Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons^™

The Politics Of International Arbitration And Adjudication, Stephen E. Gent

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

Arbitration and adjudication have proven to be effective means of producing long-lasting settlements on contentious issues, but states are generally reluctant to use such legal forms of dispute resolution, especially in resolving issues of national security. To understand when policymakers can and should promote the use of legal mechanisms, they need to understand the political reasons behind the reluctance of states to use these forums. This essay identifies five factors that significantly influence the willingness of states to relinquish decision control and pursue arbitration or adjudication: third-party bias, salience, uncertainty, bargaining power, and armed conflict. To promote the use of …

Using The Right Tool For The Job: Mediator Leverage And Conflict Resolution, Kyle Beardsley

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

In international dispute mediation, a one-size-fits-all view of mediation may actually inhibit effective conflict resolution. Mediators must especially tailor the level of leverage to the needs of the situation. This essay first considers existing studies that have found both potential benefits and risks of heavy-handed third-party involvement as a conflict-management strategy. It then considers a few illustrative cases to demonstrate the importance of making sure that the tools of mediation fit the context. Finally, it concludes with a discussion of how sustained post-conflict peacekeeping and peacebuilding can reduce the risks of leverage in mediation.

Intractable Syria? Insights From The Scholarly Literature On The Failure Of Mediation, J. Michael Greig

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

The conflict in Syria has been ongoing since March 2011, but to date has resisted third-party diplomatic efforts. This failure of mediation is despite the fact that numerous actors in the international system have interests both in Syria and the Middle East at large. The human toll of the conflict, which has produced large numbers of civilian casualties and considerable human suffering, creates even deeper urgency for effective conflict management in Syria. In this paper, I apply insights drawn from the scholarly literature on conflict management and civil wars to the Syrian conflict to explain why mediation efforts have thus …

Who Should Be At The Table?: Veto Players And Peace Processes In Civil War, David E. Cunningham

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

Civil wars contain a set of actors that have the ability to block settlement and continue the war on their own. When they contain more “veto players,” conflicts are much longer and negotiations are more likely to break down. The rate of success of international efforts to resolve multi-party civil wars is much lower than when there is only one rebel group fighting the government. This article discusses implications for peacemakers designing responses to conflicts with multiple veto players. Negotiations in these conflicts are most likely to lead to a peace agreement that successfully ends the war if they include …

Deceptive Results: Why Mediation Appears To Fail But Actually Succeeds, Scott Sigmund Gartner

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

International disputes receiving third-party mediation are less likely to result in peace treaties than those negotiated bilaterally between the disputants. When belligerents do settle, mediated agreements are more likely to fail. Is mediation detrimental to conflict resolution? No. Third-party mediation represents a highly effective, but costly, means of peacemaking. Disputants recognize its costs and only employ mediation when they are unable to resolve a conflict between themselves, creating a “selection effect.” As a result, mediators are selected for the toughest cases – those least likely to end peacefully and mostly likely to result in fragile agreements. When the difficulty of …

Research On Bias In Mediation: Policy Implications, Isak Svensson

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

One of the most important and disputed questions within the field of international mediation concerns the issue of bias. The question of bias cuts to the core of what mediation is and the ways in which mediators can help the parties reach peace. Focusing on research on the role of neutrality and bias in international peace diplomacy in civil wars, this article draws out the policy implications of my own empirically-based work on the role of bias in the mediation of internal armed conflicts. This article suggests that neutrality should not be part of the definition of mediators, …

The Lack Of Coordination In Diplomatic Peacemaking, Birger Heldt

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

The increased number of peacemaking actors during the past twenty years is accompanied by an increased amount of peacemaking, but also a low success rate. This article focuses on recent emerging conflicts. It finds that peacemaking is prevalent, but is often not coordinated with regard to choice of tools (mediation, arbitration, etc.), or the agenda or the issues of the talks. This lack of coordination has for many years been recognized as detrimental and may partly explain the low success rate. The article suggests that policymakers need to have a long-term strategy to address the coordination problem, part of which …

Foreword, I. William Zartman

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

No abstract provided.

Translating Scholarship Into Policy, Scott Sigmund Gartner, Amy C. Gaudion

Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs (2012 - Present)

There is an ever widening gap between conflict resolution policy makers and scholars—a tragedy given practitioners’ dire need for new ideas to help resolve deadly conflicts and the growing knowledge researchers have to share. Research tends to swing like a pendulum between analytic and rigorous methods and accessible and relevant approaches. We reject this tradeoff. We believe that research can be simultaneously rigorous and relevant, and analytic and accessible. Given the devastating loss of life associated with armed conflict, the need for translating research results into policy prescriptions is especially strong in peacemaking. The goal of this issue of the …

U.S. State Department International Law Internship And Employment Presentation And Discussion, Andrew A. Passen Famu Diplomat-In Residence

Environmental and Animal Law

The Center for International Law & Justice presents a discussion and presentation by Andrew A. Passen, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, who is currently serving as Diplomat-in-Residence covering the southeast U.S. and is based at Florida A & M University in Tallahassee.

Agenda: Water, Oil And Gas 101, University Of Colorado Boulder. Getches-Wilkinson Center For Natural Resources, Energy, And The Environment. Intermountain Oil And Gas Bmp Project, Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute, Sturm College Of Law, University Of Denver, Colorado Bar Association Cle, White & Jankowski, Llp

Water, Oil and Gas 101 (April 10)

Program co-chairs: Sarah Klahn, Matthew Sura; planning committee: Susan Daggett, Kathryn Mutz.

This full-day program, cosponsored by the Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute (Sturm College of Law, University of Denver), the Colorado Bar Association CLE, and White & Jankowski, LLP, was the first of a 3-part series focusing on water, oil and gas issues of critical interest in Colorado.

The first program provided an overview of the pertinent law and issues generated when the water, oil and gas industries interact; and addressed water quality concerns and the purchasing of water from municipalities for hydraulic fracturing and drilling. Program #2 is …

Building Bridges: Fostering Dialogue And Shared Understanding Between Communities And Government Agencies, Eben Weitzman, Darren Kew

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

Professors Eben Weitzman and Darren Kew of the Department of Conflict Resolution, Human Security, and Global Governance at the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies are facilitating conversations among state and federal agencies and minority community representatives as a means for fostering shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities inherent to their relationship. Working with the BRIDGES program, they are using group dialogue to help stakeholders build lasting, productive connections.

Categorical Funding In Arkansas, Reed Greenwood, Gary W. Ritter

Policy Briefs

As a result of the Arkansas Supreme Court’s Lake View v. Huckabee Decision, the Public School Funding Act of 2003 established Arkansas’ current funding system. A part of the current system allocates additional funding for districts based on need (categorical funding). In doing so, the state recognizes that it is necessary to distribute additional funding based on educational need to meet adequacy and equity standards. The system allocates funding for groups of students who face particular challenges: Alternative Learning Environment students (ALE), English-language Learners (ELL), and students in poverty (National School Lunch Act). In the current legislative session, lawmakers are …

Case Studies Of Emerging/Innovative Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Practices In Improving Employment Outcomes For Individuals With Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities, Robert Burns, Kelly Haines, Elizabeth Porter, Heike Boeltzig-Brown, Susan Foley

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

The Vocational Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (VR-RRTC.org) based at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston partnered with national content experts to identify promising VR employment practices serving people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD). The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), the funding agency,requested an emphasis on identifying promising practices for people with mental illnesses and peoplewith intellectual disabilities/developmental disabilities, and to identify promising practices related to order of selection and the designation of most significant disability. This report provides a summary of four promising VR employment practices for persons with …

Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies Helping People With Psychiatric Disabilities Get Employed: How Far Have We Come? How Far Do We Have To Go?: Case Studies Of Promising Practices In Vocational Rehabilitation, Joseph Marrone, Mary Lynn Cala, Kelly Haines, Heike Boeltzig-Brown, Susan Foley

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

The final set of eight promising practices out of the 58 nominated practices are summarized here and then described inmore detail in the appendix. Each descriptive write up can be used independently and provides sufficient detail for review. A note from the VR RRTC Team: These are descriptions of practices in one snapshot of time. We acknowledge that by thetime we are able to produce asummary report, practices may have evolved or modified, and new practices may have emerged. For more specific details or up to date descriptions we advise going to the source, the state VR agencies, directly. We …

Building Upon Common-Pool Resource Theory To Explore Success In Transitioning Water Management Institutions, Christina M. Hoffman

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Nebraska, like many regions around the world, is faced with the challenge of adapting to a new era in water management. Increasing demands for water resources, mounting concerns over threatened and endangered species, and obligations to abide by interstate water allocation agreements have motivated Nebraska to revisit traditional water management approaches. However, although Nebraska’s water management institutions have undergone much change, little research exists on the influence these changes have had on the ability of water institutions to successfully manage water allocations. This research (1) qualitatively explores the perspectives and experiences of stakeholders in the overappropriated region of the Platte …

Women Ruling The Bench: Steps To Achieving Gender Parity On State Courts, Cheyenne L. Horien

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Across the United States, each state practices one of several methods of selecting judges to their courts. Many of these processes have not changed for decades and some argue this results in minorities, both gender and racial, receiving fewer spots on the bench. I focus explicitly on the gender aspect of judicial selection: Why are there fewer women judges in some states than in others? Previous literature on this topic is mixed. I analyzed data gathered from the American Judicature Society and other sources. Among the five methods (appointment, combination, merit selection, non-partisan election, partisan election), because of the many …

Capacity And Implementation For Judicial Reforms In Morocco: “Painting A Building That Is Collapsing”, Hally Bert

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Currently in Morocco the country awaits the legitimate implementation of the 2011 assurances of rights and freedoms, an undertaking that would require a great amount of resources, state capacity, and political will. As Morocco changes and policies evolve the nation is balancing tradition with modernity. In terms of the judiciary, reform programs have been heavily funded by the west with the aim of modernizing and amending the entire legal system in Morocco. This means that influence and leadership in reforms has come in part from sources outside of Morocco. Looking at reforms over the last ten years and especially with …

Tackling The Global Ncd Crisis: Innovations In Law And Governance, Bryan P. Thomas, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

35 million people die annually of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), 80% of them in low- and middle-income countries—representing a marked epidemiological transition from infectious to chronic diseases and from richer to poorer countries. The total number of NCDs is projected to rise by 17% over the coming decade, absent significant interventions. The NCD epidemic poses unique governance challenges: the causes are multifactorial, the affected populations diffuse, and effective responses require sustained multi-sectorial cooperation. The authors propose a range of regulatory options available at the domestic level, including stricter food labeling laws, regulation of food advertisements, tax incentives for healthy lifestyle choices, …

Tidal Turmoil: Environmental Justice And Sea Level Rise In Hampton Roads: Norfolk Case Study, Michael Boyer, Erica Penn

Virginia Coastal Policy Center

No abstract provided.

Lessons Learned From Pakistan: A Dissertation On The Bush-Obama Drone Doctrine, Michael A. Pipa

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The first use of the modern day attack drone by the United States was in Afghanistan in mid 2002, and for the past 11 years attack drones have been used by the United States in as many countries as Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia. When considering the alternatives to using drones, such as sending marines on the ground to complete a mission or flying a piloted jet over enemy territory to gather intelligence, as well as the military power that the use of these vehicles projects, the attack drone has become the weapon of choice in the war on terror for …

The Institutional And Social Integration Of Child Asylum-Seekers In The Schools And Society Of The Canton Of Vaud, Switzerland, Sonja C. Brinker

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As an increasing number of asylum-seekers cross the border into Switzerland in search of protection, Switzerland faces the challenge of accommodating and integrating asylum populations into society while protecting all basic human rights. This study looks at the reception of child asylum-seekers in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland in terms of their integration in the education system and society. A series of interviews and a literature review were used to identify what services are available to child asylumseekers both at school and within the canton that may facilitate integration. The findings of this study indicate that child asylum-seekers are receiving …

The Ethics Of ‘Responsibility While Protecting’: Brazil, The Responsibility To Protect, And Guidelines For Humanitarian Intervention, James Pattison

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In the aftermath of the NATO intervention in Libya, the responsibility to protect (RtoP) doctrine has received considerable blowback. Various states, most notably some of the ‘BRICS’ states (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), claimed that NATO exceeded its mandate given to it by United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1973 (by allegedly focusing on regime change rather than on the protection of civilians), was inappropriate in its target selection, violated the arms embargo by transferring arms to rebels, and generally caused too much harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure.1 It was also suggested that the UK, US, and …

2013 Massachusetts Family Impact Seminar: Youth At Risk, Part 2, Denise A. Hines, Fern L. Johnson, Donna Haig Friedman, Deborah A. Frank

Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise

The youth of Massachusetts are of primary concern to legislators and citizens. This briefing report features three essays by experts — Fern Johnson, Deborah Frank, and Donna Haig Friedman — who focus on three aspects of children in need: children in foster care who need adoption, children who are hungry, and children who are homeless. Each report has further and more detailed suggestions for helping these children in need; below is a summary of the problems we face.

Changing Policy Without Changing Law: Addressing Climate Change Under The Clean Air Act, Philip Wallach

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

The evolution of our national climate change policy at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from the 1990s-2000s, is marked by a backdrop of congressional inaction. In 2007, litigation (Massachusetts v. EPA) required the EPA to re-interpret the Clean Air Act to also apply to greenhouse gases. This presentation will include a summary of the legal arguments in that case, and the narrow Supreme Court decision that supported the petitioners; a review of the legal and practical challenges emanating from this ruling; and consideration of the EPA's impact on continuing legislative debates. The speaker will explore the impact of this decision …

Capitalizing In The Nation’S Capital: Matching State And Regional Resources To Administration Funding Priorities, John Hudak

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

This presentation explores the relationship between the funding and policy priorities established by presidential administrations and the financial resources provided to individual states and regions. Information gathered from a newly compiled database of all federal project grants from 1996-2008 helps illuminate the distribution of money across the 50 states. These data are complemented by field research in federal and state bureaucracies. Would you be surprised to learn that the executive branch delivers more money and grants to swing states than all other states? Furthermore, the proximity of a presidential election further enhances this preference to deliver funds to swing states. …

Community Health Centers In An Era Of Health Reform: An Overview And Key Challenges To Health Center Growth, Susan F. Wood, Debora Goetz Goldberg, Brian K. Bruen, Kay Johnson, Holly Mead, Peter Shin, Tishra Beeson, Julie Lewis, Shavon Artis, Katherine J. Hayes, Merle Cunningham, Xiaoxiao Lu, Trent White, Sara Rosenbaum

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Bargaining In The Shadow Of The Debt Ceiling: When Negotiating Over Spending And Tax Laws, Congress And The President Should Consider The Debt Ceiling A Dead Letter, Neil H. Buchanan, Michael C. Dorf

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

If the debt ceiling is inconsistent with existing spending and taxing laws, what must the President do? In earlier work, we argued that when Congress creates a "trilemma"-making it impossible for the President to spend as much as Congress has ordered, to tax only as much as Congress has ordered, and to borrow no more than Congress has permitted-- the Constitution requires the President to choose the least unconstitutional path. In particular, he must honor Congress's decisions and priorities regarding spending and taxing, and he must issue enough debt to do so. Here, we extend the analysis in two ways. …

Torch (March 2013), Brandon Baldwin, Civil Rights Team Project

Torch: The Civil Rights Team Project Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Tobacco Endgame Strategies: Challenges In Ethics And Law, Bryan P. Thomas, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

There are complex legal and ethical tradeoffs involved in using intensified regulation to bring smoking prevalence to near-zero levels. The authors explore these tradeoffs through a lens of health justice, paying particular attention to the potential impact on vulnerable populations. The ethical tradeoffs explored include the charge that heavy regulation is paternalistic; the potentially regressive impact of heavily taxing a product consumed disproportionately by the poor; the simple loss of enjoyment to heavily addicted smokers; the health risks posed by, for example, regulating nicotine content in cigarettes—where doing so leads to increased consumption. Turning to legalistic concerns, the authors explore …