Suchergebnisse

Large emissions of greenhouse gases are expected to cause major environmental problems in the future. European policy makers have therefore declared that they aim to implement cost-efficient and fair policies to reduce carbon emissions. The purpose of this paper is to assess whether the cost of the EU policies for 2020 can be reduced through the inclusion of carbon sequestration as and abatement option while also equity is improved. The assessment is done by numerical calculations using a chance-constrained partial equilibrium model of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme and national effort-sharing targets, where forest sequestration is introduced as an uncertain abatement option. Fairness is evaluated by calculation of Gini-coefficients for six equity criteria to policy outcomes. The estimated Gini-coefficients range between 0.11 and 0.32 for the current policy, between 0.16 and 0.66 if sequestration is included and treated as certain, and between 0.19 and 0.38 when uncertainty about sequestration is taken into account and policy-makers wish to meet targets with at least 90 percent probability. The results show that fairness is reduced when sequestration is included and that the impact is larger when sequestration is treated as certain.

Forest management affects the quantity of CO2 emissions in the atmosphere by carbon sequestration in standing biomass, carbon storage in forest products and production of bioenergy that replace fossil fuels. The main question in this paper is whether forest sequestration is worth increasing at the expense of bioenergy and forest products to achieve EU's emission reduction target to 2050 cost-effectively. The assessment is based on numerical calculations using a dynamic, partial equilibrium model of cost-effective solutions, where three abatement methods in the forest sector are included together with abatement in the fossil fuel sector. The results show that forest sequestration in standing biomass is cost-effective compared to bioenergy. When sequestration is taken into account, net present costs for meeting EU carbon targets can be reduced by 18%. This is achieved through an increase in annual carbon sequestration by 30-158 million ton CO2. The overall cost of reaching the 80 per cent carbon reduction target amounts to 2,002 billion Euros when sequestration is included in the policy, but increases to 2,371 billion Euros without sequestration. Results suggest that forests can serve as a cost-efficient carbon sink over the considered time period.

Plant breeding has always relied on progress in various scientifc disciplines to generate and enable access to genetic variation. Until the 1970s, available techniques generated mostly random genetic alterations that were subject to a selection procedure in the plant material. Recombinant nucleic acid technology, however, started a new era of targeted genetic alterations, or precision breeding, enabling a much more targeted approach to trait management. More recently, developments in genome editing are now providing yet more control by enabling alterations at exact locations in the genome. The potential of recombinant nucleic acid technology fueled discussions about potentially new associated risks and, starting in the late 1980s, biosafety legislation for genetically modifed organisms (GMOs) has developed in the European Union. However, the last decade has witnessed a lot of discussions as to whether or not genome editing and other precision breeding techniques should be encompassed by the EU GMO legislation. A recent ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union indicated that directed mutagenesis techniques should be subject to the provisions of the GMO Directive, essentially putting many precision breeding techniques in the same regulatory basket. This review outlines the evolving EU regulatory framework for GMOs and discusses some potential routes that the EU may take for the regulation of precision breeding.

The current malnutrition epidemic calls for multiple solutions. The aim of the thesis is to identify the themes of the debate regarding the development of a single Front of-package nutrition label in the European Union. In order to reach the aim, a case study approach was used by looking at the positions of different stakeholders in Sweden, Italy as well as by looking at the debate inside of the European Commission and European Council of Ministries. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analysis of documents. The results show that the stakeholders are trying to influence the process towards contrasting outcomes. Different stakeholders argue for very different ideal labelling schemes, while still agreeing on the need for harmonization. Major disagreement arise on whether the label should be voluntary, based on portion or 100 g and on the ideal label design. The type of view depends on the stakeholder role and on its previous experience with this type of labelling. The political debate inside of the European Union is still at an early stage and no consensus has yet been reached, the divergences between the representatives of the Member Countries partially deal with arguments similar to those exposed by the stakeholders. The patterns that emerge from the analysis of the different point of views can facilitate the cooperation between stakeholders and policy-makers. ; Trots teknologisk utveckling har nuvarande livsmedelssystem inte förmått att uppnå livsmedelssäkerhet och folkhälsa för alla. Problemen i världens många livsmedessystem varierar i grad och fokus. I stunden är 17 % av barn som bor i Europa överviktiga, och givet dagens förutsättningar i livsmedelssystem och levnadsvanor förutspås 37 % av vuxna i Europa vara feta 2030. Denna situation är att betrakta som en epidemi, som drabbar vissa grupper i samhället mer än andra, och den är kopplad till många andra icke smittsamma sjukdomar. För individen kan övervikt leda till en lägre livskvalité och för samhället innebär det ökade hälso- och sjukvårdskostnader. Eftersom det är många faktorer som påverkar en individs matvanor ligger ansvaret både på individer och på samhälle för att skapa förutsättningar för en hälsosam livsstil vad gäller livsmedelskonsumtion. För att vägleda konsumenter i matrelaterade val har många länder i Europa en tradition som innebär att konsumenten får hälsorelaterad information om produkten på förpackningen. Det ger konsumenten möjlighet att göra konsumtionsval baserat på mer information. Traditionen inom EU att använda information, fakta och symboler, på livsmedelsprodukter skiljer sig dock mellan länder, och det leder till förvirring och politiska problem. Problemen har banat väg för att EU 2020 kommunicerade målet att skapa en harmoniserad form för information på livsmedelsprodukter som säljs i länder i EU. Detta löfte har skapat debatt och starka röster som ser väldigt olika lösningar på problemet. Syftet med projektet är att identifiera tema i debatten i EU om ett harmoniserat format för information på livsmedelsprodukter. Studien är en fallstudie i vilken debatten från två länders perspektiv, Italien och Sverige, är av speciellt intresse. Tillgängliga sekundärdata från EU och de två valda länderna, och semistrukturerade intervjuer utgör datainsamlingsmetod. En innehållsanalys genomfördes med utgångspunkt i intressent-, varumärkes- och standardutvecklingsbegrepp som hörnstenar för en förståelse för förändringsprocessen. Resultaten från studien visar att representanter för de valda organisationerna i studien förordar en harmonisering av regler för konsumentinformation. Synen på sättet på vilket det skall göras skiljer sig däremot åt. Återkommande tema i intervjuerna är frivillighet, som innebär att det är upp till livsmedelsproducenten att bestämma om produkten skall ha en symbol som visar övergripande näringsinformation eller detaljerad näringsinnehållsinformation. Olika intressenter arbetar på flera fronter för att frågan skall få en lösning. Medan EU samlar in data för att kartlägga alternativa metoder och traditioner arbetar Ministerrådet för att skapa politiska förutsättningar för dialog och samsyn i frågan. Grunden för att skapa ett harmoniserat system ligger i en samsyn på vetenskapliga bevis. Den politiska debatten pågår och kommer att kräva tid innan politiska beslut kan fattas. ; Nonostante il suo sviluppo tecnologico, l'attuale sistema alimentare non è stato in grado di garantire la sicurezza alimentare per tutti. I tipi di malnutrizione presenti variano considerevolmente a livello mondiale; al momento il 17% dei bambini europei è obeso o ovrappeso e, alle presenti condizioni, il 37% degli adulti sarà obeso nel 2030. Questa epidemia di malnutrizione colpisce le categorie svantaggiate in maniera sproporzionata ed è connessa con molte malattie non trasmissibili. La malnutrizione contribuisce a una minore qualità della vita e a una maggior pressione sul sistema sanitario. Ci sono molti fattori che influenzano la dieta delle persone e quindi la responsabilità di risolvere il problema è sia individuale sia collettiva. Negli anni, molti paesi Europei hanno creato sistemi di etichettatura nutrizionale fronte-pacco, con lo scopo di aumentare la comprensione della qualità nutrizionale dei prodotti da parte dei consumatori, così che questi possano fare scelte più consapevoli. In questi sistemi, le informazioni sono presentate sul lato del prodotto che i consumatori vedono al momento dell'acquisto, cosi da facilitarne l'utilizzo. I sistemi di etichettatura fronte-pacco in vigore nell'Unione Europea sono molto diversi tra loro, rappresentando una fonte di confusione per i consumatori e un ostacolo al commercio nel Mercato Unico. Nel 2020, la Commissione Europea ha espresso l'intenzione di adottare una singola etichetta fronte-pacco da utilizzare in tutti i Paesi Membri. L'annuncio ha provocato un grande dibattito, dove gli interessati argomentano soluzioni molto diverse tra loro. Lo scopo della tesi è identificare i temi del dibattito riguardante lo sviluppo di un'unica etichetta fronte-pacco all'interno dell'Unione Europea. Il case-study esplora il dibattito sull'etichetta in corso in Italia e Svezia. I dati sono stati raccolti tramite analisi di documenti e interviste semi-strutturate con stakeholder in entrambi i paesi e con la Commissione Europea. I dati sono quindi stati analizzati con l'aiuto delle teorie sugli stakeholder, sulle etichette, sugli standard e sulle transizioni. I risultati mostrano che, nonostante le organizzazioni selezionate siano in favore dell'armonizzazione, ci sono idee molto diverse rispetto quali caratteristiche l'etichetta comune dovrebbe avere. Temi del dibattito sono, per esempio, la volontarietà dell'etichetta o se questa debba presentare una valutazione complessiva del valore nutrizionale dell'alimento o solo il suo contenuto nutrizionale. Sia il ruolo sia il paese di origine degli intervistati influenzano il loro punto di vista, similarità e differenze di opinione possono essere viste lungo queste linee. Le organizzazioni investigate sono attive sia nel dibattito Europeo sia in quelli nazionali. Le istituzioni europee, responsabili del processo legislativo, sono attive sul tema in modo diverso. La Commissione Europea sta ancora raccogliendo le evidenze scientifiche riguardanti questo tipo di etichette e che serviranno per scrivere la Proposta. Il Consiglio dell'Unione Europea non ha ancora trovato una posizione comune e i Ministri partecipanti hanno posizioni molto differenti. Il dibattito politico interno al Consiglio ha a che fare, per la maggior parte, con i temi presentati dalle organizzazioni intervistate. A causa delle rilevanti differenze in termini di etichetta ideale si può supporre che il dibattito andrà avanti ancora per molto tempo e si evolverà mentre emergono nuove evidenze scientifiche e sono prese decisioni politiche.

This study investigates the contribution of forest carbon sequestration to a cost-efficient EU climate policy from 2010 to 2050 under conditions of uncertainty. We note that there is a trade-off between sequestration and alternative uses of forests such as bioenergy and timber production. A dynamic and probabilistic cost-minimization model is developed, which includes fossil fuel use within the EU Emissions Trading System and forest management in the EU-27 countries. The results suggest that if policy makers wish to meet emissions targets with 80% certainty, this goal will be eight times more expensive than when they were unconcerned with uncertainty. Policy makers' risk attitudes affect forest management strategy primarily through the inclusion of wood products, where potential carbon emissions reductions are high but also highly uncertain. Excluding wood products from a climate strategy can be expensive if policy maker are insensitive to uncertainty.

The SURE-Farm project aims to analyse, assess and improve the resilience and sustainability of farming systems in Europe. Farming systems face a whole range of social, ecological, economic and political disturbances and changes, such as sharp market fluctuations, severe weather events, climate change, new technologies, changes in consumer preferences and in governance structures and so forth, operating at a range of scales (local, regional, national and global). Some stresses on the farm system can be predicted (e.g. retirement of farmers), while other shocks are more uncertain and unpredictable (e.g. flooding, sudden price drop, illness). Project's WP2 aims to comprehensively understand farmers' risk behaviour and risk management (RM) decisions, and to develop and test RM strategies and decision support tools that farmers can use to cope with increasing economic, environmental and social uncertainties and risks. WP2 contributes to the development of RM in EU farming systems by understanding and eliciting farmers' risk perceptions and preferences; learning about farmers' adaptive behaviour; learning capacity and preferred improvements of current RM tools; designing and analysing improved strategies to deal with extreme weather; and co-creating improved RM tools and map-related institutional challenges.

The EU Renewable Energy Strategy (RES) Directive requires that each member state obtain 20% of its energy supply from renewable sources by 2020. If fully implemented, this implies major changes in institutions, infrastructure, land use, and natural resource flows. This study applies a political geography perspective to explore the transition to renewable energy use in the heating and cooling segment of the Swedish energy system, 1980–2010. The Nordic welfare model, which developed mainly after the Second World War, required relatively uniform, standardized local and regional authorities functioning as implementation agents for national politics. Since 1980, the welfare orientation has gradually been complemented by competition politics promoting technological change, innovation, and entrepreneurship. This combination of welfare state organization and competition politics provided the dynamics necessary for energy transition, which occurred in a semi-public sphere of actors at various geographical scales. However, our analysis, suggest that this was partly an unintended policy outcome, since it was based on a welfare model with no significant energy aims. Our case study suggests that state organization plays a significant role, and that the EU RES Directive implementation will be uneven across Europe, reflecting various welfare models with different institutional pre-requisites for energy transition.

After decoupling of European Union income support, the current Swedish systems for suckle cow-based beef production will be unable to pay the costs of new investments and the market wage for labour. In a Delphi study, production systems able to achieve full cost coverage were identified as being "Organic with high environmental grants and a premium price for beef" and "Conventional with outdoor wintering of cows". Both systems require large areas of semi-natural pasture per cow and larger herds than currently common in Sweden. To test the results from the Delphi study, different models of suckle beef production were calculated for different regions of Sweden. The ambition was to identify production models with sufficient profitability to pay at least stipulated farm workers wage and a return on investment of 5% under Swedish conditions. In the calculations, the income from weaned calves, culled cows and European Union support was reduced by operating costs excluding labour. The result was divided by hours spent on labour requirement for animal husbandry and pasture management, which resulted in a return to labour per hour. Calculations for varying future scenarios with a changing Common Agricultural Policy showed that organic production models generated a higher return to labour than conventional production models. The main reason for this was the environmental areal payment for organic farming in combination with the higher acreage requirements in organic production. This resulting in higher environmental payments and other European Union supports per suckle cow. The most profitable production models were spring calving, heavy beef cow breeds and winter feed based on grass-clover silage. Some organic production models gave a return to labour above stipulated farm workers wage. However, if the Single Farm Payment scheme is phased out and not replaced by increased environmental payments, the return to labour will be at best half the stipulated farm workers wage. A complementary telephone survey of 20 farmers with above-average herd size showed that the theoretical calculated profitability did not accurately reflect some of the real costs. One example was the opportunity cost of land, which was more expensive than calculated, because the areal payments are slowly moving from animal farmers towards passive retired farmers and landowners. The interviews indicated that the results of the Delphi study and profitability calculations are reliable and valid for costefficient future suckle beef operations, but overestimate the average profitability of current Swedish suckle herds.

This thesis aims to deepen the understanding of entrepreneurship as an ideal and practice in local government administration. Organization, practices and the roles of civil servants in public administration are all grounded in certain ideals of what a modern public administration should look like. In order to capture the relationship between ideals and practices in local government administration, this introductory essay takes its point of departure in an institutional logic perspective. Entrepreneurial practices are well documented in a public administration context. Both civil servants and organizations can be more or less creative, alert and energetic, in other words more or less entrepreneurial. However, practices such as these are often understood to derive from the motives, driving forces and extraordinary characteristics of the specific actor. By contrast, this thesis aims to contribute to the literature on public administrative trends and reforms, by discussing entrepreneurship in terms of institutionalized ideals and patterns of action, i.e., institutional logics. The analysis is based on empirical studies of local development work in ten Swedish municipalities. The research design is grounded in an interpretative ethnographic approach and the development projects in each of the municipalities were closely followed for three years. Local development work is studied as a policy field where entrepreneurial ideals and practices are likely to arise, making it a suitable subject for studies that aim to deepen the theoretical understanding of entrepreneurship in a public administration context. The thesis demonstrates how an entrepreneurial logic is institutionalized in local government development work and embedded in governance and administrative practices as a natural consequence of certain contemporary reforms and trends in local policy and administration.Through ethnographic studies of local development work, the ideals and practices of the entrepreneurial logic are made visible. The entrepreneurial logic is contrasted to the still prevalent and institutionalized bureaucratic- rational administrative logic. These two logics are in many respects the logical opposite of one another and provide different answers to the question of which administrative practices are appropriate. The thesis makes three contributions to different theoretical discussions. First, the clarification of the entrepreneurial logic helps both researchers and practitioners make sense of and bring conceptual order to the messy practices of local development work. Second, the entrepreneurial logic expands the concept of entrepreneurship in a public sector context by viewing entrepreneurship as an institutional phenomenon rather than a phenomenon that represents a break from traditional institutions. Third, the entrepreneurial logic sheds light on institutionalized administrative ideals and practices that potentially imply major changes in public administration legitimacy, values and norms.

The purpose of the dissertation is to analyze the institutionalization of national masculinity policy in Sweden, focusing on idea and policy development regarding the issue of men and gender equality from the 1980s until the 2020s. Swedish national masculinity policy can be characterized as a delimitable area within gender equality policy that is specifically focused on promoting the development of gender equal men. The dissertation shows Sweden as pioneering in regard to this institutional invention promoting "the new man" and as active in disseminating these ambitions internationally. The main material consists of reports from Swedish governmental working groups and inquiries on men and gender equality during the period, as well as the gender equality policy bills and written communications submitted by the Swedish government to parliament. A methodological approach for an ideational policy analysis in historical perspective is outlined to study the institutionalization process of this policy area over time. The dissertation analyzes the discursive framework that the issue of men and gender equality has been embedded in, how the issue has been addressed at the political level, how it has been problematized in the working groups and inquiries, and finally formally institutionalized by the government. Based on Carol Bacchi's method for policy analysis, the dissertation shows how policy problems regarding men and gender equality have been constructed and represented in different ways during the institutionalization process and what the discursive effects of different policy representations have been. In comparison to previous research on masculinity politics in various men's groups or social movements, the dissertation shows the need to analyze "national masculinity policy" in relation to institutional factors and frameworks. The development of national masculinity policy is discussed in relation to theories of institutional change. The dissertation shows how ideas about men and gender equality that have been developed in research, social movements, and public debate have influenced politics, confirming the assumptions in feminist institutional research that emphasize the importance of ideas for institutional change. This development is described in terms of idea-based incremental institutional change. The dissertation also points to the importance of actors in problem representation processes, using the concept of interpretive repertoire to highlight how the actors who participated in the governmental inquiries on men and gender equality balanced the different perspectives found in their contexts (ideas in public debate, research, and policy). In other words, the dissertation studies the path from idea to formal institution when it comes to the question of the new man in Sweden.

The paper analyses the role of ideas, past experience and crises in the process leading to theoretical and political disputes and the changes of monetary and banking policy in Sweden in 1844/45. It also analyses the role of institutional settings and types of actors involved in the decision-making process. A comparative approach is deployed. Policy changes at the time in the poor and peripheral Sweden is contrasted with the well-known developments in England. The results suggest that current events and past experience were important factors. Purely theoretical considerations played a somewhat lesser role in determining the policy-change. Institutional peculiarities and country characteristics did not significantly alter the core outcomes, but certain specific features. Probably an influx of ideas, policies and experiences from England also influenced policy choices in the case of Sweden.

En hållbar utveckling innebär att samhällets begränsade resurser används på ett effektivt sätt med hänsyn tagen till sociala, ekonomiska och miljömässiga konsekvenser. För att uppnå önskade samhällsmål på ett effektivt sätt behöver olika aspekter vägas in vid utformning av styrmedel. Inom EU föregås beslut om regleringar av en så kallad Regleringskonsekvensbeskrivning (Regulatory Impact Assessment) där samhällsekonomisk analys ingår. Forskning och olika utredningar har visat att Sverige saknar en etablerad praxis för att genomföra denna typ av konsekvensanalyser på miljö, men även energi- och transportområdet. I detta projekt är syftet att undersöka hur Sverige arbetar med de analyser av detta slag som genomförs inom EU inför förhandlingar men också att studera orsaker till att de används eller inte används. Fokus ligger på förutsättningar inom en myndighet, men även vilken betydelse som tjänstemän har för vilka underlag som tas fram inför beslut om utformning av regleringar/styrmedel. Den övergripande slutsats som kan dras av de tre delstudierna som ingått i projektet, samt diskussionen på avslutningsseminariet, är att detta inte är ett etablerat arbetssätt i det svenska förvaltningssystemet. Detta kan förklaras av brist på kompetens, en etablerad misstro, målstyrning samt avsaknad av ett institutionellt ramverk för när och hur denna typ av bredare konsekvensanalyser ska genomföras. Vid avslutningsseminariet framkom att Naturvårdsverket nu arbetar med en vägledning för att hjälpa tjänstemän att i ett tidigt skede analysera om det finns behov av regleringar från samhällets sida, att inleda arbetet med att ställa frågan "Vad är problemet?". Vi bedömer att detta är ett steg i rätt riktning men ser också att de nationalekonomer som arbetar ute på myndigheter ofta är ensamma eller väldigt få och därmed kan behöva olika former av stöd för att kunna utveckla arbetet med denna typ av, ofta komplexa, analyser på sin myndighet. ; Sustainable development implies that society's limited resources should be used efficiently, taking into account the various impacts on society – social, economic and environmental. To achieve established societal goals efficiently, various aspects have to be accounted for in the design of policy measures. Within the EU a Regulatory Impact Assessment, where a cost-benefit analysis is included, needs to accompany all major regulatory initiatives. According to research and different policy assessment, Sweden lacks an established praxis regarding this type of analysis in the area of environmental policy but also in the field of energy and transport. The purpose of this project is to investigate how Sweden uses this type of information in the negotiations that take place within the EU regarding policy proposals but also investigate the reasons for use or non-use. The focus is on what role the organization and the bureaucrats play for the collection of this type of information. The overall conclusion that can be drawn from the three sub-studies included in the project, as well as the discussion at the closing seminar, is that this is not an established way of working in the Swedish government system. This can be explained by lack of competence, an established mistrust, management by objectives and lack of an institutional framework for when and how this type of broader impact assessment is to be conducted. At the closing seminar, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency presented that it is now working on a guide to help officials to analyze at an early stage whether there is a need for regulation by society, to initiate the work by asking the question "What is the problem?". We think that this is a step in the right direction, but we also see that the economists working out in government are often alone or very few and may therefore need different forms of support to develop the work on this kind of, often complex, analysis.

En hållbar utveckling innebär att samhällets begränsade resurser används på ett effektivt sätt med hänsyn tagen till sociala, ekonomiska och miljömässiga konsekvenser. För att uppnå önskade samhällsmål på ett effektivt sätt behöver olika aspekter vägas in vid utformning av styrmedel. Inom EU föregås beslut om regleringar av en så kallad Regleringskonsekvensbeskrivning (Regulatory Impact Assessment) där samhällsekonomisk analys ingår. Forskning och olika utredningar har visat att Sverige saknar en etablerad praxis för att genomföra denna typ av konsekvensanalyser på miljö, men även energi- och transportområdet. I detta projekt är syftet att undersöka hur Sverige arbetar med de analyser av detta slag som genomförs inom EU inför förhandlingar men också att studera orsaker till att de används eller inte används. Fokus ligger på förutsättningar inom en myndighet, men även vilken betydelse som tjänstemän har för vilka underlag som tas fram inför beslut om utformning av regleringar/styrmedel. Den övergripande slutsats som kan dras av de tre delstudierna som ingått i projektet, samt diskussionen på avslutningsseminariet, är att detta inte är ett etablerat arbetssätt i det svenska förvaltningssystemet. Detta kan förklaras av brist på kompetens, en etablerad misstro, målstyrning samt avsaknad av ett institutionellt ramverk för när och hur denna typ av bredare konsekvensanalyser ska genomföras. Vid avslutningsseminariet framkom att Naturvårdsverket nu arbetar med en vägledning för att hjälpa tjänstemän att i ett tidigt skede analysera om det finns behov av regleringar från samhällets sida, att inleda arbetet med att ställa frågan "Vad är problemet?". Vi bedömer att detta är ett steg i rätt riktning men ser också att de nationalekonomer som arbetar ute på myndigheter ofta är ensamma eller väldigt få och därmed kan behöva olika former av stöd för att kunna utveckla arbetet med denna typ av, ofta komplexa, analyser på sin myndighet. ; Sustainable development implies that society's limited resources should be used efficiently, taking into account the various impacts on society – social, economic and environmental. To achieve established societal goals efficiently, various aspects have to be accounted for in the design of policy measures. Within the EU a Regulatory Impact Assessment, where a cost-benefit analysis is included, needs to accompany all major regulatory initiatives. According to research and different policy assessment, Sweden lacks an established praxis regarding this type of analysis in the area of environmental policy but also in the field of energy and transport. The purpose of this project is to investigate how Sweden uses this type of information in the negotiations that take place within the EU regarding policy proposals but also investigate the reasons for use or non-use. The focus is on what role the organization and the bureaucrats play for the collection of this type of information. The overall conclusion that can be drawn from the three sub-studies included in the project, as well as the discussion at the closing seminar, is that this is not an established way of working in the Swedish government system. This can be explained by lack of competence, an established mistrust, management by objectives and lack of an institutional framework for when and how this type of broader impact assessment is to be conducted. At the closing seminar, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency presented that it is now working on a guide to help officials to analyze at an early stage whether there is a need for regulation by society, to initiate the work by asking the question "What is the problem?". We think that this is a step in the right direction, but we also see that the economists working out in government are often alone or very few and may therefore need different forms of support to develop the work on this kind of, often complex, analysis.

En hållbar utveckling innebär att samhällets begränsade resurser används på ett effektivt sätt med hänsyn tagen till sociala, ekonomiska och miljömässiga konsekvenser. För att uppnå önskade samhällsmål på ett effektivt sätt behöver olika aspekter vägas in vid utformning av styrmedel. Inom EU föregås beslut om regleringar av en så kallad Regleringskonsekvensbeskrivning (Regulatory Impact Assessment) där samhällsekonomisk analys ingår. Forskning och olika utredningar har visat att Sverige saknar en etablerad praxis för att genomföra denna typ av konsekvensanalyser på miljö, men även energi- och transportområdet. I detta projekt är syftet att undersöka hur Sverige arbetar med de analyser av detta slag som genomförs inom EU inför förhandlingar men också att studera orsaker till att de används eller inte används. Fokus ligger på förutsättningar inom en myndighet, men även vilken betydelse som tjänstemän har för vilka underlag som tas fram inför beslut om utformning av regleringar/styrmedel. Den övergripande slutsats som kan dras av de tre delstudierna som ingått i projektet, samt diskussionen på avslutningsseminariet, är att detta inte är ett etablerat arbetssätt i det svenska förvaltningssystemet. Detta kan förklaras av brist på kompetens, en etablerad misstro, målstyrning samt avsaknad av ett institutionellt ramverk för när och hur denna typ av bredare konsekvensanalyser ska genomföras. Vid avslutningsseminariet framkom att Naturvårdsverket nu arbetar med en vägledning för att hjälpa tjänstemän att i ett tidigt skede analysera om det finns behov av regleringar från samhällets sida, att inleda arbetet med att ställa frågan "Vad är problemet?". Vi bedömer att detta är ett steg i rätt riktning men ser också att de nationalekonomer som arbetar ute på myndigheter ofta är ensamma eller väldigt få och därmed kan behöva olika former av stöd för att kunna utveckla arbetet med denna typ av, ofta komplexa, analyser på sin myndighet. ; Sustainable development implies that society's limited resources should be used efficiently, taking into account the various impacts on society – social, economic and environmental. To achieve established societal goals efficiently, various aspects have to be accounted for in the design of policy measures. Within the EU a Regulatory Impact Assessment, where a cost-benefit analysis is included, needs to accompany all major regulatory initiatives. According to research and different policy assessment, Sweden lacks an established praxis regarding this type of analysis in the area of environmental policy but also in the field of energy and transport. The purpose of this project is to investigate how Sweden uses this type of information in the negotiations that take place within the EU regarding policy proposals but also investigate the reasons for use or non-use. The focus is on what role the organization and the bureaucrats play for the collection of this type of information. The overall conclusion that can be drawn from the three sub-studies included in the project, as well as the discussion at the closing seminar, is that this is not an established way of working in the Swedish government system. This can be explained by lack of competence, an established mistrust, management by objectives and lack of an institutional framework for when and how this type of broader impact assessment is to be conducted. At the closing seminar, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency presented that it is now working on a guide to help officials to analyze at an early stage whether there is a need for regulation by society, to initiate the work by asking the question "What is the problem?". We think that this is a step in the right direction, but we also see that the economists working out in government are often alone or very few and may therefore need different forms of support to develop the work on this kind of, often complex, analysis.

In recent years knowledge has been brought forward as an important political issue both in the EU and in Sweden. It is said to be of the uttermost importance not just for education but for society as a whole. As a result of increased globalization and a European striving for economic growth, knowledge has come to be associated with both individual and national competitiveness, and education and learning in schools and workplaces have become a political priority. In this global competition the EU has become an important policy actor in the educational field trying to create a common European education policy field. Despite this development, only a limited number of reports relating the European arena to Swedish educational reforms have been published. Against this background the aim of this thesis is to deepen the understanding of the knowledge discourses which struggle for legitimacy in Swedish and European education policy and how these discourses relate to each other and change over time. The empirical material consists of a number of fundamental official policy texts produced by the EU and the Swedish state. The study takes its theoretical point of departure in critical discourse analysis using an analytical grid where production, content and communication are seen as three aspects constituting every knowledge discourse. The result shows a process of silent Europeanization in Swedish school reform where European knowledge discourse is being re-contextualised and in many cases re-interpreted without any declaration in terms of explicit references. It also confirms the general trend towards increased focus on learning outcomes and demands for measurability. Furthermore, the result shows how competition rhetoric dominating the EU contributes to an increased sense of crisis in both European and Swedish educational reforms. As a result of this crisis rhetoric the study shows how the proactive reform-perspective is being replaced by a retrospective where solving already existing problems replaces the planning of an ...