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Interest Groups (interest + groups)
Kinds of Interest Groups Selected AbstractsTHE ADOPTION OF STATE ELECTRICITY REGULATION: THE ROLE OF INTEREST GROUPS,THE JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS, Issue 2 2006CHRISTOPHER R. KNITTEL This paper examines the adoption of state electricity regulation around the beginning of the 20th century. I model this decision as a hazard rate to determine what influenced the adoption of state regulation. I find that adoption is positively correlated with capacity shortages, greater wealth and lower residential electricity penetration rates. These results suggest that state regulation responded to regulatory inefficiencies and residential consumer interests. In addition, adoption rates were higher in states that had a strong industrial and coal mining presence. These results are consistent with the interest group and contracting theories of regulation. [source] Funding of Symposia and Interest GroupsIUBMB LIFE, Issue 5 2000Vito Turk No abstract is available for this article. [source] WHO PAYS FOR WHEELCHAIRS?ECONOMIC AFFAIRS, Issue 2 2004Geoffrey E. Wood The issue opened up by the ,Ryanair Case' is a wide and important one. Interest groups often press for special treatment at the expense of others. People often agree to give it, because they think the group is deserving and because they have not thought through how the service is to be paid for. By making the charging transparent, as Ryanair has done in this case, people will be forced to think about whether the interest group really is deserving, and if they decide that it is, face up to supporting that view with their own money. [source] The Regulation of Media Markets in selected EU Accession States in Central and Eastern EuropeEUROPEAN LAW JOURNAL, Issue 3 2003Alison Harcourt When formulating media laws in the early 1990s, these countries were presented with models put forth by advisors from the US and EU Member States. Advisors proposed models based upon their own domestic policy and/or organisation agendas. A resulting ,battle of the models' can be observed with different experts and actors lobbying for the adoption of contrasting regulatory models. Underlying this were often political, economic and trade interests. In particular, ,Western' governments were interested in guaranteeing the opening of new markets, and the stability of these new media markets for Western capital investment, as well as wider political concerns of consolidating democracy in Europe. Interest groups and NGOs wished to transfer their ideas to Eastern Europe often in advocacy of their own agendas in an enlarged Europe. [source] Zoning Marine Protected Areas through Spatial Multiple-Criteria Analysis: the Case of the Asinara Island National Marine Reserve of ItalyCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2002Ferdinando Villa Systematic, objective approaches to site selection and design can help reconcile conflicting interests, represent stakeholders' viewpoints fairly and evenly, and extend the scope of planning studies from single reserves to networks. We illustrate the use of spatial multiple-criteria analysis for determining the suitability of marine areas for different uses and levels of protection. This technique couples geographic information systems (GIS) for land assessment and evaluation with a formal statement of the design priorities as seen from the different viewpoints of all involved stakeholders. The planning process, while staying focused on the main purposes of conservation and feasibility, involves all the main interest groups in the definition of priorities so that conflicts and tensions are kept under control. We used multiple-criteria analysis to integrate objective data with the contrasting priorities of different stakeholders in the planning of a marine protected area. The results of the analysis can be used to define an optimal spatial arrangement of different protection levels. As a case study, we developed a zoning plan for one of the first marine protected areas in Italy, the Asinara Island National Marine Reserve. Resumen: Puesto que el papel de las áreas marinas protegidas está siendo mejor entendido y se está volviendo más sofisticado, la planeación para abordar eficientemente estas áreas se está volviendo más complicada para las personas que toman decisiones. Las metodologías sistemáticas y objetivas para la selección de sitios y el diseño de reservas pueden ayudar a reconciliar los conflictos de intereses, representar los puntos de vista de los usuarios de manera equitativa y balanceada y extender la dimensión de los estudios de planeación para reservas individuales o en redes. Ilustramos el uso de un análisis de criterios espaciales múltiples para determinar la viabilidad de áreas marinas para diferentes usos y niveles de protección. Esta técnica une sistemas de información geográfica (GIS) para estimación y evaluación de suelos con una declaración de prioridades de diseño tal y como es percibida por los diferentes usuarios involucrados. El proceso de planeación, al mismo tiempo que se enfoca en los propósitos principales de la conservación y en su viabilidad, involucra a los principales grupos interesados en la definición de prioridades de tal manera que los conflictos y tensiones pueden ser manejadas. Utilizamos el análisis de criterios espaciales múltiples para integrar datos objetivos con las prioridades contrastantes de los diferentes usuarios en la planeación de un área marina protegida. Los resultados del análisis pueden ser usados como una guía para definir arreglos espaciales óptimos con diferentes niveles de protección. Como caso de estudio desarrollamos un plan de desarrollo de zonificación para una de las áreas marinas protegidas de Italia, la Reserva Nacional Marina de la Isla Asinara. [source] Global Environmental Governance and the Challenge of Shadow States: The Impact of Illicit Sapphire Mining in MadagascarDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 5 2005Rosaleen Duffy The environment has become a key site of global governance because of its transboundary nature: forests, wildlife and oceans have all become central foci for networks of global governance which link international organizations, international financial institutions, states and non-governmental organizations. This article examines how contemporary forms of global governance can be challenged and even subverted. It uses the concept of shadow states introduced by William Reno to explore how invisible global networks flow through developing states, to show how they constitute important political and economic interest groups, and to assess what kinds of environmental impact they have. It explores how powerful these networks are, and whether they are able to challenge or subvert attempts to manage, control or govern the environment. The author provides an analysis of the ways in which the clandestine networks of shadow states impact on conservation initiatives in the developing world, focusing on the features of global environmental governance and the problems posed by illicit gem mining and trafficking in Madagascar. [source] Models of policy-making and their relevance for drug researchDRUG AND ALCOHOL REVIEW, Issue 4 2010ALISON RITTER Abstract Introduction and Aims. Researchers are often frustrated by their inability to influence policy. We describe models of policy-making to provide new insights and a more realistic assessment of research impacts on policy. Design and Methods. We describe five prominent models of policy-making and illustrate them with examples from the alcohol and drugs field, before drawing lessons for researchers. Results. Policy-making is a complex and messy process, with different models describing different elements. We start with the incrementalist model, which highlights small amendments to policy, as occurs in school-based drug education. A technical/rational approach then outlines the key steps in a policy process from identification of problems and their causes, through to examination and choice of response options, and subsequent implementation and evaluation. There is a clear role for research, as we illustrate with the introduction of new medications, but this model largely ignores the dominant political aspects of policy-making. Such political aspects include the influence of interest groups, and we describe models about power and pressure groups, as well as advocacy coalitions, and the challenges they pose for researchers. These are illustrated with reference to the alcohol industry, and interest group conflicts in establishing a Medically Supervised Injecting Centre. Finally, we describe the multiple streams framework, which alerts researchers to ,windows of opportunity', and we show how these were effectively exploited in policy for cannabis law reform in Western Australia. Discussion and Conclusions. Understanding models of policy-making can help researchers maximise the uptake of their work and advance evidence-informed policy.[Ritter A, Bammer G. Models of policy-making and their relevance for drug research. Drug Alcohol Rev 2010] [source] PENSION REFORM, POLITICAL PRESSURE AND PUBLIC CHOICE , THE CASE OF FRANCEECONOMIC AFFAIRS, Issue 4 2008Laura Thompson An ageing population and generous public sector pensions have put significant pressure on the funding of the French pension system making a reduction in the scope of state pension schemes imperative. Yet, as public-choice theory would predict, lobbying by interest groups has made reform difficult to achieve. [source] THE YOUNG HELD TO RANSOM , A PUBLIC CHOICE ANALYSIS OF THE UK STATE PENSION SYSTEMECONOMIC AFFAIRS, Issue 1 2008Philip Booth As populations age, it will become increasingly difficult to reform state pension systems. Reform will not be impossible, but the process of ,buying off' interest groups will be expensive. State pension provision must use the contributory principle combined with an accruals system , though private pension provision would be better still. There are serious flaws in the so-called ,citizens pension' much promoted by interest groups in the UK. [source] CAFTA, CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS, AND THE ROLE OF SPECIAL INTERESTSECONOMICS & POLITICS, Issue 3 2010JAMES M. DEVAULT This paper analyzes the passage of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) in 2005, paying particular attention to the role of campaign contributions. The CAFTA vote is significant in that the context in which it occurred was one in which campaign contributions were more likely to influence votes. By more carefully identifying the special interest groups actively involved in the CAFTA debate, I provide a more accurate assessment of the impact of the contributions made by these groups. I use instrumental variables to control for the potential endogeneity of campaign contributions and find that these contributions played at best a secondary role in determining the outcome of the CAFTA vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. [source] THE NON-TRADED SECTOR, LOBBYING, AND THE CHOICE BETWEEN THE CUSTOMS UNION AND THE COMMON MARKETECONOMICS & POLITICS, Issue 3 2008CYRILLE SCHWELLNUS This paper models immigration policy as the outcome of political competition between interest groups representing individuals employed in different sectors. In standard positive theory, restrictive immigration policy results from a low-skilled median voter voting against predominantly low-skilled immigration. In the present paper, in contrast, once trade policies are liberalized, restrictive immigration policy results from anti-immigration lobbying by interest groups representing the non-traded sectors. It is shown that this is in line with empirical regularities from recent episodes of restrictive immigration legislation in the European Union. It is further shown that if governments negotiate bilaterally over trade and migration policy regimes, the equilibrium regime depends (i) on the sequencing of the international negotiation process and (ii) on the set of available trade and migration policy regimes. In particular, the most comprehensive and most welfare-beneficial type of liberalization may be rejected only because a less comprehensive type of liberalization is available. [source] HOW DID THE 2003 PRESCRIPTION DRUG RE-IMPORTATION BILL PASS THE HOUSE?ECONOMICS & POLITICS, Issue 1 2006OMER GOKCEKUS We examine the major interest groups in the debate over allowing the re-importation of prescription drugs by utilizing a logit model and instrumental variables. Consistent with political support approach, the evidence suggests that Representatives are maximizing their electoral prospects: contributions from pharmaceutical manufacturers shrink the probability of voting for the bill; and Representatives are sensitive to their constituencies , employees of pharmaceutical manufacturing and senior citizens. Representatives' gender and ideology regarding free trade and subsidies are also determining factors. However, the decision was, by and large, a partisan one: party affiliation was the most important factor in passing the bill. [source] INEQUALITY, REDISTRIBUTION, AND RENT-SEEKINGECONOMICS & POLITICS, Issue 3 2004Francisco Rodríguez This paper presents a non-median voter model of redistribution in which greater inequality leads to lower redistribution. Bargaining between interest groups and politicians over exemptions implies that individuals with sufficiently high income will not pay taxes in equilibrium. Therefore, voters will set tax rates low enough so as to control the incentives for rent-seeking. An increase in inequality, by putting more income in the hands of individuals that can buy exemptions, will lead to lower equilibrium redistribution. The model can be used to account for a negative relationship between inequality and growth and provides a new explanation of why the poor do not expropriate the rich in democracies. [source] A Model of Inequality and Interest Group PoliticsECONOMICS & POLITICS, Issue 2 2001Inderjit Kohli In this paper we examine inequality of process and inequality of outcomes in interest group politics. The model has interest groups that compete for rents in a non-cooperative game. It allows for a self-interested rent-setting political decision-maker, and democratic or popular pressure as a check on that self-interest. We consider differences in the effectiveness and pre-commitment abilities of interest groups. We show that: (i) the costs of influence activities may be highest when groups are relatively equal in their effectiveness; (ii) if social welfare incorporates enough concern for equity of outcomes, that ranking is reversed; (iii) depending on voter responsiveness to rent-setting, the political decision-maker may set rents to be higher or lower, when increases in inequality of effectiveness lower the unit costs of rent-seeking. [source] Framing participation with multicriterion evaluations to support the management of complex environmental issuesENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 2 2010Katrine Soma Abstract A repeated statement observed in the literature is that stakeholder participation can contribute to improve complex environmental management decisions. However, transparent and legitimate decision-making processes cannot be ensured without suitable involvement strategies and information treatments throughout the processes. The main goal in this study is to frame participatory processes with multicriterion evaluations to increase transparency of the decision support. The developed approach applies clearly defined roles of interest groups, experts and citizens, as well as alternatives presented on maps, criteria arranged in a hierarchy of decision elements and weights obtained by conducting deliberative processes with citizens. The approach is applied in a case study at municipal level in Norway to support coastal zone management decisions. Relevant interests and social values are systematically represented by the multicriterion evaluation framework utilized in the approach presented. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] Conceptualizing desertification in Southern Europe: stakeholder interpretations and multiple policy agendasENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 4 2005M. Juntti Abstract This paper explores the link between agricultural, environmental and structural policies and desertification in Southern Europe. The focus is on the way policy goals evolve in the implementation process and become translated into actions at the operative level. The results derive from policy stakeholder interviews from four research areas situated in Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain. The significance of policies as drivers of desertification varies between the case study areas, and harmful land management practices often result from power imbalances between interest groups involved in land-use planning and policy implementation rather than from flaws in the policies themselves. The vagueness of the definition of what ,desertification' constitutes allows for different interpretations of its nature, significance and the consequent weight it is given in land management decision-making, thus lending itself to be both misinterpreted and misappropriated by different stakeholder interests. The paper discusses the interplay between five different discourses of desertification and four distinct agendas of policy implementation and land use. The agendas either enhance or mitigate desertification and represent the interests of actors who have acquired a powerful position in the network of stakeholders, often relying on, and simultaneously maintaining, discourses and structures that lend them first right to decision-making over the natural resources of the locality. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] The role of the European Parliament in forest environment issuesENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 4 2002Nikolaos D. Hasanagas This article deals with the potential influence of European parliamentarism on environmental policy in forested areas. It is addressed as much to policy analysts and parliamentary theorists as to those most directly involved therein, for example international lobbyists and policy-makers. The relative powers of the European Parliament, Council of Ministers and Commission and assorted interest groups (forestry and environmental activists) will be considered through the analysis of documents and expert interviews. The gradual extension of the European Parliament's power (co-operation and co-decision procedures) in combination with the parliamentary functions (control, legislation, election, articulation and communication) will be described where relevant to forest environment policy, in particular to competition, harmonization, internal markets, industry, research, land use, energy and development. The optimal lobbying terrains and prospects of environmental interest groups are also examined and the potential influence of the European Parliament on the implementation of such policy is explored. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] Voluntary environmental policy instruments: two Irish success stories?ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 1 2002Brendan Flynn Voluntary environmental policy instruments have attracted much interest in recent years, yet they remain firmly established only in the industrial setting of the typical environmental policy ,leader' states such as the Netherlands or Germany. This paper examines two Irish examples of innovative voluntary agreements, a farm plastic recycling scheme and a bird conservation project. These both suggest that the voluntary approach can be applied successfully outside the typical industrial sector. Noteworthy in explaining the emergence of the two case studies here was a policy transfer effect from the UK, involving organized Irish farming interests and Irish bird conservationists. A fear of impending state legislation, which is often cited as a vital precondition for successful voluntary approaches, was actually less important than the autonomous initiative of the interest groups themselves. It is suggested that a more important role for the state lies in ensuring good policy co-ordination. A concluding discussion examines the general problems and potential of relying on interest groups to transfer and implement innovative voluntary environmental policy instruments. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment [source] GMO Food Labelling in the EU: Tracing ,the Seeds of Dispute'EUROCHOICES, Issue 1 2003Maria L. Loureiro Summary GMO Food Labelling in the EU: Tracinq ,the Seeds of Dispute' Genetically modified (GM) food labelling has become a critical issue in the international trade arena. Policymakers and consumers in the European Union (EU) seem to agree on the need to control the use of biotechnology in the food industry. As a consequence, recently the EU Commission approved a measure that establishes strict rules on genetically modified organisms (GMOs), but which lifts the moratorium on GMO production and marketing. This new Directive deals with mandatory labelling of GM foods and their traceability along the food chain. In spite of the substantial effort made to reconcile the different opinions in the escalating debate about biotechnology, the new GMO regulation seems to be unsatisfactory for too many interest groups. A system of total traceability from ,farm to fork' and mandatory labelling for genetically modified products may be considered too complex and too expensive to implement, particularly by those countries or industries that have produced GMO foods for many years. Yet, giving European consumers the freedom to choose GMOs may be the only option that there is until Europeans restore their confidence in the food system and food regulators. A market or consumer-driven solution may eventually terminate the GMO dispute between the two transatlantic trading blocks. , Assurance , Revenud a ns , Agriculture Européenne ,étiquetage des aliments contenant des organismes génétiquement modifyés (OGM) est devenu une question cruciale sur la scène du commerce international. Tant les décideurs politiques que les citoyens de , Union européenne semblent s'accorder sur la nécessité de soumettre à contrôle , utilisation des biotechnologies dans , industrie alimentaire. En conséquence, la Commission européenne a récemment approuvé une mesure qui établit des règies strictes sur les OGM, mais qui lève le moratoire sur leur production et leur commercialisation. Cette nouvelle directive concerne ,étiquetage obligatoire des aliments contenant des OGM et la façon ? en assurer le suivi dans les filières alimentaires. Ce nouveau règlement OGM, en dépit des efforts réels effectués pour réconcilier les différents points de vue dans la montée du débat sur les biotechnologies, semble inconciliable avec trop de groupes ? intérêts pour être satisfaisant. Un système assurant une traçabilité totale, ,du champ à la fourchette' et un étiquetage obligatoire pour tout produit contenant des OGM, paraît bien trop complexe et coûteux à mettre en ,uvre, en particulier pour les pays ou les industries qui produisent des aliments génétiquement modifyés depuis des années. Et pourtant, il se pourrait bien que la seule façpn de restaurer la confiance perdue des Européens dans le système alimentaire et ses institutions soit justement de leur donner le droit de choisir. La fin de la querelle des OGM entre les blocs commerciaux des deux rives de , Atlantique peut venir de solutions apportées par le marché et issues des consommateurs. Einkommenversicherung in der Europäischen Landwirtschaft Die Kennzeichnung von genetisch veränderten Lebensmitteln ist zu einer der bedeutendsten Streitfragen auf dem Gebiet des internationalen Handels geworden. Politische Entscheidungsträger und Verbraucher in der Europäischen Union scheinen dahingehend überein zu stimmen, dass der Einsatz von Biotechnologie in der Nahrungsmittel-industrie kontrolliert werden sollte. Als Reaktion darauf hat die EU-Kommission kürzlich einer Maßnahme zugestimmt, welche ein strenges Regelwerk für genetisch veränderte Organismen (GVO) festschreibt, mit der aber gleichzeitig das Moratorium für die Produktion und Vermarktung von GVO aufgehoben wird. Die neue Richtlinie beschäftigt sich mit der Pflichtkennzeichnung von genetisch veränderten Nahrungsmitteln und mit ihrer Rückverfolgbarkeit entlang der Nahrungsmittelkette. Trotz der erheblichen Anstrengungen, die verschiedenen Standpunkte in der eskalierenden Debatte um Biotechnologie zu berücksichtigen, scheint die neue GVO Richtlinie in den Augen (zu) vieler Interessengruppen unbefriedigend zu sein. Ein System der vollständigen Rückverfolgbarkeit vom Stall bis zum Teller und die Pflichtkennzeichnung von genetisch veränderten Nahrungsmitteln mag in der Umsetzung als zu komplex und zu teuer betrachtet werden, insbesondere von den Ländern oder Industriezweigen, welche seit vielen Jahren GVO-Nahrungsmittel hergestellt haben. Dennoch könnte der Ansatz, den europäischen Verbrauchern die freie Wahl für oder gegen GVO zu gewähren, der einzig gangbare Weg sein, bis die Europäer ihr Vertrauen in das Produktions- und Kontrollsystem für Nahrungsmittel zurückgewonnen haben. Eine markt- oder verbraucherorientierte Lösung könnte letztlich den Streit um GVO zwischen den beiden transatlantischen Handelsblöcken beenden. [source] Political characteristics, institutional procedures and fiscal performance: Panel data analyses of Norwegian local governments, 1991,1998EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF POLITICAL RESEARCH, Issue 1 2005TERJE P. HAGEN The political leadership is assumed to have an important role in keeping fiscal control and resisting the high-demanders' pressure for increased spending. Three factors of relevance for their success are investigated: political characteristics (political colour and political strength, the strength of relevant interest groups) and two institutional characteristics, committee structure and budgeting procedures. The analyses are based on panel data from up to 434 Norwegian municipalities in the period from 1991 to 1998. The results support the hypothesis that strong political leadership improves fiscal performance. The effect of interest groups is to a high degree community-specific. However, an increased share of elderly reduces fiscal surplus. Differences in budgetary procedures do not seem to affect fiscal performance. A strong committee structure seems, on the other hand, to result in better fiscal performance than a weaker one. [source] The development of the Finnish inland fisheries systemFISHERIES MANAGEMENT & ECOLOGY, Issue 4-5 2001M. Sipponen The efficiency of Finnish inland fisheries administration has improved during the past 15 years because of changes in fisheries legislation. The establishment of regional management units particularly has improved the practice of co-management, which has allowed the participation of many relevant interest groups in the decision-making process. The long-term private market equilibrium supply for recreational fishing with active types of gear accounted for 50% of the Finnish lake surface area. Presently the public sector has become involved in the supply of recreational fishing licences. The improvement in the system owes much to political initiatives. As regards commercial fishing, state-ownership of fishing grounds is a channel for recruitment into the occupation. Private ownership has led to a suboptimal allocation of fisheries resources, particularly in the commercial branch of the industry. However, by giving priority to social instead of economic goals the statutory fishery associations will help to maintain social and community values, which are locally important. [source] THE CO-PRODUCTION OF NARRATIVE IN AN ENTREPRENEURIAL CITY: AN ANALYSIS OF CINCINNATI, OHIO, IN TURMOILGEOGRAFISKA ANNALER SERIES B: HUMAN GEOGRAPHY, Issue 2 2009Jamie Gillen ABSTRACT. In April 2001 Cincinnati, Ohio, erupted into violence and protracted unrest after the police shooting of an unarmed African-American named Timothy Thomas. African-American interest groups in the city subsequently organized an economic boycott of downtown businesses. In response to the demonstration and the boycott, the Cincinnati government issued a marketing campaign entitled ,We're On the Move!', intending to give nod to past failures and launch forward movement on their part. In this article I investigate the entirety of these events as narrative moments under the auspices of urban entrepreneurialism to answer the question: How does the local population inform, rather than simply mediate, the narrative administration of an urban entrepreneurial form of governance? I then turn to a response to the campaign by an African-American newspaper columnist in Cincinnati to underscore a dialogic relationship between an entrepreneurial city and its citizens as it forms the presentation of entrepreneurialism. In turn, this conception allows for a more nuanced version of entrepreneurial governance more generally. [source] CELLULAR TOWER PROLIFERATION IN THE UNITED STATESGEOGRAPHICAL REVIEW, Issue 1 2002THOMAS A. WIKLE ABSTRACT. Since the early 1980s the growing popularity of cellular communication has wrought dramatic landscape changes on the American scene through an invasion of thousands of cellular telephone towers. Objections raised to new tower construction by local residents, interest groups, and regulatory boards range from visual impacts to perceived health risks. This essay traces the origins of wireless telephony, its proliferation across the United States, and the visual impacts associated with tower construction. Three stages in the geographical expansion of wireless networks are identified. [source] European health policy challengesHEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue S1 2005Alan Maynard Abstract Few countries are immune to the international health care ,virus' of reform, with many countries regularly re-cycling changes that shift costs and benefits in ways that are arbitrary, inefficient and offer short term political palliation. Much of this activity has little evidence base and reveals lack of clarity in defining public policy goals, establishing trade-offs and aligning incentive structures with these objectives. Well established failures in health care delivery systems such as variations in medical practice and continuing absence of systematic outcome measurement, have persisted for decades as nations grapple inefficiently with recurring problems of expenditure inflation and waiting times. The lack of emphasis on evidence to inform the efficient management of chronic disease and the reduction of health inequalities is a product of perverse incentives and managerial inertia that maintains the incomes of powerful interest groups. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Interest formation in greenfield union organising campaignsINDUSTRIAL RELATIONS JOURNAL, Issue 5 2007Melanie Simms ABSTRACT This article examines the processes by which unions come to express the interests of workers during organising campaigns. Evidence from five longitudinal cases shows the central importance of officials and organisers. Three key reasons for this are explored: the need for expert knowledge in organising campaigns, the fact that officials and organisers are well placed to identify and to construct common interests among a diversity of interest groups, and the fact that the training they receive explicitly encourages this role. Furthermore, it is argued that this helps explain some of the difficulties observed in organising campaigns specifically; the limitations of campaigns that primarily focus at workplace level, and the relatively narrow definition of collective interests that this approach encourages. [source] Office-seeking politicians, interest groups and split contributions in a campaign finance modelINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC THEORY, Issue 4 2007Shino Takayama D72; D82; M37 The present paper investigates an extended version of Prat's campaign finance models. In this model, interest groups make contributions to politicians to influence policy decisions. Voters are assumed to judge candidates on two aspects: policy promises and nonpolicy personal qualities referred to as valence. There are two types of voters. Among these, uninformed voters only observe campaign contributions that take the role of a signaling medium. We solve the equilibrium of the game between politicians and interest groups. We then specify conditions under which a separating equilibrium exists and study the effect of split contributions on the welfare of the median voter. [source] Modelling the impact of energy taxationINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH, Issue 6 2002Jörgen Sjödin Abstract Energy taxation in Sweden is complicated and strongly guides and governs district energy production. Consequently, there is a need for methods for accurate calculation and analysis of effects that different energy tax schemes may have on district energy utilities. Here, a practicable method to analyse influence of such governmental policy measures is demonstrated. The Swedish Government has for some years now been working on a reform of energy taxation, and during this process, several interest groups have expressed their own proposals for improving and developing the system of energy taxation. Together with the present system of taxation, four new alternatives, including the proposed directive of the European Commission, are outlined in the paper. In a case study, an analysis is made of how the different tax alternatives may influence the choice of profitable investments and use of energy carriers in a medium-sized district-heating utility. The calculations are made with a linear-programming model framework. By calculating suitable types and sizes of new investments, if any, and the operation of existing and potential plants, total energy costs are minimized. Results of the analysis include the most profitable investments, which fuel should be used, roughly when during a year plants should be in operation, and at what output. In most scenarios, the most profitable measure is to invest in a waste incineration plant. However, a crucial assumption is, with reference to the new Swedish waste disposal act, a significant income from incinerating refuse. Without this income, different tax schemes result in different technical solutions being most profitable. An investment in cogeneration seems possible in only one scenario. It is also found that particular features of some alternatives seem to oppose both main governmental policy goals, and intentions of the district heating company. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Topographical recognition memory sensitive to amnestic mild cognitive impairment but not to depressionINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 10 2006Emilie Ritter Abstract Objective Amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) involves episodic memory. The person who presents aMCI has a high risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, prediction of deterioration to dementia in cases of aMCI can be confounded with depression due to lack of specificity on selective memory tests. Finding a test sensitive to aMCI but not to depression would be potentially most useful to subsequent longitudinal studies researching the neuropsychological markers of preclinical AD. We hypothesized that the performance on a topographical memory task would be sensitive to the aMCI condition, while depression would not influence such a performance. Participants and Methods A group of 137 community-dwelling French-speaking subjects between 55 and 70 years old was administered a topographical recognition memory task. Based on aMCI and depression criteria, 45 subjects were selected and divided into four groups: 11 patients with aMCI without depression, nine depressive patients with aMCI, ten depressive patients without cognitive impairment and 15 control subjects. The remaining non-selected participants did not belong to any of the previous interest groups. Results The ,aMCI' factor had a significant effect on the topographical recognition memory task scores, while the ,depression' factor did not. The aMCI patients performed worse than the non-aMCI. Conclusion Although these results were found with relatively small groups, deficits in topographical recognition memory were observed in aMCI patients and did not seem to be sensitive to depression. Further longitudinal studies are needed to examine whether deficits in topographical recognition memory are a neuropsychological marker of preclinical AD. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Message in a Metro: Building Urban Rail Infrastructure and Image in Delhi, IndiaINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URBAN AND REGIONAL RESEARCH, Issue 2 2006MATTI SIEMIATYCKI The world over, infrastructure mega projects have become more prevalent, even as evidence suggests that such projects often experience significant cost overruns while failing to fully deliver on their projected benefits. In this light, this article will argue that continued support for infrastructure mega projects stems from the way that such projects are presented to the public. Using the case of the development of a metro railway in Delhi, India, it shows that galvanizing public support and attracting patrons to a public transit system stems from creating an all-round positive image that combines tangible variables with an intangible set of symbolic meanings. Of course, image is only an impression, and does not necessarily reflect reality. In this light, the final section of this article examines the broad physical and societal implications of the metro development in Delhi, and uncovers the driving forces behind the project. The article concludes that, in spite of the cultivation of a positive image, the specific metro form that was developed in Delhi to satisfy each of the special interest groups involved in its production might be specifically one that fails to suit the transportation needs of the city. [source] Urban sustainability and governance: issues for the twenty-first centuryINTERNATIONAL SOCIAL SCIENCE JOURNAL, Issue 193-194 2008Françoise Lieberherr-Gardiol The notion of urban sustainability that emerged at the end of the 1980s falls within the scope of sustainable development, a concept that arose in reaction to the model of technological and economic growth that triumphed after World War II. It comes into play as an attempt to link and put into perspective economic effectiveness, social equity and ecological balance. The sustainability approach focuses on how urban societies organise their space, their way of life and transportation, their technologies of production and consumption, as well as their governance and dynamics. Applied to cities, sustainable development can be defined in terms of concrete objectives: efforts to combat wasted energy, space and natural resources, and to reduce pollution, the problems of sanitation and the degradation of the environment. To the extent that governance is established and maintained with regard to the decision-making powers of public authorities faced with demands by divergent but equally legitimate interest groups, the responsibilities of citizens and the involvement of private stakeholders, sustainable innovations will succeed. The International Platform on Sustainable Urban Development, put in place by S-DEV Geneva 05, makes it possible to illustrate the problem by presenting the priority issues in sustainability, along with experiments undertaken by cities that were invited to present their innovations in renewable energy, soft mobility, green planning, systematic recycling, appropriate sanitation, urban agriculture and participatory governance. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||