Glocalization

This paper received the "Akira Nakamura Award" at the 2020 Asian Association for Public Administration International Conference held on September 25, 2020, at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Xuhui Campus, Shanghai, China via zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic situation.  The Akira Nakamura Award is given to the scholar(s) of the best paper presented at the AAPA Annual Conference.
The theme of the conference is “Towards Sustainable Urban Governance in Asia: New Theory and Innovative Practice”

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Natural resources are the source of all products produced and manufactured around the world. It is a fundamental component of all secondary products, such as food, clothing, shelter, automobiles, and others. The Philippines is rich in mineral and natural resources, including a wide variety of locally extracted raw materials. These materials are obtained and collected from the natural environment by the primary sector, for human consumption and use, and as a component for converting them into new products, either for sale or for export by the secondary sector; while the tertiary sector provides services to the public. The role of the primary sector is crucial for the sustainability of the local industry. They are the bedrock of social and economic development that contributes to the Philippine economy. While the primary sector plays a major role in the country's economic growth, the 2020 Report survey conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the primary sectors are one of the poorest of the poor. The largest incidence of poverty among the core sectors was recorded in 2018 in 31.6%, 26.2%, 24.5%, and 23.9% of farmers, fishermen, rural residents, and children belonging to families below the official poverty rate, respectively. These sectors also recorded 40.8%, 36.9%, 34.0%, and 33.5% as the highest levels of poverty in 2015 (PSA 2020). This study was conducted by the researchers to help the primary sector to improve their economic activity, and to have a stable income through the creation of the Market Mobile Application. Application software for mobile devices such as mobile phones, smartphones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablets, or any other devices that can directly connect the primary sector (seller) to people (buyers) anytime and anywhere. It will provide the primary sector with new technologies to improve their livelihoods and develop their knowledge and skills using mobile technology as a platform to increase their productive activities, obtain information on daily weather conditions, and communication channels. Eventually, this innovation would turn them into entrepreneurs and business owners. This research will also highlight the economic activity involved in a sales transaction of the Primary Sector-to-Buyer (Ps2B) through a mobile application. A mixed research methodology for quantitative and qualitative data was used in this study. A structured survey questionnaire in the Four Point Likert Scale was distributed to the respondents. To support the results of the survey, the researchers conducted a scoping review of other relevant studies. Both results were synthesized and analyzed using the Triangulation Analysis.

The “Global Culture and Aesthetic Cosmopolitanism” International Conference will discuss the meanings of cultural globalization, its mechanical and hybridizing effects, and its cosmopolitan consequences, from the perspective of global culture and its injunctions through various mediums and objects of cultural consumption (music, TV, books, video games, movies, series, newspapers, comics, blogs, social media, festivals, national heritage). In particular, the conference intends to explore and specify the aesthetic features and foundations of cosmopolitan and translocal cultures. How and under what conditions do the aesthetic conditions of production and reception matter for building cosmopolitan cultures?

The paper examines the critical role of global sport within Qatar’s international strategy, most notably through the successful bid to stage the 2022 football World Cup finals. Our research draws particularly on interviews with key stakeholders in the Qatari sport system, as well as fieldwork in Qatar, and analysis of relevant documents and secondary materials. Our discussion is separated into three main parts. First, we set out our theoretical framework, which draws on the concepts of globalization and soft power; to assist analysis of Qatar’s engagement with global sport we introduce the two further concepts of ‘glocal consciousness’ and ‘soft disempowerment’. Second, with reference to these theoretical tools, we discuss three key themes that emerged mainly from our interviews on Qatar and global sport: exhibiting Qatar’s supremacies as a microstate; the pursuit of peace, security and integrity; and confronting national health crises. Third, we explore issues of soft disempowerment and reputational risk with regard to these three themes and in particular critical international comment surrounding Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 World Cup. We conclude by arguing that Qatar’s soft disempowerment, although damaging in the short-term, leaves the door open for the state to respond in a positive manner, regenerating its soft power capabilities in the process.