Anja Mihr | Humboldt-Viadrina School of Governance (original) (raw)

Papers by Anja Mihr

Berghahn Books, May 10, 2019

Oxford University Press eBooks, Jun 20, 2023

SpringerBriefs in political science, 2023

The 2011 United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training (HRET) describes human... more The 2011 United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training (HRET) describes human rights education (HRE) as a tool that: promotes values, beliefs, and attitudes that encourage all individuals to uphold their rights and those of others. It develops an understanding of everyone's common responsibility to make human rights a reality in each community. (UN Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training 2011) Human rights are universally and internationally agreed norms and standards that are guaranteed legally and politically and are enshrined in international human rights law (IHRL), which has been in practice since the establishment of the UN Charter in 1945 and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948. All five Central Asian states-Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan-are members of the UN and have adhered to the UN Charter since their independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. All of them have ratified most of the core human rights treaties, and three of them (Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan) have been elected to the UN Human Rights Council. The latter comply with the UN Human Rights Council's mechanisms, such as Universal Periodic Reviews and Special Procedures, albeit often reluctantly. The UN is the key international standard-setter for human rights in Central Asia. The UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA) and many other UN sub-branches and agencies have offices in the region. Other international players in Central Asia are the Organization for Security and Co

Springer eBooks, 2021

Background "Think global, act locally," is the essence of glocalization and of glocal governance.... more Background "Think global, act locally," is the essence of glocalization and of glocal governance. Glocal governance means that local stakeholders, such as business, civil society, city councils, authorities and activists actively participate in decision-making processes. Different stakeholders, local, international and domestic ones, make decisions on common rules and regulations while operating, controlling, implementing and enforcing them locally-and wherever needed. Many of these decisions are taken in light of and in accordance with global or international standards. Such standards can be universal UN human rights norms that are, for example, enshrined in international human rights treaties and agreements, and WTO trade norms on tax regulation or copyrights and laws. Global norms can be international customary law, such as humanitarian law or the law of the sea, general guidelines, recommendations or rules and standards on security and elections as set by the OSCE. But for these universal and global norms and standards-often manifested in international treaties-to become locally accepted and implemented, they need also to be shaped, proposed, and suggested by local actors and different stakeholders. Glocal governance, hence, defines a decision-making process in which local and global actors collaborate, often without including national authorities or only when using them as mediators between local and international levels of governance and organizations.

Springer eBooks, 2018

Reference Sozialwissenschaften bietet fachspezifisch und transdisziplinär Fachwissen in aktueller... more Reference Sozialwissenschaften bietet fachspezifisch und transdisziplinär Fachwissen in aktueller, kompakter und verständlicher Form. Thematisch umfasst die Reihe die Fachbereiche der Soziologie, Politikwissenschaft, Medien-und Kommunikationswissenschaft sowie der Pädagogik. Die Handbücher dieser Reihe repräsentieren den jeweils aktuellen Stand des Wissens im Fach. Reviewprozesse sichern die Qualität durch die aktive Mitwirkung von namhaften HerausgeberInnen und hervorragenden AutorInnen. Der Vorteil dieser neuen Handbücher liegt in seiner dynamischen Komponente: Die Beiträge erscheinen noch vor der gedruckten Fassung (Online First) und sind bereits von Beginn an zitierfähig. Zudem werden diese Beiträge aktualisiert und geben so den aktuellen Stand der Forschung wieder. Springer Reference Sozialwissenschaften wächst kontinuierlich um neue Kapitel und

Multilingual Matters eBooks, Dec 31, 2015

use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you g... more use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this book are included in the book's Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the book's Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.

This chapter alludes to the human rights issues and governmental responses in the five central As... more This chapter alludes to the human rights issues and governmental responses in the five central Asian countries in light of their commitments to the U, OSCE, and the EU.

Springer eBooks, 2022

The Glocal Between the Local and the Global Glocalism is a process of norm diffusion from the loc... more The Glocal Between the Local and the Global Glocalism is a process of norm diffusion from the local to the global and from the global to the local. It is the generic idea illustrating how, for example, ICT and the global economy have been shaping our modern way of life since the 1990s. For Viktor Roudometof, the glocal and glocalism cannot yet theoretically explain or justify why we are better off in a glocalized world rather than in a national territorial state (2016). Whereas we understand through the global economy and thus globalization, the transfer and exchange of goods and knowledge around the globe, the dynamic of the local-global economy changes the picture. The new glocal economy is not only a green economy but also recycling processes of hardware as well as the sharing economy, i.e., sharing cars, industrial goods, etc. Many of the new local economy ideas are exchanged via the Internet and makes them accessible for consumers globally. Start-ups and small enterprises share ideas and tips between Bolivia and Kyrgyzstan which have otherwise little in common. There are no language or otherwise physical borders on the Internet, thanks to automated translation programs, which makes this new local economy a glocal one. Guilherme et al. (2019) have investigated how and to what extent our language and communication have been glocalized over the past centuries, turning every local language in some mix of glocal language with English terms. The phenomenon of adapting words from other languages into one's own is not new, but the speed by which it happened over the past decades is breathtaking. With a harmonized glocal language, communication becomes faster and easier, and many other aspects are connected to it. World economy becomes more glocal, too, and even the concept of capitalism is at stake, because in the local-global shared economy, the benefit for individuals and economic growth of societies are measured differently. Enterprises often no longer pay any taxes to national authorities, if their company is spread in locations around the globe. The trend toward a glocal economy is inevitable, also due to the growth of the world population and its density. Apart from share economy, today goods can be developed in one country, and manufactured in another or 3D-printed locally-or recycled for that matter, yet in another country. State authorities have little control over where trade and goods go during the production and consumer cycle.

Springer eBooks, 2022

The Evolution of Glocal Governance While back in 1941 at the height of World War II (WWII), Erich... more The Evolution of Glocal Governance While back in 1941 at the height of World War II (WWII), Erich Fromm assessed the root causes of the rise of nationalistic dictatorial regimes, and spoke of the inability of modern man and woman to act independently and self-confidently because s/he feels emptiness and powerlessness after attaining his/her freedom and emancipation from royals and autocrats-and therefore tends to fall for despotic leaders. Nevertheless, he also argued that the 'post-modern people must convert these freedoms and individualizations into responsibilities and participation as the only way to overcome tyranny' (Fromm et al., 1990). Today we know of no single governance model that would fit best for what he had hoped for, albeit many political systems and regime types have tried and some modern constitutional democracies might come closest to his ideal. Glocal Governance is a manner of taking decisions and implementing them that comes closest to Fromm's vision. And because local and global political world orders are currently in transition, it comes as little surprise that in 2021, the first global Summit for Democracy took place in Washington DC, with over 100 heads of government, civil society, and the private sector discussing democratic renewal and tackling, through collective action, the most significant threats faced by democracies today (US State Department, 2021). Representatives of governments, international organizations, and city mayors and civil society leaders met to discuss the challenge of modern governance. The dates chosen for this summit, namely the 10th of December, the International Day of Human Rights, underlined the global principles by which modern democracies are guided globally and at the same time are run by various stakeholders locally, and hence glocal. Glocal governance is a multi-stakeholder governance practice following international human rights norms and democratic principles. It is, as Haller et al. (2019, p. 1) phrase it, the interaction between local participatory governance and the development of institutions combined with a political economy approach that focuses on the global changes as it relates to the increasingly globalized expansion of capitalist modes of production, consumption, and societal reproduction.

SpringerBriefs in political science, 2017

Ultimately, the claim for cyber justice is based on a globally agreed social contract and a good ... more Ultimately, the claim for cyber justice is based on a globally agreed social contract and a good governance-based cyber governance regime of which (today) four billion users generally agree upon and in which they have the possibility to interact freely and protected. This is an endeavor of a new magnitude because of the size of cyber space, the number of “cyber citizens,” and the speed and innovations IT provides. But it is not impossible as illustrated above, if this governance regimes remains to be based on the basic idea of universal human rights norms and principles which are no longer disputed among the majority of world’s population. Which in return is the same one that accesses and uses the Internet for private, economic, social, or professional causes. Good governance principles based on concepts of democracy help to design a cyber governance regime that manages these common interest of users and providers in the Internet and provide the grounds for cyber justice.

SpringerBriefs in political science, 2022

When in the aftermath of WWII, Fromm et al. wrote that the '(…) biggest problem of future governa... more When in the aftermath of WWII, Fromm et al. wrote that the '(…) biggest problem of future governance will be to organize the societal and economic forces in a way, so that each human being would be master of his powers and leave slavery under these forces behind' (1990, p. 196). He could have been no more prescient at that time. Three generations, one Cold War and one failed post-soviet transition process later, and at the dawn of a New Cold War, we see the shifts that Fromm predicted in the form of glocal governance. To no surprise, according to the WVS (2021), globally, approx. 55% of people prefer being governed by experts and technocrats, not governments, because technocrats take decisions according to what they think is best in any circumstances without political visions or the need for propaganda. 1 If half the world's population prefers technocracy over Nation-State government, and-as shown earlier-20% of the world's population cannot participate in a formal political process due to their non-citizenry status; and, if 60% of the world economy is informal and therefore non-taxable; and, furthermore, if 40% of the remaining public and economic sectors are for most parts de facto under control of NSA and OC, then the territorial Nation-State has turned into an 'empty shell' that neither enjoys legitimacy nor sovereignty any longer-at least in some parts of the world. As illustrated, glocal governance initiatives have filled power and the governance vacuum of dysfunctional or failing states. Today, most of the world's population work, live, and migrate below the state's radar, even in stable democracies. More than half of the worlds population organize their day-today lives in family-bound or clientelist structures and prefer to avoid too much contact with political elites and government. The 'good and safe life' is part of the desired or idealist Western lifestyle, but far from their reality. Electoral turnouts in these countries are often below 40%, meaning that most do not care or believe in the current regime. Thus, glocal governance is, for most parts, virtual, local, and personal, as can be best seen in how public sectors,

Berghahn Books, May 10, 2019

Oxford University Press eBooks, Jun 20, 2023

SpringerBriefs in political science, 2023

Springer eBooks, 2021

Springer eBooks, 2018

Multilingual Matters eBooks, Dec 31, 2015

Springer eBooks, 2022

SpringerBriefs in political science, 2017

SpringerBriefs in political science, 2022

In this edited volume the editors, Mihr/Wittke and the authors explore the field of human rights ... more In this edited volume the editors, Mihr/Wittke and the authors explore the field of human rights dissemination in Central Asia. Offering a comparative perspective on five post-Soviet Central Asian states—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan, it examines compliance with international human rights standards in these countries. The contributions capture various aspects of human rights dissemination through educational programs, seminars, training, and empowerment programs at Central Asian universities, together with Central Asian NGOs/CSOs and international organizations.
The authors illustrate that a change of behavior among state and non-state actors in the region can only happen when both local and international actors, usually international donors, jointly take action to report, train, and empower people in human rights. This book is an invitation to anyone interested in the (troubled) nexus between international human rights norms and standards and their implementation on the local level, as well as in the effective empowerment of citizen in the region.

In this book Anja Mihr develops a conceptual framework for glocal governance as a multi-stakehold... more In this book Anja Mihr develops a conceptual framework for glocal governance as a multi-stakeholder local governance approach based on global human rights norms and democratic principles. It discusses glocal governance as part of an ongoing global transformation process that began in the 1990s, when democracy and individualizing responsibilities for governance became the dominant political system worldwide, and continues through today’s dawn of a New Cold War between those countries which have democratized and those which haven’t.

This book will intrigue practitioners and scholars alike who are interested in the concepts of glocality and glocalism, local-global connectivity, and the implementation and dissemination of global norms and concepts such as human rights and democracy, at the local and community level as well as among civil society and private enterprises. The author argues that global norms have now become universal benchmarks which private, political, and civil actors use to assess day-to-day situations and market developments, and to make their decisions accordingly. This book will appeal to students, practitioners, and scholars of the social sciences and humanities who are interested in governance, human rights, public diplomacy and international relations; and in conceptualizing mechanisms for governing and enforcing political decisions locally, on the basis of global universal principles, international norms, and laws.