The Map of Connections 3.1: Unofficial and previously unmapped Irish border crossings

I charted unofficial border-crossings along Ireland's border, those not found on any other map.

During many surveys of Ireland's border I discovered that it is often perforated. Gates are set in hedgerows for the convenience of farmers, stepping stones and community-built bridges span rivers, walkers’ routes and muddy by-ways go wherever they please. These kinds of connections have always been there, although I think it is fair to say that their numbers have increased during the Peace Process. Roads blocked or cratered during the Troubles are being re-connected at a rate too fast for the Ordnance Survey to keep up with. On the local level cross-border movement is quietly happening, unchecked and often unmapped, until now.

This map attempts to throw the borderline in perpendicular, showing it as a place of connection rather than division.

The Business of Building Peace: Private Sector Cooperation across the Irish Border

The sustainability of cross-border peacebuilding initiatives is increasingly pertinent in a context of reduced public funding (national and European), yet the potential contribution to be made to this from private sector cooperation remains under-explored. This paper brings together quantitative data on cross-border trade with qualitative evidence from business leaders in the Irish border region in order to examine the nature of cross-border cooperation within the private sector and its possible connections to peacebuilding. This evidence is analysed in the light of three theses: spillover, contact and business-based peacebuilding. The first part of this paper assesses the conditions for cross-border business cooperation in Ireland, including funding support for economic development, European integration, and (post-Agreement) institutional change. The second part examines the particular contributions made by the private sector to peace, centring upon consciously non-political motivations (such as pragmatism and profit), networking and leadership.

European Border Regions in Comparison: Overcoming Nationalistic Aspects or Re-Nationalization?

Essay Review of Katarzyna Stokłosa and Gerhard Besier (eds) (2014) European Border Regions in Comparison: Overcoming Nationalistic Aspects or Re-Nationalization? (London: Routledge)

A Divided City in a Common Market: EU Citizenship and Everyday Instrumentalities on the Polish-German Border

Based on an ethnographic case study in the border cities of Frankfurt (Oder), Germany and Słubice, Poland, this article explores the construction and maintenance of ethnic difference within the transnational economic and social spaces created by the European Union's common market. Through an examination of three domains of cross-border citizenship practice - shopping and consumption, housing and work - this article argues that even as the European Union deploys policies aimed at creating de-territorialised and supranational forms of identity and citizenship, economic asymmetries and hierarchies of value embedded within these policies grant rights differentially in ways that continue to be linked to ethnicity and nationality.

Border Industry in Myanmar: Turning the Periphery into the Center of Growth

The Myanmar economy has not been deeply integrated into East Asia’s production and distribution networks, despite its location advantages and notably abundant, reasonably well-educated, cheap labor force. Underdeveloped infrastructure, logistics in particular, and an unfavorable business and investment environment hinder it from participating in such networks in East Asia. Service link costs, for connecting production sites in Myanmar and other remote fragmented production blocks or markets, have not fallen sufficiently low to enable firms, including multi-national corporations to reduce total costs, and so the Myanmar economy has failed to attract foreign direct investments. Border industry offers a solution. The Myanmar economy can be connected to the regional and global economy through its borders with neighboring countries, Thailand in particular, which already have logistic hubs such as deep-sea ports, airports and trunk roads. This paper examines the source of competitiveness of border industry by considering an example of the garment industry located in the Myanmar-Thai border area. Based on such analysis, we recognize the prospects of border industry and propose some policy measures to promote this on Myanmar soil.

Development of Border Economic Zones in Thailand: Expansion of Border Trade and Formation of Border Economic Zones

In the wake of economic globalization and development in Thailand, movement of people and commodities at the Thai borders is also becoming pronounced. Economic interdependence between Thailand and neighboring countries is growing through border customhouses. As a policy, Thailand is trying to stimulate trade and investment with neighboring countries following the ACMECS (Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy) scheme. In this report, first, movement of people and goods at the borders will be examined. Second, clarification of where and how development is proceeding will be presented. Last, this study will attempt to review the perspectives of policies on neighboring countries after Thaksin.

Are you ready for a tender project? – Analysis of organisational project management maturity in the Austrian-Hungarian border region

Are you ready for a tender project? – Analysis of organisational project management maturity in the Austrian- Hungarian border region. Since the 1990s the European Union has paid more and more attention to subsidising cross-border development. It is understandable that different funding from proposal sources is particularly important for the border area, especially to those of utmost importance that support co-operation and rural development. Therefore, they could become a driving force for development. The authors’ research analyses the organisational project management maturity of the projects implemented in the frame of the Austria-Hungary Cross-border Cooperation Programme 2007-2013 (AT-HU). Analysing this kind of organisation is an important issue, since the new call for proposals are open in 2016 and the results of this study may provide a self-evaluation opportunity to organisations that need to know if they are ready or mature enough for a new tender project. The aim of this study was twofold. First of all, those indicators that could be used to analyse the project management maturity of implementing organisations in the AT-HU programme were identified. Based on the empirical research these are the project experience accumulated by the organisation, the internal processes operating at the institution and the professional background. Secondly, factors that can affect this project management maturity were explored and we determined five influencing area: the organisational structure, culture, project managers motivation and the typical and important competences.

Legal Framework for Cross-Regional Networks: The Case of Services and Migration

Paper prepared by Marion Panizzon and Charlotte Sieber-Gasser for the International Conference on the Political Economy of Liberalising Trade in Services, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 14-15 June 2010 Recent literature has shed light on the economic potential of cross-border networks. These networks, consisting of expatriates and their acquaintances from abroad and at home, provide the basis for the creation of cross-border value added chains and therewith the means for turning brain drain into brain circulation. Both aspects are potentially valuable for economic growth in the developing world. Unilateral co-development policies operating through co-funding of expatriate business ventures, but also bilateral agreements liberalising circular migration for a limited set of per-sons testify to the increasing awareness of governments about the potential, which expatriate networks hold for economic growth in developing countries. Whereas such punctual efforts are valuable, viewed from a long term perspective, these top-down, government mandated Diaspora stimulation programs, will not replace, this paper argues, the market-driven liberalisation of infrastructure and other services in developing countries. Nor will they carry, in the case of circular labour migration, the political momentum to liberalise labour market admission for those non-nationals, who will eventually emerge as the future transnational entrepreneurs. It will take a combination of mode 4 and infrastructure services openings-cum regulation for countries at both sides of the spectrum to provide the basis and precondition for transnational business and entrepreneurial networks to emerge and translate into cross-border, value added production chains. Two key issues are of particular relevance in this context: (i) the services sector, especially in infrastructure, tends to suffer from inefficiencies, particularly in developing countries, and (ii) labour migration, a highly complex issue, still faces disproportionately rigid barriers despite well-documented global welfare gains. Both are hindrances for emerging markets to fully take advantage of the potential of these cross-border networks. Adapting the legal framework for enhancing the regulatory and institutional frameworks for services trade, especially in infrastructure services sectors (ISS) and labour migration could provide the incentives necessary for brain circulation and strengthen cross-border value added chains by lowering transaction costs. This paper analyses the shortfalls of the global legal framework – the shallow status quo of GATS commitments in ISS and mode 4 particular – in relation to stimulating brain circulation and the creation of cross-border value added chains in emerging markets. It highlights the necessity of adapting the legal framework, both on the global and the regional level, to stimulate broader and wider market access in the four key ISS sectors (telecommunications, transport, professional and financial services) in developing countries, as domestic supply capacity, global competitiveness and economic diversification in ISS sectors are necessary for mobilising expatriate re-turns, both physical and virtual. The paper argues that industrialised, labour receiving countries need to offer mode 4 market access to wider categories of persons, especially to students, graduate trainees and young professionals from abroad. Further-more, free trade in semi-finished products and mode 4 market access are crucial for the creation of cross-border value added chains across the developing world. Finally, the paper discusses on the basis of a case study on Jordan why the key features of trade agreements, which promote circular migration and the creation of cross-border value added chains, consist of trade liberalisation in services and liberal migration policies.

Introduction : the global flow of creative ideas

In the era of late modernism, various pressures play a decisive role in shaping the texture and meaning of the world around us. Population, work, transportation, new technologies of information and communication, lifestyle cultures and other forces are increasingly mobile, and this in turn helps make for a new set of public and personal surroundings. Social life everywhere now appears to share more and more in an international (if not a global) order, even if inequality and stratification remain common inside territories and across territories. Still, the perception is that a particular cultural life is increasingly universal. More and more consumers come to share in its practices and products, with those products becoming more and more homogeneous. This standardization argument finds much support in the apparent internationalization of many elements of media, entertainment, leisure and lifestyle cultures, with cultural conglomerates determined to maximize their global market reach. Once upon a time, in order to understand the economic, political and cultural forces affecting citizens and society, it was mostly deemed sufficient to look within the boundaries of the nation-state. Over the past two decades, these same pressures of globalization have impacted on critical research, highlighting the methodological need to adopt an optic that is more cross-border and transcultural as a means of gaining greater understanding of cultural life.

Rethinking global media : creative diversity and media dispersal

Communications media have been central to globalizing processes in modern societies. As technological forms, communication media have long extended the transmission of messages across space in ways that challenge the socio-cultural dimensions of the nation-state and national cultures, and the global communications infrastructure that has developed rapidly since the 1980s has further promoted global information flows and cross-border commercial activity. As institutional and organisational forms through which information and content is produced and distributed, media corporations have been at the forefront of international expansion of their market reach and the development of new sites of production and distribution, and media industries are highly dynamic on a global scale. Finally, as cultural forms, or providers of the informational and symbolic content that is received and used by consumers/audiences/users, global media constitute a core means through which people make sense of events in distant places, and the information and images that they carry are central to the existence of common systems of meaning and understanding across nations, regions and cultures.

Nursing Sans Frontieres: A Three Year Case Study of Multi-State Registration of Support Nursing Practice Using Information Technology

Objective: To highlight the registration issues for nurses who wish to practice nationally, particularly those practicing within the telehealth sector. Design: As part of a national clinical research study, applications were made to every state and territory for mutual recognition of nursing registration and fee waiver for telenursing cross boarder practice for a period of three years. These processes are described using a case study approach. Outcome: The aim of this case study was to achieve registration in every state and territory of Australia without paying multiple fees by using mutual recognition provisions and the cross-border fee waiver policy of the nurse regulatory authorities in order to practice telenursing. Results: Mutual recognition and fee waiver for cross-border practice was granted unconditionally in two states: Victoria (Vic) and Tasmania (Tas), and one territory: the Northern Territory (NT). The remainder of the Australian states and territories would only grant temporary registration for the period of the project or not at all, due to policy restrictions or nurse regulatory authority (NRA) Board decisions. As a consequence of gaining fee waiver the annual cost of registration was a maximum of $145 per annum as opposed to the potential $959 for initial registration and $625 for annual renewal. Conclusions: Having eight individual nurses Acts and NRAs for a population of 265,000 nurses would clearly indicate a case for over regulation in this country. The structure of regulation of nursing in Australia is a barrier to the changing and evolving role of nurses in the 21st century and a significant factor when considering workforce planning.

Diaspora: the new philanthropy?

Diaspora philanthropy is a popular buzzword; however, what the term encompasses or how institutionalised the phenomenon is remains an open question. There are as many views and definitions of diaspora philanthropy as there are diaspora communities involved. It is often seen as a potential source of funding for geographic regions, religions or ethnic communities globally. But identifying a framework for diaspora philanthropy is difficult. Unlike the literature on international philanthropy (including ethnic philanthropy and cross-border philanthropy), which has been a predominant topic of interest in recent years, the literature on diaspora philanthropy is scarce. There is a variety of opinion on what should and should not be considered under this scribe, which makes it impossible to provide a definitive description of diaspora philanthropy that suits everyone. The term “diaspora” has different meanings for different individuals and groups of people. Some see it as relating only to exiled and ejected communities of people; others use the term to refer to individuals or groups who are living in a new homeland whether by choice or circumstance. This paper defines “diaspora” in terms of an individual or group which identifies with an original homeland, (either theirs or a member of their family’s such as a grandparent), and is in the diaspora whether through their choice or a circumstance beyond their control. This obligatory identification towards a homeland differentiates this study on diaspora philanthropy from those that define it as an affiliation with a religious community and not necessarily a specific homeland.

The taxation of international maritime leasing profits : has the commissioners ship come in?

In light of McDermott Industries (AUST) Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Taxation, and Draft Taxation Ruling TR 2006/D8, this article considers the current Australian taxation position of profits arising from the cross-border leasing of vessels in the maritime industry. It focuses on the tax treaties to which Australia is a party, in particular the application of the business profits provisions of those treaties, and the deemed existence of a permanent establishment where substantial equipment, owned by a fiscal non-resident, is used within Australian waters.

Advance pricing arrangements : an Australian Tax Office success or a legislative failure?

Australia’s domestic income tax legislation and double tax agreements contain transfer pricing rules which are designed to counter the underpayment of tax by businesses engaged in international dealings between related parties. The current legislation and agreements require that related party transactions take place at a value which reflects an arm’s length price, that is, a price which would be charged between unrelated parties. For a host of reasons, it is increasingly difficult for multinational entities to demonstrate that they are transferring goods and services at a price which is reflective of the behaviour of independent parties, thereby making it difficult to demonstrate compliance with the relevant legislation. Further, where an Australian business undertakes cross-border related party transactions there is the risk of an audit by the Australian Tax Office (ATO). If a business wishes to avoid the risk of an audit, and any ensuing penalties, there is one option: an advance pricing arrangement (APA). An APA is an agreement whereby the future transfer pricing methodology to be used to determine the arm’s length price is agreed to by the taxpayer and the relevant tax authority or authorities. The ATO views the APA process as an important part of its international tax strategy and believes that there are complementary benefits provided to both the taxpayer and the ATO. The ATO promotes the APA process on the basis of creating greater certainty for all parties while reducing compliance costs and the risk of audit and penalty. While the ATO regards the APA system as a success, it may be argued that the implementation of such a system is simply a practical solution to an ongoing problem of an inherent failure in both the legislation and ATO interpretation and application of this legislation to provide certainty to the taxpayer. This paper investigates the use of APAs as a solution to the problem of transfer pricing and considers whether they are the success the ATO claims. It is argued that there is no doubt that APAs provide a valuable practical tool for multinational entities facing the challenges of the taxation of global trading under the current transfer pricing regime. It does not, however, provide a long term solution. Rather, the long term solution may be in the form of legislative amendment.