Sport Under Communism – Dr Jonathan Grix discusses his new book

POLSIS’s Dr Jonathan Grix appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Thinking Allowed this week to discuss his new book Sport under Communism: Behind the East German ‘Miracle’, co-authored by Mike Dennis from the University of Wolverhampton. Jonathan discussed the factors that helped propel East Germany into the top-three in the Olympic medals table for over two … Continue reading “Sport Under Communism – Dr Jonathan Grix discusses his new book”

Lessons from the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities

To highlight the breadth of the research going on within POLSIS, the POLSIS Blog is today launching a series of month-long ‘Research Agendas’.  Each month, the blog will feature a series of posts showcasing some of the exciting theories and issues that POLSIS staff and PhD candidates are working on. The Research Agendas will be … Continue reading “Lessons from the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities”

Dr Jonathan Grix on the Olympics

The Olympic Games are now less than two weeks away.  In this podcast for the University of Birmingham’s Ideas Lab, POLSIS’s Dr Jonathan Grix discusses the Olympic ‘legacy’, the impact of the Games outside the capital, and parallels with the 1948 Austerity Olympics, which were also held in London.  [soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/53007407″ params=”show_comments=true&auto_play=false&color=ff7700″ width=”100%” height=”81″ iframe=”false” /]

Only Vatican can change the Catholic Church

On Friday, POLSIS’s Gëzim Alpion, Lecturer in Sociology, was interviewed by the Slovakian newspaper PRAVDA on recent developments in the Vatican. While there is no English translation of the newspaper article, the editor Andrej Matisak has uploaded details of those he interviewed on his blog.  Gëzim’s contribution is reproduced here: Andrej Matisak: We have seen some strong actions … Continue reading “Only Vatican can change the Catholic Church”

Why the EU should say ‘no’ to Tory blackmail

The UK Prime Minister last weekend opened the door to a possible referendum on the UK’s relationship with the EU.  POLSIS’s David Toke argues that from a progressive perspective, it would be better for the UK to leave the EU altogether than for it to undermine the democratic basis of the Union by renegotiating its … Continue reading “Why the EU should say ‘no’ to Tory blackmail”

Reflections on Egypt’s new president

Egypt’s new president Dr Mahamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood was sworn into office on Saturday. International reaction to his victory has been remarkably upbeat, in sharp contrast with the reaction to the electoral win of Palestine’s Hamas movement in January 2006, writes POLSIS’s Michelle Pace. On Sunday 24 June 2012, Egypt’s presidential election commission … Continue reading “Reflections on Egypt’s new president”

Colin Thain argues for new direction in economic policy making

The current state of the economy is like the 1930s, says Professor Colin Thain of POLSIS. We should support Nobel laureate Paul Krugman’s new ‘economic manifesto’ and demand a change of direction in UK and Western economic policymaking. Paul Krugman’s ‘Manifesto for Economic Sense’  has been signed by a huge range of economists and political economists around the world, including: Charles … Continue reading “Colin Thain argues for new direction in economic policy making”