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International cooperation on export controls for technology is based on three assumptions, that it is possible: to know against whom controls should be directed; to control the international transfer of technology; and to define the items to be controlled. These assumptions paint a very hierarchical framing of one of the central problems in export controls: dual-use technology. This hierarchical framing has been in continual contention with a competitive framing that views the problem as the marketability of technology. This thesis analyses historical and contemporary debates between these two framings of the problem of dual-use technology, focusing on the multilateral Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies. Using a framework of concepts from Science & Technology Studies and the theory of sociocultural viability, I analyse the Arrangement as a classification system, where political, economic, and social debates are codified in the lists of controlled items, which then structure future debates. How a technology is (not) defined, I argue, depends as much on the particular set of social relations in which the technology is enacted as on any tangible aspects the technology may have. The hierarchical framing is currently hegemonic within Wassenaar, and I show how actors that express this framing use several strategies in resolving anomalies that arise concerning the classification of dual-use technology. These strategies have had mixed success, and I show how they have adequately resolved some cases (e.g. quantum cryptography), while other areas have proved much more difficult (e.g. focal plane arrays and computers). With the development of controls on intangible technology transfers, a third, egalitarian framing is arising, and I argue that initial steps have already been taken to incorporate this framing with the discourse on dual-use technology. However, the rise of this framing also calls into question the fundamental assumption of export controls that technology is excludable, and therefore definable.

In the period from 2009-2020, South Africa has witnessed the rise of "lawfare". Lawfare is understood as the judicialisation of politics - turning to the courts and the use of the law to resolve broadly political matters. This thesis explores the unfolding implications of the judicialisation of politics for judicial legitimacy. In the displacement of the political into the judicial the reach of the courts is expanded and the legitimacy of courts engaging in a "political" role is questioned. Situated in the field of judicial-political dynamics, the interplay between law and politics is observed through the adoption of a historical-institutionalist model. This thesis identifies the causes of the judicialisation of politics and then traces its consequences for broader constitutional stability and the impact on the judicial institution. Guidelines for the Court to navigate lawfare to achieve institutional resilience and maintain judicial legitimacy are then proposed. Judicialisation of politics is caused primarily through the failures of the other branches of government to fulfil their assigned constitutional role. Institutional imbalance in a dominant party democracy means that opposition parties and civil society organisations are left with little recourse but to appeal to the Court to be a constitutional bulwark. The Court is then compelled to step into the breach and fill the accountability vacuum. In identifying the causes of judicialisation, a fuller understanding of Lawfare emerges, expanding current scholarship beyond its traditionally abusive characterisation. It posits a duality to Lawfare in that it can be both an abuse of law and a last line of defence. Through observing the judicial political interactions, a trajectory from the judicialisation of politics to the politicisation of law is mapped. The politicisation of law sees political power refocused on the courts, exposing them to political aggression and attack by the dominant party. The judicialisation of politics that seeks accountability from recalcitrant political actors asks much of the courts, at a time when ensuring executive oversight is the most dangerous, because of the ease with which a hostile executive in a dominant party democracy can implement measures that may undermine the independence of the judiciary. The Constitutional Court has shown a remarkable ability to navigate this era of Lawfare, remaining resolute under fire. However, the more successful the Court is in holding the line against executive abuse of power, the more the judicial route is identified as a powerful weapon to achieve more abusive political objectives. The relationship between Lawfare and legitimacy is identified as a wicked problem that demands expanding boundaries to observe the courts influence on the political environment, and the political environment's influence on the judicial role and its legitimacy. Through advancing a multi-dimensional paradigm of judicial legitimacy, the dialectics of judicial legitimacy are shown to be aggravated by the judicialisation of politics. In this respect it is argued that where the foundations and assumptions on which legitimacy is predicated shift, legitimacy must be re-examined. It is therefore argued that in a culture marked by an impunified disregard of non-judicial regulatory enforcement and increasing non-compliance with judicial orders, the impulse to preserve legitimacy through a detached, formalist stance will not be sufficient. Judicial legitimacy must be relocated in the ability of the Court to be responsive. Pulled into the role of judicial statesmanship, the Court must adopt a robust approach to assertively uphold the rule of law. In tracking the unfolding consequences of the judicialisation of politics, the Court is asked to resolve matters beyond its institutional capabilities. Absent the normative commitment to the rule of law, the internationalisation of constitutional norms, and the political interest to implement remedial orders, the Court is unable to effect workable relief. In tracing the dangers of the continued trend of Lawfare, the thesis sketches a downward spiral of reputational strength of the Court and a decline in democratic responsibility. This leads to an inability to achieve effective reform that ends in disenchantment, questioning the faith placed in the Constitution. It depicts how the Constitutional Court as 'constitutional saviour' can unravel into constitutional blame. The Constitutional Court has been able to hold the line in this era of Lawfare and repel assaults on its integrity and efforts to undermine its independence. However, without a broader culture of commitment to the rule of law, civil education and a suffusion of constitutional responsibility beyond the judiciary, the Court will not be able to continue to shoulder the weight of what is asked of it. This research depicts a circular model of Lawfare and legitimacy, where Lawfare is predicated on judicial legitimacy, but an overreliance on Lawfare will destroy judicial legitimacy.

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No description available.

The transport sector is facing a noticeable challenge to decrease its environmental and climate impacts, as well as to increase the possibility to achieve the objectives that are managing the societal development. Additionally, the early stages of transport planning are characterised by the participation of many stakeholders and that several areas of interest are affected, which entails that no distinct solution exist. This is an example of a wicked problem. One strategy there has been found efficient to handle wicked problems is the collaborative planning approach. In Sweden, the Strategic Choice of Measures approach (SCM) is used in the early stages of the transport planning process to enable the integration of several perspectives and discussion of alternative measures. Previous studies show that there is a need for increased consideration of environmental aspects and use of the collaborative methodology in SCMs. Furthermore, there should be an increased coordination between the actors and inclusion of a broader problem description in the early stages of transport planning to be able to achieve the Swedish climate objective.  This degree project aimed to explore the early stages of national transport planning in Sweden in relation to the potential of achieving the objectives managing the transport system, with a focus on the environmental aspects and objectives. A qualitative methodology was used, based on a literature review, case study, semi-structured interviews with representatives from four governmental authorities, as well as a content analysis based on concepts from theories on collaborative planning and management by objectives.  The study found that the interviewees, in general, had a common understanding of the early stages of national transport planning in Sweden. The differing point of view that existed were dependent on the governmental authority’s role and possibility to participate in these planning steps. The biggest differences were found to be the opinion of what role the SCM should have in the transport planning and how environmental aspects should be considered. Further, the result and analysis showed that the early stages mean great opportunities for the contribution of achieving the environmental objectives, since the process of setting objectives is based on comprehensive objectives and a broad problem description, as well as the possibility to consider environmental aspects throughout the early stages. The result and analysis of the study also showed that potential of the early stages to consider environmental aspects and contribute to the achievement of environmental objectives would benefit from some improvements. The suggested improvements are to include support for increased transparency, develop new tools for assessment of measures and break down comprehensive objectives to the relevant planning level. Lastly, the study showed that the process pf setting achievement-inducing objectives and the collaborative planning approach may benefit from being used together. This conclusion would most likely be possible to apply to other societal development sectors when setting objectives. / Transportsektorn står inför en märkbar utmaning för att minska sin miljö- och klimatpåverkan, samt möjligheten att bidra till att uppnå de mål som styr samhällsutvecklingen. Dessutom karaktäriseras speciellt de tidiga skedena av transportplanering av att flera olika aktörer medverkar och att flera intressen påverkas, vilket medför att ingen entydig lösning finns. Detta är ett exempel på ett komplext problem (eng. wicked problem). För att hantera dessa problem har den kollaborativa planeringsteorin identifierats som en effektiv strategi. I Sverige används åtgärdsvalsstudien (ÅVS) i de tidiga skedena av transportplaneringsprocessen för att möjliggöra integrering av flera perspektiv och diskussion av alternativa åtgärder. Tidigare studier visar att det inom åtgärdsvalsstudier krävs en ökad hänsyn till miljöaspekter samt att den kollaborativa metodiken inte används fullt ut. Vidare bör det inom de tidiga skedena av transportplaneringen ske en ökad samordning av aktörer och inkluderas en bredare problembild för att nå Sveriges klimatmål.  Detta examensarbete syftade till att undersöka de tidiga skedena av nationell transportplanering i Sverige kopplat till dess potential att uppnå målen som styr transportsystemet, med fokus på miljöaspekter och miljömål. Studien följde en kvalitativ metodik som inkluderade en litteraturstudie, fallstudie, semistrukturerade intervjuer med representanter från fyra statliga myndigheter, samt en innehållsanalys baserad på begrepp från teori inom kollaborativ planering och målstyrning.  Studiens resultat visade att det generellt finns en samstämmig syn mellan intervjupersonerna för hur de tidiga skedena av Sveriges nationella transportplanering ser ut. Skillnaderna i synsätt som fanns grundade sig i myndighetens roll och möjlighet att delta i dessa planeringssteg. De största skillnaderna visade sig vara synen på vad åtgärdsvalsstudien ska ha för roll i transportplaneringen och på vilket sätt miljöaspekter bör tas hänsyn till i tidiga skeden. Vidare visade resultatet och analysen att de tidiga skedena har stora möjligheter att bidra till att miljömålen uppnås, detta genom att processen att sätta mål utgår från övergripande mål och en bred problembild, samt att miljöaspekter kan tas hänsyn till i alla steg inom de tidiga skedena. Studiens resultat och analys visade också att de tidiga skedenas potential att ta hänsyn till miljöaspekter och bidra till att miljömål uppnås skulle gynnas av vissa förbättringar, så som stöd för ökad transparens, att utveckla nya verktyg för bedömning av åtgärder och att bryta ned övergripande mål till den relevanta planeringsnivån. Avslutningsvis visade studien att processen att sätta rationella mål och den kollaborativa planeringsapproachen kan gynnas av att användas tillsammans. Denna slutsats skulle troligtvis även kunna appliceras inom andra samhällssektorer.

Ce travail de recherche s’est déroulé au Carrefour jeunesse-emploi des Chutes-de-la-Chaudière auprès de l’équipe d’intervention d’un projet d’insertion socioprofessionnelle : le plateau de travail. L’élément déclencheur a été le besoin de réflexion manifesté par les intervenantes, alors qu’elles tentaient de résoudre une problématique complexe liée au projet. C’est dans ce contexte que nous avons pu accompagner les intervenantes dans le développement de leur processus de design, qu’elles ont nommé la démarche créative. Évaluer un projet social avec l’aide d’indicateurs est communément utilisée dans le cadre du Nouveau management public (NMP). Cette forme de gestion impose une coordination « en plan » qui ne favorise pas la « conversation avec la situation » dans la conduite d’un projet, qui selon Schön (1996), est une caractéristique essentielle des pratiques liées à la conception. Nous émettons donc l’hypothèse qu’il est possible de sortir des impasses de la réalisation du plan en tentant d’introduire des modalités de projet propres au design. Comme nous étions impliquée dans la situation en tant qu’agente de développement, nous avons privilégié une approche méthodologique de recherche-projet. Pour rendre compte de cette démarche, nous avons utilisé un journal de bord, la retranscription d’enregistrements vidéo de rencontres et l’analyse des contenus discursifs (codage). L’analyse des données nous a permis d’observer les conditions ayant favorisé la pratique réflexive de l’équipe d’intervention. D’abord, le désir de changer la situation a amené l’équipe à initier son processus de design et à procéder à une première définition de la problématique. Ensuite, la dynamique de l’équipe s’est développée au cours des rencontres en s’appuyant sur une compréhension mutuelle, des rapports égalitaires (Boutinet, 2005) et des interventions renforçant la cohésion du groupe. L’aménagement d’un espace pour converser avec la situation a permis aux intervenantes de mettre en commun leurs repères familiers (Thévenot, 2006), de mettre en œuvre leur pensée analogique et leur imagination narrative et de développer leur processus réflexif (Schön, 1994). Enfin, elles ont persévéré dans la démarche créative en acceptant l’existence de problèmes pernicieux (Rittel & Webber, 1973) et en considérant l’incertitude comme une alliée. / This research project took place at Carrefour jeunesse-emploi des Chutes-de-la-Chaudière with a team of social workers from a socioprofessional integration project: le plateau de travail (the work platform). What launched this project was the social workers’ need to reflect, as they were attempting to resolve a complex issue relating to the project. It is within this context that we were able to assist these social workers in developing their design process, which they named the creative process. Evaluating a social project using indicators is often utilized within the framework of New Public Management (NPM). This type of management requires a “planned” coordination that does’nt favour a “conversation with the situation” within the carrying out of a project, which, according to Schön (1996), is an essential characteristic of practices having to do with conception. Thus we put forth the hypothesis that it is possible to break free of the deadlocks of plan conception by attempting to introduce project modalities which belong to design. Since we were involved in the situation as development officers, we opted for a methodological research-project approach. In order to be able to review this process, we utilized a journal, transcriptions of video recordings and analyzed discursive contents (coding). Analyzing the data has allowed us to observe the conditions which support the reflective pratice of the intervention team. First of all, the will to change the situation has lead the team to begin its design process and to an initial definition of the problem. Afterwards, the dynamic of the team has developped throughout our encounters based on mutual understanding, egalitarian rapport (Boutinet, 2005) and interventions which reinforced the group’s cohesion. Setting up a space to converse with the situation has allowed the social workers to put their familiar references in common (Thévenot, 2006), to apply their analogical thinking and narrative imagination and to develop their reflective practice (Schön, 1994). Finally, they have persisted in the process by accepting the existence of wicked problems (Rittel & Webber, 1973) and by considering uncertainty as an ally.

In the midst of a period of economic transition, community organizers across Appalachia are working towards a just future that privileges community growth over corporate gain. A recent turn towards social justice concerns in Professional and Technical Communication suggests that efforts of community organizers might be of interest to scholars focused on addressing wicked problems in disenfranchised communities. This dissertation draws from results of a participatory photovoice study in which 11 community organizers took photos, wrote narratives, and responded in focus groups, and site visits to several communities. These methods call for deep engagement with community knowledges, producing rich visual and textual portraits of life in Appalachia that challenge stereotypical renderings of the region and its residents. After providing a heuristic for uncovering and re-valuing community knowledges, this dissertation looks at how place, technology, and community factor into the experiences of community organizers. Results from gathered qualitative data suggest that community members are experts on their own experiences, as participants revealed understandings of complex problems that call into question standard development practices lauded by technical experts. Second, participants demonstrated a capacity for embracing the very elements of their communities that had been used to marginalize them, pointing to the power of unexpected and creative tactics. Lastly, their reflections revealed the need for more attention to be placed upon community organizing in rural contexts and what kinds of community knowledges exist beyond expected parameters. By documenting their experiences organizing around public problems, participants confronted monolithic representations of their region, articulated their own nuanced accounts of life in rural areas, and crafted strategies for community-focused development that privileges people. Ultimately this project argues that by inviting community knowledges into the academic sphere, we might craft more effective coalitions to tackle complex public problems.

The issue of environmental risks from the pharmaceutical endocrine disrupter 17 alpha-ethinyl oestradiol (EE2), which is an active ingredient in the contraceptive pill, confronts government responsibilities for citizens' health with potential environmental risks from its presence in aquatic ecosystems. Further to a risk appraisal process conducted under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) between 2006 and 2012, the European Commission recommended the imposition of an environmental quality standard for EE2. In 2013, this recommendation was rejected by politicians. The outcome was both contested and commended. The UK Government was particularly vehement in its opposition and claimed that the risk assessment process for EE2 was not robust. The UK Government also insisted that it had swayed opinion of other EU Member States to convince them that action for EE2 was not proportionate given the extremely elevated costs of risk control options. At the present time, environmental policy for EE2 and other endocrine disrupters remains resolutely ineffective. Despite three distinct policy interventions recommending precautionary action for EE2 during the past twenty years, emissions of this potent, oestrogenic endocrine disrupter continue unabated. This thesis explains why European politicians rejected the European Commission’s risk governance recommendations for EE2 in 2013 under the Water Framework Directive. This comprises its principal empirical contribution. A novel analytical framework which draws on insights from the policy sciences, risk governance and wicked problems literature is developed. This framework is employed to determine whether the policy outcome for EE2, and the decision-making processes that preceded it, were legitimate. The research findings in this respect advance understanding of the implications of specific properties of wicked problems, of which it is argued, EE2 is an example, for the legitimacy of decision-making processes during the risk appraisal and political phases of policy development in Europe. This comprises the principle theoretical contribution of the thesis. Recommendations to promote more effective and legitimate policy development for wicked problems in similar multi-level governance contexts are also made.

Many people do not like thinking about the future. If they do, over 50% of Canadians think “our way of life” (p. 7) will end within 100 years and over 80% of Canadians think “we need to change our worldview and way of life if we are to create a better future for the world” (Randle & Eckersley, 2015, p. 9). There is a good reason for this. Alarms have sounded over global urgent complex problems with potential for catastrophic consequences such as the development of artificial intelligence, climate change, mass extinction, nuclear war and pandemics (Marien & Halal, 2011). Society is also increasingly fragmenting as imminent crises build on lack of understanding, the sense of incapacity to act, fear, distrust, blame and a lack of hope. This struggle for humanity’s survival is complicated by the turbulent global environment in which institutions continue to follow path-dependent trajectories set forth in a different time and context. Governments at various levels face a problem of “fit” between current structures and processes, that have not progressed sufficiently to meet changing needs of a global society mired in complexity and governance challenges. However, hope exists. Incremental progress on many fronts and a massive amount of efforts and resources are being engaged worldwide. There are emerging fields, lenses and tools that can potentially alleviate complex problems and address this emergency. The purpose of this dissertation is to understand and assess dialogue-based foresight practices being applied towards complex problems in Canada to provide insights into how these practices can assist society to alleviate global urgent complex problems and their impacts, within this backdrop of looming crises. Foresight, alternatively known as future studies or scenario-building, is a forward-looking practice recognized and used globally with over 100 research organizations focused on foresight, widespread usage by firms and over 18 countries involved in foresight activities (Berze, 2014b). Overall literature findings suggest foresight is widely and at least incrementally effective with a number of impacts in various areas (Calof, Miller, & Jackson, 2012; March, Therond, & Leenhardt, 2012; Meissner, Gokhberg, & Sokolov, 2013) but the extent of this effectiveness, the mechanisms involved, and the specific foresight benefits per type of project needs further research and evidence. For instance, limited literature exists on whether foresight can transform complex situations and if so, under what conditions. Thus, opportunities exist for assessing and increasing foresight’s impact. This dissertation is a contextualized, systematic empirical study that taps into transdisciplinary literature and practice, case studies of how foresight has been used to address specific types of complex problems in Canada, as well as surveys and interviews with foresight experts and participants. This dissertation uses a foresight community scan and a comparative case study approach to provide practical and theoretical benefits to foresight and complex problem area stakeholders. The research focuses on studying the broad interactions of foresight and identifying the impacts of dialogue-based foresight projects on people and the outcomes of complex problems. The dissertation concludes that dialogue-based foresight is a valuable and unique practice for ameliorating complex problems and their consequences. Insights are offered towards dialogue-based foresight’s potential contributions within the context of other efforts directed at humanity’s struggle for survival and global complex problems. These insights can then foster the further development and application of dialogue-based foresight on a global scale to alleviate complex problems and their effects. The dissertation outlines recommendations on key next steps to realize these potential contributions. / Graduate