This study examines the impact of African Youth Activists (AYAs) at last year's Conference of the Parties (COP27). Despite being disproportionately affected by climate change, marginalized groups,...Show moreThis study examines the impact of African Youth Activists (AYAs) at last year's Conference of the Parties (COP27). Despite being disproportionately affected by climate change, marginalized groups, such as AYAs, often face challenges in having their voices adequately heard due to underlying structures that favor countries and non-governmental organizations from the Global North. The Political Opportunity Structure can be used to examine whether AYAs have opportunities to make a difference in a system. This involves evaluating whether there are entry points for new actors to enter the political process and whether the existing mechanisms within the system effectively accommodate and integrate new perspectives. To explore this, the study conducted 12 semi-structured interviews with AYAs to investigate how the existing power relations at COP impact their participation. The perception of AYAs on power relations and their opportunities for intervention provide insights into their reality and how they navigate the structural aspects of the political process. The findings of this research can be used to find places to intervene in the UNFCCC- system and improve activists' work at COPs in the future.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (BSc)
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China is growing as an international competitor with its gaze directed toward Africa. Chinese state-owned Multinational Corporations (MNCs) gradually gaining a foothold in African countries raise...Show moreChina is growing as an international competitor with its gaze directed toward Africa. Chinese state-owned Multinational Corporations (MNCs) gradually gaining a foothold in African countries raise worries for other investors like the West. The impacts of Chinese MNCs on the international capitalist market are researched in debt but I will connect this to the study of power relations. Not only will this give insights into the local employees as active subjects that are engaged in various relationships of power, but it will also highlight how macro and micro-level actors mutually influence each other. Eventually, I will argue that these power relations are unequal and used by actors to preserve relations of power. Central to this thesis is a discussion of power as a dynamic and socially constructed relationship that can be used to preserve structures of power. This approach toward power follows Foucault in his understanding and goes against the idea of power as a possession. Power relations become visible in Chinese Multinational Corporations (MNCs) expanding overseas to Africa which has implications for actors at both the micro and the macro-level. Power relations visualize that all actors are involved in processes of legitimizing themselves and through this process produce and reproduce power relations.Show less
Natural gas is seen as a suitable transition fuel to make the transition to more sustainable energy sources possible. However, domestic production in several countries is declining. This had led to...Show moreNatural gas is seen as a suitable transition fuel to make the transition to more sustainable energy sources possible. However, domestic production in several countries is declining. This had led to governments working on safeguarding their security of supply and therefore getting increasingly dependent on international projects. One of the international projects established to make up for the declining domestic production is the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Several countries have however expressed their dissatisfaction on the pipeline and believe that the project is politically motivated. The discussion on the project has been on the forefront of international relations over the years. Many observers and scholars have written about the negative implications it could have. But despite the many negative views, some countries still participate. This thesis explores why the pipeline is economically and politically beneficial for the country that is directly connected to it: Germany. Germany has been focusing on promotion of investment and sustainable growth over the years. The energy transition is one of the most important factors with regard to this. In this specific case, the pipeline is predicted to provide gains for Germany as it helps with the transition. The government regards the pipeline as a purely commercial project, which plays an important role in safeguarding security of supply and in the energy transition in their case. The concerns risen by other countries are not considered a risk on a national level. Germany is able to act as a buffer between Europe and Russia, which it has always done throughout history and can therefore also mediate for third parties.Show less
