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European Context (european + context)
Selected AbstractsFiscal policy and interest rates in EuropeECONOMIC POLICY, Issue 47 2006Riccardo Faini SUMMARY Fiscal policy and interest rates in Europe The appetite for fiscal discipline has been steadily declining among most industrial countries. In the past, fiscal profligacy would have been punished by markets with higher interest rates and, in some cases, also exchange rate depreciation. However, in post-EMU Europe, exchange rate markets no longer discipline the fiscal behaviour of national governments. Perhaps more crucially, even the interest rate punishment to fiscal indiscipline is highly uncertain, with academic opinions being quite divided on this issue. This paper takes a close look at the link between fiscal policy and interest rates in the European context. The key finding is that an expansionary fiscal policy in one EMU member will have an effect both on its spreads and on the overall level of interest rates for the currency union as a whole, with the second effect, however, being quantitatively much more significant. This suggests that there are indeed substantial spillovers, through the interest rate channel, among fiscal policies of member countries. To limit countries' incentive to run expansionary fiscal policies, a set of rules, like those embedded in the Stability and Growth Pact, is then needed. Some (weak) evidence is also found that after EMU, interest rate spillovers seem to be more significant for high debt countries with unsustainable fiscal policies, reflecting perhaps market concerns about a possible sovereign bail out or the impact of financial distress. There may be a case then for imposing tighter rules on high debt countries. , Riccardo Faini [source] A decade of mandatory environmental reporting in DenmarkENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 6 2005Jette Egelund Holgaard Abstract In Denmark, the first law on green accounts was passed in July 1995. The law instructed a selected sample of Danish companies to prepare a green account. In 2002 the government strengthened the law, as the official evaluation showed that expectations for the delivered green accounts concerning content, form and reach were not met. One of the new initiatives was that the companies should describe their environmental policy, goals and results , if any. In this paper the potentials of the revised law will be discussed in relation to experiences with the first law and best practice in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). This discussion is pursued in a broader European context to elaborate on the perspectives of mandatory environmental reporting and leads to some amendments for a future revision of the Danish law on green accounts. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] Legal Diversity and Regulatory Competition: Which Model for Europe?EUROPEAN LAW JOURNAL, Issue 4 2006Simon Deakin In the European context, harmonisation of corporate and labour law, contrary to its critics, has been a force for the preservation of diversity, and of an approach to regulatory interaction based on mutual learning between nation states. It is thus paradoxical, and arguably antithetical to the goal of European integration, that this approach is in danger of being undermined by attempts, following the Centros case, to introduce a Delaware-type form of inter-jurisdictional competition into European company law. [source] The General Provisions of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European UnionEUROPEAN LAW JOURNAL, Issue 4 2002R. Alonso García The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union provides the Union with a ,more evident' (as the European Council of Cologne asked for) framework of protection of the individuals before the public authorities within the European context, after more than thirty years (since the Stauder Case) of full confidence in the leading role played by the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Communities. This new normative catalogue of fundamental rights (included the so called ,aspirational fundamental rights') implies one more instrument of protection which has to find its own place with regard to the protection afforded by the national Constitutions and the international agreements on human rights, particularly the European Convention on Human Rights, which are already a privileged source of inspiration for Court of Justice of the European Communities. It is the main objective of the General Provisions of the Charter to clarify which is that place and the relationship with those other levels of protection as managed by their supreme interpreters (i.e., the Constitutional,or Supreme,Courts of the Member States of the Union and the European Court of Human Rights). [source] European Integration: Popular Sovereignty and a Politics of BoundariesEUROPEAN LAW JOURNAL, Issue 3 2000Hans Lindahl The problem raised by popular sovereignty in the framework of the EU is not whether it is relevant to European integration; it is. The problem is another, namely the identity and, thus, the boundary of a democratic polity. The very idea of ,European' integration suggests that integration is only imaginable by reference to the closure provided by an identity, a boundary that is normative rather than merely geographical. In this minimal sense, a European people is the necessary presupposition of integration, not merely its telos. Bluntly, there is no integration without inclusion and, also, no integration without exclusion. This, then, is the real problem raised by popular sovereignty in a European context: if there is no such thing as non-exclusionary integration, how can a reflection on the boundedness of European integration be more than a rationalisation of exclusion? [source] Politic history, New Monarchy and state formation: Henry VII in European perspectiveHISTORICAL RESEARCH, Issue 217 2009Steven Gunn Historians have repeatedly compared Henry VII with his continental contemporaries, Louis XI of France and Ferdinand of Aragon. Around 1600 the writers of politic history emphasized Henry's wisdom in drawing lessons in statecraft from his fellow monarchs. By 1900 analysts of the ,New Monarchy' placed more stress on the common circumstances that underlay the revival of monarchical power, but thereby raised awkward questions about similarities and differences in the development of national states. Latterly a model of European state formation has been constructed which sets Henry's kingship less comfortably alongside those of Louis and Ferdinand. This should lead us not to abandon, but to reshape the attempt to set Henry in his European context. [source] Going Dutch: The Development of Collaborative Practices Between Higher Education and Museums and GalleriesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ART & DESIGN EDUCATION, Issue 1 2003Liz Smith This study reports on a very successful collaboration between teacher education courses in Manchester and Amsterdam and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. The central aim of the initiative was to promote and sustain partnerships between Higher Education (HE) institutions, public galleries and schools with a view to developing, delivering and sharing good practice in art and design within a European context. [source] Development of nursing research in Germany in the European contextINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NURSING PRACTICE, Issue 5 2000Mathilde Hackmann Rn MSc (Nsg & Ed) The development of nursing research in Germany is described in this article; in the first part, the evolution of nursing research in Europe is discussed briefly, then the development of nursing research in Germany is analysed using the framework of the main stages of the development of nursing research described by Tierney. A comparison of the differences between European and German development follows. Reasons for the differences are briefly analysed and discussed in the context of the German political and social background. [source] Trust, risk and control within an indigenous,non-indigenous social service partnershipINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SOCIAL WELFARE, Issue 3 2007Peter Walker Partnerships between organisations are seen as one of the building blocks of the ,third way' approach to welfare provision in both Europe and New Zealand. While there is much discussion on building social capital and partnership working, such partnerships are usually perceived as being between government and community or private organisations. There is a gap in the literature in two specific areas: partnerships formed between two community-based social service organisations and partnerships formed between indigenous, or immigrant peoples, and non-indigenous organisations. This article explores such a partnership , that between the Ngai Tahu Maori Law Centre (an indigenous organisation) and the Dunedin Community Law Centre (a non-indigenous organisation). The article analyses this relationship and strategies employed by both organisations to develop trust, diminish risk and equalise control. Lastly, the article suggests that the model of interaction articulated here could be promulgated to other sites within the social services in New Zealand and the Americas, and within the European context. [source] Fossil evidence and phylogeography of temperate species: ,glacial refugia' and post-glacial recolonizationJOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 11 2009Robert S. Sommer Abstract We present a short synthesis of the Pleistocene distribution dynamics and phylogeographic recolonization hypotheses for two temperate European mammal species, the red deer (Cervus elaphus) and the roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), for which high-resolution patterns of fossil evidence and genetic data sets are available. Such data are critical to an understanding of the role of hypothesized glacial refugia. Both species show a similar pattern: a relatively wide distribution in the southern part of Central Europe 60,000,25,000 years ago, and a strong restriction to areas in southern Europe for nearly 10,000 years during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and the early Late Glacial (25,000,14,700 years ago). With the beginning of Greenland Interstadial 1 (Bølling/Allerød warming, c. 14,700,11,600 years ago) a sudden range expansion into Central Europe is visible, but the colonization of most of Central Europe, including the northern European Lowlands, only began in the early Holocene. In a European context, regions where the species were distributed during the LGM and early Late Glacial are most relevant as potential origins of recolonization processes, because during these c. 10,000 years distribution ranges were smaller than at any other time in the Late Quaternary. As far as the present distribution of temperate species and their genetic lineages is concerned, so-called ,cryptic refugia' are important only if the species are actually confirmed there during the LGM, as otherwise they could not possibly have contributed to the recolonization that eventually resulted in the present distribution ranges. [source] Reliability of the Clinical Teaching Effectiveness InstrumentMEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 9 2005H H Van Der Hem-Stokroos Introduction, The Clinical Teaching Effectiveness Instrument (CTEI) was developed to evaluate the quality of the clinical teaching of educators. Its authors reported evidence supporting content and criterion validity and found favourable reliability findings. We tested the validity and reliability of this instrument in a European context and investigated its reliability as an instrument to evaluate the quality of clinical teaching at group level rather than at the level of the individual teacher. Methods, Students participating in a surgical clerkship were asked to fill in a questionnaire reflecting a student,teacher encounter with a staff member or a resident. We calculated variance components using the urgenova program. For individual score interpretation of the quality of clinical teaching the standard error of estimate was calculated. For group interpretation we calculated the root mean square error. Results, The results did not differ statistically between staff and residents. The average score was 3.42. The largest variance component was associated with rater variance. For individual score interpretation a reliability of >,0.80 was reached with 7 ratings or more. To reach reliable outcomes at group level, 15 educators or more were needed with a single rater per educator. Discussion, The required sample size for appraisal of individual teaching is easily achievable. Reliable findings can also be obtained at group level with a feasible sample size. The results provide additional evidence of the reliability of the CTEI in undergraduate medical education in a European setting. The results also showed that the instrument can be used to measure the quality of teaching at group level. [source] Front and Back Covers, Volume 21, Number 4.ANTHROPOLOGY TODAY, Issue 4 2005August 200 Front and back cover caption, volume 21 issue 4 Front cover The photo on the front cover, taken from the World Monuments Fund (WMF) website, shows house in Hilinawalö Mazingö, South Nias, Indonesia which was recently included on the WMF's List of 100 most endangered sites. Built in the 19th century, the house withstood the massive earthquake of 28 March 2005 that reduced the port towns of Nias to rubble and made over 150,000 people homeless. Constructed without nails, its complex structure can absorb tremors where modern concrete houses collapse. However, the hardwoods needed to replace columns and panels damaged by fire, rain and insects are no longer available, since Nias has been stripped of primary forest. Urgent conservation work is needed if the stone-paved villages and traditional architecture of Nias are to survive further destruction. In order to house the homeless, reconstruction planners are now studying the possibility of reviving traditional designs using cheaper, renewable materials. South Nias, whose plight was barely reported in the aftermath of the earthquake, received no government attention until ten days after the disaster. In his article on pp. 5-7 of this issue, Andrew Beatty reflects on the lack of development in Nias since he began fieldwork there in 1986 and considers the context of the recovery operation, showing how selective reporting, narrowly focused on stereotypical human interest stories, has failed to address local conditions, allowing corruption and inefficiency to thrive. Local knowledge is key to the success of aid. But only better reporting of regional power structures and stakeholders, combined with greater scrutiny of official dealings, will help to ensure that aid reaches those most in need. Back cover POLICY AND RACE The back cover reproduces questions from recent censuses conducted in England and Wales (above) and the USA (below). The former asks the respondent to state 'your ethnic group'; the latter seeks information on a 'person's race'. Statistics from the responses to these questions are given on page 4 of this issue. The British census question on ethnic origin, first introduced in 1991, is unusual in the European context. The 2001 census introduced a new 'mixed' category, as well as the term 'British' as a qualifier (to permit identification as British Black or British Asian), and a 'white' category subdivided into British, Irish and others. It also included a question on religion for the first time in more than a century, in response to the concerns of those for whom ethnic affiliation relates closely to religion (e.g. South Asian Muslims). In the US, the census of 2000 offered individuals, for the first time, the opportunity to identify themselves as belonging to more than one racial category (previously people of mixed descent were asked to choose a single racial category or to respond as 'some other race'). Most countries conduct regular censuses of their populations. In 1995 the United Nations Assembly passed a resolution calling on all its member countries to compile census data by 2004. However, a census depends on the consent of the population. Germany has not taken a full census since 1987, after postponing its scheduled 1983 census because of public concern over the proposed use of census returns to update local population registers; the Netherlands has not had a census since 1971, when high rates of refusal rendered returns unreliable. In common with a number of other countries, including Denmark, these two have turned to alternative data sources, particularly population and housing registers as well as sample surveys, for population statistics. The discourse of governance and perceptions of social category are powerfully influenced by the terms officially sanctioned by governments for the classification of citizens. The US census identifies its use of race as 'sociopolitical constructs' that are not 'scientific or anthropological in nature' (quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/meta/long_68186.htm). Race is surely one of the most potent and elusive of concepts anthropology is trying to make sense of, whether as a scientific or as a cultural category. In this issue of AT, Michael Banton contends that contributors to recent debate have not distinguished sufficiently between scientific classifications and the categories current in the English language of everyday life. In their review of the recent 'Anthropology and Genomics' conference, Simpson and Konrad point out how issues of race and policy arise in this dynamic field. ANTHROPOLOGY TODAY continues to offer a forum for topical debate on issues of public concern, and welcomes further contributions on these questions. [source] National and Partisan Contexts of Europeanization: The Case of the French SocialistsJCMS: JOURNAL OF COMMON MARKET STUDIES, Issue 1 2001Alistair Cole This article affirms the usefulness of thinking of Europeanization and European policy change in terms of national, party and European contexts and their interrelationships. Through a case study of the French Socialists in office, the article seeks to establish that national, party and European policy contexts matter in different ways and in varying degrees. National context provides a set of institutions, interests and referential paradigms which help to make sense of a complex external environment. Party provides a distinctive partisan lens and an enduring political community. Europeanization poses a series of direct and indirect policy challenges and opportunities for nation-states and party governments. The article considers national and Europeanized pressures to be more significant than partisan processes. [source] Community psychology: should there be a European perspective?JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY & APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2001Donata Francescato In this era of globalisation community psychologists have to examine how globalisation patterns interact with local cultural norms, to find tools to promote a sense of community that fits a particular context. We cannot therefore acritically adopt for many European contexts, community psychology concepts and intervention strategies geared to USA values. The paper argues for the need to develop a European perspective in Community Psychology, built more on the European tradition of political concern for promoting social capital, besides an individual's freedom and autonomy. The paper attempts to identity some of the main differences that have emerged in the last decades between USA and European approaches to community psychology. It also describes two empowering tools, which integrate traditional and post modern views of science: community profiling and multidimensional organisational analysis, that have been used by European community psychologists to rebuild social capital in organisations and local communities. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Land use in prehistoric malta.OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 1 2004A re-examination of the maltese, cart ruts' Summary. This paper explores the manufacture and function of the so-called ,cart ruts' within the harsh environment of Malta and proposes that they were deliberately constructed in order to push the boundaries of available arable land and are better identified as field furrows. Using comparative ethnographic evidence as well as archaeological data from European contexts, it is argued that the driving force, which necessitated their manufacture in Malta, lay in socio-economic pressures. It is argued that the ruts are of high antiquity, products of Temple Period intensification and marginalism in land use. [source] Post-communist ironies in an East German hotelANTHROPOLOGY TODAY, Issue 1 2009Petra Rethmann On 1 May 2007, a new hotel opened in Berlin: Ostel. As its name implies, it is located in the former East of the city, now ,Berlin Mitte'. The Ostel joined Berlin's burgeoning hotel scene at a time when Ostalgie - the supposed longing East Germans feel for the past - marked no longer a condition of mourning and loss but had become ,hip'. In this article to carry the analysis of Ostalgie beyond the themes of trauma or resistance into the more playful dimensions of what Czech-French writer Milan Kundera (1992) has called ,the joke,' that is, an ironic form of humor ubiquitous in former Soviet and East European contexts. I engage irony as a situated experience and practice chiefly through the ,artful lens' of material culture. In focusing on the Ostel's interior, I am especially interested in irony's ,critical edge'. I argue that it is this edge that makes it possible to open up critical interpretations of German post-unification history. [source] | |||||||||||||