The globalized neoliberal agricultural regime operates within a neocolonial context and was therefore built upon the ideologies, law, and legacy of the colonial-era. Both capitalism and colonialism, in theory, and in practice, share characteristics that are inherently contrary to the realization of human rights. Given that the human rights framework operates within a globalized capitalist economy, there are systemic barriers to the universal realization of human rights. This thesis holds that the concept of food sovereignty not only highlights this reality but presents a nuanced emancipatory path forward towards a post-capitalist world where universal human rights realization is not only possible but inherent to the functioning of food sovereignty itself. Food sovereignty presents as a praxis for Marxist agrarian theory in establishing an approach to closing the metabolic rift. The existence of the Food Sovereignty Movement also confirms the existence of the metabolic rift as the theoretical disconnect between capitalism and human rights which underpins the current agricultural system. As a concept, it accounts for the systemic obstacles to the universal realization of the right to adequate food while also providing an alternative food system centred on the decisions of small-scale food producers. Contrary to capitalist and colonialist approaches to food production, food sovereignty is concerned with universal access to culturally appropriate nutritious foods produced through ecological means. Through a combination of normative and descriptive claims, this thesis examines the official recognition and realization of the right to food sovereignty as a proxy of Marxist ideology. Food sovereignty empowers the rights-holder to ensure the continued realization of their right to adequate food in underscoring the fact that rights realization is not static in nature but, an ongoing endeavour. As such, the process called for to implement an alternative food system is one of decolonization. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA) / Despite the existence of enough food for the sustenance of the global populace, there are obstacles prohibiting economic and physical access to food. These obstacles are created and maintained by the institutions and social structures that put forth policies encouraging economic and social inequality. The role which small-scale food producers play in global society is integral to the realization of the human right to adequate food. However, the current agricultural system de-values their work. Conceptually, food sovereignty highlights the oppressive nature of the agricultural system and puts forth a response that focuses on small-scale food producers assuming control over the food system. Commodification and exploitation are inherent characteristics of both the capitalist and colonial systems. Food sovereignty aims at dismantling oppressive systems through anti-capitalist and anti-colonial efforts sanctioned by the mobilization and collaboration of oppressed peoples within the context of food production.

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State borders are often viewed as something faraway that demarcate a country’s frontier; however, whenever a teacher, nurse, social worker, or frontline city worker requires proof of citizenship to access services, they undertake the work of border guards. In Canada and abroad, Sanctuary City policies range from local governments issuing ID cards, schools clandestinely enrolling undocumented students, and domestic abuse shelters refusing entry to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) conducting raids on their property. This activism and policymaking exemplify a case where municipal policy propels social change and analysis of how urban spatial politics interact with state borders that impede migrants’ access to outreach services. I apply an International Political Sociological (IPS) methodological framework to critically deconstruct academic and public narratives that emphasize the urban and religious character of Sanctuary Cities. Using IPS, I combine political theory that calls for abolishing state borders, critical cartography, and a political theology to deconstruct the foundational texts and mapping methods of critical -border, -citizenship, and -migration studies that research Sanctuary Cities. I argue that these subfields reproduce a narrative that cities, economic globalization, and religious movements are in-of-themselves antithetical to state borders. I challenge this narrative by conceptualizing a seeing like a zone approach to visualize the border in terms of deportation routes, inter-police networks, and how the Immigration Refugee Board (IRB) enacts self-deportations. Using Geographic Information System (GIS), I create six maps depicting CBSA, IRB, and local policing immigration infrastructure used in Ontario for the deportation, imprisonment, trials, and investigation of migrants. These maps and my seeing like a zone approach demonstrate that current Social Scientific literature overlook how Sanctuary Cities are ultimately compatible with state borders. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Sanctuary City movements involve community activists and stakeholders lobbying municipalities to deliver city services like schooling, local health clinics, or domestic abuse shelters, regardless of a person’s immigration status. Sanctuary helps people evade deportation in their everyday lives. To what extent do Sanctuary Cities challenge state borders? I challenge the conventional way that social scientists look at Sanctuary Cities. First, despite the religious moniker, Sanctuary Cities are a form of human rights activism which relies on state governments to provide migrants rights. Second, scholars assume Sanctuary Cities challenge borders, however, existing mapping methods do not exist to corroborate such claims. I use mapping software to show the different types of state borders that are enforced in Ontario, the home of Toronto’s Sanctuary City. Finally, I argue that Sanctuary and national borders only exist in specific zones (like in schools, clinics, or public transit) as opposed to entire cities or regions.

Consistently throughout the book of Jonah, the author draws attention to matters of life and death. The present study argues that by approaching this recurring subject through a rhetorical-critical approach, it is evident that the author has intentionally constructed a motif of life and death, which they implement as the foundation for the theme of YHWH’s sovereignty that runs throughout the narrative. In this way, the motif is designed to build anticipation which comes to its climax as Jonah and YHWH converse directly in Jonah 4. This thesis argues that the presence of this motif is found in both the recurring key words and key situations connected with the concepts of life or death. Furthermore, the study identifies the purpose of Jonah as a declaration of YHWH’s sovereignty over matters of life and death, yet with a tendency toward mercy for the repentant. This is realized in and through the very motifs under examination.

The research was an investigation into the phenomenon of external military interventions in Africa. The broad interpretation often given to intervention compelled both an African view on the subject and an operational definition. External military intervention was defined as the execution of any military plans by a state or its citizens in another state, in a manner that radically alters the existing socio-political, economic and military conditions in the target state, with or without its consent. The role and effects of external powers in six conflict cases in Africa were examined. A taxonomy on intervention identified the phenomenon in its internal and external manifestations. Apart from the more publicised military role of extra-African powers in the region, the increasing role of African States as intra-continental interventionists was also considered. The research concluded that aspects of the problems perceived as endemically African may have their roots in events influenced by external actions. However, some African states were seen as contributing to this situation as well. The view was expressed that restraints by states in their exercise of power and perceived wisdom may reduce the level of conflicts in the contemporary world. / British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, British Council

The concept of sovereignty has been a contestable idea throughout history, and its meaning has oftentimes transformed to reflect prevailing systemic conditions and political priorities of major actors in each historical period. In this study, I argue that the social construction of state sovereignty is at the beginning stages of another major redefinition. In an era of globalization and regional integration, discourse on sovereignty has become increasingly prolific as the rhetoric of sovereignty moves away from Westphalian principles that were based exclusively on the agency of independent states. Furthermore, multinational campaigns to promote international human rights engender a discourse that suggests the idea of sovereignty is changing. Does this emerging discourse confirm the growing legitimacy of humanitarian intervention, or is it merely a discursive trend in international relations that does not indicate significant change in state perception and behavior? The purpose of this work is to address this question. / Master of Arts

The establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC) through the signing of the Rome Statute in July, 1998 created the first permanent criminal court under international law. The Court stands in stark contrast to previous international criminal tribunals not simply because of its permanent nature, but also because it places the individual, not states, responsible under international law. It is, however, this independent, permanent nature of the Court which sparked fears within the society of states that the Court may in some manner serve to erode the state sovereignty. The purpose of this work is to address this basic concern. The aim of the work is to address the concept of sovereignty by first examining standard perceptions of sovereignty and then to move the discussion into an institutionalist construction of the term. Once accomplished, I then apply a set of criteria for evaluating sovereignty to the basic structures of the ICC in order to explore what the potential impact of the ICC may be on the institution of state sovereignty. In the end, I find that the institution of sovereignty is not threatened by the presence of the Court. In fact, the institution of sovereignty may be in some ways bolstered by the Court in that the Court embodies a new set of principals with regards to the appropriate relationship between the state and the individual. / Master of Arts

The Green New Deal has gained international significance as the only prominent climate legislation in the United States. The Green New Deal has also become emblematic of a larger movement for climate justice; however, further analysis of the Green New Deal and its assumptions indicates that it falls short of enacting meaningful justice for those most effected by climate change, but least responsible for causing it. This shortcoming is due to the absence of calls to decolonize. Because of the large role U.S. militarism and imperialism play in contributing to the climate crisis, decolonization must be central to climate justice projects. Marx's concept of the metabolic rift and the phenomenon of humans' separation from nature through colonial acts of dispossession and enclosure of land plays an important role in thinking through the ways the Green New Deal recognizes this same phenomenon but fails to go deeper and recognize broader implications of the metabolic rift for continued U.S. imperialism. Additionally, the rocky legacy of the environmental justice movement raises questions as to whether working with the settler state can lead to meaningful justice. Though the Green New Deal is an operation of state recognition of the climate crisis as connected to other social inequalities, it does not overcome the settler state's reliance on racial capitalism and continued exploitation of people and the environment. A climate justice program that is in fact centered on decolonization and indigenous sovereignty is available and must be supported. / Master of Arts / The Green New Deal has gained international significance as the only prominent climate legislation in the United States. The Green New Deal has also become emblematic of a larger movement for climate justice; however, further analysis of the Green New Deal and its assumptions indicates that it falls short of enacting meaningful justice for those most effected by climate change, but least responsible for causing it. The project of the Green New Deal recognizes the phenomenon of humans' separation from nature and importantly seeks to connect environmental issues to social issues and assert environmental justice through state-led action. Because the Green New Deal fails to question the larger role of the U.S. military's involvement around the world and its pollution and wastefulness, it becomes complicit in the very forces that drive the climate crisis. A project of decolonization, which would involve ending U.S. military involvement at home and abroad and asserting indigenous nations' sovereignty, addresses many of the shortcomings of the Green New Deal.

Movements for food sovereignty are socio-political efforts to build collective power and agency. This study builds on the work of Monica White and utilizes a Collective Agency Theory (CAT) lens in exploring the role of Black farmer organizers and their cross-sectoral relationships as they re-imagine the food system as pathways for liberation, self-determination, and food sovereignty. An interpretive phenomenology was used to critically explore and understand the experiences of 41 Black farmer organizers who are actively organizing in both urban and rural spaces toward food sovereignty in Virginia. Twenty-one semi-structured interviews and two focus group interviews with 20 participants were conducted. The data were coded and analyzed, incorporating Creswell's (2009) and Heidegger's (1962) thematic approach. The findings revealed that Black farmer organizers were strategically collaborating with both non-Black and Black farmer organizers, with a focus on building collective power and agency within historically marginalized communities affected by settler colonialism, White supremacy, and plantation-style agriculture. Their organizing efforts were driven by the goal of challenging systemic inequities and cultivating self-sustaining communities rooted in cultural heritage and food sovereignty. By doing so, they aimed to foster a more just, equitable, and sustainable food system that celebrated diversity, empowered communities and embodied the principles of food sovereignty. Embracing food sovereignty played a pivotal role in their efforts, leading to a reimagining of agricultural autonomy. To challenge and disrupt the inequities within the food system, they advocated for land reform, policy changes, and community-led initiatives that promoted self-determination. As a socio-political endeavor, their organizing efforts hold immense potential in fostering positive change and shaping a more inclusive and equitable food system. Empirically, the study contributes to the food systems discourse and highlights Black-led grassroots food systems organizers as central change agents. It also contributes to food systems practice by offering valuable insights for practitioners to inform their own approaches. / Doctor of Philosophy / Movements for food sovereignty are powerful socio-political endeavors aimed at building collective strength and empowerment. This study delves into the role of Black farmer organizers and their partnerships across various sectors as they envision a food system that fosters liberation, self-determination, and food sovereignty. By using a Collective Agency Theory lens, I explored the experiences of 41 Black farmer organizers in urban and rural areas of Virginia who are actively working towards food sovereignty. Through a combination of 21 semi-structured interviews and two focus group sessions involving 20 participants, we gained valuable insights into their efforts. These Black farmer organizers collaborate with both Black and Non-Black organizers, with a particular focus on historically marginalized communities impacted by settler colonialism, White supremacy, and plantation-style agriculture, especially in the U.S. South. Their goal is to challenge systemic inequities and nurture self-sufficient communities rooted in cultural heritage and food justice. Embracing food sovereignty is at the core of their mission, leading to a reimagining of agricultural autonomy. They advocate for land reform, policy changes, and community-led initiatives, seeking to challenge oppressive systems and promote self-determination. Their impact is vast, fostering a more inclusive and equitable food system. They celebrate diversity, cherish cultural traditions, and empower their communities. Their vision extends beyond just farming; it's about building a better world for all. Through collective action, these Black farmers are igniting a positive transformation in the food system, uniting people from diverse backgrounds to create a sustainable future for everyone. Their work is a step towards a more just and fair food system where everyone can access nutritious food and shape their own destiny. Empirically, the study provides valuable insights into ongoing food systems discussions. It specifically emphasizes the significant role played by Black-led grassroots food systems organizers as agents of change. The findings underscore the importance of recognizing and supporting the agency of Black-led grassroots initiatives in promoting equity, justice, and sustainability within the broader food landscape. It also offers valuable insights that can help practitioners improve their own practices and approaches. By understanding the experiences and efforts of Black-led grassroots food systems organizers, practitioners can learn from their successes and challenges and apply these lessons to create positive changes in the food system.

My thesis deals with the legal concept of sovereign Parliament, the very keystone of British constitution according to A. V. Dicey. This model has been challenged both normatively and descriptively. Concerning the normative point of view, concept of unlimited sovereignty is incoherent. Descriptively, courts don't simply take the parliamentary supremacy for granted, even if they say so. Relationship between the Parliament and courts is certainly more complex than Dicey suggested. Goals of this thesis are rather tentative. Since the popularity of this topic among British constitutional lawyers, comprehensive analysis is implausible due to the limited space. This paper aims to gather fundamental theories and disputes regarding the parliamentary sovereignty and its relationship with courts. In other words, it explores connection between the Parliament and courts in contemporary British constitution. First chapter analyses the constitutional conventions, which forms the basics of several other fundamental concepts in UK constitution. It suggests that there are no clear boundaries between law and conventions. Second chapter focuses on the general concept of sovereignty and Diceyan classic theory of Parliamentary sovereignty. There is also a brief explanation of sovereignty's connection to Scot's law....