title: From Al-Qaida to ISIL: The decisions and practices of the UN Security Council related to the right to self-defense against non-state actors from 2002–2014: A deafening silence after Resolutions 1368 and 1373 (2001)

authors: Alvarez-Jimenez, Alberto

abstract: Security Council Resolution 1373, adopted in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and “recognizing the inherent right of individual … self-defense,” was regarded as having expanded the scope of Article 51 to cover armed attacks by autonomous non-state actors. However, the ICJ refused to recognize such expansion in its Wall Opinion. The ICJ’s conclusion cannot be regarded as the last word. As Bruno Simma has highlighted: “The rules of treaty interpretation … of international law do not exclude the possibility that Art. 51 is reinterpreted … on the basis of subsequent practice.” The question is whether or not the SC practice from 2002 to 2014 has expanded the scope of Article 51. This project has reviewed 34 resolutions, 44 presidential statements by the SC, and 115 press statements by its members dealing with threats to peace and security caused by terrorism. The conclusions of this research are that the SC has devised and strengthened only multilateral instruments to face the challenge posed by terrorism from 2002 to 2014; that there has been no explicit subsequent practice related to the right to self-defense against terrorist groups by the Council in its 78 decisions during this period; that there have been some subsequent decisions going in the opposite direction to Resolution 1373 from 2007 to 2014; that the SC has halted this emerging trend as a result of ISIL; and that there seems to be some implicit subsequent practices, fully identified in the paper, that, nonetheless, have been insufficient to expand the scope of Art. 51.

text: From Al-Qaida to ISIL: The decisions and practices of the UN Security Council related to the right to self-defense against non-state actors from 2002–2014: A deafening silence after Resolutions 1368 and 1373 (2001) Security Council Resolution 1373, adopted in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and “recognizing the inherent right of individual … self-defense,” was regarded as having expanded the scope of Article 51 to cover armed attacks by autonomous non-state actors. However, the ICJ refused to recognize such expansion in its Wall Opinion. The ICJ’s conclusion cannot be regarded as the last word. As Bruno Simma has highlighted: “The rules of treaty interpretation … of international law do not exclude the possibility that Art. 51 is reinterpreted … on the basis of subsequent practice.” The question is whether or not the SC practice from 2002 to 2014 has expanded the scope of Article 51. This project has reviewed 34 resolutions, 44 presidential statements by the SC, and 115 press statements by its members dealing with threats to peace and security caused by terrorism. The conclusions of this research are that the SC has devised and strengthened only multilateral instruments to face the challenge posed by terrorism from 2002 to 2014; that there has been no explicit subsequent practice related to the right to self-defense against terrorist groups by the Council in its 78 decisions during this period; that there have been some subsequent decisions going in the opposite direction to Resolution 1373 from 2007 to 2014; that the SC has halted this emerging trend as a result of ISIL; and that there seems to be some implicit subsequent practices, fully identified in the paper, that, nonetheless, have been insufficient to expand the scope of Art. 51.

year: 2014

title: Subsidence Rates of Drained Agricultural Peatlands in New Zealand and the Relationship with Time since Drainage

authors: Pronger, Jack.

abstract: The drainage and conversion of peatlands to productive agro-ecosystems leads to ongoing surface subsidence because of densification (shrinkage and consolidation) and oxidation of the peat substrate. Knowing the ra0te of this surface subsidence is important for future land-use planning, carbon accounting, and economic analysis of drainage and pumping costs. We measured subsidence rates over the past decade at 119 sites across three large, agriculturally managed peatlands in the Waikato region, New Zealand. The average contemporary (2000s–2012) subsidence rate for Waikato peatlands was 19 ± 2 mm yr−1 (± SE) and was significantly less (p = 0.01) than the historic rate of 26 ± 1 mm yr−1 between the 1920s and 2000s. A reduction in the rate of subsidence through time was attributed to the transition from rapid initial consolidation and shrinkage to slower, long-term, ongoing oxidation. These subsidence rates agree well with a literature synthesis of temperate zone subsidence rates reported for similar lengths of time since drainage. A strong nonlinear relationship was found between temperate zone subsidence rates and time since initial peatland drainage: Subsidence (mm yr−1) = 226 × (years since drained)−0.59 (R2 = 0.88). This relationship suggests that time since drainage exerts strong control over the rate of peatland subsidence and that ongoing peatland subsidence rates can be predicted to gradually decline with time in the absence of major land disturbance.

text: Subsidence Rates of Drained Agricultural Peatlands in New Zealand and the Relationship with Time since Drainage The drainage and conversion of peatlands to productive agro-ecosystems leads to ongoing surface subsidence because of densification (shrinkage and consolidation) and oxidation of the peat substrate. Knowing the ra0te of this surface subsidence is important for future land-use planning, carbon accounting, and economic analysis of drainage and pumping costs. We measured subsidence rates over the past decade at 119 sites across three large, agriculturally managed peatlands in the Waikato region, New Zealand. The average contemporary (2000s–2012) subsidence rate for Waikato peatlands was 19 ± 2 mm yr−1 (± SE) and was significantly less (p = 0.01) than the historic rate of 26 ± 1 mm yr−1 between the 1920s and 2000s. A reduction in the rate of subsidence through time was attributed to the transition from rapid initial consolidation and shrinkage to slower, long-term, ongoing oxidation. These subsidence rates agree well with a literature synthesis of temperate zone subsidence rates reported for similar lengths of time since drainage. A strong nonlinear relationship was found between temperate zone subsidence rates and time since initial peatland drainage: Subsidence (mm yr−1) = 226 × (years since drained)−0.59 (R2 = 0.88). This relationship suggests that time since drainage exerts strong control over the rate of peatland subsidence and that ongoing peatland subsidence rates can be predicted to gradually decline with time in the absence of major land disturbance.

year: 2014

title: Experiences from the past inform the journey ahead: ‘a way of being’ - culturally responsive and relational professional learning and development.

authors: Murray, Tracy Olive

subjects: Culturally responsive and relational angragogy

abstract: This thesis begins by contextualising the current reality for many Māori learners in Aotearoa New Zealand.  By reviewing the literature around the role of the provider in professional learning and development (PLD) in Aotearoa New Zealand, this thesis seeks to explain a new way of working that has not been well documented before.  Provided is the rationale for the methodology undertaken in the research to ensure the relationship with the participants remained at the heart of the process.  This thesis contends that applying culturally responsive and relational pedagogy across all levels of schooling is a unique way of being that requires deep critical self-reflection and conscious ongoing change in practice.  Learning what to stop doing and what to do differently is part of an ongoing cycle of inquiry that educational leaders at any level must engage in, to implement change in schools for Māori learners.

text: Experiences from the past inform the journey ahead: ‘a way of being’ - culturally responsive and relational professional learning and development. This thesis begins by contextualising the current reality for many Māori learners in Aotearoa New Zealand.  By reviewing the literature around the role of the provider in professional learning and development (PLD) in Aotearoa New Zealand, this thesis seeks to explain a new way of working that has not been well documented before.  Provided is the rationale for the methodology undertaken in the research to ensure the relationship with the participants remained at the heart of the process.  This thesis contends that applying culturally responsive and relational pedagogy across all levels of schooling is a unique way of being that requires deep critical self-reflection and conscious ongoing change in practice.  Learning what to stop doing and what to do differently is part of an ongoing cycle of inquiry that educational leaders at any level must engage in, to implement change in schools for Māori learners.

year: 2018