The GB electricity system is in a state of change, both physically and operationally. The future of the electricity system needs to be low carbon and secure. Current system structures revolve around large-scale centralised generation to deliver this security. This thesis argues that with a broad definition of energy security, which reflects the future needs of the electricity system, a decentralised approach would be more beneficial to deliver these needs. This thesis identifies the governance processes that make up current energy security and evaluates how these might change in a system of decentralised electricity. The research consists of 31 in-depth interviews with key stakeholders of the electricity system from the government, regulatory, market and civil society based actor groups. In addition to this, the research utilised a secondary analysis of consultation responses and Government publications. This thesis uses multi-layer perspective theory to interpret the transition from a centralised to decentralised electricity system. In addition to the multi-layer perspective, an advancement of the governance perspective was also required. This develops the understanding of the changes to the actor relationships rules and the incentives of a decentralised electricity system. This research developed for key findings. Firstly, a decentralised electricity future would introduce a larger number of small investors, who in a centralised system would not exist. The second key point is, the UK Government is responsible for security of supply and their actions are focused on centralised electricity technologies. The third point is that energy security (in its boarder definition) is the responsibility of a network of actors working together. The fourth point is that current energy security is incorrectly dominated by supply meeting demand. The outcome of the research is that a decentralised electricity system would be beneficial to the broader concept of energy security which is used in this thesis.

No description available.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 182-202).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Berkeley, 1992. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 495-537).

The research compares the energy security approaches and strategies of China and the EU since the early 2000's. It examines the nexus between strategies and approaches of the two actors and it seeks to highlight the importance of domestic issues such as energy security governance and domestic politics. In addition, it sheds light to the notion of hedging which has become recently a buzzword among political scientists. Finally, it takes a critical position towards the mainstream dichotomy between strategic and market-based approaches to energy security. Despite their structural differences, China and the EU share similarities regarding their conceptualization of energy security. Interestingly, both sides have based their perceptions on perceived and contested energy security risks. Hence, in the mid-2000's, the two actors securitized energy due to external factors such as the Russia-Ukraine gas crisis and the so-called "Malacca Strait dilemma". Domestic factors however served as a transmission belt and they determined the process of how these external challenges shaped their energy security perceptions and eventually their strategies. During the last years of the examined period, Beijing and Brussels have adopted more comprehensive and sophisticated approach. Their declared adherence to market-based principles reflects among others their interest in self-identifying as liberal actors. The latter has been a global trend among states. Furthermore, it is concluded that their energy security strategies have distinct differences as well as certain similarities. For many years, issues such as the "Malacca Dilemma" and the European dependence on Russian gas have played an important role to the energy security strategies of China and the EU. Again, the two actors have been incorporating strategic and market-based policies in their energy security strategies that aim at their domestic markets as well as abroad. In order to analyse the energy security perceptions of the two actors, the research assumed that China and the EU have been adopting a hedging strategy. While their behaviour has the characteristics of hedging, a basic difference between the two actors is that for China hedging is a strategic choice while for the EU hedging is a combination of policies adopted by different actors. As a result, while it can be accepted that China has been implementing a hedging strategy the EU has been merely pursuing a hedging behavior. The distinction between hedging strategy and hedging behavior stands as one of the theoretical contributions of this research. Finally, the research chooses the Caspian Sea region as a case-study in order to examine the energy security strategies of China and the EU. Both actors have been seeking access to the Caspian energy resources in order to hedge against their energy insecurities. Their approaches however are fundamentally different as China has established a strong foothold in the region adopting mainly mercantilistic tactics while the EU has been facing important hardships as a result of domestic setbacks that limit the effectiveness of its resource diplomacy as well as due to political incompatibility with the Caspian states. Using the Regional Security Complex Theory as a conceptual starting point, the research approaches the Caspian Sea region as an energy security complex where China and the EU have been also integrated. The research analyses the energy security strategies of China and the EU within the Caspian complex applying the theoretical framework of neoclassical realism. This theoretical novelty can be evaluated as successful and as a result, the research has established an alternative theoretical approach to regional security complexes.

The accession into NATO and the EU, from the perspective of the new Central and Eastern European members, symbolized their ‘return to Europe’. However, as the former outsiders have become insiders, they have become subjected to a new form of hierarchy. This is even reflected in international relations literature that studies the socialization of the new members into ‘European’ or ‘Western’ states (Checkel 2005; Gheciu 2005; Schimmelfennig and Sedelmeier 2005, etc.). The new members continue to be perceived as geographically and culturally on the ‘verge of Europe’, ‘not quite European’ or ‘in transition’ (Wolff 1994; Kuus 2004a; Mälksoo 2010; Zarycki 2014). Their status as ‘latecomers’ in Western institutions has become a stigma. This dissertation asks how stigmatization and subjection to tacit hierarchies, constructed through discourse, affect a state’s foreign policy. It focuses on the East-West relation in the European Union as one example of a hierarchy within this community of states. This dissertation looks at Poland’s foreign policy in the EU. Analytically, I build on the concept of strategic culture, a set of collective, historically shaped ideas and norms guiding a state’s pursuit of security. I go beyond the existing literature to argue that the guiding principle of a state’s strategic culture is the pursuit of not just physical but ontological security, which refers to stable subjectivity (Giddens 1991; Kinnvall 2004; Mitzen 2006a; Zarakol 2010). The recognition as a full member of the ‘Western’ and ‘European’ identity community is essential for Poland’s ontological security. This dependence on recognition makes Poland particularly sensitive to stigmatization within that community. In three case studies, the 2003 Iraq crisis, the 2008 Russo-Georgian war, and the 2013/4 Ukraine crisis, I study how its ‘latecomer’ stigma, and quest for recognition as a full-fledged member of ‘Europe’, and the ‘West’, affects Poland’s foreign policy. I show how Polish foreign policy-makers alternate between two possible responses to stigmatization, adaptation and contestation, and how, paradoxically, both of these strategies often reinforce stigmatization.

The thesis examines the coordination of public police organizations in an intra-national setting through interviews and observations with police officers and managers in multiple organizations in the Lower Mainland, BC, Canada, alongside documentary analysis of local, national and provincial law, policy and protocols relating to coordination. It produces a qualitative and inductive analysis of how police coordinate both within and between agencies, examining ‘interstices’ between police units and using recent ‘integration’ initiatives between public police organizations in the Lower Mainland as a focal point. It develops a recent local history of police activity and organizational change in the region; a novel typology of police organizational boundaries grounded in open-systems organizational theory; and an account of the dynamics of inter-unit coordination based on empirical findings. The thesis then sets out a governance problem for police coordination, developing the argument that coordination work is unique work and needs to be treated as such for purposes of accountability, transparency and equity of police practice in a democratic society. This governance problem is applied to broader developments in police work in Anglo-American societies, and an intellectual framework for assessing police governance under coordination is advanced.

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine how the Swedish policy of neutrality has changed between the years 1990-2008. The research method used for this essay has been comparative case study, which strives to answer four research questions. Two of these questions are: Which specific occurrences have been fundamental in changing the Swedish policy of neutrality? How have the Swedish policy of neutrality and the policy of non-alignment changed between the years 1990-2008? The theoretical frame work of this study consists of Europeanization as a comprehensive theoretical perspective. In order to explain the Swedish act regarding the policy of neutrality, Logic of Consequences and Logic of appropriateness are used. The conclusion of the study points out that Sweden has become much more flexible in terms of policy of neutrality and policy of security. The years between 1990-2008 are distinguished due to the fact that the international cooperation has become much more important in the Swedish act of security. Sweden still has the policy of non-alignment, but cooperation between the states is more and more prioritized to secure peace around the world.

<p>Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine how the Swedish policy of neutrality has changed between the years 1990-2008. The research method used for this essay has been comparative case study, which strives to answer four research questions. Two of these questions are: Which specific occurrences have been fundamental in changing the Swedish policy of neutrality? How have the Swedish policy of neutrality and the policy of non-alignment changed between the years 1990-2008? The theoretical frame work of this study consists of Europeanization as a comprehensive theoretical perspective. In order to explain the Swedish act regarding the policy of neutrality, Logic of Consequences and Logic of appropriateness are used. The conclusion of the study points out that Sweden has become much more flexible in terms of policy of neutrality and policy of security. The years between 1990-2008 are distinguished due to the fact that the international cooperation has become much more important in the Swedish act of security. Sweden still has the policy of non-alignment, but cooperation between the states is more and more prioritized to secure peace around the world.</p>

This thesis depicts the French security and foreign policy regarding European security. The study covers French foreign and security policy in the aftermath of the Second World War, the period of Charles de Gaulle, Fran&ccedil / ois Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac. The theme of autonomy in European security is maintained throughout the years under scrutiny. It is argued that the search for autonomy has been a constant goal of the French security and foreign policy. It is also maintained that France has a policy of employing organizations like NATO and European Union as an instrument to advance its own causes, where possible.