The following dissertation looked at the problem of Polish foreign policy towards Ukraine between the Orange Revolution and the Euromaidan crisis, as it was expressed in the political rhetoric. Importantly the work drew on the tradition of the Polish émigré journal Kultura and the rich historical background of the Polish-Ukrainian relations. This was done in order to prove the hypothesis that although the recent strategy towards Ukraine borrows from the historical concepts, it does so incoherently. In essence, Polish authorities today prefer to design their own strategy, while references to the Kultura review serve as a bridge to keep a consistent image about Polish Eastern Policy. What has been also discussed was the division between the so-called romantic and pragmatic approach towards Polish Eastern Policy. The dissertation demonstrates that in general the labels are used rather mechanically. As such, it is often difficult to draw the line between romantics and pragmatics among Polish political class. The research was conducted with the use of qualitative content analysis methodology and supported by the constructivist theory. Its results are presented in a form of a set of categories that correspond to the main themes, which have been observed throughout the collected textual material. A...

In the course of time, the Egyptian army has developed a complicated network of economic interests as a privileged establishment, and independent from civilian oversight or political surveillance. This dissertation argues that; the well-established and long lasting independent economic interests may turn the military establishment to an independent stakeholder and closed, conservative group within the society seeks to preserve its own privileges by controlling over the political power and resist any external oversight including the democratic reforms that may create a threat to these privileges. Such military establishment is a direct threat to any democratic transition. In this case, the armies securitize the political sphere raising the democratic reforms as foreign conspiracy and an existential threat to its privileges and raise the nationalism and xenophobic rhetoric as it needs to create a political justification for their security practices that aim to crush the opposition and secure the political power. I suppose that the Egyptian case shows causal relations between the economic interests of the military establishment and the nationalism as a dominant ideology. Such military is leaning to not only control the political power, but it aims to militarize the societal values and control over the...

The thesis titled "Special Canadian-Cuban Relations under Prime Minister Diefenbaker" examines the roots of the Canadian Cuban Relations set during the reign of Prime Minister Diefenbaker. Whilst Canada's role is usually minimized during the events of the Cuban Revolution as well as the Cuban Missile Crisis, Canada will be discussed as one of the major players in the present thesis. The relationship of the two countries will be discussed mainly through the concepts of "other diplomacies" as the means of Canadian soft power diplomacy and Canadian "othering" of the United States as a part of Canadian nationalism. Both concepts will be introduced in the theoretical framework. The thesis is based on the assumption of Cuba's importance for Canada's national independence. Therefore greater focus will be payed to Canadian nationalist policies of Prime Minister Diefenbaker. The aim of the thesis is thus to discuss whether Canadian nationalism was the main factor influencing Canada's policy towards Cuba during the set time period. We will examine whether the means used by Canada towards Cuba during the late 1959 and early 1960s period can be linked to Canada's need to be seen as an independent country. Thanks to this approach we will be able to assess whether Cuba can be seen as a means of Canadian...

The diploma thesis deals with the analysis of the party system in Ukraine after the Revolution of Dignity. At the beginning of the work, changes in the party system of Ukraine in different time intervals will be analyzed. Subsequently, the work will focus on research into the development and changes in the party system of Ukraine after the Revolution of Dignity. The events of the Revolution of Dignity and, as a result, the complete liquidation of the dominant political party had a huge impact on Ukraine's party system. Following the fall of the Viktor Yanukovych regime and the former president's flight to Russia, the 2004 constitution of Ukraine was renewed. All the highest institutions of state power were restored. The process of reforming the constitutional principles of the organization of power, which concerns its various branches and levels, has begun. The main goal of this work is to identify the changes that have taken place after the Dignity Revolution and to analyze the main factors influencing the development of Ukraine's party system in this and other phases.

The Humanities Centre for Advanced Studies “Multiple Secularities – Beyond the West, Beyond Modernities” deals with topics, at least some of which I have myself dealt with throughout my sinological and philosophical life.1 I came to Frankfurt in autumn 1968: fascinated by Frankfurt School, I started studying sociology, but to my surprise this did not mean studying Critical Theory. Instead, it meant going through quite a conventional education in the social sciences, and moreover, it meant studying economics and statistics. This was not quite what I expected and after a few semesters I changed my major to philosophy. In need of a second subject, I chose sinology because of some vague interest in foreign cultures, and also because of the news coming from China at that time. It was the time of the Cultural Revolution that exerted a certain fascination on the German student movement especially since its revolutionary rhetoric differed so remarkably from the ossified language of Eastern European Marxist orthodoxy. So, like many members of my generation, I began to develop an interest in revolutionary China that was definitely not shared by my philosophy teachers – they were skeptical, at least to some extent.2

The current global labor market tends to be knowledge based and workers are consistently required to develop new competencies and adapt to changing environments. Bank employees in Nigeria do not have training that sustains future employment in other sectors, largely as a result of regulatory requirements that impede the development of soft skills and life-long learning opportunities. Little attention has been given to the lived experiences of these bank employees who are currently faced with the challenges posed by globalization and technology adoption. Guided by institutional analysis and development theory (IAD), this exploratory study examined the regulatory framework guiding bank employee career advancement in Nigeria. Qualitative data were collected from a total of 57 participants using semi-structured interviews administered on the three population samples drawn from the regulatory institutions, a pool of ex and current bank staff with a minimum of 8 years in the banking sector. Transcribed data were open coded, and then subjected to a thematic analysis procedure. The results offered a correlative effect and social cost of poor employee training to national development. The results indicated that competitive edge of Nigerian bank workers can be enhanced through acquisition of skills and training that will boost post-banking career transition opportunities. The positive social change implications of this study include recommendations to the three critical demographic blocks; the regulators, the banks and the bank employees. Recommendations of this study can improve the lives of many bank employees including those in other sectors, the economy, and the lives of those in the community.

Flexible forms of employment Abstract The purpose of this thesis is to map the flexible forms of employment currently offered by the Czech legislation as well as those that might possibly become part of the legal system in the Czech Republic. Flexible forms of employment are currently on the rise, and it is therefore relevant to address the possibilities offered by the legislation. Part one focuses on defining the basic terms of the legal and theoretical framework of flexible forms of employment and in this context also the importance of flexicurity as a concept that has shaped the forms of flexible employment in the recent years. Second part of the thesis describes the specific forms of employment in terms of their legal regulation and what challenges are associated with the use of each individual form of flexible employment, furthermore this part explores aspects of flexibility that can be found within these types flexible employment. Examples of such flexible forms of employment mentioned include, but are not limited to, fixed-term employment, homeworking and, in terms of working hours, a condensed working week and flexible working hours. The next part discusses new emerging forms of flexible employment, namely job sharing, employee sharing, interim management, casual work, as well as new forms of...

MYCELIUM MILLENNIUM imagines a new era in which biological resources, specifically Fungi and Mycelium, are used to grow a collection of objects for everyday domestic rituals, merging biofabrication and traditional craft. The project is an effort to demystify the transformation of an organism to a biomaterial and at the same time raise questions of aesthetics and cultural acceptance. The fungal mycelium material qualities –  antibacterial, fire-resistant, heat isolating and water-resistant – are incorporated in the function of each design.  The objects adopt antique symbols embedding them in a longer material history, as well as a scale and form that introduces the fungal material to the context of the home. While the collection attempts to stress longevity and resilience, it is integrated into a circular vision, where the material is sourced from nature and returns to nature.   MYCELIUM MILLENNIUM is an invitation to raise awareness for a material revolution, an opportunity to learn from nature and its potential, where products and objects could match the planet's needs.

A ubiquitous household appliance, the washing machine currently sees a fall in its usage life to a mere 7 years, with valuable and finite resources getting lost to the landfill faster than ever. The reason?  Mechanical obsolescence and barriers in repair that make helpless users as far removed from the process as possible. The goal of my degree project is to create long lasting product and service experiences through easier channels of repair and to design deeper partnerships between humans and the appliances that surround them. I want to be part of a rising sustainability movement that aims for a seismic shift in thinking by creating resilient product experiences.  Can the key to a sustainable future be appliances that last for generations?

Since the cold war, contemporary warfare is more frequently fought between state and non-state actors. The Islamic State is a non-state actor who in a short period of time reached major achievements. Some scientists consider the Islamic State’s warfare as a developing trend of irregular warfare. Despite the Islamic State’s big achievements, it seems the organisation have not been sufficiently studied from a military science perspective. There is an obvious ambiguity in how the Islamic State should be defined. One side in the debate consider the Islamic State a revolutionary actor, the other side consider them as a hybrid one. By examining witch of McCullohs theory of hybrid warfare and Guevaras theory of revolutionary warfare most adequate can describe the Islamic State; this case study aims to increase the current understanding of the Islamic State and its warfare. The analytical result shows that the Islamic State is more adequate described as a hybrid actor. There are many similarities between the two theories, however there are some essential differences that supports the result of this paper. The use of terrorism, the relationship with the population and the use of urban terrain proves that the Islamic State is more adequate described as a hybrid actor.