but also on successful integration of the official and civic initiatives.

The paper suggests the general analysis of the so called liquid democracy – the newest political concept which combines the elements of direct (deliberative) and representative democracy forms, by means of the modern information-network technology (based on internet). Brief historical review of the world democratic developments emphasizes the continuity of democratic forms from ancient to present times in all parts of Europe, including Russia. The modern liquid democracy theory is analyzed concerning both its strengths and weaknesses. As far as it unites direct and representative democracy concepts, it contains the advantages of both, but at the same time, multiple theoretical and practical problems need to be solved, many technical solutions are to be found to make the concept work. The main question raised in the article is: should this new concept be regarded as a real practical solution to improve the present-day state of world democracy, or is it just another utopian idea?

The article considers the phenomena of e-democracy in its development from theory to practice. The following issues are covered: existing concepts of electronic citizens' participation in political decision-taking, e-government as a form of open interaction of the state institutions with the public, technological base and international experience of using the mechanisms of e-democracy.

This article considers the relatively new political phenomena of "pirate parties", which arose as an answer to specific problems of information distribution and intellectual property in the modern information society. The author investigates the history and development of the "pirate movement" all over the world, including Russia. The pirates' ideological platform and new definitions for democracy of information society are analyzed in details.

The article is devoted to the information security of Russia. It includes two main aspects: conceptual (political concepts, legislation, cultural specifics of the country) and practical (real law enforcements mechanisms, economic and technological opportunities). New Russia's information policy development specifics, threats to information security and the countermeasures, forms of Russia's international cooperation in the field are thoroughly examined in the paper.

The research is devoted to the information society phenomenon analysis both in theoretical aspect (the term genesis, the concept development) and in practice. The historical evolution of the information transfer technical means and social communication models is thoroughly analyzed. Primary attention is focused on modern technologies, which enabled the emergence of new social relations: the hypermedia (including the interactive television) and Internet platforms (Web 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0). Creation of a "virtual reality" predetermined the introduction of the so called "Network Society" – a society based on the Internet-communication. Not only wide factual evidence, but also different viewpoints on history, modern condition and prospects of the information society are provided in the article.