| 1. |
- Andrén, Rasmus
(författare)
-
Anxiety and (In)Security in Times of Calamity : The 2014 flood and the Kashmir conflict
- 2024
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Environmental calamities and disasters are increasingly found to affect political stability and conflicts. Despite a plethora of research across a range of disciplines, however, explanations remain elusive. The theoretical shortcomings of prior research coalesce into an overarching problem concerning how to conceptualize disasters as influencing conflicts through the disruptions they impose on identities. I argue that how identities intermingle with the disaster-conflict nexus can be further advanced by drawing on ontological security studies (OSS). By investigating the disastrous flood in the Kashmir valley in 2014, and its role in the brewing unrest that climaxed in 2016 amid separatist conflict, I argue that disasters influence conflicts through processes of securitizing and desecuritizing an ontologically secure Self. That is to say, that the search for stable and coherent identities following disasters can mitigate and reinforce conflicts. Nested within this argument are three core contributions. First, I address the multifaceted dynamics by which the Self and identities are unsettled and challenged, or affirmed and reified amid disasters and conflict, to show how we can read disasters as disruptive amid already ongoing crises. Second, I theorize how the search for stable and ontologically secure identities can engender securitization and desecuritization of subjectivity at the same time, exacerbating and mitigating different dynamics in a conflict. Third, in doing so, the dissertation suggests that future research on disasters, and environmental challenges more broadly, should be less concerned with a binary understanding of their impact on conflicts and more concerned about their multidimensional relations.
|
|
| 2. |
- Ekengren, Magnus, Professor, 1962-, et al.
(författare)
-
Explaining the European Union's security role in practice
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Journal of Common Market Studies. - : Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Inc.. - 0021-9886 .- 1468-5965. ; 58:3, s. 616-635
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- European states may no longer expect inter‐state violence, but they do expect complex threats emanating from storms, epidemics, terror attacks and earthquakes. The EU has answered these threats through the rapid and far‐reaching institutionalization of European security cooperation. However, member states hesitate to use their common capacities. While both intergovernmental and constructivist approaches treat this pattern as evidence of weak integration and as unimportant to the European security community, we examine this cooperation through the lens of practice theory and reveal how the growth of EU capacities is fully compatible with a critical and cautious approach to activating these resources in the everyday work of national officials. Using unique empirical data retrieved through participant observation in the first multisectoral crisis management exercise held by the EU, the findings of this analysis sketch the contours of a new type of security community.
|
|
| 3. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-
(författare)
-
A rational response to natural disasters? : Explaining the global rise of regional disaster risk management
- 2012
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Natural disasters pervade the certainty of social life. In a globalized world this truism increasingly calls for transnational solutions to prevent, prepare, and respond to these deadly disruptions. Regional Disaster Risk Management (DRM) has recently emerged to meet this concern. However, a number of observations question the expected motivation that compels states to cooperate in this important issue area. First, there has been only a moderate increase in the relative estimated economic costs from natural disasters in a majority of regional organizations, and the number of deaths related to natural disasters has consistently decreased. Second, after a tranquil period of cooperation from the mid 1970s, regional DRM rapidly developed and spread across the globe. This sudden rise in DRM cooperation seems difficult to explain if the costs from natural disasters have not considerably changed. Third, remarkable similarities appear in the goals and wording of regional DRM agreements despite the varied political, historical and cultural contexts that typify regional organizations. These empirical observations go against conventional expectations and question the core motivation of the state’s protection of its citizens. This thesis explains the emergence of regional Disaster Risk Management (DRM) globally. This is achieved by applying two alternative traditions of inquiry to ten regional organizations. The first is informed by a neopositive methodology and neoliberal institutional theory. It reveals that a combination of interdependence and asymmetrical risk are a sufficient explanation for the outcome. The second is informed through an analytical methodology and world society theory. It reveals that the UN and the international community are an adequate cause for motivating states through the mutual application of relational and cultural diffusion. An additional aspect of this thesis assesses the extent to which these contending approaches can provide a more complete explanation. This is achieved through a conservative translation of their different modes of knowledge production: an exercise that encourages additional ideal types and hypotheses for the purpose of fostering a richer explanation according to the terms set by each tradition of inquiry. This thesis contributes to the debate on the evolving function of the state in a globalized world. It provides an empirical contribution through a comprehensive comparison of 10 regional organizations; it delivers a theoretical contribution by inter alia questioning the scope conditions of neoliberal institutionalism; and it provides a metatheoretical contribution by offering an alternative avenue for thinking about stylized epistemological divides in the discipline of International Relations (IR).
|
|
| 4. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-
(författare)
-
Bridging International Relations with Disaster Studies : The case of disaster-conflict scholarship
- 2018
-
Ingår i: Disasters. The Journal of Disaster Studies, Policy and Management. - : Wiley. - 0361-3666 .- 1467-7717. ; 42:1, s. 19-40
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- International relations and disaster studies have much to gain by thinking critically about their respective theoretical and epistemological assumptions. Yet, few studies to date have sought to assess the potential value of linking these two disciplines. This paper begins to address this short-fall by examining the relationship between disasters and conflict as a research sphere that intersects international relations and disaster studies. Through an analysis of whether or not disasters contribute to intranational and international conflict, this paper not only provides a review of the state of the art, but also serves to invite scholars to reflect on related concepts from other fields to strengthen their own approaches to the study of disasters in an international setting. An evaluation of the conceptual and theoretical contributions of each subject area provides useful heuristics for the development of disaster–conflict scholarship and encourages alternative modes of knowledge production through interdisciplinarity.
|
|
| 5. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-
(författare)
-
Competing And Complementary Conceptions Of Trust In European Integration Theory
- 2009
-
Ingår i: Lcc Liberal Arts Studies / 2009 Volume II. ; , s. 123-140
-
Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The notion of trust or distrust appears in most accounts of cooperation and is, at least implicitly, understood as a primary determining factor for any future collaboration. This is equally true for European integration theory which highlights the importance trust plays in shifting loyalties, reducing transaction costs or forming security communities. Given its importance in influencing cooperative outcomes, it is surprising how little attention trust has received and how seldom the conceptual foundations of trust have been examined. The purpose of this article is to begin to address this shortfall through exploring the concept of trust in European integration theory with a particular focus on the competing and complementing categories of strategic and moralistic trust. This is further complemented by the addition of a case study on EU civil protection as one of the fastest growing areas of European security integration in the European Union.
|
|
| 6. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-
(författare)
-
Competing and Complimentary Discourses in Global Disaster Risk Management
- 2014
-
Ingår i: Risk, Hazards & Crisis in Public Policy. - : Wiley. - 1944-4079. ; 5:3, s. 342-363
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article analyses the underlying structures that contribute to the boundaries of appropriate behavior in global Disaster Risk Management (DRM). Understood as a policy field committed to mitigating the effects of natural hazards and assisting states in responding to disasters, international dimensions of DRM have received increased attention by academics and practitioners. Yet, little reflection has been made on the ideational structures that define this field. Based on a discourse analysis on key texts, this study argues that three dominant categories—a humanitarian ethics of care, scientific rationality and sovereignty—demarcate the boundaries of cooperation on DRM. Understanding the relationship between these categories is considered vital for reflecting on the current and future trajectory of this important policy field.
|
|
| 7. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-, et al.
(författare)
-
Country Study : Norway
- 2013
-
Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The Norwegian state has a long-standing tradition of protecting its citizens from a range of threats from natural disasters, infectious diseases, industrial accidents, critical infrastructure failure, to terrorist attacks. This case study provides a broad and detailed description on the main features of the modern Norwegian civil security system. It explains how it functions, it describes the system’s political and cultural context, and it addresses the changes that have occurred since the Oslo bombing and the Utøya shootings in 2011 July 22. The coordination of human and material resources to prevent, prepare, respond to, and recover from, various crises is constructed along three guiding principles of responsibility, decentralization, and conformity. This not only means that responsibility for crisis management should be at the lowest possible level, but that the state and its society must also operate under normal standards, regardless of the type or extent of a particular crisis. As this study shows, most areas of the civil security system are infused with these defining principles. This can be seen, for example, in the discussion on the cultural elements that inform Norwegian society, the production of legislation, or in operational procedures used in responding to crises. In addition to these areas, this study also provides detailed descriptions on Norway’s administrative and legal traditions, its external cooperative endeavours, as well as the way in which the private sector and citizens interact with civil security system. In order to further understand the system, this study investigates three quality measures based on the extent to which the system is effective, efficient, and legitimate. An annex is also included that depicts the principal descriptive features of the study, as well as a case study on the H1N1 virus. Set within the dark shadows of the events that took place on July 22 – that could have been avoided through existing security measures according to Norwegian state authorities – this study concludes by highlighting the need for an increase in vigilance and efficiency of the Norwegian civil security system.
|
|
| 8. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-
(författare)
-
Disaster Risk Reduction in the Caribbean : Opportunities and Challenges for Achieving Greater Resilience
- 2014
-
Ingår i: Caribbean Journal of International Relationships & Diplomacy. ; 2:4, s. 121-132
-
Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The Caribbean experience of natural hazards and disasters has continued to increase over the last half-century. The intensity and number of weather-related disasters combined with existing social, political and economic vulnerabilities form a complex arrangement that threatens the livelihoods of individuals and communities. Global attention to at-risk regions, such as the Caribbean and the Pacific, has intensified in the last decade as an array of international and regional actors have advocated a set of prescriptive action points based on the Hyogo Framework Programme for Action (HFA). As the decade of HFA draws to a close, and as the international community prepare to negotiate the post-HFA in March 2015, it is timely to ask whether the HFA has reached the societal level as its targeted audience. Based on extensive interviews with members of the international community, local disaster managers and intellectuals in the Caribbean region, this paper emphasises the limited success of the HFA and the importance of culture as a long-term strategy for ensuring a safer future.
|
|
| 9. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-
(författare)
-
Disasters in the Anthropocene : a storm in a teacup?
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Disasters. The Journal of Disaster Studies, Policy and Management. - : Wiley. - 0361-3666 .- 1467-7717. ; 47:2, s. 298-319
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dramatic alterations to the natural environment due to human activity have produced a permanent rupture in the Earth system; the relative stable epoch of the Holocene has given way to a volatile Anthropocene. Acceptance of these claims means that we now live in this altered physical reality, inviting us to rethink how we conceptualise disasters. Yet, disaster scholars have been hesitant to apply the Anthropocene label and to acknowledge the profound changes that it can bring to the study of disasters. This paper queries whether this label is a necessary adage or unnecessary baggage for disaster studies by examining the possibilities and the challenges associated with engaging with the Anthropocene. An analysis of the concepts, causes, and consequences of disasters reveals how the Anthropocene provides, as the very least, a theoretical heuristic for challenging linear temporal assumptions, the epistemological status of uncertainty, and the location of agency in disaster studies.
|
|
| 10. |
- Hollis, Simon, 1982-
(författare)
-
Localized Development Gaps in Global Governance : The Case of Disaster Risk Reduction in Oceania
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Global Governance. - 1075-2846 .- 1942-6720. ; 23:1, s. 121-139
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Global framework agreements on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) aim to reduce the vulnerability of states from the effects of natural hazards and guide international development strategies. The effects of these agreements have surely saved lives and buffered shocks to economic systems. Yet, there remains a gap between global aims and envisioned outcomes in local communities. This paper argues that cultural determinants of risk, which shape the reception and translation of ideas on DRR, must be taken seriously if international organizations wish to enhance their efficacy and reduce vulnerability. Elucidating the importance indigenous practices of resilience, time and governance have for the global diffusion of DRR can help to reduce this gap and encourage more effective development policy in the future.
|
|
