This thesis is about the relationship between research, data and the population problem in India between 1938 and 1974. It argues that the research practices and the data collected by demographers and social scientists in India are crucial to understanding how the population problem was framed, understood, and acted on. New kinds of research such as sample surveys, and knowledge attitude and practice (KAP) surveys were instrumental in constructing India as an overpopulated country in the twentieth century, as well as in furnishing India with the means to use and challenge this label by the 1970s. Many of the arguments made about the history of population control in India have focused on the role of the international network of population control experts in shaping the policies implemented by the Indian Government. This historiography has stressed the importance of contraception and of American expertise. This thesis re-frames this narrative by focusing on social science research and researchers as they worked in and on India. It examines the importance of behavioural approaches to family planning and population control, and their role in shaping how the population problem was understood and acted on. It revisits the importance of arguments about development, modernization, and fertility, focusing on the importance of different developmental models and their impact on population policy in the post-colonial period. It charts the connections between research and policy, exploring how they raised new questions about the empirical reality of the population problem, about the proper way to measure and understand it, and ultimately, explores the relationship between the state, statistics and individuals.

During the twentieth century systematic population studies brought international demographic problems, such as overpopulation, to light. Contrary to the global overpopulation problem and its consequences, Greece experienced low birth rates, high rates of induced abortion and mass emigration to Western countries. After the end of the Civil War (1949), the central preoccupation of the Greek population experts, physicians and academics was mostly demographic stability at a time when, with the onset of the Cold War, having a large and robust army became a priority. At the same time the lack of health and hygiene education and a poor infrastructure exacerbated the deterioration of the health condition of the population. As a consequence, the Greek state adopted pro-natalist policies to encourage demographic growth, whilst simultaneously prohibiting any contradictory efforts such as birth control. Thus, it is not surprising that until the 1980s family planning advice and female contraception were illegal. Because they were unable to use modern contraceptive methods, Greek women underwent induced abortion as the only alternative to an unwanted pregnancy. Greek eugenicists, who advocated in favour of family planning and, quality over quantity, in terms of birth, challenged the state’s policy. Beyond the borders of the country, birth control enthusiasts offered their broad support to a group of Greek physicians who shared their views. It was in this context that the Hellenic Eugenics Society was established in Greece. This dissertation addresses the population problems experienced by Greece during the period from the 1950s to the 1980s, from the vantage point of eugenics and family planning. Attention will be especially devoted to the establishment and activities of the Hellenic Eugenics Society, and its impact on domestic and international contexts. Eugenic ideas and policies, the institution of family, hereditary diseases, population distribution and contraception will be the central discussion areas.

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Eugenics has a complicated history. In the United States and Britain biologists, psychiatrists, anthropologists, political theorists and others were involved in eugenic discussions. But historians of eugenics have all but neglected to tell the geographer's story. This thesis discusses the role of four geographers: Robert DeCourcy Ward, Ellsworth Huntington, Stephen Sargent Visher and Herbert John Fleure. My main contention is that not only did these geographers play active roles in the eugenics movement, but that they used geographical theories and methodologies to bolster their eugenic ideology. Ward, as a leader of the immigration restriction movement in the United States, presented geographical solutions to eugenic problems; Huntington was a vocal advocate of understanding race through a geographical lens; Visher forwarded the claim that intelligence had a particular geography; and Fleure was interested in the history of race and migrations. These case studies serve as detailed examples of how the history of geography and the history of eugenics have intertwined in both Britain and the United States.

Low-lying atoll islands are highly threatened by anticipated sea-level rise, and migration is often mentioned as a potential response of island residents to this challenge. However, understanding of contemporary migration processes in small island settings is limited. This thesis analyses contemporary and potential future migration in small island settings, using the atoll nation of the Maldives as a case study. It asks four research questions: (1) What is known about present migration in small island settings to provide an empirical foundation for migration studies, including the potential role of climate change?; (2) What are contemporary drivers and indicators of migration flows in small islands?; (3) What are contemporary migration decision-making processes in small islands, including the role of the environment?; and (4) What are plausible future demographic and migration pathways for small islands? These research questions are answered using a systematic literature review, analysis of census and environmental vulnerability datasets, a survey conducted in 2015, and an agent-based model of migration using this data, respectively. The results are as follows. Important drivers of migration in small island settings include professional opportunities, size of migration networks, population policies and pressure, and quality of living environment. Migration within the Maldives has been a significant process over the last few decades with the heavily urbanised capital area ‘Greater Malé’ growing at the expense of the other islands. This has resulted in a strong dichotomy between professional opportunities, health services, and quality of life between Greater Malé and other islands. An important result is a high potential for international migration from the Maldives, which is not presently being realised. Both internal and international migration intentions of Maldivians are mainly driven by perceived professional opportunities. Historic climate change has not influenced migration to date. Further, internal or international migration in anticipation of climate change is not apparent from the data collected, and seems unlikely unless conditions change significantly. A significant population increase is projected for Greater Malé for all development scenarios up to 2050. The highest migration flows occur under a scenario with high population growth, high impacts of climate change, international migration, and low government involvement. Hence, today’s migration is due to multiple non-environmental factors. To understand the direct impacts of environmental change on migration considerations, its interaction with non-climate drivers of migration must be understood. Successful population and adaptation policy, such as land reclamation and raising islands, need to consider migration dynamics, employment, education, and other services. In the Maldives, and other small islands, this requires an integrated and nation-wide view of development and adaptation.

Background: Reducing rates of unintended pregnancy among young women in the United Kingdom (UK) requires that we understand why young women use particular contraceptive methods, why they stop using them, and why, in turn, they switch to other methods. The majority of studies in this area have been quantitative, and few have taken place in the UK. This study examines the patterns of contraceptive use among young women from the East of Scotland, and uses a qualitative approach to explore if they have contraceptive careers. Methods: Quantitative analyses of data collected as part of the SHARE (Sexual Health and Relationships) Sex Education Trial were used to explore young women’s contraceptive use, discontinuation, method switching, and patterns of use over time at age 16. In-depth interviews were conducted with 20 young women from this sample to examine their full sexual and contraceptive histories and the contexts within which they occur. Purposive sampling was used to select a heterogeneous sample of young women at age 20 based on sexual experience, area of residence, educational attainment and social background. Findings: Young women’s contraceptive use is complex and, in the quantitative data, multiple individual patterns of use were apparent. In the qualitative study, three contraceptive career types were apparent: consistent, complex, and chaotic. Consistent contraceptive careers were characterised by uniform and regular use over time; complex by manageable change depending on relationships, partner type, and experiences of method use; and chaotic by frequent method changes and multiple experiences of contraceptive failure, which were further complications in their already, somewhat disordered lives. All of the young women who were interviewed recognised their need for contraception but their ability to manage use, and therefore their experience of method discontinuation and contraceptive risks, varied depending on career type. All reported that they had changed their contraceptive method at least once, although most had only used condoms or the contraceptive pill. Most change was between these two particular methods. The need for pregnancy prevention underpinned all of the young women’s contraceptive choices, but for each method there were specific push factors, which encouraged use, and pull factors, which discouraged use. Ease of access and social norms around use encouraged condom use but the young women’s personal dislike of the method and their experience of condom failures resulted in change to the pill, particularly once the young women were in relationships with boyfriends. The pill was perceived to be more reliable, and its non-contraceptive benefits, particularly menstrual regulation, set it apart from other available methods and encouraged continued use. Use of alternative methods, such as long acting reversible contraceptives (LARC), was only initiated when the young women experienced major problems or side effects with the pill and change was advocated by a health professional. However, all who used alternatives, discontinued use because they disliked the side effects they experienced. Half had had unprotected sex, and for a few this was an unplanned, unexpected, one-off event, but for most it was a frequent behaviour, which became the norm. Most had used emergency contraception at some point, mainly as a result of contraceptive failure, and it remained a temporary, back-up method rather than a regular contraceptive. Conclusions: Contraceptive discontinuation and method switching was common among the young women in this study. Assessing their different patterns of use demonstrated that for some, contraceptive use was straightforward, while for others, it remained a constant struggle. A range of contraceptive methods should be made available to young women as one size does not fit all. However, it is important to recognise that pill use can be unproblematic if managed well. Sexual and reproductive health policies and interventions should consider what might really suit each individual young woman, based on her lifestyle and contraceptive experiences.

Au début du XXIe siècle, l'usage de la locution «expression culturelle traditionnelle» s'est répandu à travers plusieurs forums internationaux. Bien que les expressions culturelles traditionnelles n'aient jamais été définies en droit international, deux instruments issus du système des Nations Unies, la Convention sur la protection et la promotion de la diversité des expressions culturelles et la Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les droits des peuples autochtones, les citent expressément. Cette thèse présente, en premier lieu, l'apparition et l'évolution en droit international de cette nouvelle notion. Elle propose ensuite de dégager les caractères des expressions culturelles traditionnelles pour comprendre ce qu'elles recouvrent. Cette étape permet de distinguer les expressions culturelles traditionnelles de notions voisines, comme celle de «savoirs traditionnels» ou encore comme celle de «patrimoine culturel immatériel», ce qui aboutit à s'interroger sur les enjeux juridiques qui leur sont liés et à aborder les questions soulevées par leur sauvegarde. Parmi ces questions, la plus prééminente consiste à s'interroger sur la forme juridique que devrait prendre le lien entre une expression culturelle traditionnelle et la communauté qui l'a créée et préservée. Dans cette perspective, deux approches émergent. La première considère les expressions culturelles traditionnelles comme un facteur de développement économique, tandis que la deuxième les envisage comme un outil de préservation des identités culturelles. La confrontation de ces deux approches montre le rôle relativement limitée des expressions culturelles traditionnelles en matière de développement économique. / At the beginning of the 21st century, the use of the term "traditional cultural expression" spread among several international forums. Although they have never been legally defined, traditional cultural expressions are mentioned by two instruments originating within the United Nations system: the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (2005) and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007). This thesis presents how this notion emerged and evolved in international law. It also identifies the characteristics of this new legal concept to understand its meaning. This step allows to differentiate traditional cultural expressions from neighboring notions, such as "traditional knowledge" and "intangible cultural heritage." This leads to the study of legal issues relating to traditional cultural expressions and their safeguarding. Among these issues, the most paramount question is to ascertain the legal form that should be given to the link that binds a traditional cultural expression to the community that created and preserved it. In this view, two approaches appear. The first one considers traditional cultural expressions as a factor of economic development, whereas the second one contemplates them as a tool for the preservation of cultural identities. Confrontation of these two approaches demonstrate the limited role of traditional cultural expressions in the field of economic development.