The International Criminal Court in Africa

Entering into force on 1 July, 2002, the Rome Statute established the International Criminal Court (ICC) with jurisdiction over ‘the most serious crimes of concern to the international community’: Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, and War Crimes (ICC, 2002: 3). This chapter is concerned with the way in which the ICC has been conducting its work in Africa, and it does this in four parts. The first part details key aspects of the legislation underpinning the ICC and outlines some of the criticisms of the ICCs conduct in Africa. The second part explores the difficult relationships the court has with the African Union, discussing the impacts of this for the effective working of the ICC on the continent. The third part examines debates around the ICCs wider impact, particularly on states transitioning from violence. The chapter concludes with a short discussion on the future for the ICC in Africa, outlining some potential solutions to the difficulties it faces

Democratic Governance Beyond the State: An Exploration of Democracy and Governance in the European Parliament

The growing internationalisation of governance in the modern era means that states are increasingly interconnected. In this process, democratic governance has often taken second place to the demands of a neoliberal system that emphasises market-based solutions to social organisation and deregulation of structures based in the democratic realm of states. This dissertation is an exploration of the role democracy plays in regional governance bodies, focusing specifically on the European Parliament and its role in the European Union as an example of this. The dissertation argues that there is a role for democracy in global governance, and that the European Parliament represents a positive step towards introducing the wishes of citizens into political structures above the level of the state. It uses a three-stage immanent criticism developed from the early work of Max Horkheimer to explore the parliament in its historical, present, and potential functions. Built on a critical philosophy that understands the social world as a product of historically materialist action, this dissertation seeks not just to describe the functions of the Parliament, but also to suggest ways in which they might develop past their current limitations. Following a methodological discussion on the application of immanent criticism, the dissertation engages in a theoretical analysis of the complex concepts of democracy and governance as a prelude to the exploration of the Parliament. The dissertation then utilises a range of interviews and documentary evidence to present a thesis that has two main claims. Firstly, it argues that the European Parliament represents a new form of democratic regional structure that represents both states and citizens, and introduces an element of democratic accountability to governance above the level of nation states. Secondly, the thesis contends that the Parliament, as part of the wider Union, possesses the potential for greater democratic function. In making this argument, the dissertation suggests a range of practical ways to improve democracy and governance in the Parliament, and by extension in other similar regional political bodies. These include the introduction of greater democratic influence on decision making, increased transparency, dedicated European political parties, and a stronger role for civil society bodies. The dissertation concludes that democratic governance has the potential to present an alternative to the dominant neoliberal structures that currently shape much of the international political, economic, and social environment

Use of the MultiNest algorithm for gravitational wave data analysis

We describe an application of the MultiNest algorithm to gravitational wave data analysis. MultiNest is a multimodal nested sampling algorithm designed to efficiently evaluate the Bayesian evidence and return posterior probability densities for likelihood surfaces containing multiple secondary modes. The algorithm employs a set of live points which are updated by partitioning the set into multiple overlapping ellipsoids and sampling uniformly from within them. This set of live points climbs up the likelihood surface through nested iso-likelihood contours and the evidence and posterior distributions can be recovered from the point set evolution. The algorithm is model-independent in the sense that the specific problem being tackled enters only through the likelihood computation, and does not change how the live point set is updated. In this paper, we consider the use of the algorithm for gravitational wave data analysis by searching a simulated LISA data set containing two non-spinning supermassive black hole binary signals. The algorithm is able to rapidly identify all the modes of the solution and recover the true parameters of the sources to high precision.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Class. Quantum Grav; v2 includes various changes in light of referee's comment

A 10 500-Year Sequence of Bird Remains from the Southern Boreal Forest Region of Western Canada

The prehistoric avian fauna from the Charlie Lake Cave site, Peace River District, British Columbia, spans the last 10,500 years and includes birds from eleven orders. Prior to about 10,000 B.P. the fauna is sparse and the most common species is Cliff Swallow (Hirundo pyrrhonota), which probably nested at the site. The avian fauna from 10,000 B.P. to the present is dominated by wetland associated birds (mainly grebes and ducks) of the same species found in the area today and is consistent with the establishment of boreal forest by 10,000 B.P. From about 8000 B.P. Passenger Pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) occurs and appears to have been a regular component of the local fauna. The assemblages demonstrate rapid colonization of boreal environments by bird populations by 10,000 B.P. and probably indicate that the modern patterns of migration were established early in the Holocene.Key words: British Columbia, fossil birds, Holocene, Passenger PigeonL’avifaune préhistorique du site de Charlie Lake Cave, dans le district de Peace River en Colombie-Britannique, couvre les 10 500 dernières années et comprend des oiseaux appartenant à onze ordres différents. Antérieurement à environ 10 000 BP, la faune est clairsemée et l’espèce la plus courante est l’hirondelle à front blanc (Hirundo pyrrhonota), qui nidifie probablement sur le site. L’avifaune couvrant de 10 000 BP au présent est dominée par des oiseaux associés aux terres humides (surtout des grèbes et des canards) appartenant aux mêmes espèces que l’on trouve actuellement dans la région, et cette prédominance correspond à l’établissement d’une forêt boréale d’ici 10 000 BP. A partir d’environ 8000 BP, la tourte (Ectopistes migratorius) fait son apparition et semble avoir été une composante régulière de la faune locale. Les assemblages indiquent une colonisation rapide des milieux boréaux par les populations d’oiseaux d’ici 10 000 BP et semblent indiquer que les schémas de migration actuels se sont établis au début de l’holocène.Mots clés: Colombie-Britannique, oiseaux fossiles, holocène, tourt

The International Criminal Court in Africa

Entering into force on 1 July, 2002, the Rome Statute established the International Criminal Court (ICC) with jurisdiction over ‘the most serious crimes of concern to the international community’: Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, and War Crimes (ICC, 2002: 3). This chapter is concerned with the way in which the ICC has been conducting its work in Africa, and it does this in four parts. The first part details key aspects of the legislation underpinning the ICC and outlines some of the criticisms of the ICCs conduct in Africa. The second part explores the difficult relationships the court has with the African Union, discussing the impacts of this for the effective working of the ICC on the continent. The third part examines debates around the ICCs wider impact, particularly on states transitioning from violence. The chapter concludes with a short discussion on the future for the ICC in Africa, outlining some potential solutions to the difficulties it faces

Restorative Evaluation - poster for Restorative Gloucester and Gloucestershire Police

This project is the latest phases of a larger project led by Dr Jon Hobson that evaluates and facilitates opportunities for restorative Justice. This phase explores the work of Restorative Gloucestershire across the county. This poster outlines the stages of research, and was presented to Restorative Gloucestershire and Gloucestershire Police, who are funding the project along with the Environmental Dynamics and Governance Research Priority Area at the University of Gloucestershire

Artificial fairness? Trust in algorithmic police decision-making

Objectives: Test whether (1) people view a policing decision made by an algorithm as more or less trustworthy than when an officer makes the same decision; (2) people who are presented with a specific instance of algorithmic policing have greater or lesser support for the general use of algorithmic policing in general; and (3) people use trust as a heuristic through which to make sense of an unfamiliar technology like algorithmic policing. Methods: An online experiment tested whether different decision-making methods, outcomes and scenario types affect judgements about the appropriateness and fairness of decision-making and the general acceptability of police use of this particular technology. Results: People see a decision as less fair and less appropriate when an algorithm decides, compared to when an officer decides. Yet, perceptions of fairness and appropriateness were strong predictors of support for police use of algorithms, and being exposed to a successful use of an algorithm was linked, via trust in the decision made, to greater support for police use of algorithms. Conclusions: Making decisions solely based on algorithms might damage trust, and the more police rely solely on algorithmic decision-making, the less trusting people may be in decisions. However, mere exposure to the successful use of algorithms seems to enhance the general acceptability of this technology

Constructive Alignment: The Learning Outcome approach to teaching and assessment

This presentation details a 'Learning Outcome approach' to the design of subject, module and assessment learning outcomes that was designed by Dr Jon Hobson and adopted across the Social Sciences subject community in the School of Natural and Social Sciences. The approach builds on the principle of 'constructive alignment' between different level descriptors, and has been a successful tool for course design and articulation to internal and external bodies. The presentation was delivered to academic schools at the University of Gloucestershire and to the senior management team across 2016 and 2017

Communities and Local Government and Work and Pensions Committees. Oral evidence: Future of Supported Housing, 27th February, 2017. Transcript of evidence session.

Evidence given on 27th February, 2017 by Dr Jonathan Hobson to Commons Joint Select Committee inquiry on the Future of Supported Housing. Evidence based on work by Dr Jon Hobson, Dr Kenny Lynch, Pauline Dooley

Evidence submitted to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Restorative Justice, August 2021

This evidence is in response to the first group of question in the inquiry under the heading ‘Restorative Justice in 2021: Setting the scene’. The response is intended as a guide to some of the key literature; it is not an exhaustive list, but an indication of academic work across a range of key areas