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1522. ISW Analysts React to the U.S.’s Anti-Assad Strike in Syria
- Author:
- Institute for the Study Of War
- Publication Date:
- 04-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Institute for the Study of War
- Abstract:
- “There can be no future for Assad and his regime in Syria. It is good that the Trump Administration has recognized that the regime must go in order for negotiated settlement to occur. Demonstrating American will to use military force is a necessary first step. President Trump still needs a larger strategy to achieve the outcomes that US national security and humanity require.” - Jennifer Cafarella
- Topic:
- War and Developments
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1523. Zombie Nato
- Author:
- Vibeke Schou Tjalve
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Danish Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The cabinet nominations, budget proposals and stepped up force displays of the Trump administration signals a decisive militarization. Even if European NATO members also increase their military muscle, a transatlantic gap on the purpose, language and limits of military power seems looming – not least in the field of counter-terrorism.
- Topic:
- International Cooperation, International Security, and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1524. IISS Shangri-La Dialogue 2017 General (Retd) James Mattis, Secretary of Defense USA
- Author:
- James Mattis
- Publication Date:
- 06-2017
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Lowy Institute for International Policy
- Abstract:
- IISS Shangri-La Dialogue 2017 General (Retd) James Mattis, Secretary of Defense USA
- Topic:
- International Security
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1525. What Should Canada’s Aims be in Any Renegotiation of NAFTA?
- Author:
- Sarah Goldfeder
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI)
- Abstract:
- On Jan. 23, the first Monday after being sworn in as president of the United States, Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum that laid the groundwork for exiting the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The TPP was the elegant solution to a host of hold-over irritants from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) as well as a way to address wholly new issues of trade and commerce. In the wake of this decision, Trump also promised a wholesale reworking of NAFTA, in which everything would be on the table. In the days since, the Trump trade team has been off to a rocky start. Finally, after months of discussion, the notification incumbent for use of the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) was provided to Congressional leaders on May 18, 2017. Mexico has taken it all in stride, as it took almost immediate advantage of the blusterous U.S. rhetoric to outline its demands for any NAFTA discussion. Canada meanwhile plays the sphinx, open about its willingness to negotiate, but not much else. The U.S. may find that it’s less ready for this round of negotiations than it wanted to be, but its partners are well placed to unite and drive a hard bargain.
- Topic:
- International Political Economy and International Affairs
- Political Geography:
- Canada and Global Focus
1526. Daesh Meta-Narratives: From the Global Ummah to the Hyperlocal
- Author:
- The Carter Center
- Publication Date:
- 06-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Carter Center
- Abstract:
- Daesh’s innovative and tailored use of social media has enabled the terrorist organization to lure and recruit disaffected young men and women on a global scale. Effective interventions to reduce the flow of foreign fighters to Daesh require a nuanced understanding of the organization’s recruitment strategies. This includes both the range of Daesh’s propaganda media (videos, online print materials, offline recruitment networks), and the material’s content.1 Such analysis is essential for policy-makers and community leaders who are on the frontlines of developing effective counter-narratives to Daesh’s insidious ideology.
- Topic:
- Terrorism and International Security
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1527. The Women in Daesh: Deconstructing Complex Gender Dynamics in Daesh Recruitment Propaganda
- Author:
- The Carter Center
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Carter Center
- Abstract:
- Since its inception, Daesh has been successfully recruiting women across national and ideological lines to assume key positions in advancing the organization’s objectives. According to recent estimates, out of 31,000 fighters within Daesh territories, almost one-fifth, roughly 6,200, are women. Yet, to date, research and policy focus on women’s involvement in Daesh has been scant. Several media accounts that have covered female participation tend to be alarmingly reductionist in their description of the roles women play in Daesh. These reports primarily categorize women as either passive victims, “Jihadi brides,” or subsidiary supporters of male guardians with negligible influence. This approach not only ignores the multiplicity of roles played by women to expand Daesh’s ideological and operational agenda, but also oversimplifies the motivations behind their decisions to join Daesh. Just like their male counterparts, women are complex human beings with conflicting aspirations, ideological leanings, and life struggles that inform the choices they make.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Gender Issues, and Terrorism
- Political Geography:
- Middle East and Global Focus
1528. Do Age-of-Marriage Laws Work? Evidence from a Large Sample of Developing Countries
- Author:
- Matt Collin and Theodore Talbot
- Publication Date:
- 06-2017
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Center for Global Development
- Abstract:
- Child marriage is associated with bad outcomes for women and girls. Although many countries have raised the legal age of marriage to deter this practice, the incidence of early marriage remains stubbornly high. We develop a simple model to explain how enforcing minimum age-of-marriage laws creates differences in the share of women getting married at the legal cut-off. We formally test for these discontinuities using multiple rounds of the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) in over 60 countries by applying statistical tests derived from the regression discontinuity literature. By this measure, most countries are not enforcing the laws on their books and enforcement is not getting better over time. Separately, we demonstrate that various measures of age-of-marriage discontinuities are systematically related to with existing, widely-accepted measures of rule-of-law and government effectiveness. A key contribution is therefore a simple, tractable way to monitor legal enforcement using survey data. We conclude by arguing that better laws must be accompanied by better enforcement and monitoring in to delay marriage and protect the rights of women and girls.
- Topic:
- Development and Gender Issues
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1529. The Labor Market Effects of Refugee Waves: Reconciling Conflicting Results
- Author:
- Michael Clemens and Jennifer Hunt
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Center for Global Development
- Abstract:
- An influential strand of research has tested for the effects of immigration on natives’ wages and employment using exogenous refugee supply shocks as natural experiments. Several studies have reached conflicting conclusions about the effects of noted refugee waves such as the Mariel Boatlift in Miami and post-Soviet refugees to Israel. We show that conflicting findings on the effects of the Mariel Boatlift can be explained by a sudden change in the race composition of the Current Population Survey extracts in 1980, specific to Miami but unrelated to the Boatlift. We also show that conflicting findings on the labor market effects of other important refugee waves can be produced by spurious correlation between the instrument and the endogenous variable introduced by applying a common divisor to both. As a whole, the evidence from refugee waves reinforces the existing consensus that the impact of immigration on average native-born workers is small, and fails to substantiate claims of large detrimental impacts on workers with less than high school.
- Topic:
- Refugee Issues, Financial Markets, and Global Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
1530. Gender Matters in Economic Empowerment Interventions: A Research Review
- Author:
- Mayra Buvinic and Megan O'Donnell
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Center for Global Development
- Abstract:
- A review of the recent evaluation evidence on financial services and training interventions questions their gender neutrality and suggests that some design features in these interventions can yield more positive economic outcomes for women than for men. These include features in savings and ‘Graduation’ programs that increase women’s economic self-reliance and self-control, and the practice of repeated micro borrowing that increases financial risk-taking and choice. ‘Smart’ design also includes high quality business management and jobs skills training, and stipends and other incentives in these training programs that address women’s additional time burdens and childcare demands. Peer support may also help to increase financial risk taking and confidence in business decisions, and may augment an otherwise negligible impact of financial literacy training. These features help women overcome gender-related constraints. However, when social norms are too restrictive, and women are prevented from doing any paid work, no design will be smart enough. Subjective economic empowerment appears to be an important intermediate outcome for women that should be promoted and more reliably and accurately measured. More research is also needed on de-biasing service provision, which can be gender biased; lastly, whenever possible, results should be sex-disaggregated and reported for individuals as well as households.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, International Trade and Finance, and Global Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus