No / The widespread protests of November 2019 may be marked as the bloodiest recent chapter of the Islamic Republic of Iran's history in terms of popular dissent. The two major protests in December 2017 and November 2019, followed by the public reaction to the shooting down of the Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 by the IRGC over Tehran after the US killing of General Soleimani, suggest that the prevailing dynamics of political protest in Iran are changing. There is an increasing sense of radicalisation among protesters, while the state is prepared to resort to extreme violence to maintain control. The geography of political protest has changed. The declining economic situation has had a profound impact on the more vulnerable segments of the society who are now increasingly playing a more proactive role in challenging the state. The methods of protest have been evolving over the last four decades, especially in the cultural arena. Last but not least, the willingness of the protesters both to endure and inflict violence is precipitously transforming state-society relations beyond recognition. This article begins by providing a brief overview of protest in the history of the Islamic Republic, up to the public reaction to the 2020 downing of the Ukrainian airline over Tehran. This provides a historical context to assess the ways in which both the political climate and protests have changed over the last four decades. A section identifying and analysing the factors which have created the current political cul-de-sac then follows. The changing dynamics of the protests are the result of the existing political gridlock and the economic crisis, and it is thus important to evaluate the prevailing conditions which have paved the way for the radicalisation of political climate in Iran. The final section examines the changing dynamics of political protest.

Environmental and green politics came into prominance during the last two decades. These two concepts, as well as environmentalism and ecologism are defined in this study and placed within the context of the political system. The emphasis is on green politics and ecologism. The global green movement is analysed according to policy, organisational structures and pattern of development. The South African environmental and green movements are described in the latter part of the study. It is shown that South Africa has a long history of environmentalism. The South African green movement is compared with the global green movement after which it is placed within the context of the South African political system. Green politics in South Africa seems to resemble the early stages of the development of the European movement and the concept of social justice is emphasised. Selected Western Cape groups are discussed according to information gathered by means of a questionnaire. / Political Science / M.A. (Political Science)

Thesis (MPhil (School of Public Management and Planning))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / The word ‘ecovillage’ is evocative of a kind of human settlement that exists in complete harmony with nature and examples of such settlements are indeed in existence almost everywhere in the world, some nearly half a century in the making. The Gqunube Green Ecovillage near East London can hardly be described as one of a proliferation of such settlements in South Africa, but it is anticipated that an examination of that project will contribute to the limited academic literature on the topic of sustainable human settlement. In Chapter 1, this thesis introduces the Gqunube Green Ecovillage and, in the following six chapters, traces its origins and demonstrates how models for ‘ideal’ human settlement developed. It explains how and why an international ecovillage movement reached South Africa and how Reverend Roger Hudson responded to that movement by starting the Gqunube Green Ecovillage in South Africa. The conclusion is that Reverend Hudson has achieved his primary objective, namely the establishment of an ecovillage, but the challenges described in this thesis have been significant. One of the most significant potential stumbling blocks to the future smooth management of Gqunube Green is its own regulatory environment that dictates the relationship between the settlers and their ecovillage. The proposed sociocratic management style, combined with a strongly spiritual, eco-theological objective, is driven by a strongly worded and rule-orientated ecovillage constitution that is shown in Chapters 2 and 3 to have the potential to both alienate and unite the inhabitants of the Gqunube Green Ecovillage – depending on how it is interpreted and enforced. The external regulatory environment, both enabling and restricting development, is analysed in Chapter 4. National, provincial and local government legislation, policies and guidelines intersect to influence the progress of the Gqunube Green Ecovillage, creating opportunity for controversy between conservationists and developers. However, the debates between the various interest groups over the appropriateness of various development options for the east bank of the Gonubie Estuary were largely incidental and somewhat irrelevant to the delays in the development of the Gqunube Green Ecovillage that are described in Chapter 5. Although bureaucratic delays in the formal process of development have restrained the full rollout of the ecovillage project, the Gqunube Green Ecovillage was eventually established at the end of 2005 and the chronology leading to this milestone is described in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 of this thesis examines the timing of the Gqunube Green Ecovillage project within a changing and enabling paradigm shift, enabled by cooperative local government and efforts at the integration of legislation and policy to align with the constitutional aims of sustainable development. The concept of an ecovillage is not always acceptable to everyone as the ideal development model, especially when big business has a stake. However, it has been argued that the very fact that the establishment of an ecovillage has succeeded where big business was about to establish itself is a victory in itself for the founders of the Gqunube Green Ecovillage.

自2002年秘密運作的核能設施曝光後，伊朗的核能政策一直是國際爭點且令人費解。若要討論伊朗核能政策是如何產出及其未來的走勢，本文認為伊朗本身的動機才是決定核能政策的關鍵。 本文以「個人－國內政治－國際政治」三層次作為分析架構，首先討論核能政策的發展歷程及其對伊朗的意義；其次分析伊朗最高宗教領袖Khamenei及伊朗政治派系如何影響核能政策；最後聚焦於2009年綠色運動後至2015年JCPOA簽訂這段期間，伊朗最高宗教領袖Khamenei與核能政策演變的關係。 本文發現伊朗的政治菁英對核能政策有高度共識，認為發展核能政策代表著實踐伊朗的大國意識與民族尊嚴、經濟與能源多元化的自主發展以及安全上的保障。另外，從政治派系角度出發，核能政策也被視為派系鬥爭中的槓桿，是政治菁英獲得權力的工具。同時，基於伊朗特殊的政治體制－－教法學家體系，最高宗教領袖Khamenei為伊朗權力體系中的第一人，其態度與政治取向決定了核能政策的走向。而在最高宗教領袖Khamenei決定核能政策的走向時，其必須將國內外政經局勢納入考量，並時時權衡當前的局勢是否會影響其作為最高宗教領袖的合法性。本文認為，若能繼續對最高宗教領袖Khamenei加以觀察，並分析其與國內政治派系的互動，將有助於未來對伊朗核能政策的了解並對伊朗政治帶來更全面的研究。

This thesis seeks to better understand the most pressing cultural barriers to progress in the sustainability movement, and to offer suggestions for overcoming barriers. This research includes a two-year long case study of the sustainability movement at OSU, where the researcher coordinated projects encouraging behavior change. Despite increasing severity and knowledge of environmental problems, behavior on-campus continues largely unchanged. Cultural norms and values of western society underlie reasons why behavior is not changing on-campus. The OSU case study grounds cultural barriers identified in analysis of semi-structured interviews with campus sustainability leaders. Literature for this research looks at cultural norms and values which block progress in the movement and critiques current efforts which rely too heavily on science and technology to solve fundamentally human problems in pursuing sustainability. Some of the more prevalent cultural barriers identified in this research include: a lack of time and/or money to get involved in the movement or make behavior changes, reactionary thinking, a growing sense of entitlement, and a lack of dialogue about the sacrifices needed to create a more sustainable society. In examining ways to overcome cultural barriers to progress, the researcher suggests crafting the sustainability message to be accessible, relatable, valuable and manageable to the average person. The framework for crafting the sustainability message is guided by the notion that progress in the movement will be defined by a focus on creative, personal, and spiritual aspects of human life, in addition to scientific and technological measures. / Graduation date: 2012

Environmental and green politics came into prominance during the last two decades. These two concepts, as well as environmentalism and ecologism are defined in this study and placed within the context of the political system. The emphasis is on green politics and ecologism. The global green movement is analysed according to policy, organisational structures and pattern of development. The South African environmental and green movements are described in the latter part of the study. It is shown that South Africa has a long history of environmentalism. The South African green movement is compared with the global green movement after which it is placed within the context of the South African political system. Green politics in South Africa seems to resemble the early stages of the development of the European movement and the concept of social justice is emphasised. Selected Western Cape groups are discussed according to information gathered by means of a questionnaire. / Political Science / M.A. (Political Science)

Ecology is a critical current of thought towards industrialized societies, which spreads throughout the Western countries in the second half of the 20th century. As a social movement, Ecologists try to set the rules of a society more respectful of the environment and the living conditions ; as a political movement, they offer a new model for society. Between 1960 and 1990, France and Germany present similarities regarding a growing sensitivity towards the environmental issues in their populations and the progressive accession of ecology to the political stage. A more detailed analysis nevertheless reveals historical, economical, social, political and institutional as well as cultural and mental characteristics peculiar to each country underlining important differences in these fields and explaining the clichés about a romantic Germany concerned with the need to preserve the biosphere and a Cartesian France ignoring the environment. / L’écologie est un courant de pensée critique à l’encontre des sociétés industrialisées qui se développe dans la seconde moitié du XXème siècle en Occident. En tant que mouvement social, les écologistes cherchent à définir les règles d’une société plus respectueuse de l’environnement et du cadre de vie ; en tant que courant politique, leurs réflexions ont pour but de proposer un autre modèle de société. Entre 1960 et 1990, la France et l’Allemagne présentent des similitudes en matière de prise de conscience environnementale au sein de la population et au niveau de l’arrivée de l’écologie sur la scène politique. Une analyse comparative plus précise dévoile toutefois des caractéristiques historiques, économiques, sociales, politiques et institutionnelles ainsi que culturelles et mentales propres à chaque pays qui permettent de souligner des divergences importantes dans ces domaines et d’expliquer les clichés se rapportant à une Allemagne romantique, sensible à la protection de la biosphère, et une France cartésienne, négligente sur le plan environnemental.

The party system of Iceland was always well-known for its strong stability and moderate nature typical for its whole modern development. But since the 1999 parliamentary election the Icelandic party system has been going through several changes and it is not appropriate to consider it nowadays as a traditionally stable party system with, in the long term, the dominant Independence Party. The party system is splitting off and the new parties are found out. Although after the 2013 election the system returned to the pre-2009 model, there is still an important question whether it reflects repeated stabilization of the Iceland political and party system, or it is only a reaction to the left-wing government in the years of 2009 to 2013. The aim of this thesis is to answer the following questions: is the Icelandic party system going through some changes of its structure or inter-party competition, and if so, is this transformation caused by the financial and bank crisis in 2008, or does it concern long- term transformations? Did the electoral shock in 2009 result from the reaction of the Icelandic voters to the financial crisis, or the election results were only another validation of the long- term Icelandic party system trend, namely by erosion of its traditional adjustment? In the analysis of the...

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

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