Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Political refugees – Government policy – Canada'
To see the other types of publications on this topic, follow the link: Political refugees – Government policy – Canada.
Create a spot-on reference in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and other styles
Consult the top 26 dissertations / theses for your research on the topic 'Political refugees – Government policy – Canada.'
Next to every source in the list of references, there is an 'Add to bibliography' button. Press on it, and we will generate automatically the bibliographic reference to the chosen work in the citation style you need: APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, Vancouver, etc.
You can also download the full text of the academic publication as pdf and read online its abstract whenever available in the metadata.
Browse dissertations / theses on a wide variety of disciplines and organise your bibliography correctly.
1
Guha, Julia Patricia. "The immigration and refugee board of Canada's guidelines on gender-related persecution : an evaluation." Thesis, McGill University, 1999. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=33285.
Full textAbstract:
The thesis focuses on the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada's Guidelines on Women Refugee Claimants Fearing Gender-Related Persecution, released in 1993. The guidelines were designed to address a perceived shortcoming in international refugee law and its domestic applications, namely, the omission of gender-based persecution from the protection of the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. The omission of gender from the UN Convention had resulted in gender inequalities in the evaluation of asylum claims, inequalities the Canadian guidelines were designed to correct. However, since the inception of the guidelines, critics have dismissed the directives as numerically ineffective, pointing to the low numbers of women requesting asylum on the basis of gender-related persecution. While such a numerical analysis may be useful, the thesis argues it is incomplete. The thesis centres instead on the vital consciousness-raising role played by the guidelines, both domestically and abroad, and on the concrete results engendered by this function in the international realm of women's human rights.
2
Salgado, Martinez Teofilo de Jesus. "Canadian refugee policy : asserting control." Thesis, McGill University, 2004. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=83148.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis considers the apparent shift in Canadian refugee policy between the more liberal refugee programs of the 1980s to the more restrictive contemporary orientation. We provide an explanation for the nature and content of policy pronouncements made in the period following the events of September 11, 2001. In order to put contemporary policy in context, we begin our investigation post-World War II when Canada first entered the international arena as a fully independent state. What follows is an examination of why the Canadian government has preferred its choice of refugee policies, and a consideration of forces and institutions that have shaped policy in the postwar period. At the same time, we reflect on the tension between Canada's refugee policy choices and its stated commitment to humanitarian values and international agreements.
3
Dorais, Sophie Thanh Lan. "Conception et mise en place des politiques relatives au contrôle des demandeurs d'asile : nouvelles stratégies canadiennes dans le contexte de la globalisation." Thesis, McGill University, 2003. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=19667.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis analyzes the influence of globalization on state sovereignty in the design and implementation of policies concerning asylum seekers. Using Canada as an example, it is argued that there are three emerging global forces that directly challenge the sovereignty of the state in matters of immigration. These forces are neoliberal and global security discourses and international refugee rights standards. But these forces have not led to a decline in the power of the state. Rather, they have forced the state to develop new strategies in order to reassert its sovereignty and regain its legitimacy. The state has responded to neoliberal and security pressures by designing, implementing and reinforcing control policies over asylum seekers. It has reacted to the international refugee rights norms and the demands of the refugee advocacy groups by developing strategies to integrate some of their principles without relinquishing its authority and autonomy.
4
Takami, Chieko. "Defining women as a particular social group in the Canadian refugee determination process." Thesis, McGill University, 2000. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=31175.
Full textAbstract:
Recent feminist criticism has resulted in remarkable changes to the interpretation of the refugee definition. Case law, academic commentaries and gender guidelines now recognize that women may constitute a particular social group under the definition of refugee. However, only those who belong to certain subgroups of women are usually granted asylum because being a woman only is considered too broad to comprise a particular social group. Such restrictive interpretation is theoretically and practically problematic, and it is the primary cause for the inconsistency in the interpretation of the definition of a particular social group and refugee determination in gender-based claims. Through an analysis of recent gender-based cases before the Canadian courts and the Immigration and Refugee Board, this paper argues that this inconsistency will be avoided when categorization of women does not require female claimants to prove characteristics other than their gender. Female refugees who are persecuted for being women do not need to provide additional reasons for their suffering, and this broad categorization of women should be consistently applied in Canada.
5
Kilpatrick, Anne. "The Jewish Immigrant Aid Services : an ethnic lobby in the Canadian political system." Thesis, McGill University, 1995. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=22598.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this study is to examine the Jewish Immigrant Aid Services (JIAS) as an example of an ethnic lobby in the Canadian political system. The research explores how in-group and external political factors influence the techniques and effectiveness of JIAS within the immigration policy arena. Specifically, this paper examines how JIAS' lobbying efforts are influenced as a result of issues emerging from within the organization (e.g. structure, hierarchy, leadership, etc), and those arising from within the organization's constituency: Canadian Jews as a whole, and other organizations within the Jewish polity. Further, the broader context of public opinion and the Canadian immigration system are explored to determine how each affects JIAS' advocacy efforts. The political system is examined from the perspective of the structure and agendas operating at three levels of government involved in the development and implementation of immigration policy (the Department of Immigration, Legislative and Senate committees on immigration and employment, and the Cabinet).
6
O'Neill, Michael A. "Safe with us vs the sacred trust : policy change under Conservative government : health policy under Britain's Thatcher and Canada's Mulroney." Thesis, University of Warwick, 1996. http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/78609/.
Full textAbstract:
This research explores the link between New Right ideology and the making of public policy. Taking the Thatcher and Mulroney Governments as examples of the New Right in government this research considers the areas of policy convergence and divergence between them using health as a case study. This study concludes that these 1990s variants of Conservativism differed both in terms of their rhetoric and their ability to chart new public policies. This study finds that the Thatcher Government was a more effective agent of change than the Mulroney Government with institutional differences as the main explanatory variable. Other research themes raised in this research include: The applicability of the incremental policy making model to the study of Canadian and British health policies; the role of interest groups in the development of health policies; and the thesis of the irreversibility of the welfare state. It was found that the incremental model could not account for the rapid and large changes in British health policy but could serve as a theoretical framework to explain health policy developments in Canada. Interest groups for their part were found to have reacted in differing ways to the challenges posed to them by New Right government, seeking to form advocacy coalitions in Canada while remaining resolutely independent in Britain. Finally, this research concludes that the irreversibility of the welfare state thesis as presented by Therborn and Roebroek remains valid. that is that the political popUlarity of national health insurance continue to isolate this sector of social policy from dramatic rollback.
7
Seed, Barbara. "Food security in Public Health and other government programs in British Columbia, Canada : a policy analysis." Thesis, City University London, 2011. http://openaccess.city.ac.uk/1173/.
Full textAbstract:
Public Health has re-emerged as a driver of food security in British Columbia. Food security policy, programs and infrastructure have been integrated into the Public Health sector and other areas of government, including the adoption of food security as a Core Public Health program. This policy analysis of the integration merges findings from forty-eight key informant interviews conducted with government, Civil Society, and food supply representatives involved in the initiatives, along with relevant documents and participant/direct observations. Findings were analyzed according to “contextual”, “diagnostic”, “evaluative” and “strategic” categories from the Ritchie and Spencer framework for Applied Policy Research. While Civil Society was the driver for food security in British Columbia, Public Health was the driver for the integration of food security into the government. Public Health held most of the power, and often determined the agenda and the players involved. While many interviewees heralded the accomplishments of the incorporation of food security into Public Health, stakeholders also acknowledged the relative insignificance of the food security agenda in relation to other “weightier”, competing agendas. Conflict between stakeholders over approaches to food insecurity/hunger existed, and it was only weakly included in the agenda. Looking to consequences of the integration, food security increased in legitimacy within the Public Health sector over the research period. Interviewees described a clash of cultures between Public Health and Civil Society occurring partly as a result of Public Health’s limited food security mandate and inherent top down approach. Marginalization of the Civil Society voice at the provincial level was one of the negative consequences resulting from this integration. A social policy movement toward a new political paradigm - “regulatory pluralism” - calls for greater engagement of Civil Society, and for all sectors to work together toward common goals. This integration of food security into the government exemplifies an undertaking on the cutting edge in progress toward this shift. Recommendations for stakeholders in furthering food security within the government were identified. These include the development of food security policy alternatives for current government agendas in British Columbia, with a focus on health care funding, Aboriginal health and climate change.
8
Newman, Keith R. "Small business : its role in job creation, its political support in Canada and an assessment of a government assistance programme in Quebec." Thesis, McGill University, 1988. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=61969.
Full text
9
Detomasi, David Antony. "Alliance capitalism, political economy, and the multinational corporation, a theoretical and empirical investigation of government-business relations in Canada, 1971-1999." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1999. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk1/tape10/PQDD_0001/NQ42941.pdf.
Full text
10
Perin, Laurie A. "The North American Free Trade Agreement and Environment Debate: A Case Study on the Influence of Values, Beliefs, and Life Experiences in Government Agenda-Setting." Connect to this title online, 2006. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc%5Fnum=bgsu1142361798.
Full text
11
Baumann, Chiara Manina. "A legal and ethical analysis of the South African government’s response toward Zimbabwean immigrants." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/4347.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MA (Political Science))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis is a study of the South African government‘s response toward Zimbabwean immigration, focusing on the period from 2000 to July 2009. The aim is to shed light on why the government has acted in the manner that it has, using a human security framework. South Africa‘s legal obligations under international, regional, and domestic law are investigated and the ethical debate concerning issues of entrance and borders is explored. Concepts of morality, universality, and human dignity are central to this discussion. Against this backdrop, the Zimbabwean migration is briefly analysed in terms of push and pull factors and numbers; and the legal debate concerning the classification of Zimbabweans is explored. The challenges Zimbabweans face in South Africa and how the government has dealt with the Zimbabwean immigration is covered. Key actors from civil society and government are interviewed in an attempt to engage opinions about the government‘s response. The main opinions as to why the government has responded in the manner it has are then discussed and other factors are considered. Issues of solidarity, land reform, and South Africa‘s involvement in the Zimbabwean mediation process are some of the factors considered. The conclusion of this study is that the South African government has not succeeded in meeting its legal obligations nor acted ethically concerning Zimbabwean immigrants. The particular sentiments of ex-president Thabo Mbeki, the solidarity amongst national liberation movements, regional considerations, and the capitalist interests of some South Africans are factors that carry the most weight in explaining the South African government‘s response to the Zimbabwean crisis and its subsequent migrants.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis is 'n studie van die Suid-Afrikaanse regering se reaksie op die immigrasie van Zimbabwiërs na Suid-Afrika, met die klem op die tydperk tussen 2000 en Julie 2009. Die doel is om lig te werp op die regering se optrede in dié tydperk aan die hand van 'n menslike veiligheidsnetwerk. Suid-Afrika se regsverpligtinge onder internasionale, streek- en plaaslike reg, sowel as die etiese debat rakende kwessies soos die binnekoms van immigrante en grense, word ondersoek. Konsepte van moraliteit, universaliteit en menslike waardigheid , staan sentraal tot hierdie bespreking. Teen hierdie agtergrond word die Zimbabwiese migrasie kortliks ontleed in terme van die stukrag-en-trefkrag faktore en getalle; en word die regsdebat oor die klassifisering van Zimbabwiërs onder die loep geneem. Die uitdagings wat Zimbabwiërs in Suid-Afrika in die gesig staar en hoe die regering Zimbabiese immigrasie hanteer het, word bekyk. Onderhoude is gevoer met sleutelspelers in die burgerlike samelewing en die regering in ‗n poging om agter die kap van die byl te kom met betrekking tot die regering se reaksie op Zimbabwiese immigrasie. Die belangrikste standpunte ten opsigte van die regering se optrede word dan bespreek in die lig van faktore soos solidariteit, grondhervorming, en Suid-Afrika se betrokkenheid by die Zimbabwiese mediasieproses. Die gevolgtrekking van hierdie studie is dat die Suid-Afrikaanse regering nie daarin geslaag het om sy regsverpligtinge na te kom nie, en nie eties korrek opgetree het nie met betrekking tot Zimbabwiese immigrante. Die sentimente van oudpres. Thabo Mbeki, die solidariteit onder die nasionale bevrydingsbewegings, en die kapitalistiese belange van sekere Suid-Afrikaners, is van die belangrikste faktore aan die hand waarvan die Suid-Afrikaanse regering se reaksie op die Zimbabwiese immigrasie-krisis verklaar word.
12
Davies, Evan. "Mandatory detention for asylum seekers in Australia : an evaluation of liberal criticism." University of Western Australia. Political Science and International Relations Discipline Group, 2007. http://theses.library.uwa.edu.au/adt-WU2007.0202.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis evaluates the policy of mandatory detention for asylum seekers maintained by successive Australian governments against several core liberal principles. These principles are derived from various accounts of liberal political thought and the major themes and criticisms inherent in the public debate over the policy. The justifications of the policy given by the Australian government and the criticisms enunciated by scholars, refugee advocates and non-government organisations with respect to the policy strongly correspond with the core liberal principles of fairness, protecting the rights of the individual, accountability and proportionality. The claims of the critics converge on a central point of contention: that the mandatory detention of asylum seekers violates core liberal principles. To ascertain the extent to which the claims of the critics can be supported, the thesis selectively draws on liberal political theory to provide a framework for the analysis of the policy against these liberal principles, a basis for inquiry largely neglected by contributors to the literature. This thesis argues that, on balance, the mandatory detention policy employed by successive Australian governments violates core liberal principles. The claims of the critics are weakened, but by no means discredited, by the importance of the government's maintenance of strong border control. In the main, however, criticisms made by opponents of the policy can be supported. This thesis contributes to the substantial body of literature on the mandatory detention policy by shedding light on how liberal principles may be applicable to the mandatory detention policy. Further, it aims to contribute to an enriched understanding of the Australian government's competence to detain asylum seekers.
13
Kinuthia, Wanyee. "“Accumulation by Dispossession” by the Global Extractive Industry: The Case of Canada." Thèse, Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/30170.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis draws on David Harvey’s concept of “accumulation by dispossession” and an international political economy (IPE) approach centred on the institutional arrangements and power structures that privilege certain actors and values, in order to critique current capitalist practices of primitive accumulation by the global corporate extractive industry. The thesis examines how accumulation by dispossession by the global extractive industry is facilitated by the “free entry” or “free mining” principle. It does so by focusing on Canada as a leader in the global extractive industry and the spread of this country’s mining laws to other countries – in other words, the transnationalisation of norms in the global extractive industry – so as to maintain a consistent and familiar operating environment for Canadian extractive companies. The transnationalisation of norms is further promoted by key international institutions such as the World Bank, which is also the world’s largest development lender and also plays a key role in shaping the regulations that govern natural resource extraction. The thesis briefly investigates some Canadian examples of resource extraction projects, in order to demonstrate the weaknesses of Canadian mining laws, particularly the lack of protection of landowners’ rights under the free entry system and the subsequent need for “free, prior and informed consent” (FPIC). The thesis also considers some of the challenges to the adoption and implementation of the right to FPIC. These challenges include embedded institutional structures like the free entry mining system, international political economy (IPE) as shaped by international institutions and powerful corporations, as well as concerns regarding ‘local’ power structures or the legitimacy of representatives of communities affected by extractive projects. The thesis concludes that in order for Canada to be truly recognized as a leader in the global extractive industry, it must establish legal norms domestically to ensure that Canadian mining companies and residents can be held accountable when there is evidence of environmental and/or human rights violations associated with the activities of Canadian mining companies abroad. The thesis also concludes that Canada needs to address underlying structural issues such as the free entry mining system and implement FPIC, in order to curb “accumulation by dispossession” by the extractive industry, both domestically and abroad.
14
Mai, Dan T. "Sustaining family life in rural China : reinterpreting filial piety in migrant Chinese families." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2015. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:8e679650-a857-4f3c-a5c1-770a1bff848e.
Full textAbstract:
This study explores the changing nature of filial piety in contemporary society in rural China. With the economic, social and political upheavals that followed the Revolution, can 'great peace under heaven' still be found for the rural Chinese family as in the traditional Confucian proverb,"make yourself useful, look after your family, look after your country, and all is peaceful under heaven"? This study explores this question, in terms not so much of financial prosperity, but of non-tangible cultural values of filial piety, changing familial and gender roles, and economic migration. In particular, it examines how macro level changes in economic, social and demographic policies have affected family life in rural China. The primary policies examined were collectivisation, the hukou registration system, marketization, and the One-Child policy. Ethnographic interviews reveal how migration has affected rural family structures beyond the usual quantifiable economic measures. Using the village of Meijia, Sichuan province, as a paradigmatic sample of family, where members have moved to work in the cities, leaving their children behind with the grandparents, the study demonstrates how migration and modernization are reshaping familial roles, changing filial expectations, reshuffling notions of care-taking, and transforming traditional views on the value of daughters and daughters-in-law. The study concludes that the choices families make around migration, child-rearing and elder-care cannot be fully explained by either an income diversification model or a survival model, but rather through notions of filial piety. Yet the concept of filial piety itself is changing, particularly in relation to gender and perceptions about the worth of daughters and the mother/ daughter-in-law relationship. Understanding these new family dynamics will be important for both policy planners and economic analysts.
15
MacLean, Ian B. "Literacy, identity, and power: the experience of adult El Salvadoran refugees in Canadian government-sponsored ESL and job-training programs." Thesis, 1995. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/3917.
Full textAbstract:
This study addresses a concern for the experience of participants in Canadian Government
sponsored language and job-training programs for recent immigrants, specifically El Salvadoran
refugees. The research has sought to uncover, through interviews with two former students,
some of their impressions and insights concerning their participation in a Canadian government
sponsored language and job-training program. The interviews were structured to account for
historical, cultural, political, ideological and educational events and influences in El Salvador
and Canada that contributed to the formation of their subjective experience within the context of
the Canadian programs in which they participated.
Analysis of the interview transcripts and notes made during and after the interviews
revealed several emergent themes. These were: political activity and war, teachers as leaders,
religion, what is good teaching, adjustment to Canada, values and hopes, and the need for ESL
and job-training programs. In the views of the two informants, the teacher-student relationship,
based on awareness, communication and respect emerged as a very important feature of
successful pedagogy .
The findings are related and discussed in relation to Canadian society. The instructional
implications are discussed with reference to relevant pedagogical approaches.
16
Mathebula, Dingaan Willem. "South African legal aspect for voluntary repatriation of refugees." Diss., 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/19916.
Full textAbstract:
The dissertation investigates South Africa’s legal aspects pertaining to voluntary repatriation of refugees. The repatriation of Mozambican and Angolan refugees was referred to in order to examine the loopholes in the process of repatriating them. This study moreover examines whether the application of the cessation clause is in contravention of the principle of non-refoulement, which is intrinsically the cornerstone for voluntariness of repatriation. The analysis of international, regional and South Africa’s refugee protection framework demonstrates that South Africa affords refugees the protection required by international law. This has been compared with states’ practice and case law with regards to refugee protection in countries including Canada and the United Kingdom. Although South Africa, Canada and the United Kingdom have comprehensive legal framework governing refugees’ protection, refugees’ rights have been violated on numerous occasions. The dissertation consequently concludes that notwithstanding the presence of international, regional and domestic legislations, the rights of refugees are violated due to their vulnerability and the repatriation process ignores the principle of voluntariness on several occasions.Public, Constitutional, and International Law
LLM
17
Lee, Michael L. "The policy cycle of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in Canada." Thesis, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/3015.
Full textAbstract:
This paper uses the case of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) to examine
the dynamics of the public policy cycle in Canada. A process approach is
applied to examine the principal stages of the cycle: problem identification,
agenda-setting, decision-making, and implementation. In examining these
stages, the factors that drive the policy cycle and those that impede its
progress are identified. The regulatory history of PCBs is traced to
demonstrate some of the complexities of the policy cycle. As one of the
better known hazardous wastes in Canada, PCBs have been the catalyst for
the introduction of new toxic chemical regulations throughout the 1970s
and 1980s. Since the late 1970s, regulatory policies have been developed
and implemented for PCB use and handling. After major PCB accidents
occurred during the second half of the 1980s, regulations were introduced
for their transport, storage and disposal. This case study provides seven
major conclusions: (1) before the right policy solution is found and
implemented, several stages in the cycle may need to be repeated; (2)
public perception is a key determinant of the policy problem; (3) focusing
events are a critical factor in setting the agenda; (4) decision-making often
takes an incremental approach due to incomplete information and divided
policy jurisdictions; (5) successful implementation, particularly in divided
jurisdictions, requires sympathetic officials who are supportive of the
enabling legislation; (6) constituency group support is a necessary
condition for policy implementation; and (7) to deal with public concerns
which may impede the implementation process, officials need political and
managerial skills.
18
Lang, Hazel J. "Fear and sanctuary : Burmese refugees in Thailand." Phd thesis, 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/1885/147950.
Full text
19
"A Crisis Transformed: Refugees, Activists and Government Officials in the United States and Canada during the Central American Refugee Crisis." Doctoral diss., 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.I.25029.
Full textAbstract:
abstract: During the 1980s hundreds of thousands of Central American refugees streamed into the United States and Canada in the Central American Refugee Crisis (CARC). Fleeing homelands torn apart by civil war, millions of Guatemalans, Nicaraguans and Salvadorans fled northward seeking a safer and more secure life. This dissertation takes a "bottom-up" approach to policy history by focusing on the ways that "ground-level" actors transformed and were transformed by the CARC in Canada and the United States. At the Mexico-US and US-Canada borders Central American refugees encountered border patrol agents, immigration officials, and religious activists, all of whom had a powerful effect on the CARC and were deeply affected by their participation at the crisis. Using government archives, news media articles, legal filings and oral history this study examines a series of events during the CARC. Highlighting the role of "ground level" actors, this dissertation uses three specific case studies to look at how individuals, small groups, and a border town transformed and were transformed by the Central American Refugee Crisis. It argues that (#1) the CARC deeply affected the lives of those who participated in it, and (#2) the actors' interpretation and negotiation of, as well as resistance to, refugee policy changed the shape and outcomes of the Central American Refugee Crisis.Dissertation/Thesis
Ph.D. History 2014
20
Mark, Simon. "A comparative study of the cultural diplomacy of Canada, New Zealand and India." 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/2292/2943.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis examines the concept and practice of cultural diplomacy. Cultural diplomacy is carried out by a government to support its foreign policy goals or diplomacy (or both) by using a wide range of cultural manifestations for a variety of purposes. The thesis examines aspects of the cultural diplomacy of Canada, Québec, New Zealand and India in order to investigate how cultural diplomacy presents a national image abroad (potentially as part of a national brand); its role in the protection of cultural sovereignty; and how it advances domestic objectives. The thesis argues that cultural diplomacy, in presenting a national image abroad, frequently emphasises a state’s modern-ness or its cultural distinctiveness. This raises the question of the link between national image and national brand and highlights the limitations inherent in national branding. For some states, cultural diplomacy plays a role in the protection of cultural sovereignty. Canadian cultural diplomacy supports the international activities of domestic cultural industries and has sought to maintain the right to provide this support within the multilateral free trade framework. Québec’s cultural diplomacy has sought to protect the province’s cultural sovereignty from a perceived threat from the Canadian federation. Cultural diplomacy helps advance domestic objectives. The cultural diplomacy of Canada has asserted the right of the federal government to be Canada’s only diplomatic voice, and to counter Québec’s claims to sovereignty. Québec’s cultural diplomacy has asserted the province’s constitutional rights and distinctiveness within the Canadian federation. In a similar way, the international exhibition Te Maori advanced the interests of Maori in New Zealand. Cultural diplomacy’s domestic impacts include positive international recognition for a state’s culture, which contributes to a state’s sense of being a distinctive national community and to its confidence, economic prosperity and nation-building. The thesis concludes that cultural diplomacy remains a valuable tool of diplomacy and is likely to become more important to governments, particularly to their public diplomacy and as a contributor to soft power, because of cultural diplomacy’s promulgation of a distinctive national identity, the increasing importance of a cultural aspect in economic interests, and the intrinsic appeal of culture to globalised populations.
21
Butterwick, Shauna J. "The politics of needs interpretation : a study of three CJS-funded job-entry programs for women." Thesis, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/2037.
Full textAbstract:
This inquiry explored the everyday struggles of several women who worked as coordinators and instructors in three government-funded job-entry programs for women in the non-profit sector. The programs studied included an entry program for native women, a program which trained immigrant women in bookkeeping skills, and a program which trained women on social assistance to enter the construction trades. The work of the staff in these programs was considered in light of a theoretical framework developed by Nancy Fraser. Fraser has called for a different approach -- a more critical discourse-oriented inquiry -- to the study of social-welfare policies and programs. This approach focuses on the political struggle over the interpretation of needs, particularly women's needs, which she sees as central to social-welfare policy-making. In her study of the American system, she has found that "needs talk" is the medium through which inequalities are symbolically elaborated and challenged. She also has found that needs talk is stratified and differentiated by unequal status, power, and access to resources, and organized along lines of class, gender, race, ethnicity and age. For this study, information was collected through interviews with the staff in the three programs, observations of life skills classes, and examination of program proposals. Government and government-related documents were also examined. The analysis revealed that, in the official policy documents at the national level, women’s needs were interpreted within a dominant policy framework which focused on reducing spending, matching workers to the market and privatizing training programs. Programs for women were developed based upon a "thin” understanding of women's needs -- one which focused on women’s lack of training and job experience and ignored the structural inequalities of the labour market and women’s different racial and class struggles. At the local level, analysis of the interviews, observations and documents indicated that the staff struggled to respond to the trainees' diverse and complex needs which the official policy discourse addressed in only a limited way. In their negotiations with the state, the staff employed a plurality of needs discourses, engaging in a process which both challenged and reproduced the dominant policy orientation toward getting women "jobs, any jobs”. There were moments of resistance by the staff to the dominant policy orientation, most notably in the program for native women. The trainees also challenged the narrow interpretation of women's needs, particularly in the program training women to enter the construction trades.
Generally speaking, the analysis indicated that the staff played a crucial role in mediating between women and the state and in producing a kind of discourse which tended to construct the trainees as subjects needing to be "fixed". The analysis also revealed that the relationships between staff, trainees and the state were organized around unequal access to resources based on gender, race and class. In order to transcend the limitations outlined in this study, efforts are required to democratize decision-making, collectively organize the non-profit private sector, challenge privatization and the exploitive practices of the state, and bring alternative approaches which support participatory and dialogical processes of need interpretation. The analysis brings to light the importance of studying the implications of state policies on adult education practice, particularly policies which promote privatization. It also reveals the explanatory power of a feminist theoretical framework which provides a more critical, discourse-oriented approach to examining policy and practice, and the usefulness of this framework for further research and political advocacy.
22
Richards, Garrett Ward. "Climate Change Action through Co-Productive Design in Science-Policy Partnerships at Municipal, Provincial, and National Levels of Government." Thesis, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/1828/6975.
Full textAbstract:
Why is it that the international scientific consensus on climate change has not been followed by a proportionate policy response in Canada? Perhaps the relationships between the country’s science organizations and government agencies are not functioning properly. My research adopts an interdisciplinary approach (i.e. science studies and political science) to this issue, highlighting the relevant literature’s underlying consensus on co-production, a norm of deliberative two-way engagement between scientists and policy-makers. I hypothesize that relationships embodying elements of co-productive design (e.g. informal communication, appointed liaisons) are more likely to facilitate climate action. To test this, I examine three cases of climate science-policy partnership in Canada by interviewing participants from both sides. The partnership between the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium and BC municipalities exhibits substantial influence on policy, tied to a considerable degree of co-productive design. The partnership between the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions and the Climate Action Secretariat of the BC provincial government also displays notable design characteristics, but primarily facilitates side benefits and soft influences rather than concrete policy changes. The attempted partnership between the Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences and the federal government exhibits few elements of co-productive design and has been effectively terminated, demonstrating the prerequisite importance of political interest. The relevant literature is not sufficiently nuanced to fully predict or explain these situations, so I put forward a new theoretical model. My science-policy relationship hierarchy (SPRHi) suggests that each such case can be classified as incidental interaction, basic partnership, interactive dialogue, or true co-production. It specifies the conditions which must be met for any given relationship to improve, maximizing potential benefits and influences. Concrete policy changes seem to result only from true co-production, though, which generally requires exceptional external requirements and thus cannot be deliberately facilitated. As such, co-productive design ultimately does not offer a clear way to address Canada’s climate inaction. I suggest that further research be conducted on international coordination mechanisms, public attitudes, and (especially) political leadership. However, the soft influences of science-policy partnerships may affect these broader factors in unpredictable ways, so the importance of co-productive design should not be underestimated.Graduate
23
Claveau, Steven. "RESETTLEMENT CHALLENGES AND GENDER: A CASE STUDY OF LIBERIAN REFUGEES IN NOVA SCOTIA." 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10222/13179.
Full textAbstract:
This Master’s level research project investigates how gender shapes the resettlement challenges that liberian refugees have faced in Nova Scotia. The study investigates the impact of the reframing of gender relations during resettlement processes in both material and symbolic domains of life in Halifax. While male Liberian refugees are found to have a comparative advantage over their female counterparts, due in large part to the priority given to educating young men in rural Liberia, they also have higher expectations of education and employment once settled. Women seem to benefit symbolically if not materially from the reframing of gender relations in Canada, as compared to Liberia.
24
Usher, Kimberley. "The politics of health care reform: a comparative analysis of South Africa, Sweden and Canada." Diss., 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/20077.
Full textAbstract:
Text in EnglishSouth Africa is currently in the process health care reform as the Government has undertaken the task of providing universal health care to all South Africans through the implementation of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHI). This study took an in-depth look at the history and progression of the post-1994 South African health care policy, and applied the Power Resources Theory to the political economy of the current health care reform process in South Africa. Through a comparative study of the pivotal elements in the phases of health reform in Canada and Sweden this study drew lessons for the design and implementation of universal public health care provision in South Africa. This study found that a strong culture of care, strong political will, active civil society participation and a focus on equality as opposed to poverty in the creation of policy is essential to a successful implementation of universal health care.
Sociology
M.A. (Sociology)
25
Usher, Kimberley Ann. "The politics of health care reform: a comparative analysis of South Africa, Sweden and Canada." Diss., 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/20077.
Full textAbstract:
Text in EnglishSouth Africa is currently in the process health care reform as the Government has undertaken the task of providing universal health care to all South Africans through the implementation of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHI). This study took an in-depth look at the history and progression of the post-1994 South African health care policy, and applied the Power Resources Theory to the political economy of the current health care reform process in South Africa. Through a comparative study of the pivotal elements in the phases of health reform in Canada and Sweden this study drew lessons for the design and implementation of universal public health care provision in South Africa. This study found that a strong culture of care, strong political will, active civil society participation and a focus on equality as opposed to poverty in the creation of policy is essential to a successful implementation of universal health care.
Sociology
M.A. (Sociology)
26
Daviault, Ariane. "L’environnement sous haute surveillance? : éclairage sur plus de quarante-cinq ans d’action publique au Canada." Thèse, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1866/20091.
Full text