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Konstantinov, M. (2023). Right-Wing Leftists, Left-Wing Rightists, and Traditionalist Liberals: Core Political Values and Ideological Inconsistency at the Party-Elite Level in Bulgaria. Social Sciences, 13(1), 12.

Academic Publication | | Martin Konstantinov
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Abstract

The growth of heterodox ideological configurations, or ideological inconsistencies, among the electorate of Western countries, has been offered as one explanation for recent momentous political events, such as Brexit or the election of Donald Trump as US President. Previous research, however, suggests that ideological inconsistency has been typical for Central and Eastern European (CEE) states for the past thirty years after the fall of the Socialist regimes there. Based on a survey of 102 active members of local and national party structures in Bulgaria, followed by in-depth interviews with the same respondents, I develop a conceptual and methodological approach aimed at objectively measuring Bulgarians’ political values and ideological orientations. Building on previous research on the statistical independence of the social and economic dimensions of ideology, this study identifies three main models of ideological inconsistency at the party-elite level in Bulgaria, offering evidence of the “homogeneity in ideological inconsistency” in this post-Socialist country, with party elites and electorate following the same patterns of inconsistency. The existence of a conservative value complex, integrating traditionalist, statist, and nationalist attitudes regarding the social sphere, is another major finding of the study. I discuss the specific historical and socio-cultural background contributing to ideological inconsistency in Bulgaria and potential implications for the wider CEE region.
Keywords:

ideological inconsistency; political values; political orientation; ideological dimensions; left–right ideological schema; Central and East European states; Bulgaria

Cite as: Konstantinov, M. (2023). Right-Wing Leftists, Left-Wing Rightists, and Traditionalist Liberals: Core Political Values and Ideological Inconsistency at the Party-Elite Level in Bulgaria. Social Sciences, 13(1), 12.

Spasova, L., Leone, C., & Bencivenga, R. (2022). MILIEU H2020 Project ‘Women, Disability and Inclusion’: Introducing the Project. In ICGR 2022 5th International Conference on Gender Research. Academic Conferences and publishing limited.

Academic Publication | | Lyuba Spasova, Cinzia Leone, Rita Bencivenga
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Abstract

The paper introduces the MILIEU H2020 Project ‘Women, disability and inclusion – scientific excellence in Bulgaria’ – a Coordination and Support Action (CSA) project funded under the Horizon 2020 Programme, ‘Spreading excellence and widening participation – Twinning’ Call. The project aims to unlock, foster and sustain high-quality research at the intersection of studies on women, disability and inclusion by promoting collaboration, networking and an intensive exchange of research between partners. As a project to widen participation, MILIEU is specifically focused on driving excellence and enhancing the research-related fundraising and management competencies of the scholars and staff of the coordinating partner from the target country – in this case, the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

The paper introduces MILIEU’s goals, methods and expected impact and presents the principal tasks and activities in implementing a project related to fostering research in the areas of women, disabilities and inclusion. It also describes the risks and challenges faced by MILIEU and the consortium and how they were overcome and turned into success stories.

 

Cite as: Spasova, L., Leone, C., & Bencivenga, R. (2022). MILIEU H2020 Project ‘Women, Disability and Inclusion’: Introducing the Project. In ICGR 2022 5th International Conference on Gender Research. Academic Conferences and publishing limited.

Florez, S. L., Briones, A. G., Pavón, J., Fuentes-Fernández, R., & Corchado, J. M. (2023, June). Monitoring System for Detecting Non-inclusive Situations in Smart Cities. In Sustainable Smart Cities and Territories International Conference (pp. 405-416). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.

Academic Publication | | Sebastián Lopez Florez, Alfonso González-Briones, JuanPavón, Rubén Fuentes-Fernandez, Juan M. Corchado
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Abstract
Disability is a very important issue in our society, as evidenced by frequent awareness campaigns. One specific area that deserves special attention is the creation and assessment of solutions that ensure the genuine inclusion of persons with disabilities in smart cities. In this regard, this work proposes a method for detecting non-inclusive situations for people with mobility problems and communicate such incidence to public services. The proposed approach intends to facilitate this task by automatically detecting obstacles in the environment and measuring the distance between each person and the different obstacles in order to identify potential non-inclusive situations. This is done through the combined use of OpenCV and YOLO-v5.
Cite as: Florez, S.L., Briones, A.G., Pavón, J., Fuentes-Fernández, R., Corchado, J.M. (2023). Monitoring System for Detecting Non-inclusive Situations in Smart Cities. In: Castillo Ossa, L.F., Isaza, G., Cardona, Ó., Castrillón, O.D., Corchado Rodriguez, J.M., De la Prieta Pintado, F. (eds) Trends in Sustainable Smart Cities and Territories . SSCT 2023. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 732. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-36957-5_35

Darakchi, S. (2023). “A Community… Sounds Like Communism”: Notions of Gay Community and “Community Belonging Contradiction” Among Bulgarian Non-Heterosexual Males. Journal of Homosexuality, 1-26.

Academic Publication | | Shaban Darakchi
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ABSTRACT

The term “gay community” has been criticized for its inability to explain the pluralities in a specific cultural and political context. Based on in-depth interviews with 63 non-heterosexual males in Bulgaria, this study aims to revisit the theories of gay communities in a non-Western, post-communist context. The data from this study suggest that (1) the idea of a “gay community” is often rejected due to anti-communist notions and explicit engagement with individualism as anti-communitarianism; (2) belonging to a gay community is subjective, and initial verbal detachment from gay communities does not indicate a lack of factual belonging to such communities; (3) the concepts of “personal communities” and “family of choice” remain relatively irrelevant in the Bulgarian context; (4) the most significant factor for attachment to a gay community is the notion of “gay culture” and “gay scene”; (5) recent forms of “sexual attachments” have led to a certain political involvement; and (6) the “anti-gender campaigns” have revitalized the importance of gay communities and have brought an increasing number of respondents to certain involvement in gay communities and networks, challenging the theories of “post-gay” societies.

Cite as: Darakchi, S. (2023). “A Community… Sounds Like Communism”: Notions of Gay Community and “Community Belonging Contradiction” Among Bulgarian Non-Heterosexual Males. Journal of Homosexuality, 1-26.

Kolotouchkina, O., Llorente-Barroso, C., García-Guardia, M. L., & Pavón, J. (2021). Disability narratives in sports communication: Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games’ best practices and implications. Media and Communication, 9(3), 101-111.

Academic Publication | | Olga Kolotouchkina, Carmen Llorente Barroso, María Luisa García Guardia, Juan Pavón
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Abstract:  The Paralympic Games have become a relevant social and communication tool for the enhancement of global awareness and understanding of disability. The increasing visibility of this kind of global sports event, as well as the efforts of public authorities to make their host cities more accessible, evidence a relevant shift to new urban barrier-free experiences and discourses concerning disability. This research is guided by an exploratory case study approach to assess the disability representation and narratives within the context of the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games. The examination of some innovative communication strategies fostering the visibility of disability reveals a series of effective practices implemented in Japan. The focus on the personification of para-athletes, the celebration of public events to experience first-hand para-sports disciplines, as well as the engagement of school-children and young people in para-sports initiatives are predominant in the communication efforts of Tokyo 2020 in the pre-games period.

 

Keywords:  disability; Paralympic Games; media; sports communication; Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games; Japan
Cite as: Kolotouchkina, O., Llorente-Barroso, C., García-Guardia, M. L., & Pavón, J. (2021). Disability narratives in sports communication: Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games’ best practices and implications. Media and Communication, 9(3), 101-111.

Final report on activities carried out for enhancing excellent scientific research in MILIEU

Working Paper | | Ruiz Terol, Ingrid; Hanninen, Liisa Irenе; Pavón Mestras, Juan
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The deliverable provides a comprehensive and detailed report on MILIEU activities performed for enhancing scientific excellence and innovation in research capacities in the fields related to inclusion, disability, and women studies within the three partners of the MILIEU consortium, and in particular, within IPS-BAS, with important snowball effects in other academic and research organisations that have been reached through the diverse project actions. The current deliverable is based on the guidelines of the D2.2 Strategic plan for enhancing scientific excellence and D3.1 Visibility and empowerment guidelines which draft the key strategic goals and the specific actions to be implemented to reach the pre-established goals, as well as their estimated timing. This deliverable covers the action taken within WP3 Strengthening the research profile at IPS, in the quest of enhanced scientific excellence. It details the activities carried out within the framework of the MILIEU strategic plan, organised by the following types of action: training courses, qualitative sessions, visibility through networking events and activities, conferences and workshops, joint research project proposals, RRI in project practice, and last but not least, visits and secondments.

Exploitation and sustainability plan - final version

Working Paper | | Mantarova, Anna; Chengelova, Emilia; Spasova, Lyuba
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This deliverable describes the final version of the Exploitation and sustainability plan of the MILIEU H2020 project whose objective is to define an effective and consistent exploitation and sustainability strategy for the project that will continue after its end.

The Exploitation and sustainability plan details how the results of the project – ranging from intellectual outcomes to physical outputs – can be exploited and further used. The plan is elaborated in line with the objectives and achieved impacts of MILIEU and considering MILIEU’s internal and external key target groups, key results and best activities to ensure maximum exploitation and sustainability. The deliverable also lists possible risks connected to exploitation and sustainability and proposes mitigation and contingency strategies. Key performance indicators are identified (by month 36, at the end of the project and by month 60 – two years after the end) to ensure the proper exploitation and sustainability of MILIEU results will continue also in the future and add up to the impact and legacy of the project.

Recommendation to improve research management and administration in Widening countries

Working Paper | | Reale, Carla Maria; Meloni, Alessandro
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This deliverable provides a comprehensive report on the MILIEU project activities carried out within WP5, highlighting the project’s accomplishments, challenges, and strategic recommendations to improve research management and administration in Widening countries.

The report details the MILIEU project’s pivotal role in shaping the discourse on gender equality and inclusivity, serving as a model for future endeavours seeking European funding in Widening Countries. Mentoring and reinforcement activities such as capacity building, high-level training, and the development of research management capabilities are highlighted as critical. Workshops, operational procedure reinforcement, template and documents creation, and the identification of contact persons for research offices are all activities that contribute to increasing external funding and aligning with Horizon Europe eligibility criteria. Furthermore, the report emphasises the importance of training courses in a variety of areas such as fundraising, project management, intellectual property rights, technological transfer, and gender and disability awareness. These courses demonstrate a strategic approach to comprehensive skill set development and knowledge dissemination within the context of a growing country.

Finally, the report identifies a range of challenges encountered during project implementation in Widening Countries, ranging from insufficient information on funding programmes to issues with international networking and co-financing. The report makes a series of strategic recommendations to address these challenges in a systematic manner. These recommendations emphasise the importance of specialised units, training courses, and policies aimed at improving institutional and administrative capacity, encouraging collaboration, and assisting scientists throughout the project lifecycle.