"The book offers a pre-history of international investment law focusing on the time before 1959 and the ratification of the first bilateral investment treaty and the ICSID Convention. It introduces new primary archival material, including arbitral awards, diplomatic notes, and concession agreements, as well as scholarly writings pertaining to developments in these proceedings. The book develops the important role of concession agreements and their internationalisation for the making of international investment law, highlighting their private law character. It also offers an account of the underestimated role of 'general principles of law recognized by civilized nations' for the theoretical and practical consolidation of the norms in international investment law. On a theoretical level the book works with an account of law as jurisdictional practice and draws out the relationship between the claim to universality of international legal norms and the economic dominance and dependence created through this claim"--
Der Beitrag untersucht die Frage, wie Motive und Motiverfüllung - die individuellen Persönlichkeitsmerkmale der Ehrenamtlichen berücksichtigend - das kurz- und langfristige ehrenamtliche Engagement in der Hospizbewegung in Österreich determinieren. Hierfür wurden in den Jahren 2009 und 2010 rund 270 ehrenamtliche Mitarbeiter der Hospizbewegung zu Motiven und Motiverfüllung, persönlichen und arbeitsrelevanten Einstellungen sowie arbeitsbezogenen Verhaltensweisen im Rahmen ihres Engagements befragt. Die Untersuchung weist einen signifikanten Einfluss von altruistischen und egoistischen Motiven nach. Dass Freiwilligentätigkeit nicht nur durch altruistische Motive geprägt ist, ist auch unmittelbar für die Aufrechterhaltung dieses sozialen Dienstes von Relevanz. (ICE2)
"Eine Detailbetrachtung des Zusammenhangs von ESt und Sozialversicherungsbeiträgen zeigt, dass eine Aggregation der beiden Elemente zu einem 'Abgabenkeil' aus mehreren Gründen nicht ohne weiteres möglich ist. Die Bemessungsgrundlagen in den beiden Finanzierungssystemen sind unterschiedlich abgegrenzt, sodass eine Aggregation einer entsprechenden Bereinigung bedarf. Der Transfer- bzw. Äquivalenzcharakter von Steuern und Sozialversicherungsbeiträgen ist unterschiedlich stark ausgeprägt. Sozialversicherungsbeiträge können darüber hinaus in einem höheren Maß als Substitute für private Absicherungsaktivitäten angesehen werden, als dies bei Steuern, für die das Nonaffektationsprinzip gilt, der Fall ist. Steuern und Sozialversicherungsbeiträge sind zudem insofern direkt miteinander verknüpft, als Sozialversicherungsbeiträge und Sozialversicherungsleistungen steuerpflichtige Tatbestände sein können. Im empirischen Teil dieses Beitrages wurde gezeigt, wie die Tatsache, dass Beiträge zur SKV aus steuerfreiem Einkommen geleistet werden, den effektiven Beitragssatz verändert. Die Analyse zeigt, dass es zu einer substanziellen Differenz zwischen dem tariflichen Beitragssatz und dem effektiven Beitragssatz kommt. Im effektiven Beitragssatz spiegelt sich der sehr komplexe Tarifverlauf der ESt in Österreich wider. Die effektiven Grenz- und Durchschnittssteuersätze der Beiträge zur SKV zeigen Muster, die weder unter allokativen noch unter distributiven Überlegungen rational erscheinen. Verteilungspolitisch wirken die Steuerbefreiungen eindeutig regressiv, begünstigen also die oberen Einkommensschichten. Man könnte dies als Spiegelbild der Progression im Rahmen der Einkommensteuer abtun. Im Lichte der aktuellen Diskussion über die gerechte Ausgestaltung der Finanzierung von Gesundheitsleistungen (Betonung des Progressionsgrades in der Finanzierung durch eine Verstärkung der Steuerfinanzierung, Trennung von Versicherungs- und Umverteilungsfunktion in der SKV (z. B. Schweiz)), vor dem Hintergrund der Suche nach einer optimalen Mischung von privater und öffentlicher Finanzierung von Gesundheitsleistungen und angesichts der Anreizwirkungen von lohnbezogenen Abgaben auf den Arbeitsmarkt erschiene dies aber unbefriedigend. Letztlich wird man angesichts der verteilungspolitischen Wirkungen auch nicht um Beantwortung der vorgelagerten normativen Frage, wie Beiträge zur Absicherung für den Krankheitsfall steuerlich behandelt werden sollen, umhin können." (Autorenreferat)
International audience ; Blockchain technology has spurred the emergence of powerful narratives to promote new ways of governing outer space. The list of proposed uses for blockchain applications in outer space is endless-from property registries for asteroid mining, to supply chain management systems, or interplanetary cryptocurrencies for the space economy-along with Elon Musk claiming that "SpaceX is going to put a literal Dogecoin on the literal moon." 1 Yet, thus far, none of these projects have gone beyond simple declarations or white papers, mostly due to the inherent limitations on the effective enforcement of blockchain-based rules outside of their own technical framework. In this essay, we argue that blockchain technology is relevant for outer space because it fosters novel narratives 2 advancing possible futures characterized by new modes of governance. The strongest and most prominent of these narratives is the crypto-libertarian one, which draws heavily on the absence of a state, the sanctity of property, and the primacy of private ordering through decentralized markets. But there are other narratives proposed by relevant actors in the blockchain space that are dedicated to other modes of governance. 3 By focusing on alternative narratives for blockchain technology, we illustrate how the possible applications of blockchain technology in outer space may extend beyond the current libertarian dreams, to support a more commons-based approach to outer space governance. International Legal Framework of Outer Space Governance and the Commercial Space Industry Outer space governance was established through a series of international treaties, enacted during the Cold War period. The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 (OST) is the most significant piece of legislation in this regard. It establishes an international legal framework for outer space, intended to preserve outer space as a global commons-i.e.
In this paper we examine determinants of prepaid modes of health care financing in a worldwide cross-country perspective. We use three different indicators to capture the role of prepaid modes in health care financing: (i) the share of total prepaid financing as percent of total current health expenditures, (ii) the share of voluntary prepaid financing as percent of total prepaid financing, and (iii) the share of compulsory health insurance as percent of total compulsory prepaid financing. In the econometric analysis, we refer to a panel data set comprising 154 countries and covering the time period 2000–2015. We apply a static as well as a dynamic panel data model. We find that the current structure of prepaid financing is significantly determined by its different forms in the past. The significant influence of GDP per capita, governmental revenues, the agricultural value added, development assistance for health, degree of urbanization and regulatory quality varies depending on the financing structure we look at. The share of the elderly and the education level are only of minor importance for explaining the variation in a country's share of prepaid health care financing. The importance of the mentioned variables as determinants for prepaid health care financing also varies depending on the countries' socio-economic development. From our analysis we conclude that more detailed information on indicators which reflect the distribution of individual characteristics (such as income, family size and structure and health risks) within a country's population would be needed to gain deeper insight into the decisive determinants for prepaid health care financing.
International audience ; Blockchain technology has spurred the emergence of powerful narratives to promote new ways of governing outer space. The list of proposed uses for blockchain applications in outer space is endless-from property registries for asteroid mining, to supply chain management systems, or interplanetary cryptocurrencies for the space economy-along with Elon Musk claiming that "SpaceX is going to put a literal Dogecoin on the literal moon." 1 Yet, thus far, none of these projects have gone beyond simple declarations or white papers, mostly due to the inherent limitations on the effective enforcement of blockchain-based rules outside of their own technical framework. In this essay, we argue that blockchain technology is relevant for outer space because it fosters novel narratives 2 advancing possible futures characterized by new modes of governance. The strongest and most prominent of these narratives is the crypto-libertarian one, which draws heavily on the absence of a state, the sanctity of property, and the primacy of private ordering through decentralized markets. But there are other narratives proposed by relevant actors in the blockchain space that are dedicated to other modes of governance. 3 By focusing on alternative narratives for blockchain technology, we illustrate how the possible applications of blockchain technology in outer space may extend beyond the current libertarian dreams, to support a more commons-based approach to outer space governance. International Legal Framework of Outer Space Governance and the Commercial Space Industry Outer space governance was established through a series of international treaties, enacted during the Cold War period. The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 (OST) is the most significant piece of legislation in this regard. It establishes an international legal framework for outer space, intended to preserve outer space as a global commons-i.e.
In this paper we examine determinants of prepaid modes of health care financing in a worldwide cross-country perspective. We use three different indicators to capture the role of prepaid modes in health care financing: (i) the share of total prepaid financing as percent of total current health expenditures, (ii) the share of voluntary prepaid financing as percent of total prepaid financing, and (iii) the share of compulsory health insurance as percent of total compulsory prepaid financing. In the econometric analysis, we refer to a panel data set comprising 154 countries and covering the time period 2000–2015. We apply a static as well as a dynamic panel data model. We find that the current structure of prepaid financing is significantly determined by its different forms in the past. The significant influence of GDP per capita, governmental revenues, the agricultural value added, development assistance for health, degree of urbanization and regulatory quality varies depending on the financing structure we look at. The share of the elderly and the education level are only of minor importance for explaining the variation in a country's share of prepaid health care financing. The importance of the mentioned variables as determinants for prepaid health care financing also varies depending on the countries' socio-economic development. From our analysis we conclude that more detailed information on indicators which reflect the distribution of individual characteristics (such as income, family size and structure and health risks) within a country's population would be needed to gain deeper insight into the decisive determinants for prepaid health care financing. ; Version of record
In this paper we examine determinants of prepaid modes of health care financing in a worldwide cross-country perspective. We use three different indicators to capture the role of prepaid modes in health care financing: (i) the share of total prepaid financing as percent of total current health expenditures, (ii) the share of voluntary prepaid financing as percent of total prepaid financing, and (iii) the share of compulsory health insurance as percent of total compulsory financing arrangements. We refer to a panel data set comprising 158 countries and covering the time period 2000-2015. We apply a static as well as a dynamic panel data model. We find that the current structure of prepaid financing is significantly determined by its different forms in the past. The significant influence of governmental revenues, development assistance for health and regulatory quality varies depending on the financing structure we look at. The country's GDP per capita, the agricultural value added, the degree of urbanization and the share of the elderly are only of minor importance for explaining the variation in a country's structure of health care financing. From our analysis we conclude that more detailed information on indicators which reflect the distribution of individual characteristics (such as income and health risks) within a country's population would be needed to gain deeper insight into the decisive determinants for prepaid health care financing.
