50 Years After the Moon Landing: Why Europe Should Lead the Next 50
50 years since the first astronauts stepped foot on the moon, it would be easy to be complacent about human space exploration today. After all, humans have not ventured out of low-earth orbit since 1972. Achievements in space since the Apollo missions have flown under the radar for most of the regular public. However, the world is actually in a very different place now than it was 50 years ago, when the Soviet Union and United States were the sole spacefaring powers. Today, 72 countries have space programs, 14 have launch capability, and six have highly developed space capabilities (China, Europe, India, Japan, the US, and Russia). Space agencies, private commercial entities, international organizations, amateur space enthusiasts, multi-national corporations, and public-private partnerships comprise the diverse landscape of actors involved in space today. The total global space economy is estimated to be well over $383.5 billion.1 In particular, the European space industry is one of the largest in the world, and contributes around €53-62 billion to the European economy. Manufacturing is a significant part of this, with European companies producing around one-third of the world’s satellites.2 Within 10 years, it is expected that there will be a thriving low-earth orbit eco-system, space tourism, a permanent moon base, and shortly thereafter, a manned trip to Mars.
Flanks: Security Challenges in Northern and Southern Europe (FLANKS)
The aim of this project is to develop enhanced knowledge of Russia's behaviour in the Kola Peninsula and the Arctic region, as well as in the Crimean Peninsula and the Black Sea r...
Mali's Religious Leaders and the 2018 Presidential Elections
Mali is by constitution a secular state, but here as elsewhere in the Sahel the role of religious leaders is increasing both in the social and the political sphere. This HYRES research brief explains how, why, and in what ways religious leaders tried to gain influence in the 2018 presidential campaign. While the research brief shows that there has been a fusion of politics and religion that can increase the political influence of Malian religious leaders, such engagement can also be a double-edged sword as Malians tend to see ‘politics as dirty’ and not a field that pious men of faith should get too deeply involved in.
The G20 Comes to Japan: Making Sense of the Osaka Agenda
How do the outcomes of the G-20’s eight engagement groups factor into this year’s Osaka Summit?
How Do Droughts Impact Household Food Consumption and Nutritional Intake? A Study of Rural India
This paper investigates the impacts of droughts on food expenditure and macronutrient consumption among rural Indian households. To isolate causal effects, I exploit random year-to-year variation in a dry shock, defined as the absolute deviation of rainfall below its long-run mean. I find that the dry shock has a statistically significant and negative effect on household nutrition. For a median dry shock, I estimate that households spend 1 percent less per capita per month on food and consume up to 1.4 percent fewer calories, protein, and fat. Disaggregating the effects by food group, I demonstrate that household diets become less balanced as a result of droughts: the dry shock leads households to rely primarily on cereals and to purchase less vegetables, fruits, pulses, and animal-sourced foods. Hence, droughts negatively impact not only the quantity but also the quality of rural household diets. Finally, I explore the potential channels for these effects. I argue that rather than higher food prices, a decline in household market and non-market income is the primary reason for lower household food consumption and nutrition during droughts. Taken together, these findings suggest that attaining food security amid extreme weather conditions requires an integrated approach that focuses on food not only for survival but also for leading a healthy and active life.
Strategic stability, new technologies and the future of nuclear disarmament in Asia
This project examines the main obstacles to nuclear arms control and disarmament, focusing on Asia. ...
Reforms in Uzbekistan and new dynamics in Central Asia
What is the potential impact of President Mirziyoyev’s reform agenda for regional dynamics in Central Asia and beyond?
Turkey’s Syria policy and the refugee question
How is Turkey’s foreign policy shaped in the new presidential system? And how is Turkey’s Syria policy influenced by and influencing the refugee crisis?
Theory seminar: Brokered safety – labour recruitment and migration assistance in the Mekong region
In this theory seminar, Dr. Sverre Molland will talk about the importance of intermediaries and mediation for work recruitment in the Mekong region. He will also talk about how this can be seen as an integral part of government steering instruments, and as something aid organizations can benefit from in their "safe-migration" practice aimed at labour migration.