Volume 32, Nº 2 (2024)

Introduction. In multi-ethnic regions, which include the North Caucasus and the South of Russia in general, reducing the risks of identity conflict, in particular the conflictogenic potential of ethnic identity, is one of the priority tasks of public administration. The object of this policy, first of all, is the youth of the region, from whose ranks the activists of protest movements are recruited. This situation requires monitoring the social well-being of young people in the context of the combination of all-Russian and ethno-confessional identity. The aim of the study is to identify conflictogenic risks arising in the process of sociocultural interaction in multi-ethnic youth communities of border regions.
Materials and Methods. The empirical basis of the research state of social identity of youth in the North Caucasus was the results of surveys conducted by the authors in March – April 2022 and 2023 among students of regional universities. It was assumed that the aggravation of the geopolitical situation and a special military operation acted as a trigger for the transformation of the social identity of youth, which has a different trajectory for groups of youth representing the peoples of the North Caucasus and Russians living in the region. An emotional assessment of closeness with communities of different taxonomic series made it possible to establish the significance of all-Russian identity in comparison with ethnic, regional and confessional ones.
Results. A comparative analysis of the collected material indicates that the most significant consolidating values and symbols that unite the youth of the region are the common state and state symbols. By choosing these values, as well as the values of Russian culture and the general historical past, young people who consider themselves to be the peoples of the North Caucasus have come closer to the value profile of Russian youth in the region. In the consciousness of Russian youth, there is a growth in sociocultural values, the significance of which in their ideas has approached all-Russian civil and political values. There continues to be a trend aimed at sociocultural integration and erasing ethnocultural differences among the youth of the groups under consideration.
Discussion and Conclusion. All-Russian and ethnic identities among young people living in the region are complementary, not competitive. The challenges the country faces are viewed by them as personal and socially significant. This trend is becoming a significant factor that reduces the conflict-generating risks of ethnocultural foundations of identity in youth communities of the North Caucasus. Scientificresults will contribute to the understanding of sociocultural threats and risks of conflict in multiethnic youth communities of frontier regions, and will be useful to the scientific community and government authorities.

Introduction. The article studies patent activity in the regions of Russia. The relevance of the research in this area is determined by the importance of the innovation component in economic growth, as well as by the established targets in the Concept of Technological Development of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2030. The aim of the study is to identify possible types and directions of patent policy for different groups of Russian regions on the basis of patent activity factors.
Materials and Methods. The empirical material for the analysis includes data from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Federal State Statistics Service (FSSS) for 2012‒2021. We use linear regression to identify the key factors affecting the patent activity of the regions. The method of hierarchical clustering allowed us to identify groups of regions according to their patent activity.
Results. The linear regression showed the statistically significant dependence of regional patent activity on I-activity level of organizations, the number of active fixed broadband Internet subscribers per 100 population and the average of internal costs for research and development per 1 organization in the region. The hierarchical clustering distinguished 5 clusters of regions: “The Leader”, “Innovation centers”, “Regions of high manufacturability”, “Old R&D regions” and “Regions-outsiders”. The authors also formulate definitions of the regional patent policy and the national patent policy and present typologies of state patent policy.
Discussions and Conclusions. Based on empirical and theoretical analysis, recommendations on further directions for the development of active patent policies were given to groups of regions. The results of the study can be applied in the development and implementation of scientific and technological regional development strategies, and will also be useful to specialists and government officials involved in regulating patent activity in the regions.

Introduction. Gender inequality in the workplace is not a new phenomenon, yet gender differences in working conditions and womenʼs involvement in the workplace are poorly understood. Women are often discriminated against in the workplace and their working conditions and wages are substandard. On their own, they are not always able to improve their working and social life and achieve better protection at work. This study aims to explore the working conditions and risks faced by migrant women working in one of the oldest and largest STM textile factories in Jammu and Kashmir, India.
Materials and Methods. The purposive sample consisted of 240 migrant women from the STM textile factory. They were interviewed in four work colonies and outer residential areas through a series of interviews. The study utilizes mixed methods ‒ quantitative and qualitative. Observation, interview series were used to quantify the data and provide detailed qualitative information.
Results. It was found that there were cases of injuries at work reported by the migrant women workers at CTM. Only in a few of the serious cases employees were monetarily compensated. Not all employees are provided with the essential protection kits for dealing with the hazardous chemicals and toxins therefore poor health, ailments and sores, fatigue, cramps were majorly reported by the respondents. Discrimination on the basis of gender, conditions of harassment, physical violence and other workplace hazards to mental, emotional, and physical health were reported by the migrant women workers.
Discussion and Conclusion. The authors concluded that migrant women continue to work in hazardous conditions, putting their health at risk and becoming victims of exploitation. The findings underscore the need for inclusive policies and interventions, as well as a reassessment of existing labour practices, to address issues that contribute to the vulnerability of migrant workers. The article's contributions will be useful to regional authorities, labour and women's rights advocates who are interested in addressing the specific challenges of this vulnerable group. This empirical study may benefit scholars interested in the topics of gender, migration, and working conditions.

Introduction. The issue of interaction between the government and the population has long been actively discussed in the scientific literature, since the degree of involvement of the population in the management of the region and the municipality shows the level of democracy of society. The government and the population are relatively independent communities with their own interests, which may not coincide, the alienation of the population from management generates corruption and dictatorship of the government. The scientific problem is the development of mechanisms for involving the population to participate in the management of the territory and strengthening the motivation of officials of regional and municipal authorities to interact with the population. One of the ways to solve this problem is to improve the mechanisms and forms of interaction. The purpose of the article is to investigate the extent of the spread of new forms of electronic interaction between the government and the population and to assess them.
Materials and Methods. Analytical materials of research on the subject, key legal acts regulating the process of interaction between the government and the population were selected and summarized. The method of analyzing statistical data presented on the official websites of the Government of the Sverdlovsk Region and the Administration of the municipal formation of the city of Yekaterinburg was used. The indicators for 10 years (from 2013 to 2023) on the number of citizens’ appeals and their forms, as well as reports of the election commission of the Sverdlovsk region on remote voting, are analyzed.
Results. The tendency of the predominance of electronic forms of interaction over written appeals and personal meetings of citizens with government representatives has been revealed. Electronic forms are replacing classical forms (voting in elections at polling stations) and are becoming an integral part of new processes such as proactive budgeting. Electronic forms facilitate the interaction process in terms of saving money and time, but at the same time they also generate new challenges (increasing formalism, susceptibility to technical failures, distrust of technology, etc.).
Discussion and Conclusion. It is noted that the new forms of electronic interaction are a big step forward, the transition from the practice of simply informing the population to the direct involvement of citizens in the management and distribution of budgetary funds. Great expectations are placed on the new electronic forms; it is assumed that they will increase the activity of the population. However, along with the obvious advantages, they give rise to new problems that require further study and implementation in the practice of interaction between the authorities and the population.

Introduction. Assessing the volume and structure of trade, particularly in multimodal transportation, is a challenging task, especially when the aim of such an assessment is to identify bottlenecks and remove them. Methodological approaches for solving such problems can vary significantly and include rather complex techniques such as object-oriented programming and network models, allowing to reflect the discrete character of tradeflow. Nevertheless, considering the significant role of international transportation infrastructure in the modern global economy, solving this problem appears relevant and has practical significance. The purpose of this study is to develop a methodology for a discrete, high-frequency evaluation of the volume of goods transit along the Trans-Caspian corridor of the International “North-South” Transport Corridor, whereas the objective is the trade volume along this route.
Materials and Methods. The methodology of this work consists of two components – data processing and analysis and model construction, based on the standard dynamic model. The first component is necessary due to the limited character of data on goods transported via the International “North-South” Transport Corridor. In the second part of the study, the corridor is divided into several sections and the changes in the turnover for each section are analyzed using the dynamic standard method.
Results. The barriers to the development of the Trans-Caspian Corridor and the interests of participants in its operation are assessed. A toolkit for evaluating the performance of the corridor is created, considering the bottle neck in the transportation of goods via Iran. Statistical data are processed, and problematic times and sections of the corridor are identified. Recommendations on the development of the Trans-Caspian and international transport corridors in modern conditions are formulated.
Discussion and Conclusion. The main results and conclusions of this study include the authorsʼ system for monitoring and regulating the flow of goods along the corridor; identifying imbalances in the operation of the Trans-Caspian Corridor and International “North-South” Transport Corridor as a system; and possible solutions to align these imbalances. Recommendations for the development of the Trans-Caspian corridor and the International “North-South” Transport Corridor in modern conditions. This study has practical implications for logistics companies, financial institutions, Russian exporters, and authorities of economic blocs.

Introduction. The interstate transit of the Northern Black Sea ‒ Azov region, which took place under the conditions of the armed conflict, was associated with a large-scale geodemographic and socio-economic transformation of regional societies. The aim of the study is to investigate the available demographic resources and production potential of the Cherson and Zaporozhye Regions, to determine the most likely directions of their economic dynamics.
Materials and Methods. The analytical and empirical base of the study, in addition to scientific sources, included collections of statistics, as well as media publications documenting the demographic and economic dynamics of the studied regions in 2022–2023. The methodological basis was a systematic approach that allowed combining the methods used in demography, social and economic geography with elements of structural-functional approach and discourse analysis of information obtained from media publications.
Results. It was found that during the spring and summer of 2022, there was a significant decrease in the available population of both areas as a result of outmigration. Moreover, the losses of the urban population were higher than those of the rural population. The maximum population losses were suffered by the Dnieper cities and the settlement network of the frontline zone of the Zaporozhye Region. In both areas, the age structure of the population has significantly deformed (a significant increase in the proportion of elderly and old people), the shortage of specialists in the main areas of socio-economic activity has sharply worsened. It is recorded that in 2022–2023 the only major sphere of economic life that continued to function on a scale comparable to peacetime was agricultural production and related segments of industry (primarily food).
Discussion and Conclusion. Demographic and socio-economic prospects for the development of both regions will largely be determined by the further dynamics of the armed conflict. The prolongation of its active stage will accelerate the process of reducing the local population due to outflow, and in the economic sphere will contribute to the deepening of agricultural (and more broadly – Agro-industrial) specialization of regional economic complexes. A stable truce will allow to diversify the directions of economic growth, first of all, to activate a number of industrial clusters, the tourist and recreational complex, the sphere of transport and logistics. The results of the study can be used in the development and detailing of plans for the socio-economic development of new territories.