Politics & International Studies
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Blogs
Open Politics Webinar: Time to Think - Northern Ireland
25th April 2023
The final session of the 2022/23 Open Politics webinar series was a timely presentation on the role of The Open University in the prison system of Northern Ireland, during The Troubles. Dr Philip O’Sullivan discussed the OU history project, the ‘Time to Think’ archive, and the impact OU students had on the peace process leading to the Good Friday Agreement, twenty-five years ago.
Open Politics Webinar: Living security through the media: lessons from across the globe
28th February 2023
In this roundtable Emma Connolly, Georgina Holmes and Precious Chatterje-Doody explored the ways in which the media not only report events but also shapes them. The discussion looked at three case studies where political violence is presented through official and bottom-up media and considers the implications around commemorating and interoperating such events.
Open Politics Webinar: Important elections 2022 - Brazil and the United States
31st January 2023
Richard Heffernen and Brigitte Weiffen presented timely and contrasting analysis of recent elections in the United States and Brazil.
Open Politics webinar: The trouble with 'Europe': Why British politicians struggle with managing relations with the EU
17th January 2023
Professor Simon Usherwood’s discussion focused on the problems that shape the relationship between the UK and EU. Given Brexit, and the continuing issues over the withdrawal of this country from the European project, it was a timely examination of how we got here and the challenges faced in building a new relationship with the continent.
Open Politics webinar: Developments in British politics
15th November 2022
The first Open Politics webinar commenced with a timely, and thoughtful, discussion of current developments in British politics, reflecting on the UK over the last ten years. Professor Simon Usherwood of The Open University presented an analysis of recent political instability, considering how far this has had a long-term impact on the structures and institutions of the British state.
Culture, Diplomacy and Power Transition – Professor Jamie Gaskarth, The Open University
10th June 2022
Professor Jamie Gaskarth’s presentation, based on a book chapter to be published later in 2022, explored the impact that the transition of power internationally is having on the way diplomacy operates and the role of culture in that.
How UK Parliament Works – Campaigning Webinar with Lynn Hobson, UK Parliament
5th May 2022
This webinar built on the previous joint UK Parliament/Open University session held in March 2022. It explored the workings of the UK parliament by focusing on how the public can not only better understand how parliament functions but also how to engage with it. One of the great strengths of the presentation was to demystify the idea that parliament is an unapproachable and unwieldy political organisation over which members of the public have limited influence.
The EU after Brexit with Professor Simon Usherwood, The Open University
26th April 2022
The webinar explores how the EU is a fluid and constantly changing political organisation, and that different member states, at various points in its history, have come to the fore as regards attempting to steer the political direction of the EU.
How UK Parliament works – introductory webinar with Jasmine Losasso, UK Parliament
11th March 2022
This webinar was the first in a two-part series on how UK Parliament works. It considered some of the main ways in which the UK parliament is constituted and functions in the modern era.
Changemakers - A guide to making political and social change with Catherine McKinnell MP
1st March 2022
Discover how you can use the Changemakers guide to help make a difference with this blog post by OU Politics student Lilybell Evergreen, who was on the panel for the Changemakers guide launch event during UK Parliament Week 2021.
Presenting the news - Challenges faced by a regional BBC radio storm
2nd February 2022
The webinar, hosted by Bob Cooper and Mike Zeller from BBC Cumbria and David Galbraith, provided an opportunity to discuss some of the challenges and benefits associated with regional broadcasting of local, national and international news items on a daily basis.
Has Britain Been Sidelined by ICJ Rejection?
June 2024
This blog looks into the implications of Britain's absence from the International Court of Justice (ICJ), its alignment with the US during the Gaza conflict, and the potential consequences for its global influence.
Reimagining the Panopticon: Balancing Security and Freedom
May 2024
This blog explores whether mass surveillance provides a way to security, justice and equality.
Runner up in the 2024 Open Politics Student Blog Competition
May 9: The Fake Revolution
May 2024
The blog explores the impact of artificial intelligence and deepfakes in Pakistani politics, particularly concerning how AI can create convincing digital fabrications that shape public opinion and manipulate perceptions of reality.
Runner up in the 2024 Open Politics Student Blog Competition
Conversion Therapy Ban: 5 Years and counting
May 2024
This blog explores the topic of conversion therapy in the UK: what it is, occurrences in the UK, delays by the government to ban and opposition arguments.
Winner of the 2024 Open Politics Student Blog Competition
LOOK EAST: Zimbabwe and China, a case study of the Belt and Road Action Plan
May 2024
This blog explores the changing relationship between Zimbabwe and China in light of the Belt and Road Initiative.
Paying for Climate Change: What’s the UK’s contributions?
March 2024
This blog describes the cost of climate change on developed and developing nations. This blog also analysis the UK’s contribution for paying for that cost.
UK Parliament: Diversity and Democracy
January 2024
This blog assesses the reflection of UK diversity on the makeup of the UK Parliament by looking at its past and evolution. This blog also assesses the future of diversity in the UK Parliament and its significance to the wider population.
UK Parliament Week: A call to order!
December 2023
This blog reflects on Parliament Week, assessing its impact and the general engagement with politics amongst the UK population.
The erosion of the right to protest in the UK and how this undermines democracy
July 2023
This blog explores if the new UK laws around disruptive protest are justified in a democracy, using the recent examples of the coronation policing, and environmental protest groups.
Scotland v. UK: Blocking the Gender Recognition Reform Bill
June 2023
The Gender Recognition Reform Bill introduced by the Scottish Government to improve the Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) process has become the latest battle in an increasingly difficult relationship between the Scottish and UK Governments.
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Revolutionizing local government: The benefits of self-management teams for cost savings, productivity, and job satisfaction
June 2023
Local councils have been hit severely by high debt, low productivity and even lower morale. This isn’t a sudden occurrence, but a culmination of over a decade of budget cuts and a series of global catastrophes. With service cuts and strikes over pay and conditions still looming across the country, it may be time to take a different approach and re-organise local councils into self-managing teams, allowing for higher productivity, lower costs and increased job satisfaction.
Saving the Soul of our NHS
June 2023
This blog will consider the impact that the privatisation of the NHS is having on patient care and staff wellbeing within the context of the current strikes.
Politicians - They are human...aren't they?
June 2023
Brexit, immigration, the NHS, so many topics form part of the political debate, with so many different opinions. The Speaker of the House of Commons calling for “Order!” with jeers and waving of paper from politicians of all sides during these debates can lead us to think that our representatives are childish and out of touch. But at what point does a difference of opinion get out of hand or go too far? At what point does amicable debate cross over to abuse? What is the impact of thinking about politicians in this way?
What's happening with the Human Rights Act (HRA) 1998 and why you should care
11th July 2022
In December 2021, Justice Minister Dominic Raab declared HRA is “subject to abuse” and unveiled his plans to reform the law, alleging that “the act in practice was ineffective” because the HRA is being employed by “criminals” and repeal of HRA would “deter spurious human rights claims”.
Global challenges and social justice: Energy security and climate change in a time of conflict
29th June 2022
There can be few challenges facing us more pressing than climate change, which if unchecked threatens to decimate food production as unstable climate conditions including droughts and floods damage crops, and make large portions of the globe uninhabitable, driving a new wave of climate refugees.
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