CSR and social conflict in the Brazilian extractive sector

ABSTRACT

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is an important means to address conflicts, support local development and build trust between businesses and civil society. Yet CSR often fails to live up to its ambitions and can even exacerbate conflicts between companies and communities. In this article we consider how changing CSR strategies over the past four decades between Brazilian company Vale to Norwegian company Hydro have fomented or mitigated company–community conflicts in Northern Brazil. We find that paternalistic and philanthropic approaches of Vale over time led to deep resentment and mistrust due to underdevelopment and environmental damages. Moreover, while Hydro’s more modern CSR strategies sought to deepen community engagement and build legitimacy, the company has struggled in addressing the legacies inherited from Vale and past and current civil society grievances. The case suggests that even forward-thinking CSR approaches are vulnerable to failure where they prioritise business risk over community engagement, neglect to account for past legacies in areas of operation, and fail to create a shared vision of future development. It suggests that EI companies should both understand and engage with their social and environmental impacts in the past, present, and future and create shared economic benefits in the short and long term in order to address social conflicts.     

An analysis of the fundamental tensions between copyright and social media: the legal implications of sharing images on Instagram

ABSTRACT

Copyright is inherently intertwined with the development of technology and none more so than the advent of the Internet and sharing technologies. More recently, social media platforms have become the latest challenge for copyright law and policy. This article builds on the literature that recognises the underlying conflict between copyright and social networking sites (SNSs); namely that the basic implication of copyright is the restriction of copying, whereas the ethos of social networking is the promotion of sharing. In particular, this article focuses on the disparity between the restricted acts of copying and communication to the public under copyright law and the encouragement of sharing on SNS Instagram. In doing so, it contextualises the debate surrounding copyright and social media and provides an understanding of the legal implications of using Instagram. As such this paper analyses (1) the infringement of copyright protected work on Instagram, and (2) the user-agreement and licensing of copyright material on Instagram. This study concludes that the disparity between the principles of copyright and social media lead to confusion and vulnerability of users. Therefore, it is suggested that Instagram should better inform its users of the implications of sharing third-party content as well as the terms of its user agreement. This could be done by implementing a copyright strategy, which includes a notice and takedown system as well as investing in producing educational content for users. Perhaps SNSs, such as Instagram might be more motivated to take steps to recognise intellectual property rights if they were considered Internet Services Provides such as YouTube.     

中国特色社会主义法治理论:思想根基、主要特性与学科定位

中国特色社会主义法治理论作为中国特色社会主义法治体系的理论化表达,作为一种新型的理论形态,可以从三个方面来认知。首先,从思想源流来看,马克思主义法律思想是中国特色社会主义法治理论的思想根基。其次,从理论个性来看,中国特色社会主义法治理论的主要特性包括中国性、政治性与学术性。从学科定位来看,中国特色社会主义法治理论既是法学学科体系中的一个组成部分,同时也代表了法治理论谱系中的一种最新形态。把握中国特色社会主义法治理论的思想根基、主要特性与学科定位,既是创新和发展中国特色社会主义法治理论的前提,也是坚持和完善中国特色社会主义法治体系的前提。     

新时代中国特色社会主义语境中的服务型政府建设

党的十九大报告中已经明确提出了要大力加强“建设人民满意的服务型政府”,为此,新时代中国特色社会主义对服务型政府建设提出了新的建设要求与总体目标。从新时代的语境中加以分析,发现如今服务型政府建设还有许多不满足新要求的问题,主要体现在政府的服务范围、服务理念、服务主体和服务供给机制等方面。针对上述几方面存在的问题,可以从明确服务边界、牢固树立服务行政理念、加强服务队伍建设、形成以人民需求为导向的公共服务供给机制等方面来加以探讨。     

‘Let's Win this Game Together’: Children's Rights Violations,Macro‐Securitisation and the Transformative Potential of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil

Sport's transformative potential is known to support marginalised children, to deal with traumatic experiences and instil positive values; yet hosting mega sporting events (MSEs) can have negative impacts. Drawing on participatory research with favela‐based children during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, this article argues that MSEs bring a macro‐securitisation of urban life, which causes considerable harm. This paper also suggests that the inclusion of children's voices in advocacy debates can challenge top‐down securitisation and might allow MSEs to foster further positive social transformation. Therefore, juxtaposed with causing harm, macro‐securitisations can open opportunities for children to take action and have their voices heard.     

Mobilising the Periphery: Brazil's My House My Life Programme and the Homeless Workers' Movement

Brazil's Movimento de Trabalhadores Sem Teto (MTST, Homeless Workers' Movement) has grown dramatically in recent years. This growth was partly provided for by the use of a large government housing programme, Minha Casa Minha Vida (MCMV, My House My Life), which allowed the MTST to construct housing for its members and swell its ranks with thousands of new members. Yet some have argued that the MCMV programme used by the MTST may compromise the autonomy of civil society organisations. This article, by contrast, argues that while the MCMV programme encouraged bureaucratic practices, it also helped to promote the cultural politics of the MTST.     

Citizen aid,social media and brokerage after disaster

Abstract

In a crisis, aid providers deliver humanitarian relief across a hierarchy of organisations where influence and capacity map to their scale of operations. On the front lines of crises, ‘citizen aid’ is what small, local and informal groups offer to fellow citizens. These citizen aid groups are well-networked in place and tend to work through longstanding personal relationships. In the Philippines, citizen aid groups frequently support their activities by documenting their work with photos of beneficiaries to solicit donations from within the country and around the world across social media platforms. This paper builds on recent debates on brokerage through a case study of citizen aid in the relief effort after Typhoon Haiyan (2013–2017). Using this case-study approach, we demonstrate how social media has produced novel forms of brokerage shaped by circulating images online. This new kind of brokerage involves a layered network of brokers that both shapes citizen aid efforts and creates new channels for localising aid, enhancing the control of citizen groups in the Global South over aid.     

“党建”与“共建”:形塑基层社会治理格局的双重逻辑——基于杭州市D区的考察

从党的政策表述及当前实践来看,基层社会治理格局的形塑过程蕴含着“党建”与“共建”的双重逻辑。“党建”的出发点是巩固党的组织优势和执政基础,表现为基层组织体系从“有形覆盖”走向“有效覆盖”,进而为引领基层社会治理准备条件。“共建”要求探索“一核多元”的治理模式,既要实现基层党组织对“共建”力量的联结和协调,也要保障多元治理主体的有效参与,同步推进群众自治、社会共治和公共服务。“党建”与“共建”的双重逻辑呈现,亦关联着社会治理研究范式的更新。     

与时俱进是马克思主义内在的理论品质

马克思主义的与时俱进是指它与时代同步、与实践同进的理论品质。辩证的眼光是马克思主义与时俱进的理性前提 ;实践的推动是马克思主义与时俱进的现实动力 ;批判的本质使马克思主义与时俱进永葆青春     

中国共产党的利益代表性和社会利益关系调节

中国共产党要调节好各种社会利益关系,必须以各种群体利益的共同发展为出发点,制定方针政策,着重调节经济利益,疏通利益表达渠道,扩大执政的群众基础。