Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Initially associated with party culture, the abuse of the drug ecstasy in Europe has grown exponentially since the 1990s. This abuse has affected a wide range of individuals and it is important that we begin to look at reasons behind use as a way of making appropriate decisions regarding drug policy. Switzerland, a country revered for its drug policy, was the basis of this study. Perceptions of use in this country were much more relaxed than in a country such as the United States and evidence a need for further research in the area of ecstasy use, and perceptions thereof. This study details the need to better educate persons about the effects and dangers of ecstasy use through changes in government funding as it applies to drug policy.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The legalization and subsequent regulation of assisted suicide remains highly controversial in the United States, Switzerland, and around the world. Although Oregon and Swiss physicians are permitted to assist the terminally ill in taking their own lives, the Swiss model of assisted suicide differs in two significant ways: the patient need not be terminally ill and the person providing assistance does not have to be a physician.

In the United States, opponents have long maintained that PAS is inconsistent with a physician’s historical role as healer; would expose vulnerable populations to harm; would encourage patients travel to the state to die; and if legalized, would eventually lead to euthanasia. While many of these concerns have yet to be realized in Oregon, they appear to be occurring in Switzerland. Since medical journals in the United States have begun to explore the question of whether physician-assisted suicide should be limited to only physicians (i.e., the Swiss model), coupled with the fact that most research on the Swiss model stems from the popular press, empirical research on assisted death in Switzerland and the role of non-physicians is very timely.

This paper represents the first phase of a multi-part study focusing on the Swiss model of assisted suicide and the problems associated with its regulation. Subsequent research will continue to focus on the Swiss model and its potential to inform U.S. policy on both the legalization of PAS and the emerging debate concerning the role of both physicians and non-physicians in assisted suicide.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Experience from HIV counselling, confirmed by studies, demonstrates that despite advances in medical treatment and increased ability to work and earn an income, people with HIV/Aids are discriminated against both in recruitment and in the workplace. The results of the comparative legal study demonstrate a higher level of protection against discrimination is available in all four states examined when compared to Switzerland. This has particular relevance in the context of EU Council Directive 2000/78/EC which establishes a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation for member states and specifically includes discrimination based on disability. EU Council Directive 2000/78/EC recognizes as a basic fact that that laws can only be effective when the individual is aware of and understands their rights and how to enforce them. This is demonstrated in the granting of the right to file suit to representative organizations. Additionally, the duty of member states to establish a social dialogue between employers and employees as well as with NGO’s is mooted to promote equality as a common project in which all social groups can and will participate.
The stigmatization and exclusion of persons with HIV/Aids in the workplace runs contrary to an effective policy to fight against HIV/Aids. The need for an effective policy for equal opportunities for persons with HIV/Aids as inherent part of a successful overall HIV/Aids policy is demonstrated worldwide. Discrimination against persons with HIV/Aids in the workplace constitutes a complex social challenge which cannot be met without the clear linkage to legal norms. Moreover, effective protection against discrimination cannot be achieved without the definition of appropriate norms as well as public campaigns to inform and sensitize the public.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Comparative studies of environmental policy effectiveness have traditionally evaluated the influence of structural variables such as access to policy making, political party system, or state-society relations on national policy outcomes. Even though it is increasingly recognized that the effectiveness of environmental policies hinges on their links to the larger project of sustainable development on the one hand, and their perceived legitimacy among the voting public on the other, few studies have analyzed the connection between policy change and voting patterns in this context. In this paper I develop a new method for examining the impact of sustainable mountain development policies on regional political solidarity. I argue that policy effectiveness depends on the ability to promote a regional identity that sustains regional cohesion and lends a common framework for interpreting environmental and socioeconomic issues. Using the Swiss Alps and California's Sierra Nevada as case studies, I describe changing regional approaches to the two ranges during the last 35 years and analyze their impact on regional political solidarity. I apply social network analysis to local ballot results to demonstrate how regional political solidarity waxed and waned in close temporal affinity with the respective evolution of mountain policies. The results reveal that solidarity among Swiss mountain cantons increased when mountain policies appeared in the 1970s but declined when mountain policies lost political salience and support during the 1990s and 2000s. In California, by contrast, political solidarity among mountain counties increased when regional approaches to the range emerged during the 1990s and 2000s.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This paper focuses on two institutional settings in federal states, namely direct democratic institutions and institutionalised intergovernmental cooperation, and analyses how they affect policy diffusion.