Performing the global through the local—globalisation and individualisation in the spatial practices of young East Germans

This paper aims to show how young people in former East Germany respond to the globalising processes that are part of the transformation of their society from a state-socialist to a capitalist one. It focuses particularly on the differential ways in which young people perform their identities as global/local subjects through the uses that they make of urban space. While emphasising the agency of young people, the paper seeks to examine the dialectic between globalising forces that are largely beyond their control and the negotiation of these forces in everyday practices of identity-formation. Conceptually, the paper draws particularly on the work of Beck (2000) Beck, U. 2000. “What is Globalization?”. Cambridge and Oxford: Polity Press.  [Google Scholar], Beck and Gernsheim (2002) Beck, U. and Beck-Gernsheim, E. 2002. Individualization. Institutionalized Individualism and its Social and Political Consequences, London: Sage.  [Google Scholar] and Giddens (1994) Giddens, A. 1994. Modernity and Self-Identity. Self and Society in the Late Modern Age, Cambridge: Polity Press.  [Google Scholar] in order to conceptualise the connections between globalisation and individualisation, as well as on feminist and recent geographical work on performativity (Butler, 1990 Butler, J. 1990. Gender Trouble. Feminism and the Subversion of Identity, London and New York: Routledge.  [Google Scholar], 1993 Butler, J. 1993. Bodies that Matter. On the Discursive Limits of ‘Sex’, London and New York: Routledge.  [Google Scholar]; Rose, 1996 Rose, G. 1996. “As if the mirrors had bled: masculine dwelling, masculine theory and feminist masquerades”. In BodySpace: Destabilising Geographies of Gender and Sexuality, Edited by: Duncan, N. 56–74. London and New York: Routledge.  [Google Scholar]; Gregson and Rose, 2000 Gregson, N. and Rose, G. 2000. ‘Taking Butler elsewhere: performativities, spatialities and subjectivities’. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 18(4): 433–452. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar]; Thrift, 1996 Thrift, N. 1996. Spatial Formations, London: Sage.  [Google Scholar]; Dewsbury, 2000 Dewsbury, J.-D. 2000. ‘Performativity and the event: enacting a philosophy of difference’. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 18(4): 473–496. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar]; Dewsbury and Naylor, 2002 Dewsbury, J.-D. and Naylor, S. 2002. Practicing geographical knowledge: fields, bodies and dissemination. Area, 34(3): 253–260.  [Google Scholar]) in order to gain an embodied understanding of the ways in which individuals construct themselves as global/local subjects.     

Selbstständigkeit als Berufsalternative?!

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Proximity,trust and morality in networks

Network interaction is embedded in social settings, which allows for the development of trust. Trust is supposed to be an efficient functional equivalent of contracts, guarantees, insurances, safeguards, etc. Trust between actors reduces transaction costs. However, trust cannot be introduced and enforced within interaction relationships. It is argued that trust is more likely to occur and to be prevalent when actors have the spatial capability for personal, direct interaction. Thus, proximity and trust are supposed to be positively related to each other. Proximity is strongly interrelated with embeddedness. In the discussion about morality in organisations, there is an assumption we referred to as the 'moral spill-over effect': it is impossible, it is said, to restrict moral competencies and moral behaviour to one particular situation, environment, or topic. However, we argue that, even though trust is a term that is described in moral theory, trust and morality are not necessarily positively correlated. This means that even if embeddedness and proximity in a network lead to an increase of trust between network partners, it does not necessarily produce moral spill-over effects. Thus, proximity and morality do not necessarily have to be positively correlated with each other. The influence of proximity on morality can be positive or negative, depending on the social surrounding in which network collaboration is embedded.     

Hochschulausbildung und Consultingpraxis

Die Consultingbranche bietet für Geographinnen und Geographen ein breites und interessantes Betätigungsfeld. Dieses Berufsfeld kann bereits durch universitäre Veranstaltungen für Studierende erschlossen werden. Um Einblicke in das Tätigkeitsfeld, die Anforderungen und Qualifikationsprofile eines Beraters zu geben, bieten sich Projektseminare an, die in Kooperation mit der Hochschule und Berufspraktikern durchgeführt werden.     

Papier oder Online?

Am Beispiel einer touristischen Image- bzw. Marktuntersuchung besch?ftigt sich der vorliegende Aufsatz mit den M?glichkeiten zur internet-basierten Datenerhebung im Rahmen empirischer Forschungsprojekte. Die Ergebnisse einer auf einer Zufallsauswahl basierenden schriftlichen Befragung mit Postversand und einer Befragung im Internet werden hierzu miteinander verglichen und ihre Eignung für die gew?hlte Zielsetzung bewertet. Die Darstellung erfolgt anhand des konkreten Fallbeispiels des Projektes „Stuttgart Regio: Touristische Infrastruktur- und Marketing-Analyse.”     

Characteristics of Collaboration in Product Innovation in the Regional System of Innovation of East Gothia

The focus of this article is on product innovations introduced by firms (establishments) and the collaborations they enter into with other firms and organizations in carrying out this activity. The theoretical framework combines innovation theories with the literature on regional innovation systems and the knowledge-based economy. Empirically we have investigated characteristics of collaboration among manufacturing establishments in the region of East Gothia in Sweden, with specific focus on the number of employees involved in the innovation projects, mechanisms of knowledge transfer between organizations, as well as financing and patenting in relation to product innovations.     

‘Spreading grace’ in post‐Soviet Russia (Respond to this article at http://www.therai.org.uk/at/debate)

The article addresses the revival of Russian Orthodoxy as a prominent domain in the lives of many Russians. The six authors are interested in the underlying question: What makes Russian Orthodoxy a relevent and modern source of morality and identity? The circumstances of this branch of Christianity significantly differ from what has been discussed in recent years as ‘the anthropology of Christianity’. The article proposes a thematic approach in order to connect the exploration of Russian Orthodoxy to the study of other denominations. A key‐area is the disctinctive articulation between continuity and change, which is crucial to the understanding of some branches of Protestantism as well.