Academic literature on the topic 'Public unrest'

Abstract Following the death on April 19, 2015 of Freddie Gray from injuries sustained while unarmed and in police custody, many citizens of Baltimore took to the streets and the National Guard was called into the city. A 2017 article published in the American Journal of Public Health measured the effect of this civil unrest on maternal and child health. I argue that this research does not acknowledge the full range of motivations, behaviors, aims and values that may have been inherent in this unrest. I first describe the article’s characterization of Baltimore’s unrest as community violence. I then provide a negative argument against employing this characterization alone, before providing positive arguments for two alternative characterizations—as protest and apt anger. Finally, I discuss upshots of considering these alternatives. Broadly, while viewing civil unrest as community violence focuses exclusive attention on victims of unrest, these alternatives direct attention to unrest participants, with implications for public health research and practice. While I focus on Baltimore’s 2015 unrest, the proposals raised here apply wherever civil unrest occurs.

Since 1967 seven committees and commissions have been set up to review disparities, distortions
 and anomalies inherent in the pay policy and wages in the public sector in Ghana. The introduction of the Single Spine Pay Policy in the year 2010 was meant to address these anomalies but has been bedevilled with several unrests at the labour front. This has manifested itself in various ways such as strike actions, protests, petitions, legal actions, and appeals to the Labour Commission and other stakeholders. Several attempts at resolving these agitations since independence have not yielded the expected outcome which would have led to a more stable labour front. The literature on the various pay reforms in Ghana has not addressed the equity issues inherent in them. The aim of this article therefore, is to review the pay policies, in the light of equity principles and propose solutions to minimise the labour unrest associated with public sector wage reforms. The article uses Adams Equity theory of motivation to explain the frequency of labour unrest in Ghana and proposes the application of the tenets of equity theory as a solution. We use documentary analysis to examine the various reforms and propose a theoretical approach to resolve the canker within and among the labour groups. We conclude this article by arguing that the frequent labour unrest within the public service in Ghana is mainly as a result of perceived inequity in the implementations of the public sector wage reforms.

AbstractThe tragic April 19, 2015, death of an African American man injured while in police custody spurred several days of protest and civil unrest in Baltimore City. This article outlines the opportunity and role for a local health department during civil unrest, from the perspective of 2 emergency physicians who also led the Baltimore City Health Department through these recent events. Between April 27 and May 8, 2015, the Health Department was a lead agency in the unrest response and recovery activities. Similar to an emergency medical situation, a “public health code” is proposed as a model for centralizing, reacting to, and debriefing after situations of civil unrest. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2016;10:293–295)

Climate scientists have attributed the war in Syria to persistent droughts caused by damming of rivers and growing aridity due to climate change. As result of the war, there has been widespread migration, hunger, malnutrition, and a collapse of public health systems. While many climate researchers question the direct link of climate variability to civil unrest, there is no doubt that mitigating and reversing Syria’s environmental degradation, and reviving food security and public health systems will play an important role in avoiding future unrest in the region.

In 1998, changes in a number of indicators (earthquakes and uplift) at two of New Zealand's active volcanic caldera systems (Okataina and Taupo) resulted in increased public, local and central government awareness and some concern about the potential significance of volcanic unrest at a caldera volcano. This paper summarises the episodes of unrest recorded at Taupo caldera since 1895. There have been four significant events (1895, 1922, 1963-64 and 1983) that have included earthquake activity and ground deformation. Caldera unrest is one of the most difficult situations the volcanological and emergency management communities will have to deal with. There is potential for adverse social and economic impacts to escalate unnecessarily, unless the event is managed appropriately. Adverse response to caldera unrest may take the form of the release of inappropriate advice, media speculation, unwarranted emergency declarations and premature cessation of economic activity and community services. A non-volcanic-crisis time provides the best opportunity to develop an understanding of the caldera unrest phenomena, and the best time to establish educational programmes, funding systems for enhanced emergency response and volcano surveillance and to develop co-ordinated contingency plans.

Labour unrest is often the outcome of an interplay or combination of factors that employees are unhappy about. Whilst issues relating to the lack of collective bargaining, communication and employee benefits prove to be reasons for causing labour unrest, the question is whether, and if so, how do they come together to increase the occurrence of labour unrest. Hence, this study explores the relationships between collective bargaining, communication, employee benefits and labour unrest, respectively. It is advocated that a lack of employee benefits, collective bargaining and communication has the potential to lead to labour unrest. The research is conducted at the informal settlement in Durban, South Africa, where most of the construction employees who worked at the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) reside. A sample of fifty from fifty-eight construction employees was drawn using cluster sampling. The researcher used quantitative research methods and data was collected using a self-developed questionnaire and analysed using inferential statistics. The research revealed that all sub-dimensions of the lack of employee benefits, collective bargaining and communication have the potential to influence labour unrest individually and in varying degrees. In this regard, a significant relationship was only found between poor availability of health and wellness programmes (employee benefits) and poor bargaining councils (collective bargaining). In addition, a significant but inverse relationship was found between poor medical care (employee benefits) and poor communication. Recommendations, based on the results of the study, are presented.

The struggles for racial equality throughout northern cities during the late-1960s, while not nearly as prevalent within historical scholarship as those pertaining to the Deep South, have left an indelible mark on both the individuals and communities involved. Historians have until recently thought of the civil rights movement in the north as a violent betrayal of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s vision of an inclusive and integrated society, as well as coinciding with the rise, and subsequent decline, of Black Power. But despite such suppositions, the experiences of northern cities immersed in the civil rights struggle were far more varied and nuanced. The explosion of racial violence throughout American cities in the late-1960s bred fear among many in the white political establishment who viewed the cultural shifts inherent in racial equality as threatening to undermine their traditional racial dominance. Partially the result of feelings of increased powerlessness, and partially in an effort of self-preservation, many in the ranks of government and law enforcement worked to oppose the seismic changes underfoot. This thesis makes a concerted effort to examine and evaluate the role that race played in the Albina community of Portland, Oregon in the late-1960s, with a particular emphasis on the motivations, impact, and legacy of two racial disturbances that occurred there in the summers of 1967 and 1969. It asserts that while racial prejudice and bigotry were certainly prevalent among members of both the city's political and law enforcement community, and did play a significant role in the deterioration of their relationship with the black community, there were many other factors that also contributed to the police-community discord in late-1960s Albina. Moreover, it asserts that the reactions of the white and African-American communities to the disturbances were, contrary to conventional wisdom, not monolithic, but rather diverse and wide-ranging. The goal of this narrative history is not merely to analyze the racial unrest and public response to the disturbances, but also to integrate and link the experiences of Portland's African-Americans into the broader dialogue of the civil rights movement of the late-1960s. In short, the study of late-1960s Portland allows us to reach a greater understanding of racial inequality in America during this period.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007.<br>The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on February 29, 2008) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

It is a well-known fact that organized crime has developed into an international network that, spanning from the simple ‘grave diggers’ up to powerful and wealthy white-collar professionals, makes use of money laundering, fraud and forgery. This criminal chain, ultimately, damages and dissipates our cultural identity and, in some cases, even fosters terrorism or civil unrest through the illicit trafficking of cultural property.The forms of ‘possession’ of Cultural Heritage are often blurred; depending on the national legislation of reference, the ownership and trade of historical and artistic assets of value may be legitimate or not. Criminals have always exploited these ambiguities and managed to place on the Art and Antiquities market items resulting from destruction or looting of museums, monuments and archaeological areas. Thus, over the years, even the most renowned museum institutions have - more or less consciously - hosted in their showcases cultural objects of illicit origin. Looting, thefts, illicit trade, and clandestine exports are phenomena that affect especially those countries rich in historical and artistic assets. That includes Italy, which has seen its cultural heritage plundered over the centuries ending up in public and private collections worldwide.This edited volume features ten papers authored by international experts and professionals actively involved in Cultural Heritage protection. Drawing from the experience of the Conference Stolen Heritage (Venice, December 2019), held in the framework of the NETCHER project, the book focuses on illicit trafficking in Cultural Property under a multidisciplinary perspective.The articles look at this serious issue and at connected crimes delving into a variety of fields. The essays especially expand on European legislation regulating import, export, trade and restitution of cultural objects; conflict antiquities and cultural heritage at risk in the Near and Middle East; looting activities and illicit excavations in Italy; the use of technologies to counter looting practices.The volume closes with two papers specifically dedicated to the thorny ethical issues arising from the publication of unprovenanced archaeological objects, and the relevance of accurate communication and openness about such topics.

Considering incidents that make headline news internationally, given the modern information and communication technology revolution, the facility of citizens to rapidly mobilize represents a considerable threat to autocratic survival. While the speed with which popular movements emerge has increased exponentially, and the news of their existence spreads faster and farther, civil unrest has threatened the stability and survival of dictators for centuries. The paranoia and machinations of dictators depicted in films, such as the portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland, while sensationalized, capture the astounding array of threats with which unelected leaders must concern themselves. On the one hand, they must worry about insider threats to their standing, such as conspiratorial plots from people within the dictator’s own circle or mutiny among government soldiers. On the other hand, dictators also must monitor threats originating from non-regime actors, such as new alliances forming among once-fragmented opposition groups or the possibility of sustained insurgency or a popular revolution. From force to finesse, autocratic leaders have developed a broad and evolving range of tactics and tools to diminish both internal and external domestic threats to their reign. The success of dictators’ endeavors to insulate their regimes from forces that might challenge them depends on accurate and reliable information, a resource that can be as valuable to the leader as would a large armory and loyal soldiers. Dictators invest significant resources (monetary as well as human capital) to try to gather useful information about their existing and potential opponents, while also trying to control and shape information emitted by the regime before it reaches the public. New information and communication technologies (ICTs), which have drawn a great deal of scholarly attention since the beginning of the 21st century—present both risks and rewards for dictators; inversely they also create new opportunities and hazards for citizens who might utilize them to mobilize people opposed to the regime. While civil unrest could encompass the full range of domestic, nonmilitary actors, there also needs to be a specific focus on various forms of mass mobilization. Historically, more dictators have been forced from office by elite-initiated overthrows via coups d’état than have fallen to revolution or fled amid street protests. Civil unrest, in its many forms, can affect autocratic survival or precipitate regime breakdown. While mass-based revolutions have been a relatively rare phenomenon to date, the actions of many 21st-century dictators indicate that they increasingly concern themselves with the threats posed by popular protests and fear its potential for triggering broader antigovernment campaigns. The ease of access to information (or the lack thereof) help explain interactions between authoritarian regimes and citizens emphasizes. The role of information in popular antigovernment mobilization has evolved and changed how dictators gather and utilize information to prevent or counter civil unrest that might jeopardize their own survival as well as that of the regime.

The final progression toward demolishing the University Church in 1968 reveals a regime that not only veiled the whole affair in secrecy, but strove to more effectively terrify and divide its opponents through vain promises and active intimidation. But the State had underestimated public resilience. Using a lively and diverse series of protest letters, interview transcripts, and on-site accounts, the coming pages exhibit how pending demolition of Leipzig’s University Church prompted the largest case of unrest in East German history between the 1953 Uprising and 1989 Revolution. Fear of the public ultimately prompted frantic preparations toward demolition in mere days, leading to even greater trauma and loss.

This concluding chapter turns to more recent threats to public health—new epidemics such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), as well as a contemporary resurgence of bioterror. With national security at risk, governments like the United States had begun to consider measures to counter such potential dangers in an era of rapid globalization and political unrest. Prominent among them were medical and public health provisions designed to counter the spread of lethal microorganisms. Under such circumstances, the traditional subject of quarantine and isolation acquired new importance. Given the near impossibility of initially distinguishing persons at risk from those already exposed, balancing the rights of the uninfected with the rights of the infected reemerged as a critical issue.

This chapter illustrates how, on her return to Paris, Germaine de Staël had found an unstable situation, marked by growing unrest in the provinces and by increasingly volatile, ever-shifting political allegiances. She had also rapidly become the object of vicious attacks in the press, emanating principally from royalist circles. The chapter cites Staël's article, which appeared in the Journal des indépendants, and explores how it reflects the preoccupations that dominated this particular phase in her public engagement: the ambition to persuade the scattered constitutional monarchists to pursue a single, coherent policy; the aspiration to see the same divided, quarrelsome factions turn into something resembling an organized party; the search for a credible leadership; and expressing the position of the moderate majority in the assembly.

This concluding chapter talks about how after Franklin Delano Roosevelt's death, there was political unrest. Roosevelt had presided over a transformation in the American state more far reaching than any since the Civil War. But with a new, untested president in the White House and tensions running high over the disposition of Germany and Eastern Europe, the future of the grand alliance was in doubt. The chapter shows how countersubversion in the United States was shaped by a distinctive tradition in which leading public figures were consistently forced to reconcile their countersubversive instincts with the trends of decentralized governance. The political ideologies of Joseph McCarthy, which combined elements of antigovernment populism, social conservatism, and state-based political authoritarianism, owe much to this earlier history.

This chapter examines multilevel governing within the UK. It is organized around three levels of governing: national, regional, and local. For most of the twentieth century, Great Britain (England, Wales, and Scotland) formed a centralized political unit, with policymaking and law-making being led by the UK government and the UK Parliament. There was devolved government in Northern Ireland from 1922, but this was brought to an end by the UK government in 1972 amid mounting civil unrest and paramilitary violence. At the local level, there are more than 400 local authorities throughout the United Kingdom. These vary considerably in size, both in terms of their territorial area that they cover and their populations.

Weibo provides an alternative channel for many Chinese citizens to obtain non-censored news contents and share their opinions on public affairs. In this book chapter, the authors employed Jürgen Habermas's concept of public sphere to examine how Chinese Weibo users (i.e., microbloggers) make the most use of this social medium to form a public sphere to contest omnipresent state power. Habermas's analytical framework helps to better comprehend the role of social media and its interactions with other stakeholders in Chinese politics. The role of social media in shaping this less controlled sphere of political deliberation and participation was examined using a case study approach. The authors analyzed the Chinese Jasmine Revolution to discuss the interrelations among social media, civil society, state power, economic development, political process, and democratization in China. The case study identified Weibo's essential role as a device to bypass existing government censorship, to mobilize users, and to empower Chinese Internet users to engage in political activities to foster its nascent civil society.

"This paper describes an interactive holographic simulation of volcanic eruption. The aim of the project is to use Augmented Reality (AR) technology to visualize different volcanic eruptions for public education, emergency training, and preparedness planning purposes. To achieve this goal, a 3D model of the entire Vulcano Island in Italy has been created using real elevation data. Unity game engine and Microsoft Visual Studio have been used to develop HoloVulcano augmented/virtual reality simulation application. The current version of HoloVulcano simulates normal and unrest situations, single and long lasting Vulcanian, Plinian, and Strombolian eruptions. HoloVulcano has been developed for Microsoft HoloLens AR device. Wearing the HoloLens, users can interact with the volcano through voice, gazing, and gestures and view different eruptions from different points in the island. HoloVulcano will be used for training emergency exercises and public education."

The recent worldwide epidemic of Covid-19 disease, for which there is no vaccine or medications to prevent or cure it, led to the adoption of public health measures by governments and populations in most of the aected countries to avoid the contagion and its spread. These measures are known as nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) and their implementation clearly produces social unrest as well as aects the economy. Frequently, NPIs are implemented with an intensity quantied in an ad hoc manner. Control theory oers a worthwhile tool for determining the optimal intensity of the NPIs in order to avoid the collapse of the healthcare system while keeping them as low as possible, yielding in a policymakers concrete guidance. We propose here the use of a simple proportional controller that is robust to large parametric uncertainties in the model used.

Since the Anti-Extradition Law Social Movement in 2019, Hong Kong has entered an era of socio-political instability. The conflict between student protestants and the government has become increasingly intense, whereas several universities even became the battlefield of the protest and were abruptly shut down in November 2019. To add fuel to the fire, the outbreak of COVID-19 in early 2020 has prompted all universities in the territory to suspend all face-to-face classes and activities for two semesters. All these have impacted university students in Hong Kong socially, academically and psychologically.In light of this, this study aims to explore the ways to which the learning experience of university students in Hong Kong have been impacted by the socio-political challenges. Through conducting a mixed-methods study at a public university in Hong Kong, it was found that university have a high perceived level of stress, high political involvements, unsatisfactory learning experience and poor learning motivation under this socio-political instability. It is hoped that this study can provide informed insights for teachers to understand students’ burdens, stresses, and emotional instability associated with socio-political unrest.

Corruption is a particularly dangerous scourge, which encompasses the whole of society, all spheres of human activity, and by virtue of this, it also encompasses education, whether we want to recognize it or not. Corruption flourishes in times of great social unrest, in times of crisis that societies are going through, especially in the period of transition from a totalitarian regime to a democratic society. The factor generating corruption is the socio-economic crisis, having as causes: weakening of state authority, degradation of living standards, altered moral judgment, lack of effective control levers, diminished public confidence in institutions and social values, non-adaptation of legislation to economic and social conditions and so on Sport is one of the largest businesses in the world, being influenced and influencing in turn both financial and political interests. Every year, millions of dollars and Euros circulate in this area, most of the transactions and agreements taking place behind closed doors, in order to keep any possible advantage over the competition. This fierce competitiveness, together with the lack of transparency, makes the sports field extremely vulnerable to corruption acts. Summarizing the results of our study, we can conclude: the fight against corruption is an opportunity for beneficiary institutions, which can strengthen and improve their systems for preventing and combating corruption and money laundering and asset recovery, by reference to worldwide first-class practices and standards. Following intense consultations with all beneficiaries in the Republic of Moldova: Minister of Education, Culture and Research, National Olympic and Sports Committee, Paralympics’ Committee, Sports Federations and other structures in the country, in order to ensure effective support in the field of physical culture and sports. The direct relations with the interested actors contribute to the creation of a positive framework, which will favour the general success of the future activities that will take place in obtaining the expected results.

Aim/Purpose: This paper provides the results of the preliminary analysis of the findings of an ongoing study that seeks to examine the social media use, cultural and political awareness, civic engagement, issue prioritization, and social activism of Gen Z students enrolled at four different institutional types located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The aim of this study is to look at the group as a whole as well as compare findings across populations. The institutional types under consideration include a mid-sized majority serving or otherwise referred to as a traditionally white institution (TWI) located in a small coastal city on the Atlantic Ocean, a small Historically Black University (HBCU) located in a rural area, a large community college located in a county that is a mixture of rural and suburban and which sits on the border of Maryland and Pennsylvania, and graduating high school students enrolled in career and technical education (CTE) programs in a large urban area. This exploration is purposed to examine the behaviors and expectations of Gen Z students within a representative American region during a time of tremendous turmoil and civil unrest in the United States. Background: Over 74 million strong, Gen Z makes up almost one-quarter of the U.S. population. They already outnumber any current living generation and are the first true digital natives. Born after 1996 and through 2012, they are known for their short attention spans and heightened ability to multi-task. Raised in the age of the smart phone, they have been tethered to digital devices from a young age with most having the preponderance of their childhood milestones commemorated online. Often called Zoomers, they are more racially and ethnically diverse than any previous generation and are on track to be the most well-educated generation in history. Gen Zers in the United States have been found in the research to be progressive and pro-government and viewing increasing racial and ethnic diversity as positive change. Finally, they are less likely to hold xenophobic beliefs such as the notion of American exceptionalism and superiority that have been popular with by prior generations. The United States has been in a period of social and civil unrest in recent years with concerns over systematic racism, rampant inequalities, political polarization, xenophobia, police violence, sexual assault and harassment, and the growing epidemic of gun violence. Anxieties stirred by the COVID-19 pandemic further compounded these issues resulting in a powder keg explosion occurring throughout the summer of 2020 and leading well into 2021. As a result, the United States has deteriorated significantly in the Civil Unrest Index falling from 91st to 34th. The vitriol, polarization, protests, murders, and shootings have all occurred during Gen Z’s formative years, and the limited research available indicates that it has shaped their values and political views. Methodology: The Mid-Atlantic region is a portion of the United States that exists as the overlap between the northeastern and southeastern portions of the country. It includes the nation’s capital, as well as large urban centers, small cities, suburbs, and rural enclaves. It is one of the most socially, economically, racially, and culturally diverse parts of the United States and is often referred to as the “typically American region.” An electronic survey was administered to students from 2019 through 2021 attending a high school dual enrollment program, a minority serving institution, a majority serving institution, and a community college all located within the larger mid-Atlantic region. The survey included a combination of multiple response, Likert scaled, dichotomous, open ended, and ordinal questions. It was developed in the Survey Monkey system and reviewed by several content and methodological experts in order to examine bias, vagueness, or potential semantic problems. Finally, the survey was pilot tested prior to implementation in order to explore the efficacy of the research methodology. It was then modified accordingly prior to widespread distribution to potential participants. The surveys were administered to students enrolled in classes taught by the authors all of whom are educators. Participation was voluntary, optional, and anonymous. Over 800 individuals completed the survey with just over 700 usable results, after partial completes and the responses of individuals outside of the 18-24 age range were removed. Findings: Participants in this study overwhelmingly were users of social media. In descending order, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, WhatsApp, LinkedIn and Tik Tok were the most popular social media services reported as being used. When volume of use was considered, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube and Twitter were the most cited with most participants reporting using Instagram and Snapchat multiple times a day. When asked to select which social media service they would use if forced to choose just one, the number one choice was YouTube followed by Instagram and Snapchat. Additionally, more than half of participants responded that they have uploaded a video to a video sharing site such as YouTube or Tik Tok. When asked about their familiarity with different technologies, participants overwhelmingly responded that they are “very familiar” with smart phones, searching the Web, social media, and email. About half the respondents said that they were “very familiar” with common computer applications such as the Microsoft Office Suite or Google Suite with another third saying that they were “somewhat familiar.” When asked about Learning Management Systems (LMS) like Blackboard, Course Compass, Canvas, Edmodo, Moodle, Course Sites, Google Classroom, Mindtap, Schoology, Absorb, D2L, itslearning, Otus, PowerSchool, or WizIQ, only 43% said they were “very familiar” with 31% responding that they were “somewhat familiar.” Finally, about half the students were either “very” or “somewhat” familiar with operating systems such as Windows. A few preferences with respect to technology in the teaching and learning process were explored in the survey. Most students (85%) responded that they want course announcements and reminders sent to their phones, 76% expect their courses to incorporate the use of technology, 71% want their courses to have course websites, and 71% said that they would rather watch a video than read a book chapter. When asked to consider the future, over 81% or respondents reported that technology will play a major role in their future career. Most participants considered themselves “informed” or “well informed” about current events although few considered themselves “very informed” or “well informed” about politics. When asked how they get their news, the most common forum reported for getting news and information about current events and politics was social media with 81% of respondents reporting. Gen Z is known to be an engaged generation and the participants in this study were not an exception. As such, it came as no surprise to discover that, in the past year more than 78% of respondents had educated friends or family about an important social or political issue, about half (48%) had donated to a cause of importance to them, more than a quarter (26%) had participated in a march or rally, and a quarter (26%) had actively boycotted a product or company. Further, about 37% consider themselves to be a social activist with another 41% responding that aren’t sure if they would consider themselves an activist and only 22% saying that they would not consider themselves an activist. When asked what issues were important to them, the most frequently cited were Black Lives Matter (75%), human trafficking (68%), sexual assault/harassment/Me Too (66.49%), gun violence (65.82%), women’s rights (65.15%), climate change (55.4%), immigration reform/deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) (48.8%), and LGBTQ+ rights (47.39%). When the schools were compared, there were only minor differences in social media use with the high school students indicating slightly more use of Tik Tok than the other participants. All groups were virtually equal when it came to how informed they perceived themselves about current events and politics. Consensus among groups existed with respect to how they get their news, and the community college and high school students were slightly more likely to have participated in a march, protest, or rally in the last 12 months than the university students. The community college and high school students were also slightly more likely to consider themselves social activists than the participants from either of the universities. When the importance of the issues was considered, significant differences based on institutional type were noted. Black Lives Matter (BLM) was identified as important by the largest portion of students attending the HBCU followed by the community college students and high school students. Less than half of the students attending the TWI considered BLM an important issue. Human trafficking was cited as important by a higher percentage of students attending the HBCU and urban high school than at the suburban and rural community college or the TWI. Sexual assault was considered important by the majority of students at all the schools with the percentage a bit smaller from the majority serving institution. About two thirds of the students at the high school, community college, and HBCU considered gun violence important versus about half the students at the majority serving institution. Women’s rights were reported as being important by more of the high school and HBCU participants than the community college or TWI. Climate change was considered important by about half the students at all schools with a slightly smaller portion reporting out the HBCU. Immigration reform/DACA was reported as important by half the high school, community college, and HBCU participants with only a third of the students from the majority serving institution citing it as an important issue. With respect to LGBTQ rights approximately half of the high school and community college participants cited it as important, 44.53% of the HBCU students, and only about a quarter of the students attending the majority serving institution. Contribution and Conclusion: This paper provides a timely investigation into the mindset of generation Z students living in the United States during a period of heightened civic unrest. This insight is useful to educators who should be informed about the generation of students that is currently populating higher education. The findings of this study are consistent with public opinion polls by Pew Research Center. According to the findings, the Gen Z students participating in this study are heavy users of multiple social media, expect technology to be integrated into teaching and learning, anticipate a future career where technology will play an important role, informed about current and political events, use social media as their main source for getting news and information, and fairly engaged in social activism. When institutional type was compared the students from the university with the more affluent and less diverse population were less likely to find social justice issues important than the other groups. Recommendations for Practitioners: During disruptive and contentious times, it is negligent to think that the abounding issues plaguing society are not important to our students. Gauging the issues of importance and levels of civic engagement provides us crucial information towards understanding the attitudes of students. Further, knowing how our students gain information, their social media usage, as well as how informed they are about current events and political issues can be used to more effectively communicate and educate. Recommendations for Researchers: As social media continues to proliferate daily life and become a vital means of news and information gathering, additional studies such as the one presented here are needed. Additionally, in other countries facing similarly turbulent times, measuring student interest, awareness, and engagement is highly informative. Impact on Society: During a highly contentious period replete with a large volume of civil unrest and compounded by a global pandemic, understanding the behaviors and attitudes of students can help us as higher education faculty be more attuned when it comes to the design and delivery of curriculum. Future Research This presentation presents preliminary findings. Data is still being collected and much more extensive statistical analyses will be performed.

Today, the development of technology has brought about the creation of new environments in the field of communication. In this context, it can be said that virtual technologies have started to be used in many areas from education to health, from sports to cinema. Virtual reality is a process in which the real and the unreal are fictionalized and brought together through virtually created place. In the virtual reality environment, it can be said that individuals experience the feeling of being there. In this context, virtual reality platforms, which can make the sense of reality feel close, especially in situations where physical proximity is not possible, is one of the important steps in the field of communication. This study aims to investigate the effects of technology in the field of communication by realizing a communication experience via vTime, a virtual reality platform created by a UK-based team. In this direction, the potential of virtual reality environments to create a public sphere is one of the points emphasized by the research. In the study, 5 Turkish people who were brought together on the vTime virtual reality platform were included in a conversation with virtual reality tools. These people were asked questions about their instantaneous experiences in the virtual reality environment and their thoughts on this technology by interview method. By analyzing the answers given, the possibilities of using virtual reality platforms as a communication tool today and in the near future were tried to be revealed.

"Climate change and the need for renewable energy are driving the development of electric and hybrid vehicles, however, concerns about road safety still remain. To address this issue and provide better safety and increased mobility there is a need for the development of autonomous vehicle technology and now the automotive industry is heading towards bringing fully autonomous vehicles on the public roads in the next few decades. The major concern with these technology-driven vehicles is testing of autonomous vehicles on public roads as no human intervention would be allowed while driving and this may involve some risk for the driver and the surrounding environment as any error or fault in the system may lead to damage of that environment, loss of manufacturing cost, time, energy and even severe accidents could lead to loss of life. In addition, these vehicles consist of more complex design than traditional vehicles and thus comparatively would require billions of miles of testing. Considering the above factors, the industry has come up with the solutions to test these vehicles in a virtual environment first using the software in the loop approach. This concept is still in development and therefore this paper aims to develop a virtual learning environment where the performance of the control algorithms for an autonomous vehicle can be tested and validated under different driving scenarios. Rigorous research was first carried out to find out the available testing methods and software for performing simulations using different algorithms imposed on the software model for object and path detection. Based on this review a modeling design approach was chosen to perform simulations in MATLAB software. Different driving test scenarios such as a roundabout and a parking lot were created in the Automated Driving System Toolbox and simulation was run in Simulink to test the behaviour of vehicle model in terms of Automated Emergency Braking, Lateral Control, Cruise Control and results were observed and analyzed in Bird’s Eye Scope view and in 3-Dimensional Environment using Unreal Engine. Sensor Fusion technique was used to obtain more precise and accurate results. Vehicle dynamics of the model were also tested in order to compare the stability of the vehicle on the basis of Kinematic and Dynamic Model respectively. The functionality provided by the software was fully explored and relevant results were presented. This paper is focusing on building a flexible virtual testing environment that can be easily deployed by SME’s and start-up companies to develop and test autonomous driving algorithms using the software in the loop approach."

This paper reviews emerging evidence of the impact of COVID-19 on governance and conflict, using a “governance and conflict first” approach in contrast to other research and synthesis on COVID-19 in the social sciences that tends to be structured through a public health lens. It largely focuses on evidence on low- and middle-income countries but also includes a number of examples from high-income countries, reflecting the global nature of the crisis. It is organised around four cross-cutting themes that have enabled the identification of emerging bodies of evidence and/or analysis: Power and legitimacy; Effectiveness, capacity, and corruption; Violence, unrest, and conflict; and Resilience, vulnerability, and risk. The paper concludes with three over-arching insights that have emerged from the research: (1) the importance of leadership; (2) resilience and what “fixing the cracks” really means; and (3) why better ways are needed to add up all the “noise” when it comes to COVID-19 and evidence.