The dark side(s) of the EU Directive on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market

China-EU Law Journal - The article examines some pivotal aspects of Directive (EU) 2019/790, which is the new legislative act adopted by the European Union to adapt copyright to the evolving...     

Y chromosome J2 subtyping in an Italian sample: Population and forensic implications

In the recent years the Y chromosome genealogy has been refined by a number of newly discovered SNPs. The non-random distribution of the Y chromosome lineages worldwide makes fundamental the dissection and characterisation of haplogroups associated with specific geographic areas. In Southern Europe the haplogroup J2, as defined by the M172 marker, can reach frequencies up to 35%, making the dissection of such lineage critical for population studies. Here we present a study on J2 chromosomes from the Italian peninsula. Populations and forensic implications are discussed. A total of 900 individuals were previously genotyped for a number of SNPs, including M172. More than 200 of these have been now genotyped for 7 SNPs within the J2 lineage using a multiplex SNaPshot approach. The different distribution of the various lineages in different geographic areas probably reflects different historical demographic events and points to differential Y chromosome haplotype distribution, with implication for forensic application of this genetic marker.     

Urbanization Patterns,Information Diffusion,and Female Voting in Rural Paraguay

We use a field experiment to evaluate the impact of two informational get‐out‐the‐vote campaigns to boost female electoral participation in rural areas of Paraguay. We find that public rallies had a small and insignificant effect either on registration or voter turnout in the 2013 presidential elections. Households that received door‐to‐door canvassing treatment were 4.6 percentage points more likely to vote. Experimental variation on the intensity of the treatment at the locality level allows us to estimate spillover effects, which are present in localities that are geographically more concentrated, which may favor social interactions and diffusion of information. Reinforcement effects on the already treated population are twice as large as diffusion effects on the untreated. Our results underscore the importance of taking into account urbanization patterns when designing informational campaigns.     

Coordination outside formal organization: consensus-based decision-making and occupation in the Occupy Wall Street movement

Previous work has shown that a vital component for successful collective action is formal organization, in particular because it facilitates internal coordination. But how is coordination achieved in the absence of formal organization? To answer this question, this article presents findings drawn from an ethnographic study on Occupy Wall Street (OWS) in New York City. It first introduces the concept of ‘autonomy’ to discuss the particular challenge faced within the decentralized structure of OWS of developing coordination. It then shows how the practice of holding mass assemblies and the occupation of Zuccotti Park itself each served, in incidental and unintentional ways, as mechanisms of coordination. These findings confirm previous work on the importance of coordination and build upon it by demonstrating that not only is coordination possible outside formal organization, but that it is also in some cases achieved without conscious intention. This suggests the utility of moving beyond an overly rational understanding of social action by acknowledging the inevitability of unforeseen outcomes.     

Does accessible technology need an ‘entrepreneurial state’? The creation of an EU market of universally designed and assistive technology through state aid

EU State aid law has sought to enable people with disabilities to obtain employment, yet has not been explicitly included in the toolbox of policy options to improve the availability and choice of accessible technology within the EU Internal market. This seems to be the consequence of an inherent bias against State intervention in the market, which is mostly unwelcome since it can limit open and free competition. This also reiterates the ‘less-aid’ policy and the purely economic approach to State aid professed by the European Commission. Against this background, this article discusses the potential for EU State aid policy to foster both ‘design for all’ and innovative assistive devices for people with disabilities. It seeks to argue that the goal of an EU-wide market of accessible technology can be achieved using EU State aid law. In particular, this article aims to highlight that a more targeted use of EU State aid law can lead developers to increase the production of accessible goods, to adjust or reduce prices and to provide consumers with a greater degree of choice in a greater number of marketplaces. Whilst it adopts a legal approach, this analysis relies inter alia on economic evidence and recalls the pamphlet recently published by Mazzuccato, from which the title of this work has drawn inspiration.     

The role of soft law in advancing the rights of persons with disabilities in the EU: A ‘hybridity’ approach to EU disability law

This article discusses the role of soft law in advancing the rights of persons with disabilities in the European Union (EU). In doing so, it revisits the emergence of the standalone, yet cross-cutting, field of ‘EU disability law’ through the lens of the ‘hybridity theory’ advanced inter alia by Trubek and Trubek. Being speculative in nature, this article construes EU disability law as a fruitful area for an enquiry into the dynamic relationship between hard and soft law. Until the entry into force of the Treaty of Amsterdam, soft law was crucial to attract disability within the sphere of action of the EU and to embed the social model of disability, displaying a value-setting role. In the post-Amsterdam period, soft law and hard law coexisted, being complementary to one another. Both contributed to a common objective, namely that of advancing equality of opportunities for persons with disabilities. After the conclusion of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the dynamic relationship between hard and soft law has become more complex and akin to what Trubek and Trubek define as ‘transformation’.     

Family Ties and Socio-Economic Outcomes in High vs Low Income Countries

Alesina and Giuliano illustrate that strong family ties lead to lower geographical mobility and reduced labour force participation of young and female individuals. We extend their analysis by arguing that the effect of strong family ties on economic outcomes depends on a country’s level of economic and institutional development. This cross-country heterogeneity arises because strong family ties not only foster traditional family values (which have disruptive effects on economic outcomes), but also provide economically valuable social networks – especially in societies characterised by weak institutions and limited market access. Empirical evidence using the European and World Value Surveys (EVS/WVS) are supportive of our theoretical argument.     

Somewhere Between Love and Justice: a Roman Catholic Church in Paris Responds to the European Migration Crisis

The European migration crisis has had a transformative impact on many transit and destination localities in Europe, and in doing so it has mobilised many faith-based communities. This paper analyses the social action of Saint Bernard de La Chapelle, a Roman Catholic parish in northern Paris, which hosts a semi-formal association called Solidarités Saint Bernard (SSB) involved in support and relief activities for indigent migrants in the local area. Based on ethnographic research conducted within the parish and the association, I analyse how the topic of migration has become a point of exchange between the parish community and local civil society, how religious and secular discourses and motivations co-exist within SSB, and how these influences shape SSB’s social action. Through this micro-scale approach, and drawing on Luc Boltanski’s theoretical framework of regimes of action, my aim is to identify conceptual elements to better understand the broad convergence between religion, social action, and migration, and to better understand the relation between charity and justice within faith-based social action in the domain of migration advocacy more specifically.