Adopting a postcolonial theoretical framework, drawing specifically on the concepts of imagined geographies and subaltern nationalism, this thesis explores the motivations behind pro-Palestinian activism among the post-accord generation in Northern Ireland since the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict beginning on October 7, 2023. Based on in-depth interviews, field observations and onl

This thesis explores how formal education reflects the legacies of conflict and contributes to sustainable peacebuilding in Northern Ireland and South Africa. Using a comparative, mixed method approach and drawing on the 4Rs framework– Redistribution, Recognition, Representation, and Reconciliation– the study examines how education systems in both societies address historical divisions. The findin

This thesis uses norm research and a developed theoretical framework to find the ‘climate policy norm’ that affects and creates the argumentation for the European Commission's climate policy measures, and puts it on the life cycle of norms for the years 2019 and 2024. Through a comparative discourse analysis and qualitative data study, this paper develops the theoretical understanding of norm

The purpose of this thesis is to examine how soft law frameworks influence compliance behaviour among private security providers (PSPs), focusing on the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers (ICoC). The study analyses how formal mechanisms like contracts and certifications, as well as informal dynamics like reputation and network engagement shape PSP alignment with t

This thesis aims to study the political motivation of Nordic parliamentarians to join the Nordic Council, one of the dozen international parliamentary institutions that emerged in Western Europe during the Cold War. With most of them, including the Nordic Council, being without legislative powers, this thesis aims to answer the puzzle of what motivates a politician to join an organisation that lac

The essay examines what way the Swedish news media framed the 2024 American presidential election. The aim of the thesis is guided by framing theory and mediatization theory as well as previous research. The aim of the essay is to examine if the Swedish news media reporting on the American election was dominated by a strategic or a political focus. This has a direct connection to whether the media

Erasmus+ is a European Union (EU) grant programme aimed at education, youth and sport. The programme funds projects for 5€ billion per year, impacting around 84 000 organisations. Erasmus+ is an example of how the EU implements sustainability policy through soft governance tools. Through an analysis of sustainability criteria in Erasmus+, this thesis explores how EU policy in grant programmes impa

With artificial intelligence (AI) technology constantly evolving and changing, policy makers struggle to keep up with it through the creation of adequate rules and regulations. The European Union (EU) has made the first attempt at AI regulation, outlining the need for respect of democracy, human rights and calling for transparency in AI usage. However, discussions about AI often overlook the femin

This study examines the differences and similarities in the news media’s portrayal of political topics related to artificial intelligence in the United States and Sweden. AI is increasingly politicized but is poorly understood from a political science perspective. By examining these two innovative and prosperous countries’ media landscapes, it aims to further our understanding of the cross-nationa

The European Union’s identity as a normative power has long been examined and contested, most famously by Ian Manners' conceptualization in his 2002 work, Normative Power Europe. This study critically reassesses the EU's proposed identity through the lens of its responses to two pivotal crises: the Syrian conflict (2012-2015) and the 2016 EU-Türkiye Refugee Deal. The research interrogates

This thesis explores whether leaders of the European Union adopt more masculine-coded symbols in their online self-representations during times of crisis. It focuses on the illustrative cases of Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel, analysing how their Instagram performances in the immediate aftermath of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 differed from their portrayals during a per

The European Union regularly portrays itself as a normative power committed to values such as human rights, solidarity, and the rule of law, while the EU Turkey Statement of 2016 has raised questions about the coherence between this self-image and the EU’s external migration practices. This thesis investigates how the Statement is linguistically legitimised in political and media discourse, as

This interview study explores how efforts to reduce the number of NEETs works and if there is a gap in the ideas of how these efforts work between NEETs and local authorities in Malmö. This study brings forth the voices of NEETs and representatives from local authorities that work with the group on a professional basis. The purpose of the study is two-folded. Primarily the purpose is to take this

This thesis examines the external effectiveness of the European Green Deal (EGD) through a case study of Qatar. While the EGD positions the European Union (EU) as a global leader in sustainability, its extraterritorial impact, particularly via the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), raises questions about how these n

Amidst global strategic rivalry and the growing politicization of interdependence and technology, structural influence within transnational economic systems underpinning high-tech industries has become an increasingly important source of strategic leverage. Within this context, this thesis investigates whether the European Union (EU) can derive geoeconomic power from its position in the global sem

This thesis examines the asymmetries between the European Union’s approach to climate justice through the Loss and Damage mechanism and its engagement with cultural restitution. It aims to determine whether and why the EU applies principles of justice differently in these two areas and whether the principles around cultural restitution can inform a more equitable climate justice agenda. With

This thesis investigates how Swedish parliamentary parties coordinate their positions on environmental legislation across the national and European levels using the 2023 revision of the European Union’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) as a case study. The study is guided by the Principal-Agent (PA) theory and addresses two research questions: (1) to what extent parties maintain alignment of policy

This work investigates the persistence of path dependent trajectories and institutional inertia between the European Union and Turkey, particularly in regards to how these dynamics shape the development of sustainability-focused discourse in the energy sector. It delves into further detail by examining how emerging fields of energy are framed within institutional discourse, and whether these dynam

This thesis is a historical case study of the development of Cybernetics in the Soviet Union. Cybernetics was initially opposed by the Soviet scientific establishment but would later come to flourish in the Soviet Union where it followed a specific development trajectory. The legitimisation and development of Soviet Cybernetics has been examined through the combined application of the multiple str

In recent decades, internal and external circumstances have increased the pressure on European states and the United States to act in response to such circumstances. The return of war on the European continent, shifting trade relations, climate change and its devasting effects on society and an aging population are all putting pressure on public finances. The aim of this study is to investigate th