State-Building: Peace versus Democracy: A comparative case study of the peacebuilding missions in Sierra Leone and in the Central African Republic

In 2014, the peacebuilding missions in Sierra Leone and in the Central African Republic (CAR) were ended. While the former was described as being a success story, the latter failed to construct stable and lasting peace in CAR since a war broke out in December 2012 and is still ongoing in 2016. This study proposes an analysis of these two peacebuilding missions, using Roland Paris' theory Institutionalization Before Liberalization, which stresses the importance of strengthening local institutions and making them able to manage the destabilizing effects of liberalization. By examining whether the UNIPSIL and the BINUCA waited until conditions were ripe for elections, designed electoral rules that diminished reward ethnic inclusiveness and promoted good civil society, the authors came to the conclusion that the variables ripe conditions for elections and good civil society seem to be essential for a peacebuilding mission to be successful.In 2014, the peacebuilding missions in Sierra Leone and in the Central African Republic (CAR) were ended. While the former was described as being a success story, the latter failed to construct stable and lasting peace in CAR since a war broke out in December 2012 and is still ongoing in 2016. This study proposes an analysis of these two peacebuilding missions, using Roland Paris' theory Institutionalization Before Liberalization, which stresses the importance of strengthening local institutions and making them able to manage the destabilizing effects of liberalization. By examining whether the UNIPSIL and the BINUCA waited until conditions were ripe for elections, designed electoral rules that diminished reward ethnic inclusiveness and promoted good civil society, the authors came to the conclusion that the variables ripe conditions for elections and good civil society seem to be essential for a peacebuilding mission to be successful

The European Migrant Crisis and the fortune of right-wing populist parties

In 2015, Europe faced one of the most extensive refugee flows since the Second World War. The situation forced European Governments to take actions on immigration issues to handle the increasing inflows of asylum seekers. We draw on Meguid’s theory on party strategies to examine whether mainstream parties policies of immigration affects the public support of right-wing populist parties. Simultaneously, we include theories claiming that the amount of asylum seekers is crucial to public support of right-wing populist parties. These theories are the basis of our study when examining what may be fueling the success of right-wing populist parties in Sweden, Denmark, France and Italy. Our empirical findings concludes that there are no monocausal connection between mainstream parties’ strategies and the amount of asylum seekers. The outcomes are variating between the examined countries. However, levels of immigration are in most cases more essential than strategies used by mainstream parties to affront with migration issues. Mainstream parties policies seemingly plays a more insignificant role when the asylum reception is extensive. Accordingly, our conclusion is that multiple variables need to be included to completely determine what impacts of right-wing populist parties public support.In 2015, Europe faced one of the most extensive refugee flows since the Second World War. The situation forced European Governments to take actions on immigration issues to handle the increasing inflows of asylum seekers. We draw on Meguid’s theory on party strategies to examine whether mainstream parties policies of immigration affects the public support of right-wing populist parties. Simultaneously, we include theories claiming that the amount of asylum seekers is crucial to public support of right-wing populist parties. These theories are the basis of our study when examining what may be fueling the success of right-wing populist parties in Sweden, Denmark, France and Italy. Our empirical findings concludes that there are no monocausal connection between mainstream parties’ strategies and the amount of asylum seekers. The outcomes are variating between the examined countries. However, levels of immigration are in most cases more essential than strategies used by mainstream parties to affront with migration issues. Mainstream parties policies seemingly plays a more insignificant role when the asylum reception is extensive. Accordingly, our conclusion is that multiple variables need to be included to completely determine what impacts of right-wing populist parties public support

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field