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After 9/11, the academic study of terrorism flourished as more government resources were focused on counterterrorism efforts. As the focus slowly shifted towards P/CVE or Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism, more and more articles lauded the potential benefits of including Formers. The idea behind that was that experience equals expertise. Formers have been valuable data sources as research participants. However, the current trend has seen Formers leave that role and take on far more complicated and sophisticated roles, such as deradicalization experts, claiming to help people leave extremism. This policy paper focuses on the evidence, specifically the lack of evidence, to support the prevailing assumptions regarding the effectiveness of Formers and dissects the ethical issues arising from their involvement in P/CVE. The paper ends with policy recommendations to shift P/CVE activities and research toward a more empirically-grounded model. Since P/CVE initiatives involve a variety of actors, from academic researchers to the media to practitioners, this paper is not aimed at one field or profession. Rather, it is intended for everyone involved in P/CVE-related activities, including research.

The EU Member States are characterised by long and varied institutional history, with different trajectories in their evolution. There is a complex system of relations between the institutions of the European Union and the authorities of the Member States, which are called as the European Administrative Space. This is a multidimensional concept, and it promotes intensive cooperation between administrative actors, and their activities from each level. The European Administrative Space is the area, in which increasingly integrated administrations jointly exercise power delegated to the EU in a system of shared sovereignty. This article explores the reasons for and the consequences of this development.

Inspired by methods used in risk assessment, this paper suggests a structured professional judgment approach (SPJ) to facilitate the decision-making process in expert group settings tasked with the development of narrative-based countering violent extremism (CVE) products. The added value of this concept is to systematically apply the relevant knowledge distributed among the literature and identify the strengths and weaknesses of the narrative-based CVE product in early stages like the baseline assessment. This may enable campaigners to avoid expensive mistakes and accelerate the development of products. A tentative checklist is provided. Furthermore, indicators for monitoring and evaluation are suggested.

This policy recommendation proposes the implementation of the Terrorism, Radicalisation and Extremism Disclosure Scheme (TREDS) as an additional measure to Prevent and counter violent extremism and terrorism in the United Kingdom. TREDS represents a viable mechanism for a responsible adult (‘the applicant’) to make a disclosure request to joint local authority and Police Prevent teams where they feel an individual (‘the subject’) may pose a risk to a young or vulnerable person (‘the person at-risk’) in relation to terrorism, radicalisation or extremism. A successful disclosure is intended to empower the ‘applicant’ to take proactive steps to safeguard the ‘person at risk’ from the risk of harm posed by the ‘subject’, and would include, where reasonable, proportionate, and necessary, information about a ‘subject’s terrorism related criminal offending history, including any Police intelligence held relating to terrorist group affiliations, associations or activities. TREDS takes inspiration from disclosure schemes already employed to safeguard and protect children and vulnerable people from other crime types such as The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS), also known as Clare’s Law; and the Child Sexual Offender Disclosure Scheme (CSODS), known as Sarah’s Law. The Terrorism, Radicalisation and Extremism Disclosure Scheme (TREDS) was designed by the author of this policy recommendation between June 2018 and February 2019 in response to the decline in public or community reporting of concerns related to terrorism, radicalisation and extremism. This decline is evidenced by Home Office statistics, which identify that of the 7,318 total referrals made in 2017/18, just 292 (4%) came from communities (Home Office, 2018). TREDS represents a distinct departure from existing reporting processes, and is underpinned by the principle of two-way information sharing between the public and authorities. This signifies a seismic shift toward a more inclusive and reciprocal relationship, and one which is likely to better empower individuals and communities to report concerns as and when they arise.

Copyright of Historische Zeitschrift is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Recent debates about aesthetics are characterized by a partly intentional, but also partly involuntary, vagueness. Whether it be aestheticisation or anesthetisation, articisation or desartification: what is upheld or deplored under one and the same label in fact designates rather different things. The paper makes a suggestion as to how the field could be reorganized. Taking heed of what political theory discusses as the "political difference" between "politics" and "the political", the aim is to examine what would be gained by working with an "aesthetic difference" that does not straightforwardly equate "the aesthetic" with "art", and "the aesthetic" with the totality of sensuous-aisthetic processes. An aesthetic thinking would then amount to a thinking that does justice to these inner polarities and remains faithful to the ambiguity of its objects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the level of trust among Muslims in Australia towards the Government and its institutions. It places particular emphasis on the government’s approach to countering violent extremism programs and examines whether a lack of trust negatively impacts cooperation and engagement with the government and P/CVE programs. There is limited research exploring the issue of trust from the perspective of Muslims and how this impacts cooperation and engagement with the government. A survey of Australian Muslims (N= 505) that incorporated both quantitative and qualitative components was used. Inferential statistics (correlations) and thematic analysis were utilised to assess the data. Research suggests that trust is crucial to assisting in the success of P/CVE programs and counter-terrorism efforts. The findings show high levels of distrust towards the government and its institutions, which has flow-on effects, particularly in countering violent extremism. This strongly suggests that P/CVE programs should be approached from a trust-based and relationship-building perspective. Recommendations are made at the end of this paper on how to engage the Muslim community on the basis of building trust and meaningful relationships.

Research on far-right extremism has grown substantially over the last decade, owing to the rise of Trump, attacks such as the one in Christchurch and Buffalo, as well as the mainstreaming of hate speech and polarization. In addition to research, there have been antifascist activists who have been engaged in doxxing members of the far right who are part of our schools, our militaries, and governments. Releasing the private information of members of far-right movements to the public has created interesting policy and law enforcement dilemmas. With respect to law enforcement, can doxxing be used as a tool to force individuals to disengage from groups? For social media companies, doxxing violates their terms of service, but should an exception be made in these instances since it purportedly serves a public interest? For this paper, we interviewed 10 former members of the far right who have experienced doxxing over the last several years. The paper explores what happened, the immediate and long-term effects of doxxing on their lives, and ongoing challenges of being exposed against their will. We conclude with some policy recommendations related to the costs and benefits of doxxing on these individuals but also society at large.

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Der Beitrag diskutiert die beiden Verbundkataloge Argentiniens, UNIRED 30A und den Konkurrenzkatalog SIUBDU. Der UNIRED 30A integriert die Bibliotheksbestände von 109 Institutionen, darunter den wichtigsten Regierungsinstitutionen, Ministerialbibliotheken, Think-Tanks, Universitäten des Landes, Banken, Institutionen der lateinamerikanischen Wissenschaftsintegration wie FLACSO, CLACSO, INTAL und die Fundación Bariloche. Der SIUBDU integriert die Bestände von 56 Institutionen, darunter CLACSO und FLACSO und führende Universitäten des Landes aus allen Regionen. Um die Katalogentwicklung der in den beiden Bibliotheksverbunden integrierten wissenschaftlichen Bibliotheken zu testen, analysierte der Autor die Präsenz der Gewinner*innen des Skytte-Preises der internationalen Politikwissenschaft für die Jahre 2021, 2022 und 2023 in diesen Verbundkatalogen. Die Analyse zeigt, dass selbst bei sehr renommierten internationalen Politikwissenschaftler*innen ihre Bibliothekspräsenz in Lateinamerika äußerst gering ist und sich im Wesentlichen vor allem auf Werke bezieht, die von Ihnen in spanischer Sprache geschrieben wurden oder übersetzt worden sind. The paper introduces Argentina's union catalogues, UNIRED 30A and the rival catalogue SIUBDU. UNIRED 30A integrates the library collections of 109 institutions, including major government institutions, ministerial libraries, thinktanks, national universities, banks, Latin American science integration institutions such as FLACSO, CLACSO, INTAL and the Fundación Bariloche. The SIUBDU integrates the collections of 56 institutions, including CLACSO and FLACSO as well as leading universities in the country. To test the catalogue development of the academic libraries integrated in the two library networks, the author analysed the presence of the Skytte Prize laureates in political science in the years 2021, 2022 and 2023 in these union catalogues. Findings show that even for prestigious international political scientists, library presence in Latin America is extremely poor and refers chiefly to work written by them in Spanish or works translated into Spanish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The history shows that each state must stand by and for itself for the cause of its independence and security and that it is especially complicated to survive on the international arena for the smaller states, nearing such an aggressive superpower like Russia. When aggressively influencing the target state, Russia utilized various forms of warfare and war, i.e., conventional warfare, narrative warfare, war of disinformation, war of influence, manipulation and information operations, cyberwarfare, and religious warfare. All these are in violation and ignoring the frame of international law, causing widespread suffering for Ukraine having global negative consequences. The current paper is based on the analyses of the concept of small states. Based on the case of Latvia, the goal of the paper is to analyze lessons learned and identified for Latvia and other small states based on the war in Ukraine. A period from Russia’s invasion in 2022 to late 2023, i.e., a nearly two-year period since the war in Ukraine began, is chosen to be examined within the scope of the current research. The research has been carried out with qualitative research methods – document analysis and semi-structured interviews. Interviews have been conducted with the experts in the field. The content analysis – a quantitative research method is also used in the work.

The Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) field is evolving in Canada, with CVE teams offering psychosocial disengagement interventions in the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Quebec. This article is written as a case study to detail the evolution of the city of Toronto’s CVE program, called Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA), housed in the community mental health centre Yorktown Family Services (“Yorktown”). Toronto – the largest Canadian city, provincial capital of Ontario, and one of the most multicultural cities in the world – has seen several high-profile cases of violent extremism and terrorism over the past few years. For example, there were two “Incel” attacks that together killed eleven people, including nine women, in 2018 and 2020. In 2022, hate crime occurrences reported to the Toronto Police Service were 74% higher than pre-pandemic levels, and 40% higher than the 10-year average. Clearly, there was a need for a structured and multi-sectoral response which led to the inception of ETA in 2020. Against this backdrop, this paper outlines ETA’s program components and operational design. Various data points such as client age range, ideological affiliation, and services rendered are provided to demonstrate trends for the period of April 2022 to March 2023. As this paper will demonstrate, ETA’s services are grounded in engagement, outreach, case management (multi-agency service delivery), psychotherapy, religious counselling, peer support and forensic consultation, which is reflected in the evolving CVE literature and evidence-base.

In the domain of PVE as well as reintegration, the most interesting studies are arguably based on material collected first-hand from the individuals involved in the phenomenon of political violence or terrorism. As more individuals from the 2013-2016 wave of foreign terrorist fighters are exiting the criminal justice system, young individuals with no memory of that period are sympathizing with ISIS and others again are joining right-wing groups with violent agendas. Understanding the motives behind such engagement will always lead a portion of the scholars to pursue interview-based studies. This paper describes the research protocol used for a study which dealt with politico-ideological mobilization and violence in relation to causes and conflicts in the Arab World. More than one hundred interviews were conducted in Lebanon, Switzerland and Canada with individuals involved in politico-ideological mobilization or violence of different ideological orientations. Besides interviews, complementary material in the form of ethnographic fieldnotes and voice recordings via instant messaging were collected. The data was compiled into a MAXQDA database and coded according to the principles of Grounded Theory, using open, selective, axial and theoretical coding. The paper further discusses epistemological and ethical considerations.

The development of Administration from the pre-modern „Empire" to the modern „State" is analyzed in three steps. Firstly, this paper examines 12 characteristic elements which distinguish the distinct, modern bureaucrat as a type from the multifaceted „servants" of pre-modern rulers. Secondly, the paper compares 13 typical differences between premodern empires and modern states, which also ultimately reveal plurality or unity. Thirdly, on the basis of this double typology a three-level theory of state building has been developed. The micro-level concerns the individual and collective will for power, whereas the socio-cultural macro-level refers to the capitalist marketeconomy, to the cultural heritage of the ancient Roman Empire and in that context to Latin Christianity. The meso-level of political systems is characterized by the rise of competing power centres in wars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on research projects over the last years, this paper presents findings from three German towns and regions confronted with peripheralisation processes. It is based on the relational concept of peripheralisation which describes long-term processes of continued outmigration, infrastructure and decision network disconnection, dependency on external funding and Stigmatisation. The towns examined in this paper are, to some extent, located in geographic centres. However, they failed to draw noticeable development stimuli from this spatial centrality at this point in time. A comparative perspective will focus on spaces of agency of the towns from a (multilevel) governance perspective and from one of path creation. We argue that research on peripheralisation benefits from multi-disciplinary research, integrating political science, history and spatial science perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Based on an international corpus of children and young adult fiction, I would like to explore the question of how 'the political' is articulated in these texts and what role dreams play for the discussion of political ideas. Dream narratives blur the boundary between reality and fiction and thus create a virtual space in which the young protagonists can experience themselves. Since modernity, children and young adult literature is supposed to address the process of personality development of both, the juvenile heroes and readers. On closer inspection, however, one realises that the articulation of personal dilemmas is often linked to social and political issues. This paper thus aims to investigate the interaction of the political and the personal, which places the ethical moment at the centre of political discourse, within the fictional dream worlds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social mobilisation theory (SMT) remains an underutilised lens in examining how religion can be central to radicalisation processes. This paper provides a novel application of SMT to better appreciate the role played by religious ideologues in mobilising individuals to Salafi-jihadist violence through appeals to group and individual benefits. It also considers the implications for preventing and countering violent extremist efforts. The paper conducts a comprehensive thematic analysis of the messaging of the Salafi-jihadist preacher Abdullah Yusuf Azzam, who was highly influential in the mobilisation of mujahideen foreign fighters to Afghanistan following the 1979 Soviet invasion. Through the structured thematic analysis of 38 of his texts in English translation, a set of key religious themes are identified and mapped. The application of SMT to these themes demonstrates that while Azzam clearly employed religious views in his highly successful propaganda, he also drew on stories of the miraculous, a concept difficult to analyse using SMT. An appreciation of the role that religious ideologues can play in influencing violent extremism has implications for preventing and countering violent extremism practitioners. These include the need for a more nuanced understanding of the specific narratives used by ideologues in appealing to group benefits, and a greater appreciation of the irrational aspects of violent extremist narratives.

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This paper describes the development of a programme theory for a football-based radicalisation prevention programme. As part of the Belgian Red Courts programme, an initiative of the Belgian Football Association in cooperation with the Vrije Universiteit Brussels and the Hannah-Arendt Institute, a literature review was conducted that links current research on preventing radicalisation with findings from the field of Sport for Development research. The Belgian Football Association is building and renovating 40 mini-football pitches in Belgium, providing sports infrastructure as well as a theory-based football programme to prevent radicalisation and promote social cohesion, and training of coaches to implement the programme. Starting in September 2023, the implementation of the trainings will start in 10 locations, which will be accompanied and evaluated within the framework of a PhD. In 2024, a further 10 locations will be implemented and evaluated. The paper aims to develop and describe a programme theory as the basis of a football curriculum for young people aged 14-18. The central mechanism for the prevention of radicalisation is Daniel Koehler's (2017) theory of re-pluralisation. In the course of the literature review, concrete contents and competences were identified that are considered to prevent radicalisation and at the same time work towards re-pluralisation of the target group in the course of the programme theory. This research aims to contribute to a larger body of scientific literature on the use of sport as an instrument in the prevention of radicalisation but also to develop a theory-based and practice-oriented foundation for promising sports programmes. With the completion of the research, the project will provide empirical evidence about the effect and possibly also the programme's sustainability.

The purpose of the paper is to define cameralism and political sciences in the context of the second half of the 18th century in the Habsburg Monarchy considering in particular the lands of the Bohemian Crown, to characterise enlightened absolutism and to describe the ideational background and the formation of the scientific basis at the universities of Vienna and Prague. The paper shows that the basic thesis of cameralism that the welfare of the state depends on good and complete legislation, precise compliance with laws and educated civil service in combination with the enlightened philosophy formed the foundation of the modern codification efforts, the formation of tertiary education in economics and administration, legislative regulation necessary for economic welfare of the state, populationism and agricultural reforms. The political sciences, reflecting in terms of content and form the enlightened absolutism, became the theoretical foundation of the reforms of Austrian monarchs Maria Theresa and Joseph II. The paper introduces in more detail the professor and Hofrat, Joseph Sonnenfels (1733-1817) from Vienna, Joseph Ignatz Butschek (1741- 1821) from the Prague University, and some of their economic ideas which reflected in the reforms and measures of Maria Theresa and Joseph II. The paper focuses on agriculture and the proposals for dividing land into lots, the so called Raabschen System, and the formation of Grain contributory fund. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings of an assessment of a government-run deradicalization program called Operation Safe Corridor (OPSC) in northeast Nigeria. OPSC is a restricted custodial program through which 900 ex-combatants have passed since 2015. The major aim of OPSC is the deradicalization, rehabilitation, and reintegration of repentant ex-combatants in the war-ravaged zone. Using a qualitative research framework, primary data were collected through Key Informant Interviews (KII) and Focus Group Discussions (FGD) with stakeholders across Borno, Adamawa, and Gombe, Nigeria. Using purposive sampling, a sample of 122 was drawn from the population of the study. which includes ex-combatants in holding, graduates of the OPSC, staff of the OPSC, community members, government officials, and representatives from the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF). A total of 50 KIIs and 6 FGDs were conducted with 72 participants across the three selected states. This was supplemented by a literature review. The findings show that while the OPSC has been lauded in terms of receptivity, deradicalization, and reintegration of ex-combatants, the program is challenged by issues of credibility and acceptance in the wider community. This paper documents the challenges associated with the rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-terrorists in the context of ongoing terrorist attacks by their former group, particularly in communities that have been or continue to be affected by terrorism. It presents recommendations to address resentment and grievances in the affected communities, support community participation, and improve communications to combat popular resistance to OPSC.

How does gender identity factor into preventing violent extremism, and rehabilitating individuals involved with terrorist networks? This question is becoming increasingly visible in the literature on preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) programs. However, it remains unclear how experts working on P/CVE initiatives understand the importance of gender in the context of violent extremism, and how they integrate gender-sensitive approaches in their work. By relying on the concept of gender mainstreaming, this paper aims to explore how much knowledge and understanding of gender perspectives in terrorism and violent extremism P/CVE practitioners have. Based on 10 interviews with 11 experts working on P/CVE programs, this study reveals that formal knowledge about gender perspectives in violent extremism remains relatively limited among P/CVE practitioners. On one hand, most experts intuitively realize how gender identity influences one’s participation in, and disengagement from violent extremism. Most P/CVE practitioners also recognize the need for gender equality in planning and executing their programs. However, the interviews revealed that there remain several areas of improvement. Firstly, although the interviewed P/CVE practitioners appreciate the importance of having a gender-sensitive perspective, they are not sure how these insights can help build more effective P/CVE mechanisms. Moreover, some of the P/CVE experts remain unclear on what terminology should be used to describe gender-sensitive P/CVE work. This paper argues that there is a need for greater dialogue between global security organizations, academics, and the P/CVE practitioners working on the ground, to design more effective and community-oriented preventing and countering violent extremism programs.

This paper reviews strategies and approaches aimed as assisting and rehabilitating youth who have been imprisoned for terrorist offences or identified as at risk of radicalisation, due to their behaviours and associations. The paper reports results from a review of evidence across radicalisation studies, the CVE academic and grey literature, and data collected from a small number of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), who work in youth CVE. The aim was to identify effective approaches, as well as issues and challenges that need to be considered in the design, implementation and evaluation of programs aimed at countering violent extremism (CVE) amongst youth. While it was found that evidence around youth CVE is limited in scope in relation to identifying what works, there were some consistent and overlapping findings across the sources of evidence in relation to youth intervention design and delivery. This included the importance placed on family involvement and participation in an intervention; that rapport building with youth and youth work approaches are essential when engaging radicalised youth; that interventions must be trauma informed and develop empathy and perspective taking; that interventions must be developmentally appropriate and include informal forms of engagement involving non-clinical and non-vocational/educational activities; that interventions must be transparent in how they operate and rely on multi-agency responses; that the evaluation of youth interventions need to focus on measuring a variety of cognitive and behavioural outcomes, including outcomes not necessarily related to reductions in specific offending/problematic behaviours; and that program evaluation of youth interventions need to assess change relating to psychopathology deficits and risks that have an impact on problematic behaviour.

Recent political science research has shown the increasing differentiation of the European Union (EU) and it has worked out the associated opportunities and risks for effective and legitimate politics in the EU. This raises the question to what extent politicians in the member states pay attention to differentiated integration. Based on an analysis of official government documents and parliamentary minutes from 25 member states, this article shows that this form of integration was rarely politicized in national politics between 2004 and 2020. In national parliaments, it was mainly discussed around EU-treaty changes (around 2008), the euro crisis (around 2012) or during the debate on the future of Europe (around 2017). The final part of the paper shows that differentiated integration is discussed more frequently and more positively in French politics than in German politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Zeitschrift für Politische Theorie is the property of Verlag Barbara Budrich GmbH and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Gerold Tietz was born in 1941 in Horka (north Bohemia) in a family of Sudeten Germans. Germans lived in this village together with Czechs, Roma people and Jews. The family also involved Czech relatives and many of German relatives spoke good Czech and kept relations with Czech cultural groups. After the war Gerold Tietz and his family were expelled to Swabia. He studied history, French and political science. From 1969 the graduated historian lived in Esslingen where he taught in the grammar school for thirty years. In the autobiographically oriented novels Böhmische Fuge (1997), Böhmisches Richtfest (2007) and in Böhmische Grätschen (2009) Tietz tried to depict official social-political events connected with famous political and cultural figures as well as the stories of ordinary days of “small people” who had to face the consequences of historic changes which influenced their lives. The paper analyses the conditions of Czech and German coexistence and confronts the authentic historic context. Nevertheless, negative features of these ethnic groups are not overlooked and the positive ones are presented as a positive contribution to the current European multiculturalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how the citizens of Elbing defined the political position of their city in the Polish-Lithuanian unitary state at the turn of the eighteenth century. In the course of the Great Northern War, they saw their own city, like Danzig and Thorn, threatened by Swedish troops. The Brandenburg elector Friedrich III also occupied the trading city in 1698 as a pledge, because a payment owed by the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth which had been stipulated in the treaties of Wehlau and Bromberg (1657), had not been made. As the poorest of the three large cities, Elbing had the fewest resources and was thus in the weakest position to defend itself. In order to comprehend how the people of Elbing positioned their city within the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth statements made by the citizens concerning external political actors-the Polish state and its dignitaries on the one hand, and the Brandenburg elector on the other-are examined. These include reports about Brandenburg's occupation of Elbing, books detailing the negotiations of the council and the citizens, as well as letters addressed to the states of Poland-Lithuania, the Kingdom of Prussia and the Elector of Brandenburg. It is not surprising that the citizens of Elbing continued to see their city's membership to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as the basis of their political existence. The emphasis of this connection changed, however, when the people of Elbing saw themselves as threatened by the Brandenburg und Swedish troops. While, in the centuries before this, the three major Prussian cities of Danzig, Thorn and Elbing had stressed that they belonged to the king rather than to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, now, in view of the threats, the council and citizens of Elbing began to emphasize that they belonged to the Commonwealth. This indicates that the Prussian states in the eighteenth century were not characterized exclusively by particularism. Rather, at the beginning of the eighteenth century, the citizens of Elbing moved closer to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Zeitschrift für Politische Theorie is the property of Verlag Barbara Budrich GmbH and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Zeitschrift für Politische Theorie is the property of Verlag Barbara Budrich GmbH and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Zeitschrift für Politik is the property of Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Though many studies have analysed the variations in the use of violence by armed groups, an overall understanding of the phenomenon remains challenging. Building on the work addressing the role of institutions and ideology in armed group behaviour, this paper proposes a greater understanding of the role of the programmatic content of an ideology in shaping patterns of violence, specifically in terms of targeting and repertoire. The starting point of this analysis is to provide a new perspective on the meaning of political violence and address the organisational role of ideology in influencing the institutions of an armed group. To account for this, the paper does not consider the presence of an ideology but rather its strength, as a useful lens of analysis. I argue that if an ideology matters in defining a group, then the use of violence should be reflexive of its organisation. This theoretical framework is used for a micro-comparative, most-similar case study analysis of the Red Brigades and New Order militant organisations in Italy during the so-called ‘Years of Lead’. The case studies both share the presence of a strong ideological underpinning, with similar end goals and in the same context but present variations in their patterns of violence. The scope condition of the case studies is to examine whether the different patterns of violence can be explained by the variations in the programmatic nature of the ideology. Through the analysis of qualitative sources and quantitative evidence, the paper highlights the causal nexus between ideology and observed patterns of violence whereby the use of violence by armed groups represents an information and identification mechanism ideologically defined.

The weak and strong sustainable development models are analysed in this paper. The emergence of weak and strong models of sustainable development, the bases and principles that distinguish them from each other, as well as the arguments of the supporters of these approaches are studied. It is noted in this paper that, believing that there can be a smooth replacement of resources, the weak sustainability approach does not see any environmental threat to economic growth. The disadvantage of this approach is that it does not take into account the fact that human life would be unstable if the basic natural resources were depleted without any compensation. From this viewpoint, the arguments of the strong sustainability approach are considered more realistic and accepted as more attractive. A strong approach to sustainable development, which is a more cautious approach to economic growth, emphasises that sustainable development can be achieved through environmental responsibility. Ensuring environmental responsibility is presented as one of the important conditions for economic expediency and social solidarity. Strong sustainability model opposes the possibility that human capital can be replaced by natural capital. Analysing the positions of those scientists, who support strong sustainability, it is concluded that the replacement of development characterised by quantitative growth with qualitative sustainable development to increase welfare is one of the important principles of strong sustainable development.

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Copyright of GWP: Gesellschaft Wirtschaft Politik is the property of Verlag Barbara Budrich GmbH and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This policy paper provides a guiding framework for centralising the role of local women in preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) and peacebuilding programmes. It draws on the author’s research into the gendered appeals of violent extremist propaganda and field experiences implementing programmes across Southeast Asia. The approach outlined here builds on the “linkage” approach to propaganda analysis and P/CVE programme design arguing that women need to be capacitated with the knowledge and strategic tools and empowered through women’s networks to develop locally nuanced solutions. The Capacitate to Outcompete, Persuade, and Empower (C.O.P.E) framework consists of four broad pillars. First, workshops to educate women about violent extremist strategies and P/CVE and peacebuilding approaches. Second, narrative-driven actions led by women addressing key psychosocial, political, economic, and health issues. Third, strategic communications efforts to promote empowerment goals. Fourth, establish grassroots women’s networks as forums for bonding, support, and organisation for collective action. This paper highlights experiences implementing C.O.P.E offering a practical guide for design and implementation.

The paper explores basic political relations between the European Union and India which are at theoretical level almost “terra nullius”. The paper starts from the present epochal situation and enters the realm of EU–India geopolitics from the perspective of Gandhian moral practice on one side, and challenges presented by the impact of Coronavirus politics on the other. Our question is – on which platform is strategic negotiating between the EU and India possible? Despite their Lisbon summit in 2000 as well as virtual summit in 2020, it is obvious that until today the EU and India could not find a common denominator. Our idea is that the missing link of a better understanding partly lays in the new perspective that may be unexpectedly found from the Balkans’ point of view. Only unprecedented cognizance today may set up the roadmap for the times to come.

Harmony with nature, pristine countryside, organic farming, a vegan diet, renewable energy, sustainable development. This imagery tends to be associated with ‘green liberal’ environmentalist movements and more broadly, left-wing political ideologies. However, concern for the environment and warnings about the imminent climate crisis are gaining traction within far-right and white supremacist movements. This article focuses on the revival of white supremacist environmentalism based on a qualitative text analysis of an English-language manifesto published by the violent extremist neo-Nazi Nordic Resistance Movement. Drawing on the concept of axiological cosmologies from Legitimation Code Theory and the Appraisal framework from Systemic Functional Linguistics, this paper shows how an ecofascist ideology is built up through clusters of meanings that reinforce neo-Nazi grievances such as ‘global Zionism’, ‘mass immigration’ and multiculturalism. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of what the promotion of eco-fascist ‘solutions’ to the climate crisis could mean for climate justice from a human rights perspective and preventing violent extremism from an educational perspective.

The contribution and influence of psychological distress to interest and involvement in extremist violence has received considerable attention in recent years. At the same time, dominant medical models for understanding such distress - typically framed as mental illness or disorder - have been challenged by emerging alternative paradigms in parts of the Western world. Understanding the contribution of psychological distress to extremist violence and how to prevent it requires consideration through these emerging paradigms and interpretative lenses. The Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF) is one such paradigm, increasingly used by practitioners to understand and prevent psychological distress, unusual experiences, or troubled or troubling behaviour. This paper outlines its central theory and principles, investigates how these are relevant to informing our understanding of the troubling behaviour of involvement in extremist violence, and its implications for preventative practice, illustrated through an example case study. The case is made for the potential of this paradigm to support effective and ethical practice in the context of extremist violence.

Studies on the threat of depopulation or overpopulation, as well as the search for a population optimum for the Earth, are almost without exception conducted in isolation. The first indicate that the population of certain areas should be increased for socio-economic reasons. The second signal the need to drastically reduce the Earth's population because it has exceeded its capacity. The third finally focus on the search for an answer about optimal population for the Earth, generally indicating a value much lower than the current population of the planet. This paper juxtaposes the main streams of research on these three issues, in search of an answer to the question of the extent to which the population optimum is capable of ensuring the Earth's long-term stability in the context of the needs of ecological and geopolitical balance. It has been proposed to come to terms with the irreversibility of demographic changes accompanying social change, to appreciate the role of migration as a factor balancing and reconciling the demands of proponents of both extreme concepts.

This paper proposes a typology of entities of public order, including international governance, and argues in favor of the central role of free human persons in the architecture of public life. Attention is drawn to the difference between a morally qualified person and an officially registered statistical unit. In the face of contemporary semantic manipulations resulting from the substitution of natural communities by nurturing institutions, the need for precise use of conceptual categories is pointed out. Selected alternative proposals for dealing with institutional gigantomania and civilizational overstimulation are discussed, and in the Polish case, two attempts to manipulate national heritage, reported from the ideological positions of modernist imitation, are exposed.