GLOBALCODES (globalization, conflicts, security and development) is a research group of the Blanquerna School of Communication and International Relations at the Ramon Llull University. The group was formally acknowledged in 2017 by the Generalitat de Catalunya (AGAUR) (2017 SGR 873).
The main aim of the research group is to contribute to the scientific debate on how to respond to global challenges of globalization, sustainable development and security, including both conflicts and other threats, through the lenses of a variety of disciplines, such as international relations, communications, legal, economic, political and social science glances. In particular, the group seeks to respond to three broad questions which provide a common basis for the project and research initiatives:
What are the characteristics, the nature and the outcomes of the different types of global responses to the challenges linked to globalization, development, conflicts and security more generally?
Which key international actors are involved in the design, implementation and evaluation of the various international and political strategies in these areas?
To what extent do societies, communities, and different non-state actors, including civil society, movements, groups, associations and other relevant categories, especially women, engage in social participation and local appropriation in contexts where global and international policies and strategies are deployed?
Scientific challenges
With this context in mind, there are three main scientific challenges.
The first challenge is to generate both theoretical and empirical knowledge in a field of growing importance in the social and political sciences, public international law, international relations, and communications. The group combines both qualitative and quantitative approaches, including mixed methodologies, to the analysis of these issues, so as to apply its analytical lenses to different places and areas of the world to the study of specific and key questions in the different fields in order to draw conclusions and assessments, which may or may not be extrapolated to the global situation as a whole. The aim in terms of theory is to study the ways in which conflict, development and security are inter-related.
The second scientific challenge is to disseminate the results and knowledge derived from the research to society. The group aims to use research results in order to engage in dialogue and to provide new understandings which could be useful to both Spanish and international public policy.
The third challenge, which is central in the entire process, is to build a network of international collaborators working and researching in the same areas and to create a wide-ranging and reliable domain of voices, analysis and experience in order to consolidate and strengthen methodologies, dynamics and outcomes in the various research projects.
On a strategic level, GLOBALCODES is engaged in a variety of initiatives designed to respond to the different scientific challenges raised. Firstly, work is undertaken in projects; this helps to provide a focus for objectives and possible results within the different work areas. Secondly, an action-participative (IAP) methodology is employed which combines theoretical work with field work. Thirdly, we aim to disseminate, corroborate and debate the main findings in leading congresses and seminars. Lastly, we publish findings of the various studies not only in high impact journals but in other journals and platforms which are able to transfer knowledge of the results obtained to society as a whole.
The three research areas should inspire different projects, although they do share most of the objectives and they should work in a coordinated manner, in the hope of stimulating common research and publishing projects.
In that sense, as has been established in the previous section, the three areas would be arranged into three common frames:
Analyzing the nature, characteristics and outcomes of the type of global respones to challenges linked to conflicts, development and security
Understanding the role of international agents in the design, implementation and evaluation of the different international policies and strategies in these areas
Exploring the degree of social participation and local appropriation adopted by societies and communities, particularly women