Abstract

Tragedy was born in Greece and was subsequently claimed and defended in Europe during the Renaissance and Baroque but, this being a gender as orthodox as changeable, it will be necessary to resort to a new reading of its components in order to adapt them to the reality of the Golden Age. Humanism promotes this recovery of the classical world and generates a significant literature on drama precepts that will not develop the same way in all European countries. While Italy and France opt for the acceptance and conversion of the ideas of Aristotle and Horace into style rules, Spain and England cannot fail to point out the dramatic dissonance between stage theory and practice, and, the aim of pleasing the public, will prevail as a benchmark of success over fidelity to the classical precepts. However, despite theoretical differences, the French drama as the English and the Spanish drama will be committed to the development of tragedy. We will discuss some ideas about drama rules in France and England and their connection with what is represented on stage, as well as the nature and intensity of the government’s support to the theatre, in order to contextualize and show the differences with respect to the Spanish Baroque tragedy.

Abstract

Public administration in the developed countries is designing information initiatives to manage risk information using web-based systems. These sites are intended to deliver information to citizens, but also have valuable information for experts and authorities. Five web sites are compared and a simple methodology is provided to extract conclusions and propose recommendations in an information management dimension that is key to saving not only property but human lives as well.

Abstract

International audience; This chapter looks at how sustainable mobility in Bordeaux, France, has largely come to be consolidated in planning for intermodality. The current transport network in the metropolitan area (comprising 28 municipalities, 800,000 inhabitants) is made up of a road system with a low capacity for change, a public transport system that has reached the limit of its capacity (i.e., the tram network) and the promotion of new forms of mobility (carpooling, cycling, walking) which are conditional upon a change of practices and habits among the residents. The major challenge for the local government is to define a new mobility offer based on better concentric links that can optimize the existing network and deliver the necessary improved connections between residential and economic areas in the growing metropolitan area. This need for an improved transport network has been coupled with the emergence of a change in urban planning in Bordeaux that focuses on densification along the public transport axes. The notions of multimodality and intermodality, which are associated with stations and interchange hubs, have become the main tools for a shifting mobility offer, and they are now an integral part of the local government’s attempts to achieve a less energy-intensive metropolis.

Abstract

The SIMNORAT project poster gives a general overview of the project and its activities. Initially developed for the Sea Tech Week in Brest in October 2018, the poster was also displayed at the SIMNORAT Final Conference. The poster is available in English and French. Please note that the website indicated on the poster is no longer online. This document was produced as part of SIMNORAT Project (Grant Agreement N0. EASME/EMFF/2015/1.2.1.3/03/SI2.742089). Competition for maritime space – for renewable energy equipment, aquaculture and other uses – has highlighted the need to manage our waters more coherently. Maritime spatial planning (MSP) works across borders and sectors to ensure human activities at sea take place in an efficient, safe and sustainable way. That is why the European Parliament and the Council have adopted a legislation to create a common framework for maritime spatial planning in Europe. The Directive 2014/89/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 (said Maritime Spatial Planning Directive) establishes a framework in order to reduce conflicts between sectors and create synergies between different activities, to encourage investment – by creating predictability, transparency and clearer rules, to increase cross-border cooperation – between EU countries to develop energy grids, shipping lanes, pipelines, submarine cables and other activities, but also to develop coherent networks of protected areas, and to protect the environment – through early identification of impact and opportunities for multiple use of space. The SIMNORAT project (Supporting Implementation of Maritime Spatial Planning in the Northern European Atlantic) is an EU/DG Mare co-funded cross-border project. It was launched on 1st of January 2017 and involves Portugal, Spain and France, while these countries had just designated their Competent Authorities and transposed the Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) Directive. SIMNORAT aims to support the implementation of the MSP Directive in the waters of Portugal, Spain and France, as well as to establish cross-border cooperation mechanisms between these Member States, to contribute to the coherence of their marine spatial plans to be established in 2021. The action ran until 31st of January 2019 and was based on a partnership of public bodies of the countries and one international organisation. It was composed of UAVR, CEDEX, IEO, AFB, CEREMA, Shom, and CPMR. Shom acted as coordinator. The objectives of the SIMNORAT project were addressed through a variety of activities and desktop or case studies. They are dedicated to identifying the methodology steps, and explore the challenges and opportunities of the MSP implementation in the Northern European Atlantic, including thus related to transboundary issues (Ecosystem based approach, marine policies, OSPAR Convention, Land Sea Interactions, geographical scale of the plans, data interoperability, tools to support MSP). The project led to a multiplicity of outputs including overviews of MSP relevant information related to the countries and on more focus areas, to a number of interviews and meetings where stakeholder views were collected to feed the reasoning, and to guidelines and good practices to be shared at a national and transnational level with marine stakeholders, scientific as well as planners, administrations and authorities. In addition, SIMNORAT permitted a lot of progression internally in the countries and regarding transboundary cooperation. It led to establish and develop new dialogues and to connect the technical or scientific actors, the stakeholders, the administrations of the countries of a same sea basin, and the administrations within the countries, including the representative of Regions. It allowed to better understand Maritime Spatial Planning mechanisms, to share knowledge and as such reached to build capacities, which is of importance as there is such a need in the Atlantic area compared to more Northern countries. The project also permitted to address topics which have never been addressed before. The involvement of France and Spain in SIMNORAT and in the EU-DG Mare sister projects SIMWESTMED and SIMCelt was useful for them to develop a global vision with their neighbours in the Western Mediterranean. At the end of this exercise, it is stated the need of pursuing the work and dialogue in particular through common tools, but at this stage, the SIMNORAT project has constituted a common knowledge and background. D I S C L A I M E R: The contents and conclusions of this report, including the maps and figures were developed by the participating partners with the best available knowledge at the time. They do not necessarily reflect the national governments' positions and are not official documents, nor data. The European Commission or Executive Agency for Small and Medium sized Enterprises is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.

Abstract

The share of renewable energy sources (RES)’ production in energy mixes, especially the ones of PV panels and wind farms, has been continuously increasing during the last few years. Similarly, a strong development of battery electric vehicles (EV) is expected within the next years. However, these two new innovations could trigger security issues on electrical grids, in particular local congestions and voltage deviations from the required standards. One way to mitigate these problems could be to combine the charging periods of the EVs with the local RES production. This paper aims at analysing the possibility to implement this kind of smart charging strategy in France by 2020, taking into account the wide diversity of local energy mixes in France and their seasonal dependencies. First, the authors identify four different energy mixes representative of most of the local French mixes, each one related to a region in France. Then, we model the charging load curves of the EVs at the substation level for the same regions. We deduce the “green charging ratio” (GCR) without any charging management strategy. The same ratio is then computed assuming that an Energy Management System (EMS), which goal is to maximize this ratio, controls the EV charging patterns. The results are provided for each region and seasons. They show a wide diversity of green charging ratio achievable: in very windy regions, the GCR without any EMS is already rather high on the contrary, in sunny regions, the GCR is much improved with the implementation of the EMS. In such regions, the GCR can also be enhanced with the penetration of charging stations at working places. Document type: Article

Abstract

In this paper, we characterise tourists most likely to visit a coastal destination by high-speed rail (HSR). Our data came from a survey conducted among HSR passengers during 2014’s high season (July and August) at Spain’s Camp de Tarragona and Alicante Stations, each of which is near a mass tourism destination on the Mediterranean coast: the Costa Daurada and the Costa Blanca, respectively. We used responses to the survey, which presented binary discrete-choice situations, to construct a database necessary for a logistic regression model that allowed us to examine how passenger profile, trip characteristics, and stay conditions influenced the use of HSR services on visits to each coastal destination. Results highlighted significant differences in the profiles of tourists who arrived at each destination by HSR and, in turn, that no specific tourist profile is associated with HSR, even for two stations that serve sunny beach destinations. Among its implications, to analyse travellers that HSR can attract, it is vital to consider the specific characteristics of each destination and its current market. This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (GLOBALTUR–CSO2011–23004/GEOG; MOVETUR-CS02014-51785-R) to AG. Document type: Article

Abstract

The rise of fact-checking as an innovative tool aimed at improving democratic well-being has become a transnational movement in journalism. In June 2021, the Duke Reporters’ Lab database features 341 such initiatives around the world, including 33 active fact-checking projects in countries pertaining to the Mediterranean or Polarized Pluralist Model (Hallin; Mancini, 2004). Following previous research on fact-checking in other territories, this qualitative study expands the understanding of how this practice is performed by four platforms of countries belonging to this journalistic culture: Maldita.es (Spain), Les Surligneurs (France), Observador (Portugal), and Pagella Politica (Italy). Through in-depth interviews with their decision-makers, this work offers a deep understanding of the structure, agenda, practices, and values, the role of the public, and the challenges that these organizations face. Normally run by small but multidisciplinary teams, the studied initiatives show high levels of transparency and a tendency for continuous improvement and professionalization despite their limitations. Following the example of leading initiatives in the USA, the UK, Latin America and Europe, the analyzed organizations cover a wide range of thematic areas and make use of the latest digital tools. They employ robust methodologies when selecting the content they verify, consult an extensive range of sources, and set various control filters before publication, which proves their commitment to transparency and accountability. Furthermore, they guarantee the right of reply and are widely open to public participation and broader dissemination of their work through mainstream media. From difficulties in accessing public information to scarcity of resources and increased competition, fact-checking platforms in the Mediterranean context face major challenges that have forced them to rethink their role and find new revenue streams. These organizations highlight the need to enhance the impact of fact-checking among citizens, journalists, and politicians and, ultimately, to go back to the roots of journalism.

Abstract

After two-years of repeat interviewing around 170 early career science/social science researchers from China, France, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Spain, UK and US about their work life and scholarly communications in pandemic-times, the Harbingers project is now in possession of a mountain of data on what constitutes a very important academic topic. The purpose of the paper is to share the early highlights of the data, with a focus on the main and lasting impacts of the pandemic. The data presented comes from the national interviewers, who had conducted 3 rounds of interviews with their 20 or so early career researchers (ECRs) over two years and, thus, knew them well. They were asked to provide an ‘aerial view’ by identifying the most important impacts they had detected while things were still fresh in their minds. The main findings are that: 1) ECRs, the research workhorses, have generally proved to be resilient and perseverant and some have prospered; 2) the pandemic has fast-tracked researchers to a virtual and remote scholarly world, with all the advantages and disadvantages that comes with it. The data, however, is nuanced, with significant differences occurring between countries, especially China and France. The paper also updates a literature review on the topic previously published in this journal.

Abstract

After two-years of talking to around 170 early career science/social science researchers from China, France, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Spain, UK and US about their work life and scholarly communications during the pandemic, the Harbingers-2 project is in possession of a mountain of verbatim data. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the kinds of comments ECRs are raising, with a focus on those that provide a particular interesting and illuminating take on ECRs’ experiences under difficult times. Comments, for instance, that might challenge the established order of things or that presage big changes down the line. The selection of comments presented here were made by the national interviewers shortly after the completion of the last of three rounds of interviews (two interviews in the case of Russia). The understandings, appreciations and suggestions thus raised by the ECRs are insightful and constructive, which is what we might have expected from this cohort who are very much at the forefront of the research enterprise and veritable research workhorses. Sixteen broad scholarly topics are represented by quotes/comments, with the main focus of the comments on a subset of these: research performance and assessment, scholarly communication transformations, networking and collaboration, social media and access to information/libraries, which suggests, perhaps, where the action, concerns and interest mainly lie.