This research paper examines the relationship between bullying and school shooter’s radicalization. In this paper, bullying has been defined as a repeated and intentional mistreatment of an individual, marked by a power imbalance between the bully and the victim and manifested through verbal, physical or psychological aggression (Olweus, 1994). On the other hand, radicalization has been described as the process through which individuals embrace extremist attitudes and/or beliefs either violent or non-violent in character (Ebbrecht, 2022).

Although the media typically portrays a story where school shooters are victims seeking revenge against their alleged bullies, the reality appears to be much more complex (Raitanen et al., 2019). Does bullying lead people to commit school shootings, or does it contribute to a combination of factors that may or may not play a role in their radicalization trajectory? By examining this relationship, the findings might challenge common misconceptions and offer valuable insights into the complex nature of the topic. For this reason, the research question guiding this paper is as follows: What role does bullying play in the radicalization of school shooters?

During the Soviet times, the five countries that constitute Central Asia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan, used to share their energy and water resources. However, in 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, these countries became independent, the management of water resources changed and the fight for sustainable water began (Mosello, 2008). In 2021, the situation deteriorated when the region experienced a severe drought. Although climate change led the race as the main cause, other factors such as outdated infrastructure and the lack of cooperation for an equal distribution of water resources aggravated the circumstances (Chynybaeva, 2023).
Faced with this situation, rural communities in Central Asian countries were severely affected, including the Kyrgyz farming community. Kyrgyzstan is one of the most vulnerable Central Asian countries to climate change and the only one who almost generates its entire water resources. Besides, agriculture is the basis of their national economy and more than half of the population resides in rural areas (Gulnaz, 2019). Given these notions, the research question guiding this paper is as follows: How did the water crisis in Central Asia increase the vulnerabilities of the Kyrgyz farming community?. The argument presented defends that Kyrgyzstan's reliance on agriculture, coupled with its vulnerability to climate change, made the water crisis a critical factor in exacerbating the challenges faced by the Kyrgyz farming community, threatening their livelihoods and economic stability.

In 2019, Nayib Bukele came into power and promised to end gang violence in El Salvador. His tough anti-gang strategy led to the widespread arrest and incarceration of over 67.000 gang members, earning support among Salvadorans. While homicides have decreased under Bukele's administration, human rights organizations have raised concerns about the excessive use of force and violations of human rights. Bukele’s government has justified the use of force as necessary and proportionate to combat gangs and ensure public safety. However, concerns have been raised over the arbitrary nature of the arrests and violations of due process. The dilemma lies in balancing national security measures while upholding legal principles. In this context, the following question arises: Is it ethically moral to employ excessive use of force for the good of the national community?

To the vast majority of the readers, the Nambian genocide is an episode in history that is completely or practically unknown. Despite this, the reality was devastating; Between 1904 and 1908, the German imperial army exercised excessive repression against the Herero and Nama ethnic groups. However, the story of how Germany took over part of the territory of Namibia has its origins a few years before the events, when in 1881 a German tobacco dealer known as Adolf Lüderitz arrived in the Nigerian town of Lagos. His intention was to expand his business in the area, but finding himself incapacitated by foreign companies previously established there, he focused on a parched stretch of land, which was not being claimed by either the Portuguese or the English on the Namibian coast; Angra Pequeña. Very soon the settlers established in these areas, seizing the natives from their cattle and their land. As if that was not enough, the natives became cheap labor for the Germans. The situation worsened with the construction of the Otavi railway, which facilitated the German entry.

On March 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake shook the country’s north-eastern region, succeeded by a large tsunami. Massive ocean waves damaged the cooling system of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear power plant (FDNPP), which was under the operation of the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). Consequently, three nuclear reactors melted down, releasing radioactive substances into the surrounding environment (Walravens et al., 2022). Following the disaster, experts, medical professionals, the Japanese government and TEPCO engaged in risk communication strategies to inform the population about the potential risks associated with radiation exposure. The primary and early concerns among the Japanese population included: evacuations and subsequent relocations coupled with controls of the potential contaminated surroundings and food safety. Amidst the public uncertainty, the Japanese government and the units involved failed to properly inform the public of the potential risks and the severity of the incident (Shimura et al., 2015). Accordingly, the research question guiding this literature review is as follows: What were the key failures in risk communication after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster? The relevance of the topic is heightened by the increased awareness about the crucial role of effective risk communication in disaster situations. Indeed, according to Perko (2016), the Fukushima case is described as a ‘practice scenario’ for experts in risk communication (Perko, 2016).

In recent months the Rohingya crisis has been growing and we have seen thousands of people cross the Myanmar-Bangladesh border at a speed that has not occurred since the Rwandan genocide. The Rohingya are a stateless Muslim minority of almost 1 million people that was mostly concentrated in the northern Rakhine state of Myanmar. Rohingya refugees have fled violence in Myanmar at alarming levels, and the numbers continue to rise. Their situation was already complicated in itself as a Muslim minority within a Buddhist state that does not recognize them as citizens. In regards to the SDGs, the principal one that goes strictly related to the root causes of the conflict is the SDG 16: Peace Justice and Strong Institutions. When talking about them as refugees, we must also mention the first three SDGs which are no poverty, zero hunger and good health and well-being in connection to their living conditions.

Back in 2019, a brutal terrorist attack occurred in the ChristChurch region of New Zealand. The event took place in two mosques and the attacker's objective was clear; end the Muslims to “reduce immigration rates to European lands by intimidating and physically removing the invaders themselves” (Tarrant, 2019: 5). Within the manifesto The Great Replacement, the author explained the motivations behind the attack. Still, many questions arose: were the shootings self-explanatory or can they be understood based on other existing concepts? This paper will try to examine if the shootings can be explained through the lens of the perpetrator's ontological insecurity. With that in mind, when examining this topic I attempt to answer the following question: To what extent can the Christchurch-shootings be explained by the perpetrator's sense of ontological insecurity, based on his manifest The Great Replacement?

This paper is structured in three parts: The first part will be devoted to a brief explanation of the concept of ontological securtiy as a social, political and mental construction together with its implications. The second part will focus on the assessment of the manifesto based on the literature discussed and the three drivers of ontological insecurity selected. The last part will be dedicated to the conclusions; a summary of the main findings and a reflection on the literature of ontological (in)security.

At present, the legal status of Taiwan is a highly debated issue in the field of international relations. It could be said that Taiwan has not been recognized as a country or as an independent state, despite the fact that it has its own government and its own laws. In Taiwan, the vast majority of its inhabitants consider their island as a sovereign state, under the label of the Republic of China, while another part of the population wants total independence to be declared. Conversely, China's position is that Taiwan is one more of the provinces that are part of the People's Republic of China, although it is not under its control, neither administrative nor political.

For the past seventy years both political systems - heirs, according to their narrative, of Chinese history, culture, and civilization - have survived at a distance from each other. As mainland China grew to become one of the major global powers, Taiwan - an archipelago made up of the island of Formosa, the Pescadores Archipelago, and the Matsu and Kinmen islands - has evolved differently. Due to its anti-communist condition in the beginning and democratic later, the survival of Taiwan has always depended on external support, but the growing power of Beijing has diminished over time. Now, Taiwan is left with only three options: defend the maintenance of the status quo, fight for de jure independence or resign themselves to being annexed to China. Better explained, since 1949, Taiwan has had three options, each with important consequences. In the first place, it could embark on the reconquest of China, an option that was losing strength as the years passed and the popular China gained more external support and increased its economic and military power. Second, it could opt for de jure independence of China and the re-founding of Taiwan after renouncing to be the legitimate China. Finally, there is the possibility of incorporating the territory into popular China, either by annexation or by an agreed formula such as that of "one country, two systems" practiced in Hong Kong and Macao.

En las costas del sudeste asiático, la bahía de Bengala ha sido testigo de uno de los fenómenos naturales más imponentes de la región: el monzón. Este poderoso viento, que durante siglos ha traído consigo lluvias e inundaciones devastadoras, es más que un simple fenómeno meteorológico para las poblaciones locales. Aunque catastrófico, el monzón también es una fuente de vida, proporcionando agua a los cultivos y llenando las reservas que garantizan la supervivencia en épocas secas. En Bangladesh, el monzón es casi una deidad, venerado y temido a partes iguales.

Imagina despertar un día y descubrir que tu compañero de trabajo no ha llegado. Al principio, no le das mucha importancia: tráfico, alguna emergencia. Pero pasan los días, y nadie sabe nada. Ni sus amigos, ni su familia. Nadie. Se ha esfumado. Esto es lo que ocurre con los johatsu, los desaparecidos de Japón.Japón es conocido por ser un país donde todo parece estar bajo control: la tecnología más avanzada, ciudades que parecen no dormir, y un orden social que raya lo impecable. Pero detrás de es...

Imagina estar de pie en una escalera de bambú tambaleante al borde de un abismo en las alturas del Himalaya, mientras el zumbido ensordecedor de abejas gigantes te rodea. No es una escena sacada de una película, se trata de los Kiuche, los cazadores de miel de Nepal, quienes siguen practicando esta tradición ancestral. Una práctica antigua que, aunque cautivadora, está en peligro de extinción.
En lo alto de los acantilados más remotos, lejos de la civilización, estos hombres arriesgan sus vidas para recolectar un tipo de miel que es tan única como peligrosa. Se trata de la “miel loca”, un néctar oscuro y espeso que proviene de las flores del rododendro, un arbusto cuyas propiedades alucinógenas han sido veneradas por generaciones.
Para recolectarla, no basta con ser valiente, hay que estar dispuesto a enfrentarse a la altura vertiginosa y a las Apis Laboriosa, las abejas más grandes del mundo, cuya longitud puede alcanzar los tres centímetros. Estas abejas construyen sus nidos en acantilados inaccesibles, donde su miel, de sabor picante y efectos psicoactivos leves, es recolectada de manera casi ritual.

En enero de 2021, Bangui, la capital de la República Centroafricana (RCA), se encontraba bajo asedio. Un grupo de rebeldes islamistas intentó tomar la ciudad, en una ofensiva que pretendía desestabilizar el gobierno del presidente Faustin-Archange Touadéra. Sin embargo, lo que parecía una amenaza para la autoridad del presidente, se convirtió en una victoria inesperada. El gobierno de Touadéra, con el respaldo decisivo de un grupo de mercenarios rusos, repelió el ataque, consolidando así una nueva alianza en el tablero geopolítico africano.
Este episodio es solo un capítulo en la silenciosa pero calculada expansión de Rusia en África. Mientras Francia, tradicionalmente el gran actor externo de la región, retiraba sus tropas, Rusia se movía con agilidad para llenar el vacío. ¿La clave de su estrategia? Wagner, una empresa rusa paramilitar privada conocida por operar en la sombra.

El Valle de Langtang, en el Himalaya nepalí, ofrece una experiencia de trekking que va mucho más allá del paisaje. Caminar por este valle es un encuentro con etnias ancestrales, una gastronomía local que alimenta cuerpo y espíritu, y la esencia de una región marcada por la espiritualidad y las cicatrices de la naturaleza.
El primer encuentro humano en el Langtang lo protagonizan los Tamang, un grupo étnico nepalí que ha vivido en las montañas durante generaciones. Los Tamang han aprendido a sobrevivir en la adversidad de un paisaje que puede ser tan hermoso como inhóspito. Al recorrer sus pueblos, el aroma de la comida local te da la bienvenida. El dal bhat, el plato nacional nepalí, aquí es vegetariano por convicción y tradición. Sus habitantes preparan esta sencilla pero nutritiva comida a base de arroz, lentejas y verduras. Es la gasolina que los lugareños y los trekkers necesitan para seguir adelante, y siempre con la misma promesa: “Dal bhat power”. Y si la montaña aprieta, siempre puedes confiar en el ginger lemon honey, esa bebida casera de jengibre, limón y miel perfecta para revitalizarte después de un largo día de trekking.

En aquest petit temple de la gastronomia catalana, el sofregit és el rei indiscutible, tot i que vesteix amb nous aires, més frescos i contemporanis. Aquí la cuina és una oda a la terra, als ingredients de proximitat i a les mans que fan possible que el plat arribi a taula.El nom del restaurant no és fruit de l’atzar: la sosenga és l’avantpassat directe del sofregit català, un tresor culinari que ja apareixia en els llibres medievals, com el Sent Soví. La seva evolució, des de la cuina del segle...

M’agradaria que el meu primer contacte amb el Lluritu hagués estat més romàntic i singular. Digne del que representa. Però la realitat és ben diferent. Una publicació del Carlos Cuevas que el qualificava de “boníssim” i sobretot “a molt bon de preu” ja m’hi tenia fent cua, impacient per devorar tota la carta.Només entrar, t’enlluerna el blanc immaculat que tenyeix les parets. El protagonisme se l’endú un immens cartell, gairabé com una cartellera cinematogràfica, on s’enuncien els plats com si f...

Farà cosa de 2 anys vaig descobrir un restaurant. No ho vull dir gaire alt. No sigui cas que els hi augmenti la clientela i hagin de canviar de lloc. Honestament, perdria tot l’encant. La bellesa de l’espai està en el jardí, en la tranquilitat que es respira i en el desconeixement del restaurant. El local és força reduït: té un espai exterior i un interior petit. Però el menjar es verdaderament exquisit. Al cap i a la fi, al pot petit sempre hi ha la bona confitura! La seva localització juga a f...

La meva història d’amor amb La Gormanda es remonta a un vespre de primavera, mentre mirava un suposat “boníssim” joc de cartes, a recomenació del meu germà. Suposat, perquè d’aquest programa mai saps què esperar: a vegades sembla més un reality de la premsa rosa que un espai gastronòmic, amb els concursants escridassant-se i tirant-se els plats pel cap. Però, per sorpresa meva, aquesta vegada no va ser així. El programa va resultar ser perfecte. Els concursants reien, i entre tots ells, va aparè...