The term ‘food security’ has been used in multiple ways and addresses not only issues around availability and accessibility of foods, but also, among others, the sustainability of livelihoods at the local community level—an issue often seen as a basis for the proliferation of local and alternative food networks. Accordingly, in this paper we attempt to develop a theoretical re-framing that is able to link food security with AFNs in arguing that the understanding of the two notions is dynamics and (...) contingent upon the elements that construct them. We use an assemblage approach to analyze a case of Dunedin, a small-size city in New Zealand, in which the community aims to achieve food security through a local food strategy. Through a series of interviews with a group of food activists and academics, public discussions, and two local food forums, we found that food security was understood and performed in its local context through assembling diverse actors and objectives within the AFN. In conclusion, we offer assemblage thinking as an analytical tool to understand how seemingly precarious local food relations are stabilized and assembled so as to open possibilities of achieving food security. (shrink)

Digital technologies have opened up new perspectives in thinking about the future of food and farming. Not only do these new technologies promise to revolutionise our way of meeting global food demand, they do so by boldly claiming that they can reduce their environmental impacts. However, they also have the potential to transform the organisation of agri-food systems more fundamentally. Drawing on assemblage theory, we propose a conceptual model of digitalisation organised around three facets: digitalisation as a project; “everyday digitalisation”; (...) and reflexive digitalisation. These facets reflect different relations between concrete practices and representations, imaginaries, and narratives, while representing different modes of agency: the collective, the distributed, and the individual, which, we argue, highlight contrasting ways for human and non-human actors to engage with digitalisation. With this model anchored in assemblage theory, we offer a tool for critically and comprehensively engaging with the complexity and multiplicity of digitalisation as a sociotechnical process. We then apply our theoretical framework to two ethnographic studies, one explores the growth of digital technologies in Switzerland as a way to govern and monitor national agriculture, the other focuses on Indonesia, where small digital startups have begun to dot the landscape. By identifying the material and semiotic processes occurring in each case, we notice similar issues being raised in terms of how digitalisation is co-constructed in society. (shrink)

Research addressing the challenges emerging from the development and diffusion of digital technologies has grown rapidly in recent years. However, much of this literature tends to overlook the immersion of these technologies into our everyday lives. This everyday digitalization cannot be reduced to specific technological innovations and is obviously a crucial aspect of the social changes introduced by digital technologies. This themed issue sets out to explore the everyday dimension of digitalization, in the specific context of agri-food systems. We propose (...) a collection of papers that contribute to opening new approaches to digitalization in food and agriculture, by concentrating the attention on the mundane and ordinary aspects of digitalization and exploring their potential contributions to profound transformations in agri-food systems. The various forms of everyday digitalization that are presented in this symposium offer two particular ways of critically engaging with the digitalization of agriculture and food. Firstly, our everyday digitalization looks beyond examining the impacts of digitalization and positioning digital technologies in opposition to farmers, consumers, government, or other actors. Secondly, we shed light on the politics of uncertainty, which enables us to make anticipatory actions and see things beyond success and failure. What we observe is how these imaginaries participate in the co-production of digital realities through their encounter with the complexity of everyday life. Therefore, it remains essential to engage critically with both the imaginary and the everyday dimensions of digitalization in their multiplicity. (shrink)

While the concept of human rights is becoming more prevalent in educational policy and curricula, as well as in school subjects (Suárez, 2007), the best way to incorporate human rights in education...

If money politics tends to be seen as a threat to electoral democracy, what is the public's actual perception of money politics? This research uses quantitative methods, especially descriptive statistics to explain perceptions of the acceptability of money politics in elections. The case study for this research is the Bandung Regency and West Bandung Regency (KBB) areas. This locus shows the existence of spatial influences that explain geopolitical differences in the Greater Bandung area, especially in the district area. The researchers (...) used Stratified-Systematic Random Sampling with 800 samples in Bandung Regency and West Bandung Regency. The margin of error in this study is ± 4% with a confidence level of 95%. It was found that people tend to consider the money politics that occur in elections as normal. However, some variations are variations that reflect differences in views. Apart from that, respondents who will accept money politics tend to choose according to their own conscience. However, the value of giving money or goods can also influence a person's political choice tendencies. (shrink)

Current educational research focuses on classroom instruction and employing technology to improve learning. This research proposes Digital Mind Mapping with Collaborative Learning in the fourth semester of the English department curriculum. This research investigates the possibility of using Digital Mind Mapping, combined with Collaborative Learning, to enhance academic performance in students. The data on these issues is collected by implementing a research project incorporating mixed methods research. The research comprises interviews with teachers and students currently enrolled in the English Department (...) Programme at Universitas Jabal Ghafur and firsthand observations on their classrooms. In addition, both pre and post-tests will be conducted. This study demonstrates that cognitive talents and traits affect the efficiency of Digital Mind Mapping with Collaborative Learning as an educational tool. The presence of these attributes and educational competencies has positively influenced the academic achievement of students. The study also identified many challenges educators and learners have when incorporating Digital Mind Mapping and collaborative learning approaches into their educational settings. This research emphasises the need to modify educational approaches in education, particularly for the purpose of English language acquisition. It evaluates the degree to which this tactic might enhance these methodologies. (shrink)

This study examined whether the Flipped Classroom (FC) approach is the most effective approach for teachers to create a stimulating and interactive environment that helps students overcome speaking challenges and enhance their English-speaking performance in the context of EFL learners. The study employed quantitative research with a quasi-experimental design. An oral speaking test and a Likert-scale questionnaire were used in this study. The oral speaking test was used to investigate students' improvement in speaking performance before and after the implementation of (...) the FC approach in speaking class. A Likert scale was distributed to determine the students' perspectives on using the FC approach in speaking class. A paired t-test was used to compare the pre and post-test results of the EFL students. Percentage analysis was used to interpret the questionnaire results. The results show that there is a statistically significant difference between the total score of the learners on the post-test (M = 24.53, SD = 5.518) and the total score on the pre-test (M = 21.25, SD = 4.711). This indicates that the participants' performance on the post-test was superior to their performance on the pre-test. In other words, the learners' English-speaking performance has significantly improved in the post-test results. Furthermore, based on the analysis of the questionnaire, the data revealed that most students have positive perspectives or views on the use of FC in speaking class based on the indicator of (1) students' perspectives; (2) students' feedback; and (3) the role of the video materials. (shrink)