This exploratory article is based on a researchproject which runs 2011-2013 that examines how global processes are expressedin educational policies and pedagogical texts in Lebanon, Sweden and Turkey byfocusing on school subjects like civics, history, geography, and religion. In thistext we discuss the development ofeducation in Lebanon, the development of history and civics after the civilwar, and on opinions about these school subjects in order to make a preliminaryanalysis of how the future Lebanese citizen is depicted in policies,curricula, and textbooks. Lebanon is interesting because of its uniqueeducation system in which foreign international institutions rather thannational ones have the task of preparing individuals for a globalized world.Material for the study were collected from a sample of curricula used inprivate and public or national schools for history and civics/citizenshipeducation in grade 8 as well as interviews and conference proceedings andconversations with activists, teachers and principals. We also reviewedfindings of relevant empirical studies conducted in Lebanon. Our datacollection was guided by three questions: how is the right citizen depicted inthe Lebanese material? How is the relationship between national and globalperspectives treated in guidance documents and pedagogical texts? What civicrights and obligations are given attention and what individuals are included/excluded? Our preliminary findings imply that there is no consensus on theimportance of teaching a unified history and civics book and subjects inLebanon. Other findings indicate that private and international schools have agreater impact than national schools on preparing Lebanese students as futurecitizens.

This book is about seeds and why and how seeds matter today, as in the past. Under the main headings Biopower, Agrobiodiversity, Circulation/mobility, and Seeds and their caretakers, the human-seed relationship is explored from different viewpoints. In a historical perspective the co-evolution of plants and humans can be traced through myths, rituals and cultural practices. In our present-day world of accelerating climate change, expansion of monocultural plantations and loss of biodiversity, collecting, saving and securing seeds has become a global concern. The ritual significance of seeds, seed control and agricultural development, and official policies versus cultural practices are among the themes discussed. Engaging with seeds also raises critical political questions about control over the material basis of our existence, that is, the main food crops.

The volume is the result of a two-day international symposium held at the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities in Stockholm 2018.

Authors: Guntra A. Aistara, Kaj Århem, Roy Ellen, L. Jamila Haider, Tracey Heatherington, Bengt G. Karlsson, Dolly Kikon, Matti W. Leino, Birgit Müller, Rebecca Öhnfeldt, Annika Rabo, Ola Tveitereid Westengen & Rami Zurayk

This paper is a case study of the use of cultural experts, broadly defined as including mediators and academicians with a variety of backgrounds, in Sweden. It draws on data collected through qualitative interviews with cultural experts, by following court cases through legal documents, mass media and other printed material, and by my own experience as a cultural expert. The paper provides a context to the potential application of the concept of cultural expertise regarding the appointment of such experts by lawyers, prosecutors and courts. It analyzes cases concerning the Sami, the Roma and recent immigrants from Africa and Asia. The Sami cases revolve around conflicts with the Swedish state over rights and ownership. The Roma cases revolve around questions of ethnic discrimination. Cases of immigrants from outside Europe consist of individual criminal cases and asylum. I argue that Swedish ideas—and ideals—of sameness and equality have had an impact on the legal cases that I discuss in this paper. While the legal issues in each of these cases differ, the paper argues that they demonstrate a similarity in how Swedish-majority society manages and even creates cultural differences. I conclude by showing the ways culture, rights, and obligations are understood in courts reflect mainstream trends of Swedish society and suggest the need for cultural expertise in the form of interdisciplinary collaboration.

En central föreställning om den moderna nationalstaten är att den är juridiskt suverän inom det egna territoriet. De senaste decenniernas stora politiska och sociala förändringar har dock gjort gränserna porösare mellan olika territoriella enheter. Överstatliga organisationer som EU och FN har bidragit till att transformera staternas oavhängighet i frågor som har att göra med lag och rätt. Men även migration och framväxtenav mångkulturella samhällen sätter självklara rättsliga och moraliska uppfattningar om »rätt« och »fel« på spel. I artikeln diskuterar jag, ur socialantropologisk synvinkel, hur religiöst partikulära synsätt kring centrala sociala institutioner som familj och äktenskap utmanar statens universella anspråk på oavhängighet i frågor om moral och juridik.