Environmental protection is an increasingly salient topic for contemporary society, especially in the context of the climate crisis. People all around the world are engaging in environmental...Show moreEnvironmental protection is an increasingly salient topic for contemporary society, especially in the context of the climate crisis. People all around the world are engaging in environmental activism, yet environmentalism research has disproportionately centered on the West. Considering how most countries on the front lines of climate change are non-Western, this gap must be rectified. Southeast Asia (SEA) is a region severely overlooked in this regard, particularly in terms of what environmentalism actually brings here. There is insufficient knowledge on how SEA states respond to environmental activism, despite the relevance for its citizens and environmental sector practitioners, who witness some of the worst repercussions of environmental degradation. Therefore, this paper aims to expand our understanding of state responses to SEA environmentalism and contentious political action by investigating Vietnam and the Philippines. A comparative study was conducted on these two cases, which employed qualitative content analysis on texts like news articles to study responses to environmentalism. Findings reveal that both countries display a variety of responses, but are most inclined to repress. However, they differ considerably in how they approach each response type in terms of methods, actors involved, and consistency. It is proposed that each country’s distinct response pattern is linked to its respective regime type, as suggested by existing literature on contentious political action. Beyond the popular notion that non-democracies are more likely to repress contentious claim-making, this study illustrates how hybrid regimes can be more covert and lethal in their repression than other regimes. From these findings, this paper stresses the importance of local socio-political contexts for those engaged in environmental protection and advocacy. Additionally, this investigation hopes to spur similar research on other SEA countries and expand the political science literature on this region.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (BSc)
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This thesis examines how activism, based on the development of the Rights of Nature movement, influences the relationship between Dutch people and the North Sea as a food source. It investigates...Show moreThis thesis examines how activism, based on the development of the Rights of Nature movement, influences the relationship between Dutch people and the North Sea as a food source. It investigates the effects of the Rights of Nature on the sea’s utilization and the responses of Dutch people to the development of the Rights of Nature for the North Sea. It highlights the need for a shift toward more sustainable practices and a new balance between ecological preservation and socio-economic considerations, contributing to understanding the dynamics between the Dutch people and the North Sea in the framework of the Rights of Nature.Show less
Museums are faced with ever shifting societal norms, challenging what role it should play in discussing and shaping those norms. These challenges are expressed by protests, imploring and even...Show moreMuseums are faced with ever shifting societal norms, challenging what role it should play in discussing and shaping those norms. These challenges are expressed by protests, imploring and even demanding museums to make structural change. Much work has been done in Museum Studies to understand how museums are capable of weathering these demands, and even suggest that museums can lead the way in reform. This thesis is an attempt to better understand the reality of how museums respond to these shifts in order to construct a solid foundation that will allow for future research. To do so, four variables have been identified that are consistently present in incidents were the museum is put to the test: The Object, The Museum, The Activist, and The Public. In order to better understand these variables on a theoretical, an interdisciplinary literature review has been carried out. To see how theory translates into practice, five case studies have been chosen wherein the variables are isolated and assessed: the first case study concerns the Afrika Museum in the Netherlands; the second case study concerns the British Museum in England; the third case study concerns the National Museum in Warsaw in Poland; the fourth case study concerns the Louvre in France; the fifth and final case study concerns the Hermitage Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Furthermore, an online survey was distributed focusing solely on The Public, as information from this variable’s point of view was not easily found in academic literature. These methods allowed not only for understanding the variables when isolated, but also how they interacted with one another. Findings indicate that the role of each variables can only be defined in broad strokes, and that they are not always consistent. It is suggested that more research be done especially in the role of The Object, as this variable was the most difficult to clearly define. Furthermore, there is a lack of engagement with The Public that needs to be addressed; more comprehensive methods need to be utilised to bridge the chasm between museums and the audience they are trying to reach.Show less
This thesis examines the following research question; How have Hillary Clinton and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez used Twitter as an online tool for women’s empowerment and feminist expression in order...Show moreThis thesis examines the following research question; How have Hillary Clinton and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez used Twitter as an online tool for women’s empowerment and feminist expression in order to connect with their target audience during their political campaigns? It does so by a mixed approach of content analysis and critical discourse analysis.Show less
Street art and graffiti are global movements enjoying an increasingly amount of attention in public forums. The same can be said for Costa Rica, where the street art movement is currently thriving....Show moreStreet art and graffiti are global movements enjoying an increasingly amount of attention in public forums. The same can be said for Costa Rica, where the street art movement is currently thriving. Because street art is able to combine global and local experiences, it, therefore, makes every urban space unique. This thesis investigates how street art in the urban spaces of Costa Rica represents concerns of the public by analyzing murals in the cities of Jacó and San José. With the theory of activism and a close analysis of these murals, it is revealed that global themes are incorporated into the murals using local representations, furthermore, street art is a form of activism. Murals found in the tourist city of Jacó relies heavily on environmental themes, which mirror and romanticize the local nature, animals, and indigenous peoples. The street art in the capital city, San José, is, in contrast, less romanticized and more confrontational in its nature. In both cities the themes of the murals are closely related to local experiences and perceptions of issues and concerns. Ultimately, the street art in Jacó and San José actively address concerns in two different manners giving an indication of the diversity and versatility of representations in street art in Costa Rica.Show less
This thesis aims to examine the role of the movement for the international recognition of the 1988 massacre of political prisoners in Iran, and the impact of their activities on the development of...Show moreThis thesis aims to examine the role of the movement for the international recognition of the 1988 massacre of political prisoners in Iran, and the impact of their activities on the development of the case within international human rights institutions. When the massacre took place in 1988, international responses were limited, however, nowadays it seems to be receiving newfound attention within human rights fora such as the Human Rights Council. Central to this thesis is identifying how this newfound attention has come into existence. Firstly, it looks at whether it can indeed be established that the massacre is receiving more recognition now, than when it took place 30 years ago. Secondly, it conducts an analysis of the development of the 1988 movement, arguing that the movement was able to influence the recognition through years of professionalization and the exercise of their own agency. Thirdly, it looks at the close interdependence of Iranian activists in exile, and Iranian activists who remain inside Iran, attributing the movement’s impact to their close cooperation.Show less
The Olympics are the ultimate sports mega-events as they attract massive worldwide attention. Consequently, the Olympics offer a platform for host nations to gain political legitimatisation and for...Show moreThe Olympics are the ultimate sports mega-events as they attract massive worldwide attention. Consequently, the Olympics offer a platform for host nations to gain political legitimatisation and for minorities to empower their claim of independence. This thesis aims to answer: To what extend did Catalan and Tibetan activists deploy the window of opportunity created by the Torch Relays preceding the Olympic Games to empower their nonviolent resistance campaigns? In this thesis two case studies are discussed: the nonviolent resistance campaign of Catalans during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics on the one hand and the actions of pro-Tibet activists surrounding the Beijing Olympics of 2008 on the other. In both cases, the Torch Relays will be taken as focal point, because it turned out that the "game" between activists and authorities was played during the Torch Relay preceding the opening of the real Games. By focussing on the perspective and agency of the activists, this research takes a bottom-up approach. In short, this thesis argues that the Olympics Torch Relay can function as this temporarily window of political opportunity, which activists can deploy to empower their nonviolent resistance campaigns.Show less
Research master thesis | Latin American Studies (research) (MA)
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The thesis talks about art and activism in Cuba, and is focused on Tania Bruguera and the Institution of Artivism Hannah Arendt. The study analyze informations from art critic and anthropological...Show moreThe thesis talks about art and activism in Cuba, and is focused on Tania Bruguera and the Institution of Artivism Hannah Arendt. The study analyze informations from art critic and anthropological field research. Through a description of Cuban society of 2017 will be examined how freedom of speech of art can be used for social goals. However the main topic is the Relational Art and the development of a new paradigm which involves a political aim as part of the work of art. This research discusses controversies about the effects of aRtivism on the Cuban society and propose an interpretation of an elaborated cultural landscape.Show less
In the fall of 2012, in reaction to proposed legislation by the Canadian government, the actions of four women, three of which of First Nations descent, led to a grassroots activist movement called...Show moreIn the fall of 2012, in reaction to proposed legislation by the Canadian government, the actions of four women, three of which of First Nations descent, led to a grassroots activist movement called ‘Idle No More’. This movement has since inspired many people to take action for Indigenous rights and environmental preservation. In this thesis I will research which historical, social, economical, environmental and political factors contributed to the origination and the continuing impact of the Idle No More movement to answer the question: who is Idle No More, and what does being Idle No More mean to those involved?Show less
