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Without denying the importance of economies, the author underlines the necessity of analyzing the significance of Asia-Pacific as a political entity. The member States of the economics-oriented international organizations use the economic image of the region to gain political leverage at a regional or global level. This leads to an interrogation on the reality of « Asia-Pacific as a coherent political entity. The international relations in this area of the world also show an original pattern, insofar as the leadership of the « great powers » is questioned by « middle-sized » powers. The dialogue on collective security began recently and is a long way from achieving peace and stability in the region. It nevertheless shows the willingness of the Asia-Pacific States to overcome the difficulties of the post Cold War new world order

In 1994, the provincial government of Quebec announced the abandonment of the Grande Baleine hydroelectric megaproject. Many reasons were given: decreasing demand, drop in the foreign market, pressure from Native and ecological lobby groups. To analyse this phenomenon, this paper examines the Judge Malouf's decision of 1973, that was overturned by the Court of Appeal and followed, in 1975, by the Convention de la Baie James et du Nord québécois. Still in effect, this treaty is now being contested. However, to understand its full meaning, we have to consider the spirit and the letter of the Convention instead of the attacks against it. Then the premises of a political encounter between First Nations people and Quebecers can be discovered.

Keywords: bureaucratie, Confédération canadienne, Convention de la Baie James et du Nord québécois, droits autochtones, électricité, Hydro-Québec, jugement Malouf, Nord, Province de Québec, rapprochement Autochtones-Québécois, bureaucracy, Canadian confédération, Convention de la Baie James et du Nord québécois, First Nations rights, electricity, Hydro-Québec, Judge Malouf's décision, North, Province of Québec, First Nations people and Quebecers coming together

The fight against irregular migration is a key element of the European immigration and asylum policy. The European Union plays a major role in the struggle against irregular migration through the police cooperation between its Member States. This cooperation has progressively been consolidated by the establishment of specific EU structures and programs. The police cooperation against irregular migration covers a large scale of activities including the control of information, visa and return policies as well as integrated management of the frontiers. The synergy between the EU and its Member States in this field has important consequences on the perception of the notions of "frontier" and "internal security". Moreover, it has a deep impact on the structures, the role and the competencies of the police in Europe. As such, the said cooperation results into the criminalisation of the migration, which in turn legitimizes the reinforcement of police cooperation.This article aims at studying the process of the Europeanization of the police cooperation in the fight against irregular migration within the EU. It asserts that the reinforcement of the said cooperation is a sine qua non for the effective implementation of EU programs in this field. The article also examines the consequences of the police cooperation in terms of democratic legitimacy and of fundamental rights protection, together with the future perspectives in the police cooperation within the EU.

The historiography of the “Pays d'en haut”, as a specific historical object, may seem relatively stammering. The term “Pays d'en haut” may have been perceived as too soft or too vague, geographically and conceptually, and historians may have preferred to invest the history of Ontario, Michigan, or Manitoba by using other geographic categories (New France, Canada, Great Lakes, Prairies), or more clearly analytical grids (frontier, hinterland, periphery). However, the expression deserves to be valued insofar as it served as a long-term mental and geographical framework. As such, it constitutes an object of research in itself, which can encourage a renewed study of the historical processes at work in the spaces concerned, from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century. This definition of the “Pays d'en haut” as an object of history is certainly not self-evident: it implies, first of all, a reflection on the object “Pays d'en haut” in history, on how this framework has been built historically through the practices, representations and imaginations of social actors. In order to fully legitimize this approach, we need also to analyze how historiography has, in turn, ignored, neglected, or, on the contrary, emphasized this expression as the space it designates.

The Natural Marine Reserve of La Reunion (RNMR) was established in 2007 along a weakened fringing reef which extends over forty kilometers along the western coast. These last decades, this latter was submitted to a rapid and dense urbanization, namely due to its attractive seaside assets. Simultaneously, increasing coastal activity and emergence of new practices put new issues forward, such as potential impacts on the environment, and potential conflicts that may occur. Besides, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) effectiveness cannot longer be evaluated from biological markers only, and socio-economical parameters tend to be taken into account by high national bodies (French Agency for MPA) and managers during management plan development. From 2010, a vast French national campaign was launched to assess socio-economical needs in terms of markers, and to develop a common methodological framework for marine and coastal uses monitoring. Through this study, the RNMR equipped themselves with a methodological and operational framework for uses monitoring in order to develop and integrate markers to their management plans, permitting the measurement of management effectiveness. Between January and July 2010, 14 uses including swimming, beach going, water sports and fishing have been monitored using an ultra-light aircraft and a camera .48 flights were planned over this period according to a temporal stratification (Summer/Winter, Holidays/School days, week/weekend and morning/afternoon). Data were integrated to a Geographic Information Base offering a range of spatial analysis and statistics tools. Results show a heterogeneous users distribution in time and space which peaks can reach nearly 10,000 users. Half of users remains concentrated on a small portion of the coastline equivalent to 8% of the total coastal length of 44 kilometers and spread over four main sites (Boucan-Canot, Ermitage, La Saline and Etang-Salé) which correspond to the sites the most equipped with amenities (coral-free swimming areas, coral sand) and services (parks, bars, lifeguards). In addition, this uses' monitoring protocol has many potentialities in terms of management and scientific accumulation of learning outcomes, which are set forth in discussion.

Keywords: Fréquentation littorale, Aire Marine Protégée, île de La Réunion, suivis aéroportés, Systèmes d'Information Géographique, Base d'Information Géographique, Coastal uses, Marine Protected Areas, Reunion Island, Aerial surveys, Geographical Information Systems, Geographical Information Database

Since the 1960s, most Southeast Asian countries have managed to reach greater food security, largely by focusing on output increase. The postcolonial state was instrumental in improving agricultural production in Indonesia and Malaysia; however the state policies have been changing especially since the turn of the millennium. In order to address the transformations which have taken place in contemporary agricultural policies in those states, we ask the following question: What are the strategies deployed by Indonesian and Malaysian states to insure food security? To answer this question, policies pertaining to the two most important agricultural sectors in both countries, rice and palm oil, are analysed. Both states have pursued policies of self-sufficiency in regards with rice production. Despite the adoption of liberalization policies since the end of the 1990s in both countries, many mechanisms ensure the regulation of the rice economy. In parallel, Malaysian and Indonesian administrations have been aiming to significantly expand cash crop production, especially oil palm. In both cases, the state played a key role in the development of palm oil production while supporting smallholdings. However, as states have encouraged cash crop production for exports, earlier objectives of food self-sufficiency have been abandoned to a large extent. Relinquishing food self-sufficiency as a priority appears risky especially in Indonesia where a large part of the population in rural and urban remains food insecure.

Keywords: politiques agricoles, agriculture, sécurité alimentaire, riziculture, palmier à huile, agro-industrie, Indonésie, Malaisie, Asie du Sud-Est, agricultural policies, agriculture, food security, rice, palm oil, agribusiness, Indonesia, Malaysia, Southeast Asia, East

The choice of international bioprospecting agreements and free market based solution, as means of implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) goals relating to the conservation of biodiversity and access and benefit sharing, may reveal in many respects harmful to southern players, specially indigenous communities. In practice, because of the unequal bargaining strength of the parties, these bilateral agreements may be easily exploited by the most powerful part to become a tool of biopiracy. This is the case when the conditions of the CBD regarding prior informed consent and fair and equitable benefit sharing are not complied with. In all cases, these agreements cannot protect traditional knowledge from biopiracy in a satisfactory way nor be a reliable alternative to a multilateral compulsory system as that advocated today by the countries of the South within the framework of the Council for the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) working group relating to the review of the provisions of TRIPs Agreement.

On 21 July 2010, the President of the United States of America promulgated the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act relating to stock market transactions in the country. Some provisions of this law have effects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, namely section 1502 entitled "Conflict Minerals". This paper analyzes the legality of this section under international law, regarding the principle of state sovereignty and the notion of the reserved area. It shows that the section 1502 appears to recognize the role of the DRC in the management of its natural resources, but wonders if a conflict is possible between, on one hand, the powers attributed in this section to US authorities in the struggle against the conflict minerals, and, on the other hand, the powers that the DRC must exercise over its natural resources and on economic activities taking place on its territory. Finally, it warns that with the issue of conflict minerals there is an emerging risk for the DRC to see the management of its natural resources internationalized.