Starting from the relations of production, this paper examines the role of mafia for the preservation of social power and class relations in Sicily. To this end, the concept of the informal state apparatus is introduced. Following the approach of Critical Grounded Theory, this paper proposes to fill explanatory gaps in conventional mafia research by means of Nicos Poulantzas’ historical materialist state theory. In-depth field research confirms the systematic generation of irregularity through conditions in which it ...

Renewable energy has made significant inroads in addressing growing energy demands on the African continent. However, progress towards SDG 7 is still limited and difficult to trace. Furthermore, the results-oriented rationale of the SDGs means that both policy change and the dimension of environmental justice are not covered properly. We argue that the energy justice concept may provide a powerful tool to offset looming trade-offs and enhance the co-benefits of SDG 7 within broader transition endeavours. In doing so, ...

Greater involvement of women within the labour force has economic and social impact. The Female Labour Force Participation Rate (FLFPR) for India remains appallingly low at around 27%, while the male labour force participation rate has been 79.9%. In India, during 1990–2016, the FLFPR (% of female population age 15+) showed a declining trend. In this paper, the determinants of FLFPR for India have been estimated using regression analysis for the time period 1990–2016. Data on all the relevant variables have ...

Since the surge in oil prices during the 1970s there was an increased academic interest in explaining the formation of oil prices and the critical role played by OPEC in this process. A variety of economic models were established to explain the rise of price setting power by OPEC reflected in the massive price increases. During the 1980s, however, against many projections, the surge in oil prices came to a hold and from the 1980s on started to decrease, finally collapsing in 1986 to an unprecedented low. These ...

Der vorliegenden Arbeit geht es um die gegenseitige Plausibilisierung der theoretischen Strömung der Neuen Materialismen und der materialistischen Staatstheorie. Den Neuen Materialismen, so die Annahme, fehlt vor allem eine Perspektive auf den Staat, Politik und Gewalt. Demgegenüber bedarf die materialistische Staatstheorie der Öffnung für intersektionale Einflüsse, nicht-binäre Logiken und eine ontologische Fundierung ihrer Argumente, um essentialistischen Schließungen effektiv vorzubeugen. Die Plausibilisierung ...

The PhD thesis "The Passive Revolution of Good Living: Class Struggle and Productive Transformation Policy in Ecuador (2007-2017)" suggests an interpretation of Ecuador's so-called ‘Citizens’ Revolution’ – CR – as the political project of a 'cadre fraction’: a ‘state class fraction’ whose legitimacy and political power is grounded in specialized knowledge and planning capabilities. Breaking the “catastrophic equilibrium” in which the anti-neoliberal forces and the dominant classes ended up at the beginning of the ...

The re-emergence of massive strikes in the public education sector, predominantly in the more conservative, union-weak American South, has brought seismic change to the industry and its workers. Solving the puzzle as to why these strikes were so successful against massive obstacles could beget better methods for organizing strikes in a period when neo-liberal reforms threaten public services around the world. Furthermore, an understanding of why these strikes were successful can contribute to the contemporary discourse ...

The Covid-19-pandemic reproduced many long-existing gender inequalities and created new ones: women are over-represented in underpaid sectors such as the health care sector and were faced with the double burden of paid and reproductive work in the household, when kindergartens closed. As an answer to the global pandemic, the European Union (EU) implemented a recovery package, the #NextGenerationEU (NGEU) Fund. However, this fund reproduces existing gender inequalities, as most of the money is directed to male-dominated ...