Publications/Scholarly Writings - Michael Briguglio

Briguglio Marie & Briguglio, Michael (2024). Lino Briguglio – No Man Is An Island. Malta: Kite

Michael Briguglio (2024). Twenty years of Malta’s EU membership : the impact on Maltese environmental NGOs. 20 Years of EU Membership Paper Series, 3-16.

Michael Briguglio (2024) Turkish Politics and ‘the People’ – Mass Mobilisation and Populism, written by Spyros A. Sofos. Protest, 4(1), 103-106

Michael Briguglio interviewed by Timothy Alden (2023): Beyond Labels: Rethinking Identity Politics, Equity, and Democracy – . Think Magazine – July 2023

Briguglio, M., Cayli Messina, B., Gard, R., Gatto, A., Schermer, J.A., Shahzad, U., Webster, L. and Zhao, J. (2023), A new team and vision of the international social science journal. International Social Science Journal, 73: 255-259.

Lino Briguglio, Michael Briguglio, Sheila Bunwaree, Claire Slatter (Eds.) (2023): Handbook of Civil Society and Social Movements in Small States (Routledge – Taylor & Francis)

Lino Briguglio, Michael Briguglio, Sheila Bunwaree, Claire Slatter (Eds.) (2023): Introduction: Civil society and social movements in small states – in Lino Briguglio, Michael Briguglio, Sheila Bunwaree, Claire

Slatter (Eds.) (2023): Handbook of Civil Society and Social Movements in Small States (Routledge – Taylor & Francis)

Michael Briguglio (2023): Environmental protest in Malta during the COVID-19 pandemic, in Lino Briguglio, Michael Briguglio, Sheila Bunwaree, Claire Slatter (Eds.) (2023): Handbook of Civil Society

Briguglio, Michael (2022). Protests in a Small Island State during the Year of covid-19: The Case of Malta, Protest, 1(2), 299-328.

Briguglio, Michael & Brown, Maria (2022): Repoliticising Movements: The Case of Pro-LGBTIQ Rights in Malta in Herausgegeben von Meike Schmidt-Gleim, Ruzha Smilova & Claudia Wiesner (Eds): Democratic Crisis Revisited The Dialectics of Politicisation and Depoliticisation. Nomos

Brown, Maria & Briguglio Michael (eds.) 2022. Social Welfare Issues in Southern Europe. (Routledge)

Briguglio, Michael & Brown, Maria (2022): Introducing Social Welfare Issues in Southern Europe, in Brown, Maria & Briguglio Michael (eds.) 2022. Social Welfare Issues in Southern Europe. (Routledge)

Briguglio, Michael & Brown, Maria (2022): Saving Migrants in the Mediterranean Sea, in Brown, Maria & Briguglio Michael (eds.) 2022. Social Welfare Issues in Southern Europe. (Routledge)

Mayo, Peter, Brown, Maria & Briguglio, Michael (2022): An analysis of pertinent issues in education in Southern Europe in Brown, Maria & Briguglio Michael (eds.) 2022. Social Welfare Issues in Southern Europe. (Routledge)

Agius, Karl & Briguglio, Michael (2021) Mitigating seasonality patterns in an archipelago: the role of ecotourism. Maritime Studies.

Briguglio, Michael (2020): The Daphne Protests at the end of 2019 – A Chronology. In: Social Conflict Year Book. Observatory of Social Conflict: Barcelona

 Briguglio Michael (2019).Checking Malta’s Powerful Prime Minster through Constitutional Reforms In: ConstitutionNet

Briguglio, Michael (2019): WASP (Write a Scientific Paper): Discourse Analysis. In: Early Human Development. 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2019.03.014

Briguglio Michael and Caruana Christabelle (2018): Why do men join the men’s rights movement in Malta? Interface: a journal for and about social movements. Volume 10 (1-2): 279 – 296

Briguglio Michael and Brown Maria (2018): Civil society perspectives on green jobs in sustainable energy: The case of European Malta: Energy & Environment

Briguglio Michael (2018): Digital Activism, Physical Activism – Malta’s Front Harsien ODZ. In: Contention - The Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Protest. Vol 6, 1: pp. 49-67.

Briguglio, Michael (2017): Panama Papers and Malta. In M. Hodun (Ed.): European Atlas of Democratic Deficit. (Poland: European Liberal Forum), pp.64-67.

Briguglio Michael (2017). Eddie r-Rikonciljatur. In Grech, S. (Ed.) L-Avukat Eddie Fenech Adami – Bejn Storja u Miti, pp.105-8. Malta: Horizons.

Briguglio Michael (2017). Reforming Malta’s constitution to enhance the independence of ‘fourth’ branch institutions. In: ConstitutionNet

Briguglio, Michael (2017): ENGO Impacts on Climate Change Policy in European Malta. Sociology and Anthropology 5(4): 269-278

Briguglio, Michael (2016): Environment, in Briguglio M. & Brown, M. (Editors) 2016: Sociology of the Maltese Islands, Malta: Miller, pp. 309-322

Briguglio, Michael (2016): Political Parties and Social Movements, in Briguglio M. & Brown, M. (Editors) 2016: Sociology of the Maltese Islands, Malta: Miller, pp. 309-322

Briguglio, M; Bugeja, I. and Vella, M.G. (2016): Social Policy, Poverty and Social Exclusion, in Briguglio, Michael (2016): Environment, in Briguglio M. & Brown, M. (Editors) 2016: Sociology of the Maltese Islands, Malta: Miller, pp. 309-322

Briguglio, M. (2016): Institutionalization: A one-way process? The case of Birdlife Malta. Bretterblog series: Movements and Institutions.

Briguglio, M. & Tedesco, C. (2016): Social Interaction of Cancer Survivors in Malta. A sociological analysis. Malta Medical Journal Vol 28(3), pp. 21-27

Briguglio M. & Brown, M. (Editors) 2016: Sociology of the Maltese Islands, Malta: Miller

Briguglio, M. (2016). The Zonqor Conflict in Malta, in M. Trinidad Bretones, C. Andrés Charry, J. Pastor, J. Quesada (Eds). ‘2015: Social Conflict Yearbook, pp. 210-219. Observatori del Conflicto Social: Universitat de Barcelona.

Briguglio, Michael (2015). ‘Ten Years of Malta’s EU Membership – The Impact on Maltese Environmental NGOs.’ Reflections of a Decade of EU Membership: Expectations, Achievements, Disappointments and the Future Occasional Papers, No. 7, Institute for European Studies (Malta).

Briguglio, Michael (2015). ‘Malta’s EU accession, environmental sustainability and ENGO activism’. In, Condie, J., & Cooper, A. M. (2015). Dialogues of Sustainable Urbanisation: Social Science Research and Transitions to Urban Contexts. Penrith, N.S.W.: University of Western Sydney.

Briguglio, Michael (2015), The Bird Hunting Referendum in Malta. Environmental Politics, Vol 24/5 (835- 839)

Briguglio, Michael (2014), Bird Hunting in European Malta: A Case of ENGO Empowerment?, in Liam Leonard, Sya Buryn Kedzior (ed.) Occupy the Earth: Global Environmental Movements (Advances in Sustainability and Environmental Justice, Volume 15) Emerald Group Publishing Limited, pp.295 – 324

Kennet, Miriam; Amaral, Sofia; Tezza, Enrico; Briguglio, Michael; Gale de Oliveira, Michelle S.; (2014): The European Economy: Crisis an Recovery (Reading: The Green Economics Institute Publishing House).

Gale de Oliveira, Michelle S.; Kennet, Miriam; Amaral, Sofia; Tezza, Enrico; Briguglio, Michael; Salman, Doaa (2014): The Greening of the Mediterranean – Crisis and Recovery (Reading: The Green Economics Institute Publishing House).

Briguglio, Michael; Brown, Maria; Bugeja, Ian (2014): ENGO Activism in the EU: The G10, Climate Change and Social Policy. In: Tony Fitzpatrick (ed) International Handbook On Social Policy And The Environment, pp.176-204. UK: Edward Elgar Publishing.

Briguglio, Michael (2013): The Politics of Bluefin Tuna in Malta. Roczniki Socjologii Morskiej. Annuals of Marine Sociology (2013), VOL. XXII. p51-61.

Briguglio, Michael and Pace, Roderick (2013): ‘Malta’ [The Labour Party], in The Palgrave Handbook of Social Democracy in the European Union (Eds: Jean-Michel de Waele, Fabien Escalona and Mathieu Vieira). Palgrave Macmillan.

Briguglio, Michael (2013): EU Accession and Civil Society Empowerment – The Case of Maltese ENGOs. Unpublished Doctoral Thesis: University of Malta.

Briguglio, Michael (2013): Climate Change and ENGOs in Malta and the EU, in Kennet, M, Blackett-Ord, R., Lewis, P., Gale de Oliveira, M.S. Proceedings of the 8th Annual Green Economics Institute, Green Economics Conference at Oxford University: Fixing Global Finance. Green Economics: The Economics of Survivability, Sustainability and Resilience, pp.98-101. Series Editor

Briguglio, Michael (2012): ‘Nature, Society and Social Change’, Societies Without Borders 7:4 (2012) 470- 477.

Briguglio, Michael (2012). ‘ENGOs, EU accession and empowerment: the case of land rationalisation in Malta’, International Journal of Green Economics, 6: 3, 279-297

Briguglio, Michael (2012), ‘The Enabling of Civil Society’, in Carmel Borg and Raphael Vella (eds), Shooting Society – Documenting Contemporary Life in Malta, pp.244-248 (Malta: Midsea Books).

Briguglio, Michael (2012). Land rationalization in Malta in an EU context, in Kennet, M, Göke, J. , Jociute, K. and Heinemann V. Proceedings of the 7th Annual Green Economics Institute, Green Economics Conference: Green Economy: Reform and Renaissance of economics and its methodology – Solutions for the 21st Century Green Economy: Rethinking Growth: RIO +20, pp.42-43. Series Editor Heinemann V. A Green Economics Institute Publication.

Briguglio Michael, Brown, Maria, and Aquilina Diana (2011). ‘A Civil Society Perspective of Sustainable Energy Policy and Green Jobs in Malta as a Small EU State’, in Saviour Rizzo (ed), Green Jobs from a Small Scale Perspective – Case Studies from Malta, pp.10-19 (Belgium: Green European Foundation).

Briguglio, Michael, and Bugeja, Ian (2011). ‘Exploring Malta’s Welfare Model’, Bank of Valletta Review, 43, 12-27.

Briguglio, Michael (2010). ‘Are ENGOs empowered through EU accession? The case of Maltese ENGOs’, International Journal of Green Economics, 4: 3, 262-274

Briguglio, Michael and Aquilina, Diana (2010). ‘The Social Impact of Liberalisation of Plastic Bottles in Malta’, International Journal of Green Economics, 4: 3, 275-291

Brown, Maria and Briguglio, Michael (2010). ‘Milani aktar minn erbghin sena wara: Edukazzjoni, zghazagh qeghda u nuqqas ta’ xoghol f’Malta’ (‘Milani, more than forty years later: Education, unemployed youth and lack of employment in Malta’), in Carmel Borg, (ed.), Lorenzo Milani – Bejn Ilbierah u Llum (Lorenzo Milani – Between Past and Present), pp. 447-470, Malta: Horizons Publications.

Briguglio, Michael (2010). ‘Malta’s Labour Party and the Politics of Hegemony’, Socialism and Democracy, 24: 2, 213 — 226

Briguglio, Michael (2010). ‘EU Accession and Civil Society Lobbying: The case of Maltese ENGOs’, in, Jociute, K. and Kennet, M. (2010), Proceedings of the Green Economics Institute Annual Green Economics Conference: Green Economics and Green Jobs. 29-31 July 2010 at Mansfield College, Oxford University, UK. Series Editor Heinemann V.A., pp.40-43. A Green Economics Institute Publication.

Briguglio, Michael (2009). ‘Politics, the State and Civil Society – A Theoretical Framework’, in Josann Cutajar and George Cassar, (eds), Social Transitions in Maltese Society, Malta: Agenda.

Briguglio, Michael and Brown, Maria, (2009). Global and European Institutional Perspectives of the Green Economy, and Civil Society NGOs perspective, in Kennet, Miriam and Baster, Naomi (2009), Proceedings: Preparing for Copenhagen COP15, Climate change and economics, the battleground of the growth/development paradox. Green Economics Conference 28 November 2009 at Oxford University Club, pp.52-66. A Green Economics Institute Publication.

Brown, Maria and Briguglio, Michael (2009). ‘Discouragement Amongst Ageing Workers in Malta within an EU Context’, Societies Without Borders, Vol. 4, No. 1, pp.45-60.

Briguglio, Michael (2009): ‘Iż-Żerriegħa ta’ Soċjetà Aħjar’, in Adrian Grima, (ed.), Kieku l-ikel jitkellem, pp.131-133, Malta: Inizjamed.

Briguglio, Michael and Brown, Maria (2008). ‘Lobbying in Malta: Environmental NGOs and Social Capital’. Paper presented at the TSCF 2008 Malta Conference, Malta, September 19-22 2008.

Brown, Maria and Briguglio, Michael (2007): ‘The Unemployed Labour Force aged 40 years and over in Malta’. Paper presented at the Social Policy Association Postgraduate Workshop at the University of Oxford, December 12, 2007.

Briguglio, Michael (2003): ‘Global Dominance / Global Resistance’, in Carmel Vassallo and Clare Thake Vassallo, (eds), The Communist Manifesto – Karl Marx’s Legacy to Humanity, pp. 23-39, Malta: Malta University Press

Briguglio, Michael (2001): Ideological and Strategic Shifts from Old Labour to New Labour in Malta. Unpublished dissertation: University of Malta

Briguglio, Michael (1998): State/Power: Hiltonopoly. Unpublished dissertation: University of Malta.

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Scholarly Publications list:  https://www.um.edu.mt/profile/michaelbriguglio

Michael Briguglio also writes regularly in the Maltese press

#Ħsibijiet 113: Tgħajjir u Velenu

Meta jkun hemm min juża l-Facebook jew għodda simili biex joffendi lil xi ħadd b'mod personali, l-offiża tgħidilna iktar dwar min qed jiktibha milli dwar min qed jirċeviha.

FIRE Live! Thunder Sky

 

FIRE will be headlining the 1st edition of ThunderSky, this Saturday at The Garage. Checkmate and Rankin will also be performing.

FIRE is Kenneth Calleja (Vocals), Robert Longo (Guitar), Pejxa (Guitar), Gino Micallef (Bass), Michael Briguglio (Drums), and is managed by Nick Grima MGT. 

#Ħsibijiet (112): The Trump Victory

It is a pity that high priests of identitarian progressivism keep being in denial on the concerns and aspirations of so many people, and instead embark on purges, inquisitions, and the construction of echo chambers. Ironically, this keeps creating political opportunities for their adversaries.

The Malta Sociology Conference 2024

The #MaltaSociologyConference will comprise 12 academic research presentations on Changing Spaces; Culture and Consumption; and Policy and Practice, followed by an open discussion.

A presentation about the new journal of the Sociology Department at the University of Malta - SociologyMT  - will also take place.

The conference is open to the general public. More details, including registration, from here

During the conference, Karl Agius and I will be presenting our research entitled 'Tourism and Urban Development: The case of a coastal village in a small island state". 

Interview about social media impacts

Thanks to Kyle Patrick Camilleri at The Malta Independent for an engaging interview about the possible impacts of social media: positive, negative, and unknown.

Read here

Lino Briguglio - No Man Is An Island Book Launch

"The story of the free-thinking, plain-talking, artist, teacher, politician, and world-renowned economist as told by one-hundred or so of his friends, family and colleagues."

Lino Briguglio - No Man is An Island, co-edited by Marie Briguglio and Michael Briguglio, will be launched in the upcoming Malta Book Festival. The book contains over 100 contributions by family, friends, and colleagues.

In this vibrant and colourful publication, many speak of Lino Briguglio as a free-thinker and a plain talker, as a passionate teacher and persevering researcher. Some bear testament to his bitter-sweet experience in politics. Others glimmer with anecdotes of his humour and playfulness, with references to his creativity and art. Together, they portray Lino as the embodiment of joie de vivre.

The book is not only a celebration of Lino, but also of his local and international networks, including the people who have contributed to this publication. In this social construction, his life is interwoven with art, politics, economics, and island studies. It is a journey that spans across eight decades, during which he assumed a plurality of roles.

Most contributions in this book present Lino on the front stage of public life. But there is also the backstage of private life, forged within family life and friendships.

'Lino Briguglio - No Man Is An Island' is published by Kite and book signings will take place at the Book Fair (MFCC, Ta' Qali) on Friday 8 November between 6pm and 8pm, and on Sunday 10 November between 10am and 12pm.

The book can be pre-ordered here and will also be available at leading bookshops. For further details please contact the editors or Kite Group.

One to One - Season 2 - Updated Weekly

On Demand - Click Here

One To One, hosted by Prof Michael Briguglio, is broadcast on Campus 103.7. It covers social, political, environmental, and cultural topics, and guests are experts in their respective fields. The programmes are being made available in on-demand format.

Topics and guests for Season 2 (October-December 2024)

1. L-ippjanar tal-lokalitajiet - X'rwol għandu l-pubbliku? Wendy Jo Mifsud
2. Il-politika għandha tiġi mgħallma fl-iskejjel? Mario Thomas Vassallo
3. X'inhi d-differenza bejn defiċit u dejn pubbliku? Charmaine Portelli
4. Politika ibbażata fuq l-evidenza xi tkun? Marie Louise Mangion

5. Ir-reliġjon mgħejxa xi tkun? Luke Buhagiar

6. Ir-rebħa ta' Trump xi tfisser? Ranier Fsadni

7. Malta għandha storja feminista? Simone Azzopardi

8. L-Akkademja għandha tkun attivista? Angele Deguara

9. Min juża d-droga: X'drittijiet u dmirijiet għandhom? Karen Mamo

10. Xi tfisser in-newtralita' ta' Malta? Valentina Cassar

11.  Il-Ħaddiema: Sħubija mandatorja fil-Unions? Luke Fiorini

(This list is updated every week)

Topics and guests for Season 1 (July-September 2024) - Click here

#Ħsibijiet (111): Judge first, analyze later

Public Sociology (and public academia) aims to bridge various gaps between the academic world and the social contexts in which we live. I think that this is a commendable, particularly if one is promoting evidence-based policy making. On the other hand, I am wary of snackable posts, particularly on the social media, which give a verdict on an issue/event literally minutes, if not seconds, after it happened. Taking a step back to analyze, evaluate, and reflect may lend itself better to an evidence-based approach.  

Gozo Airfield - Sociologists had asked for Social Impact Assessment in 2022

The Labour-led Xewkija Local Council has unanimously voted against the application for the development of an air strip within the limits of the locality.

This is yet another example of the need to mainstream social impact assessments in policy-making. Incidentally during the public consultation process carried out two years ago, on 23 May 2022, the MSA - Malta Sociological Association had asked for a Social Impact Assessment (SIA) on this proposal. The Planning Authority had also asked for a 'Social Impact Study', according to an article in Malta Today dated 16 January 2023.

To my knowledge, no Social Impact Assessment has been carried out.

Update:

The Gozo Regional Development Authority has issued a statement on the airfield issue , where it says that its public consultation process was open to everyone and that economic, social, and environmental considerations were considered. It also refers to the Regional Impact Assessment, published in July 2022. Chapter 7.2 (pp.51-55) deals with social impacts, and states that "the Social Impact Assessment carried out for the proposed project identified certain environmental impacts, that were highlighted in the Regional Impact Statement document, as social impacts." (p.52)

This confirms that no proper Social Impact Assessment was carried out.

Even though one appreciates the efforts of the GRDA, it is important to note that a social impact assessment is not a one-off exercise and has various features, such as those referred to by the International Association of Impact Assessment.

Given that the Xewkija Local Council is now opposing the airfield, this surely must be taken into consideration.

2 new open access publications on Social Welfare in Southern Europe

With reference to 'Social Welfare Issues in Southern Europe', (Routledge, 2022) co-edited by Maria Brown and Michael Briguglio, the following 2 chapters are now available in Open Access Format:

- Introducing Social Welfare Issues in Southern Europe, by Michael Briguglio and Maria Brown

- An Analysis of Pertinent Issues in Education in Southern Europe, by Peter Mayo, Maria Brown, Michael Briguglio

Both chapters may be downloaded from here. 

Design your ideal village during Science in the City!

The Malta Sociological Association and the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Arts, University of Malta, will be participating in this year's Science in the City festival. 

More details can be obtained here.

 

One to One enters its second season

Radio discussion programme One To One, hosted by Prof Michael Briguglio, will be entering its second season on Campus 103.7, as from the first week of October. It covers social, political, environmental, and cultural topics, and guests are experts in their respective fields.

Programmes during the 2^nd season will be broadcast every Friday at 2pm, with repetitions on Friday at 9pm and Saturday 11.30am. The programmes are also being made available in on-demand format.

A full list of programmes covered in Season 1 can be found here.

To check out updates for Season 2, click here

#Ħsibijiet (110) Breakdown of trust

Il-kwistjoni tal-karti ta' l-identità: Apparti l-aspetti legali, amministrattivi, u politiċi, hemm aspett soċjali ukoll: Kemm nistgħu jew għandna nafdaw lill-awtoritajiet konċernati?

 

#MaltaSociologyConference 2024

Register here

One To One Season 1

Discussion programme One To One, hosted by Prof Michael Briguglio is broadcast on Campus 103.7 . It covers social, political, environmental, and cultural topics, and guests are experts in their respective fields. The programmes are being made available in on-demand format. 

Topics and guests for Season 1 (July-September 2024):

1. L-impatt tal-Movimenti Soċjali - Kurt Borg
2. Għandna nnaqsu l-immigrazzjoni? Maria Pisani
3. X'għandha tfisser li tkun politiku viċin in-nies? Clyde Puli
4. L-uman u l-annimal - x'hemm differenti, u x'hemm l-istess? Niki Young
5. L-Intelliġenza Artifiċjali ser toħdilna postna? Francois Zammit
6. Woke x'ikun? Andrew Azzopardi
7 L-Arti hija soċjoloġika? Valerie Visanich
8 Il-karozzi: Kulħadd jikritikhom u kulħadd jużahom Maria Attard
9. Għalfejn hawn min hu xettiku għall-farmaċewtiċi? Kay Polidano
10 It-tkabbir tal-popolazzjoni kif jaffettwa l-ekonomija? Philip Von Brockdorff
12 Kemm hemm diversita' fil-familji llum? Angela Abela
11. Fake News - Kif ninduna? - Carmen Sammut
13 Għalfejn hawn ħafna investiment fil-kostruzzjoni? Dylan Cassar

#Ħsibijiet (109) #CheapLabour u #CheapTourism

Skond il-Ministru tal-Finanzi, il-popolazzjoni ser tilħaq is-600,000 sa l-aħħar tal-leġislatura u t-800,000 sa l-2040, jekk nibqgħu bl-istess mudell ekonomiku. Fl-istess ħin, il-Ministru tat-Turiżmu jidher li jrid iktar minn 3 miljun turist fis-sena. U l-permessi għall-iżvilupp jibqgħu ħerġin qisu għada qatt m'hu ġej. Diġà qed naraw kollass ta' l-infrastruttura. Aħseb wara x'inhu ġej jekk nibqgħu hekk.

 

#Ħsibijiet (108) Riċerka fuq l-Ixkaffa

Meta nirrifletti dwar il-qtugħ ta' dawl, sptar li ma jistax ilaħħaq, bajjiet bid-drenaġġ, bankini perikolużi, ekonomija tac-cheap labour impurtat, eċċ , ma nistax ma naħsibx f'dik ir-riċerka kollha li ssir minn akkademiċi u studenti u li tibqa fuq l-ixkaffa. X'ħela ta' riżorsi! 

#Ħsibijiet (107) Gig economy minn fuq dahar il-ħaddiem

L-istrajk tal-ħaddiema tal-Bolt terġa tqajjem mistoqsija importanti: X'sar minnu d-diskors li sħubija f'unjin tal-ħaddiema għandha tkun obligatorja? Jew din għandha tibqa volontarja? Jew forsi għandha tkun obligatorja f'ċerti setturi? Hemm alternattiva aħjar biex jiġu negozjati kundizzjonijiet ta' xogħol diċenti? U wara kollox, il-ħaddiem fil-prekarjat kemm għandu għażla? Jew hawn xi aġenda biex il-ħaddiem ma jkollux saħħa li jinnegozja kundizzjonijiet ta' xoġħol aħjar?

Qed naraw kif id-dipendenza ekonomika fuq it-tkabbir tal-popolazzjoni qed ikollha impatti varji, bħall-infrastruttura li ma tiflaħx għall-pressjoni; prezzijiet tal-propjeta' impossibli; xogħol prekarju..... Biex tkompli tgħaxxaqha il-pajjiż m'għandux politika olistika u komprensiva dwar l-assessjar ta' l-impatti. 

One to One fuq Campus 103.7

One To One fuq Campus 103.7 - Michael Briguglio jiddiskuti temi kurrenti ma' mistieden - mit-2 ta' Lulju, kull nhar ta' Tlieta fl-12pm, b'ripetizzjoni fid-9pm, il-Ġimgħa 2pm, u s-Sibt 9am

103.7FM | DAB+ | www.campus1037.um.edu.mt

#Ħsibijiet (106) L-Indipendenti u d-demokrazija

Paradoss politiku: Filwaqt li rappreżentanti ta' partit huma accountable għall-membri tagħhom, dawk indipendenti huma accountable għalihom infushom. Jiġifieri dawk ta' l-ewwel jaf għandhom iktar checks and balances, jaf jgħaddu minn iktar deliberazzjoni, u jaf ikunu iktar demokratiċi.

Why is Malta’s south red and the north blue?

 

Regional voting patterns are result of a complex interplay of history, economic conditions, social structures and cultural identities. Daniel Attard interviews sociologists Godfrey Baldacchino and Michael Briguglio in this Times of Malta article. 

Link:

https://timesofmalta.com/article/why-malta-south-red-north-blue.1094081

#Ħsibijiet (105): Kunsilli Lokali

Il-PL ġab 52% tal-voti, Il-PN 45%, u oħrajn kważi 4%. Il-PL naqqas 15,700 vot, u l-PN żdied b'11,000 mill-aħħar elezzjonijiet tal-Kunsilli fl-2019. Prosit, grazzi, awguri, u rispett lill 11-il kunsillier (minn 471, u b'madwar 9,000 vot minn xi 257,000 vot) li ġew eletti f'isem ADPD jew indipendenti. Hawn min għal skopijiet politiċi (jew wishful thinking) qed jipprova jagħti l-impressjoni li dan huwa xi grupp magħqud jew li saħansitra l-ewwel darba li ġew eletti kunsilliera ta' dan it-tip. Dan hu l-istess tip ta' żball analitiku bħal meta wieħed jassumi li dawk kollha li ma vvutawx huma xi grupp omoġenju, forza ġdida eċċ. Filwaqt li m'għandix dubju li kunsilliera mill-ADPD jew indipendenti jistgħu jagħtu (u uħud, diġà taw) kontribut kbir lill-lokalità rispettiva tagħhom u anke jikkonsolidaw il-pożizzjoni tagħhom, din hija ball game differenti għall-aħħar minn dik f'elezzjoni ġenerali, fejn l-għażla ewlenija hi jekk il-votant iridx lill-PL jew PN fil-gvern.

                            

#Ħsibijiet (104): Cassola, MEP, and beyond

In the European Parliamentary Election, Arnold Cassola once again took the independent route, after leaving Alternattiva Demokratika some years ago. He had a very good campaign, but was not elected. As my colleague Andrew Azzopardi stated on Campus 103.7 earlier today, Arnold's share of votes was much less than the comprehensive votes obtained by PL and PN respectively.

During the campaign, Arnold stated that if he was elected, he would have joined the European Greens - the same European Greens whose pro-choice abortion stance is a major priority, though he cites this policy as the reason why he left AD.

Today, Arnold was quoted by the press about the need of a 'centre-green-left' grouping. Such a party already exists (ADPD), and it has a democratic decision making process through its members. Not to mention that talk of a broader green-left formation has been making the rounds since the 1990s but never really succeeded for various reasons.

Arnold had it easier this time around also because practically all the independent media gave him lots of favourable coverage. If his centre-green-left party is formed, I wish it luck, particularly in deciding who will lead it and in having an agreed stance on various issues.

In the meantime, I reiterate that the only alternative government to Labour is the Nationalist Party (and vice-versa) - and it is the people who have been consistently showing this through their free vote in the past decades.

In this context, the PN can opt for a reasonable and moderate voice which speaks up not only for those who already have considerable media coverage, but also for the silent, invisible and often forgotten majorities who speak through their vote.

Incidentally, in 2017 I had publicly appealed to AD - then led by Cassola - to join the PN / Forza Nazzjonali coalition, but he disagreed.

New Publication: Twenty years of Malta’s EU membership : the impact on Maltese environmental NGOs

 Briguglio, Michael (2024). Twenty years of Malta’s EU membership : the impact on Maltese environmental NGOs. 20 Years of EU Membership Paper Series, 3-16. 

In this study, I analyse the impact of EU accession on Maltese Environmental Non-Governmental Organisations (ENGOs), twenty years after Malta, the smallest EU-member state, joined the Union in 2004. In the run-up to EU accession, the environment was often seen as an area which would benefit from Malta’s EU membership, especially since Malta had a lack of environmental legislation and enforcement. Not surprisingly, Environmental NGOs (ENGOs) supported Malta’s EU accession. ENGOs are major protagonists in environmental politics in Malta. Their activism covers different areas, though some issues - most notably land development, and hunting of birds - are more visible and contentious in the public sphere. Environmental protest is also one of the most common types of protest in Malta.

I investigate the impacts of Malta’s European Union (EU) accession on Environmental NGOs (ENGOs) through a sociological perspective, following two decades of Malta’s accession. For this purpose, the activism of ENGOs in relation to Malta’s EU accession was analysed, through political process theory and a social constructionist approach which engaged with the interpretations of the same ENGOs on the issue under analysis. For this purpose, primary data was collected through elite interviews with representatives from Malta’s major ENGOs. The main research question of this study is “how do ENGOs interpret the impacts of the EU, 20 years after Malta’s accession?” 

The study is a follow-up of a similar study I had published following ten years of Malta’s EU membership. It forms part of the '20 Years of EU membership' paper series published by the Institute for European Studies, University of Malta. 

Download: https://www.um.edu.mt/media/um/docs/events/20yearseumembers/MichaelBriguglio.pdf

Book Review: Turkish Politics and ‘the People’ – Mass Mobilisation and Populism, written by Spyros A. Sofos

The latest edition of academic journal Protest includes the following book review which I have written.

Briguglio, M. (2024). Turkish Politics and ‘the People’ – Mass Mobilisation and Populism, written by Spyros A. Sofos. Protest, 4(1), 103-106. https://doi.org/10.1163/2667372X-bja10055

Link:

https://brill.com/view/journals/prot/4/1/article-p103_008.xml

UM OAR: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/120225

Malta represented at International Conference on Blue Economy

 A few days ago, the first RethinkBlue international conference was organized by EU COST Action CA22122 - Rethinking the Blue Economy: Socio-Ecological Impacts and Opportunities, with the support of COST - European Cooperation in Science and Technology, the University of Zadar, and the Croatian Science Foundation.

During the conference, scholars and other experts discussed and presented research on issues related to social, environmental and economic aspects of the Blue Economy. This included maritime occupations; food security; sustainable blue consumption; port cities; coastal communities; fisheries governance; marine tourism; emergent activities; climate change; and natural hazards. The book of abstracts of the conference can be obtained from

https://conference.unizd.hr/rethinkblue/wp-content/uploads/sites/60/2024/04/book-abstracts.pdf

The RethinkBlue conference was opened by the Chairperson of RethinkBlue, Dr Dražen Cepić and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Zadar Prof Zvjezdan Penezić.

Malta was represented by Management Committee members Prof Michael Briguglio and Matthew Laspina. Prof Briguglio and Prof Godfrey Baldacchino also presented respective research during the conference. 

More information on this Cost Action can be obtained from

https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA22122/

FIRE signs with Nick Grima MGT

Hard Rock band FIRE , with whom I play the drums, has signed with Nick Grima MGT. See you live on stage! 

 

New Committee - Malta Sociological Association

During its Annual General Meeting held last Friday, the Malta Sociological Association (MSA) elected its committee for this year:

Chairperson: Bridget Borg

Vice-Chairperson: Mariella Debono

Secretary: Maria C. Borg

Treasurer: Julian Micallef

Public Relations Officer: Prof Michael Briguglio

International Officer: Ljiljana Cumura

Training Officer: Brian Chircop

Outreach Officer: Dr Dylan Cassar

Committee Member: Dr Valerie Visanich

Committee Member: Alan Fiott

The MSA is a non-profit making organisation. It is a non-commercial entity, which aims to develop and promote sociological knowledge. The Association promotes sociological research and contributes toward facilitating the cooperation of people working within the sociological field. It also aims at understanding and analysing social problems for the improvement of the quality of life.

More information about the Malta Sociological Association, including membership options, social media links, upcoming events, seminars and activities, may be obtained from www.maltasociologicalassociation.com

Master of Arts in Social Impact Assessment to start next week

We are pleased to announce that the Master of Arts in Social Impact Assessment will be starting for the first time ever next week. This course is being offered by the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Arts, at the University of Malta.

More information about this course can be found here:

https://www.um.edu.mt/courses/overview/pmasiapet4-2023-4-f/

Ħsibijiet (103) Il-bdiewa jipprotestaw

Il-protesti tal-bdiewa madwar l-Ewropa, u mhux l-inqas f'Malta, jistgħu jiġu interpretati bħala riżultat ta' politika li hi nieqsa mill-assessjar ta' l-impatti soċjali. 

X'loġika hemm f''Green Deal' u f'diskors ta' sostenibilita', jekk dawn jiġu imposti mingħajr il-parteċipazzjoni tal-komunitajiet affettwati?

#Ħsibijiet (102) Min fejn ġejjin il-flus?

Ikun tajjeb ħafna li nsaqsu minn fejn ġejjin il-flus li qed jonfqu kandidati għall-elezzjonijiet: Jekk hemmx rekord tat-tranżazzjonijiet, irċevuti fiskali, u jekk le, hemmx xi forma ta' tpartit jew volontarjat.

Kemm il-darba il-mistoqsijijet dwar il-finanzi jiġu diretti lejn il-partiti. Iżda kemm qed ikun hemm skrutinju tad-dħul, infieq u attivitajiet tal- kandidati? Forsi hemm min qed jagħmel lira tajba minn dawn il-flejjes?

Bilħaqq, ir-regoli dwar infieq u dħul elettorali kienu ġew miktuba b'mod biex jippermettu din it-tip ta' mġieba..... B'hekk tbexxaq bieb u nfetħu mitt tieqa.... għall-flus 'inviżibbli'.

Call for papers Rethinking the Blue Economy: Socio-Ecological Impacts and Opportunities (RethinkBlue).

Call for papers for the first 1st RethinkBlue Conference, organised by COST Action CA22122 – Rethinking the Blue Economy: Socio-Ecological Impacts and Opportunities (RethinkBlue).

All details can also be found in the conference website. Click here

#Ħsibijiet (101) Politika Partiġġjana u l-Forum Marittima

Permezz ta' staqarrija ftit tal-ġranet ilu, il-Forum Marittima Maltija (MMF) appellat lill-Gvern u l-Oppożizzjoni biex jaħdmu flimkien għal strateġija li tindirizza l-effetti negattivi tar-regolamenti ġodda dwar il-merkanzija minn fuq il-bastimenti. Dawn l-effetti jistgħu ikollhom impatt kbir fuq servizzi offruti minn Malta u fuq il-prezzijiet. 

Wieħed jista' jaqra l-istqarrija tal-MMF minn din il-holqa: https://mmf.org.mt/the-european-emission-trading-system-and-the-implications-for-malta/

Jidher li dan huwa każ fejn il-Gvern u l-Oppożiżżjoni iktar qed jaħlu ħin jikkritikaw lil xulxin milli jaħdhmu flimkien għall-interess nazzjonali ta' Malta -  gżira żgħira li hi dipendenti ħafna fuq l-ekonomija marittima. Forsi jkun aħjar jekk jiddjalogaw u jikkonsultaw sew ma' esperti u operaturi f'dan il-qasam milli joqogħdu jdoqqu t-trombi. 

Permezz tar-reshuffle, il-Gvern reġa' tilef l-Opportunita' li jkollu Ministru għall-Affarijiet Marittimi. Dan it-tip ta' Ministeru jeżisti f'pajjiżi oħra, u ma nistax nifhem kif il-politiċi, sena wara l-oħra, jibqgħu jagħtu importanza minuri lil dan is-settur daqshekk importanti għal pajjina. Kif inhuma l-affarijiet, il-kwistjonijiet marittimi huma taħt il-kompetenza ta' Ministeri differenti, inkluż dak tat-Trasport, li għadu kemm ġie karatterriżżat minn bidla fil-Ministru....

Stampa: The Malta Independent

Ħsibijiet (100) Reshuffle

Qrajna ħafna interpretazzjonijiet dwar ir-reshuffle, uħud aktar informati u struiti minn oħrajn. Forsi laqtu il-likk, forsi le. Saħansitra forsi jkun hemm stejjer li jingħataw lill-midja minn xi protagonisti infushom. Ikun hemm interpretazzjonijiet oħra li aktar jikxfu x-xewqat u l-opinjonijiet ta' min ħareġ bihom, milli x'ġara fil-verita'.

Aktar nemmen li jkun hemm diversi raġunijiet u pressjonijiet waqt proċess ta' reshuffle.

Li hu żgur hu li l-ebda  politiku m'għandu ċens perpetwu. Il-kewkba feġġejja tal- llum taf tkun l-aħbarijiet tal-bieraħ għada.

Ħsibijiet (99) Kontroversji fil-Qorti

Mhux ser nirrefereri għall-ebda każ partikolari.

Meta jkun hemm xi kontroversja  l-Qorti li tixxandar fuq il-media, kemm il-darba nħoss li uħud minna nagħmlu u nxandru konklużjonijiet għaġġelin, li forsi jaqblu mal-opinjonijiet li diġà kellna, jew ma rappurtaġġ, inkluż dak sensazzjonalista. Taf int, forsi nirbħu xi like jew xi share. Anke jekk għad-detriment ta' ħaddieħor. 

Ikun iktar prudenti jekk wieħed iħalli l-proċess legali (bid-difetti kollha tiegħu) jaħdem. Dan jinkludi il-ġbir u l-analiżi ta' evidenza, inkluż dik li ma ddoqx għal widnejna.