Global Law as Intercontextuality and as Interlegality

Since the 1990s the effects of globalization on law and legal developments has been a central topic of scholarly debate. To date, the debate is however marked by three substantial deficiencies which this chapter seeks to remedy through a reconceptualization of global law as a law of inter-contextuality expressed through inter-legality and materialized through a particular body of legal norms which can be characterized as connectivity norms. The first deficiency is a historical and empirical one. Both critics as well as advocates of ‘non-state law’ share the assumption that ‘law beyond the state’ and related legal norms have gained in centrality when compared with previous historical times. While global law, including both public and private global governance law as well as regional occurrences such as EU law, has undergone profound transformations since the structural transformations which followed the de-colonialization processes of the mid-twentieth century, we do not have more global law relatively to other types of law today than in previous historical times. The second deficiency is a methodological one. The vast majority of scholarship on global law is either of an analytical nature, drawing on insights from philosophy, or empirically observing the existence of global law and the degree of compliance with global legal norms at a given moment in time. While both approaches bring something to the table they remain static approaches incapable of explaining and evaluating the transformation of global law over time. The third deficiency is a conceptual-theoretical one. In most instances, global law is understood as a unitary law producing singular legal norms with a planetary reach, or, alternatively, a radical pluralist perspective is adopted dismissing the existence of singular global norms. Both of these approaches however misapprehend the structural characteristics, function and societal effects of global law. Instead a third positon between unitary and radical pluralist perspectives can be adopted through an understanding of global law and its related legal norms as a de-centred kind of inter-contextual law characterised by inter-legality

Achieving the Millennium Development Goal of reducing maternal mortality in rural Africa: an experience from Burundi.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the reduction in maternal mortality associated with the emergency obstetric care provided by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and to compare this to the fifth Millennium Development Goal of reducing maternal mortality. METHODS: The impact of MSF's intervention was approximated by estimating how many deaths were averted among women transferred to and treated at MSF's emergency obstetric care facility in Kabezi, Burundi, with a severe acute maternal morbidity. Using this estimate, the resulting theoretical maternal mortality ratio in Kabezi was calculated and compared to the Millennium Development Goal for Burundi. RESULTS: In 2011, 1385 women from Kabezi were transferred to the MSF facility, of whom 55% had a severe acute maternal morbidity. We estimated that the MSF intervention averted 74% (range 55-99%) of maternal deaths in Kabezi district, equating to a district maternal mortality rate of 208 (range 8-360) deaths/100 000 live births. This lies very near to the 2015 MDG 5 target for Burundi (285 deaths/100 000 live births). CONCLUSION: Provision of quality emergency obstetric care combined with a functional patient transfer system can be associated with a rapid and substantial reduction in maternal mortality, and may thus be a possible way to achieve Millennium Development Goal 5 in rural Africa

Bringing jobs to western Maine

Western Maine has been experiencing difficult times as the economic base transitions and many of the region’s past manufacturing jobs have been lost.Economic development - Maine ; Job creation - Maine ; Rural development - Maine

We All Bleed Red: African American Soldiers and the 1st Maine Heavy Artillery

Years before the United States military was officially desegregated in 1948, African Americans fought alongside white men in the 1st Maine Heavy Artillery during the Civil War. Most African American men that fought for the Union in the Civil War did so in United States Colored Troops (U.S.C.T.) units, separated from white men. Because of this segregation, many black men, such as Andrew J. Williams of Industry, Maine, left home to find and fight with a U.S.C.T. regiment. Williams would not be accepted into a Maine regiment, or at least so he thought. His brother, Aaron E. Williams, decided to try his luck with the 1st Maine Heavy Artillery, a white regiment. He mustered in on December 26, 1863 and served in Company G. He was not the only African American to join the 1st Maine, either. Lemuel Carter and Franklin Freemont from Bath joined, as did George Freeman from Brunswick. Carter and Freeman enlisted on January 5, 1864, while Freemont enlisted the day prior. They were all members of Company M. [excerpt

Four directions: Native American lending in Maine

Four Directions, a community development financial institution established by Maine’s four Native American tribes, is overcoming many traditional barriers to lending on tribal land.Community development - Maine ; American Indian ; Financial institutions - Maine ; Loans - Maine

Toward a More Equal Footing: Early Head Start In Maine

In this brief, author Jessica Carson explores the characteristics of Early Head Start (EHS) in Maine, compares them to the national landscape, and connects these findings to a discussion of the federal and state policy climates. She reports that Maine has 837 EHS slots for more than 8,000 poor children age 0–2 in Maine. Limited funding means that EHS is unable to reach the vast majority of children living below the poverty line. Nearly half of Maine’s EHS enrollees participate via the home visitation service delivery model, compared with 37.3 percent nationwide. Although state supplemental funds pay for a small share of all Maine EHS slots (60 of the 837 slots in 2015-2016), in a climate where early childhood education and care is expensive, these slots provide critical access to some of Maine’s most vulnerable families. More broadly, because EHS can reach only a small number of Mainers, the state might consider ways to bolster the stability of this population in other ways, including through state home visitation funds and child care funds more generally. This research was supported by a grant from the Portland-based John T. Gorman Foundation, whose mission is to advance ideas and opportunities that can improve the lives of disadvantaged people in Maine

No island is an island: Maine's island housing groups collaborate

The Islands Challenge Fund formed by the Maine Community Foundation, the Maine Sea Coast Mission, the Island Institute, and Genesis Community Loan Fund offers a model for helping year-round residents in any resort community to create affordable housing.Housing - Maine

Development of Guidelines for Refugee Screening at CMMC Family Medicine Residency, Lewiston, Maine

Lewiston Maine has the second highest number of refugees in the state of Maine, with 191 total intakes in 2015. Refugee populations face unique health concerns, and providing care for refugees requires education and development of a specialized skill set. This project provided a reference for clinic providers to assist with medical intake screening visits for refugees.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/fmclerk/1244/thumbnail.jp