Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons^™

Coordination Of Inter-Agency Action For Nuclear Security In Uganda, Richard Sseggane

International Journal of Nuclear Security

Despite the dynamic threats to the nuclear security of the East and Central African region, and the decision of the Government of Uganda to embark on a nuclear power programme, there was not much put in place as a coordination and cooperation mechanisms among the stakeholders in the nuclear security activities.

This work confirmed the need in Uganda for the major nuclear security stakeholder agencies with roles and mandates for nuclear security including the regulator, security and intelligence agencies, police, border control, transport control, customs agencies and others to work together as necessary in the different nuclear security activities in …

The Lethality Index: Re-Conceptualizing Ied Clearance Planning And Delivery In Iraq, Mark Wilkinson

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Explosive hazard clearance (EH) comes at a cost and, logically, with accountability expected as a quid pro quo both for those conducting and those funding clearance activities.[i] Today’s accountability problem arguably begins with the recognition that EH clearance, particularly in complex environments contaminated with improvised explosive devices (IEDs), differs radically from conventional mine action operations of the past, introducing various new factors that influence costs and cost-effectiveness. This, in turn, begs two questions: “What factors?” and “How are they measured?” Hence, before the mine action community can evaluate cost-effectiveness leading to accountability, it must first re-conceptualize clearance itself based …

Automated Uas Aeromagnetic Surveys To Detect Mbrl Unexploded Ordnance, Alex Nikulin, Ph.D., Timothy Desmet, Ph.D., Andrii Puliaiev, Vasyl Zhurakhov, Sofia Fasullo, Gabriel Chen, Isaac Spiegel, Kaylee Cappuccio

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Unguided Multiple Barrel Rocket Launcher (MBRL) systems are limited-accuracy, high-impact artillery systems meant to deliver barrages of explosive warheads across a wide area of attack. High rates of failure of MBRL rockets on impact and their wide area of ballistic dispersion result in a long-term unexploded ordnance (UXO) concern across large areas where these systems have been deployed. We field tested a newly-developed UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle)-based aeromagnetic platform to remotely detect and identify unexploded 122 mm rockets of the widely-used BM-21 MBRL. We developed an algorithm that allows near real-time analysis, mapping, and interpretations of magnetic datasets in the …

From The Interim Director, Suzanne Fiederlein, Ph.D.

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

We are living in uncertain times as we face an unprecedented global health crisis. In keeping with the tradition of adaptation and creativity in the mine action community, we have read numerous examples of national clearance programs and implementing partner organizations adjusting operations in order to continue survey, clearance, and risk education work in line with required COVID-19 restrictions. As some places begin to resume a greater range of activity, we recognize the threat presented by this new virus remains pronounced, and we wish all of you safety in your daily lives and good health.

Whither Hma Policy: Linking Hma And Development Assistance, Lewis Rasmussen, Ph.D.

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In 1988 The HALO Trust was credited with coining the term “humanitarian demining” as it differentiated military demining in Afghanistan from efforts designed specifically to reduce the ongoing threat to civilians, livelihoods, communities, and public infrastructure in terms of post-war reconstruction. Since then, many donor governments began to shift policy and programming to reflect this distinction. As but one example, the U.S. established an inter-agency Humanitarian Demining Program in 1993, which included the Agency for International Develop (USAID). Unfortunately, for many years the demining and development assistance communities proceeded more along parallel tracks, acknowledging each other and vectoring off to …

Disposal Of Explosive Ordnance And Environmental Risk Mitigation, Roly Evans, Andy Duncan

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Humanitarian mine action (HMA) survey and clearance operations have always focused on the contamination that can be seen. Whether it is anti-personnel (AP) mines, anti-vehicles (AV) mines, or explosive remnants of war (ERW), our efforts focus on removing items that pose an immediate blast and fragmentation hazard to humans. However, in certain circumstances, explosive ordnance (EO) also poses a significant environmental hazard, not least from the toxicity of its components, such as heavy metals and explosives. The understanding of contamination from EO in air, soil, and water has developed significantly in recent decades.[i] ^{[ii] [iii] [iv]} This has mainly …

Confidence-Building Through Mine Action On The Korean Peninsula, Guy Rhodes, Ph.D.

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The Korean Peninsula is divided by a strip of land, the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which represents the de facto border between North Korea, and South Korea. Contrary to its name, the DMZ is the most militarized zone on earth, and it delineates a stand-off between militaries composed of several million professional and reservist soldiers on both sides. It is the “Cold War’s last divide and one of the most symbolic barriers between two nations. It is also heavily mined with both anti-personnel and anti-vehicle landmines, and contaminated with unexploded ordnance (UXO) from extensive ground battles and heavy aerial bombardment.

This …

Measuring Behavior Change Resulting From Eore And The Need For Complementary Risk Reduction Activities, Helaine Boyd, Sebastian Kasack, Noe Falk Nielsen

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Risk education (RE) in mine action has been around since 1992.[i] However, explosive ordnance risk education (EORE)[ii] operators are still struggling to measure how and whether EORE has resulted in positive behavior change.[iii] Of course, various monitoring and evaluation (M&E) methods have been pursued in the past, predominantly the use of knowledge, attitude, practice, and beliefs (KAPB) surveys; simpler pre-/post-EORE session surveys; the use of proxy indicators such as number of explosive ordnance (EO) accidents or victims; and number of explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) callouts from the community. However, these methods come with some limitations in accurately …

Detonating The Media: Raising The Profile Of Mine Action, Paul Mccann

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In January 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales, travelled to Angola with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). She did not travel alone. Around ninety international journalists and TV crews accompanied her. It is unlikely that Angola’s sleepy second city of Huambo saw similar numbers of press until September 2019, when her son, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, walked in her footsteps. The two visits, separated by twenty-two years, produced arguably the greatest amount of media attention ever achieved by humanitarian mine action (HMA). Comparable with the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (APMBC) conference in December 1997, such exposure is …

A New Approach To Understanding, Achieving, And Demonstrating Imas Compliance, David Hewitson

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Mine action organizations routinely state that they are “IMAS compliant,” but it isn’t clear exactly what that means, how anyone knows with confidence whether they are compliant or not, or who is authorized to make such statements. This article draws on recent work by Fenix Insight Ltd. to database the requirements and recommendations found in IMAS, setting out a rigorous, evidence-based approach to answering key questions about the compliance status of mine action organizations. It suggests methods for determining which requirements are relevant to which organizations, what different levels of compliance there might be and how to integrate compliance checking …

Seventh Mine Action Technology Workshop: A Space For Innovation, Arsen Khanyan, Inna Cruz

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The 7th edition of the Mine Action Technology Workshop, a biennial event organized by the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD), took place from 7–8 November 2019 in Basel, Switzerland. Titled Remote Sensing and Robotics in Mine Action, the workshop welcomed 165 participants from forty-nine countries, representing eight-five organizations.¹ It offered a platform to discuss and share ideas and experiences that promote the efficient use of innovation and technology in humanitarian mine action (HMA). This unique event is aimed at bringing together mine action professionals, manufacturers, national authorities, operators, and representatives from the United Nations as well as …

Understanding The Logic Of Rebel Restraint On Landmine Use, Henrique Garbino

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Non-state armed groups (NSAGs)² have become the most frequent users of landmines and the main drivers of new landmine contamination. Often portrayed as the “perfect soldier” due to their low cost, easy availability, and high lethality, landmines have become the weapon of choice of many rebel groups. An initial assessment by Geneva Call reported that, in 2005, at least sixty rebel groups in twenty-four countries had used mines. ^3-5 In contrast with state governments, rebels have considerably less incentives to comply with existing humanitarian norms.⁶ Engaging them in restricting or renouncing the use of landmines remains one of …

Developing A Sustainable National Training Capacity: Non-Technical Survey Training In Colombia, Marc Bonnet, Helen Gray, Giulia Matassa

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In January of 2014, the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) conducted its first non-technical survey (NTS) training course in Colombia with the objective of enabling participants to plan and conduct NTS. At the time, however, Colombia had the second highest number of landmine accidents in the world,[i] with non-state armed groups (NSAGs) producing explosive ordnance (EO) “mostly in the form of victim-activated improvised explosive devices.”[ii]Descontamina,[iii] the National Mine Action Authority (NMAA), planned for fulfilling its Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (APMBC) commitments, and national dialogue was initiated on a Plan de Choque, “a plan of …

To What Extent Could The Development Of An Airborne Thermal Imaging Detection System Contribute To Enhance Detection?, Martin Jebens, Hideyuki Sawada, Ph.D., Junjie Shen, Erik Tollefsen

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Over the past two decades, several initiatives that involved research and development on sensor and detection systems have failed to successfully integrate with clearance operations and have not been able to help affected states overcome the humanitarian challenges caused by weapon contamination. Though initial tests were promising, when faced with the reality of the field, the technology often indicates shortcomings.[i] The terrain, dense vegetation, metal clutter, or other obstacles encountered in humanitarian mine action (HMA) pose challenges often greater than reliable target detection. Therefore, understanding the inherent challenges of a task is paramount when discussing the entry of new …

Endnotes, Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

No abstract provided.

The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction, Issue 24.1 (2020), Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

• Mine Action on the Korean Peninsula
• Raising the Profile of Mine Action
• A New Approach to IMAS Compliance
• Disposal of EO and Environmental Risk Mitigation
• Explosive Ordnance Risk Education - Measuring Behavior Change

The Personality Profile And Leadership Style Of U.S. President Donald J. Trump In Office, Aubrey Immelman, Anne Marie Griebie

Psychology Faculty Publications

This paper presents the results of an indirect assessment, from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon, of the personality of Donald J. Trump, 45th president of the United States, based solely on personality dynamics revealed by his political behavior in office.

Psychodiagnostically relevant data were collected from biographical sources and media reports of Trump’s postinaugural political behavior from January 20, 2017 until July 2020 and synthesized into a personality profile using the Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (MIDC), which yields 34 normal and maladaptive personality classifications congruent with DSM-III-R, DSM-IV, and DSM-5.

The personality profile yielded …

Stories From The Frontlines Of The Covid-19 Response In New York, Ashley Van Slyke

Population Health Research Brief Series

This brief features the stories of a nurse and national guardsman from Central NY who served on the frontline of the COVID-19 response during the early days of the outbreak in New York City. These frontline workers described patient overcrowding, equipment shortages, feeling physically and emotionally exhausted, and lessons learned from their experiences.

Un Trust Funds As Agent To Fulfill The Norm Adapting And Diffusing Functions, Mikiko Sawanishi

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis focuses on existing large-scale general trust funds at the United Nations (UN) Secretariat, as one example of the important transformations of the UN. They were created around the 1990s amid a paradigm shift in international relations after the end of the Cold War. They function as autonomous entities to carry out specific mandates to tackle emerging global issues in responding to the requests of a limited number of UN member states that provide voluntary contributions of significant sum. The thesis explores answers to the questions of why such general trust funds were created within the UN Secretariat, and …

Building For Culture: How Municipal Ownership Of Cultural Facilities Influences Annual Arts Funding In American Cities, Adam M. Sachs

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis explores how local government support for arts and culture varies across 24 American cities. It has proven to be challenging for researchers to accurately measure municipal arts support. Research on cultural policy has also often focused on the federal level, despite total city expenditures far exceeding national or state government support. This thesis attempts to take an accurate pulse of city expenditures in 2017 and correlates those spending levels to the variation in city ownership of arts facilities. Rooted in the historical perspectives of the ‘new institutionalism’ and path-dependency, this paper argues that past decisions about taking ownership …

The Influence Of Prison Sentence Length On The Societal Dehumanization Of Ex-Offenders, Skye Jensen

Student Theses

The current study examined the factors that influence the societal dehumanization of offenders, belief in offender redeemability, and support for resource allocation and offender re- enfranchisement. Specifically, the study investigated how prison sentence length influences public opinion on these measures. Two hundred and twenty-two individuals participated in this study and were randomly assigned to one of two conditions involving their responses to a vignette depicting an offender having served either five or 15 years. The results revealed that the length of the offender’s prison sentence did not impact participants’ dehumanization of offenders, belief in their redeemability, or support for reentry …

Driving Disruption: Assessing Uber's Corporate Identity In The Battle Over Driver Classification, Benjamin Peterson

Master's Projects and Capstones

This research analyzes the ongoing effort by Uber’s executives to prevent the reclassification of the company’s drivers from independent contractors to employees. Through rhetorical appeals made to customers, regulatory bodies, and drivers themselves, Uber’s executives are attempting to cultivate a corporate identity that portrays the company’s labor practices in a way that adheres to California’s labor laws, namely the “ABC” test for worker classification codified in Assembly Bill 5, while maintaining the company’s ill-gotten reputation as a bastion of Silicon Valley innovation. The success of this posturing hinges on attempts to conflate Uber’s labor practices with equitable social outcomes, publicize …

Minority Vetoes In Consociational Legislatures: Ultimately Weaponized?, Devin Haymond

Indiana Journal of Constitutional Design

In societies emerging from or at risk for conflict, dividing power among rival groups—called power-sharing—can be an appropriate arrangement to maintaining peace. But how can groups, who are often emerging from violent conflict, trust sharing a government with rival groups that were just recently shooting at them?

A potential solution is the minority veto, which is allows minority groups to block the government from harming those groups’ vital interests. But what sorts of change blocking mechanisms constitute a minority veto? Who gets the veto power, and when can they be used? Do minority vetoes function as effective incentives for ensuring …

Models Of Pre-Promulgation Review Of Legislation, Rachel Myers

Indiana Journal of Constitutional Design

Pre-promulgation review seeks to harmonize legislation with the constitution by engaging in a dialogue among government institutions that seeks to prevent unconstitutional legislation from becoming law. Pre-promulgation review is an integral part of the lawmaking process, and this study seeks to unite scholarship on different methods of this review in a comparative survey to assist lawyers, policymakers, and scholars. A wide range of institutions may fulfill the function of reviewing proposed legislation for compliance with the constitution or other codes of national importance prior to their passage into law. Because of this diversity, scholarship on the topic of pre-promulgation review …

Taxonomy Of Powers And Roles Of Upper Chambers In Bicameral Legislatures, Carolyn Griffith

Indiana Journal of Constitutional Design

Bicameral legislatures exist around the world, with power divisions to create checks and balances on the constitutional order as a whole. In the context of constitutional design, this presents a variety of options of roles and rights given to each chamber at each step in both the legislative process and beyond. Taken as a whole, this taxonomy demonstrates there are nearly an infinite number of possibilities for separating powers between upper and lower chambers in bicameral legislatures. Often, these decisions are guided by the history of the country. For each federal legislature that places powers or votes in one chamber, …

Bridging The Generation Gap In The Lgbt+ Community Through Advocacy, Melanie Moore

Honors Projects

HEALTH is a program designed to meet the needs of LGBT+ older adults by connecting them with volunteers of LGBT+ nonprofit organizations. Through HEALTH, LGBT+ youth and older adults can form connections that can extend beyond the structure of the program. By connecting younger volunteers with older adults, HEALTH can help grow the social capital of the LGBT+ community. Fostering friendly relationships between people of all ages can influence the progress of LGBT+ rights moving forward by combining the experience of the elders with the technological and social capabilities of the youth.

Can Cities Be Feminist? A Cross-National Analysis Of Factors Affecting Local Female Representation In Latin America, Katie Davis

Honors Theses

Women are underrepresented in mayor’s offices and on city councils across Latin America. In this paper, I examine gender-based differences in individual opinions toward running for office in Argentina and Uruguay, as well as conduct a twenty-six country analysis on factors related to female representation in municipal government. Based on these analyses, I make three main conclusions about female local representation in Latin America. The first conclusion is that women in Latin America are significantly less likely to want to run or feel qualified to run for office. The second conclusion is that cross-national variation in the percentage of female …

Homefront Rising: A Military Spouse's Guide To Running For Office, Elizabeth Jamison

Master's Projects and Capstones

Libby Jamison, an attorney and Navy spouse, created a "how to" guide for military spouses interested in running for office and taking the skills learned from supporting the homefront to Capitol Hill, city hall, and state houses across this country. Over the years, military spouses have become adept at calling on Congress and our elected officials to demand that they meet the needs of those who serve in uniform and the families serving alongside them. But Jamison believes that military spouses should also be included among the elected officials making decisions that affect us, military and non-military alike. Instead of …

Creating Accessory Dwelling Units (Adus) During The California Housing Shortage: Benchmarking Adu Programs Within Selected Bay Area City And County Jurisdictions Against The City Of The Santa Cruz And The County Of Santa Cruz, Ivo Niko Basor

Master's Projects

The State of California is currently in a housing crisis, which many researchers believe stems from a foundational issue with the supply and demand for housing (Tanner, Garcia, Buhayar, 2019). More specifically, California has seen a steady population increase for several decades; however, the growing demand for housing has not kept up with supply. The influx of new people coming to California, and birth rates exceeding death rates, have been defining factors in the growing demand for housing (Public Policy Institute of California, 2018). As high paying jobs are created and bring in top wage earners, and the cost of …

California’S Proposition 47: The Safe Neighborhoods And Schools Act, Edith Garcia Fong

Master's Projects

Proposition 47 made drastic changes to California’s criminal justice system. Critics and proponents of the measure have made sweeping claims about its impact on crime trends and the criminal justice system, in general. However, many of these claims are based on assumptions and are not based on actual data and research. Given the fact that California’s prison population is still subject to court oversight, it is essential that the effectiveness of Proposition 47 as a solution to this issue be evaluated. If the state hopes to maintain compliance with the court-mandated prison population caps, it must ensure to exhaust all …