Academic literature on the topic 'Lutheran Council of Great Britain'

Public diplomacy of Great Britain is one of the most developed in the EU and in the world. The United Kingdom has developed an extremely efficient public diplomacy mechanism which includes BBC World Service (which due to its popularity boosts the reputation and the image of Great Britain), Chevening Scholarships (provides outstanding foreign students with opportunity to study in Great Britain and thus establishes long-lasting relations with public opinion leaders and foreign countries elite) and the British Council, which deals with international diplomatic ties in the field of culture. The British Council is a unique organization. Being technically independent, it actively and efficiently works on consolidating Great Britain’s interests in the world and contributes to the development of public diplomacy in Great Britain. The author studies the efforts of the British Council as a unique public diplomacy tool of the United Kingdom. Special attention is paid to the role of British Council, which is independent of the governing board and at the same time finds itself under the influence of the latter due to the peculiarities of the appointment of Board’s officials, financing etc. The author concludes that the British Council is a unique organization established in 1934, which is a non-departmental state body, charitable organization and public corporation, technically independent of the government. The British Council, thanks to its commercial activities covers the lack of public funding caused by the policy of economy conducted by the government. It has good practices in this field worth paying attention by other countries. It is also worth mentioning that the increment in profit was getting higher last year, however the issue of increasing the influence of the government on the activities of British Council is still disputable. Although the Foreign Minister officially reports to the parliament on the activities of the British Council, approves the appointment of the leaders of organizations, the British Council preserves its independence of the government, which makes it more popular abroad, and makes positive influence on the world image of Great Britain. The efficiency of the British Council efforts on fulfillment of targets of the United Kingdom public diplomacy is unquestionable, no matter how it calls its activities: whether it is a cultural relations establishment or a cultural diplomacy implementation. Keywords: The British Council, public diplomacy, cultural diplomacy, cultural relations, Foreign Office, Her Majesty’s Government, official assistance for development

Taryn Storey believes that a series of letters recently discovered in the archive of the Arts Council of Great Britain (ACGB) makes it important that we reassess the genesis of the English Stage Company at the Royal Court. Dating from November 1952, the correspondence between George Devine and William Emrys Williams, the Secretary General of the ACGB, offers an insight into a professional and personal relationship that was to have a profound influence on the emerging Arts Council policy for drama. Storey makes the case that in 1953 Devine not only shaped his Royal Court proposal to fit the priorities of the ACGB Drama Panel, but that Devine and senior members of the ACGB then collaborated to ensure that the proposal became a key part of Arts Council strategic planning. Furthermore, she puts forward the argument that the relationship between Devine and Williams was instrumental to new writing and innovation becoming central to the future rationale for state subsidy to the theatre. Taryn Storey is a doctoral student at the University of Reading. Her PhD thesis examines the relationship between practice and policy in the development of new writing in post-war British theatre, and forms part of the AHRC-funded project ‘Giving Voice to the Nation: The Arts Council of Great Britain and the Development of Theatre and Performance in Britain 1945–1995’, a collaboration between the University of Reading and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The aim of the following compilation is to bring to the attention of museum geologists several important developments affecting the state and status of geology within 'the government body responsible for nature conservation in Great Britain', the Nature Conservancy Council....

The Archaeological Site Index to Radiocarbon Dates for Great Britain and Ireland, pioneered by the Council for British Archaeology in 1971, is now being prepared as a fully computerized database. This note describes the genesis and format of this invaluable new tool.

Abstract The concept of linguistics as a branch of science has been considered. Key abilities linguists possess have been defined. The need to apply to foreign experience, in particular, British one, has been justified. Relevant information sources, namely, Benchmark Statement for Linguistics (2007), data on Education UK, the official website for international students launched by the British Council, programme specifications for linguistics at a number of British universities have been reviewed. The list of higher education institutions (65) offering undergraduate courses (424) in Linguistics has been presented. Study options for undergraduate courses in Linguistics have been described. It has been stated that curricula in linguistics provided by higher education institutions do not greatly differ from each other by the content; nevertheless they preserve their own originality. General characteristics of study years (primarily three-year curricula) have been given. Teaching and learning methods and techniques as well assessment methods generally used at British universities have been listed. Positive aspects of British experience in professional training of future linguists have been outlined. Perspectives for improving the Ukrainian curricula for professional training of future linguists have been justified.

Connections between Great Britain and the countries of the Arabian Gulf during the era of the Cold War and decolonisation have been the subject of close examination by historians in recent years. However, no historian has addressed with any profundity the cultural dimension of Britain's dealings with the Gulf states. The intent of this article is to confront this question and to show that cultural change in the Arabian Gulf was a major preoccupation of the UK government, particularly when it was associated with the expansion of education then unfolding across the region, most intensely in Kuwait. There was especial anxiety that Arab Nationalism and anti-Western sentiment were penetrating local societies and thus undermining an already precarious British influence in the region. The British Council was widely championed as the best instrument at Britain's disposal to counter this threat. It was envisaged that the Council would allow increased cultural contact between Arabs and Britons, offer an alternative vision of Britain to Gulf residents and provide an additional channel through which Britain could influence Gulf governments.

The interview with Judith Gough, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to Ukraine, reveals Her Excellency’s opinion on a range of issues and the position of Great Britain on security matters. The article states Great Britain was one of the pioneers of the campaign for the imposition of sanctions against the Russian Federation in response to its aggression against Ukraine. Great Britain also highly appreciates the support of Ukraine after the Salisbury incident. Specifically, here the reader will find articulated Great Britain’s position relating to the Minsk process, which can be succinctly described by a phrase ‘there is no such thing as an ideal peace process.’ The negotiations are always associated with difficulties and never finish at a pace desired. However, the paramount task of today is to stop hostilities in Donbas. The interview goes on to explore the role of the NATO Contact Point Embassy, which consists in that every NATO Member State undertakes the functions to carry out NATO public diplomacy, assists the NATO Liaison Office in communicating with citizens of the receiving state, and makes clear what the organization is and what its activities are. It is stressed it is the first time when such functions are jointly undertaken by two countries, Great Britain and Canada. Thus, Ukraine has gained the support of two states at the same time. The article also underlines that Great Britain does not intend to change its visa policy towards Ukraine. However, that is not a discriminatory model, as such a policy is applied to the entire world in the same manner. An important aspect of this matter in the relations between Ukraine and Great Britain is an ever-growing number of visas issued. It is mentioned that Brexit has not changed the policy of Great Britain towards Ukraine, has not affected the decision to support Ukraine, and has not decreased an interest to it. After the referendum, the support has become even more evident. The number of visits at the ministerial level has also increased. The article delineates the importance of such organisation as the British Council, providing not only English tutor lessons at a globally recognised level but also vigorously taking part in the realm of cultural diplomacy. Key words: Ukrainian-British relations, Brexit, NATO, Minsk process.

Abstract. The dataset "Post Chernobyl surveys of radiocaesium in soil, vegetation, wildlife and fungi in Great Britain" was developed to enable data collected by the Natural Environment Research Council after the Chernobyl accident to be made publicly available. Data for samples collected between May 1986 (immediately after Chernobyl) to spring 1997 are presented. Additional data to radiocaesium concentrations are presented where available. The data have value in trying to assess the contribution of new sources of radiocaesium in the environment, providing baseline data for future planned releases and to aid the development and testing of models. The data are freely available for non-commercial use under Open Government Licence terms and conditions. doi:10.5285/7a5cfd3e-0247-4228-873d-5be563c4ee3b

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1985.
MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH
Bibliography: leaves 70-74.
by Marlene L. Bryant.
M.C.P.

This dissertation attempts to determine what Britain expected from participation in the Supreme Economic Council (SEC) of the 1919 Paris Peace Conference and to what extent its expectations were realized. An investigation of available sources reveals that access to European markets and raw materials and a balance of power to prevent French, German, or Russian hegemony in Europe were British foreign policy goals that SEC delegates sought to advance. Primary sources for this study include unpublished British Foreign Office and Cabinet records, published British, United States, and German government documents, unpublished personal papers of people directing SEC efforts, such as David Lloyd George, Austen Chamberlain, Cecil Harmsworth, Harry Osborne Mance, and John Maynard Keynes, and published memoirs and accounts of persons who were directly or indirectly involved with the SEC. Secondary accounts include biographies and histories or studies of the Peace Conference and of countries affected by its work. Primarily concerned with the first half of 1919, this dissertation focuses on British participation in Inter-allied war-time economic efforts, in post-war Rhineland control, in the creation of the SEC, and in the SEC endeavors of revictualling Germany, providing food and medical relief for eastern Europe, and reconstructing European communications. It concludes with Britain's role in the attempt to convert the SEC into an International Economic Council in the last half of 1919 and with the transfer of SEC duties to the Reparations Commission and to the League of Nations. Through participation in the SEC, Britain led in negotiating the Brussels Agreement and in establishing the Rhineland Commission and the German Economic Commission, reversing French attempts to control the Rhenish economy, preventing French hegemony in Europe, and gaining access to German markets for British goods. Although it failed to achieve its goals of strong eastern European states and access to markets and raw materials there, Britain led in restoration of communications and participated in the relief effort which saved the new states from anarchy in 1919.

This dissertation offers a study of everyday relations between residents and the state on a post-industrial council estate in England. Drawing upon historical and ethnographic data, it analyses how, often under conditions of sustained exclusion, residents rely upon the state in their daily struggles for security and survival. My central ethnographic finding is that residents personalise the state alongside informal networks of support and care into a local sociality of reciprocity. This finding can be broken into three interconnected points. First, I argue that the reciprocal contract between citizens and the state emerged in the post-war years when the residents on the newly built estates negotiated their dependence upon the state by integrating it into their on-going social relations. A climate of relative material affluence, selective housing policies, and a paternalistic regime of housing management all created conditions which were conducive for this temporary union between residents and the state. Second, however, I argue that with the decline of industry and shifts towards neoliberal policies, residents increasingly struggle to hold the state accountable to its reciprocal obligations towards local people. This becomes manifest today both in the material neglect of council estates as well as in state officials' reluctance to become implicated in social relations with and between residents. Third, I argue that this failure on the part of the state to attend to residents' demands often has onerous effects on people's lives. It not only exacerbates residents' exposure to insecurity and threat, but is also experienced as a moral affront which generates larger narratives of abandonment and betrayal. Theoretically, this dissertation critically discusses and challenges contrasting portrayals of the state, and of state-citizen relations, in two bodies of literature. On the one hand, in much of the sociological and anthropological literature on working class communities, authors have adopted a community-centred approach which has depicted working class communities as self-contained entities against which the state emerges as a distant or hostile entity. I argue that such a portrayal is premised upon a romanticised view of working class communities which neglects the intimate presence of the state in everyday life. On the other hand, the theoretical literature on the British state has adopted a state-centred perspective which has seen the state as a renewed source of order and authority in disintegrating communities today. My suggestion is that this portrayal rests upon a pathologising view of social decline which fails to account for the persistence of informal social relations and the challenges that these pose to the state's authority from below. Finally, moving beyond the community-centred and state-centred perspectives, I argue for the need to adopt a middle ground which combines an understanding of the nature and workings of informal relations with an acknowledgement of the ubiquity of the state. Such an approach allows us to recognise that, far from being a hostile entity or, alternatively, an uncontested source of order, the state occupies shifting positions within an overarching sociality of reciprocity and its associated demands for alliances and divisions. I refer to such an approach as the personalisation of the state.

The United Kingdom's postwar economic recovery and the usefulness of Marshall Plan aid depended heavily on a rapid increase in exports by the country's manufacturing industries. American aid administrators, however, shocked to discover the British industry's inability to respond to the country's urgent need, insisted on aggressive action to improve productivity. In partial response, a joint venture, called the Anglo-American Council on Productivity (AACP), arranged for sixty-six teams involving nearly one thousand people to visit U.S. factories and bring back productivity improvement ideas. Analyses of team recommendations, and a brief review of the country's industrial history, offer compelling insights into the problems of relative industrial decline. This dissertation attempts to assess the reasons for British industry's inability to respond to the country's economic emergency or to maintain its competitive position faced with the challenge of newer industrializing countries.

Scholars assert that the Cold War began at one of several different points. Material recently available at the National Archives yields a view different from those already presented. From these records, and material from the Foreign Relations Series, Parliamentary Debates, and United States Government documents, a new picture emerges. This study focuses on the British occupation of Germany and on the Council of Foreign Ministers' Moscow Conference of 1947. The failure of this conference preceded the adoption of the Marshall Plan and a stronger Western policy toward the Soviet Union. Thus, the Moscow Conference emphasized the disintegrating relations between East and West which resulted in the Cold War.

AbstractGender equality is an increasingly topical issue, but it has deep historical roots. The principle of gender equality found its legitimacy, even if limited to salary, in the 1957 Treaty of Rome, establishing the European Economic Community (EEC). This treaty, in Article 119, sanctioned the principle of equal pay between male and female workers. The EEC continued to protect women’s rights in the 1970s through equal opportunity policies. These policies referred, first, to the principle of equal treatment between men and women regarding education, access to work, professional promotion, and working conditions (Directive 75/117/EEC); second, to the principle of equal pay for male and female workers (Directive 76/207/EEC); and finally, enshrined the principle of equal treatment between men and women in matters of social security (Directive 79/7/EEC). Since the 1980s, several positive action programmes have been developed to support the role of women in European society. Between 1982 and 2000, four multiyear action programmes were implemented for equal opportunities. The first action programme (1982–1985) called on the Member States, through recommendations and resolutions by the Commission, to disseminate greater knowledge of the types of careers available to women, encourage the presence of women in decision-making areas, and take measures to reconcile family and working life. The second action programme (1986–1990) proposed interventions related to the employment of women in activities related to new technologies and interventions in favour of the equal distribution of professional, family, and social responsibilities (Sarcina, 2010). The third action programme (1991–1995) provided an improvement in the condition of women in society by raising public awareness of gender equality, the image of women in mass media, and the participation of women in the decision-making process at all levels in all areas of society. The fourth action programme (1996–2000) strengthened the existing regulatory framework and focused on the principle of gender mainstreaming, a strategy that involves bringing the gender dimension into all community policies, which requires all actors in the political process to adopt a gender perspective. The strategy of gender mainstreaming has several benefits: it places women and men at the heart of policies, involves both sexes in the policymaking process, leads to better governance, makes gender equality issues visible in mainstream society, and, finally, considers the diversity among women and men. Among the relevant interventions of the 1990s, it is necessary to recall the Treaty of Maastricht (1992) which guaranteed the protection of women in the Agreement on Social Policy signed by all Member States (except for Great Britain), and the Treaty of Amsterdam (1997), which formally recognised gender mainstreaming. The Treaty of Amsterdam includes gender equality among the objectives of the European Union (Article 2) and equal opportunity policies among the activities of the European Commission (Article 3). Article 13 introduces the principle of non-discrimination based on gender, race, ethnicity, religion, or handicaps. Finally, Article 141 amends Article 119 of the EEC on equal treatment between men and women in the workplace. The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the Nice Union of 2000 reaffirms the prohibition of ‘any discrimination based on any ground such as sex’ (Art. 21.1). The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union also recognises, in Article 23, the principle of equality between women and men in all areas, including employment, work, and pay. Another important intervention of the 2000s is the Lisbon strategy, also known as the Lisbon Agenda or Lisbon Process. It is a reform programme approved in Lisbon by the heads of state and governments of the member countries of the EU. The goal of the Lisbon strategy was to make the EU the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy by 2010. To achieve this goal, the strategy defines fields in which action is needed, including equal opportunities for female work. Another treaty that must be mentioned is that of Lisbon in 2009, thanks to which previous treaties, specifically the Treaty of Maastricht and the Treaty of Rome, were amended and brought together in a single document: the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Thanks to the Lisbon Treaty, the Charter of Fundamental Rights has assumed a legally binding character (Article 6, paragraph 1 of the TEU) both for European institutions and for Member States when implementing EU law. The Treaty of Lisbon affirms the principle of equality between men and women several times in the text and places it among the values and objectives of the union (Articles 2 and 3 of the TEU). Furthermore, the Treaty, in Art. 8 of the TFEU, states that the Union’s actions are aimed at eliminating inequalities, as well as promoting equality between men and women, while Article 10 of the TFEU provides that the Union aims to ‘combat discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age, or sexual orientation’. Concerning the principle of gender equality in the workplace, the Treaty, in Article 153 of the TFEU, asserts that the Union pursues the objective of equality between men and women regarding labour market opportunities and treatment at work. On the other hand, Article 157 of the TFEU confirms the principle of equal pay for male and female workers ‘for equal work or work of equal value’. On these issues, through ordinary procedures, the European Parliament and the Council may adopt appropriate measures aimed at defending the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment for men and women. The Lisbon Treaty also includes provisions relating to the fight against trafficking in human beings, particularly women and children (Article 79 of the TFEU), the problem of domestic violence against women (Article 8 of the TFEU), and the right to paid maternity leave (Article 33). Among the important documents concerning gender equality is the Roadmap (2006–2010). In 2006, the European Commission proposed the Roadmap for equality between women and men, in addition to the priorities on the agenda, the objectives, and tools necessary to achieve full gender equality. The Roadmap defines six priority areas, each of which is associated with a set of objectives and actions that makes it easier to achieve them. The priorities include equal economic independence for women and men, reconciliation of private and professional life, equal representation in the decision-making process, eradication of all forms of gender-based violence, elimination of stereotypes related to gender, and promotion of gender equality in external and development policies. The Commission took charge of the commitments included in the Roadmap, which were indirectly implemented by the Member States through the principle of subsidiarity and the competencies provided for in the Treaties (Gottardi, 2013). The 2006–2010 strategy of the European Commission is based on a dual approach: on the one hand, the integration of the gender dimension in all community policies and actions (gender mainstreaming), and on the other, the implementation of specific measures in favour of women aimed at eliminating inequalities. In 2006, the European Council approved the European Pact for Gender Equality which originated from the Roadmap. The European Pact for Gender Equality identified three macro areas of intervention: measures to close gender gaps and combat gender stereotypes in the labour market, measures to promote a better work–life balance for both women and men, and measures to strengthen governance through the integration of the gender perspective into all policies. In 2006, Directive 2006/54/EC of the European Parliament and Council regulated equal opportunities and equal treatment between male and female workers. Specifically, the Directive aims to implement the principle of equal treatment related to access to employment, professional training, and promotion; working conditions, including pay; and occupational social security approaches. On 21 September 2010, the European Commission adopted a new strategy to ensure equality between women and men (2010–2015). This new strategy is based on the experience of Roadmap (2006–2010) and resumes the priority areas identified by the Women’s Charter: equal economic independence, equal pay, equality in decision-making, the eradication of all forms of violence against women, and the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment beyond the union. The 2010–2015 Strategic Plan aims to improve the position of women in the labour market, but also in society, both within the EU and beyond its borders. The new strategy affirms the principle that gender equality is essential to supporting the economic growth and sustainable development of each country. In 2010, the validity of the Lisbon Strategy ended, the objectives of which were only partially achieved due to the economic crisis. To overcome this crisis, the Commission proposed a new strategy called Europe 2020, in March 2010. The main aim of this strategy is to ensure that the EU’s economic recovery is accompanied by a series of reforms that will increase growth and job creation by 2020. Specifically, Europe’s 2020 strategy must support smart, sustainable, and inclusive growth. To this end, the EU has established five goals to be achieved by 2020 and has articulated the different types of growth (smart, sustainable, and inclusive) in seven flagship initiatives. Among the latter, the initiative ‘an agenda for new skills and jobs’, in the context of inclusive growth, is the one most closely linked to gender policies and equal opportunities; in fact, it substantially aims to increase employment rates for women, young, and elderly people. The strategic plan for 2010–2015 was followed by a strategic commitment in favour of gender equality 2016–2019, which again emphasises the five priority areas defined by the previous plan. Strategic commitment, which contributes to the European Pact for Gender Equality (2011–2020), identifies the key actions necessary to achieve objectives for each priority area. In March 2020, the Commission presented a new strategic plan for equality between women and men for 2020–2025. This strategy defines a series of political objectives and key actions aimed at achieving a ‘union of equality’ by 2025. The main objectives are to put an end to gender-based violence and combat sexist stereotypes, ensure equal opportunities in the labour market and equal participation in all sectors of the economy and political life, solve the problem of the pay and pension gap, and achieve gender equality in decision-making and politics. From the summary of the regulatory framework presented, for the European Economic Community first, then for the European Community, and finally for the European Union, gender equality has always been a fundamental value. Interest in the issues of the condition of women and equal opportunities has grown over time and during the process of European integration, moving from a perspective aimed at improving the working conditions of women to a new dimension to improve the life of the woman as a person, trying to protect her not only professionally but also socially, and in general in all those areas in which gender inequality may occur. The approach is extensive and based on legislation, the integration of the gender dimension into all policies, and specific measures in favour of women. From the non-exhaustive list of the various legislative interventions, it is possible to note a continuous repetition of the same thematic priorities which highlights, on the one hand, the poor results achieved by the implementation of the policies, but, on the other hand, the Commission’s willingness to pursue the path initially taken. Among the achievements in the field of gender equality obtained by the EU, there is certainly an increase in the number of women in the labour market and the acquisition of better education and training. Despite progress, gender inequalities have persisted. Even though women surpass men in terms of educational attainment, gender gaps still exist in employment, entrepreneurship, and public life (OECD, 2017). For example, in the labour market, women continue to be overrepresented in the lowest-paid sectors and underrepresented in top positions (according to the data released in the main companies of the European Union, women represent only 8% of CEOs).

Abstract A major institutional breakthrough in Denmark happened with the Lutheran Reformation of 1536, when the monarch was anointed as the head of the church as well. Fortuitously, he and his successors used it well to expand and strengthen the institutions of state administration as well as the judiciary. Under a new constitution adopted in 1665, property rights were recognized and adherence to a rule of law enforced by a stronger and meritocratic bureaucracy and an impartial judiciary. All these developments gradually led to the emergence of inclusive economic institutions in the country. However, inclusive political institutions began to emerge only after the transition to constitutional monarchy in 1849. In Great Britain, politically inclusive institutions began to emerge as early as 1265 with the signing of the Magna Carta. However, the transition took over 650 years to take root, with frequent and sometimes even formidable setbacks along the way. Tensions between the monarch and Parliament only began to be resolved with the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Its major achievement was the enshrinement of some basic tenets of liberty in the country’s first Bill of Rights. It limited the sovereign’s power, reaffirmed the judiciary’s independence and Parliament’s control over taxation and legislation. Note that in Denmark, economic institutions first turned inclusive, followed by political institutions about two centuries later. The sequence in Great Britain was the opposite. Note too that institutions had to be both politically and economically inclusive to get to ‘Denmark’, and the process took centuries.

Abstract This chapter examines the varied accounts theologians give of the semantics of those Christological predications in which divine and human properties are predicated of the person. It begins with an analysis of Francisco Suárez’s account of the issue, and then examines the view of the Reformed theologian Bartholomäus Keckermann. The chapter shows that the great point of division between Lutheran and Reformed theologians of the sixteenth century—whether or not the divine person bears human accidents—was no longer a point of disagreement in the seventeenth. Both sides agree that the divine person does indeed bear these attributes. The main part of the chapter focuses on Lutheran semantics: first, that of Hutter and then that of the Brenzian theologians. The initial problem for such theologians was that Brenzian Christology on the face of it requires the human being to be the subject of divine attributes. Given that there are some attributes that the human being cannot be the subject of (e.g. eternity), Brenzian Christology is on the face of it incompatible with the teaching of the Council of Chalcedon. Hafenreffer, in 1603, manages to come up with a semantics that solves this issue, and he is then followed by the later Lutheran theologians. The chapter includes a lengthy consideration of the claim of the Tübingen theologians, here represented by Theodor Thumm, that the divine nature may be said to be the subject of human attributes. It is argued that there is no sense in which this should constitute a genus tapeinoticum.

This chapter shows what light the quantitative sociology of religion can shed on Catholic disaffiliation. Drawing on recent data from high-quality survey programmes—the British Social Attitudes (BSA) and the General Social Survey (GSS)—it presents a detailed portrait of Catholic disaffiliates in Britain and America across a broad range of demographic indicators (region, age, sex, birth year, birth cohort, race, immigrant status). Illuminating comparisons are also drawn to the retention, disaffiliation, and conversion rates in other major British and American denominations (Lutheran, Anglican/Episcopalian, Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian). Among other important findings, these analyses provide a great deal of evidence for regarding the post-war Baby Boomers as a watershed generation with regard to the following decades’ steady declines in Catholic practice and identity.

This chapter examines the so-called demise of local government in Great Britain during the twentieth century, suggesting that the cumulative impact of twentieth-century developments has resulted in a disintegration of the constitutional tradition of local government. It discusses Parliament's loss of direct influence over the local government and the breakdown of the link between local council and parliamentary constituencies.

While most naval action within the Mediterranean during the First World War took place in the east and in the Adriatic, in waters that lapped the shores of the disintegrating empires of the Ottomans and the Habsburgs, the entire Mediterranean became the setting for rivalry between 1918 and 1939. At the centre of the struggle for mastery of the Mediterranean lay the ambitions of Benito Mussolini, after he won control of Italy in 1922. His attitude to the Mediterranean wavered. At some moments he dreamed of an Italian empire that would stretch to ‘the Oceans’ and offer Italy ‘a place in the sun’; he attempted to make this dream real with the invasion of Abyssinia in 1935, which, apart from its sheer difficulty as a military campaign, was a political disaster because it lost him whatever consideration Britain and France had shown for him until then. At other times his focus was on the Mediterranean itself: Italy, he said, is ‘an island which juts into the Mediterranean’, and yet, the Fascist Grand Council ominously agreed, it was an imprisoned island: ‘the bars of this prison are Corsica, Tunisia, Malta and Cyprus. The guards of this prison are Gibraltar and Suez.’ Italian ambitions had been fed by the peace treaties at the end of the First World War. Not merely did Italy retain the Dodecanese, but the Austrians were pushed back in north-eastern Italy, and Italy acquired much of Italia irredenta, ‘unredeemed Italy’, in the form of Trieste, Istria and, along the Dalmatian coast, Zara (Zadar), which became famous for the excellent cherry brandy produced by the Luxardo family. Fiume (Rijeka) in Istria was seized by the rag-tag private army of the nationalist poet d’Annunzio in 1919, who declared it the seat of the ‘Italian Regency of Carnaro’; despite international opposition, by 1924 Fascist Italy had incorporated it into the fatherland. One strange manifestation, which reveals how important the past was to the Fascist dream, was the creation of institutes to promote the serious study (and italianità, ‘Italianness’) of Corsican, Maltese and Dalmatian history.

European Council Directive 85/337/EEC, as amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC, sets out a framework for the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment. It is known as the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive. The Directive is implemented in Great Britain (GB) for the dismantling or decommissioning of nuclear power stations and other nuclear reactor by the Nuclear Reactors (Environmental Impact Assessment for Decommissioning) Regulations 1999 (EIADR99). The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is the competent authority for EIADR99 in GB, and has carried out public consultations on environmental statements that accompanied applications for consent to carry out decommissioning projects at two nuclear power stations in GB. HSE understands that these applications for consent are some of the first under the revised EIA Directive. HSE has developed a strategy for managing applications for consents under EIADR99. This strategy covers two main areas. The first area is public involvement, including identifying a large number of organisations in addition to the consultation bodies identified in the Regulations, providing information through the internet, and making responses to the consultation process publicly available. The second area is interfaces with legislation and Government policy, including town and country planning legislation, related health, safety and environment legislation, and decommissioning timetables. Experiences of implementing the strategy to deal with the environmental statements are described.

Researchers and practitioners have been modeling the street networks of metropolitan and geographical regions using space syntax or configurational analysis since the late 1990s and early 2000s. Some models even extend to a national scale. A few examples include the island of Great Britain, within the national boundaries of England, over half of the Combined Statistical Area of Metropolitan Chicago and the entirety of Chatham County, Georgia and the City of Savannah in the USA, and the Chiang-rai Special Economic Zone in northern Thailand bordering Myanmar and Laos. Researchers at Qatar University constructed a space syntax model of Metropolitan Doha in 2018. It covered a land area of 650 km2 , encompassing over 24,000 streets, and approximately eighty-five percent (~85%) of the total population (~2.8 million) in Qatar. In a short time, this model led to a deeper understanding of spatial structure at the metropolitan and neighborhood level in Doha compared to other cities of the world, especially in the Gulf Cooperation Council region. The paper presents the initial results of expanding this model to the State of Qatar, which provides ideal conditions for this type of large-scale modeling using space syntax. It occupies the Qatari Peninsula on the Arabian Peninsula adjacent to the Arabian/Persian Gulf, offering natural boundaries on three sides. Qatar also shares only a single border with another country to the southwest, which Saudi Arabia closed due to the current diplomatic blockade. The expanded model includes all settlements and outlying regions such as Al Ruwais and Fuwayriţ in the far north, Al Khor and the Industrial City of Ras Laffan in the northeast, and Durkan and Zekreet in the west. Space syntax is serving as the analytical basis for research into the effect of the newly opened rail transportation systems on Doha's urban street network. Researchers are also utilizing space syntax to study micro-scale spatial networks for pedestrians in Souq Waqif, Souq Wakra, and other Doha neighborhoods. The paper gives a brief overview of this research's current state with an emphasis on urban studies.

Quantity surveying in South Africa is a well-established professional discipline providing consulting services to the construction industry. The continued prosperity of a professional discipline such as quantity surveying is closely linked to sound management and efficient strategic leadership. The leaders and managers of the profession require accurate and up-to-date information on the profile of their members to integrate that information into future strategies and planning.Young democracies and developing countries such as South Africa often have demographics and financial industries, including the construction industry, that are much more dynamic than first-world countries such as the United States or Great Britain. Local government upliftment policies such as black economic empowerment changed the economic landscape. The membership profile of the quantity surveying profession is also seeing rapid change, presenting additional management challenges. A profession with a stable profile is easy to manage using past knowledge of membership makeup and preferences. However, a changing membership may cause strategies based on the knowledge of 5 to 10 years ago to be found wanting today.The recent COVID-19 pandemic disrupted economies and industries and did not spare the construction industry or the quantity surveying profession. During this time, the South African Association of Quantity Surveyors (ASAQS), assisted by the University of Pretoria, analysed the profile of its members employing a questionnaire forwarded to all ASAQS members on the database. This data confirmed significant changes to the age and racial makeup of the profession. However, the changed gender profile was amongst the study’s most significant findings. In the past, the typical South African quantity surveyor was a middle age to older male of European descent. This study will contrast the older members of the profession against the more recent entrants by comparing the profile of female members to that of male members. The analysis will include age, race, locational spread, academic qualifications, nationality, registration status with the Council of South African Quantity Surveyors, and length of the current employment term to provide a reasonably detailed comparison of the gender profile of quantity surveyors in South Africa.The above information will be valuable to the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors and to the management of quantity surveying firms and institutions such as universities that offer accredited academic programmes to train quantity surveyors. The findings can also be shared with quantity surveying professionals across international borders to compare against the profiles of their millennial cohorts of quantity surveyors.