6/2011

This article is an introduction of Editor in Chief of the Yearbook, to the other texts contained in the number. It opens the presentation of key issues related to the challenges of modern, global world made by the authors of the articles and indicates the subjects taken by them.

The European Union unites 27 Member States today plays a key role in international relations, affects the shape of the international order, seeks to effectively oppose threats and respond to the challenges of modernity. The article considers the phenomena relating to international security in the aftermath of the crisis in international economic relations, which are the consequence of massive violations of human rights, hunger and disease.

Popular literature is the link that binds together both the crisis and globalization seen as an inevitable process beset the modern world. It disseminates both cultural patterns and responds to the needs and dreams of many people. Builds a vision of a world that seems to be extremely simplified and, worse, impose this vision of a very large group of people. It is an indelible part of the modern world. However, it may jeopardize the continued existence of the intellectual condition of the people.

Article is devoted to the subject of "global health", which is an expression of awareness of health hazards that people bring with them the processes of globalization. Ongoing studies focus on how globalization has an impact on the various determinants of health and determining the factors negatively affecting the health of the population. The task of 'global health' is not only to describe ongoing changes in health status of the population of the world and monitoring the various emerging risks, but also prevent or minimize their impact on the health of the inhabitants of the globe.

The article presents some of the phenomena which result from the globalization process and thus affect the organization of life in contemporary society. The author concentrates on those factors which are connected to changes in human biography, daily experiences, new challenges and opportunities, but also risks. Globalization contributes to many identity problems, since a human being is confronted with an everlasting task of self-determination and modification of plans and life projects. The phenomena resulting from globalization demand being creative, flexible, mobile and open to unpredictable changes. They make our daily life more and more complicated, surprising and unexpected. The author assumes that life changes in the modern world cause that our “every-day reality”, traditionally associated with a certain kind of routine, becomes more and more “uncommon”, meaning atypical. Such a situation require to develop new biographical competences.

Political anthropology focuses on the relationship between politics and culture. Globalization it's important element of interests of this discipline. Relate to the concept of centres and peripheries, and the category of globality and locality. We can distinguish two main ways to interpret globalization. The first is related to Francis Fukuyama, who describes globalization as a process of homogenization of the different parts of the world. The other belongs to Samuel Huntington, who notes that the idea of globalization creates a heteronomous cultural - political world system. These ideas show the processes of globalization with all differences, but related to the perspective of contemporary politics have a common denominator. In both of them dealing with the phenomenon of decentralization and dispersal of power. The global social and political scene becomes the matrix of capabilities, which makes available many different choices and combinations.

We can observe a complex and partly contradictory transformation of authority, until now centred in the state. This transformation of authority affect basic institutions, principles, norms and procedures of contemporary policymaking. This transformation is multi-dimensional and multiscalar process. It affect all aspect of public authority, in particular the distribution of political decision-making power across territorial levels and private actors, and the definition public functions. We observe a world where new institutional forms of mixed public and private governance are emerging.

The European Union [EU] is the political project of the civilization character. Today picture EU is outcome of the one of the problem as an economic crisis in the World. Not well functional character in European Union in last decades of the late twentieth and early twentieth one century has been shaped particular by present economic situation in the World. The main for today weakness European Union to be defined on two key aspects: 1. Prolongation from decades of implementation process in scope of institutional reforms in European Union; 2. Come back to the primacy idea of the National States. The most important matter close to economic situation is for EU challenge into to be contrasted against to weakness role in the global World in the now days. The particular the Lisbon Treaty should be determined political, social and economic key factors in the international configuration. Poland also in frame of the owe Polish presidency in EU dated from 01.07.2011 to 31.12.2012 has determined the program for its reality implementation as a half year leader in Council of European Union. In the paper I would like to examine the hypothesis that Poland could contribute to an effective and dynamic development of Polish – a modern and competitive - economy and have impact on the stimulation of structural development in the European region as well as to play a significant role in the international arena. In the paper I have also underlined the achievements of the Polish presidency as well as its role within the European Community, could include intergovernmental nature of collaboration in the European sub-region.

An article contains description of bilateral and multilateral territorial quarrels between Arctic Sea’s states inside the North Pole Circle. Author presents controversies which refer to covering o exclusive economic zones of the United States, Canada, Norway and Russia and also dispute over Hans Island between Canada and Denmark. Big part of the article contains transit character of Northwest Passage and Russian claims to continental shelf up to the Lomonosov Ridge. In conclusion author states economic background of Arctic quarrels makes impossible their solution in legal or political sphere. According to author’s opinion persisting of ‘race to the North Pole’ depends on holding present tendencies of offensive Russia activity and passive policy of other countries in Arctic region, especially the United States.