Government of Norway

The article offers an insider’s account of how the Paris Agreement on climate change was reached. Focusing on participation and ambition, it describes the efforts to include a long-term temperature goal, expectations for regular ratcheting up of climate efforts, and provisions for tracking global progress. The author argues that a shift from the earlier top-down approaches to setting targets, to a bottom-up, self-determined approach has spurred participation and made it easier to reach agreement. In addition, the Paris Agreement anchors a clearer direction of travel than before. The article also discusses the negotiations of the provisions in the Agreement to drive increased national climate mitigation efforts over time. Finally, the author considers the role of conference diplomacy, particularly the need for inclusive leadership. It is argued that the French Presidency combined a transparent negotiations process with a clear sense of direction that helped achieve a comprehensive and ambitious outcome. The role of back-channel talks as part of effective conference diplomacy is also discussed.

The puna/páramo grasslands span across the highest altitudes of the tropical Andes, and their ecosystem dynamics are still poorly understood. In this study we examined the above-ground biomass and developed species specific and multispecies power-law allometric equations for four tussock grass species in Peruvian high altitude grasslands, considering maximum height (hmax), elliptical crown area and elliptical basal area. Although these predictors are commonly used among allometric literature, they have not previously been used for estimating puna grassland biomass. Total above-ground biomass was estimated to be of 6.7 ± 0.2 Mg ha−1 (3.35 ± 0.1 Mg C ha−1). All allometric relationships fitted to similar power-law models, with basal area and crown area as the most influential predictors, although the fit improved when tussock maximum height was included in the model. Multispecies allometries gave better fits than the other species-specific equations, but the best equation should be used depending on the species composition of the target grassland. These allometric equations provide an useful approach for measuring above-ground biomass and productivity in high-altitude Andean grasslands, where destructive sampling can be challenging and difficult because of the remoteness of the area. These equations can be also applicable for establishing above-ground reference levels before the adoption of carbon compensation mechanisms or grassland management policies, as well as for measuring the impact of land use changes in Andean ecosystems.

Transfection of human oral squamous carcinoma cells (clone E10) with mimics for unexpressed miR-20b or miR-363-5p, encoded by the miR-106a-363 cluster (miR-20b, miR-106a, miR-363-3p, or miR-363-5p), caused 40-50% decrease in proliferation. Transfection with mimics for miR-18a or miR-92a, encoded by the miR-17-92 cluster (all members being expressed in E10 cells), had no effect on proliferation. In contrast, mimic for the sibling miRNA-19a yielded about 20% inhibition of proliferation. To investigate miRNA involvement profiling of miRNA transcriptomes were carried out using deoxyoligonucleotide microarrays. In transfectants for miR-19a, or miR-20b or miR-363-5p most differentially expressed miRNAs exhibited decreased expression, including some miRNAs encoded in paralogous miR-17-92-or miR-106b-25 cluster. Only in cells transfected with miR-19a mimic significantly increased expression of miR-20b observed-about 50-fold as judged by qRT-PCR. Further studies using qRT-PCR showed that transfection of E10 cells with mimic for miRNAs encoded by miR-17-92 - or miR-106a-363 - or the miR-106b-25 cluster confirmed selective effect on expression on sibling miRNAs. We conclude that high levels of miRNAs encoded by the miR-106a-363 cluster may contribute to inhibition of proliferation by decreasing expression of several sibling miRNAs encoded by miR-17-92 or by the miR-106b-25 cluster. The inhibition of proliferation observed in miR-19a-mimic transfectants is likely caused by the miR-19a-dependent increase in the levels of miR-20b and miR-106a. Bioinformatic analysis of differentially expressed miRNAs from miR-106a, miR-20b and miR-363-5p transfectants, but not miR-92a transfectants, yielded significant associations to "Cellular Growth and Proliferation" and "Cell Cycle." Western blotting results showed that levels of affected proteins to differ between transfectants, suggesting that different anti-proliferative mechanisms may operate in these transfectants.

Results are presented to show that protein A from Staphylococcus aureus elicits delayed hypersensitivity reactions in sensitized animals as well as early reactions mediated by immunoglobulins in normal and sensitized animals. Delayed hypersensitivity to protein A can be induced in guinea pigs and rabbits by a single injection of 50 μg protein A in complete Freund's adjuvant and is detected after 10 days. It can also be transferred from sensitive to normal animals by lymphoid cells but not by immune sera.

During the last decade, the Latin American and Caribbean region has experienced unprecedented natural resources abundance. This book highlights how transparency can help realize the benefits and reduce negative externalities associated with the extractive industries in the region. A central message is that high-quality and well-managed information is critical to ensure the transparent and effective governance of the sector. The insights from experiences in the region can help policymakers design and implement effective regulatory reforms and adopt international standards that contribute to this goal. This is particularly important at a time when the recent boom experienced by extractives in the region may be coming to an end.

Abstract Violence against social activists is a global phenomenon, increasingly prevalent in democratic and conflict-affected states. Violence targeting women activists, in particular, highlights the intersection of gender-based discrimination and the risks associated with activism. We theorize that the killings of women activists reduce both women’s motivation to run for office and voters’ willingness to elect women candidates, driven by fears of further retaliation from armed groups and a demand for protective masculine norms in politics. Using novel fine-grained data on violence against activists, we demonstrate that the killings of women activists in Colombia decrease women’s candidacies and lower voter support for women in mayoral elections. Additional analyses suggest that women’s visibility during peace negotiations and prior territorial control by left-wing FARC rebels mitigated this effect, emphasizing how variation in gender norms can alter the political consequences of violence. Our findings reveal that considering the gender of victims offers important insights into how exposure to political violence influences democratic elections.

This study employs complexity theory to elucidate coordination within public policy meta-organisations and explains how changes in the context of a meta-organisation affect the complexity of coordination. We offer an analytical framework linking relational and structural attributes of complex systems: self-organisation, multiple systems and interdependence, coevolution, and nonlinearity with three types of coordination: vertical, horizontal, and hybrid. Based on a comparative study of two case meta-organisations, the Intermunicipal Political Council and World Trade Organisation, the findings suggest that one attribute of a complex system cannot determine the method of coordination, and only their combination provides a comprehensive understanding of coordination in meta-organisations. Furthermore, the results highlight the pivotal role of the context of meta-organisations in determining a coordination method. This study establishes a theoretical partnership between meta-organisation and complex systems, thereby reducing the abstractness of complexity theory in public administration and management studies. Additionally, its contribution includes a comparative case study, addressing a gap in the meta-organisation literature mainly focused on single-case studies. Future research should consider other attributes of complex systems and evaluate the proposed analytical framework in other contexts, including the national public policy meta-organisations.

Radioactive protein A is actively taken up by rabbit peritoneal macrophages in the presence of immune rabbit IgG, most probably due to an immune reaction leaving the Fc sites available for macrophage adherence. The low rate of protein A uptake by guinea pig peritoneal macrophages in the presence of normal or immune guinea pig sera is apparently a result of the extensive Fc‐interaction with protein A of the IgG in these sera. Delayed hypersensitivity to protein A of the donor animals does not influence the rate of uptake.

We have audited the statements of contributions received, expenditure incurred and fund balances by donor ("the financial statements") of the

Abstract Populism in Norwegian politics has primarily received research attention in light of the rise to prominence of the Populist Radical Right, Fremskrittspartiet (the Progress Party). Following recent advances in thinking about populism, we broaden the scope of this review beyond this particular political party and how it has employed populism to advance its political agenda. In doing so, we connect what we today understand as populism to literature on the foundational features of political culture and state building in Norway, which emphasizes the centre–periphery cleavage. In this broader perspective, the Progress Party has still played a central role in supplying populist political narratives in Norwegian politics since its inception in 1973. However, a whole range of other political parties have also adopted populist postures of their own. In particular, at many different political junctures, the centre–periphery cleavage has been combined with populist postures from the 1880s until today.

Purpose This article investigates the relationship between centre leaders and providers in Norwegian Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) centres, studying the shared responsibility for implementing national framework goals. The study examines both public and private ECEC services, focusing on the tensions between the administrative capacity of providers and the autonomy of centre leaders. We ask: How do centre leaders assess providers’ resources and priorities, and how do they perceive their professional autonomy within these structures? How do public and private providers view their responsibilities towards centre leaders? Design/methodology/approach The research employs a mixed-methods approach, including data from a survey sent to all ECEC centre leaders in Norway in 2022, qualitative interviews with nine centre leaders and qualitative interviews with 14 providers. The study builds on multi-level governance theory and draws on concepts of administrative capacity and tensions of autonomy and control to analyse the centre leader–provider relationship. Findings The study identifies four main categories of centre leader–provider relationships based on levels of autonomy and capacity. We find that centre leader autonomy varies significantly based on provider capacity. Some centre leaders enjoy high autonomy and access to well-coordinated networks, enhancing leadership capacity, while others face constraints due to provider-imposed standardisation or limited resources. Originality/value The article finds that the centre leader–provider relationship significantly influences leadership in ECEC, impacting service quality. The analysis highlights a paradox between standardisation and local adaptation, suggesting that current efforts to strengthen provider responsibility might exacerbate inequalities. Further research is needed to address these challenges and ensure balanced, equitable ECEC services.

Abstract In an era where parties are allegedly failing to represent their members and voters, this chapter outlines how Norwegian party organizations persevere as vehicles for participatory and representative linkage between citizens and the state. In terms of participatory linkage, the chapter first demonstrates that Norwegian parties maintain a mass party structure with avenues for membership involvement, despite comprehensive party finance transparency regulations and relying on the state for funding and (indirectly) staff. Second, the chapter reveals that Norwegian parties carry out their representative linkage function by securing descriptive representation of women, even if interparty differences persist. Norwegian parties furthermore substantially change their party manifestos between the first draft and the final version. Hereby, the analysis outlines the complexities of modern party organizations: although they might be immersed in the state and resemble public utilities in one regard, they may still function as transmission belts between citizens and the state in another.

Except royal castles in major Norwegian towns, only two stone castles were built by Norwegian aristocrats in the High Middle Ages. All other aristocrats lived in wooden buildings. Of these only Lagmannsstova at Aga in Hardanger remains. It has been attributed to the appeal court judge Sigurd Brynjulffson, though to have been constructed at the end of the thirteenth century as one unique building. However, investigations show that the remaining hall made up less than onethird of a building complex containing two halls, a chapel, kitchen and living quarters, all built at the first half of the thirteenth century. Investigations also show that the powers of the appeal court judge were drastically expanded at the same time, not at least by the Norwegian Code of the realm of 1274. By relating judicial powers and manor house, we get a quite different image of the Norwegian aristocracy and bureaucracy in the High Middle Ages than the popular one of an egalitarian peasant society.

Abstract This paper examines the participation of Algerian women in the 2019 Hirak protests and their efforts to claim gendered and economic recognition within a society shaped by authoritarian and patriarchal structures. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and forty-three interviews conducted in 2019 and 2023, the study explores how women navigate both public protest spaces and more intimate “sociospaces”—such as markets, schools, homes, and informal gatherings within the Hirak—to assert claims for autonomy and recognition. The article introduces the concept of a “gendered moral contract,” showing how Algerian women across social classes mobilize moral, religious, and familial frameworks to demand state-backed compensation for unpaid domestic labor by positioning themselves as essential contributors to family and society. By linking these claims to broader economic resources, including oil wealth, women negotiate recognition within culturally intelligible forms. This study contributes to understanding agency and strategies within social movements, highlighting how women employ culturally grounded, morally framed approaches to frame and share their demands under restrictive political and social conditions.

Social enterprises must be understood based on the local and national contexts they are embedded in, which influence how the organizations are formed and designed.How the development of social enterprises differs in developed and developing countries is less understood.In this chapter we explore external drivers and the differences in the ecosystems surrounding social enterprises in Norway and South Africa (SA), two countries with radically different institutional preconditions.Norway represents a governance model where most of the production of welfare lay within the public sector.However, the recent need for restructuring of the welfare state has led to structural changes which better facilitate the development of a social entrepreneurship ecosystem.SA, on the other hand, has a large institutional void caused by a small public welfare system where SA social entrepreneurs are active.The study was designed as a multiple case study of social enterprises and collaborating actors in their ecosystems.The data consists of 23 interviews in addition to statistics from the two contexts.Main findings are that social entrepreneurship in Norway has developed as a supplement to the public services in small niches strongly regulated by policies, while the SA social entrepreneurs are more numerous and often act as independent service providers in a more diverse ecosystem.Despite the availability of economic resources in Norway, social enterprises report few available sources stimulating social entrepreneurship and the presence of various obstacles.Meanwhile, a developed system for philanthropy, e.g., microfinance, fair trade, and religious communities, contribute to a more diverse ecosystem in SA.