The Evolving Integration in East Asia - Too many reservations? CEPS Essay No. 5, 29 April 2013

East Asian economic integration is less well known in Europe than is desirable in the EU’s own enlightened self-interest. It is also badly understood, not least because a range of ‘soft’ cultural, historical and political aspects are insufficiently appreciated in Europe. This CEPS Essay offers a deeper personal reflection on the emergence and development of East Asian economic cooperation and market-driven integration. It attempts to address some of the lingering reservations on both sides and to render the reservations in East Asia more intelligible to Europeans.

The Dangers and Inanity of (Euro-) Nationalism: From Communitarianism to Cosmopolitanism. Egmont Paper No. 77, April 2015

INTRODUCTION In the current times of multifaceted crisis, nationalism looks, more than ever, like a positive and necessary feeling. It seems both natural and indispensable if we are to have viable political and social institutions that meet the needs and preferences of all citizens. The following paper contests this vision. Its criticism of nationalism is directed not only at its national forms, but also at any defence of collective identity based on the same model, such as the various forms of European nationalism. Furthermore, the same overriding criticism can be made of different kinds of nationalism, regardless of their more or less open and progressive political content. In order to ground our argument theoretically and practically, we will try to show that nationalism is always potentially harmful to individual rights, and unnecessary for the maintenance of a just social and political system. We will thus oppose any acritical defence of the intrinsic value of a specific community and the belief in its artificial homogeneity. The historical construction of a supposedly homogeneous community, and the insistence on its values, which are perceived as superior and binding, facilitate the absorption of the individual into the collective. As we will explain further in more details, this holistic approach is typical of communitarian approaches. In that respect, it does not really matter whether they appeal to passion or to reason, to some irrational binding features of the community or to more rational political aspects of a common identity. The main problem in nationalism is not the emotion it can trigger, it is not even its reliance on particular values. What makes nationalism problematic is, firstly, that it tends to overlook the intrinsically divisive and contradictory nature of individual and collective interests in unjust societies; secondly, that it attributes an intrinsic superiority to a particular community over others; and thirdly, that it sees politics as a means to promote the interests, values or identity of that community. As an alternative, we will very briefly advocate a cosmopolitan approach that grounds political legitimacy in a demanding approach to individual freedom, rather than in a shared collective identity. However, even if only briefly, we will also carefully distinguish our own vision of cosmopolitanism from those commonly put forward. Frequently, cosmopolitan perspectives entangle their identity frameworks with concrete political projects, without clearly explaining how the latter derive from the former. Our approach to cosmopolitanism, on the other hand, is, first and foremost, a critical vision of all communitarian postulates according to which politics should be based on some form of collective identity. Thus, we insist on the conceptual distinction between a general stance on identity issues and the more practical political ideology one stands for. In a subsequent step, we link this cosmopolitan framework with a progressive approach to individual rights. Because of our demanding approach to individual freedom, our cosmopolitanism goes hand in hand with a revival of identity-free sovereignty. It is therefore distinct from the severe condemnation of sovereignty often found in most mainstream cosmopolitan positions. Finally, instead of the frequent confusion found in public discourses and in the literature between ideals and reality, our position acknowledges the deep gulf separating these two dimensions. It therefore sketches out very general strategic principles to bring normative ideals closer to political reality.

Meios de comunicação e decisão de compra

Os meios de comunicação são uma ferramenta essencial para as marcas transmitirem as suas características e ideias de forma detalhada a um target específico. Nos dias de hoje existem diversas formas de o fazer e diversos agentes que se englobam nesse processo. Assistimos a uma evolução constante na forma de comunicar e vender produtos e também a uma grande evolução no tipo de consumidor existente. Um consumidor mais independente e bem informado. Nos seus primórdios, a comunicação servia os consumidores de uma forma geral mas nos dias de hoje é essencial uma relação de longa duração com estes para as marcas conseguirem atingir o que pretendem de forma mais pessoal. Cada consumidor tem as suas características e a suas necessidades individuais. O que pode satisfazer um consumidor em específico pode não ser o que satisfaz outros tantos. Esta dissertação visa desenvolver uma teoria que permita às marcas clarificar qual dos meios de comunicação, mass media, tem mais influência na decisão de compra de um consumidor. Desta forma foi elaborado um processo de construção de dados para desenvolver uma resposta a esta investigação e foram analisados dados secundários para definir os conceitos que serviram de base a este trabalho. Posteriormente a criação de dados primários, através de questionários, permitiu a clarificação do meio mais influente na decisão de compra dos consumidores. À medida que se foram analisando todos os dados, foram criadas fundamentações que desenvolveram a resposta da investigação.

La (re)producción de subjetividades y cuerpos en la cultura de consumo actual

La cultura de consumo actual direcciona las subjetividades y los cuerpos hacia un conjunto de creencias, valores y prácticas glorificadas por los medios masivos de comunicación. Estas técnicas de moldeamiento constituyen un conjunto de dispositivos que intervienen sobre la identidad de los sujetos imponiendo proponiendo ciertos modelos y usos sobre el cuerpo y, en consecuencia, naturalizando ciertas formas de pensar(se).La posibilidad de problematizar estas creencias y valores hegemónicos permite comprenderlos como construcciones históricas y por tanto inventadas en función de ciertos intereses. El desarrollo de estos temas y los que se presentan a continuación completan algunos problemas teóricos de mi tesis de Maestría en Educación Corporal actualmente en curso en la Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata. El proyecto de tesis persigue como objetivo general analizar el rol de los profesores de Educación Física en los gimnasios en torno a las prácticas corporales de la gimnasia

La (re)producción de subjetividades y cuerpos en la cultura de consumo actual

La cultura de consumo actual direcciona las subjetividades y los cuerpos hacia un conjunto de creencias, valores y prácticas glorificadas por los medios masivos de comunicación. Estas técnicas de moldeamiento constituyen un conjunto de dispositivos que intervienen sobre la identidad de los sujetos imponiendo proponiendo ciertos modelos y usos sobre el cuerpo y, en consecuencia, naturalizando ciertas formas de pensar(se).La posibilidad de problematizar estas creencias y valores hegemónicos permite comprenderlos como construcciones históricas y por tanto inventadas en función de ciertos intereses. El desarrollo de estos temas y los que se presentan a continuación completan algunos problemas teóricos de mi tesis de Maestría en Educación Corporal actualmente en curso en la Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata. El proyecto de tesis persigue como objetivo general analizar el rol de los profesores de Educación Física en los gimnasios en torno a las prácticas corporales de la gimnasia

AID's experience with contraceptive social marketing : a synthesis of project findings /

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ASAP public information and education. Analytic study number seven. Final report.

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