Pragmatized Aesthetics: The Impact of Legitimacy Pressures in Symphony Orchestras

This article explores the balancing exercise between opposing value regimes in symphony orchestras. This complex environment in which art organizations move while producing art will be mapped out in a model called a “biotope.” In recent years, orchestras have been struck hard by declines in the cultural sector. As a result of opposing legitimacy pressures in today’s symphony orchestras, standardized canonical repertoire now serves as a pragmatized aesthetic compromise. This article suggests that although this compromise grants short-term legitimacy to the art organization, it simultaneously brings its biotope out of balance, reinforcing the legitimacy crisis it was meant to avert.     

绿色消费文化助力城市隐形贫困人口“脱贫摘帽”

近年来,"隐形贫困人口"一词成为网络流行语并受到部分城市青年群体的认同,该部分青年群体将其作为自己的身份标签以自嘲消费与收入之间巨大落差。这一现象引发了社会的广泛关注。有学者将其产生的原因归结为非理性消费,事实上,我们更应深刻地认识到我国城市隐形贫困人口是我国社会发展过程中的历史性、阶段性现象,其在动机、方式、心态方面均表现出双重属性,这折射出当前中国社会在现代化发展过程中面临着消费文化价值观缺陷,也反映我国社会优化整合功能不充分的消费困境。因此,解决城市隐形贫困人口的"脱贫"问题,需要积极倡导并践行绿色消费文化,实现人自身、人与自然、人与社会的共荣共生。     

Is environmentally sustainable and inclusive growth possible? Sub-Saharan Africa and emerging global norms on development

This paper critically reviews the debates on environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive growth with specific focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. It observes that, even considering its inherent limits, the discourse on growth is still imprisoned by the Washington Consensus mode of thinking. There have been attempts by various institutions and commissions appointed by heads of government to take the debate forward, but a lack of commonly agreed global norms undermines prospects for shifts in thinking. Nonetheless, countries need to undertake such efforts if there is to be any meaningful deliberation on environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive growth. In this regard, the paper also examines the strengths and weaknesses of efforts undertaken by South Africa thus far. Policy emphases on the role of the state and structural transformation that predominate in debates in formal institutions in the African continent are insufficient. This paper explores what is possible.     

Political Economy of Southeast Asian Borderlands: Migration,Environment, and Developing Country Firms

The Chinese way of development shares many characteristics with the East Asian developmental state model. Key elements of this shared development model include state control over finance, direct support for state owned enterprises by the government, import substitution industrialisation in heavy industry, a high dependence on export markets and a high rate of domestic savings. Even the reform of corporate governance is not likely to change the basic features of the East Asian model in China. Among East Asian countries, China shares more similar characteristics with Taiwan rather than with Japan or Korea since China, like Taiwan, also has an economy of dual structure that divides the public and non-public sectors.     

Journalism education: bridging media and cultural studies

ABSTRACT

Journalism is more than an ensemble of newsgathering and writing techniques. It is, firstly, a way of viewing and writing about the social world for the public benefit. Similarly, journalism is a means of fomenting conversations in the public domain about events and issues of immediate public interest. While much of journalism training concerns the techniques of text production, too little attention is given to educating students in the ontology or ‘mindset’ within which those techniques and conventions work. Almost no attention is given to the epistemology or ‘research’ approaches by which journalists monitor social phenomena.

Short of calling for a more thorough grounding (as a framework) in critical thinking, we suggest that a more constructivist approach be taken to journalism training. This approach need not be prejudiced towards the more technical and functionalist approaches evident in so many textbooks on the subject. Constructive learning is described by some scholars as ‘active, cumulative, goal-directed, diagnostic and reflective behaviour’ (Breen 1996: 4). All these behaviours are found in journalism practice, and should frame both words in journalism training. This requires a more interpretive approach that teaches the practice of journalism as many of the same processes commonly understood as learning.     

Trophy Hunting of Black Rhino Diceros bicornis: Proposals to Ensure Its Future Sustainability

Proposing the use of charismatic species of large mammals as a conservation tool is often controversial, even though the Conservation of Biological Diversity promotes sustainable use as one of its three pillars. Indeed, sustainable use has been important in helping to recover southern white rhinos, the South African population of which was downlisted in 1994 to Appendix II of CITES for trophy hunting and live sales only. The Appendix I listed black rhino is now also beginning to recover, particularly in South Africa and Namibia, where how best to deal with surplus males arising from successful biological management is an increasing problem. Furthermore, black rhinos are now being increasingly moved to private land, where incentives from use may help help promote metapopulation management goals. As a result, the African Rhino Specialist Group anticipated proposals to trophy hunt black rhinos, and were concerned to recommend criteria that proponent countries would need to meet for such proposals to succeed. These recommendations address four guiding principles:

• ensuring that any offtakes are biologically sustainable and based on good monitoring;

• ensuring that incentives from any hunting opportunities are maximized, without discriminating between state agencies and the private sector;

• rewarding good biological management and long-term commitment to black rhino conservation; and

• ensuring that appropriate internal and external controls are in place.

     

Legislating community‐based management: Lessons from the venezuelan freshwater fishery

Abstract

The linkage between legitimate local participation and institutional/legal openness was demonstrated by an evaluation of the current freshwater fishery regulatory system in Venezuela as explicated in the 1944 Ley de Pesca (Law of the Fishery). By examining the current efficacy of Venezuela's freshwater fishery laws and government openness to local input, this case‐study illustrates barriers to community‐based management (CBM) created by top‐down management paradigms and hierarchical legal frameworks. Analysis of a proposed CBM project in Venezuela indicates that enabling institutions and legislation are necessary for effective long‐term, decentralized freshwater fishery management. Social learning is considered as an approach for making the political and legal climate more amenable to local input. The intent is to further clarify how the union of what is legal and what is civil in a society can enhance the capacity and potential of management devolution and therefore bring us closer to achieving sustainable natural resource use.     

Is regional government-governance nexus delivering on social sustainability promises? Empirical evidence from Moranbah in Australia

Social sustainability, in theory, should result in responsiveness to change, a durable sense of community trust and interdependent institutional structures. However, recent studies indicate that current sustainability efforts of regional local government are not yielding anticipated outcomes. Drawing on two social theories of Henri Lefebvre, this paper offers an empirical analysis of the ability of the government–governance nexus to deliver on social sustainability promises in Moranbah in regional Australia. Study findings revealed that the Moranbah government–governance nexus suffers from adversarial relationships between key actors that result in a distrust of politics and power, the absence of a defined governance system, community alienation, and State Government dominance and intervention. These experiences of the government–governance nexus have rendered social sustainability a distant hope for Moranbah’s residents. This paper suggests a reform in sustainability policies to improve the current situation in the case region, and theoretical propositions for future research.     

公职人员的廉洁年金制度缜思

建立与推行国家公职人员廉洁年金制度是健全我国惩治和预防腐败体系的创新性方案。近年来,廉洁年金制度虽然在转变政府反腐思路、警示公职人员及利益激励等方面具有积极意义,但还存在如缺乏法规依据、设计不够合理、实际作用有限等问题。为此,应当建立与完善公职人员财产申报制度、惩治腐败制度、贪腐监督制约机制等预防与惩治腐败的配套制度,为廉洁年金制度切实有效推行奠定基础。     

非物质文化遗产法律保护的理论困境及对策探究

非物质文化遗产自身的特点决定了其主体难以确定、性质难以确定和独创性难以确定,对其进行立法保护造成很大难度。因此,解决这些难题也是对非物质文化遗产进行法律保护的首要前提。本文就非物质文化遗产法律保护中存在的理论困境,提出几点对策建议：明确法律保护的对象、确立认定标准、确定保护主体,以期对非物质文化遗产的法律保护提供些许理论支持。