The Naturally Optimised Revenue Demand in Communities (NORDIC) model was employed to improve the workforce. The proposed model produced constructed shadow costs to be inserted into the public accounts to induce economic incentives to increase the employment-to-population ratio. The resulting shadow cost, and its impact on the PSBR, constitutes a single key factor that by one digit only, expresses how successful the labour policy is over time. The launched model considered and promoted the health of the workforce and reduced the costs of non-employment. This case study showed how the workforce in the Swedish society could be improved by application of the NORDIC model, that is the system of cooperation between workers and employers. The results point at a promising methodology for improving the health of the workforce and increasing the employment-to-population ratio by using economic instruments. The study concludes that the versatile NORDIC model could be used to improve the Swedish workforce and its quality of life, particularly for seniors. Possible end users include labour authorities and politicians that want a comprehensive tool to redesign the labour policy. The NORDIC model is recommended to apply to labour issues, and employ to improve the health of the workforce. Further research should focus on developing algorithms for certain sections of the workforce.
The Naturally Optimised Revenue Demand in Communities (NORDIC) model is employed to improve migration. The proposed model produces constructed shadow costs to be inserted into the public budgets to induce economic incentives to improve the integration of immigrants. The resulting shadow cost, and its impact on the PSBR, constitutes a single, key factor that by one digit only expresses how successful the integration is over time. The human tolerance is encapsulated in the launched model through a single factor in the NORDIC model equation that considers the population's general acceptance of immigrants that affects the result. Particularly, the case study shows how refugees should be better integrated into the Swedish society by application of the NORDIC model. The results point at a promising methodology for successfully integrating migrants by using economic instruments. The major conclusion is that the NORDIC model can be used for improving the immigration to a nation. In particular, the suitable level of refugee-reception is possible to determine by employing the NORDIC model in a societal context to improve a nation's GDP and the citizens' welfare. Possible end users are the migration-authorities and politicians that want a comprehensive tool to improve the efficiency of the reception of immigrants and refugees to the current nation. Recommendations for the use of the proposed model are given and further research suggested.
Increased attention is nowadays devoted to waste management. The objective of this work is to analyse how commonly known business economic models and methods, as well as the Polluter-Pays Principle, can be applied to waste management in general and to waste fractionation in particular, so as to facilitate environmental optimisation of industrial and construction waste fractionation. In discussing the functionality of the modified models arrived at, systems theory is applied in order to get a scientifically adequate picture of the societal context of the models. A further objective is to investigate certain aspects of construction waste management economic model theory through case studies. Thereby, the applicability of modified versions of the above mentioned business economic models applied in construction waste management is tested. Generally, the work is performed in order to provide flexible management instruments adapted to changing demands. The economic model methods are studied and modified from a waste management point of view. In this context, the "equality principle" introduced earlier (Stenis, 2002), interpreted as equality between (industrial) waste and normal products in business economic terms, is applied. "The model for Efficient Use of Resources for Optimal Production Economy (EUROPE)", is introduced for assigning industrial costs and revenues to waste by the employment of so-called shadow prices. The modified, mainly cost assessment oriented, methods are evaluated from a business economics perspective in relation to waste management. The effort in this work represents a shift of views within the field of waste management. This shift is consistent with the concept of sustainable development. Also, the present study represents general environmental and financial advantages for society at large. It is concluded that the findings point at the partly fruitful possibility to modify commonly used cost benefit estimation methods and contribution margin analysis including the Polluter-Pays Principle (PPP) in a practical industrial and, to a certain extent, a practical construction waste management context by the use of the equality principle. Therefore, it can be said that construction waste management can be carried out by using certain (modified) economic models. Summarised, the major findings of the work are as follows: 1) Presentation of an alternative way of looking at industrial waste in a business context; 2) Introduction of the EUROPE model for assigning costs to industrial waste to be used in conjunction with the introduced equality principle to provide long term recommendations regarding waste involving the use of "environmental shadow prices"; 3) Presentation of how the Polluter-Pays Principle can be incorporated into the financial accounts of a manufacturing company by the employment of the equality principle in conjunction with the introduced concept of the "environmental adjustment cost"; 4) Proposal for a shift of views within the field of waste management. Summarised, the recommendations for the future in this work are as follows: 1) As regards general industrial conditions, commonly used cost benefit methods, the contribution margin method and the Polluter-Pays Principle approach are suggested to be applied in a modified way through the use of the EUROPE model, the basis being the equality principle introduced. 2) As regards construction management conditions, the average cost estimation method is suggested to be applied in a modified way through the use of the EUROPE model, the basis being the equality principle introduced.
For the next century to come, one of the biggest challenges is to provide the mankind with relevant and sufficient resources. Recovery of secondary resources plays a significant role. Industrial processes developed to regain minerals for commodity production in a circular economy become ever more important in the European Union and worldwide. Landfill mining (LFM) constitutes an important technological toolset of processes that regain resources and redistribute them with an accompanying reduction of hazardous influence of environmental contamination and other threats for human health hidden in former dump sites and landfills. This review paper is devoted to LFM problems, historical development and driving paradigms of LFM from 'classical hunting for valuables' to 'perspective in ecosystem revitalization'. The main goal is to provide a description of historical experience and link it to more advanced concept of a circular economy. The challenge is to adapt the existing knowledge to make decisions in accordance with both, economic feasibility and ecosystems revitalization aspects. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
