305 research outputs found

    Working with the enemy : the military integration process in transitional South Africa and the factors that shaped a new defence force

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    Against the backdrop of South Africa's political transition from Apartheid to a democratic system of governance during the early 1990s, the South African military underwent a distinct transformation of its own. During the military's transition seven disparate forces that had previously been vying for power were integrated under one umbrella organization and re-branded as the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). Scholars and analysts generally consider this process to have been successful; it was a seminal achievement by both the negotiating parties and the Government of National Unity. Looking at the transformation process during two distinct periods, 1990 through the national elections of 1994, referred to as 'the planning phase,' and postelections through 1996, referred to as 'the implementation phase,' this study seeks a more robust and nuanced accounting of the factors that contributed to this outcome. Building upon an evaluation of the existing literature, this study also analyzes the impact that the strategies employed by the negotiating parties had upon outcomes. It offers the novel approach of analyzing the military's integration through the lens of negotiation theory rather than more conventional theoretical lenses. In doing so, this study aims not only to contribute to a common understanding of the means by which the SANDF was created and shaped, but also to broaden the scope and depth of military integration theory itself

    Applications of Blockchain for the Governance of Integrated Project Delivery: A Crypto Commons Approach

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    This paper outlines why and how blockchain can digitally support and evolve the governance of collaborative project deliveries, such as integrated project deliveries (IPDs), to provide the foundation for novel and disruptive forms of organizational collaboration in the construction industry. Previous work has conceptualized IPDs as a common pool resource (CPR) scenario, where shared resources are collectively governed. Through the use of blockchain and smart contracts for trustworthy peer-to-peer transactions and execution logic, Ostrom's design principles can be digitally encoded to scale CPR scenarios. Building on the identified connections, the paper 1) synthesizes fourteen blockchain-based mechanisms to govern CPRs, 2) identifies twenty-two applications of these mechanisms to govern IPDs, and 3) introduces a conceptualization of the above relationships towards a holistic understanding of collaborative project deliveries on the crypto commons for novel collective organization of construction project delivery between both humans and machines

    Stabilizing “Pillar One”: Corporate Profit Reallocation in an Uncertain Environment

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    This paper is about how the world reestablishes international tax order. The paper focuses on the OECD’s work on profit reallocation and asks whether this multilateral effort can be successful in stabilizing the international tax system. The analysis centers on the current leading concepts for reallocating profit among jurisdictions under what is known as “Pillar One” of the OECD work programme. To analyze whether any Pillar One concept can be turned into a stable multilateral regime, it is necessary to specify certain elements of what a proposal to reallocate profits might entail. Accordingly, this paper sets out two strawman proposals. One strawman uses a “market intangibles” concept that explicitly separates routine and residual returns. The other strawman may reach a similar result, but does not explicitly attempt to separate routine and residual returns. Instead, in current OECD parlance, it might be described as a “distribution-based” approach. The paper asks whether either of the two strawmen could be agreed and stabilized multilaterally given the tools of modern international tax diplomacy. I conclude that the current procedural and institutional architecture for cementing international tax relations among states is inadequate to stabilize either of the strawmen. Nevertheless, with certain changes, reestablishing order may be possible. Moreover, I conclude that there are six key structural decisions that impact the ability to stabilize the international tax architecture in any Pillar One approach, and that these decisions are likely to be implicitly made in the course of choosing a political direction for Pillar One work in 2019. The choices made with regard to these decisions determine whether or not it will be possible to stabilize Pillar One. Even if good resolutions are reached along these six dimensions, there are only a couple paths to stabilize the system. One path would involve using every tool in the current OECD arsenal in new and more expansive ways, and then substantially depoliticize international tax matters and remove G20 involvement, such that logics of appropriateness developed among tax administrators isolated from political pressures and acting through transnational networks could lend stability to a new set of rules and principles. Even then, only a few Pillar One compromises could be stabilized this way. The alternative path, which could stabilize a broader range of proposals, requires formalizing the new regime in international law through a true multilateral treaty

    Directed deadline obligations in agent-based business contracts

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    There are B2B relationships that presume cooperation in contract enactment. This issue should be taken into account when modeling, for computational handling, contractual commitments through obligations. Deadline obligations have been modeled by considering that reaching the deadline without compliance brings up a violation. When modeling commitments in business contracts, directed obligations have been studied for identifying two agents: the obligation's bearer and the counterparty, who may claim for legal action in case of non-compliance. We argue in favor of a directed deadline obligation approach, taking inspiration on international legislation over trade procedures. Our proposal to model contractual obligations is based on authorizations granted in specific states of an obligation lifecycle model, which we formalize using temporal logic and implement in a rule-based system. The performance of a contractual relationship is supported by a model of flexible deadlines, which allow for further cooperation between autonomous agents. As a result, the decision-making space of agents concerning contractual obligations is enlarged and becomes richer. We discuss the issues that agents should take into account in this extended setting

    Evaluating Collaboration Constructs: An Analysis of the Paradise Creek Restoration Plan

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    This study examines collaboration constructs using Gray & Wood\u27s framework of theoretical dimensions of collaboration and two conceptual models found in the literature in an effort to determine which constructs are present in the successful collaborative efforts of the Elizabeth River Project\u27s Team Paradise as they developed the Paradise Creek Restoration Plan. The study used a mixed method approach involving both qualitative (interview and documents) and quantitative (survey) methods to gather data. The findings from this study support construct findings from three other studies on collaborative processes: Gray & Wood\u27s framework of theoretical dimensions of collaboration; the Selin & Chavez Model of the Collaborative Process in Natural Resource Management used in the area of environmental management, and the Melaville & Blank\u27s Five Stage Process for Change, used in the social services area. The findings from this research suggest that it might be possible to develop a generic model of collaboration using common constructs found in the literature that reflects the iterative and dynamic nature of the process of collaboration. Additionally, this study found two constructs not found in either of the conceptual models. This study indicates that collaboration does follow certain steps, or stages, consisting of a number of constructs, and that practitioners considering collaboration as a way to solve policy problems can use either of these prescriptive models as a framework for their own process

    The Armed Forces and the Fate of Emerging Democracies:Coups, Credible Commitments, and Electoral Violence

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    abstract: This dissertation seeks to show that the fate of emerging democracies is largely dependent upon the strategic behaviors of political militaries and their coup potential. Given the known issue of democratization's temporarily destabilizing effects, it first examines if such effects makes states vulnerable to coups. It finds clear evidence on democratization's destabilizing effects on coup risk. Such evidence is used to shed new light on the literature about the armed forces and coups in emerging democracies. To explain variation in the military's responses to democratization and consolidation against coup threats, it argues that how the armed forces were organized and controlled during the authoritarian periods influences whether emerging democracies are able to consolidate against coup risk. Second, it explores the declining coup risk and the trilateral relationship between Western democracy promotion, coup risk, and election violence in recently emerging electoral regimes, the so-called "illiberal democracies." It argues that vulnerability to Western leverage, coupled with an emphasis on multiparty elections, creates a political moral hazard problem for incumbents, permitting them to commit electoral violence during the emergence of mass electoral politics.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Political Science 201

    The Two Facets of Collaboration: Cooperation and Coordination in Strategic Alliances

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    This paper unpacks two underspecified facets of collaboration: cooperation and coordination. Prior research has emphasized cooperation, and specifically the partners' commitment and alignment of interests, as the key determinant of collaborative success. Scholars have paid less attention to the critical role of coordination—the effective alignment and adjustment of the partners' actions. To redress this imbalance, we conceptually disentangle cooperation and coordination in the context of inter-organizational collaboration, and examine how the two phenomena play out in the partner selection, design, and post-formation stages of an alliance's life cycle. As we demonstrate, a coordination perspective helps resolve some empirical puzzles, but it also represents a challenge to received wisdom grounded in the salience of cooperation. To stimulate future research, we discuss alternative conceptualizations of the relationship between cooperation and coordination, and elaborate on their normative implications

    Aboriginal partnerships for sustainable 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games: a framework for cooperation

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    Indigenous peoples? participation has historically been an afterthought to Olympic Games Bidding and Organizing Committees. For the first time in Olympic Games history, Indigenous peoples have been recognized and included as Official Partners in the planning and hosting of the 2010 Winter Games. This research explores partnership developments between the Four Host First Nations - the Lil?wat, Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh, on whose traditional and shared traditional territories the 2010 Winter Games will be held ? and the 2010 Bid Corporation/VANOC. The findings and resulting framework suggest that successful partnerships between Indigenous communities and Olympic Organizing Committees need to be formalized in the bid phase and enhanced during the organizing and hosting phases. The research also suggests that the IOC has an opportunity to promote partnership development between Indigenous peoples and future Olympic and Paralympic Games organizers as a result of lessons learned surrounding the 2010 Winter Games

    Rethinking the Chongqing Negotiations of 1945: Concession-making, the Trust/distrust Paradox, and the Biased Mediator in China's Post-war Transitions

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    This article rethinks what are perhaps the most important attempts at making peace in modern Chinese history: the first post-World War II peace talks convened in Chongqing, between the two old foes of the Chinese Civil War. Previous studies treat the peace conference as a sideshow to the subsequent full-scale civil war. Examining the political and military situation in China toward the end of World War II, this article argues that a peace agreement was needed for both parties. The core of the article examines the hitherto unexplored aspects around the negotiating table: the debate, disagreements and compromises and the American mediator's attempt to alter the dynamics of the peace talks from an inherently biased position. It finds that the history of the Chongqing negotiations is more important to our understanding of China's struggle between peace and war in the modern era than previously acknowledged
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