Corn Liberalization in Mexico: The Effects of Neoliberal Policies on Campesino Food Security

Mexico has a long history of structuralized violence against its most vulnerable socioeconomic strata, the peasantry, also referred to as Campesinos. From the Spanish invasion, to the contemporary neoliberal development project, corn production has been intimately associated with disparate power relations both within Mexican society, and without, particularly in relations with the United States. This study sheds light on the incongruities of modernism implicit within neoliberal policy instruments such as Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP) and free trade agreements. It will demonstrate that while such policies benefit some, they principally exacerbate existing power disparities via disarticulated trade economics, subordinating rather than liberating Mexico's most vulnerable citizenry.

Transmission and Transport of Energy in the Western U.S. and Canada: A Law and Policy Road Map

This collection of short essays arose from the inaugural meeting of the Idaho Symposium on Energy in the West, which was held in November, 2014. The topic for this first Symposium was Transmission and Transport of Energy in the Western U.S. and Canada: A Law and Policy Road Map. The essays in this collection provide a notable introduction to the major energy issues facing the West today. Topics include: building a resilient legal architecture for western energy production; natural gas flaring; transmission planning for wind energy; utilities and rooftop solar; special considerations for western states and the Clean Power Plan; the Clean Power Plan's implications for the western grid; siting renewable energy on public lands; and implications of utility reform in New York and Hawaii for the Northwest.

Land Reform in South Africa in Light of Emerging Urbanization, Industrialization, and Globalization Trends

Black South Africans experienced centuries of mistreatment and land dispossessions, leaving their population in dire poverty and dependence. The 1994 democratization of South Africa birthed a three-fold land reform program dedicated to land restitution, land redistribution, and tenure reform. The first decade of implementation left government goals unmet. The relevance of land reform is examined given modern-day urbanization, industrialization, and globalization. This paper affirms land reform is still relevant socially and is therefore relevant politically and economically. Improvements to program implementation are suggested in the following areas: implementing agency support; rural representation; information management; land market stimulation; beneficiary support; and agrarian reform. Land reform limitations are discussed, and industrialization is briefly explored as the more likely solution to poverty issues.