title: Blurring the Lines? International Humanitarian Non-Governmental Organisations and the Military use of Aid and Development in Afghanistan

authors: Jagger, Stanley Jeremy

subjects: Non-governmental organisations (NGOs)

abstract: This thesis explores the theory that International Humanitarian Non-governmental Organisations (IHNGOs) have increasingly become part of the world-ordering security agenda of developed western states since the end of the Cold War. It argues that the adoption of humanitarian aid and development activities by intervening military forces in Afghanistan, criticised by IHNGOs for blurring the boundaries between humanitarian and military actors, is a symptom of, rather than the central reason for, reduced humanitarian space in Afghanistan. This study contends that the central issue is the wider integration of political, military and humanitarian action into the process of state-building as a way to pacify areas of conflict and instability that otherwise present potential security threats to the developed world. This has become even more pronounced with the aims of the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since 2001.

The merging of humanitarian aid and development with security in the pursuit of stable states has occurred as an international response to the humanitarian crises and intra-state wars since the end of the Cold War. Military involvement of this kind is typified in Afghanistan by Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) that combine security and development action. During the 1990s humanitarianism also underwent a metamorphosis as concern about the role aid could have in fuelling conflict and a desire to ameliorate the underlying causes of poverty and conflict led many aid agencies to adopt a new vision of humanitarianism that had political and social goals beyond those of just meeting the immediate needs of populations in crisis. Another feature of humanitarian interventions of the 1990s was the ambitious expectations placed upon IHNGOs and intervening military forces from the international community to manage or resolve these crises without a corresponding level of long-term political, economic and military commitment. These issues are also present in post-2001 Afghanistan where IHNGOs initially supported an international intervention and a new government which has since been faced with a growing insurgency. Consequently, involvement with state-building, governance, rights and development have placed IHNGOs at odds with the insurgents.

A case study approach is used to examine five major IHNGOs and how they fit into the context of the international state-building project in post-2001 Afghanistan. The central finding of this study is that the integration of humanitarian aid and development into state-building as a means to enhance international security has seriously compromised the claims to the principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence central to the concept of humanitarian space and consequently the security of the IHNGOs in the ongoing Afghanistan conflict.

To overcome these problems this study suggests that IHNGOs should place their humanitarian aid activity under a separate umbrella organisation that operates under the neutral, impartial and independent principles adhered to by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the organisation in this study that has managed to maintain some acceptance and dialogue with all parties to conflict.

text: Blurring the Lines? International Humanitarian Non-Governmental Organisations and the Military use of Aid and Development in Afghanistan This thesis explores the theory that International Humanitarian Non-governmental Organisations (IHNGOs) have increasingly become part of the world-ordering security agenda of developed western states since the end of the Cold War. It argues that the adoption of humanitarian aid and development activities by intervening military forces in Afghanistan, criticised by IHNGOs for blurring the boundaries between humanitarian and military actors, is a symptom of, rather than the central reason for, reduced humanitarian space in Afghanistan. This study contends that the central issue is the wider integration of political, military and humanitarian action into the process of state-building as a way to pacify areas of conflict and instability that otherwise present potential security threats to the developed world. This has become even more pronounced with the aims of the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since 2001.

The merging of humanitarian aid and development with security in the pursuit of stable states has occurred as an international response to the humanitarian crises and intra-state wars since the end of the Cold War. Military involvement of this kind is typified in Afghanistan by Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) that combine security and development action. During the 1990s humanitarianism also underwent a metamorphosis as concern about the role aid could have in fuelling conflict and a desire to ameliorate the underlying causes of poverty and conflict led many aid agencies to adopt a new vision of humanitarianism that had political and social goals beyond those of just meeting the immediate needs of populations in crisis. Another feature of humanitarian interventions of the 1990s was the ambitious expectations placed upon IHNGOs and intervening military forces from the international community to manage or resolve these crises without a corresponding level of long-term political, economic and military commitment. These issues are also present in post-2001 Afghanistan where IHNGOs initially supported an international intervention and a new government which has since been faced with a growing insurgency. Consequently, involvement with state-building, governance, rights and development have placed IHNGOs at odds with the insurgents.

A case study approach is used to examine five major IHNGOs and how they fit into the context of the international state-building project in post-2001 Afghanistan. The central finding of this study is that the integration of humanitarian aid and development into state-building as a means to enhance international security has seriously compromised the claims to the principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence central to the concept of humanitarian space and consequently the security of the IHNGOs in the ongoing Afghanistan conflict.

To overcome these problems this study suggests that IHNGOs should place their humanitarian aid activity under a separate umbrella organisation that operates under the neutral, impartial and independent principles adhered to by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the organisation in this study that has managed to maintain some acceptance and dialogue with all parties to conflict.

year: 2010

title: Inter-laboratory testing of the effect of DNA blocking reagent G2 on DNA extraction from low-biomass clay samples

authors: Jacobsen, Carsten Suhr

subjects: Science & Technology

abstract: Here we show that a commercial blocking reagent (G2) based on modifed eukaryotic DNA signifcantly improved DNA extraction efciency. We subjected G2 to an inter-laboratory testing, where DNA was extracted from the same clay subsoil using the same batch of kits. The inter-laboratory extraction campaign revealed large variation among the participating laboratories, but the reagent increased the number of PCR-amplifed16S rRNA genes recovered from biomass naturally present in the soils by one log unit. An extensive sequencing approach demonstrated that the blocking reagent was free of contaminating DNA, and may therefore also be used in metagenomics studies that require direct sequencing.

text: Inter-laboratory testing of the effect of DNA blocking reagent G2 on DNA extraction from low-biomass clay samples Here we show that a commercial blocking reagent (G2) based on modifed eukaryotic DNA signifcantly improved DNA extraction efciency. We subjected G2 to an inter-laboratory testing, where DNA was extracted from the same clay subsoil using the same batch of kits. The inter-laboratory extraction campaign revealed large variation among the participating laboratories, but the reagent increased the number of PCR-amplifed16S rRNA genes recovered from biomass naturally present in the soils by one log unit. An extensive sequencing approach demonstrated that the blocking reagent was free of contaminating DNA, and may therefore also be used in metagenomics studies that require direct sequencing.

year: 2018-04-09

title: Raising Māori Medium Students' Academic Oral Language Proficiency Through Self and Peer Assessment

authors: Shandley, Rosina Mary

subjects: Māori Medium Education

abstract: In 2012 there were 24,474 year 1 to 8 students being educated in the range of Māori medium bilingual and immersion programmes that exist throughout Aotearoa. This figure made up 25% of the total primary school population.

To ensure the survival of te reo Māori, and the cognitive advantages associated with bilingualism, Māori medium students need to reach a high level of proficiency in both the English and Māori languages over their time at school. They need to develop their language skills beyond basic conversational competency to academic language proficiency.

As well as academic success, Māori medium whānau expect their students to gain a level of competence in te reo Māori that enables them to actively engage in authentic Māori cultural contexts. This is crucial as the interruption to the intergenerational transfer of te reo Māori caused by colonisation means that today Māori medium graduates make up the main pool of speakers who can transmit our language into the future.

Substantial research has evidenced effective pedagogies for supporting students’ second language acquisition internationally. However, to date there have been no empirical studies to evidence effective second language pedagogies that can raise Māori medium students’ academic language in particular. This study aimed to bridge that gap by providing evidence of effective classroom practices that can raise Māori medium students’ academic language proficiency, with a particular focus on oral language competency.

This action research project aimed to raise a group of Māori medium students’ academic oral language proficiency through the practice of self and peer assessment. The participants were a group of eight year 5 and 6 students being educated in a level one Māori medium classroom in a mainstream school in Southland, New Zealand.

Over the 20 weeks of the study the students used a newly developed language matrix of writing outcomes to self and peer assess their learning in their literacy programme. The quantitative and qualitiative results of the study revealed that the confluence of self and peer assessment practices and the new language scaffolds raised the students’ academic oral and written language competency significantly beyond what was normally expected in a Māori medium programme in 20 weeks.

The study findings provide an option for those teachers wishing to develop their Māori medium students’ academic Māori language proficiency. The study also highlights the need for further research into Māori language acquisition pathways, to inform Māori medium oral language progressions and associated assessment development.

text: Raising Māori Medium Students' Academic Oral Language Proficiency Through Self and Peer Assessment In 2012 there were 24,474 year 1 to 8 students being educated in the range of Māori medium bilingual and immersion programmes that exist throughout Aotearoa. This figure made up 25% of the total primary school population.

To ensure the survival of te reo Māori, and the cognitive advantages associated with bilingualism, Māori medium students need to reach a high level of proficiency in both the English and Māori languages over their time at school. They need to develop their language skills beyond basic conversational competency to academic language proficiency.

As well as academic success, Māori medium whānau expect their students to gain a level of competence in te reo Māori that enables them to actively engage in authentic Māori cultural contexts. This is crucial as the interruption to the intergenerational transfer of te reo Māori caused by colonisation means that today Māori medium graduates make up the main pool of speakers who can transmit our language into the future.

Substantial research has evidenced effective pedagogies for supporting students’ second language acquisition internationally. However, to date there have been no empirical studies to evidence effective second language pedagogies that can raise Māori medium students’ academic language in particular. This study aimed to bridge that gap by providing evidence of effective classroom practices that can raise Māori medium students’ academic language proficiency, with a particular focus on oral language competency.

This action research project aimed to raise a group of Māori medium students’ academic oral language proficiency through the practice of self and peer assessment. The participants were a group of eight year 5 and 6 students being educated in a level one Māori medium classroom in a mainstream school in Southland, New Zealand.

Over the 20 weeks of the study the students used a newly developed language matrix of writing outcomes to self and peer assess their learning in their literacy programme. The quantitative and qualitiative results of the study revealed that the confluence of self and peer assessment practices and the new language scaffolds raised the students’ academic oral and written language competency significantly beyond what was normally expected in a Māori medium programme in 20 weeks.

The study findings provide an option for those teachers wishing to develop their Māori medium students’ academic Māori language proficiency. The study also highlights the need for further research into Māori language acquisition pathways, to inform Māori medium oral language progressions and associated assessment development.

year: 2013