{"title":"Socio-economic development of coastal health resort communes in Poland","authors":"W. Szymańska, A. Wiśniewska","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.06","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.06","url":null,"abstract":"The health resort communes have a significant impact on the functioning of the local government. On the one hand, they enhance the development of tourism, but on the other hand, they inhibit the development of other branches of economy. The aim of the study is to compare and point out the developmental trends in the coastal health resort communes, which may provide conclusions on how their health and spa functions affect their development. The subject of the research is the socioeconomic situation of six communes including four located on the coast in the West Pomerania Province and two located on the coast in the Pomerania Province. To evaluate the socio-economic situation, the synthetic indicator method was applied involving pointer variables available in Polish public statistics. The measurements were taken in three categories: human and social capital, material capital as well as financial and economic capital. Depending on the data availability, the time period of some indicators was adjusted to their occurrence. The main time period under research are the years 2000–2020.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"82 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"117300134","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Socio-economic aspects of potential migrants of the mountainous region of Adjaria","authors":"M. Putkaradze, G. Abuselidze","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.02","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.02","url":null,"abstract":"Maintenance of the optimum quantity of population in mountainous regions of the world and management of migration processes are among urgent matters. The problem is so difficult that it requires a complex study and foresees regional originalities. Therefore, the main objective of the research is to study the aims and factors involving potential migrants in possible migration processes, based on the example of Georgia, in particular on the example of the mountainous region of Adjaria. The research was mainly based on sociological questioning and an in-depth interview method, by which a comparison of surveys conducted in the Soviet period and in independent Georgia as well as a comparison of quantitative and qualitative properties of migration processes were performed. As a result of the research, it was concluded that main reasons causing potential migration processes in the modern period are not social, but economic and ecological factors. Besides, in different social groups, geographical originalities of trends of expected migration processes were found. Therefore, events managing the expected migration processes are set, which would bear huge importance for working out the country’s migration policy and efficiently fulfilling municipal programs.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"55 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"116008401","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Senada Nezirović, Ana Živko, Belma Durmišević, Amna Hodžić
{"title":"Stabilisation and association agreement between the Western Balkan countries and the European Union","authors":"Senada Nezirović, Ana Živko, Belma Durmišević, Amna Hodžić","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.05","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.05","url":null,"abstract":"The European Union (EU) represents a certain partnership and alliance between states and countries. It is not governed as the United States of America, nor intergoverned as the United Nations. Member States of the EU are sovereign countries united to become privileged and globally successful. Every enlargement of the Union is significant, but the fifth enlargement has been recognised, so far, as the most significant, showing the unification of Eastern and Western Europe. However, the most significant enlargement is yet to come with the Western Balkan countries becoming Member States of the EU (Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia), considering the political and economic situation of the region. The European Commission has proposed the Stabilization and Association Process (SAP) for South East Europe, as the most significant frame for the EU to ensure relations with the Western Balkan countries and to direct its overall enlargement policy to this part of Europe. Associations of the Western Balkans are usually negative, referring to weak economic development, wars and political instability, which have led to the pre-accession strategy for the EU membership known as the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA). The aim of this paper is to present the progress of the Western Balkan countries towards the EU membership, their current state, and the problems they face on that path and to explain the SAP and the SAA.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"9 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133833711","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Nayib Bukele: populism and autocratization, or a very popular democratically elected president?","authors":"M. Nilsson","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.03","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.03","url":null,"abstract":"This article is about Nayib Bukele’s presidency in El Salvador, and to what extent it is a case of populism, and if it has contributed to a negative democratic development between 2019–2021. By using the concepts of democratic backsliding, autocratization, and populism, three main conclusions are made. First, actions taken by Bukele during his presidency has directly contributed to a negative democratic development. Second, both during the electoral campaign and in office, there are also signs of populism, such as anti-pluralism, hijacking the state, mass clientelism, and a feeling of a less democratic civil society and free media. Consequently, Bukele has pushed the country into a process of autocratization, where the future destiny toward less democracy is still uncertain.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"69 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127323182","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Implications of the war in Ukraine on the Belt and Road Initiative","authors":"Vladimir Prebilič, Vid Jereb","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.01","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.01","url":null,"abstract":"The war in Ukraine will have broad implications for the European region and the world as a whole. It has already changed the intricate balance in the world order influencing great power competition rendering some geostrategic priorities obsolete while reinforcing others. The biggest geo-economic project of the People’s Republic of China (PRC): the Belt and Road (BRI) initiative, will be no exception. The transport and energy flows of BRI will be disrupted due to the new Iron Curtain descending across Europe in the form of sanctions against aggressors in the war in Ukraine. To balance this in the short term, the PRC will have to reroute much of its BRI cargo and projects into other corridors. In the long term, the PRC will attempt to divert Russian resources from the West to itself within the BRI framework, thus rendering western sanctions ineffective and assuring the longterm success of the BRI.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"144 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"116365328","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Democratization of governance as the basis of local economic development in Ukraine","authors":"Оlga Krajnik","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.04","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.2.04","url":null,"abstract":"The article considers the role of democratic standards of governance, which imply the involvement of wide layers of the population in making administrative decisions to ensure regional and local development. The real transition to the implementation of democratization of power relations in Ukraine began with the decentralization reform. The main function of local governments amid decentralization processes is to improve the territorial socio-economic condition, which is the expanded economic recovery of the territory, using the real benefits of democratization and decentralized governance. This article analyzes the stages of decentralization and illustrates the main legislative and regulatory guarantees of this process. The determination of financial resources available to local governments plays a special role in the economic development of territorial communities. The article also scrutinizes changes in local budget revenues of Ukraine over the past six years. The formation of the participatory budget as a component of government democratization as well as the development of public confidence in government is typified. In conclusion, the importance of continuing the decentralization reform and maintaining the society’s progress towards democratization is determined.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"34 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133828754","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on drug markets, prevention and treatment in Ukraine","authors":"Maria Bevz","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.07","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.07","url":null,"abstract":"This paper aims to highlight some issues, challenges and trends caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the drug scene and the system of drug prevention in Ukraine. This article is based on the official statistics, available qualitative and quantitative studies conducted by the Institute for Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatric Examination and Drug Monitoring of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine (Ukrainian National Focal Point), the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) and Ukrainian researchers. Of course, some studies are not representative of the general population; however, they give some information on the drug scene in Ukraine during the pandemic. The data used in the article were collected mainly in 2019–2020. Every actor on the drug scene had to adapt to the new reality caused by anti-pandemic measures. Drug sellers proposed “stable work” during lockdown; drug dealers dropped ordered substances closer to the customer’s place. At the same time, OST facilities implemented home-treatment, and many private facilities appeared. OST patients misused methadone and sold it on the illicit market, while drug users started to find substitutes of their main drug and notably increased drug-related deaths.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"11 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123642014","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Pirona, J. Matias, L. Montanari, K. Škařupová, M. Ferri, I. Giraudon, Jane Mounteney, S. Sleiman, Katarzyna Natoniewska, B. Guarita, L. Vandam, T. Surmont, Paul Griffiths
{"title":"Impact of COVID-19 on drug markets, use, harms and drug services in Europe","authors":"A. Pirona, J. Matias, L. Montanari, K. Škařupová, M. Ferri, I. Giraudon, Jane Mounteney, S. Sleiman, Katarzyna Natoniewska, B. Guarita, L. Vandam, T. Surmont, Paul Griffiths","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.02","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.02","url":null,"abstract":"Since early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a dramatic impact on the way we live, with European countries having to introduce unprecedented measures to protect public health. As with all areas of life, drug consumption, related harms and drug markets have been impacted, as have the drug services established to respond to drug-related problems. Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction instigated three rapid assessment studies to identify the initial impact and implications of COVID-19 on drug markets, use, harms and drug services in the community and in prisons. Findings from these studies revealed that the pandemic and associated health prevention measures implemented by the countries impacted drug markets and use differently depending on the different periods and events throughout the pandemic, but also according to particular drugs or user characteristics. Most drug services remained operational throughout the pandemic in order to assure continuity of care. This was achieved by innovation and adaptation of their services, especially during the different lockdown periods. Thus, the results from these rapid assessments provide a glimpse into new developments in the drugs field across European countries emerging both during and in response to the pandemic, and which could have important implications for the future.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"12 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127967318","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Evelina Pridotkienė, Rūta Gedminienė, Rasa Povilanskienė, Brigita Rašimaitė, Viktorija Stifanovičiūtė
{"title":"COVID-19 and the drug situation in Lithuania","authors":"Evelina Pridotkienė, Rūta Gedminienė, Rasa Povilanskienė, Brigita Rašimaitė, Viktorija Stifanovičiūtė","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.05","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.05","url":null,"abstract":"The application of restrictive public health measures because of COVID-19 has affected all areas of life, including drug use, drug market, and the response of law enforcement and health, education, and social care institutions to the drug phenomenon. In Lithuania students who used psychoactive substances irregularly were more likely to reduce the use of these substances or abstained during quarantine. However, those who used these substances regularly increased the use during quarantine. The provision of harm reduction services was not interrupted, but the package of health services was reduced. There were disruptions in the number of clients entering treatment. Participation in the Early Intervention Programme in Lithuania for young people who are experimenting with alcohol or drugs increased but did not reach the pre-pandemic level. The pandemic also affected workplace-based prevention. The drug market situation remained stable, although the number of the quantities seized indicated some annual variations, caused by changes in supply and demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"74 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127022232","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The COVID-19 impact on the illegal retail drugs market in Latvia and drug use patterns","authors":"Agnese Zīle-Veisberga","doi":"10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.04","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2022.1.04","url":null,"abstract":"The purpose of the study is to explore how the COVID-19 situation has affected the illegal retail market and drug use patterns. Three research questions were formulated: 1) What has been the COVID-19 impact on the retail illegal drugs market? 2) How has the pandemic impacted drug use patterns? 3) Are there trends that presumably would have an impact after COVID-19? The mixed method with an explanatory sequential design was used in the analysis. At the first stage of the analysis all available quantitative data such as routine administrative data and data from regular surveys were analysed and triangulated. The results of quantitative analysis were supplemented by qualitative data, such as reports. The analysis does not suggest changes on the retail market, except for some increase in cannabis cultivation during the first wave in 2020 and a slight decrease in MDMA prevalence on the market in 2021. Drug use patterns are similar to those before the pandemic, with some exceptions that might indicate more cannabis and MDMA use among frequent users.","PeriodicalId":211246,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Geography, Politics and Society","volume":"19 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"121999635","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}