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This paper discusses the nature of sustainability and the institutional arrangements that can help or hinder the pursuit of a future society that is both ecologically sustainable and humanly desirable. All collective efforts are mediated through institutions, and without institutional change we will not move purposefully toward sustainability. Although there has been much policy development under the banner of 'ecologically sustainable development' (ESD) in recent years in Australia, institutional change remains at the margins of public policy and administration. The paper considers how this situation can be rectified. The characteristics of ESD problems are discussed, such as spatial and temporal scale, complexity and uncertainty, and the need for community participation. The paper then uses an 'adaptive' approach to frame the requirements of institutions for sustainability, suggesting the core principles of persistence, purposefulness, information-richness, inclusiveness and flexibility. The strengths and limits of some current arrangements are assessed, and then particular attention is given to a selection of current institutional arrangements that fulfil at least some of the requirements for an adaptive approach. Finally, suggestions are given for institutional reforms to establish ESD as a policy field that enjoys parity with other, at present more influential and well-supported fields. Specific recommendations include: • A wide ranging legislative review to recommend changes to laws that hinder or do not promote ESD - analagous to the competition policy legislative review; • A National Commission or Council for ESD to promote discussion and cooperative action between the three levels of government, the private sector and community groups; • A Commissioner for ESD or Offices for ESD to ensure implementation of ESD policies in government agencies; • An Australian Institute for ESD to generate new ideas, inform cooperative policy development, develop standards, prepare manuals and run training courses – similar to the role played by the Australian Emergency Management Institute for emergency management; Without institutional change we will not move purposefully toward sustainability. • Long term support for Landcare and similar groups to encourage and support commitment to ESD practices from local communities; • Much increased support for long term ecological research and monitoring; • A Bureau of Ecological Economics together with changes in the mandate and functions of mainstream economic agencies to ensure that alternative economic analyses based on ecological perspectives are taken into account in policy making. ; Jointly sponsored by: The Australian Conservation Foundation; The Environment Institute of Australia; Land and Water Australia

Ein Jahrhundert nachdem in Sarajewo der Erste Weltkrieg ausgelöst wurde und ein Vierteljahrhundert nach Miloševićs Machtübernahme steht die Integration des Balkans in die Europäische Union hoch auf der politischen Agenda. In diesem Band anlässlich der 49. Hochschulwoche der Südosteuropa-Gesellschaft wird ausgelotet, wie diese Integration herbeigeführt werden kann, ohne in eine Defizitgeschichte im Vergleich zum westlichen Vorbild zu enden. Auch für Historiker, Kultur- und Politikwissenschaftler stellen Unterschiede, Gemeinsamkeiten und Verflechtungen innerhalb Südosteuropas und im europäischen Kontext ein vordringliches Thema dar. Mittels Vergleich und Fragen nach Verflechtung werden Institutionen, deren Transfer und Wandel analysiert. So entsteht ein viel reicheres Bild der Region: nicht (nur) passive oder mangelhafte Nachahmung westlicher Vorbilder, sondern auch kreative Adaption und aktive Gestaltung politischer und gesellschaftlicher Modernisierung.

"Gesellschaftliche Widerstände setzen internationale Institutionen immer stärker unter Zugzwang. Normative Ansprüche wie z.B. auf Autonomie, Partizipation, Transparenz oder Rechtsgleichheit werden oft enttäuscht und führen zu gesellschaftlichen Reaktionen, auf die internationale Institutionen reagieren müssen." (Autorenreferat)

Vorwort; Inhaltsverzeichnis; Uwe Vollmer: Einführung; Erster Teil: Globalisierung und Wandel von politischen Institutionen; Herbert Brücker und Philipp J. H. Schröder: Spillover einer selektiven Migrationspolitik; A. Einführung; B. Migrationseffekte und Humankapital; C. Ein einfacher theoretischer Rahmen; I. Analyse; II. Komparative Statik; D. Empirische Evidenz; E. Schlussfolgerungen; Literatur; Martin Leschke: Korreferat zu dem Beitrag von Herbert Brücker und Philipp J. H. Schröder. Spillover einer selektiven Migrationspolitik

"Institutions and Gender" published on by Oxford University Press.

I present a discussion of the current state of liberal internationalism as it relates to international organisations. I maintain that the literature focuses too much on liberal internationalism instead of non-liberal internationalism. This is problematic because non-liberal states are increasingly becoming important players in the international system, as is the case with Russia and China. I argue that non-liberal states have a variety of approaches in their dealings with international institutions that can enable them to maximise their net gains from institutions. These are: 1) keep using the liberal institution, 2) utilise institutional ala cartism (forum shopping), 3) create an anti-liberal institution, or 4) opt out of institutions altogether. Scholars and practitioners alike should acknowledge that international institutions can be a vehicle whereby non-liberal states maximise their power and diminish the power and influence of liberal states.

Individuals, Institutions, and Markets offers a theory of how the institutional framework of a society emerges and how markets within institutions work. The book shows that both social institutions, defined as the rules of the game, and exchange processes can be analyzed along a common theoretical structure. Mantzavinos' proposal is that a problem solving model of individual behavior inspired by the cognitive sciences provides such a unifying theoretical structure. Integrating the latest scholarship in economics, sociology, political science, law, and anthropology, Mantzavinos offers a genuine political economy showing how social institutions affect economic outcomes

This paper starts from the observation that 23% of the world's microfinance institutions (MFIs) manage without subsidies. We examine how unsubsidized institutions cope with their social mission. Overall, the lack of subsidies worsens social performances. However, our results show that strategies to achieve financial self-sufficiency differ substantially across regions. African and Asian MFIs compensate for non-subsidization by charging higher interest rates. In Eastern Europe and Central Asia, unsubsidized MFIs find it more suitable to target less poor clients. Unsubsidized Latin American MFIs tend to reduce their share of female borrowers. ; info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

In this comment on Francesco Guala's Understanding Institutions, I express my admiration for the book but I also raise some critical criticisms: His general account of institutions as rules-in-equilibrium seems to get their ontology wrong by disregarding their material side - their concrete realizations. It also diregards social institutions whose rules are not (and are not meant to be) in equilibrium. Finally, his suggestion that institutional equilibria necessarily involve correlation devices appers to lack justification.

In this paper entrepreneurs are defined as agents who bring about economic change by combining their own effort with other factors of production in search of economic rents. The institutional setup is argued to determine both the supply and direction of entrepreneurial activity. Four key institutions are explored more closely: property rights protection, savings policies, taxation and the regulation of labor markets. Institutions have far-reaching effects on entrepreneurship, and they largely determine whether or not entrepreneurial activity will be socially productive. Due to the responsiveness of entrepreneurship to the institutional setup it is maintained that in-depth analyses of specific institutions are required in order to further our understanding of the determinants of entrepreneurial behavior and the economic effects of entrepreneurship. The paper also demonstrates that it is problematic to use self-employment as an empirical proxy for productive entrepreneurship.