Suchergebnisse

Over 200 years ago, Edward Gibbon noted that the problem in studying the Roman Empire is not that it collapsed but that, with all the problems it faced, it lasted so long. It is significant but curious that Gibbon is rarely remembered for this observation. This oversight reveals important things about how we think of complex political systems. It is a truism of anthropology that in the socialization process, a child is taught to regard a cultural order as a natural order. To those who are born, socialized and live their lives in a state organization – a group that includes all of Gibbon's readers – complex political organization seems normal and inevitable. The possibility that any state would not go on and on, perpetuating itself indefinitely, is to most people inconceivable. Thus Gibbon's great insight, that the Roman Empire was not intrinsically a sustainable institution, has been overlooked for generations.

Since Egypt is one of Africa's most populous nations, its struggle to boost its economic performance while achieving sustainable development is now guided by a pioneering legislation which provides an interesting case that merits investigation in international fora. This paper, therefore aims to shed light on Egypt's Environmental Law 4 of 1994 while making the case for an Environmental Urban Management Initiative (EUMI) that should to capitalize on the merits of an enabling legislation. The framework of analysis posits the hypothesis that environmental legislation can jump start an EUMI only if its enforcement is mindful of 4 "i's," namely, institutions, investment, incentives, and information. In consequence, and based on literature reviews with key personnel, an analytical critique identifying the most salient caveats of the law in light of the 4 "i's" will follow. The ensuing synthesis of the findings will be crowned by a list of recommendations to guide the possible establishment of an EUMI in the future.

Employability as a new goal of labor market policy is understood to be paradigmatic for the change towards an activating welfare state. In this context the universalization of labor market participation as well as the introduction of new forms of governance in order to guarantee equality of opportunity in respect to labor market access are predicted. The present article wants to check these assumptions by empirical analysis of policies concerning the employability of mothers (with children that have to be looked after) in Germany, Denmark, & GB. The main question is, if in the different countries cross policy field coordination between labor market & family policy is introduced following the approach of Holistic Government. The result of the analysis is that as well the extent of mothers' activation as of successful coordination of labor market & family policy is influenced by the different welfare state institutions & norms of the gender contract. 4 Tables, 45 References. Adapted from the source document.

This is the Humanist Achievement Lecture for 2003. An attempt is made, first, to link the end of the European imperial system and the process of decolonization at the end of the Second World War to the growth of development economics as a separate sub-discipline within economics. Attention then shifts to a second political upheaval, namely, the sudden collapse of communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, and this is linked to the emergence of the economics of transition as another sub-discipline. As a participant in the two intellectual revolutions, I try to convey the sense of excitement that greeted them and the nature of some of the debates that ensued. At the end of the lecture it is suggested that a third revolution beckons us, a revolution that challenges the sovereignty of states and holds out a promise of global democracy and institutions of global governance.

Metzlers (1941) research on the relationship between inventory and business cycles initiated serious interest in inventory behavior and its effect on the behavior of firms. A flurry of related research took place in the following two decades. Research of the time clearly demonstrated that, at a macro level, the inventory behaviors are significant features in business cycles. One measure of inventory behavior introduced and analyzed was the inventory-to-sales ratio. We continue to believe that understanding of inventory behavior at both the macro and microeconomic levels is a prerequisite to understanding factors that determine a firms success, and that analysis of the inventory-to-sales ratio is important component of inventory behavior. The U.S. Department of Commerce and other government and private institutions track this ratio and report regularly. Financial analysts use both a company's trend and its comparative value within a sector to make investment decisions.

Zur Zeit gibt es in Deutschland rund 2 Millionen Pflegebedürftige, d.h. Leistungsempfänger der Pflegeversicherung. Vorausschätzungen gehen von einem Anstieg der Pflegebedürftigen um rund 1 Million bis zum Jahr 2020 aus, und bis zum Jahr 2050 wird mit insgesamt 4,7 Millionen Pflegebedürftigen gerechnet. Aufgrund der Alterung der Bevölkerung sind in fast allen europäischen Ländern ähnliche Entwicklungen zu erwarten, wenn auch in unterschiedlichem Ausmaß. Es stellt sich die Frage, wie der wachsende Bedarf an Pflege und Betreuung alter Menschen zukünftig gedeckt werden kann, insbesondere wie sich die Lastverteilung zwischen Familien, professionellen ambulanten Diensten und institutioneller Langzeitpflege in den einzelnen Ländern gestalten wird. Der vorliegende Beitrag untersucht anhand der Daten des Eurobarometers und des Europäischen Haushaltspanels einige für diese Frage relevante Einstellungs- und Verhaltensindikatoren und diskutiert die daraus zu ziehenden Schlussfolgerungen. Die Analysen konzentrieren sich auf Deutschland im Vergleich zu den skandinavischen EU-Ländern auf der einen und den südeuropäischen EU-Ländern auf der anderen Seite. Diese beiden Ländergruppen bilden die Extreme in einer Klassifikation der EU-Länder nach der Konfiguration der wohlfahrtsproduzierenden Institutionen - Arbeitsmarkt, Wohlfahrtsstaat und Familie (Vogel 1999). Die nordischen Länder sind durch eine hohe Arbeitsmarktbeteiligung der Frauen, umfangreiche wohlfahrtsstaatliche Leistungen, aber schwache familiale Bindungen charakterisiert, während die südeuropäischen Länder durch ein vergleichsweise geringes Beschäftigungsniveau der Frauen, begrenzte wohlfahrtsstaatliche Leistungen, aber starke traditionelle Familienstrukturen gekennzeichnet sind. Deutschland nimmt in dieser Klassifikation zusammen mit anderen mitteleuropäischen Ländern eine mittlere Position ein. Im Hinblick auf die Betreuung und Pflege alter Menschen ist zu erwarten, dass familiale Leistungen in den südeuropäischen Ländern eine höhere und in den nordeuropäischen Ländern eine geringere Bedeutung als in Deutschland haben.

Global & regional trade agreements have huge potential impacts on higher education around the world by promoting the commodification of higher education & its incorporation as an industry in the world trading system. Provisions for higher education in the General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade & the General Agreement on Trade in Services within the World Trade Organization are reviewed. The higher education industry has become increasingly important to the economy of the US & other countries & public higher education is increasingly subject to the rules of international trade. Trade liberalization helps other advanced countries to challenge US predominance in higher education. Among the barriers to trade in higher education are lack of student mobility, national licensing constraints, & visa & material restrictions. The emergence of new institutions (for-profit & corporate universities) & new delivery methods, eg, Internet-based learning, are discussed. Opposition to globalization may offset trade liberalization in higher education as well as in other industries. 1 Table, 61 References. M. Pflum

The paper distinguishes between collusive and non-collusive corruption in the forestry sector and analyses their interaction with the political/institutional environment. While non-collusive corruption increases costs for the private sector, collusive corruption reduces costs for the bribee, therefore it is more persistent. Data from confidential interviews in Indonesia show that illegal logging, supported by collusive corruption, became widespread after the fall of President Suharto. While economic liberalisation and competition among government officials may lower non-collusive corruption, they exacerbate collusive corruption. During political transitions, countries are particularly vulnerable to collusive corruption because governments are often weak and fragmented, with underdeveloped institutions. Sustained wider reform and institutional strengthening to speed up the transition to a true democracy is needed to fight collusive corruption. For Indonesia greater accountability of government, legal and judicial reform and encouragement of public oversight could be useful corner stones for combating illegal logging and corruption.

Dans le cadre du projet de développement de petites exploitations agroforestières à hévéas (SRAP), des recherches sont menéesr en Indonésie par le Cirad EN en collaboration avc, des institutions de recherche internationaux et des partenaires locaux. L'objectif est de proposer des nouvelles alternatives d'exploitation et de production durables en vue d'améliorer la productivité des agroforêts à hévéas. Les recherches sont orienter vers l'identification de système d'exploitation intermédiaire entre la jungle à hévéas (aucun coût d'entretien mais une faible productivité) et le système de monoculture. A partir de la méthode participative, l'étude des systèmes agroforestiers à hévéas (RAS) montre qu'il n'y a pas de baisse significative de rendement des hévéas quand ils sont associés à d'autres cultures. Les hévéas profitent directement des cultures intercalaires ou de la couverture végétale, la combinaison de cultures permet également de minimiser les frais de labour. Ces résultats sont intéressants dans le choix des associations et pratiques culturales permettant la garantie des revenus et l'autosuffisance alimentaire

The move from colonization to neocolonization for the Western powers in the last century is traced, leading to the current point where the US stands alone as the major military power in the world. Per Michael Hardt & Antonio Negri in Empire, a new paradigm has emerged & gained strength as the result of the power of postwar labor to put upward pressure on wages, growing national liberation movements, & the gradual delegitimization of authority in nation-states. This hypothesis is critiqued on the grounds that the authors underestimate resistance to Empire & the role of leading nation-states in constituting the institutional infrastructure of the new world order. The role of imperialist institutions -- the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, & the World Trade Organization -- in this new world order is examined. Trade unionists, environmentalists, & young proponents of labor rights are expected to lead the anti-globalization movement, but they need to develop a coherent program. M. Pflum

This paper proposes to organize thinking about the opportunities for improving and extending financial markets and safety nets for the poor, by focusing on factors that may explain why the linkage of local financial networks and safety nets with the larger economy often fails or is incomplete. Understanding the nature of these impediments is the first step in proposing policies to help promote more effective linkage and intermediation. We propose four explanations for the slowness of adoption of intermediation (high costs of delegated monitoring aggravated by limited intermediary capital; lock-in and crowding out effects from local insurance arrangements, social norms against cooperation with intermediaries; and political resistance to new institutions that shift the balance of power in local polities). Of course, financial repression and weak legal systems remains important as cause of lack of intermediation. We conclude with a review of public policy for more effective intermediation

This article proposes a working definition of globalization, which, although recognizing power asymmetries & risks, focuses on the changing options of actors. I link globalization to the options of diverse actors such as feminist networks & supranational & state institutions & enterprises. These options are related to resources, power, & capacities. The UN Decades of Women provided a dramatically opening opportunity structure for the global women's movement that could enlarge & diversify their options. They had developed a common charter while respecting differences & capacities for global orientation. Finally, I illustrate the argument by looking at processes of feminist regulations, which were negotiated by women's movements in Japan & Germany. Both cases suggest that negotiations & regulations in the global context are possible from an asymmetric position & that innovative capacities for transnational & global orientation & horizontal organization are crucial. Further research is necessary on innovative & egalitarian forms of regulation in globalization. 1 Table, 46 References. Adapted from the source document.

The principal-agent model holds great promise for understanding the institutional complexities of the EU & for moving beyond the sterile debate between intergovernmentalism & neofunctionalism. As yet, however, scholars have failed to exploit the insights that this construct affords. After a brief discussion of the principal-agent model, this article offers a critical examination of the way that the principal-agent approach has been deployed by liberal intergovernmentalism, institutional intergovernmentalism, historical institutionalist supranationalism, & rational-choice supranationalism. It argues that, in all four cases, the a priori commitments of the theorists, in support either of the view that the member states effectively control their supranational agents & dominate EU governance or of the belief in an inevitable trend toward greater integration, led by supranational institutions, prevent them from making the most effective use of the model. It proposes alternative applications that may prove more fruitful. 72 References. Adapted from the source document.