Ecological modernisation theory and Bangladesh: Lessons from the environmental compliance upgrading experiences of Bangladeshi garments firms.

In this era of international supply chains where Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are exporting to Developed Countries (DCs), concerns about economic growth that is environmentally benign has meant that LDC factories are taking environmental upgrading measures to meet standards set by DC customers. This thesis looks at the applicability of ecological modernisation theory (EMT) to this situation by examining the Bangladeshi readymade garments (RMG) sector that is part of the global apparel value chain. EMT suggests that economic growth can continue while providing environmental protection in the long run due to proactive environmental actions by the market actors, civil society and the nation state. This thesis tests the tenets of EMT by looking at the apparel value chain in three parts (management networks within firms, economic networks of the supply chain, and policy networks) and then as a whole (EM network). Evidence from Bangladeshi garment factories (corporate culture, organisational change and environmental learning) suggests significant problems: factories are compliant with buyer codes only on paper and not in reality. Firms have a mixture of proactive and reactive greening measures and enjoy only an indirect competitive advantage from greening. The absence of "win win" gains can be pinned to buyer behaviour along the chains, coupled with their reluctance for closer collaboration and weak green customer pressures for clothing sourced in Bangladesh. Policymaking by the state has also been problematic: issue cognition and conflict, closed hierarchical networks, mistrust, political bargaining and prioritising national economic interests hampered the EM vision of the modern nation state. Overall, this thesis questions the adequacy of EMT for investing international supply chains. EMT needs to reconceptualise itself with hierarchical relationship realities, LDC cultural contexts, LDC growth trajectories, actor heterogeneity, "no win" situations, and the suitability of EM tools

The posthuman : hostis humani generis? : science fiction allegories/social narratives

Whether in the guise of the novel or non-print media such as film and television, fin-de-millennium science fiction has provided opportunities to envisage a posthuman stage of evolution. The academic response to this has been polarized. Certain elements have embraced the genre as integral to the sociocultural relationship between unfettered biotechnological advance and the limitation of the human flesh. Others have treated the topic as fanciful entertainment, leading them to ignore and sometimes ridicule research on the posthuman. The thesis seeks to utilise the contemporary science fiction allegory as an aid in developing a critique of the emerging posthuman discourse, facilitating the analysis of its socio-political dynamic, and questioning whether discourse advancement necessitates the rejection of the humanist metanarrative. The thesis is divided into six chapters. The first chapter differentiates the posthuman from established biotechnological discourses, e mg the discontinuities in global location, temporal engagement, and participant ideology. The second reflects on the contemporary human condition associated with man's technological ingenuity being a credible threat to his own existence. It then outlines the epochal technoscience of the posthuman and introduces the diametrically opposed standpoints of the posthuman as amelioration, or autoextinction. The third chapter draws upon utopian visions of the future to contextualise and assist in the critical analysis of narratives advocating posthuman technoscience. The fourth chapter reverses this, by utilising dystopian imagery as an entree into the rationale of those opposing human alteration, facilitating its critique. The fifth chapter sees the science fiction allegory as a postfoundationalist narrative, offering up a discursive mirror to the influences of providence and progress on the posthuman debate. The final chapter examines whether an a-humanist account of man's relationship with technology might help to advance the posthuman debate

LIPIcs, Volume 277, GIScience 2023, Complete Volume

LIPIcs, Volume 277, GIScience 2023, Complete Volum

The Impact of the Internationalisation of Higher Education on Scientists’ Multimodal Communication: A case study from Catalonia

Les universitats de tot el món són instades a participar en el procés d' ‘internacionalització’ com a distintiu de qualitat i com a reclam per atraure estudiants. Aquest estudi aborda aquesta qüestió des del context de les institucions catalanes d’educació superior, que afronten el dilema de donar suport a la/les llengua/gües local/s i, alhora, abraçar el multilingüisme i, sobretot, l’anglès. L'objectiu principal d'aquest estudi és examinar l'impacte de la internacionalització de l'educació superior en la comunicació diària dels científics. Les dades etnogràfiques s’han recopilat al llarg d’un període d’11 mesos d’observació de dos grups de recerca (RGs) multinacionals amb seu en una universitat catalana, i s’han contrastat amb dades extretes d’un RG amb seu a Alemanya i amb idees inspirades en les pràctiques del RG de la pròpia investigadora. De l'objectiu empíric n’ha derivat un objectiu teòric, que consisteix a dissenyar i provar un marc teòric adequat per estudiar el fenomen proposat de manera integral. Aquest estudi té l’objectiu de contribuir a la limitada literatura que descriu aquelles pràctiques comunicatives "informals" i inèdites dels científics, així com a la literatura sobre la internacionalització de l’ensenyament superior. A nivell pràctic, aquest treball pretén contribuir a la millora de les polítiques d’internacionalització de les institucions d’ensenyament superior de Catalunya, d’Europa i potencialment d’altres contextos arreu del món.Las universidades de todo el mundo son instadas a participar en el proceso de ‘internacionalización’ como distintivo de calidad y como reclamo para atraer estudiantes. Este estudio aborda esta cuestión desde el contexto de las instituciones catalanas de educación superior, que afrontan el dilema de apoyar la/s lengua/s local/es y, a la vez, abrazar el multilingüismo y, sobre todo, el inglés. El objetivo principal de este estudio es examinar el impacto de la internacionalización de la educación superior en la comunicación diaria de los científicos. Los datos etnográficos se han recopilado a lo largo de un período de 11 meses de observación de dos grupos de investigación (RGs) multinacionales con sede en una universidad catalana, y se han contrastado con datos extraídos de un RG con sede en Alemania y con ideas inspiradas en las prácticas del RG de la propia investigadora. Del objetivo empírico ha derivado un objetivo teórico, que consiste en diseñar y probar un marco teórico adecuado para estudiar el fenómeno propuesto de manera integral. Este estudio tiene el objetivo de contribuir a la limitada literatura que describe aquellas prácticas comunicativas "informales" e inéditas de los científicos, así como a la literatura sobre la internacionalización de la enseñanza superior. A nivel práctico, este trabajo pretende contribuir a la mejora de las políticas de internacionalización de las instituciones de enseñanza superior de Cataluña, de Europa y potencialmente de otros contextos en todo el mundo.Universities worldwide are urged to engage in the process of ‘internationalisation’ as a hallmark of quality and as a lure to attract students. The current study approaches this issue from the context of Catalan higher education institutions, which deal with the dilemma of supporting the local language(s) and at the same time embracing multilingualism and especially English. The main aim of this study is to examine the impact of the internationalisation of higher education on the daily communication of scientists. Ethnographic data have been collected throughout a period of 11 months from two multinational research groups (RGs) based in a Catalan state university, and contrasted with data taken from a RG based in Germany and with insights from the researcher’s own RG. From the empirical objective has derived a theoretical objective, consisting in designing and proving a suitable theoretical framework to study the phenomenon holistically. This study aims to contribute to the limited body of research describing scientists’ "informal" and unpublished communicative practices, as well as to the literature on the internationalisation of higher education. On a practical level, this work is intended to aid in the improvement of internationalisation policies of higher education institutions in Catalonia, in Europe and potentially in other contexts worldwide

CIMODE 2016: 3º Congresso Internacional de Moda e Design: proceedings

O CIMODE 2016 é o terceiro Congresso Internacional de Moda e Design, a decorrer de 9 a 12 de maio de 2016 na cidade de Buenos Aires, subordinado ao tema : EM--‐TRAMAS. A presente edição é organizada pela Faculdade de Arquitetura, Desenho e Urbanismo da Universidade de Buenos Aires, em conjunto com o Departamento de Engenharia Têxtil da Universidade do Minho e com a ABEPEM – Associação Brasileira de Estudos e Pesquisa em Moda.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

12th International Conference on Geographic Information Science: GIScience 2023, September 12–15, 2023, Leeds, UK

No abstract available

Maritime expressions:a corpus based exploration of maritime metaphors

This study uses a purpose-built corpus to explore the linguistic legacy of Britain’s maritime history found in the form of hundreds of specialised ‘Maritime Expressions’ (MEs), such as TAKEN ABACK, ANCHOR and ALOOF, that permeate modern English. Selecting just those expressions commencing with ’A’, it analyses 61 MEs in detail and describes the processes by which these technical expressions, from a highly specialised occupational discourse community, have made their way into modern English. The Maritime Text Corpus (MTC) comprises 8.8 million words, encompassing a range of text types and registers, selected to provide a cross-section of ‘maritime’ writing. It is analysed using WordSmith analytical software (Scott, 2010), with the 100 million-word British National Corpus (BNC) as a reference corpus. Using the MTC, a list of keywords of specific salience within the maritime discourse has been compiled and, using frequency data, concordances and collocations, these MEs are described in detail and their use and form in the MTC and the BNC is compared. The study examines the transformation from ME to figurative use in the general discourse, in terms of form and metaphoricity. MEs are classified according to their metaphorical strength and their transference from maritime usage into new registers and domains such as those of business, politics, sports and reportage etc. A revised model of metaphoricity is developed and a new category of figurative expression, the ‘resonator’, is proposed. Additionally, developing the work of Lakov and Johnson, Kovesces and others on Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), a number of Maritime Conceptual Metaphors are identified and their cultural significance is discussed