Understanding frailty: a qualitative study of European healthcare policy-makers' approaches to frailty screening and management.

Science.gov (United States)

Gwyther, Holly; Shaw, Rachel; Jaime Dauden, Eva-Amparo; D'Avanzo, Barbara; Kurpas, Donata; Bujnowska-Fedak, Maria; Kujawa, Tomasz; Marcucci, Maura; Cano, Antonio; Holland, Carol

2018-01-13

To elicit European healthcare policy-makers' views, understanding and attitudes about the implementation of frailty screening and management strategies and responses to stakeholders' views. Thematic analysis of semistructured qualitative interviews. European healthcare policy departments. Seven European healthcare policy-makers representing the European Union (n=2), UK (n=2), Italy (n=1), Spain (n=1) and Poland (n=1). Participants were sourced through professional networks and the European Commission Authentication Service website and were required to be in an active healthcare policy or decision-making role. Seven themes were identified. Our findings reveal a 'knowledge gap', around frailty and awareness of the malleability of frailty, which has resulted in restricted ownership of frailty by specialists. Policy-makers emphasised the need to recognise frailty as a clinical syndrome but stressed that it should be managed via an integrated and interdisciplinary response to chronicity and ageing. That is, through social co-production. This would require a culture shift in care with redeployment of existing resources to deliver frailty management and intervention services. Policy-makers proposed barriers to a culture shift, indicating a need to be innovative with solutions to empower older adults to optimise their health and well-being, while still fully engaging in the social environment. The cultural acceptance of an integrated care system theme described the complexities of institutional change management, as well as cultural issues relating to working democratically, while in signposting adult care , the need for a personal navigator to help older adults to access appropriate services was proposed. Policy-makers also believed that screening for frailty could be an effective tool for frailty management. There is potential for frailty to be managed in a more integrated and person-centred manner, overcoming the challenges associated with niche ownership within the

Partnering Healthy@Work: an Australian university-government partnership facilitating policy-relevant research.

Science.gov (United States)

Jose, Kim; Venn, Alison; Jarman, Lisa; Seal, Judy; Teale, Brook; Scott, Jennifer; Sanderson, Kristy

2017-12-01

Research funding is increasingly supporting collaborations between knowledge users and researchers. Partnering Healthy@Work (pH@W), an inaugural recipient of funding through Australia's Partnership for Better Health Grants scheme, was a 5-year partnership between the Menzies Institute for Medical Research, University of Tasmania and the Tasmanian State Service (TSS). The partnerships purpose was to evaluate a comprehensive workplace health promotion programme (Healthy@Work) targeting 30 000 public sector employees; generating new knowledge and influencing workplace health promotion policy and decision-making. This mixed methods study evaluates the partnership between policy-makers and academics and identifies strategies that enabled pH@W to deliver key project outcomes. A pH@W document review was conducted, two partnership assessment tools completed and semi-structured interviews conducted with key policy-makers and academics. Analysis of the partnership assessment tools and interviews found that pH@W had reached a strong level of collaboration. Policy-relevant knowledge was generated about the health of TSS employees and their engagement with workplace health promotion. Knowledge exchange of a conceptual and instrumental nature occurred and was facilitated by the shared grant application, clear governance structures, joint planning, regular information exchange between researchers and policy-makers and research student placements in the TSS. Flexibility and acknowledgement of different priorities and perspectives of partner organizations were identified as critical factors for enabling effective partnership working and research relevance. Academic-policy-maker partnerships can be a powerful mechanism for improving policy relevance of research, but need to incorporate strategies that facilitate regular input from researchers and policy-makers in order to achieve this. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions

Engaging policy makers in road safety research in Malaysia: a theoretical and contextual analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Tran, Nhan T; Hyder, Adnan A; Kulanthayan, Subramaniam; Singh, Suret; Umar, R S Radin

2009-04-01

Road traffic injuries (RTIs) are a growing public health problem that must be addressed through evidence-based interventions including policy-level changes such as the enactment of legislation to mandate specific behaviors and practices. Policy makers need to be engaged in road safety research to ensure that road safety policies are grounded in scientific evidence. This paper examines the strategies used to engage policy makers and other stakeholder groups and discusses the challenges that result from a multi-disciplinary, inter-sectoral collaboration. A framework for engaging policy makers in research was developed and applied to describe an example of collective road safety research in Malaysia. Key components of this framework include readiness, assessment, planning, implementation/evaluation, and policy development/sustainability. The case study of a collaborative intervention trial for the prevention of motorcycle crashes and deaths in Malaysia serves as a model for policy engagement by road safety and injury researchers. The analytic description of this research process in Malaysia demonstrates that the framework, through its five stages, can be used as a tool to guide the integration of needed research evidence into policy for road safety and injury prevention.

Bioenergy, Land Use Change and Climate Change Mitigation. Report for Policy Advisors and Policy Makers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berndes, Goran [Chalmers Univ. of Technology (Sweden); Bird, Nell [Joanneum Research (Austria); Cowle, Annette [National Centre for Rural Greenhouse Gas Research (Australia)

2010-07-01

The report addresses a much debated issue - bioenergy and associated land use change, and how the climate change mitigation from use of bioenergy can be influenced by greenhouse gas emissions arising from land use change. The purpose of the report was to produce an unbiased, authoritative statement on this topic aimed especially at policy advisors and policy makers.

Factors that explain how policy makers distribute resources to mental health services.

Science.gov (United States)

Corrigan, Patrick W; Watson, Amy C

2003-04-01

Advocates hope to influence the resource allocation decisions of legislators and other policy makers to capture more resources for mental health programs. Findings from social psychological research suggest factors that, if pursued, may improve advocacy efforts. In particular, allocation decisions are affected by policy makers' perceptions of the scarcity of resources, effectiveness of specific programs, needs of people who have problems that are served by these programs, and extent of personal responsibility for these problems. These perceptions are further influenced by political ideology. Conservatives are motivated by a tendency to punish persons who are perceived as having personal responsibility for their problems by withholding resources, whereas liberals are likely to avoid tough allocation decisions. Moreover, these perceptions are affected by political accountability, that is, whether politicians perceive that their constituents will closely monitor their decisions. Just as the quality of clinical interventions improves when informed by basic research on human behavior, the efforts of mental health advocates will be advanced when they understand the psychological forces that affect policy makers' decisions about resources.

Policy maker and provider knowledge and attitudes regarding the provision of emergency contraceptive pills within Lao PDR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hansana Visanou

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Ministry of Health (MOH launched the National Reproductive Health Policy in 2005, which included recommendations regarding the use of emergency contraceptive pills (ECP. However, ECP have not yet been introduced officially in the public sector of the Lao PDR. Thus, their availability is limited. Understanding the knowledge of ECP and attitudes about their provision, barriers to use, and availability among health providers and policy makers is essential to successfully incorporate ECP into reproductive health services. Methods Qualitative research methods using in-depth interviews were employed to collect data from policy makers and health providers (auxiliary medical staff, nurses, and medical doctors. Altogether, 10 policy makers, 22 public providers, and 10 providers at private clinics were interviewed. Content analysis was applied to analyze the transcribed data. Results The majority of policy makers and health care providers had heard about ECP and supported their introduction in the public sector. However, their knowledge was poor, many expressed inconsistent attitudes, and their ability to meet the demand of potential users is limited. Conclusions There is a need to train health providers and policy makers on emergency contraception and improve their knowledge about ECP, especially regarding the correct timing of use and the availability of methods. In addition, the general public must be informed of the attributes, side effects, and availability of ECP, and policy makers must facilitate the approval of ECP by the Lao Food and Drug Administration. These interventions could lead to increased access to and demand for ECP.

Sustainability of Long-term Care: Puzzling Tasks Ahead for Policy-Makers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mosca, Ilaria; van der Wees, Philip J; Mot, Esther S; Wammes, Joost J G; Jeurissen, Patrick P T

2016-08-17

, given the demographic- and fiscal circumstances, and the complexities of LTC systems. It also shows the usefulness to learn from policy design and implementation of LTC policy in other countries, within and outside the EU. Researchers can contribute by studying conditions, under which the strategies explored might deliver solutions for policy-makers. © 2017 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

An integrated assessment of climate change impacts for Athens- relevance to stakeholders and policy makers

Science.gov (United States)

Giannakopoulos, C.; Hatzaki, M.; Kostopoulou, E.; Varotsos, K.

2010-09-01

Analysing climate change and its impact needs a production of relevant elements for policy making that can be very different from the parameters considered by climate experts. In the framework of EU project CIRCE, a more realistic approach to match stakeholders and policy-makers demands is attempted. For this reason, within CIRCE selected case studies have been chosen that will provide assessments that can be integrated in practical decision making. In this work, an integrated assessment of climate change impacts on several sectors for the urban site of Athens in Greece is presented. The Athens urban case study has been chosen since it provides excellent opportunities for using an integrated approach across multiple temporal and spatial scales and sectors. In the spatial dimension, work extends from the inner city boundaries to the surrounding mountains and forests. In the temporal dimension, research ranges from the current observed time period (using available meteorological and sector data) to future time periods using data from several climate change projections. In addition, a multi-sector approach to climate change impacts is adopted. Impacts sectors covered range from direct climate impacts on natural ecosystems (such as flash floods, air pollution and forest fire risk) to indirect impacts resulting from combined climate-social-economic linkages (such as energy demand, tourism and health). Discussion of impact sector risks and adaptation measures are also exploited. Case-study work on impact sector risk to climate change is of particular interest to relevant policy makers and stakeholders, communication with who is ensured through a series of briefing notes and information sheets and through regional workshops.

Green roofs : a resource manual for municipal policy makers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lawlor, G.; Currie, B.A.; Doshi, H.; Wieditz, I. [Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., Ottawa, ON (Canada)

2006-05-15

As knowledge of the environmental benefits of green roofs and technology improves, green roofs are quickly gaining acceptance in North America. European jurisdictions have been using green roof technology for stormwater management, to reduce energy use in buildings and to increase amenity space. By reviewing the reasons that municipalities throughout the world have set green roof policies and programs, policy makers can more easily determine which policies suit their needs. This manual provided an overview of international and Canadian green roof policies and programs. It presented information on 12 jurisdictions that demonstrated leadership in green roof policy development. The manual also presented information on an additional 13 jurisdictions with less-developed green roof policies. Activities that were discussed for each of these jurisdictions included: description of jurisdiction; key motivators; green roof policy; process to establish policy; effectiveness; lessons learned; future predictions; and applicability to Canada of international jurisdictions. The manual also provided general information on green roofs such as a definition of green roofs and green roof terminology. Key motivators for green roofs include stormwater runoff control; reduction in urban heat-island effect; reduction in building energy consumption; and air pollution control. refs., tabs., figs.

Do evidence summaries increase policy-makers' use of evidence from systematic reviews: A systematic review protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Petkovic, Jennifer; Welch, Vivian; Tugwell, Peter

2015-09-28

Systematic reviews are important for decision-makers. They offer many potential benefits but are often written in technical language, are too long, and do not contain contextual details which makes them hard to use for decision-making. There are many organizations that develop and disseminate derivative products, such as evidence summaries, from systematic reviews for different populations or subsets of decision-makers. This systematic review will assess the effectiveness of systematic review summaries on increasing policymakers' use of systematic review evidence and to identify the components or features of these summaries that are most effective. We will include studies of policy-makers at all levels as well as health-system managers. We will include studies examining any type of "evidence summary," "policy brief," or other products derived from systematic reviews that present evidence in a summarized form. The primary outcomes are the following: (1) use of systematic review summaries decision-making (e.g., self-reported use of the evidence in policy-making, decision-making) and (2) policy-maker understanding, knowledge, and/or beliefs (e.g., changes in knowledge scores about the topic included in the summary). We will conduct a systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), non-randomized controlled trials (NRCTs), controlled before-after studies (CBA), and interrupted time series (ITS) studies. The results of this review will inform the development of future systematic review summaries to ensure that systematic review evidence is accessible to and used by policy-makers making health-related decisions.

Taking Legislators to the Field: Communicating with Policy Makers about Natural Resource Issues

Science.gov (United States)

Sawin, R. S.; Buchanan, R. C.

2006-12-01

Policy makers are among the most important audiences for scientific information. In particular, legislators, legislative staff, governmental agency staff, business leaders, environmental leaders, and others need accurate, objective natural-resource information to make policy decisions. This audience is busy and difficult to reach with technical information. As part of its public outreach program, the Kansas Geological Survey (a division of the University of Kansas) communicates directly with policy makers through an annual field conference. Operated since 1995, the conference presents information by combining field experiences, presentations by experts, and participant interaction. The primary objective is to give policy makers first-hand, unbiased information about the state's natural resource issues. The field conference takes policy makers to locations where natural resources are produced or used, or where there are important environmental issues, introducing them to experts and others who carry out (or are affected by) their decisions. The conference consists of three days of site visits, presentations, hands-on activities, and panel discussions. Participation is by invitation. Participants pay a small fee, but most costs are covered by co-sponsors, usually other state or local agencies, that are recruited to help defray expenses. Participants receive a guidebook before the trip. Travel is by chartered bus; lodging and meals are provided. Conferences have focused on topics (such as energy or water) or regions of the state. The most recent conference focused on cross-boundary issues and included stops in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Written, post-conference evaluations are extremely positive. Legislators report that they regularly use conference information and contacts during the law-making process; conference information played a direct role in decisions related to underground natural-gas storage rules, water-rights by-back legislation, and sand and gravel

Rationality versus reality: the challenges of evidence-based decision making for health policy makers.

Science.gov (United States)

McCaughey, Deirdre; Bruning, Nealia S

2010-05-26

Current healthcare systems have extended the evidence-based medicine (EBM) approach to health policy and delivery decisions, such as access-to-care, healthcare funding and health program continuance, through attempts to integrate valid and reliable evidence into the decision making process. These policy decisions have major impacts on society and have high personal and financial costs associated with those decisions. Decision models such as these function under a shared assumption of rational choice and utility maximization in the decision-making process. We contend that health policy decision makers are generally unable to attain the basic goals of evidence-based decision making (EBDM) and evidence-based policy making (EBPM) because humans make decisions with their naturally limited, faulty, and biased decision-making processes. A cognitive information processing framework is presented to support this argument, and subtle cognitive processing mechanisms are introduced to support the focal thesis: health policy makers' decisions are influenced by the subjective manner in which they individually process decision-relevant information rather than on the objective merits of the evidence alone. As such, subsequent health policy decisions do not necessarily achieve the goals of evidence-based policy making, such as maximizing health outcomes for society based on valid and reliable research evidence. In this era of increasing adoption of evidence-based healthcare models, the rational choice, utility maximizing assumptions in EBDM and EBPM, must be critically evaluated to ensure effective and high-quality health policy decisions. The cognitive information processing framework presented here will aid health policy decision makers by identifying how their decisions might be subtly influenced by non-rational factors. In this paper, we identify some of the biases and potential intervention points and provide some initial suggestions about how the EBDM/EBPM process can be

Rationality versus reality: the challenges of evidence-based decision making for health policy makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bruning Nealia S

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Current healthcare systems have extended the evidence-based medicine (EBM approach to health policy and delivery decisions, such as access-to-care, healthcare funding and health program continuance, through attempts to integrate valid and reliable evidence into the decision making process. These policy decisions have major impacts on society and have high personal and financial costs associated with those decisions. Decision models such as these function under a shared assumption of rational choice and utility maximization in the decision-making process. Discussion We contend that health policy decision makers are generally unable to attain the basic goals of evidence-based decision making (EBDM and evidence-based policy making (EBPM because humans make decisions with their naturally limited, faulty, and biased decision-making processes. A cognitive information processing framework is presented to support this argument, and subtle cognitive processing mechanisms are introduced to support the focal thesis: health policy makers' decisions are influenced by the subjective manner in which they individually process decision-relevant information rather than on the objective merits of the evidence alone. As such, subsequent health policy decisions do not necessarily achieve the goals of evidence-based policy making, such as maximizing health outcomes for society based on valid and reliable research evidence. Summary In this era of increasing adoption of evidence-based healthcare models, the rational choice, utility maximizing assumptions in EBDM and EBPM, must be critically evaluated to ensure effective and high-quality health policy decisions. The cognitive information processing framework presented here will aid health policy decision makers by identifying how their decisions might be subtly influenced by non-rational factors. In this paper, we identify some of the biases and potential intervention points and provide some initial

Rationality versus reality: the challenges of evidence-based decision making for health policy makers

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

Background Current healthcare systems have extended the evidence-based medicine (EBM) approach to health policy and delivery decisions, such as access-to-care, healthcare funding and health program continuance, through attempts to integrate valid and reliable evidence into the decision making process. These policy decisions have major impacts on society and have high personal and financial costs associated with those decisions. Decision models such as these function under a shared assumption of rational choice and utility maximization in the decision-making process. Discussion We contend that health policy decision makers are generally unable to attain the basic goals of evidence-based decision making (EBDM) and evidence-based policy making (EBPM) because humans make decisions with their naturally limited, faulty, and biased decision-making processes. A cognitive information processing framework is presented to support this argument, and subtle cognitive processing mechanisms are introduced to support the focal thesis: health policy makers' decisions are influenced by the subjective manner in which they individually process decision-relevant information rather than on the objective merits of the evidence alone. As such, subsequent health policy decisions do not necessarily achieve the goals of evidence-based policy making, such as maximizing health outcomes for society based on valid and reliable research evidence. Summary In this era of increasing adoption of evidence-based healthcare models, the rational choice, utility maximizing assumptions in EBDM and EBPM, must be critically evaluated to ensure effective and high-quality health policy decisions. The cognitive information processing framework presented here will aid health policy decision makers by identifying how their decisions might be subtly influenced by non-rational factors. In this paper, we identify some of the biases and potential intervention points and provide some initial suggestions about how the

Enhancing the Capacity of Policy-Makers to Develop Evidence-Informed Policy Brief on Infectious Diseases of Poverty in Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chigozie Jesse Uneke

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Background The lack of effective use of research evidence in policy-making is a major challenge in most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs. There is need to package research data into effective policy tools that will help policy-makers to make evidence-informed policy regarding infectious diseases of poverty (IDP. The objective of this study was to assess the usefulness of training workshops and mentoring to enhance the capacity of Nigerian health policy-makers to develop evidence-informed policy brief on the control of IDP. Methods A modified “before and after” intervention study design was used in which outcomes were measured on the target participants both before the intervention is implemented and after. A 4-point Likert scale according to the degree of adequacy; 1 = “grossly inadequate,” 4 = “very adequate” was employed. The main parameter measured was participants’ perceptions of their own knowledge/understanding. This study was conducted at subnational level and the participants were the career health policy-makers drawn from Ebonyi State in the South-Eastern Nigeria. A oneday evidence-to-policy workshop was organized to enhance the participants’ capacity to develop evidence-informed policy brief on IDP in Ebonyi State. Topics covered included collaborative initiative; preparation and use of policy briefs; policy dialogue; ethics in health policy-making; and health policy and politics. Results The preworkshop mean of knowledge and capacity ranged from 2.49-3.03, while the postworkshop mean ranged from 3.42–3.78 on 4-point scale. The percentage increase in mean of knowledge and capacity at the end of the workshop ranged from 20.10%–45%. Participants were divided into 3 IDP mentorship groups (malaria, schistosomiasis, lymphatic filariasis [LF] and were mentored to identify potential policy options/recommendations for control of the diseases for the policy briefs. These policy options were subjected to research

Enhancing the Capacity of Policy-Makers to Develop Evidence-Informed Policy Brief on Infectious Diseases of Poverty in Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

Uneke, Chigozie Jesse; Ezeoha, Abel Ebeh; Uro-Chukwu, Henry; Ezeonu, Chinonyelum Thecla; Ogbu, Ogbonnaya; Onwe, Friday; Edoga, Chima

2015-01-01

Background: The lack of effective use of research evidence in policy-making is a major challenge in most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). There is need to package research data into effective policy tools that will help policy-makers to make evidence-informed policy regarding infectious diseases of poverty (IDP). The objective of this study was to assess the usefulness of training workshops and mentoring to enhance the capacity of Nigerian health policy-makers to develop evidence-informed policy brief on the control of IDP. Methods: A modified "before and after" intervention study design was used in which outcomes were measured on the target participants both before the intervention is implemented and after. A 4-point Likert scale according to the degree of adequacy; 1 = "grossly inadequate," 4 = "very adequate" was employed. The main parameter measured was participants’ perceptions of their own knowledge/understanding. This study was conducted at subnational level and the participants were the career health policy-makers drawn from Ebonyi State in the South-Eastern Nigeria. A one-day evidence-to-policy workshop was organized to enhance the participants’ capacity to develop evidence-informed policy brief on IDP in Ebonyi State. Topics covered included collaborative initiative; preparation and use of policy briefs; policy dialogue; ethics in health policy-making; and health policy and politics. Results: The preworkshop mean of knowledge and capacity ranged from 2.49-3.03, while the postworkshop mean ranged from 3.42–3.78 on 4-point scale. The percentage increase in mean of knowledge and capacity at the end of the workshop ranged from 20.10%–45%. Participants were divided into 3 IDP mentorship groups (malaria, schistosomiasis, lymphatic filariasis [LF]) and were mentored to identify potential policy options/recommendations for control of the diseases for the policy briefs. These policy options were subjected to research evidence synthesis by each

To bail out or not to bail out systemically relevant financial institutions: The incentives of policy makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucas Marc Fuhrer

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The recent financial crisis has shown that many financial institutions may be systemically relevant. Their bankruptcy would cause significant costs for the overall economy. However, a clear definition of systemic risks still does not exist. Thus, the decision, whether an institution is, or is not systemically relevant is in the end made by policy makers. This paper takes a closer look at the incentives available to policy makers and their influence on the bailout decision. In the model presented here it is possible to show, that too many financial institutions get bailed out, when assuming that policy makers tend to be more risk-averse than socially optimal. The costs due to this misallocation of resources can be significant.

Knowledge and Attitudes of a Number of Iranian Policy-makers towards Abortion.

Science.gov (United States)

Hourieh, Shamshiri-Milani; Abolghasem, Pourreza; Feizollah, Akbari

2010-10-01

Unsafe and illegal abortions are the third leading cause of maternal death. It affects physical, emotional and social health of women and their families. Abortion is a multi-dimensional phenomenon with several social, legal, and religious implications. The views of policy-makers affect the approach to abortion in every society. Understanding the attitudes and knowledge of high-ranking decision makers towards abortion was the purpose of this study. A qualitative research was implemented by carrying out individual interviews with 29 out of a selection of 80 presidents of medical sciences universities, senior executive managers in the legal system, forensic medicine and decision-makers in the health system and a number of top Muslim clerics, using a semi-structured questionnaire for data gathering. Content analysis revealed the results. There were considerable unwillingness and reluctance among the interviewees to participate in the study. The majority of participants fairly knew about the prevalence of illegal abortions and their complications. There was strong agreement on abortion when health of the mother or the fetus was at risk. Abortion for reproductive health reasons was supported by a minority of the respondents. The majority of them disagreed with abortion when pregnancy was the result of a rape, temporary marriage or out of wedlock affairs. Making decision for abortion by the pregnant mother, as a matter of her right, did not gain too much approval. It seemed that physical health of the mother or the fetus was of more importance to the respondents than their mental or social health. The mother's hardship was not any indication for induced abortion in the viewpoints of the interviewed policy-makers. Strengthening family planning programs, making appropriate laws in lines with religious orders and advocacy programs targeting decision makers are determined as strategies for improving women's health rights.

High salt meals in staff canteens of salt policy makers: observational study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brewster, L.M.; Berentzen, C.A.; van Montfrans, G.A.

2011-01-01

To assess the salt content of hot meals served at the institutions of salt policy makers in the Netherlands. Observational study. 18 canteens at the Department of Health, the Health Council, the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority, university hospitals, and affiliated non-university

Changing the hearts and minds of policy makers: an exploratory study associated with the West Virginia Walks campaign.

Science.gov (United States)

Leyden, Kevin M; Reger-Nash, Bill; Bauman, Adrian; Bias, Tom

2008-01-01

To pilot test whether West Virginia Walks changed local policy makers' awareness of walking-related issues. A quasi-experimental design with preintervention and postintervention mail surveys. Morgantown, WV (intervention community), and Huntington, WV (comparison community). One hundred thirty-three and 134 public officials in Morgantown and 120 and 116 public officials in Huntington at baseline and at follow-up, respectively. An 8-week mass media social ecological campaign designed to encourage moderate-intensity walking among insufficiently active persons aged 40 to 65 years. Policy makers listed three problems they believed needed to be addressed in their community. They then rated the severity of several problems that many communities face using a Likert scale, with 1 representing "not a problem" and 5 representing "an extremely important problem." Independent sample t-tests were used to examine differences in mean responses at baseline and at follow-up. Statistically significant increases in the perceived importance of walking-related issues were observed among policy makers in Morgantown but not in the comparison community. Integrated communitywide health promotion campaigns designed to influence the public can also affect the perceptions of policy makers. Future research should examine this linkage and determine whether resource allocation and policy changes follow such interventions.

Timely injection of knowledge when interacting with stakeholders and policy makers.

Science.gov (United States)

Bouma, Johan

2015-04-01

Timely injection of knowledge when interacting with stakeholders and policy makers. J.Bouma Em. Prof. Soil Science, Wageningen University, the Netherlands During the last decade, the spectacular development of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has strongly increased the accessible amount of data and information for stakeholders and policy makers and the science community is struggling to adjust to these developments. In the Netherlands not only industry has now a major impact on the research agenda but this is now to be extended to citizens at large. Rather than complain about an apparent "gap" between science and society and wrestle with the challenge to bridge it in a rather reactive manner, the science community would be well advised to initiate a proactive approach, showing that knowledge implies a deep understanding of issues and processes that does not necessarily follow from having data and information. The "gap" certainly applies to soil research in the context of sustainable development where many often well informed stakeholders are involved with widely different opinions, norms and values. Changes are suggested in the manner in which we frame our work: (i) longer involvement with projects from initiation to implementation in practice; (ii) active role of "knowledge brokers" who inject the right type of knowledge during the entire project run in a joint-learning mode, and (iii) not proposing new research from a science perspective but demonstrating a clear need because existing knowledge is inadequate. Yet more conceptual discussions about e.g. inter- and transdisciplinarity, worrysome soil degradation and lack of professional recognition are less meaningful than specific case studies demonstrating the crucial role of soil science when analysing land-based environmental problems. New narratives are needed instead of statistics, openness to learn from best practices and pilot projects as a necessary next step beyond awareness raising. Soil

Water bodies typology system: a Chilean case of scientific stakeholders and policy makers dialogue

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo Fuster

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this project was to obtain a scientists-validated Typology System, which would allow to classify the surface waters bodies in Chile and, therefore, to facilitate the environmental institutional water management in the country. For this, during the years 2009 and 2011, a Typology System for the surface freshwater bodies was developed for Chile based on the methodology described by the Water Framework Directive of the European Union, which was adapted to local features through the knowledge of limnologist experts in the country, as well as policy makers' experience and their management requirements . In a first stage, national ecoregions were developed and abiotic variables were defined to compose the Typology System. The resulted Typology System for lakes and rivers was generated following an a priori and top down approach to difference biocenosis, based on geomorphologic, hydrologic and physic criteria. In a second stage, the proposed Typology System was validated by experts and policy makers, in which process new arrangements were included in the system. The working methodology used for both stages was bibliographic review, interviews to local experts in biocenosis and workshops. It is specially highlighted the participative processes and discussions in which all the agents involved were present, all of which resulted in the creation of a valid system from a scientific point of view and a product that is applicable to the necessities of the environmental institutions of the country. This work represents a successful experience in the improvement of the communication between scientists and politicians in Chile, which is a relevant factor for the elaboration of more efficient and effective environmental policies, integrating not only management and economic issues, but also more technical aspects that can influence in the final success of any long term strategy. For this reason, the replication of this kind of experiences, as well as

The Maker Movement, the Promise of Higher Education, and the Future of Work

Science.gov (United States)

Wigner, Aubrey

The 21st century will be the site of numerous changes in education systems in response to a rapidly evolving technological environment where existing skill sets and career structures may cease to exist or, at the very least, change dramatically. Likewise, the nature of work will also change to become more automated and more technologically intensive across all sectors, from food service to scientific research. Simply having technical expertise or the ability to process and retain facts will in no way guarantee success in higher education or a satisfying career. Instead, the future will value those educated in a way that encourages collaboration with technology, critical thinking, creativity, clear communication skills, and strong lifelong learning strategies. These changes pose a challenge for higher education's promise of employability and success post-graduation. Addressing how to prepare students for a technologically uncertain future is challenging. One possible model for education to prepare students for the future of work can be found within the Maker Movement. However, it is not fully understood what parts of this movement are most meaningful to implement in education more broadly, and higher education in particular. Through the qualitative analysis of nearly 160 interviews of adult makers, young makers and young makers' parents, this dissertation unpacks how makers are learning, what they are learning, and how these qualities are applicable to education goals and the future of work in the 21st century. This research demonstrates that makers are learning valuable skills to prepare them for the future of work in the 21st century. Makers are learning communication skills, technical skills in fabrication and design, and developing lifelong learning strategies that will help prepare them for life in an increasingly technologically integrated future. This work discusses what aspects of the Maker Movement are most important for integration into higher education.

Designing evaluation studies to optimally inform policy: what factors do policy-makers in China consider when making resource allocation decisions on healthcare worker training programmes?

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Shishi; Legido-Quigley, Helena; Spencer, Julia; Coker, Richard James; Khan, Mishal Sameer

2018-02-23

In light of the gap in evidence to inform future resource allocation decisions about healthcare provider (HCP) training in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and the considerable donor investments being made towards training interventions, evaluation studies that are optimally designed to inform local policy-makers are needed. The aim of our study is to understand what features of HCP training evaluation studies are important for decision-making by policy-makers in LMICs. We investigate the extent to which evaluations based on the widely used Kirkpatrick model - focusing on direct outcomes of training, namely reaction of trainees, learning, behaviour change and improvements in programmatic health indicators - align with policy-makers' evidence needs for resource allocation decisions. We use China as a case study where resource allocation decisions about potential scale-up (using domestic funding) are being made about an externally funded pilot HCP training programme. Qualitative data were collected from high-level officials involved in resource allocation at the national and provincial level in China through ten face-to-face, in-depth interviews and two focus group discussions consisting of ten participants each. Data were analysed manually using an interpretive thematic analysis approach. Our study indicates that Chinese officials not only consider information about the direct outcomes of a training programme, as captured in the Kirkpatrick model, but also need information on the resources required to implement the training, the wider or indirect impacts of training, and the sustainability and scalability to other settings within the country. In addition to considering findings presented in evaluation studies, we found that Chinese policy-makers pay close attention to whether the evaluations were robust and to the composition of the evaluation team. Our qualitative study indicates that training programme evaluations that focus narrowly on direct training

Engaging policy-makers, heath system managers, and policy analysts in the knowledge synthesis process: a scoping review.

Science.gov (United States)

Tricco, Andrea C; Zarin, Wasifa; Rios, Patricia; Nincic, Vera; Khan, Paul A; Ghassemi, Marco; Diaz, Sanober; Pham, Ba'; Straus, Sharon E; Langlois, Etienne V

2018-02-12

It is unclear how to engage a wide range of knowledge users in research. We aimed to map the evidence on engaging knowledge users with an emphasis on policy-makers, health system managers, and policy analysts in the knowledge synthesis process through a scoping review. We used the Joanna Briggs Institute guidance for scoping reviews. Nine electronic databases (e.g., MEDLINE), two grey literature sources (e.g., OpenSIGLE), and reference lists of relevant systematic reviews were searched from 1996 to August 2016. We included any type of study describing strategies, barriers and facilitators, or assessing the impact of engaging policy-makers, health system managers, and policy analysts in the knowledge synthesis process. Screening and data abstraction were conducted by two reviewers independently with a third reviewer resolving discrepancies. Frequency and thematic analyses were conducted. After screening 8395 titles and abstracts followed by 394 full-texts, 84 unique documents and 7 companion reports fulfilled our eligibility criteria. All 84 documents were published in the last 10 years, and half were prepared in North America. The most common type of knowledge synthesis with knowledge user engagement was a systematic review (36%). The knowledge synthesis most commonly addressed an issue at the level of national healthcare system (48%) and focused on health services delivery (17%) in high-income countries (86%). Policy-makers were the most common (64%) knowledge users, followed by healthcare professionals (49%) and government agencies as well as patients and caregivers (34%). Knowledge users were engaged in conceptualization and design (49%), literature search and data collection (52%), data synthesis and interpretation (71%), and knowledge dissemination and application (44%). Knowledge users were most commonly engaged as key informants through meetings and workshops as well as surveys, focus groups, and interviews either in-person or by telephone and emails

A Framework for Using Qualitative Research To Inform Policy-Makers and Empower Practitioners: Lessons from Madagascar.

Science.gov (United States)

Heneveld, Ward; Craig, Helen

National education policy reforms often do not translate into changes at the classroom level. This paper presents a conceptual framework developed for Sub-Saharan Africa to assist policy-makers in bridging the gap between school practice and national policies. It also describes how the framework was applied to current school-improvement efforts in…

Navigating the science-policy spectrum: Opportunities to work on policies related to your research

Science.gov (United States)

Licker, R.; Ekwurzel, B.; Goldman, G. T.; DeLonge, M. S.

2017-12-01

Many scientists conduct research with direct policy relevance, whether it be producing sea-level projections that are taken-up by local decision-makers, or developing new agricultural technologies. All scientists are affected by policies made by their respective local, regional, and federal governments. For example, budgets affect the grant resources available to conduct research and policies on visas influence the accessibility of new positions for foreign scientists. As a result, many scientists would like to engage with the policy domain, and either bring their science to bear on new policies that are in the works (science-for-policy) or inform policies on the scientific research enterprise (policy-for-science). Some scientists prefer to engage and be neutral to the policy outcome, serving primarily as an information resource. Many may choose to also advocate for a particular outcome based on their expertise and experience. Research shows that policy decisions benefit greatly from the input of scientific experts. We explore the spectrum between informing policies in a "non-prescriptive" manner to working on policies in an advocacy space. We highlight tips for successful engagement along this spectrum. Finally, we review current science-for-policy and policy-for-science issues of relevance to the geophysical sciences.

Policy Makers, Information and Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Beers, Pieter J.; van Asselt, Marjolein B. A.; Vermunt, Jan D.; Kirschner, Paul A.

2003-01-01

Interviews explored the information needs of seven Dutch policymakers dealing with global sustainability. They sought information on cultural perspectives and linkages. Information gathering emphasized filtering to find specific information. Most used an application-oriented working style that, combined with policy-driven information seeking, was…

Green buildings in Malaysia towards greener environment: challenges for policy makers

Science.gov (United States)

Suhaida, M. S.; Tan, K. L.; Leong, Y. P.

2013-06-01

The launch of the National Green Technology Policy (NGTP) in 2009 is a manifesto of the government's seriousness in implementing "green" initiatives for the country. Specifically for buildings, the government promotes the application of renewable energy (RE) and energy efficiency (EE) and the application of green building index. With the introduction of Low Carbon Cities Framework, Green Pass, Green Neighbourhood, Green Building Index by various agencies and organisations in Malaysia, it is time to look back and see how all these tools could come together. This paper attempts to identify the challenges in harmonising the green initiatives for policy makers toward greener environment for sustainability.

Bridging the gap between science and policy: an international survey of scientists and policy makers in China and Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Bernard C K; Li, Liping; Lu, Yaogui; Zhang, Li R; Zhu, Yao; Pak, Anita W P; Chen, Yue; Little, Julian

2016-02-06

Bridging the gap between science and policy is an important task in evidence-informed policy making. The objective of this study is to prioritize ways to bridge the gap. The study was based on an online survey of high-ranking scientists and policy makers who have a senior position in universities and governments in the health sector in China and Canada. The sampling frame comprised of universities with schools of public health and medicine and various levels of government in health and public health. Participants included university presidents and professors, and government deputy ministers, directors general and directors working in the health field. Fourteen strategies were presented to the participants for ranking as current ways and ideal ways in the future to bridge the gap between science and policy. Over a 3-month survey period, there were 121 participants in China and 86 in Canada with response rates of 30.0 and 15.9 %, respectively. The top strategies selected by respondents included focus on policy (conducting research that focuses on policy questions), science-policy forums, and policy briefs, both as current ways and ideal ways to bridge the gap between science and policy. Conferences were considered a priority strategy as a current way, but not an ideal way in the future. Canadian participants were more in favor of using information technology (web-based portals and email updates) than their Chinese counterparts. Among Canadian participants, two strategies that were ranked low as current ways (collaboration in study design and collaboration in analysis) became a priority as ideal ways. This could signal a change in thinking in shifting the focus from the "back end" or "downstream" (knowledge dissemination) of the knowledge transfer process to the "front end" or "upstream" (knowledge generation). Our international study has confirmed a number of previously reported priority strategies to bridge the gap between science and policy. More importantly, our

Applying gene flow science to environmental policy needs: a boundary work perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Ridley, Caroline E; Alexander, Laurie C

2016-08-01

One application of gene flow science is the policy arena. In this article, we describe two examples in which the topic of gene flow has entered into the U.S. national environmental policymaking process: regulation of genetically engineered crops and clarification of the jurisdictional scope of the Clean Water Act. We summarize both current scientific understanding and the legal context within which gene flow science has relevance. We also discuss the process by which scientific knowledge has been synthesized and communicated to decision-makers in these two contexts utilizing the concept of 'boundary work'. Boundary organizations, the work they engage in to bridge the worlds of science, policy, and practice, and the boundary objects they produce to translate scientific knowledge existed in both examples. However, the specific activities and attributes of the objects produced varied based on the needs of the decision-makers. We close with suggestions for how scientists can contribute to or engage in boundary work with policymakers.

The value of vaccination: results of an Italian survey among Medical Doctors, Policy Makers and General Population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chiara Cadeddu

2012-03-01

Full Text Available

Abstract:

Background: In the Italian context, evolving toward the abandonment of compulsory vaccination, the
maintenance of adequate levels of coverage appears as essential. The promotion of a good vaccination
knowledge, supported by strong scientific evidence, and the collaboration of all the involved stakeholders,
appears hence fundamental. The aim of this survey was to understand why vaccination is not appreciated
for its real value by different stakeholders.
Methods: In collaboration with other Italian Universities and Health Districts, in Summer 2011 we submitted
a survey of 17 questions to a convenience sample of Italian Medical Doctors, Policy Makers and General
Population. The main questions analyzed the importance of vaccination for health, actions to attain vaccination
value and consequences of a free choice policy.
Results: Of the 173 stakeholders interviewed, 78% of Medical Doctors, 82% Policy Makers and 46%
General Population believe that vaccination is important for health. The most important actions suggested
for strengthening vaccination were information about its efficacy and safety and studies on its impact on
Public Health, according to most of General Population and of Medical Doctors and Policy Makers, respectively.
According to 60.4% Medical Doctors, 72.8% Policy Makers and 56.3% General Population the abolition
of compulsory vaccination would lead to a reduction of vaccinees in all the Italian regions.
Conclusions: Our study confirms the need for a thorough “education in vaccination”. Among stakeholders
there are still doubts that hinder the decision process about vaccination policies and programmes. On
the other hand, a call for an “Alliance” for promoting and implementing vaccination to its full potential
would be favoured, as

Sustainability of Long-term Care: Puzzling Tasks Ahead for Policy-Makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ilaria Mosca

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Background The sustainability of long-term care (LTC is a prominent policy priority in many Western countries. LTC is one of the most pressing fiscal issues for the growing population of elderly people in the European Union (EU Member States. Country recommendations regarding LTC are prominent under the EU’s European Semester. Methods This paper examines challenges related to the financial- and organizational sustainability of LTC systems in the EU. We combined a targeted literature review and a descriptive selected country analysis of: (1 public- and private funding; (2 informal care and externalities; and (3 the possible role of technology in increasing productivity. Countries were selected via purposive sampling to establish a cohort of country cases covering the spectrum of differences in LTC systems: public spending, private funding, informal care use, informal care support, and cash benefits. Results The aging of the population, the increasing gap between availability of informal care and demand for LTC, substantial market failures of private funding for LTC, and fiscal imbalances in some countries, have led to structural reforms and enduring pressures for LTC policy-makers across the EU. Our exploration of national policies illustrates different solutions that attempt to promote fairness while stimulating efficient delivery of services. Important steps must be taken to address the sustainability of LTC. First, countries should look deeper into the possibilities of complementing public- and private funding, as well as at addressing market failures of private funding. Second, informal care externalities with spill-over into neighboring policy areas, the labor force, and formal LTC workers, should be properly addressed. Thirdly, innovations in LTC services should be stimulated to increase productivity through technology and process innovations, and to reduce costs. Conclusion The analysis shows why it is difficult for EU Member State

How do the public and policy makers communicate their perceptions of environmental risk to academics?

Science.gov (United States)

Holden, Jennifer

2010-05-01

This paper investigates the ways that the public and policy makers talk about environmental risk to academics. The case study is heavy-metal contamination of food in Zambia, Southern Africa. In several localities in Zambia, urban agriculture is practised using heavy-metal contamination wastewater for irrigation. This leads to contaminated food crops that are subsequently consumed. One case study site where this occurs is Chunga, situated in the northwest of the Zambian capital: Lusaka. For members of the public, six focus groups were carried out at the Chunga, Zambia study site, involving a total of 48 participants. The participants were those involved in urban agriculture through cultivation, selling and consumption of food crops. Urban agriculturalist focus group participants were recruited through key field informants. Focus group discussion starter questions involved pollution awareness, health impacts of pollution in the area and who is responsible for communicating environmental contamination risks to the general population. For policy stakeholders, 39 semi-structured interviews were conducted with individuals from various organisations including government ministries, non-governmental organisations, community based organisations and international institutions. Semi-structured interviews investigated the perceived major health issues in Zambia, food safety, environmental contamination and specifically heavy-metal contamination. Policy stakeholders were identified through policy mapping and organisations mentioned in focus group discussions and other interviews. The results at the Chunga study site show that members of the public perceive: (i) heavy metal pollution is not an issue in Lusaka and for their irrigation practices, (ii) dirty food can cause illness, (iii) heavy metals in foods can cause illness but they are not present at the Chunga site. Amongst urban agriculturalists the quantity of food available is the greatest issue, with some saying that they

Women as decision and policy makers. Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

1995-09-01

The focus of this news brief is on the Community-based Sustainable Family Planning/Maternal and Child Health (FP/MCH) Project promoted in Bangladesh, Laos, Nepal, and the Philippines. The project emphasizes women's involvement as policy makers and evaluators. The aim is to involve women at all project levels as part of an effort to correct gender imbalances. Programs are being directed toward sustainability. Women are placed in positions at each level of the tiered system of steering committees, which range from local village committees to central committees. Men may still retain the top positions, but women are given decision making power at the highest levels of policy and program development and implementation. The Asia region is challenged by quality of care issues related to reproductive health services. Program expansion is proceeding into rural areas with outreach services and fee charging. Projects are community-based, which means mobilization of community people. The community approach is suitable to an Asian culture that does not adhere to strict rules of privacy. Women's groups are eager to discuss sensitive issues such as contraception and to offer personal experiences and solutions to problems. Mass meetings and individual counseling sessions are available. IEC materials are available to the Asian FP/MCH program from JOICFP. Some of these materials promote the concept of the Asian community spirit as a building block of development. The Asian approach is an alternative to Western models and may be valid for other regions.

Assessment of policy makers' individual and organizational capacity to acquire, assess, adapt and apply research evidence for maternal and child health policy making in Nigeria: a cross-sectional quantitative survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Uneke, Chigozie Jesse; Sombie, Issiaka; Keita, Namoudou; Lokossou, Virgil; Johnson, Ermel; Ongolo-Zogo, Pierre; Uro-Chukwu, Henry Chukwuemeka

2017-09-01

Throughout the world, there is increasing awareness and acknowledgement of the value of research evidence in the development of effective health policy and in quality health care practice and administration. Among the major challenges associated with the lack of uptake of research evidence into policy and practice in Nigeria is the capacity constraints of policymakers to use research evidence in policy making. To assess the capacity of maternal and child health policy makers to acquire, access, adapt and apply available research evidence. This cross-sectional quantitative survey was conducted at a national maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) stakeholders' engagement event. An evidence to policy self-assessment questionnaire was used to assess the capacity of forty MNCH policy makers to acquire, assess, adapt and apply research evidence for policy making. Low mean ratings were observed ranging from 2.68-3.53 on a scale of 5 for knowledge about initiating/conducting research and capacity to assess authenticity, validity, reliability, relevance and applicability of research evidence and for organizational capacity for promoting and using of research for policy making. There is need to institute policy makers' capacity development programmes to improve evidence-informed policymaking.

Moving towards tangible decision-making tools for policy makers: Measuring and monitoring energy access provision

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhanot, Jaya; Jha, Vivek

2012-01-01

Access to energy services has been recognised as central to achieving economic growth and sustainable development. However, almost 1.3 billion people in the world still lack access to electricity and 2.7 billion lack access to clean cooking facilities. In this backdrop, the issue of energy access is receiving more interest than ever before and this has brought to the fore, the need for a robust decision support tool for policy makers to measure the progress of energy access provision and also to provide direction for future policy making. The paper studies existing definitions of energy access and identifies the key requirements for an appropriate decision-making tool to measure and monitor energy access provision. In this context the paper assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the metrics currently being used to measure energy access in policy, as well as of contemporary monitoring and evaluation frameworks being used in other sectors. Based on these insights, a dashboard of indicators is proposed as an alternate decision support tool for policy makers to measure energy access. The paper concludes with a discussion on what is needed to operationalise this proposed framework. - Highlights: ► No one indicator or metric can successfully capture progress on energy access. ► A service oriented approach is necessary to measure energy access. ► Socio-economic and political contexts influence success of energy access policies.

The energy policy relevance of the 2014 IPCC Working Group III report on the macro-economics of mitigating climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosen, Richard A.; Guenther, Edeltraud

2016-01-01

Research which attempted to determine the macroeconomic importance of mitigating climate change through 2100 was presented primarily in Chapter 6 of the 2014 IPCC Working Group III report. Some of the findings of this chapter were then summarized in the Summary for Policy Makers (SPMs) of both the Synthesis Report, and the WGIII report. Unfortunately, these SPMs omitted key aspects of what the overall macroeconomic results for the costs and benefits of mitigating climate change actually did and did not include, how they were produced, and a careful assessment of their uncertainty and scientific validity. Yet, many of the major omissions were acknowledged deep in the text of Chapter 6, but were not revealed to the public. We conclude, therefore, that neither of these SPMs was useful for energy policy makers and energy managers, and they were misleading due to their many key omissions. Finally, we recommend several improvements that can be made to integrated assessment modeling methodologies so that the macroeconomic analysis of mitigating climate change resulting from the use of such models can be more relevant and useful to energy policy makers in the future, and can be communicated to them better. - Highlights: •The 2014 IPCC Working Group III Report has major omissions in its economic analysis. •Many well-known benefits of mitigation are not included in its economic results. •The Summary for Policy Makers is not very useful for energy policy decision makers. •The upcoming Sixth IPCC WGIII analysis should be structured quite differently.

Energizing Government Decision-Makers with the Facts on Solar Technology, Policy, and Integration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2017-01-01

The Solar Technical Assistance Team (STAT) is a network of solar technology and implementation experts who provide timely, unbiased expertise to assist policymakers and regulators in making informed decisions about solar programs and policies. Government officials can submit requests directly to the STAT for technical assistance. STAT then partners with experts in solar policy, regulation, finance, technology, and other areas to deliver accurate, up-to-date information to state and local decision makers. The STAT responds to requests on a wide range of issues -- including, but not limited to, feed-in tariffs, renewable portfolio standards, rate design, program design, workforce and economic impacts of solar on jurisdictions, and project financing.

Marginal Propensity to Consume in Hungary: The long-term versus Short-term Challenges to Policy Makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keith Write

2017-11-01

Full Text Available This study uses Hungarian quarterly data from the International Monetary Fund to estimate a distributed lag model whose coefficients allow derivation of the short-run and long-run marginal propensities to consume.  MPCs are main factors determining the consumption, investment, government spending, and export and import multipliers of the economy.  Hungary's economy has stagnated and its policy makers are exploring new ways to manage its economy.  Our model reveals that the numerical value of Hungarian short-run marginal propensity to consume (MPC is 0.4081181655 and the long-run MPC is 0.9458619.  These results are consistent with the corresponding figures in emerging and advanced economies.  These derived MPCs suggest that Hungarian economic policy makers should use fiscal instruments to bring these macroeconomic variables back to their long-term trend effectively

Open Education and OER - A guide and call to action for policy makers

OpenAIRE

Deepwell, Maren; Weller, Martin; Campbell, Lorna; Wilson, Joe

2017-01-01

Executive Summary ALT has produced this call to action to highlight to education policy makers and professionals how Open Education and OER can expand inclusive and equitable access to education and lifelong learning, widen participation, and create new opportunities for the next generation of teachers and learners, preparing them to become fully engaged digital citizens. Open Education can also promote knowledge transfer while enhancing quality and sustainability, supporting social inclu...

The Policy Maker's Anguish: Regulating Personal Data Behavior Between Paradoxes and Dilemmas

Science.gov (United States)

Compañó, Ramón; Lusoli, Wainer

Regulators in Europe and elsewhere are paying great attention to identity, privacy and trust in online and converging environments. Appropriate regulation of identity in a ubiquitous information environment is seen as one of the major drivers of the future Internet economy. Regulation of personal identity data has come to the fore including mapping conducted on digital personhood by the OECD; work on human rights and profiling by the Council of Europe andmajor studies by the European Commission with regard to self-regulation in the privacy market, electronic identity technical interoperability and enhanced safety for young people. These domains overlap onto an increasingly complex model of regulation of individuals' identity management, online and offline. This chapter argues that policy makers struggle to deal with issues concerning electronic identity, due to the apparently irrational and unpredictable behavior of users when engaging in online interactions involving identity management. Building on empirical survey evidence from four EU countries, we examine the first aspect in detail - citizens' management of identity in a digital environment. We build on data from a large scale (n = 5,265) online survey of attitudes to electronic identity among young Europeans (France, Germany, Spain, UK) conducted in August 2008. The survey asked questions about perceptions and acceptance of risks, general motivations, attitudes and behaviors concerning electronic identity. Four behavioral paradoxes are identified in the analysis: a privacy paradox (to date well known), but also a control paradox, a responsibility paradox and an awareness paradox. The chapter then examines the paradoxes in relation of three main policy dilemmas framing the debate on digital identity. The paper concludes by arguing for an expanded identity debate spanning policy circles and the engineering community.

Examining the policy climate for HIV prevention in the Caribbean tourism sector: a qualitative study of policy makers in the Dominican Republic.

Science.gov (United States)

Padilla, Mark B; Reyes, Armando Matiz; Connolly, Maureen; Natsui, Shaw; Puello, Adrian; Chapman, Helena

2012-05-01

The Caribbean has the highest prevalence rates of HIV/AIDS outside sub-Saharan Africa, and a broad literature suggests an ecological association between tourism areas and sexual vulnerability. Tourism employees have been shown to engage in high rates of sexual risk behaviours. Nevertheless, no large-scale or sustained HIV prevention interventions have been conducted within the tourism industry. Policy barriers and resources are under-studied. In order to identify the policy barriers and resources for HIV prevention in the tourism sector, our research used a participatory approach involving a multisectoral coalition of representatives from the tourism industry, government, public health and civil society in the Dominican Republic. We conducted 39 in-depth semi-structured interviews with policy makers throughout the country focusing on: prior experiences with HIV prevention policies and programmes in the tourism sector; barriers and resources for such policies and programmes; and future priorities and recommendations. Findings suggest perceptions among policy makers of barriers related to the mobile nature of tourism employees; the lack of centralized funding; fear of the 'image problem' associated with HIV; and the lack of multisectoral policy dialogue and collaboration. Nevertheless, prior short-term experiences and changing attitudes among some private sector tourism representatives suggest emerging opportunities for policy change. We argue that the time is ripe for dialogue across the public-private divide in order to develop regulatory mechanisms, joint responsibilities and centralized funding sources to ensure a sustainable response to the HIV-tourism linkage. Policy priorities should focus on incorporating HIV prevention as a component of occupational health; reinforcing workers' health care rights as guaranteed by existing law; using private sector tourism representatives who support HIV prevention as positive role models for national campaigns; and

Towards a stakeholders' consensus on patient payment policy: the views of health-care consumers, providers, insurers and policy makers in six Central and Eastern European countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Tambor, Marzena; Pavlova, Milena; Golinowska, Stanisława; Sowada, Christoph; Groot, Wim

2015-08-01

Although patient charges for health-care services may contribute to a more sustainable health-care financing, they often raise public opposition, which impedes their introduction. Thus, a consensus among the main stakeholders on the presence and role of patient charges should be worked out to assure their successful implementation. To analyse the acceptability of formal patient charges for health-care services in a basic package among different health-care system stakeholders in six Central and Eastern European countries (Bulgaria, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Ukraine). Qualitative data were collected in 2009 via focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with health-care consumers, providers, policy makers and insurers. The same participants were asked to fill in a self-administrative questionnaire. Qualitative and quantitative data are analysed separately to outline similarities and differences in the opinions between the stakeholder groups and across countries. There is a rather weak consensus on patient charges in the countries. Health policy makers and insurers strongly advocate patient charges. Health-care providers overall support charges but their financial profits from the system strongly affects their approval. Consumers are against paying for services, mostly due to poor quality and access to health-care services and inability to pay. To build consensus on patient charges, the payment policy should be responsive to consumers' needs with regard to quality and equity. Transparency and accountability in the health-care system should be improved to enhance public trust and acceptance of patient payments. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Handbook - TRACE-ing human trafficking : Handbook for policy makers, law enforcement agencies and civil society organisations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rijken, Conny; Pijnenburg, Annick

2016-01-01

Human trafficking is one of the largest criminal enterprises in the world. It is a multi-billiondollar crime of global scale. This is because human trafficking as a criminal enterprise continues to evolve as a high profit-low risk business for perpetrators and challenges policy makers, law

Building the capacity of policy-makers and planners to strengthen mental health systems in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roxanne Keynejad

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Little is known about the interventions required to build the capacity of mental health policy-makers and planners in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs. We conducted a systematic review with the primary aim of identifying and synthesizing the evidence base for building the capacity of policy-makers and planners to strengthen mental health systems in LMICs. Methods We searched MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, Web of Knowledge, Web of Science, Scopus, CINAHL, LILACS, ScieELO, Google Scholar and Cochrane databases for studies reporting evidence, experience or evaluation of capacity-building of policy-makers, service planners or managers in mental health system strengthening in LMICs. Reports in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French or German were included. Additional papers were identified by hand-searching references and contacting experts and key informants. Database searches yielded 2922 abstracts and 28 additional papers were identified. Following screening, 409 full papers were reviewed, of which 14 fulfilled inclusion criteria for the review. Data were extracted from all included papers and synthesized into a narrative review. Results Only a small number of mental health system-related capacity-building interventions for policy-makers and planners in LMICs were described. Most models of capacity-building combined brief training with longer term mentorship, dialogue and/or the establishment of networks of support. However, rigorous research and evaluation methods were largely absent, with studies being of low quality, limiting the potential to separate mental health system strengthening outcomes from the effects of associated contextual factors. Conclusions This review demonstrates the need for partnership approaches to building the capacity of mental health policy-makers and planners in LMICs, assessed rigorously against pre-specified conceptual frameworks and hypotheses, utilising longitudinal evaluation and mixed

The policy work of piloting: Mobilising and managing conflict and ambiguity in the English NHS.

Science.gov (United States)

Bailey, Simon; Checkland, Kath; Hodgson, Damian; McBride, Anne; Elvey, Rebecca; Parkin, Stephen; Rothwell, Katy; Pierides, Dean

2017-04-01

In spite of their widespread use in policy making in the UK and elsewhere, there is a relatively sparse literature specifically devoted to policy pilots. Recent research on policy piloting has focused on the role of pilots in making policy work in accordance with national agendas. Taking this as a point of departure, the present paper develops the notion of pilots doing policy work. It does this by situating piloting within established theories of policy formulation and implementation, and illustrating using an empirical case. Our case is drawn from a qualitative policy ethnography of a local government pilot programme aiming to extend access to healthcare services. Our case explores the collective entrepreneurship of regional policy makers together with local pilot volunteers. We argue that pilots work to mobilise and manage the ambiguity and conflict associated with particular policy goals, and in their structure and design, shape action towards particular outcomes. We conclude with a discussion of the generative but managed role which piloting affords to local implementers. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

The Solutions Project: Educating the Public and Policy Makers About Solutions to Global Warming, Air Pollution, and Energy Security

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobson, M. Z.

2015-12-01

Three major global problems of our times are global warming, air pollution mortality and morbidity, and energy insecurity. Whereas, policy makers with the support of the public must implement solutions to these problems, it is scientists and engineers who are best equipped to evaluate technically sound, optimal, and efficient solutions. Yet, a disconnect exists between information provided by scientists and engineers and policies implemented. Part of the reason is that scientific information provided to policy makers and the public is swamped out by information provided by lobbyists and another part is the difficulty in providing information to the hundreds of millions of people who need it rather than to just a few thousand. What other ways are available, aside from issuing press releases on scientific papers, for scientists to disseminate information? Three growing methods are through social media, creative media, and storytelling. The Solutions Project is a non-profit non-governmental organization whose goal is to bring forth scientific information about 100% clean, renewable energy plans to the public, businesses, and policy makers using these and related tools. Through the use of social media, the development of engaging internet and video content, and storytelling, the group hopes to increase the dissemination of information for social good. This talk discusses the history and impacts to date of this group and its methods. Please see www.thesolutionsproject.org and 100.org for more information.

Children's Participation in Decision-Making in the Philippines: Understanding the Attitudes of Policy-Makers and Service Providers

Science.gov (United States)

Bessell, Sharon

2009-01-01

This article explores the ideas about children's participation in decision-making held by government officials and non-government representatives engaged in promoting children's participation in the Philippines. It suggests that the ideas that policy-makers and service deliverers hold about children's participation are heterogeneous, diverse and…

Is counter-terrorism policy evidence-based? What works, what harms, and what is unknown.

Science.gov (United States)

Lum, Cynthia; Kennedy, Leslie W; Sherley, Alison

2008-02-01

Is counter-terrorism policy evidence-based? What works, what harms, and what is unknown. One of the central concerns surrounding counter-terrorism interventions today, given the attention and money spent on them, is whether such interventions are effective. To explore this issue, we conducted a general review of terrorism literature as well as a Campbell systematic review on counter-terrorism strategies. In this article, we summarize some of our findings from these works. Overall, we found an almost complete absence of evaluation research on counter-terrorism strategies and conclude that counter-terrorism policy is not evidence-based. The findings of this review emphasise the need for government leaders, policy makers, researchers, and funding agencies to include and insist on evaluations of the effectiveness of these programs in their agendas.

Joint research project to develop a training course or nuclear policy decision makers and planners in developing countries between KAERI and IAEA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, E. J.; Suh, I. S.; Lee, H. Y. and others

2000-12-01

KAERI developed training course curricula on nuclear power policy and planning for decision makers and planners in developing countries under the assistance of the IAEA. It was utilized two IAEA staff members and a Korean consultation group were utilized for the development of curricula. Curriculum consists of training objectives, training contents in modular basis, detailed contents of each training module, training setting, training duration, session hours, and entry requirements of audience. One is workshop on nuclear energy policy for high-level decision makers in developing countries. The other is training course on nuclear power planning and project management for middle level managers in developing countries. The textbook in English will be printed by the end of February in 2001. Developed curricula will be implemented for Vietnam high level nuclear decision makers, middle level managers in developing countries and north Korea nuclear high level decision makers in 2001. These training courses' curricula and textbook will be utilized as basic technical documents to promote the national nuclear bilateral technical cooperation programs with Morocco, Egypt, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Ukraine, etc

Joint research project to develop a training course or nuclear policy decision makers and planners in developing countries between KAERI and IAEA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, E. J.; Suh, I. S.; Lee, H. Y. and others

2000-12-01

KAERI developed training course curricula on nuclear power policy and planning for decision makers and planners in developing countries under the assistance of the IAEA. It was utilized two IAEA staff members and a Korean consultation group were utilized for the development of curricula. Curriculum consists of training objectives, training contents in modular basis, detailed contents of each training module, training setting, training duration, session hours, and entry requirements of audience. One is workshop on nuclear energy policy for high-level decision makers in developing countries. The other is training course on nuclear power planning and project management for middle level managers in developing countries. The textbook in English will be printed by the end of February in 2001. Developed curricula will be implemented for Vietnam high level nuclear decision makers, middle level managers in developing countries and north Korea nuclear high level decision makers in 2001. These training courses' curricula and textbook will be utilized as basic technical documents to promote the national nuclear bilateral technical cooperation programs with Morocco, Egypt, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Ukraine, etc.

Solving the Policy Implementation Problem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gregg A. Garn

1999-08-01

Full Text Available When Republican legislators in Arizona failed to approve educational vouchers in four consecutive legislative sessions, a charter school program was approved as a compromise. The charter school policy was written during a special summer session and within three years, over 30,000 students were enrolled in 260 charter schools across the state. Republican policy makers, who failed to enact voucher legislation, proclaimed the charter school program to be an overwhelming success and protected it from amendments by Democrats and potential actions of bureaucrats that could have altered the policy intent. Research on the implementation of policy indicates that state and local implementors frequently undermine or alter legislative intentions. However, when Arizona policy makers approved the charter school policy, they overcame this persistent implementation phenomenon and, in fact, succeeded in preserving the legislative intentions in the working program. This policy study analyzes how they were able to achieve this elusive result. Key policy makers attended to four significant features of policy implementation in creating the charter school policy: communication, financial resources, implementor attitudes, and bureaucratic structure. Manipulating these key variables allowed policy makers to reduce implementation slippage.

Perceptions of Oncologists, Healthcare Policy Makers, Patients and the General Population on the Value of Pharmaceutical Treatments in Oncology.

Science.gov (United States)

Sacristán, José A; Lizan, Luís; Comellas, Marta; Garrido, Pilar; Avendaño, Cristina; Cruz-Hernández, Juan J; Espinosa, Javier; Dilla, Tatiana

2016-11-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the main factors explaining the relative weight of the different attributes that determine the value of oncologic treatments from the different perspectives of healthcare policy makers (HCPM), oncologists, patients and the general population in Spain. Structured interviews were conducted to assess: (1) the importance of the attributes on treatment choice when comparing a new cancer drug with a standard cancer treatment; (2) the importance of survival, quality of life (QoL), costs and innovation in cancer; and (3) the most worrying side effects related to cancer drugs. A total of 188 individuals participated in the study. For all participants, when choosing treatments, the best rated characteristics were greater efficacy, greater safety, treatment adaptation to patients' individual requirements and the rapid reincorporation of patients to their daily activities. There were important differences among participants in their opinion about survival, QoL and cost. In general, oncologists, patients, and the general population gave greater value to gains in QoL than healthcare policy makers. Compared to other participants healthcare policy makers gave greater importance to the economic impact related to oncology treatments. Gains in QoL, survival, safety, cost and innovation are perceived differently by different groups of stakeholders. It is recommended to consider the perspective of different stakeholders in the assessment of a new cancer drugs to obtain more informed decisions when deciding on the most appropriate treatment to use. Eli Lilly & Co, Madrid (Spain).

Pizza makers' contact dermatitis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lembo, Serena; Lembo, Claudio; Patruno, Cataldo; Balato, Anna; Balato, Nicola; Ayala, Fabio

2014-01-01

Contact eczema to foods, spices, and food additives can occur in occupational and nonoccupational settings in those who grow, handle, prepare, or cook food. Pizza is one of the most eaten foods in every continent, and pizza making is a common work in many countries. We aimed to evaluate the occurrence and the causes of contact dermatitis in pizza makers in Naples. We performed an observational study in 45 pizza makers: all the enrolled subjects had to answer a questionnaire designed to detect personal history of respiratory or cutaneous allergy, atopy; work characteristics and timing were also investigated. Every subject attended the dermatology clinic for a complete skin examination, and when needed, patients were patch tested using the Italian baseline series of haptens integrated with an arbitrary pizza makers series. Our results reported that 13.3% of the enrolled pizza makers (6/45) presented hand eczema, and that 8.9% (4/45) were affected by occupational allergic contact dermatitis. Diallyl disulfide and ammonium persulfate were the responsible substances. Performing patch tests in pizza makers and food handlers affected by hand contact dermatitis is useful. We propose a specific series of haptens for this wide working category.

Characteristics and use of urban health indicator tools by municipal built environment policy and decision-makers: a systematic review protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Pineo, Helen; Glonti, Ketevan; Rutter, Harry; Zimmermann, Nicole; Wilkinson, Paul; Davies, Michael

2017-01-13

There is wide agreement that there is a lack of attention to health in municipal environmental policy-making, such as urban planning and regeneration. Explanations for this include differing professional norms between health and urban environment professionals, system complexity and limited evidence for causality between attributes of the built environment and health outcomes. Data from urban health indicator (UHI) tools are potentially a valuable form of evidence for local government policy and decision-makers. Although many UHI tools have been specifically developed to inform policy, there is poor understanding of how they are used. This study aims to identify the nature and characteristics of UHI tools and their use by municipal built environment policy and decision-makers. Health and social sciences databases (ASSIA, Campbell Library, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Scopus, Social Policy and Practice and Web of Science Core Collection) will be searched for studies using UHI tools alongside hand-searching of key journals and citation searches of included studies. Advanced searches of practitioner websites and Google will also be used to find grey literature. Search results will be screened for UHI tools, and for studies which report on or evaluate the use of such tools. Data about UHI tools will be extracted to compile a census and taxonomy of existing tools based on their specific characteristics and purpose. In addition, qualitative and quantitative studies about the use of these tools will be appraised using quality appraisal tools produced by the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and synthesised in order to gain insight into the perceptions, value and use of UHI tools in the municipal built environment policy and decision-making process. This review is not registered with PROSPERO. This systematic review focuses specifically on UHI tools that assess the physical environment's impact on health (such as transport, housing, air quality and greenspace

Issues affecting therapist workforce and service delivery in the disability sector in rural and remote New South Wales, Australia: perspectives of policy-makers, managers and senior therapists.

Science.gov (United States)

Veitch, Craig; Dew, Angela; Bulkeley, Kim; Lincoln, Michelle; Bundy, Anita; Gallego, Gisselle; Griffiths, Scott

2012-01-01

The disability sector encompasses a broad range of conditions and needs, including children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, people with acquired disabilities, and irreversible physical injuries. Allied health professionals (therapists), in the disability sector, work within government and funded or charitable non-government agencies, schools, communities, and private practice. This article reports the findings of a qualitative study of therapist workforce and service delivery in the disability sector in rural and remote New South Wales (NSW), Australia. The aim was to investigate issues of importance to policy-makers, managers and therapists providing services to people with disabilities in rural and remote areas. The project gathered information via semi-structured interviews with individuals and small groups. Head office and regional office policy-makers, along with managers and senior therapists in western NSW were invited to participate. Participants included 12 policy-makers, 28 managers and 10 senior therapists from NSW government agencies and non-government organisations (NGOs) involved in providing services and support to people with disabilities in the region. Information was synthesised prior to using constant comparative analysis within and across data sets to identify issues. Five broad themes resonated across participants' roles, locations and service settings: (1) challenges to implementing policy in rural and remote NSW; (2) the impact of geographic distribution of workforce and clients; (3) workforce issues - recruitment, support, workloads, retention; (4) equity and access issues for rural clients; and (5) the important role of the NGO sector in rural service delivery and support. Although commitment to providing best practice services was universal, policy-related information transfer between organisations and employees was inconsistent. Participants raised some workforce and service delivery issues that are similar to

Climate Change 2013. The Physical Science Basis. Working Group I Contribution to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - Abstract for decision-makers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stocker, Thomas F.; Qin, Dahe; Plattner, Gian-Kasper; Tignor, Melinda M.B.; Allen, Simon K.; Boschung, Judith; Nauels, Alexander; Xia, Yu; Bex, Vincent; Midgley, Pauline M.; Alexander, Lisa V.; Allen, Simon K.; Bindoff, Nathaniel L.; Breon, Francois-Marie; Church, John A.; Cubasch, Ulrich; Emori, Seita; Forster, Piers; Friedlingstein, Pierre; Gillett, Nathan; Gregory, Jonathan M.; Hartmann, Dennis L.; Jansen, Eystein; Kirtman, Ben; Knutti, Reto; Kumar Kanikicharla, Krishna; Lemke, Peter; Marotzke, Jochem; Masson-Delmotte, Valerie; Meehl, Gerald A.; Mokhov, Igor I.; Piao, Shilong; Plattner, Gian-Kasper; Dahe, Qin; Ramaswamy, Venkatachalam; Randall, David; Rhein, Monika; Rojas, Maisa; Sabine, Christopher; Shindell, Drew; Stocker, Thomas F.; Talley, Lynne D.; Vaughan, David G.; Xie, Shang-Ping; Allen, Myles R.; Boucher, Olivier; Chambers, Don; Hesselbjerg Christensen, Jens; Ciais, Philippe; Clark, Peter U.; Collins, Matthew; Comiso, Josefino C.; Vasconcellos de Menezes, Viviane; Feely, Richard A.; Fichefet, Thierry; Fiore, Arlene M.; Flato, Gregory; Fuglestvedt, Jan; Hegerl, Gabriele; Hezel, Paul J.; Johnson, Gregory C.; Kaser, Georg; Kattsov, Vladimir; Kennedy, John; Klein Tank, Albert M.G.; Le Quere, Corinne; Myhre, Gunnar; Osborn, Timothy; Payne, Antony J.; Perlwitz, Judith; Power, Scott; Prather, Michael; Rintoul, Stephen R.; Rogelj, Joeri; Rusticucci, Matilde; Schulz, Michael; Sedlacek, Jan; Stott, Peter A.; Sutton, Rowan; Thorne, Peter W.; Wuebbles, Donald

2013-10-01

The Working Group I contribution to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) provides a comprehensive assessment of the physical science basis of climate change. It builds upon the Working Group I contribution to the IPCC's Fourth Assessment Report in 2007 and incorporates subsequent new findings from the Special Report on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation, as well as from research published in the extensive scientific and technical literature. The assessment considers new evidence of past, present and projected future climate change based on many independent scientific analyses from observations of the climate system, paleo-climate archives, theoretical studies of climate processes and simulations using climate models. During the process of scoping and approving the outline of its Fifth Assessment Report, the IPCC focussed on those aspects of the current understanding of the science of climate change that were judged to be most relevant to policy-makers. In this report, Working Group I has extended coverage of future climate change compared to earlier reports by assessing near-term projections and predictability as well as long-term projections and irreversibility in two separate chapters. Following the decisions made by the Panel during the scoping and outline approval, a set of new scenarios, the Representative Concentration Pathways, are used across all three Working Groups for projections of climate change over the 21. century. The coverage of regional information in the Working Group I report is expanded by specifically assessing climate phenomena such as monsoon systems and their relevance to future climate change in the regions. The Working Group I Report is an assessment, not a review or a text book of climate science, and is based on the published scientific and technical literature available up to 15 March 2013. Underlying all aspects of the report is a

The Role of Knowledge Brokers in International Ocean Policy

Science.gov (United States)

Mannix, H.

2013-12-01

The concept of the 'boundary' between science and policy has been used as a tool to separate and protect the credibility of both parties - the scientist and the policy maker. While this separation is important, it also results in frustration by both sides, a reduction in efficiency and ultimately establishes policy that has the potential to be more effective. Many now agree that the process of knowledge generation and transmission to decision makers, and eventually into effective policy, should not be a one-way, linear push of information, but a multi-party dialogue in which decision makers, scientists and intermediaries work together to increase the effectiveness of the scientific information for the policy process. These intermediaries, or knowledge brokers, are described as persons or organizations that actively facilitate the creation, sharing, and use of knowledge. This work discusses the reasons for the boundary between science and policy and the inherent challenges in bridging the boundary. It examines the role and activities of knowledge brokers and illuminates the process by which scientific and technical knowledge is translated from knowledge generators (i.e. scientists) to knowledge users (i.e. policy makers) in international environmental governance. The study then considers the role of knowledge brokers in practice, through a case study of the ongoing effort to establish marine protected areas in the high seas. Specifically, this study examines who the knowledge brokers are working on this topic, their activities, and what lessons their experiences hold for the effective translation of scientific information to policy makers in other international issues. The study concludes that 1) knowledge brokers and boundary organizations are an essential part of the effective translation of scientific knowledge to policy makers in international environmental governance and 2) both knowledge generators and knowledge users would benefit by recognizing the role of

Policy Actors: Doing Policy Work in Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Ball, Stephen J.; Maguire, Meg; Braun, Annette; Hoskins, Kate

2011-01-01

This paper considers the "policy work" of teacher actors in schools. It focuses on the "problem of meaning" and offers a typology of roles and positions through which teachers engage with policy and with which policies get "enacted". It argues that "policy work" is made up of a set of complex and…

Budget-makers and health care systems.

Science.gov (United States)

White, Joseph

2013-10-01

Health programs are shaped by the decisions made in budget processes, so how budget-makers view health programs is an important part of making health policy. Budgeting in any country involves its own policy community, with key players including budgeting professionals and political authorities. This article reviews the typical pressures on and attitudes of these actors when they address health policy choices. The worldview of budget professionals includes attitudes that are congenial to particular policy perspectives, such as the desire to select packages of programs that maximize population health. The pressures on political authorities, however, are very different: most importantly, public demand for health care services is stronger than for virtually any other government activity. The norms and procedures of budgeting also tend to discourage adoption of some of the more enthusiastically promoted health policy reforms. Therefore talk about rationalizing systems is not matched by action; and action is better explained by the need to minimize blame. The budget-maker's perspective provides insight about key controversies in healthcare policy such as decentralization, competition, health service systems as opposed to health insurance systems, and dedicated vs. general revenue finance. It also explains the frequency of various "gaming" behaviors. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Energy policy and externalities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bertel, E.; Fraser, P.

2002-01-01

External costs of energy have been assessed in a number of authoritative and reliable studies based upon widely accepted methodologies such as life cycle analysis (LCA). However, although those costs are recognised by most stakeholders and decision makers, results from analytical work on externalities and LCA studies are seldom used in policy making. The International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) convened a joint workshop in November 2001 to offer experts and policy makers an opportunity to present state-of-the-art results from analytical work on externalities and debate issues related to the relevance of external costs and LCA for policy-making purposes. The findings from the workshop highlight the need for further work in the field and the potential rote of international organisations like the IEA and the NEA in this context. (authors)

'A preferred consultant and partner to the Royal Government, NGOs, and the community': British American Tobacco's access to policy-makers in Cambodia.

Science.gov (United States)

MacKenzie, Ross; Collin, Jeff

2017-04-01

British American Tobacco Cambodia (BATC) has dominated the country's tobacco market since its launch in 1996. Aggressive marketing in a weak regulatory environment and strategies to influence tobacco control policy have contributed to an emerging tobacco-related public health crisis. Analysis of internal tobacco industry documents, issues of BATC's in-house newsletter, civil society reports and media demonstrate that BATC officials have successfully sought to align the company with Cambodia's increasingly controversial political and business leadership that is centred around the Cambodian People's Party with the aim of gaining access to policy-makers and influencing the policy process. Connections to the political elite have resulted in official recognition of the company's ostensible contribution to Cambodia's economic and social development and, more significantly, provided BATC with opportunities to petition policy-makers and to dilute tobacco control regulation. Corporate promotion of its contribution to Cambodia's economic and social development is at odds with its determined efforts to thwart public health regulation and Cambodia's compliance with the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

Working Parents' Use of Work-Life Policies

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L. den Dulk (Laura); A. Peper (Bram)

2007-01-01

textabstractIn this paper, we examine working parent’s use of work-life policies in three financial sector organizations in the Netherlands. We analyse the barriers and support regarding the actual take up of work-life policies by working parents and to what extent this in turn influence their

Vocations: The Link between Post-Compulsory Education and the Labour Market. What the Research Says For... Government & Policy-Makers

Science.gov (United States)

Wheelahan, Leesa; Buchanan, John; Yu, Serena

2015-01-01

This summary brings together the relevant key findings for government and policy-makers from the research program "Vocations: The Link between Post-Compulsory Education and the Labour Market." The program was comprised of three different strands: (1) pathways from VET in Schools, (2) pathways within and between vocational education and…

Public health: disconnections between policy, practice and research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kok Gerjo

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Public health includes policy, practice and research but to sufficiently connect academic research, practice and public health policy appears to be difficult. Collaboration between policy, practice and research is imperative to obtaining more solid evidence in public health. However, the three domains do not easily work together because they emanate from three more or less independent 'niches'. Work cycles of each niche have the same successive steps: problem recognition, approach formulation, implementation, and evaluation, but are differently worked out. So far, the research has focused on agenda-setting which belongs to the first step, as expressed by Kingdon, and on the use of academic knowledge in policy makers' decision-making processes which belongs to the fourth step, as elaborated by Weiss. In addition, there are more steps in the policy-making process where exchange is needed. Method A qualitative descriptive research was conducted by literature search. We analyzed the four steps of the policy, practice and research work cycles. Next, we interpreted the main conflicting aspects as disconnections for each step. Results There are some conspicuous differences that strengthen the niche character of each domain and hamper integration and collaboration. Disconnections ranged from formulating priorities in problem statements to power roles, appraisal of evidence, work attitudes, work pace, transparency of goals, evaluation and continuation strategies and public accountability. Creating awareness of these disconnections may result in more compatibility between researchers, policy makers and practitioners. Conclusion We provide an analysis that can be used by public health services-related researchers, practitioners and policy makers to be aware of the risk for disconnections. A synthesis of the social, practical and scientific relevance of public health problems should be the starting point for a dialogue that seeks to

Public perception on forestry issues in the Region of Valencia (Eastern Spain): diverging from policy makers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fabra-Crespo, M.; Mola-Yudego, B.; Gritten, D.; Rojas-Briales, E.

2012-11-01

Are the policies designed by decision-makers differing from society's wishes and preferences. The present paper analyzes the divergences between forest policy and public opinion in the Region of Valencia (Comunidad Valenciana) in Eastern Spain. The data is based on an extensive telephone survey of the general public on their perception of forestry issues. The issues studied include attitudes regarding forest fires, silvicultural treatments, the externalise produced by forest owners, and the state forest services role related to these issues. In total, the answers of 823 respondents were analyzed using classification trees. The results of the analysis showed a large divergence between the desires, preferences and priorities of society, on the one hand, and the policies implemented by the regional government, on the other. The study concludes that communication strategies concerning sustainable forest management need to be further developed by the responsible authorities, with the input of the research community. (Author) 53 refs.

Improving policy implementation through collaborative policymaking

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob

2017-01-01

We offer a fresh perspective on implementation problems by suggesting that collaborative policy design and adaptive policy implementation will help public policy makers to improve policy execution. Classical implementation theories have focused too narrowly on administrative stumbling blocks and ...... collaborative policymaking and adaptive policy implementation might work in theory and practice......We offer a fresh perspective on implementation problems by suggesting that collaborative policy design and adaptive policy implementation will help public policy makers to improve policy execution. Classical implementation theories have focused too narrowly on administrative stumbling blocks...... and New Public Management has reinforced the split between politics and administration. Attempts to improve policy implementation must begin by looking at policy design, which can be improved through collaboration and deliberation between upstream and downstream actors. We provide a broad overview of how...

Linking Working Capital Policy Towards Financial Performance of Small Medium Enterprise (SME in Malaysia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Binti Mohamad Nor Edi Azhar

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Despite the fact that working capital management (WCM is vital to businesses of any size that operated in developed and emerging countries, WCM is of particular importance to the small business firms operating in emerging markets. The importance of WCM to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs stems from the limited financial resources available and heavily reliance of SMEs on WCM as a main source of finance. This study aims to provide empirical evidence on the effects of working capital investment policy on firm’s financial performance for a sample of 103 small and medium-sized firms listed with the SME Corporation of Malaysia. Data for the period from 2008 to 2013 are analysed to examine if investment policy improves firms’ return on total asset. By using correlation and pooled ordinary least square regression, the result provides a significant relationship between the level of aggressiveness of investment policy and SME’s financial performance. The findings of this study not only contribute to the scant WCM literature in Malaysia but throw light on the importance of efficient WCM to the policy makers and regulators in motivating and encouraging relevant parties to pay more attention on working capital through improving investors’ awareness and improving transparency.

Working Parents' use of work-life policies

OpenAIRE

Dulk, Laura den; Peper, Bram

2007-01-01

In this paper, we examine working parent’s use of work-life policies in three financial sector organizations in the Netherlands. We analyse the barriers and support regarding the actual take up of work-life policies by working parents and to what extent this in turn influence their experienced work-life balance. We collected survey data in three Dutch financial sector organizations: one public sector organization and two private firms. All three differ considerably regarding their organizatio...

"We noticed that suddenly the country has become full of MRI". Policy makers' views on diffusion and use of health technologies in Iran

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tishelman Carol

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Objective Uncontrolled proliferation of health technologies (HT is one contributor to the increasing pressure on health systems to adopt new technologies. With limited resources, policy-makers encounter difficulties in fulfilling their responsibility to meet the healthcare needs of the population. The aim of this study is to explore how policy-makers' reason about the diffusion and utilization of health technologies in Iran using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI and interferon beta as tracers. Method This qualitative exploration complements quantitative data generated in a research project investigating the diffusion and utilization of MRI and interferon beta in Iran. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 informants in different positions and levels of authority in the Ministry of Health (MOH, University of Medical Sciences, Health Insurance Organizations, and Parliament. The data was analysed using the framework approach. Findings Although policy-makers appeared to be positive to health technology assessment (HTA, the processes of policy-making described by the interviewees did not seem to be based on a full understanding of this (discipline. Several obstacles to applying knowledge about HT and HTA were described. The current official plan for MRI adoption and diffusion in the country was said not to be followed, and no such plan was described for interferon beta. Instead, market forces such as advertising, and physician and consumer demand, appear to have strong influence on HT diffusion and use. Dual practice may have increased the induced demand and also reduced the supervision of the private sector by the MOH. Conclusion Management instability and lack of coordination in the MOH were found to be important obstacles to accumulation of knowledge and experience which, in turn, could have led to suboptimal managerial and policy-making processes. Furthermore marketing should be controlled in order to avoid

The unsustainable Makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adam Arvidsson

2010-03-01

Full Text Available The Makers is the latest novel of the American science fiction writer, blogger and Silicon Valley intellectual Cory Doctorow. Set in the 2010s, the novel describes the possible impact of the present trend towards the migration of modes of production and organization that have emerged online into the sphere of material production. Called New Work, this movement is indebted to a new maker culture that attracts people into a kind of neo-artisan, high tech mode of production. The question is: can a corporate-funded New Work movement be sustainable? Doctorow seems to suggest that a capitalist economy of abundance is unsustainable because it tends to restrict the reach of its value flows to a privileged managerial elite.

EDUCATION MANAGEMENT DECISION-MAKERS IN EUROPEAN PRE – UNIVERSITY EDUCATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

DUMITRAȘCU DANUȚ DUMITRU

2012-12-01

distributed to managers of educational institutions respectively partners with the school Romanian Technical College Matthias Hd. Following the research conducted, the results have shown that due to political differences between countries in European schools are not governed by the same principles regarding the type of autonomy and its extension. In some countries, schools have been granted considerable freedoms, such as in Belgium and the Netherlands. At the other extreme, Spain and France, the transfer of responsibilities was limited. In order to ensure that the information in this study is an accurate representation, questionnaires were distributed to several schools in the countries surveyed. Processed data are related to school year 2010-2011. The data obtained from research can help in better understanding partly the diverse nature of school autonomy policies and models in their takeover by the makers of Romanian school units. The implications of work on management school education are to link the level of autonomy granted and the intensity of monitoring procedures put on the bodies at the school and the staff involved. This study examines the correlation that exists between the degree of autonomy delegated power and the responsibility of school measures that were implemented. The added value of the work lies in the fact that the study focused on several sides of the school management process from the authorities in charge of appointing school managers to autonomy in terms of managerial strategy. Keywords:makers,school autonomy,management body,complete autonomy,school management Cod JEL.:I

Perspectives of policy and political decision makers on access to formal dementia care: expert interviews in eight European countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Broda, Anja; Bieber, Anja; Meyer, Gabriele; Hopper, Louise; Joyce, Rachael; Irving, Kate; Zanetti, Orazio; Portolani, Elisa; Kerpershoek, Liselot; Verhey, Frans; Vugt, Marjolein de; Wolfs, Claire; Eriksen, Siren; Røsvik, Janne; Marques, Maria J; Gonçalves-Pereira, Manuel; Sjölund, Britt-Marie; Woods, Bob; Jelley, Hannah; Orrell, Martin; Stephan, Astrid

2017-08-03

As part of the ActifCare (ACcess to Timely Formal Care) project, we conducted expert interviews in eight European countries with policy and political decision makers, or representatives of relevant institutions, to determine their perspectives on access to formal care for people with dementia and their carers. Each ActifCare country (Germany, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, United Kingdom) conducted semi-structured interviews with 4-7 experts (total N = 38). The interview guide addressed the topics "Complexity and Continuity of Care", "Formal Services", and "Public Awareness". Country-specific analysis of interview transcripts used an inductive qualitative content analysis. Cross-national synthesis focused on similarities in themes across the ActifCare countries. The analysis revealed ten common themes and two additional sub-themes across countries. Among others, the experts highlighted the need for a coordinating role and the necessity of information to address issues of complexity and continuity of care, demanded person-centred, tailored, and multidisciplinary formal services, and referred to education, mass media and campaigns as means to raise public awareness. Policy and political decision makers appear well acquainted with current discussions among both researchers and practitioners of possible approaches to improve access to dementia care. Experts described pragmatic, realistic strategies to influence dementia care. Suggested innovations concerned how to achieve improved dementia care, rather than transforming the nature of the services provided. Knowledge gained in these expert interviews may be useful to national decision makers when they consider reshaping the organisation of dementia care, and may thus help to develop best-practice strategies and recommendations.

Incidence and host determinants of work-related rhinoconjunctivitis in apprentice pastry-makers.

Science.gov (United States)

Gautrin, D; Ghezzo, H; Infante-Rivard, C; Malo, J-L

2002-10-01

The authors recently assessed the incidence and determinants of immunologic sensitization to flour in apprentice pastry-makers. The aim of this work was to determine the incidence of work-related rhinoconjunctivitis (RC) symptoms and their determinants. For this 188/230 entrants (81.7%) were evaluated before starting exposure to flour, and again 10.8 and 16.8 months after. Questionnaires and skin prick testing to common and work-related allergens were administered at each visit. Bronchial responsiveness to methacholine was assessed at baseline in all subjects and in a subgroup at follow-up. Thirty subjects (16.1%) reported new work-related RC symptoms (13.1 per 100 person-years); in three subjects (1.6%), these were accompanied by incident skin prick test reactivity to flour-derived allergens. Skin prick test reactivity to grass pollens (OR = 3.0, 95% CI, 1.3-6.7) and to pets (OR = 2.5, 95% CI, 1.1-5.9), persistent rhinitis (OR = 3.1, 95% CI, 1.1-8.4), seasonal RC (OR = 2.5, 95% CI, 1.1-5.5), RC on contact with pets (OR = 2.3, 95% CI, 1.03-5.0) and skin prick test reactivity to wheat flour (OR = 10.5, 95% CI, 2.3-46.8), assessed at baseline, were significantly associated with the incidence of work-related RC symptoms. Multivariate logistic regression analysis yielded significant OR of skin prick test reactivity to wheat flour at baseline (OR = 7.1, 95% CI, 1.7-35.1) and persistent rhinitis (OR = 3.9, 95% CI, 1.01-9.6) for the incidence of work-related RC symptoms. Increased bronchial hyperresponsiveness at follow-up was more frequent, although not significantly, in subjects positive to skin prick test to flour on entry and reporting new work-related symptoms (3/5), than in other subjects (4/17). The incidence of work-related RC symptoms among apprentice pastry-makers was high (16.1% 30/186), while a minority (3/30) also developed skin prick test reactivity to flour. Skin prick test reactivity to wheat flour and persistent allergic rhinitis on starting exposure to

CURRICULUM POLICY MAKERS PERCEPTIONS OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT PROCESS BASED ON SOLO TAXONOMY IN SECONDARY LEVEL SCHOOLS IN SRI LANKA

OpenAIRE

P. H. Kusumawathie; Norhisham Mohamad; Ferdous Azam

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the conceptual awareness of curriculum policy makers on curriculum development process based on SOLO Taxonomy curriculum approach in secondary level schools. Further, the study explored the relationship between the curriculum development inputs and the SOLO based curriculum development process. The curriculum development inputs are teacher effectiveness, school community, school environment and technology availability. Method: Data was collecte...

Science Under Attack Public Policy, Science Education, and the Emperor's New Clothes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krauss, Lawrence

2005-01-01

The popular debate about the teaching of intelligent design in public schools is but one quandary for scientists and policy makers. Given recent developments which have worked to breed a general distrust of science, it is evident that researchers and politicians alike should be wary of using popular opinion as a guide for policy and pedagogy when it comes to science in public education. Dr. Krauss will qualify this complex issue and will address how educators, policy makers and scientists can work effectively to prevent public misconceptions of science.

National health policy-makers' views on the clarity and utility of Countdown to 2015 country profiles and reports: findings from two exploratory qualitative studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter, Benjamin M; Requejo, Jennifer H; Pope, Ian; Daelmans, Bernadette; Murray, Susan F

2014-08-15

The use of sets of indicators to assess progress has become commonplace in the global health arena. Exploratory research has suggested that indicators used for global monitoring purposes can play a role in national policy-making, however, the mechanisms through which this occurs are poorly understood. This article reports findings from two qualitative studies that aimed to explore national policy-makers' interpretation and use of indicators from country profiles and reports developed by Countdown to 2015. An initial study aimed at exploring comprehension of Countdown data was conducted at the 2010 joint Women Deliver/Countdown conference. A second study was conducted at the 64th World Health Assembly in 2011, specifically targeting national policy-makers. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 29 and 22 participants, respectively, at each event. Participants were asked about their understanding of specific graphs and indicators used or proposed for use in Countdown country profiles, and their perception of how such data can inform national policy-making. Responses were categorised using a framework analysis. Respondents in both studies acknowledged the importance of the profiles for tracking progress on key health indicators in and across countries, noting that they could be used to highlight changes in coverage, possible directions for future policy, for lobbying finance ministers to increase resources for health, and to stimulate competition between neighbouring or socioeconomically similar countries. However, some respondents raised questions about discrepancies between global estimates and data produced by national governments, and some struggled to understand the profile graphs shown in the absence of explanatory text. Some respondents reported that use of Countdown data in national policy-making was constrained by limited awareness of the initiative, insufficient detail in the country profiles to inform policy, and the absence of indicators felt to

Special report on renewable energy sources and climate change mitigation, (SRREN). Summary for policy makers; FNs klimapanel: Spesialrapport om fornybar energi, sammendrag for beslutningstakere

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2011-06-15

In May 2011 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a report on six renewable energy sources and their role in climate change mitigation. This is a Norwegian, unofficial translation of the Summary for Policy makers. (Author)

Politics, policies and processes: a multidisciplinary and multimethods research programme on policies on the social determinants of health inequity in Australia.

Science.gov (United States)

Baum, Fran; Friel, Sharon

2017-12-21

The development and implementation of multisectoral policy to improve health and reduce health inequities has been slow and uneven. Evidence is largely focused on the facts of health inequities rather than understanding the political and policy processes. This 5-year funded programme of research investigates how these processes could function more effectively to improve equitable population health. The programme of work is organised in four work packages using four themes (macroeconomics and infrastructure, land use and urban environments, health systems and racism) related to the structural drivers shaping the distribution of power, money and resources and daily living conditions. Policy case studies will use publicly available documents (policy documents, published evaluations, media coverage) and interviews with informants (policy-makers, former politicians, civil society, private sector) (~25 per case). NVIVO software will be used to analyse the documents to see how 'social and health equity' is included and conceptualised. The interview data will include qualitative descriptive and theory-driven critical discourse analysis. Our quantitative methodological work assessing the impact of public policy on health equity is experimental that is in its infancy but promises to provide the type of evidence demanded by policy-makers. Our programme is recognising the inherently political nature of the uptake, formulation and implementation of policy. The early stages of our work indicate its feasibility. Our work is aided by a Critical Policy Reference Group. Multiple ethics approvals have been obtained with the foundation approval from the Social and Behavioural Ethics Committee, Flinders University (Project No: 6786).The theoretical, methodological and policy engagement processes established will provide improved evidence for policy-makers who wish to reduce health inequities and inform a new generation of policy savvy knowledge on social determinants. © Article author

Lessons from Oil Pollution Research: Consensus, Controversy, and Education of Policy Makers and the Public.

Science.gov (United States)

Farrington, J. W.

2007-12-01

Controversies concerning scientific research findings, consensus of a majority of expert scientists, and attempts by vested interest groups to offer alternative interpretations from the consensus with the goal of influencing policy makers" and the public's understanding is not a new phenomenon with respect to complex environmental issues. For example, controversies about new scientific research findings from studies of oil spills and other aspects of petroleum and petroleum refined product inputs, fates and effects in the marine environment intensified in the late 1960s to early 1970s and continues today as evidenced by ongoing debates surrounding the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. This paper provides an overview of the interactions between authentic new scientific findings with respect to oil pollution in the marine environment in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the consensus gained in the ensuing years by continued research, and through various science - policy processes, and a spectrum of concomitant public education efforts. Lessons learned from this ongoing process may be instructive to current debates in other arenas of environmental science.

Educational Goods and Values: A Framework for Decision Makers

Science.gov (United States)

Brighouse, Harry; Ladd, Helen F.; Loeb, Susanna; Swift, Adam

2016-01-01

This article articulates a framework suitable for use when making decisions about education policy. Decision makers should establish what the feasible options are and evaluate them in terms of their contribution to the development, and distribution, of educational goods in children, balanced against the negative effect of policies on important…

Global Assessment of Methane Gas Hydrates: Outreach for the public and policy makers

Science.gov (United States)

Beaudoin, Yannick

2010-05-01

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), via its official collaborating center in Norway, GRID-Arendal, is in the process of implementing a Global Assessment of Methane Gas Hydrates. Global reservoirs of methane gas have long been the topic of scientific discussion both in the realm of environmental issues such as natural forces of climate change and as a potential energy resource for economic development. Of particular interest are the volumes of methane locked away in frozen molecules known as clathrates or hydrates. Our rapidly evolving scientific knowledge and technological development related to methane hydrates makes these formations increasingly prospective to economic development. In addition, global demand for energy continues, and will continue to outpace supply for the foreseeable future, resulting in pressure to expand development activities, with associated concerns about environmental and social impacts. Understanding the intricate links between methane hydrates and 1) natural and anthropogenic contributions to climate change, 2) their role in the carbon cycle (e.g. ocean chemistry) and 3) the environmental and socio-economic impacts of extraction, are key factors in making good decisions that promote sustainable development. As policy makers, environmental organizations and private sector interests seek to forward their respective agendas which tend to be weighted towards applied research, there is a clear and imminent need for a an authoritative source of accessible information on various topics related to methane gas hydrates. The 2008 United Nations Environment Programme Annual Report highlighted methane from the Arctic as an emerging challenge with respect to climate change and other environmental issues. Building upon this foundation, UNEP/GRID-Arendal, in conjunction with experts from national hydrates research groups from Canada, the US, Japan, Germany, Norway, India and Korea, aims to provide a multi-thematic overview of the key

Development of an interactive interface to raise awareness of public, policy makers, and practitioners about natural hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Gordova, Yulia; Gordov, Evgeny; Okladnikov, Igor; Titov, Alexander

2017-04-01

used for undergraduate and graduate students training. In addition, the system capabilities allow creating information resources to raise public awareness about climate change, its causes and consequences, which is a necessary step for the subsequent adaptation to these changes. "Climate" allows climatologists, specialists in related fields, decision-makers, stakeholders and the public use a variety of geographically distributed spatially-referenced data, resources and processing services via a web-browser. Currently, an interactive System User Manual for decision-makers is developed. It contains not only the information needed to use the system and perform practical tasks, but also the basic concepts explained in detail. The knowledge necessary for understanding the causes and possible consequences of the processes is given. The results of implementation of practical tasks are available not only in the form of color surface maps, but also on the Internet and in the form of layers for most GIS. Thus these layers can be used in usual desktop GIS which is a common software for most of decision-makers. Thus, this manual helps to prepare qualified users, which in the future will be able to determine the policy of the region to adapt to climate change impacts and hazards. The work is supported by Russian Science Foundation grant № 16-19-10257.

Science Under Attack! Public Policy, Science Education, and the Emperor's New Clothes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Krauss, Lawrence (Case Western Reserve University)

2005-12-05

The popular debate about the teaching of intelligent design in public schools is but one quandary for scientists and policy makers. Given recent developments which have worked to breed a general distrust of science, it is evident that researchers and politicians alike should be wary of using popular opinion as a guide for policy and pedagogy when it comes to science in public education. Dr. Krauss will qualify this complex issue and will address how educators, policy makers and scientists can work effectively to prevent public misconceptions of science.

Work-life policies for Canadian medical faculty.

Science.gov (United States)

Gropper, Aaron; Gartke, Kathleen; MacLaren, Monika

2010-09-01

This study aims to catalogue and examine the following work-life flexibility policies at all 17 Canadian medical schools: maternity leave, paternity leave, adoption leave, extension of the probationary period for family responsibilities, part-time faculty appointments, job sharing, and child care. The seven work-life policies of Canadian medical schools were researched using a consistent and systematic method. This method involved an initial web search for policy information, followed by e-mail and telephone contact. The flexibility of the policies was scored 0 (least flexible) to 3 (most flexible). The majority of policies were easily accessible online. Work-life policies were scored out of 3, and average policy scores ranged from 0.47 for job sharing to 2.47 for part-time/work reduction. Across schools, total scores ranged from 7 to 16 out of 21. Variation in scores was noted for parenting leave and child care, whereas minimal variation was noted for other policies. Canadian medical schools are committed to helping medical faculty achieve work-life balance, but improvements can be made in the policies offered at all schools. Improving the quality of work flexibility policies will enhance working conditions and job satisfaction for faculty. This could potentially reduce Canada's loss of talented young academicians.

Health System Decision Makers' Feedback on Summaries and Tools Supporting the Use of Systematic Reviews: A Qualitative Study

Science.gov (United States)

Ellen, Moriah E.; Lavis, John N.; Wilson, Michael G.; Grimshaw, Jeremy; Haynes, R. Brian; Ouimet, Mathieu; Raina, Parminder; Gruen, Russell

2014-01-01

Health system managers and policy makers need timely access to high quality, policy-relevant systematic reviews. Our objectives were to obtain managers' and policy makers' feedback about user-friendly summaries of systematic reviews and about tools related to supporting or assessing their use. Our interviews identified that participants prefer key…

Research for health policy

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Bell, Erica

2010-01-01

... Explicit, implicit, and pragmatic dimensions of policy-maker's needs and context 31 Constraints on policy-makers 32 Deciphering trade-offs 33 The policy-problem: deciphering uncertainty and the problem of innovation 34 A tool for deciphering policy problems 35 The different components of the policy problem 37 Recommended reading 38 Case studies in...

Spatial Knowledge Infrastructures - Creating Value for Policy Makers and Benefits the Community

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, L. M.

2016-12-01

The spatial data infrastructure is arguably one of the most significant advancements in the spatial sector. It's been a game changer for governments, providing for the coordination and sharing of spatial data across organisations and the provision of accessible information to the broader community of users. Today however, end-users such as policy-makers require far more from these spatial data infrastructures. They want more than just data; they want the knowledge that can be extracted from data and they don't want to have to download, manipulate and process data in order to get the knowledge they seek. It's time for the spatial sector to reduce its focus on data in spatial data infrastructures and take a more proactive step in emphasising and delivering the knowledge value. Nowadays, decision-makers want to be able to query at will the data to meet their immediate need for knowledge. This is a new value proposal for the decision-making consumer and will require a shift in thinking. This paper presents a model for a Spatial Knowledge Infrastructure and underpinning methods that will realise a new real-time approach to delivering knowledge. The methods embrace the new capabilities afforded through the sematic web, domain and process ontologies and natural query language processing. Semantic Web technologies today have the potential to transform the spatial industry into more than just a distribution channel for data. The Semantic Web RDF (Resource Description Framework) enables meaning to be drawn from data automatically. While pushing data out to end-users will remain a central role for data producers, the power of the semantic web is that end-users have the ability to marshal a broad range of spatial resources via a query to extract knowledge from available data. This can be done without actually having to configure systems specifically for the end-user. All data producers need do is make data accessible in RDF and the spatial analytics does the rest.

Flood Risk Management Policy in Scotland: Research Questions Past, Present and Future

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkinson, Mark; Hastings, Emily; MacDonald, Jannette

2016-04-01

Scotland's Centre of Expertise for Waters (CREW) delivers accessible research and expert opinion to support the Scottish Government and its delivery partners in the development and implementation of water policy. It was established in 2011 by the Scottish Government (Rural and Environmental Science and Analytical Services) in recognition of a gap in the provision of short term advice and research to policy (development and implementation). Key policy areas include the Water Framework Directive, Floods Directive, Drinking Water Directive, Habitats Directive and Scotland's Hydro Nation Strategy. CREW is unique in its demand-driven and free service for policy makers and practitioners, managing the engagement between scientists, policy makers and practitioners to work effectively across this interface. The users of CREW are the Scottish Government, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Scottish Natural Heritage and Scottish Water. CREW has funded around 100 projects relating to water policy since its inception in 2011. Of these, a significant number relate to flood risk management policy. Based on a review of work to date, this poster will give an overview of these projects and a forward look at the challenges that remain. From learning from community led flood risk management to surface water flood forecasting for urban communities, links will be made between sustainable and traditional flood risk management while considering the perceptions of stakeholders to flood risk management. How can we deliver fully integrated flood risk management options? How policy makers, scientists and land managers can better work together will also be explored.

Health seeking behaviour and health service utilization in Pakistan: challenging the policy makers.

Science.gov (United States)

Shaikh, Babar T; Hatcher, Juanita

2005-03-01

There is a growing literature on health seeking behaviours and the determinants of health services utilization especially in the context of developing countries. However, very few focused studies have been seen in Pakistan in this regard. This paper presents an extensive literature review of the situation in developing countries and relates the similar factors responsible for shaping up of a health seeking behaviour and health service utilization in Pakistan. The factors determining the health behaviours may be seen in various contexts: physical, socio-economic, cultural and political. Therefore, the utilization of a health care system, public or private, formal or non-formal, may depend on socio-demographic factors, social structures, level of education, cultural beliefs and practices, gender discrimination, status of women, economic and political systems environmental conditions, and the disease pattern and health care system itself. Policy makers need to understand the drivers of health seeking behaviour of the population in an increasingly pluralistic health care system. Also a more concerted effort is required for designing behavioural health promotion campaigns through inter-sectoral collaboration focusing more on disadvantaged segments of the population.

Work-life balance and family friendly policies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Janine Chapman

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This paper presents Australian and international research on work-life interaction. We review the work-life policies and practices that are likely to have the greatest impact on work-life outcomes, specifically reducing the negative impact of work on other life domains (work-life interference, and enhancing the positive effect (work-life facilitation. The review addresses four policy areas common in work-life studies of the general workforce: employee-centered flexible work practices; working hours (e.g. access to part-time work; paid and unpaid leave (e.g. parental leave; and access to childcare. It then considers the work-life literature related to two specific industries – the Australian public sector, and health and social services – to identify work-life issues and practices specific to each industry. We then conclude with a general discussion of challenges associated with the policy-practice gap, focusing particularly on work intensification and the role of organisational culture as the catalyst for policy uptake and effectiveness.

TableMaker: An Excel Macro for Publication-Quality Tables

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marek Hlavac

2016-04-01

Full Text Available This article introduces TableMaker, a Microsoft Excel macro that produces publicationquality tables and includes them as new sheets in workbooks. The macro provides an intuitive graphical user interface that allows for the full customization of all table features. It also allows users to save and load table templates, and thus allows layouts to be both reproducible and transferable. It is distributed in a single computer file. As such, the macro is easy to share, as well as accessible to even beginning and casual users of Excel. Since it allows for the quick creation of reproducible and fully customizable tables, TableMaker can be very useful to academics, policy-makers and businesses by making the presentation and formatting of results faster and more efficient.

Adolescent pregnancies and girls' sexual and reproductive rights in the amazon basin of Ecuador: an analysis of providers' and policy makers' discourses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sebastian Miguel

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Adolescent pregnancies are a common phenomenon that can have both positive and negative consequences. The rights framework allows us to explore adolescent pregnancies not just as isolated events, but in relation to girls' sexual and reproductive freedom and their entitlement to a system of health protection that includes both health services and the so called social determinants of health. The aim of this study was to explore policy makers' and service providers' discourses concerning adolescent pregnancies, and discuss the consequences that those discourses have for the exercise of girls' sexual and reproductive rights' in the province of Orellana, located in the amazon basin of Ecuador. Methods We held six focus-group discussions and eleven in-depth interviews with 41 Orellana's service providers and policy makers. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using discourse analysis, specifically looking for interpretative repertoires. Results Four interpretative repertoires emerged from the interviews. The first repertoire identified was "sex is not for fun" and reflected a moralistic construction of girls' sexual and reproductive health that emphasized abstinence, and sent contradictory messages regarding contraceptive use. The second repertoire -"gendered sexuality and parenthood"-constructed women as sexually uninterested and responsible mothers, while men were constructed as sexually driven and unreliable. The third repertoire was "professionalizing adolescent pregnancies" and lead to patronizing attitudes towards adolescents and disregard of the importance of non-medical expertise. The final repertoire -"idealization of traditional family"-constructed family as the proper space for the raising of adolescents while at the same time acknowledging that sexual abuse and violence within families was common. Conclusions Providers' and policy makers' repertoires determined the areas that the array of sexual and reproductive

Attitudes of policy makers in Hawaii towards public health and related issues before and after an economic recession in the United States

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jay E Maddock

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Legislation and regulation at the state and local level can often have a greater impact on the public’s health than individual-based approaches. Elected and appointed officials have an essential role in protecting and improving public health. Despite this important role, little systematic research has been done to assess the relative importance of public health issues compared to other policy issues in times of economic hardship. This study assessed attitudes of elected and appointed decision makers in Hawaii in 2007 and 2013 to determine if priorities differed before and after the economic recession. Methods: Elected and appointed state and county officials were mailed surveys at both time points. Respondents rated the importance of 23 specified problems, of which 9 asked about specific public health issues. Results: The survey was completed by 126 (70.4% respondents in 2007 and 117(60.9% in 2013. Among the public health issues, five saw significant mean decreases. These variables included: climate change, pedestrian safety, government response to natural disasters, access to healthcare, and pandemic influenza. Obesity was the only public health issue to increase in importance across the two time points. In terms of relative ranking across the time points, only drug abuse and obesity were among the top ten priorities. Lack of public health training, pandemic influenza, and government response to natural disasters were among the bottom five priorities. Conclusions: After the economic recession, many public health issues have a lower priority among Hawaii’s policy makers than before the downturn. Additional education and advocacy is needed to keep public health issues on the minds of decision makers during tough economic times.

Orchestration in work environment policy programs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hasle, Peter; Limborg, Hans Jørgen; Grøn, Sisse

2017-01-01

In spite of many years’ efforts, it is difficult to prove substantial improvements of the work environment and policymakers are continuously searching for new efficient strategies. This paper examines the concept of orchestration of work environment programs, based on an empirical analysis...... of recent Danish policy. Orchestration is a strategy where different stakeholders and activities are integrated into a unified program aimed at a specific target group. The analysis includes three policy cases, supplemented with two company case studies. The research shows a move toward a more governance...... type of regulation, which is not only emerging in network but also includes more explicitly orchestrated policy programs. The stakeholders participate in the network with different interests and the orchestration of work environment policies is therefore built on a platform of regulation...

Improving access to skilled attendance at delivery: a policy brief for Uganda.

Science.gov (United States)

Nabudere, Harriet; Asiimwe, Delius; Amandua, Jacinto

2013-04-01

This study describes the process of production, findings for a policy brief on Increasing Access to Skilled Birth Attendance, and subsequent use of the report by policy makers and others from the health sector in Uganda. The methods used to prepare the policy brief use the SUPPORT Tools for evidence-informed health policy making. The problem that this evidence brief addresses was identified through an explicit priority setting process involving policy makers and other stakeholders, further clarification with key informant interviews of relevant policy makers, and review of relevant documents. A working group of national stakeholder representatives and external reviewers commented on and contributed to successive drafts of the report. Research describing the problem, policy options, and implementation considerations was identified by reviewing government documents, routinely collected data, electronic literature searches, contact with key informants, and reviewing the reference lists of relevant documents that were retrieved. The proportion of pregnant women delivering from public and private non-profit facilities was low at 34 percent in 2008/09. The three policy options discussed in the report could be adopted independently or complementary to the other to increase access to skilled care. The Ministry of Health in deliberating to provide intrapartum care at first level health facilities from the second level of care, requested for research evidence to support these decisions. Maternal waiting shelters and working with the private-for-profit sector to facilitate deliveries in health facilities are promising complementary interventions that have been piloted in both the public and private health sector. A combination of strategies is needed to effectively implement the proposed options as discussed further in this article. The policy brief report was used as a background document for two stakeholder dialogue meetings involving members of parliament, policy makers

Conceptualizing Policy Work as Activity and Field of Research

OpenAIRE

Jan Kohoutek; Martin Nekola; Vilém Novotný

2013-01-01

The area of policy work and policy workers within government bureaucracies is encompassing a large field of activities and research. This article aims to provide a synthesised perspective on policy work in relating theoretical and empirical accounts of policy workers, identifying points of convergence and linking them to essential assumptions on research in policy work. We conceptualize policy work as activity within government bureaucracies from three interrelated perspectives: the professio...

Work-life balance and family friendly policies

OpenAIRE

Janine Chapman; Natalie Skinner

2013-01-01

This paper presents Australian and international research on work-life interaction. We review the work-life policies and practices that are likely to have the greatest impact on work-life outcomes, specifically reducing the negative impact of work on other life domains (work-life interference), and enhancing the positive effect (work-life facilitation). The review addresses four policy areas common in work-life studies of the general workforce: employee-centered flexible work practices; worki...

The emergence and workings of a process view in public education policy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grønbæk Pors, Justine; Ratner, Helene Gad

2017-01-01

This article presents a study of Danish primary education policy with the purpose of exploring what is put at stake when contemporary management discourses describe the object of management as fluid and emergent processes rather than as entities, persons and things. The article examines how...... such a process view of organisation allows policy makers to imagine innovative change, but also how a process view interacts in particular ways with financial pressures and become entangled to increased performance measurements. We conclude that in this particular case, a conception of the object of management...

FileMaker Pro 11 The Missing Manual

CERN Document Server

Prosser, Susan

2010-01-01

This hands-on, friendly guide shows you how to harness FileMaker's power to make your information work for you. With a few mouse clicks, the FileMaker Pro 11 database helps you create and print corporate reports, manage a mailing list, or run your entire business. FileMaker Pro 11: The Missing Manual helps you get started, build your database, and produce results, whether you're running a business, pursuing a hobby, or planning your retirement. It's a thorough, accessible guide for new, non-technical users, as well as those with more experience. Start up: Get your first database up and runnin

Views of policy makers and health promotion professionals on factors facilitating implementation and maintenance of interventions and policies promoting physical activity and healthy eating: results of the DEDIPAC project.

Science.gov (United States)

Muellmann, Saskia; Steenbock, Berit; De Cocker, Katrien; De Craemer, Marieke; Hayes, Catherine; O'Shea, Miriam P; Horodyska, Karolina; Bell, Justyna; Luszczynska, Aleksandra; Roos, Gun; Langøien, Lars Jørun; Rugseth, Gro; Terragni, Laura; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse; Brug, Johannes; Pischke, Claudia R

2017-12-06

The uptake, implementation, and maintenance of effective interventions promoting physical activity (PA) and a healthy diet and the implementation of policies targeting these behaviors are processes not well understood. We aimed to gain a better understanding of what health promotion professionals and policy makers think are important factors facilitating adoption, implementation, and maintenance of multi-level interventions and policies promoting healthy eating and PA in Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Norway, and Poland. Six interventions and six policies were identified based on pre-defined criteria. Forty semi-structured interviews were conducted with stakeholders from various sectors to elicit information on factors impacting adoption, implementation, and maintenance of these interventions and policies. All interview transcripts were coded in NVivo, using a common categorization matrix. Coding in the respective countries was done by one researcher and validated by a second researcher. Active involvement of relevant stakeholders and good communication between coordinating organizations were described as important factors contributing to successful adoption and implementation of both interventions and policies. Additional facilitating factors included sufficient training of staff and tailoring of materials to match needs of various target groups. The respondents indicated that maintenance of implemented interventions/policies depended on whether they were embedded in existing or newly created organizational structures in different settings and whether continued funding was secured. Despite considerable heterogeneity of interventions and health policies in the five countries, stakeholders across these countries identify similar factors facilitating adoption, implementation, and maintenance of these interventions and policies.

European electricity markets - policy deficiencies, design deficiencies, and opportunities for policy-makers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bettzuge, Marc Oliver

2013-11-01

Paraphrasing a well-known dictum, one can say that 'design follows policies'. Therefore, before discussing questions of market design, one has to clarify the policies which the desired market design is supposed to implement. Hence, this paper starts by briefly reviewing the status of current policies for the electricity sector. Specifically, it will discuss political objectives, the choice of the basic regulatory paradigm, and the issue of subsidiarity between the EU and the member states

Implications for alcohol minimum unit pricing advocacy: what can we learn for public health from UK newsprint coverage of key claim-makers in the policy debate?

Science.gov (United States)

Hilton, Shona; Wood, Karen; Patterson, Chris; Katikireddi, Srinivasa Vittal

2014-02-01

On May 24th 2012, Scotland passed the Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) Bill. Minimum unit pricing (MUP) is an intervention that raises the price of the cheapest alcohol to reduce alcohol consumption and related harms. There is a growing literature on industry's influence in policymaking and media representations of policies, but relatively little about frames used by key claim-makers in the public MUP policy debate. This study elucidates the dynamic interplay between key claim-makers to identify lessons for policy advocacy in the media in the UK and internationally. Content analysis was conducted on 262 articles from seven UK and three Scottish national newspapers between 1st May 2011 and 31st May 2012, retrieved from electronic databases. Advocates' and critics' constructions of the alcohol problem and MUP were examined. Advocates depicted the problem as primarily driven by cheap alcohol and marketing, while critics' constructions focused on youth binge drinkers and dependent drinkers. Advocates justified support by citing the intervention's targeted design, but critics denounced the policy as illegal, likely to encourage illicit trade, unsupported by evidence and likely to be ineffective, while harming the responsible majority, low-income consumers and businesses. Critics' arguments were consistent over time, and single statements often encompassed multiple rationales. This study presents advocates with several important lessons for promoting policies in the media. Firstly, it may be useful to shift focus away from young binge drinkers and heavy drinkers, towards population-level over-consumption. Secondly, advocates might focus on presenting the policy as part of a wider package of alcohol policies. Thirdly, emphasis on the success of recent public health policies could help portray the UK and Scotland as world leaders in tackling culturally embedded health and social problems through policy; highlighting past successes when presenting future policies may be a valuable

Working with Decision Makers to Improve Energy-Water System Resiliency in the Lower Hudson River Basin

Science.gov (United States)

Fellows, J. D.; Schoonen, M. A.; Pullen, J.; González, J. E.; Saleh, F.; Bhatt, V.

2017-12-01

Nearly half of the 180 million people living in the eastern U.S. reside in coastal watershed or shoreline counties. The population density of these areas continues to increase, driving an increase in energy-water (EW) system demand and expansion of critical infrastructure. Along with population, these areas are also being stressed by environmental and technology stresses, including climate change. We have been working with decision makers in the Lower Hudson River Basin (LHRB) to develop the tools and data needed to better understand and improve the resiliency of LHRB EW systems facing these kinds of stresses. The LHRB represents: 1) a coastal environment subject to sea level rise that is among the fastest in the East; 2) one of the steepest gradients in population density in the US, with Manhattan the most densely populated coastal county in the nation; 3) a EWN infrastructure serving the largest metropolitan area in the US and the financial center of the world; 4) a history of environmental impacts, ranging from heatwaves, hurricanes to localized storms, that can be used to hindcast; and 5) a wealth of historic and real-time data, extensive monitoring facilities and existing specific sector models that can be leveraged. This presentation will focus on the lessons learned working with the LHRB decision makers.

Solar Photovoltaic Energy Policy in Europe: Losing Sight of What is Right. Current Developments and Lessons Learned for Policy-makers and Industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cherrelle, Eid

2012-01-01

interesting to examine China and the United States in regard to PV manufacturing and installation capacity. China may be characterized by its high and early PV production, exporting almost 90% of its output. What will this and other developments mean for European PV industry and job creation? At present, the deployment of PV is under much discussion in many countries, within and outside of Europe. Changes in Feed-in-Tariffs (FIT) are following each other closely and motivations behind deployment are presently frequently discussed in the political sphere. Still, there are important points to consider. What are the costs of PV? How are the costs expected to decrease and how effective are current policies concerning PV penetration? Are these policies also effective in eventually reaching the CO 2 reduction targets? PV technologies are still developing and it is important to not be moved by assumptions on efficiencies or effectiveness of the technology. The aim of this report is to provide recommendations for the debate concerning PV deployment in Europe and to provide suggestions for both policy-makers and industry in- and outside of Europe. This is done by analyzing the main developments related to PV worldwide. The report will furthermore present technical developments of PV and will present a comparison in the international context with US and Asia. In Section 2, the position of PV policy is given within the EU renewable projections for 2020. Before continuing with the support policies for PV in Section 4, the main developments in PV technologies with definitions are provided in Section 3. Afterwards, case studies of the five major European countries with the largest European installed capacities in PV are presented with their efforts and policies associated to PV in Section 5. In Section 6, an evaluation of the European Policy is presented, after which a brief review of the US and China and their PV industries is given with their policy incentives to increase PV installation

Thermodynamic analysis of a solar coffee maker

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sosa-Montemayor, F.; Jaramillo, O.A.; Rio, J.A. del

2009-01-01

In this paper we present a novel solar concentrating application, a coffee brewing system using a satellite TV mini-Dish concentrator coupled to a stovetop espresso coffee maker. We present a theoretical model for the thermal behavior of the water in the lower chamber of the coffee maker. We validate the model obtaining good agreement with the experimental results. Our findings indicate that the coffee brewing system works, it takes 30-50 min to complete its task. The model and our practical experience encourage us to improve the concentration device in order to obtain a useful solar coffee maker, using the theoretical model as a safe guide to achieve this.

Thermodynamic analysis of a solar coffee maker

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sosa-Montemayor, F.; Jaramillo, O.A. [Centro de Investigacion en Energia, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Privada Xochicalco S/N, Temixco, Morelos CP 62580 (Mexico); del Rio, J.A. [Centro Morelense de Innovacion y Tranferencia Tecnologica, CCyTEM, Camino Temixco a Emiliano Zapata, Km 0.3, Colonia Emiliano Zapata, Morelos CP 62760 (Mexico)

2009-09-15

In this paper we present a novel solar concentrating application, a coffee brewing system using a satellite TV mini-Dish concentrator coupled to a stovetop espresso coffee maker. We present a theoretical model for the thermal behavior of the water in the lower chamber of the coffee maker. We validate the model obtaining good agreement with the experimental results. Our findings indicate that the coffee brewing system works, it takes 30-50 min to complete its task. The model and our practical experience encourage us to improve the concentration device in order to obtain a useful solar coffee maker, using the theoretical model as a safe guide to achieve this. (author)

Assessment of policy makers' individual and organizational capacity ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017-09-03

Sep 3, 2017 ... An evidence to policy self-assessment questionnaire was used to assess the capacity of forty. MNCH policy ... search, lack of actionable messages in research reports, and limited ... of research evidence is but one factor influencing all stag- es of what ... However, in order to design an effective capacity en-.

The Use of Social Ecological Hotspots Mapping: Co-Developing Adaptation Strategies for Resource Management by Communities and Policy Makers

Science.gov (United States)

Alessa, L.

2014-12-01

Ultimately, adaptation is based on a set of trade-offs rather than optimal conditions, something that is rarely seen in messy social ecological systems (SES). In this talk, we discuss the role of spatial hot-spot mapping using social and biophysical data to understand the feedbacks in SES. We review the types of data needed, their means of acquisition and the analytic methods involved. In addition, we outline the challenges faced in co-developing this type of inquiry based on lessons learned from several long-term programs. Finally, we present the utility of SES hotspots in developing adaptation strategies on the ground by communities and policy makers.

Articulations on form properties and action-function couplings of maker technologies in children’s education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Kasper Skov; Iversen, Ole Sejer

2016-01-01

In this paper, we present a framework to expand the design language used to articulate form properties and types of feedback that happen between children’s actions and the intended functionality of maker technologies. Based on field observations in Danish schools we analyze children’s (aged 11......-14 years old) interactions with three maker technologies used to work through design processes in school maker settings. Our findings are beneficial on three factors for designers, researchers and teachers involved in work within maker contexts. (1) reflections on form properties of maker technologies, (2....... Researchers can use the expanded design language to analyze maker technologies in the context of school maker settings. Finally, teachers can make better decisions on how and when to use different maker technologies when school children work through design processes....

Working Programme 2010. Knowledge Institute for Mobility Policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jorritsma, P.; Derriks, H.; Francke, J.; Gordijn, H.; Groot, W.; Harms, L.; Van der Loop, H.; Peer, S.; Savelberg, F.; Wouters, P.

2009-12-01

The Dutch Knowledge Institute for Mobility Policy (KiM) provides analyses of mobility that influence the policy. As a separate institute within the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water management, the KiM conducts strategic outlooks and policy analyses. KiM establishes working programs annually. [nl

The domestic supply outlook, how the producing industry is reacting, and the challenge to regulators and policy makers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jordan, C.A.

1992-01-01

This paper addresses three main topics which include an overview of the nation's natural gas reserves; a discussion of the challenges the natural gas industry faces in extracting these reserves in the realm of regulations and cost-effective extraction; and a discussion on how the industry, regulators, and policy makers can work together to extract these reserves in an economic manner while effectively operating within existing regulations. The paper also promotes methods to update and change regulations when necessary as a result of technological change or advancement. The results of the reserve study have shown that there are over 2,000 trillion cubic feet of natural gas still available in the US and Canada, not including undiscovered or additional extraction brought about by new technology. The paper goes on to discuss the historical wellhead pricing of natural gas and what these new reserve figures mean to future natural gas costs. The paper then discusses the adequacy of current distribution systems to meet an increasing demand for natural gas. Finally the paper discusses the need for more deregulation of the gas industry to make it more competitive and keep the development of these resources alive in this country. The author presents information on the decline of exploration and development in this country as a result of increased regulation

Nurses and Lifelong Learning: Creating "Makers and Shapers" or "Users and Choosers"?

Science.gov (United States)

Butcher, Diane; Bruce, Anne

2016-04-01

How have the meaning and goals of lifelong learning for nurses shifted under neoliberal political policy? This article critically scrutinizes the political undercurrents of lifelong learning. While the original intent of lifelong learning was to foster intellectual, critical, social, and political citizen engagement (creating "makers and shapers" of social policy), instrumental learning-learning to meet practical economic ends-has taken priority and is instead creating marketable workers (creating "users and choosers"). International educational neoliberal policy reform has altered the very nature of education. Under pervasive neoliberal political influence, lifelong learning has become distorted as the goals of learning have shifted towards creating marketable workers who are expected, while unsupported, to engage in learning to ensure ongoing employability in an open market. By examining new understandings of lifelong learning, nurses can make informed choices as to whether they aspire to be a "user and chooser" or "maker and shaper" of lifelong learning in their workplaces. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Street Children and The Work Ethic: New Policy for an Old Moral, Nairobi (Kenya)

Science.gov (United States)

Droz, Yvan

2006-01-01

Kenyan policy-makers use the language of children's rights to legitimize, within the new global political order, an old colonial concern about controlling the urban marginal population. The local business community's worries about the safety of Nairobi's streets stand paramount, while the growing financial and political leverage of NGOs…

Trouble makers : Laura Poitras and the problem of dissent

OpenAIRE

Danchev, Alex

2015-01-01

This review article considers three works by the distinguished documentary film-maker Laura Poitras: My country, my country (2006); The oath (2010); and the recently released Citizenfour (2014), focusing on the whistle-blower Edward Snowden. Poitras describes these works as a trilogy about American power after 9/11, but they are also about disobedience and resistance, or the problem of dissent. The article argues for the significance (and the virtue) of Poitras's project, as film maker and tr...

Health Policy and Management: In Praise of Political Science; Comment on “On Health Policy and Management (HPAM: Mind the Theory-Policy Practice Gap”

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David J Hunter

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Health systems have entered a third era embracing whole systems thinking and posing complex policy and management challenges. Understanding how such systems work and agreeing what needs to be put in place to enable them to undergo effective and sustainable change are more pressing issues than ever for policy-makers. The theory-policy-practice-gap and its four dimensions, as articulated by Chinitz and Rodwin, is acknowledged. It is suggested that insights derived from political science can both enrich our understanding of the gap and suggest what changes are needed to tackle the complex challenges facing health systems.

Mapping a Research Agenda for Home Care Safety: Perspectives from Researchers, Providers, and Decision Makers

Science.gov (United States)

Macdonald, Marilyn; Lang, Ariella; MacDonald, Jo-Anne

2011-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative interpretive design was to explore the perspectives of researchers, health care providers, policy makers, and decision makers on key risks, concerns, and emerging issues related to home care safety that would inform a line of research inquiry. Defining safety specifically in this home care context has yet to be…

Risk Implications of Energy Policy Instruments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kitzing, Lena

papers and a working paper), based on a combination of micro-economic and policy analysis. Financial theory is used for the quantitative analysis of investment problems under uncertainty, including mean-variance portfolio theory, real option analysis, Monte Carlo simulations and time series analysis...... show, both qualitatively and quantitatively, that policy makers cannot neglect risk implications when designing RES support instruments without compromising either on effectiveness or cost-efficiency of energy policy. The central research questions are: how can risk implications of RES policy...... instruments be integrated into policy design, so that the policies provide adequate investment incentives? And can the consideration of such risk implications in policy design make overall energy policy more successful? These questions are answered in seven research papers (four journal papers, two conference...

Putting research in place: an innovative approach to providing contextualized evidence synthesis for decision makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephen Bornstein

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Contextualized Health Research Synthesis Program (CHRSP, developed in 2007 by the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Applied Health Research, produces contextualized knowledge syntheses for health-system decision makers. The program provides timely, relevant, and easy-to-understand scientific evidence; optimizes evidence uptake; and, most importantly, attunes research questions and evidence to the specific context in which knowledge users must apply the findings. Methods As an integrated knowledge translation (KT method, CHRSP: Involves intensive partnerships with senior healthcare decision makers who propose priority research topics and participate on research teams; Considers local context both in framing the research question and in reporting the findings; Makes economical use of resources by utilizing a limited number of staff; Uses a combination of external and local experts; and Works quickly by synthesizing high-level systematic review evidence rather than primary studies. Although it was developed in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the CHRSP methodology is adaptable to a variety of settings with distinctive features, such as those in rural, remote, and small-town locations. Results CHRSP has published 25 syntheses on priority topics chosen by the provincial healthcare system, including: Clinical and cost-effectiveness: telehealth, rural renal dialysis, point-of-care testing; Community-based health services: helping seniors age in place, supporting seniors with dementia, residential treatment centers for at-risk youth; Healthcare organization/service delivery: reducing acute-care length of stay, promoting flu vaccination among health workers, safe patient handling, age-friendly acute care; and Health promotion: diabetes prevention, promoting healthy dietary habits. These studies have been used by decision makers to inform local policy and practice decisions. Conclusions By asking the health

The Pedagogy of Education Policy Formulation: Working from Policy Assets

Science.gov (United States)

Sack, Richard; Marope, Mmantsetsa

2007-01-01

This article explores a "pedagogical" approach to education policy formulation in developing countries. This constitutes a process that shows promise in promoting the "ownership" necessary for sustainable policies and programs, especially when they rely on external financing. Based on case studies from 26 countries focused on "what works," the…

Policy alienation and work alienation: Two worlds apart?

OpenAIRE

Tummers, Lars; Thiel, Sandra; Steijn, Bram; Bekkers, Victor

2011-01-01

textabstractAbstract The notion of work alienation has been fascinating scholars and practitioners for a long time. In recent years, a related concept has been developed in the public administration discipline: policy alienation, which examines the alienation of public professionals from the policy they have to implement. In this paper, our goal is to study the distinctiveness (or similarity) of work alienation and policy alienation. Furthermore, we examine a number of effects of work and pol...

Feminist Policy Analysis: Expanding Traditional Social Work Methods

Science.gov (United States)

Kanenberg, Heather

2013-01-01

In an effort to move the methodology of policy analysis beyond the traditional and artificial position of being objective and value-free, this article is a call to those working and teaching in social work to consider a feminist policy analysis lens. A review of standard policy analysis models is presented alongside feminist models. Such a…

Factors that encourage and discourage policy-making to prevent childhood obesity: Experience in the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Rutkow, Lainie; Jones-Smith, Jesse; Walters, Hannah J; O'Hara, Marguerite; Bleich, Sara N

2016-12-01

Policy-makers throughout the world seek to address childhood obesity prevention, yet little is known about factors that influence policy-makers' decisions on this topic. From September 2014 to April 2015, we conducted 43 semi-structured interviews about factors that encourage and discourage policy-makers' support for childhood obesity prevention policies. We interviewed policy-makers (n = 12) and two other groups engaged with childhood obesity prevention policies: representatives of non-governmental organizations (n = 24) and academics (n = 7). Factors that encourage policy-makers' support for childhood obesity prevention policies included: positive impact on government finances, an existing evidence base, partnerships with community-based collaborators, and consistency with policy-makers' priorities. Factors that discourage policy-makers' support included the following: perceptions about government's role, food and beverage industry opposition, and policy-makers' beliefs about personal responsibility. As public health practitioners, advocates, and others seek to advance childhood obesity prevention in the U.S. and elsewhere, the factors we identified offer insights into ways to frame proposed policies and strategies to influence policy-makers.

Expanding the Visibility of Women's Work: Policy Implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Messias, DeAnne K. Hilfinger; Regev, Hanna; Im, Eun-Ok; Spiers, Judith A.; Van, Paulina; Meleis, Afaf Ibrahim

1997-01-01

Social conceptualization and media images of women's work affect health and social policy formation. Nurses can expand the visibility of women's work and promote gender-sensitive policies within and outside the profession. (SK)

Getting ocean acidification on decision makers' to-do lists: dissecting the process through case studies

Science.gov (United States)

Cooley, Sarah R.; Jewett, Elizabeth B.; Reichert, Julie; Robbins, Lisa L.; Shrestha, Gyami; Wieczorek, Dan; Weisberg, Stephen B.

2015-01-01

Much of the detailed, incremental knowledge being generated by current scientific research on ocean acidification (OA) does not directly address the needs of decision makers, who are asking broad questions such as: Where will OA harm marine resources next? When will this happen? Who will be affected? And how much will it cost? In this review, we use a series of mainly US-based case studies to explore the needs of local to international-scale groups that are making decisions to address OA concerns. Decisions concerning OA have been made most naturally and easily when information needs were clearly defined and closely aligned with science outputs and initiatives. For decisions requiring more complex information, the process slows dramatically. Decision making about OA is greatly aided (1) when a mixture of specialists participates, including scientists, resource users and managers, and policy and law makers; (2) when goals can be clearly agreed upon at the beginning of the process; (3) when mixed groups of specialists plan and create translational documents explaining the likely outcomes of policy decisions on ecosystems and natural resources; (4) when regional work on OA fits into an existing set of priorities concerning climate or water quality; and (5) when decision making can be reviewed and enhanced.

Health Policy and Management: in praise of political science. Comment on "On Health Policy and Management (HPAM): mind the theory-policy-practice gap".

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter, David J

2015-03-12

Health systems have entered a third era embracing whole systems thinking and posing complex policy and management challenges. Understanding how such systems work and agreeing what needs to be put in place to enable them to undergo effective and sustainable change are more pressing issues than ever for policy-makers. The theory-policy-practice-gap and its four dimensions, as articulated by Chinitz and Rodwin, is acknowledged. It is suggested that insights derived from political science can both enrich our understanding of the gap and suggest what changes are needed to tackle the complex challenges facing health systems. © 2015 by Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

User participation in a Municipal Acute Ward in Norway: dilemmas in the interface between policy ideals and work conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Johannessen, Anne-Kari; Tveiten, Sidsel; Werner, Anne

2017-08-23

User participation has become an increasingly important principle in health care over the last few decades. Healthcare professionals are expected to involve patients in treatment decisions. Clear guidance as to what this should entail for professionals in clinical work is not accounted for in legislation. In this study, we explore how healthcare professionals in a Municipal Acute Ward perceived, experienced and performed user participation. The ward represents a new short-time service model for emergency assistance in Norway. We focused on the challenges the professionals faced in clinical work and how they dealt with these. Data were drawn from qualitative interviews with 11 healthcare professionals and from 10 observations in relation to previsits and physician's rounds in the ward. Transcripts of interviews and observations were analysed using a method for systematic text condensation. In the analysis, we applied Lipsky's perspective on dilemmas of street-level bureaucrats. The results show that that the professionals perceived user participation as an important and natural part of their work. They experienced difficulties related to collaboration with patients, caregivers, and professionals in other services, and with framework conditions that caused conflicting expectations, responsibility, and priorities. The professionals seemed to take a pragmatic approach to user participation, managing it within narrow perspectives. Our study indicates that the participants dealt with the dilemmas at the cost of user participation. The results demonstrate that there is a gap between the outlined health policy and the professionals' opportunities to fulfil this policy in clinical work regarding user participation. The policy decision-makers should recognise the balancing work required of healthcare professionals to deal with difficulties in clinical work. The knowledge that professionals possess as performers of services and the need for valuing in policy processes should

Strengthening capacity to apply health research evidence in policy making: experience from four countries

Science.gov (United States)

Hawkes, Sarah; K Aulakh, Bhupinder; Jadeja, Nidhee; Jimenez, Michelle; Buse, Kent; Anwar, Iqbal; Barge, Sandhya; Odubanjo, M Oladoyin; Shukla, Abhay; Ghaffar, Abdul; Whitworth, Jimmy

2016-01-01

Increasing the use of evidence in policy making means strengthening capacity on both the supply and demand sides of evidence production. However, little experience of strengthening the capacity of policy makers in low- and middle- income countries has been published to date. We describe the experiences of five projects (in Bangladesh, Gambia, India and Nigeria), where collaborative teams of researchers and policy makers/policy influencers worked to strengthen policy maker capacity to increase the use of evidence in policy. Activities were focused on three (interlinked) levels of capacity building: individual, organizational and, occasionally, institutional. Interventions included increasing access to research/data, promoting frequent interactions between researchers and members of the policy communities, and increasing the receptivity towards research/data in policy making or policy-implementing organizations. Teams were successful in building the capacity of individuals to access, understand and use evidence/data. Strengthening organizational capacity generally involved support to infrastructure (e.g. through information technology resources) and was also deemed to be successful. There was less appetite to address the need to strengthen institutional capacity—although this was acknowledged to be fundamental to promoting sustainable use of evidence, it was also recognized as requiring resources, legitimacy and regulatory support from policy makers. Evaluation across the three spheres of capacity building was made more challenging by the lack of agreed upon evaluation frameworks. In this article, we propose a new framework for assessing the impact of capacity strengthening activities to promote the use of evidence/data in policy making. Our evaluation concluded that strengthening the capacity of individuals and organizations is an important but likely insufficient step in ensuring the use of evidence/data in policy-cycles. Sustainability of evidence

Knowledge Translation to Advance the Nurse Practitioner Role in British Columbia: Researchers and decision-makers conduct policy-relevant research to guide legislative and regulatory development and the design of a nurse practitioner education program.

OpenAIRE

MacDonald, Marjorie; Regan, Sandra; Davidson, Heather; Schreiber, Rita; Crickmore, Jane; Moss, Lesley; Pinelli, Janet; Pauly, Bernadette

2006-01-01

This project brought together a team of researchers and decision-makers to conduct policy-relevant research to support the introduction of advanced nursing practice roles in British Columbia. All team members, including decision-makers, were actively involved in the conceptualization, design, data collection, analysis and interpretation of the study. This level of engagement, coupled with ongoing knowledge translation (KT) activities, led to the implementation by stakeholders of a majority of...

23 CFR 630.1006 - Work zone safety and mobility policy.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 23 Highways 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Work zone safety and mobility policy. 630.1006 Section... policy. Each State shall implement a policy for the systematic consideration and management of work zone impacts on all Federal-aid highway projects. This policy shall address work zone impacts throughout the...

Social relations based on sex/gender and sexual division of work in the brazilian post office: female participation, professional hierarchy and management policies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tadeu Gomes Teixeira

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The focus of this article is to analyze how social relations based on sex/gender and gender images have influenced the inclusion and participation of women in the operational area of the Brazilian Post and Telegraph Company (ECT. We seek to answer the following questions: How do the social relations based on sex and gender images influence the inclusion and participation of women in the state company? What is the image of women’s work in the company and how this image affects the career advancement? In what manner the union demands and the work management policies positions themselves in relation to gender issues? It is found that the workforce in ECT is mostly male and that the social relations based on sex presents a gender image among the employees, makers of labor management policies and trade unionists which associate the company work activities to men, reinforcing unequal sex/gender relations in this environment.

Perspectives for the Development of a Working Life Policy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hvid, Helge; Hasle, Peter

2003-01-01

A discussion of the perspectives in a working life policy with development of both a humane working life and productivity.......A discussion of the perspectives in a working life policy with development of both a humane working life and productivity....

On avoiding framing effects in experienced decision makers.

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Retamero, Rocio; Dhami, Mandeep K

2013-01-01

The present study aimed to (a) demonstrate the effect of positive-negative framing on experienced criminal justice decision makers, (b) examine the debiasing effect of visually structured risk messages, and (c) investigate whether risk perceptions mediate the debiasing effect of visual aids on decision making. In two phases, 60 senior police officers estimated the accuracy of a counterterrorism technique in identifying whether a known terror suspect poses an imminent danger and decided whether they would recommend the technique to policy makers. Officers also rated their confidence in this recommendation. When information about the effectiveness of the counterterrorism technique was presented in a numerical format, officers' perceptions of accuracy and recommendation decisions were susceptible to the framing effect: The technique was perceived to be more accurate and was more likely to be recommended when its effectiveness was presented in a positive than in a negative frame. However, when the information was represented visually using icon arrays, there were no such framing effects. Finally, perceptions of accuracy mediated the debiasing effect of visual aids on recommendation decisions. We offer potential explanations for the debiasing effect of visual aids and implications for communicating risk to experienced, professional decision makers.

The policy chicken and the science egg. Has applied ecology failed the transgenic crops debate?

Science.gov (United States)

Gray, A J

2014-12-01

Ecology has a long history of research relevant to and impacting on real-world issues. Nonetheless problems of communication remain between policy-makers and scientists because they tend to work at different levels of generality (policy deals with broad issues, science prefers specific questions), and complexity (policy-makers want simple answers, ecologists tend to offer multi-factorial solutions) and to different timescales (policy-makers want answers tomorrow, ecologists always seem to want more time). These differences are not unique to the debate about the cultivation of transgenic crops. Research on gene flow is used to illustrate how science and policy are intimately bound together in a value-laden, iterative and messy process unlike that characterised by the 'encounter problem-do science-make policy' model. It also demonstrates how the gap between science and policy is often characterised by value-laden language. Scientists involved in ERA for transgenic crops may find their engagement with policy- and decision-makers clouded by misunderstanding about what one should expect from the other. Not the least of these, that science can define harm, is explored in a discussion of the U.K. Farm Scale Evaluations of herbicide-tolerant GM crops. The varied responses to these extensive trials highlight the problems of linking specific scientific experiments with broad policy objectives. The problems of applied ecology in the transgenic crops debate are not unique but may differ from other areas of environmental policy in the intense politicisation of the debate, the emphasis on assessment of risk and the particularly broad policy objectives.

Policy work as a reform project

OpenAIRE

Hal K. Colebatch

2008-01-01

One aspect of the modernization of liberal government in the late 20th century was an increased attention to policy, both as a concept for interrogating government, and as the basis for organizing work within government, leading to the development of ‘policy analysis’ as a decision tool. This paper reviews the development of specialised forms of ‘policy work’ in liberal western political systems in order to establish what can be learned by other sorts of polity, and in particular, the tran...

The Art of Influencing Decision Makers.

Science.gov (United States)

Diegmueller, Karen

1992-01-01

Influencing educational decision makers requires creating ongoing relationships, keeping everyone informed, and developing persuasive skills. Persuasion requires preparation, refinement, hard work, and a sound understanding of the people being lobbied. Lobbying must be factual and relevant to the audience. The article looks at influence from the…

What do decision makers learn from public forums on climate-related hazards and resilience?

Science.gov (United States)

Weller, N.; Farooque, M.; Sittenfeld, D.

2017-12-01

Public engagement around climate resilience efforts can foster learning for both public audiences and decision makers. On the one hand, public audiences learn about environmental hazards and strategies to increase community resilience through effective public engagement. On the other, decision makers and scientists learn about community members' values and priorities and their relation to environmental hazards and resilience strategies. Evidence from other public engagement efforts involving decision makers suggests that decision maker involvement results in reflection by officials on their own values, capacities, and roles. However, few public engagement exercises evaluate impacts on decision makers. As part of the Science Center Public Forums project, which aims to conduct public forums in eight cities across the country on resiliency to drought, heat, extreme precipitation, and sea level rise, we sought to 1) build partnerships with local decision makers and scientists around public forums and 2) explore how decision makers and scientists interacted with the planning and undertaking of those public forums. We held workshops with decision makers and scientists to inform forum content and identify local resilience issues. We will conduct interviews with local decision makers regarding their involvement in forum planning, their reflections and takeaways from the forum itself, and their perspectives on the value of public engagement for policy making. We will present our model of engagement with decision makers, initial findings from interviews, and lessons learned from connecting decision makers and scientists to public engagement efforts.

The policy relevance of global environmental change research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yarnal, Brent

1996-01-01

Many scientists are striving to identify and promote the policy implications of their global change research. Much basic research on global environmental change cannot advance policy directly, but new projects can determine the relevance of their research to decision makers and build policy-relevant products into the work. Similarly, many ongoing projects can alter or add to the present science design to make the research policy relevant. Thus, this paper shows scientists working on global change how to make their research policy relevant. It demonstrates how research on physical global change relates to human dimensions studies and integrated assessments. It also presents an example of how policy relevance can be fit retroactively into a global change project (in this case, SRBEX-the Susquehanna River Basin Experiment) and how that addition can enhance the project's status and science. The paper concludes that policy relevance is desirable from social and scientific perspectives

Educational Quasi-Market in Chile: The Discourse of Policy Makers Cuasi mercado educacional en Chile: el discurso de los tomadores de decisión.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claudio Almonacid

2008-04-01

Full Text Available The Chilean educational system is characterized by the functioning of a cuasi (free market, in which increasing degrees of administrative, financial and curricular decentralization take place within a context where two constitutional rights are in conflict: the right to (free education and the freedom of teaching. This conflict arose from the design and implementation of said decentralization policy due to its negative effects in the processes of social inclusion of children and youngsters. In order to understand why those two constitutional rights are in conflict, it must be taken into account that such decentralization policy was designed by the military regime (1973-1990 as one of several neoliberal policies implemented in many different fields of the Chilean society, and that said policy has been kept in effect by the subsequent administrations of the “Concertación de Partidos por la Democracia” (Coalition of Parties for Democracy (since 1990 to present in a so called “transition process to democracy.” This research paper is intended to understand how the process of educational decentralization was conceived and how the system is in effect up to the present, as well as to understand the effects it has had on the process of social exclusion. To do that, the views of selected policy makers who have had active participation in this process are analyzed. First, there is a reference to the way the Chilean educational system works, and then the opinions of several educational policy makers about the processes of educational decentralization and social exclusion are analyzed. El sistema educacional chileno se caracteriza por el funcionamiento de un cuasi mercado en donde existen crecientes grados de descentralización administrativa, financiera y curricular, coexistiendo dos principios en tensión: el derecho a la educación y la libertad de enseñanza. Esta tensión se encuentra presente desde el diseño de esta política educativa

The emergence and workings of a process view in public education policy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grønbæk Pors, Justine; Ratner, Helene Gad

2017-01-01

such a process view of organisation allows policy makers to imagine innovative change, but also how a process view interacts in particular ways with financial pressures and become entangled to increased performance measurements. We conclude that in this particular case, a conception of the object of management...... as processes is utilised to stabilise a belief that undoing organisational structures and categories offer an almost limitless resource for a simultaneous improvement of performance and reduction of expenses....

Round Six Of Partners Investing In Nursing's Future: Implications For The Health Sector, Policy Makers, And Foundations.

Science.gov (United States)

Jellinek, Paul S; Reinhardt, Renee J; Ladden, Maryjoan D; Salmon, Marla E

2015-07-01

In its 2011 report on the future of nursing, the Institute of Medicine issued recommendations to position nursing to meet the challenges of twenty-first-century health care. Following release of the report, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded eleven local and regional partnerships of nurses, foundations, and other stakeholders to begin implementing some of the recommendations in their regions. A qualitative evaluation of these partnerships found that although not all goals were met, most of the partnerships achieved meaningful gains. Partnership participants emphasized the value of engaging foundations and other stakeholders from outside nursing in the implementation process, the necessity of funding for implementation, the need for policy makers to address constraints that local and regional partnerships by themselves cannot address, and the unique leadership and convening role that local and regional foundations can play to help their regions respond to complex challenges for the nursing profession. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

Improving adolescent health policy: incorporating a framework for assessing state-level policies.

Science.gov (United States)

Brindis, Claire D; Moore, Kristin

2014-01-01

Many US policies that affect health are made at the state, not the federal, level. Identifying state-level policies and data to analyze how different policies affect outcomes may help policy makers ascertain the usefulness of their public policies and funding decisions in improving the health of adolescent populations. A framework for describing and assessing the role of federal and state policies on adolescent health and well-being is proposed; an example of how the framework might be applied to the issue of teen childbearing is included. Such a framework can also help inform analyses of whether and how state and federal policies contribute to the variation across states in meeting adolescent health needs. A database on state policies, contextual variables, and health outcomes data can further enable researchers and policy makers to examine how these factors are associated with behaviors they aim to impact.

Comparison of auctions and alternative policy options for RES-E support

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kitzing, Lena; Islam, Marco; Fitch-Roy, Oscar

2016-01-01

benefits of RES, there may be valid reasons for policy makers not to employ auctions, since under particular circumstances it may be desirable not to control quantities but the price. As such, they raise the question whether pure support cost minimisation should be the only goal when implementing......This report concludes the work carried out in the course of Task 6.2 of the AURES project. It is its aim to compare auctions with alternative policy instruments and in particular, to examine under which circumstances auctions may be superior and inferior to achieve intended policy targets....... For that purpose, we identify a number of potential drivers that might affect an instrument’s effectiveness, its efficiency and further success criteria. Among this list of relevant drivers, the basis for our analysis is the factor risk, where our core focus is on risk for policy makers. Assuming a world...

Incorporating evolutionary principles into environmental management and policy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lankau, Richard; Jørgensen, Peter Søgaard; Harris, David J.

2011-01-01

As policymakers and managers work to mitigate the effects of rapid anthropogenic environmental changes, they need to consider organisms’ responses. In light of recent evidence that evolution can be quite rapid, this now includes evolutionary responses. Evolutionary principles have a long history...... in conservation biology, and the necessary next step for the field is to consider ways in which conservation policy makers and managers can proactively manipulate evolutionary processes to achieve their goals. In this review, we aim to illustrate the potential conservation benefits of an increased understanding...... of evolutionary history and prescriptive manipulation of three basic evolutionary factors: selection, variation, and gene flow. For each, we review and propose ways that policy makers and managers can use evolutionary thinking to preserve threatened species, combat pest species, or reduce undesirable evolutionary...

Climate adaptation policy, science and practice - Lessons for communication

Science.gov (United States)

Wolf, Johanna

2017-04-01

In climate change adaptation research, policy, and practice, institutional culture produces distinct conceptualizations of adaptation, which in turn affect how adaptation work is undertaken. This study examines institutional culture as the four domains of norms, values, knowledge, and beliefs that are held by adaptation scientists, policy- and decision-makers, and practitioners in Western Canada. Based on 31 semi-structured interviews, this article traces the ways in which these four domains interact, intersect, converge, and diverge among scientists, policy- and decision-makers, and practitioners. By exploring the knowledge, backgrounds, goals, approaches, assumptions, and behaviours of people working in adaptation, these interviews map the ways in which institutional culture shapes adaptation work being carried out by local, provincial, and federal governments, nongovernmental organizations, and an international community of scientists (including Canadian scientists). Findings suggest that institutional culture both limits and enables adaptation actions for these actors in important ways, significantly influencing how climate change adaptation is being planned for, and carried out on the ground. As a result, this paper asserts that there is an urgent need to better understand the role that institutional culture plays in order to advance climate change adaptation, both now and in the future. Important lessons for communicating about climate science, climate impacts and adaptation will be presented.

Policies to promote healthy eating in Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Capacci, Sara; Mazzocchi, Mario; Macias, José Brambila

2012-01-01

This review provides a classification of public policies to promote healthier eating and a structured mapping of existing measures in Europe. Complete coverage of alternative policy types was ensured by complementing the review with a selection of major interventions from outside Europe. Within...... with policy-makers. This work led to a list of 129 policy interventions (of which 121 in Europe). For each policy type, a critical review of the available evidence basis on its effectiveness is provided. The review has emphasised the need for a more systematic and accurate evaluation of government......-level interventions, and a stronger focus on actual behavioural change rather than on attitude change or intentions only. The amount of evidence is very heterogeneous across policy types and often incomplete...

Clearing the air. Air quality modelling for policy support

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hendriks, C.

2017-01-01

The studies presented in this thesis were performed to provide policy makers with more accurate information about the sources of air pollution and the possible consequences of future developments on air quality. This enables policy makers to make better informed decisions when formulating policies

How to form on food and nutritional security for decision makers of communities and cooperative on Cuban

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Inés Margarita Torres Rivero

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this work is to support a training strategy for policy decision makers and managers of local projects Integrated in Alimentary and Nutritional Security (SAN in communities and cooperative, sustained on a pedagogical approach, based on the relationship between the components of the SAN, the government official's functions (FG and the administration of local projects integrated as way of performance of this subject. The objective of the strategy is to achieve that decision makers of Pinar del Rio province, can appropriate the knowledge, abilities and values for facilitating their integral preparation related with the SAN, and can negotiate the existent potentialities in communities and cooperative, develop local projects in SAN that supplement the emanated politics from state upper level, then the strategy allows a pertinent acting that impacts in the town that is an inevitable necessity for Cuba and specifically for this province, which is the most vulnerable province to environmental changes that so much influences in SAN.

Towards a Policy Framework for Decent Work.

Science.gov (United States)

Egger, Philippe

2002-01-01

International Labour Organization (ILO) standards for decent work promote social justice and humane working conditions. These standards can contribute to sustainable development, macroeconomic security, and fairer distribution of benefits from growth. The ILO is working for policy integration and promotion of international labor standards as a…

Strengthening the Profession? A Comparison of Recent Reforms in the UK and the USA. ACER Policy Briefs. Issue 2

Science.gov (United States)

Ingvarson, Lawrence

2002-01-01

Educational policy makers in many countries recognize the need to focus their policies more directly on factors affecting the quality of teachers. Common to these policies are attempts to reform teachers' pay systems and career paths to place greater value on teachers' work and give stronger incentives for professional development. Investing in…

The Ghostly Workings of Danish Accountability Policies

Science.gov (United States)

Pors, Justine Grønbaek

2016-01-01

This article proposes a framework for thinking about the ghostly, thus arguing that policy can be understood as a landscape of intersecting and colliding temporalities from which arouse curious workings of barely-there forces, spooky energies and vibrating saturations of affective ambivalences. I present an empirical study of a policy agenda of…

Improving tsunami resiliency: California's Tsunami Policy Working Group

Science.gov (United States)

Real, Charles R.; Johnson, Laurie; Jones, Lucile M.; Ross, Stephanie L.; Kontar, Y.A.; Santiago-Fandiño, V.; Takahashi, T.

2014-01-01

California has established a Tsunami Policy Working Group to facilitate development of policy recommendations for tsunami hazard mitigation. The Tsunami Policy Working Group brings together government and industry specialists from diverse fields including tsunami, seismic, and flood hazards, local and regional planning, structural engineering, natural hazard policy, and coastal engineering. The group is acting on findings from two parallel efforts: The USGS SAFRR Tsunami Scenario project, a comprehensive impact analysis of a large credible tsunami originating from an M 9.1 earthquake in the Aleutian Islands Subduction Zone striking California’s coastline, and the State’s Tsunami Preparedness and Hazard Mitigation Program. The unique dual-track approach provides a comprehensive assessment of vulnerability and risk within which the policy group can identify gaps and issues in current tsunami hazard mitigation and risk reduction, make recommendations that will help eliminate these impediments, and provide advice that will assist development and implementation of effective tsunami hazard risk communication products to improve community resiliency.

Old-growth Policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diane Vosick

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Most federal legislation and policies (e.g., the Wilderness Act, Endangered Species Act, National Forest Management Act fail to speak directly to the need for old-growth protection, recruitment, and restoration on federal lands. Various policy and attitudinal barriers must be changed to move beyond the current situation. For example, in order to achieve the goal of healthy old growth in frequent-fire forests, the public must be educated regarding the evolutionary nature of these ecosystems and persuaded that collaborative action rather than preservation and litigation is the best course for the future of these forests. Land managers and policy makers must be encouraged to look beyond the single-species management paradigm toward managing natural processes, such as fire, so that ecosystems fall within the natural range of variability. They must also see that, given their recent evidence of catastrophic fires, management must take place outside the wildland-urban interface in order to protect old-growth forest attributes and human infrastructure. This means that, in some wilderness areas, management may be required. Land managers, researchers, and policy makers will also have to agree on a definition of old growth in frequent-fire landscapes; simply adopting a definition from the mesic Pacific Northwest will not work. Moreover, the culture within the federal agencies needs revamping to allow for more innovation, especially in terms of tree thinning and wildland fire use. Funding for comprehensive restoration treatments needs to be increased, and monitoring of the Healthy Forest Initiative and Healthy Forest Restoration Act must be undertaken.

Work/Life Satisfaction Policy in ADVANCE Universities: Assessing Levels of Flexibility

Science.gov (United States)

Tower, Leslie E.; Dilks, Lisa M.

2015-01-01

Work/life satisfaction policies are seen as key to recruiting, retaining, and advancing high quality faculty. This article explores the work/life policies prevalent at NSF ADVANCE institutions (PAID, Catalyst, and IT). We systematically review ADVANCE university websites (N = 124) and rank 9 categories of work/life policy including dual career…

Evidence for Agile Policy Makers: The Contribution of Transformative Realism

Science.gov (United States)

Room, Graham

2013-01-01

Advocates of evidence-based policy making (EBPM) are typically concerned with the impact of particular interventions. This implicit ontology of the policy world, as disaggregated into a variety of independent interventions, has been challenged by Pawson (2006), in terms of the contingencies that activate, inhibit or reshape the impact of any…

Energy policies of IEA countries 2003. 2003 review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2003-01-01

This volume contains an analysis of developments in energy policies in the Member countries of the International Energy Agency. It features an overview of major trends in the energy markets, notably the renewed interest in energy security on the part of policy-makers. The study describes how, during the period before and during the war in Iraq, the IEA successfully worked to secure oil supply. 2003 was also a year when growing gas demand and rising import dependency in most IEA Member countries obliged energy policy makers to look at the longer term issue of security of gas supply. In addition to these external developments, an internal dimension of energy security arose in the context of electricity and gas market reform. The book also describes the efforts by countries having ratified the Kyoto Protocol to implement the agreements and the trend of energy R and D policies, as well as developments in energy security and energy market reform in major non-OECD countries. It includes: summaries of the in-depth reviews of Austria, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, Japan and Switzerland conducted from October 2002 to June 2003. The full reviews are published separately

29 CFR 783.37 - Enforcement policy for non-seaman's work.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Enforcement policy for non-seaman's work. 783.37 Section... policy for non-seaman's work. In the enforcement of the Act, an employee will be regarded as “employed as... STATEMENTS OF GENERAL POLICY OR INTERPRETATION NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO REGULATIONS APPLICATION OF THE FAIR...

Public Acceptance on Nuclear Power: A Strategic Need to Shift to 5Ps (Politicians, Policy Makers, Professionals, Public and Press) Acceptance on Nuclear Power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dato Syed Ahmad Idid, S.N. K. A.-I.

2015-01-01

Business should not be as usual in formulating strategies and plans to enhance awareness regarding the benefits of nuclear power as an option for energy mix. Although, presently 435 nuclear power reactors in operation in 30 countries are delivering cost competitive electricity to consumers, creating significant job, investment and business opportunities, supporting enterprises, contributing significantly to these nations economic growth, however these positive impacts and benefits have not be sufficiently transmitted to the various stakeholders and population, who have until recently only received unbalanced views and news from an uninformed press. Negative and generally unbalanced press coverage of isolated nuclear incidents and accidents such as TMI, Chernobyl and most recently Fukushima has resulted in public protests to nuclear power, contributing to several nuclear power programmes being delayed or not able to take off. This situation is further exacerbated by uninformed politicians and policy makers who have the influence but were not able to harness their positions to assure the public due to lack of knowledge regarding the economic and social benefits of nuclear power. As the challenges to the nuclear industry presently also include ageing nuclear professionals, lack of updates regarding business and financing opportunities to business and financing professionals, thus the benefits of career, business and financing opportunities must also be disseminated to these Professionals. This paper aims to highlight the fundamental need to expand present Public Awareness Programme to become the 5Ps (Politicians, Policy makers, Professionals, Public and Press) Awareness Programme on Nuclear Power. (author)

Makification: Towards a Framework for Leveraging the Maker Movement in Formal Education

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen, Jonathan; Jones, W. Monty; Smith, Shaunna; Calandra, Brendan

2017-01-01

Maker culture is part of a burgeoning movement in which individuals leverage modern digital technologies to produce and share physical artifacts with a broader community. Certain components of the maker movement, if properly leveraged, hold promise for transforming formal education in a variety of contexts. The authors here work towards a…

Policy alienation and work alienation: Two worlds apart?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L.G. Tummers (Lars); S. van Thiel (Sandra); A.J. Steijn (Bram); V.J.J.M. Bekkers (Victor)

2011-01-01

textabstractAbstract The notion of work alienation has been fascinating scholars and practitioners for a long time. In recent years, a related concept has been developed in the public administration discipline: policy alienation, which examines the alienation of public professionals from the policy

Company Policies on Working Hours and Night Work in Relation to Older Workers' Work Ability and Work Engagement: Results From a Dutch Longitudinal Study with 2 Year Follow-Up.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Meer, Laudry; Leijten, Fenna R M; Heuvel, Swenneke G; Ybema, Jan F; de Wind, Astrid; Burdorf, Alex; Geuskens, Goedele A

2016-06-01

Purpose To longitudinally investigate (1) whether lower work ability and work engagement predict the use of company policies on reduced working hours and exemption from evening/night work among older workers, and (2) whether using such policies subsequently contribute to higher work ability and work engagement. Methods In total 6922 employees (45-64 years) participating in the first three waves of the Study on Transitions in Employment, Ability and Motivation were included. Participants yearly filled out an online questionnaires. Regression analyses were applied to study the influence of baseline work ability and work engagement on the incident use of policies during the first year of follow-up, and the incident use of these policies on work ability and work engagement during the second year of follow-up. Results Employees with a higher work ability were less likely to start using the policy 'reduced working hours' [OR 0.91 (95 % CI 0.83-0.98)]. Starting to use this policy was in turn related to lower work ability 1 year later [B -0.28 (95 % CI -0.47 to -0.08)]. Starting to use the policy 'exemption from evening/night work' was related to higher work engagement 1 year later [B 0.23 (95 % CI 0.07-0.39)]. Conclusions Low work ability precedes the use of some company policies aiming to support sustainable employability of older workers. Further research is needed to explore whether company policies result in a (longstanding) improvement, or reduced deterioration, of older workers' employability.

High performance work systems: the gap between policy and practice in health care reform.

Science.gov (United States)

Leggat, Sandra G; Bartram, Timothy; Stanton, Pauline

2011-01-01

service organisations reported high levels of strategic HRM, the human resource and other managers reported a distinct lack of HPWS from their perspectives. The authors discuss why health care organisations may have difficulty in achieving HPWS. Leaders in health care organisations should focus on ensuring human resource management systems, structures and processes that support HPWS. Policy makers need to consider HPWS as a necessary component of health system reform. There is a strong need to reorient organisational human resource management policies and procedures in public health care organisations towards high performing work systems.

29 CFR 786.1 - Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work... OF LABOR STATEMENTS OF GENERAL POLICY OR INTERPRETATION NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO REGULATIONS MISCELLANEOUS EXEMPTIONS Carriers by Air § 786.1 Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work...

29 CFR 786.200 - Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work..., DEPARTMENT OF LABOR STATEMENTS OF GENERAL POLICY OR INTERPRETATION NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO REGULATIONS MISCELLANEOUS EXEMPTIONS Taxicab Operators § 786.200 Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work...

Studies on cycle characteristics and application of split heat pipe adsorption ice maker

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, C.J.; Wang, R.Z.; Wang, L.W.; Lu, Z.S.

2007-01-01

A split heat pipe adsorption ice maker, which uses a solidified compound adsorbent (calcium chloride and activated carbon)-ammonia as working pair, is studied. The application of split heat pipe technology in this system (ice maker for fishing boat powered by waste heat of exhaust gases from diesel engine) solves the corrosion problem caused by using seawater to cool the adsorber directly. Therefore, the adsorbers can be cooled or heated by the working substance of the heat pipe in the adsorption or desorption state, respectively. There are two adsorbers in the adsorption ice maker, and each adsorber contains 2.35 kg compound adsorbent in which the mass of calcium chloride is 1.88 kg. The mass transfer performance and volume cooling density of the chemical adsorbent are greatly improved by the use of the compound adsorbent. Water is chosen as the working substance of the heat pipe due to its high cooling power in comparison with the experiments performed using acetone as working substance. When the cycle time is 70 min, the average SCP of ice making is about 329.8-712.8 W/kg calcium chloride with heat and mass recovery, which is approximately 1.6-3.5 times that of the best results of a conventional chemical adsorption ice maker

Policy alienation and work alienation: Two worlds apart?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L.G. Tummers (Lars); S. van Thiel (Sandra); A.J. Steijn (Bram); V.J.J.M. Bekkers (Victor)

2011-01-01

textabstractThe notion of work alienation has been fascinating scholars and practitioners for a long time. In recent years, a related concept has been developed in the public administration discipline: policy alienation, which examines the alienation of public professionals from the policy they have

Foxes, hedgehogs, and greenhouse governance: Knowledge, uncertainty, and international policy-making in a warming World

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Michel, David

2009-01-01

Global environmental challenges like greenhouse warming are characterized by profound uncertainties about the workings of complex systems, high stakes as to the costs and benefits of various possible actions, and important differences concerning the values that should shape public choices, confounding ready resolution by conventional decision-making procedures. So-called adaptive or reflexive governance strategies provide policy-makers an alternative framework for tackling the greenhouse problem. Adaptive governance employs deliberate experimentation and continuous learning-by-doing to test and adjust ongoing policy responses. Yet pursuing such approaches poses particular challenges to global climate cooperation. In an increasingly interdependent world, coordinating multiple parties experimentally adopting different climate measures could prove contentious. Unequivocal policy lessons may be difficult to draw and apply. Timely collective revisions to ongoing policies may prove more difficult still to define and agree. Advocates must engage these issues directly and develop means of addressing them if adaptive governance approaches are to allow policy-makers to formulate better strategies for combating climate change. (author)

Monitoring Values and Practices of Oak Woodland Decision Makers on the Urban Fringe

Science.gov (United States)

William Stewart

1991-01-01

Concern over oak woodlands has shifted away from ranch management towards residential areas. This shift has been accompanied by the involvement of decision makers who previously had little involvement with rangeland policies and practices. A survey of three recent Cooperative Extension workshops illustrates a number of important patterns regarding interest and...

Create the conditions - renewable energy and energy storage policies choices for island nations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Timmins, Thomas

2015-01-01

This fast moving, detailed presentation offers an in-depth look at the development, launch and renewal of renewable energy procurement programs worldwide, with an eye to (a) educating renewable energy policy makers and procurement program designers with up-to-date information on issues, investor concerns and trends from island nations around the globe, (b) informing industry participants and industry advocates regarding divergent public policy choices facing policy makers, and (c) helping industry stakeholders to assist public policy choice makers in formulating effective and sustainable policy choices. (full text)

New Measures of Teachers' Work Hours and Implications for Wage Comparisons

Science.gov (United States)

West, Kristine L.

2014-01-01

Researchers have good data on teachers' annual salaries but a hazy understanding of teachers' hours of work. This makes it difficult to calculate an accurate hourly wage and leads policy makers to default to anecdote rather than fact when debating teacher pay. Using data from the American Time Use Survey, I find that teachers work an average of…

Implementation of the EU-policy framework WFD and GWD in Europe - Activities of CIS Working Group Groundwater

Science.gov (United States)

Grath, Johannes; Ward, Rob; Hall, Anna

2013-04-01

At the European level, the basic elements for groundwater management and protection are laid down in the Water Framework Directive (WFD) (2000/60/EC) and the Groundwater Daughter Directive (2006/118/EC). EU Member States, Norway and the European Commission (EC) have jointly developed a common strategy for supporting the implementation of the WFD. The main aim of this Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) is to ensure the coherent and harmonious implementation of the directives through the clarification of a number of methodological questions enabling a common understanding to be reached on the technical and scientific implications of the WFD (European Communities, 2008). Groundwater specific issues are dealt with in Working Group C Groundwater. Members of the working group are experts nominated by Member states, Norway, Switzerland and Accession Countries (from administrative bodies, research institutes, …) and representatives from relevant stakeholders and NGOs. Working Group C Groundwater has produced numerous guidance documents and technical reports that have been endorsed by EU Water Directors to support and enable Member States to implement the directives. All the documents are published by the EC. Access is available via the following link: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/water-framework/groundwater/activities.htm Having addressed implementations issues during the 1st river basin planning cycle, WG C Groundwater is currently focussing on the following issues: groundwater dependent ecosystems, and climate change and groundwater. In the future, the outcome and recommendations of the "Blueprint" - to safeguard Europe's water resources - which was recently published by the EC will be of utmost importance in setting the agenda for the group. Most likely this will include water pricing, water demand management and water abstraction. Complementory to the particular working groups, a Science Policy Interface (SPI) activity has been established. Its purpose is

The mass balance of production and consumption: Supporting policy-makers for aquatic food security

Science.gov (United States)

Lopes, A. S.; Ferreira, J. G.; Vale, C.; Johansen, J.

2017-03-01

the world, well above both Malaysia and South Korea (each with 58 kg ind-1 y-1). The corrected data show that Portugal had the highest consumption rate in the world until the mid-1970's, when it was overtaken by Iceland for reasons discussed herein. The lack of detailed per-species consumption data, as well as the grouping of species by commodities, hinders a more detailed seafood consumption analysis, required by policy makers and stakeholders to effectively develop management measures to reduce illegal fishing or bycatch, and to correctly formulate strategic options for development of aquaculture and fisheries, necessary for ensuring food security over the next decades.

23 CFR 630.1106 - Policy and procedures for work zone safety management.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 23 Highways 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Policy and procedures for work zone safety management... Policy and procedures for work zone safety management. (a) Each agency's policy and processes, procedures, and/or guidance for the systematic consideration and management of work zone impacts, to be...

Social Policy in Social Work PhD Programs in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Lightfoot, Elizabeth; Gal, John; Weiss-Gal, Idit

2018-01-01

While there has been a long-standing concern about the role of policy within social work education and social work practice, most of the emphasis has been on social work education at the BSW and MSW levels. This article examines policy education at the PhD level. It first explores how policy is taught in social work PhD programs in the United…

Practice to Policy: Clinical psychologists' experiences of macro-level work

OpenAIRE

Browne, N.

2017-01-01

Many clinical psychologists are venturing beyond their traditional therapeutic roles to undertake macro-level work, engaging with social change, policy and public health. However, no research has systematically examined clinical psychologists’ roles in policy work and the implications for the profession. Part 1 of the thesis is a literature review of one area of macro-level policy aimed at improving the social determinants of mental health. It reviews nine intervention studies of housing impr...

Policies to support women’s paid work

OpenAIRE

Giannelli, Gianna Claudia

2015-01-01

Engaging in paid work is generally difficult for women in developing countries. Many women work unpaid in family businesses or on farms, are engaged in low-income self-employment activities, or work in low-paid wage employment. In some countries, vocational training or grants for starting a business have been effective policy tools for supporting women’s paid work. Mostly lacking, however, are job and business training programs that take into account how mothers’ employment affects child welf...

A Critical Assessment of Evidence-Based Policy and Practice in Social Work.

Science.gov (United States)

Diaz, Clive; Drewery, Sian

2016-01-01

In this article the authors consider how effective social work has been in terms of evidence-based policies and practice. They consider the role that "evidence" plays in policy making both in the wider context and, in particular, in relation to social work. The authors argue that there are numerous voices in the policy-making process and evidence only plays a minor role in terms of policy development and practice in social work.

Opening the black box of ethics policy work: evaluating a covert practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Frolic, Andrea; Drolet, Katherine; Bryanton, Kim; Caron, Carole; Cupido, Cynthia; Flaherty, Barb; Fung, Sylvia; McCall, Lori

2012-01-01

Hospital ethics committees (HECs) and ethicists generally describe themselves as engaged in four domains of practice: case consultation, research, education, and policy work. Despite the increasing attention to quality indicators, practice standards, and evaluation methods for the other domains, comparatively little is known or published about the policy work of HECs or ethicists. This article attempts to open the "black box" of this health care ethics practice by providing two detailed case examples of ethics policy reviews. We also describe the development and application of an evaluation strategy to assess the quality of ethics policy review work, and to enable continuous improvement of ethics policy review processes. Given the potential for policy work to impact entire patient populations and organizational systems, it is imperative that HECs and ethicists develop clearer roles, responsibilities, procedural standards, and evaluation methods to ensure the delivery of consistent, relevant, and high-quality ethics policy reviews.

Clarity versus complexity: land-use modeling as a practical tool for decision-makers

Science.gov (United States)

Sohl, Terry L.; Claggett, Peter

2013-01-01

The last decade has seen a remarkable increase in the number of modeling tools available to examine future land-use and land-cover (LULC) change. Integrated modeling frameworks, agent-based models, cellular automata approaches, and other modeling techniques have substantially improved the representation of complex LULC systems, with each method using a different strategy to address complexity. However, despite the development of new and better modeling tools, the use of these tools is limited for actual planning, decision-making, or policy-making purposes. LULC modelers have become very adept at creating tools for modeling LULC change, but complicated models and lack of transparency limit their utility for decision-makers. The complicated nature of many LULC models also makes it impractical or even impossible to perform a rigorous analysis of modeling uncertainty. This paper provides a review of land-cover modeling approaches and the issues causes by the complicated nature of models, and provides suggestions to facilitate the increased use of LULC models by decision-makers and other stakeholders. The utility of LULC models themselves can be improved by 1) providing model code and documentation, 2) through the use of scenario frameworks to frame overall uncertainties, 3) improving methods for generalizing key LULC processes most important to stakeholders, and 4) adopting more rigorous standards for validating models and quantifying uncertainty. Communication with decision-makers and other stakeholders can be improved by increasing stakeholder participation in all stages of the modeling process, increasing the transparency of model structure and uncertainties, and developing user-friendly decision-support systems to bridge the link between LULC science and policy. By considering these options, LULC science will be better positioned to support decision-makers and increase real-world application of LULC modeling results.

An analytical framework to assist decision makers in the use of forest ecosystem model predictions

Science.gov (United States)

Larocque, Guy R.; Bhatti, Jagtar S.; Ascough, J.C.; Liu, J.; Luckai, N.; Mailly, D.; Archambault, L.; Gordon, Andrew M.

2011-01-01

The predictions from most forest ecosystem models originate from deterministic simulations. However, few evaluation exercises for model outputs are performed by either model developers or users. This issue has important consequences for decision makers using these models to develop natural resource management policies, as they cannot evaluate the extent to which predictions stemming from the simulation of alternative management scenarios may result in significant environmental or economic differences. Various numerical methods, such as sensitivity/uncertainty analyses, or bootstrap methods, may be used to evaluate models and the errors associated with their outputs. However, the application of each of these methods carries unique challenges which decision makers do not necessarily understand; guidance is required when interpreting the output generated from each model. This paper proposes a decision flow chart in the form of an analytical framework to help decision makers apply, in an orderly fashion, different steps involved in examining the model outputs. The analytical framework is discussed with regard to the definition of problems and objectives and includes the following topics: model selection, identification of alternatives, modelling tasks and selecting alternatives for developing policy or implementing management scenarios. Its application is illustrated using an on-going exercise in developing silvicultural guidelines for a forest management enterprise in Ontario, Canada.

Experiences and attitudes towards evidence-informed policy-making among research and policy stakeholders in the Canadian agri-food public health sector.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, I; Gropp, K; Pintar, K; Waddell, L; Marshall, B; Thomas, K; McEwen, S A; Rajić, A

2014-12-01

Policy-makers working at the interface of agri-food and public health often deal with complex and cross-cutting issues that have broad health impacts and socio-economic implications. They have a responsibility to ensure that policy-making based on these issues is accountable and informed by the best available scientific evidence. We conducted a qualitative descriptive study of agri-food public health policy-makers and research and policy analysts in Ontario, Canada, to understand their perspectives on how the policy-making process is currently informed by scientific evidence and how to facilitate this process. Five focus groups of 3-7 participants and five-one-to-one interviews were held in 2012 with participants from federal and provincial government departments and industry organizations in the agri-food public health sector. We conducted a thematic analysis of the focus group and interview transcripts to identify overarching themes. Participants indicated that the following six key principles are necessary to enable and demonstrate evidence-informed policy-making (EIPM) in this sector: (i) establish and clarify the policy objectives and context; (ii) support policy-making with credible scientific evidence from different sources; (iii) integrate scientific evidence with other diverse policy inputs (e.g. economics, local applicability and stakeholder interests); (iv) ensure that scientific evidence is communicated by research and policy stakeholders in relevant and user-friendly formats; (V) create and foster interdisciplinary relationships and networks across research and policy communities; and (VI) enhance organizational capacity and individual skills for EIPM. Ongoing and planned efforts in these areas, a supportive culture, and additional education and training in both research and policy realms are important to facilitate evidence-informed policy-making in this sector. Future research should explore these findings further in other countries and contexts. �

Company Policies on Working Hours and Night Work in Relation to Older Workers’ Work Ability and Work Engagement: Results From a Dutch Longitudinal Study with 2 Year Follow-Up

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meer, L. van der; Leijten, F.R.; Heuvel, S.G. van den; Ybema, J.F.; Wind, A. de; Burdorf, A.; Geuskens, G.A.

2016-01-01

Purpose To longitudinally investigate (1) whether lower work ability and work engagement predict the use of company policies on reduced working hours and exemption from evening/night work among older workers, and (2) whether using such policies subsequently contribute to higher work ability and work

Policies and place-making for competitive cities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Musterd, S.; Kovács, Z.; Musterd, S.; Kovács, Z.

2013-01-01

Policy-makers are making efforts to strengthen the competitiveness of their cities and urban regions. This book is about these policies and their implications for place-making and competitive cities. Policies driven by ‘classic’ location theory, cluster policies, ‘creative class’ policies aimed at

"The Work Must Go On": The Role of Employee and Managerial Communication in the Use of Work-Life Policies.

Science.gov (United States)

Ter Hoeven, Claartje L; Miller, Vernon D; Peper, Bram; den Dulk, Laura

2017-05-01

The Netherlands is characterized by extensive national work-life regulations relative to the United States. Yet, Dutch employees do not always take advantage of existing work-life policies. Individual and focus group interviews with employees and managers in three (public and private) Dutch organizations identified how employee and managerial communication contributed to acquired rules concerning work-life policies and the interpretation of allocative and authoritative resources for policy enactment. Analyses revealed differences in employees' and managers' resistance to policy, the binds and dilemmas experienced, and the coordination of agreements and actions to complete workloads. There are also differences between public and private contexts in the enactment of national and organizational policies, revealing how national (e.g., gender) and organizational (e.g., concertive control) mechanisms play out in employee and managerial communication that determine the use of work-life policies.

Strategic and policy issues raised by the transition from thermal to fast nuclear systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-01-01

The renewed interest in nuclear energy triggered by concerns about global climate change and security of supply, which could lead to substantial growth in nuclear electricity generation, enhances the attractiveness of fast neutron reactors with closed fuel cycles. Moving from the current fleet of thermal neutron reactors to fast neutron systems will require many decades and extensive RD-D efforts. This book identifies and analyses key strategic and policy issues raised by such a transition, aiming at providing guidance to decision makers on the best approaches for implementing transition scenarios. The topics covered in this book will be of interest to government and nuclear industry policy makers as well as to specialists working on nuclear energy system analyses and advanced fuel cycle issues. (author)

The association between education and work stress: does the policy context matter?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thorsten Lunau

Full Text Available Several studies report socioeconomic differences in work stress, where people in lower socioeconomic positions (SEP are more likely to experience this burden. In the current study, we analyse associations between education and work stress in a large sample of workers from 16 European countries. In addition we explore whether distinct national labour market policies are related to smaller inequalities in work stress according to educational attainment.We use data collected in 2010/11 in two comparative studies ('Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe' and the 'English Longitudinal Study of Ageing'; N = 13695, with samples of men and women aged 50 to 64 from 16 European countries. We measure highest educational degree according to the international standard classification of education (ISCED and assess work stress in terms of the demand-control and the effort-reward imbalance model. National labour market policies are measured on the basis of policy indicators which are divided into (1 'protective' policies offering financial compensation to those excluded from the labour market (e.g. replacement rate, and (2 'integrative' policies supporting disadvantaged individuals on the labour market (e.g. investments into active labour market policies or possibilities for further qualification in later life. In addition to country-specific analyses, we estimate multilevel models and test for interactions between the indicators of national policies and individual education.Main findings demonstrate consistent associations between lower education and higher levels of work stress in all countries. The strength of this association, however, varies across countries and is comparatively small in countries offering pronounced 'integrative' policies, in terms of high investments into measures of an active labor market policy and high participation rates in lifelong learning activities.Our results point to different types of policies that may help to

The association between education and work stress: does the policy context matter?

Science.gov (United States)

Lunau, Thorsten; Siegrist, Johannes; Dragano, Nico; Wahrendorf, Morten

2015-01-01

Several studies report socioeconomic differences in work stress, where people in lower socioeconomic positions (SEP) are more likely to experience this burden. In the current study, we analyse associations between education and work stress in a large sample of workers from 16 European countries. In addition we explore whether distinct national labour market policies are related to smaller inequalities in work stress according to educational attainment. We use data collected in 2010/11 in two comparative studies ('Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe' and the 'English Longitudinal Study of Ageing'; N = 13695), with samples of men and women aged 50 to 64 from 16 European countries. We measure highest educational degree according to the international standard classification of education (ISCED) and assess work stress in terms of the demand-control and the effort-reward imbalance model. National labour market policies are measured on the basis of policy indicators which are divided into (1) 'protective' policies offering financial compensation to those excluded from the labour market (e.g. replacement rate), and (2) 'integrative' policies supporting disadvantaged individuals on the labour market (e.g. investments into active labour market policies or possibilities for further qualification in later life). In addition to country-specific analyses, we estimate multilevel models and test for interactions between the indicators of national policies and individual education. Main findings demonstrate consistent associations between lower education and higher levels of work stress in all countries. The strength of this association, however, varies across countries and is comparatively small in countries offering pronounced 'integrative' policies, in terms of high investments into measures of an active labor market policy and high participation rates in lifelong learning activities. Our results point to different types of policies that may help to reduce

Climate change science and the development of environment/energy policies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernabo, J.C.

1994-01-01

For the past decade climate research in the US has focused on long-term-understanding of earth systems rather than addressing the more immediate information needs of decision makers, such as information on impacts and solutions. During the Bush Administration, the primary objective was to determine if there was a problem, with little emphasis on developing information on what to do about the issue. The Clinton Administration is trying to refocus research to assist more effectively in decision making. This reevaluation is part of the post-Cold War shift toward funding federal research based more explicitly on the relevancy to societal needs. The Joint Climate Project to Address Decision Makers' Uncertainties was sponsored by EPRI, DOE, DOI, EPA, USDA, and USFS to assess what information is most relevant for decision making and how research could address those needs. The results of this stakeholders' needs assessment are being used to help reorient the federal program. Decision makers' priorities include greater emphasis on impacts and responses. More work is required in the ecological and social sciences to provide information for policy making. Researchers periodically need to provide interim information and policy-relevant assessments while continuing to improve long-term scientific understanding

Bridging Science and Policy: The AGU Science Policy Conference

Science.gov (United States)

Hankin, E. R.; Uhlenbrock, K.; Landau, E. A.

2013-12-01

In recent years, science has become inextricably linked to the political process. As such, it is more important now than ever for science to forge a better relationship with politics, for the health of both science and society. To help meet this need, the American Geophysical Union (AGU) strives to engage its members, shape policy, and inform society about the excitement of Earth and space science and its role in developing solutions for the sustainability of the planet. In June 2013, AGU held its second annual Science Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. The goal of the conference is to provide a new forum for diverse discussions and viewpoints on the challenges and opportunities of science policy, with a focus on applications of Earth and space science that serve local, national, and international communities. The meeting brought together more than 300 scientists, policy makers, industry professionals, members of the press, and other stakeholders to discuss the topics concerning the Arctic, climate change, oceans, energy, technology and infrastructure, and natural hazards science as they relate to challenges impacting society. Sessions such as 'The Water-Energy Nexus,' 'Potential for Megadisasters,' 'The Changing Ocean and Impacts on Human Health,' and 'Drowning and Drought: Agricultural Impacts of Climate Change' are examples of some of the intriguing and timely science policy issues addressed at the conference. The findings from the conference were used to develop a summary report. The report highlights key facts and figures to be used as a resource in discussions with policy makers and other stakeholders regarding the conference topics. This presentation will discuss the goals and outcomes of the conference and how the event represents one of the many ways AGU is approaching its 'Science and Society' priority objective as part of the Union's strategic plan; namely by increasing the effectiveness and recognition of AGU among policy makers as an authoritative

Patron Time-Use May Be an Effective Metric for Presenting Library Value to Policy Makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ann Glusker

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Objective – To test a metric for library use, that could be comparable to metrics used by competing government departments, for ease of understanding by policy makers. Design – Four types of data were collected and used: Time-diaries, exit surveys, gate counts, and circulation statistics. Setting – A large public library in British Columbia, Canada. Subjects – Time-diary subjects were 445 patrons checking out materials; exit survey subjects were 185 patrons leaving the library. Methods – A paper-based time diary, prototypes of which were tested, was given to patrons who checked out library materials during a one-week period. These patrons were charged with recording the use of the checked-out items during the entire three-week loan period. From this information, the average number of hours spent with various types of loaned material (print and audio/DVD was calculated. The average number of hours spent per item type was then applied to the circulation statistics for those items, across a month, to get a total of hours spent using all circulated material during that month. During the same one-week period of time-diary distribution, exit surveys were conducted by library staff with patrons leaving the library, asking them how long they had spent in the library during their current visit. The average number of minutes per visit was calculated and then applied to the gate count for the month, to get a total number of minutes/hours spent “resident” in the library that month. Adding the totals, a grand total of patron time-use hours was calculated. A monetary value was applied per hour, using the results of a contingent valuation study from Missoula, Montana (Dalenberg et al., 2004, in order to convert hours of library benefit into a dollar figure. Main Results – There was a 24% response rate for the time diaries (106/445. The diary entries yielded an average of 3.5 hours of time-use per print item, and 1.9 hours per DVD. The range for

Moldova: Background and U.S. Policy

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Woehrel, Steven

2004-01-01

.... policy makers, including trafficking in persons and weapons. This short report provides information and analysis on Moldova, including its political and economic situation, foreign policy, and on U.S...

Moldova: Background and U.S. Policy

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Woehrel, Steven

2005-01-01

.... policy makers, including trafficking in persons and weapons. This short report provides information and analysis on Moldova, including its political and economic situation, foreign policy, and on U.S...

Pragmatism and Nationalism: Industrialization Policy in Indonesia and Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmad Helmy Fuady

2015-04-01

Full Text Available This paper examines industrialization policy in two oil giant economies, Indonesia and Nigeria. What are the key features of continued economic divergence in these two countries since the 1980s? It shows that Indonesia’s policy-makers adopted a series of liberalization measures and switched to an export-oriented strategy to develop manufacturing industries from the mid-1980s, while Nigeria’s policy-makers was reluctant to do so. This paper also seeks to understand the rationale behind the different policy choices. This paper argues that policy-makers’ experience and educational background are possible explanation to the different industrialization policies in these two countries.

Flexible employment policies and working conditions: the Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Klein Hesselink, D.J.; Miedema, E.; Goudswaard, A.; Kraan, K.O.

2000-01-01

The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions has commissioned a research project to analyse the impact of flexible employment policies and human resources management on working conditions at the corporate level. Research institutes of seven countries participate in

The effects of work alienation and policy alienation on behavior of public employees

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L.G. Tummers (Lars); V.J.J.M. Bekkers (Victor); S. van Thiel (Sandra); A.J. Steijn (Bram)

2015-01-01

textabstractPublic employees are confronted with various pressures, such as increased work demands and the need to implement controversial policies. This study uses work alienation and policy alienation models to analyze work and policy pressures. Based on a survey of 790 respondents, it was firstly

Work-life policies for faculty at the top ten medical schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Bristol, Mirar N; Abbuhl, Stephanie; Cappola, Anne R; Sonnad, Seema S

2008-10-01

There exists a growing consensus that career flexibility is critical to recruiting and retaining talented faculty, especially women faculty. This study was designed to determine both accessibility and content of work-life policies for faculty at leading medical schools in the United States. The sample includes the top ten medical schools in the United States published by U.S. News and World Report in August 2006. We followed a standardized protocol to collect seven work-life policies at each school: maternity leave, paternity leave, adoption leave, extension of the probationary period for family responsibilities, part-time faculty appointments, job sharing, and child care. A review of information provided on school websites was followed by e-mail or phone contact if needed. A rating system of 0-3 (low to high flexibility) developed by the authors was applied to these policies. Rating reflected flexibility and existing opinions in published literature. Policies were often difficult to access. Individual scores ranged from 7 to 15 out of a possible 21 points. Extension of the probationary period received the highest cumulative score across schools, and job sharing received the lowest cumulative score. For each policy, there were important differences among schools. Work-life policies showed considerable variation across schools. Policy information is difficult to access, often requiring multiple sources. Institutions that develop flexible work-life policies that are widely promoted, implemented, monitored, and reassessed are likely at an advantage in attracting and retaining faculty while advancing institutional excellence.

Are Sexual and Reproductive Health Policies Designed for All? Vulnerable Groups in Policy Documents of Four European Countries and Their Involvement in Policy Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Ivanova, Olena; Dræbel, Tania; Tellier, Siri

2015-08-12

Health policies are important instruments for improving population health. However, experience suggests that policies designed for the whole population do not always benefit the most vulnerable. Participation of vulnerable groups in the policy-making process provides an opportunity for them to influence decisions related to their health, and also to exercise their rights. This paper presents the findings from a study that explored how vulnerable groups and principles of human rights are incorporated into national sexual and reproductive health (SRH) policies of 4 selected countries (Spain, Scotland, Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine). It also aimed at discussing the involvement of vulnerable groups in SRH policy development from the perspective of policy-makers. Literature review, health policy analysis and 5 semi-structured interviews with policy-makers were carried out in this study. Content analysis of SRH policies was performed using the EquiFrame analytical framework. The study revealed that vulnerable groups and core principles of human rights are differently addressed in SRH policies within 4 studied countries. The opinions of policy-makers on the importance of mentioning vulnerable groups in policy documents and the way they ought to be mentioned varied, but they agreed that a clear definition of vulnerability, practical examples, and evidences on health status of these groups have to be included. In addition, different approaches to vulnerable group's involvement in policy development were identified during the interviews and the range of obstacles to this process was discussed by respondents. Incorporation of vulnerable groups in the SRH policies and their involvement in policy development were found to be important in addressing SRH of these groups and providing an opportunity for them to advocate for equal access to healthcare and exercise their rights. Future research on this topic should include representatives of vulnerable communities which could

The Effects of Work Alienation and Policy Alienation on Behavior of Public Employees

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tummers, L.G.; Bekkers, V.; Thiel, S. van; Steijn, B.

2015-01-01

Public employees are confronted with various pressures, such as increased work demands and the need to implement controversial policies. This study uses work alienation and policy alienation models to analyze work and policy pressures. Based on a survey of 790 respondents, it was first found that

The effects of work alienation and policy alienation on behavior of public employees

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tummers, L.G.; Bekkers, V.J.J.M.; van Thiel, S.; Steijn, A.J.

2015-01-01

Public employees are confronted with various pressures, such as increased work demands and the need to implement controversial policies. This study uses work alienation and policy alienation models to analyze work and policy pressures. Based on a survey of 790 respondents, it was firstly found that

Science and technology policy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Who is responsible for environmental and technological policy in Denmark? And how are those "policy-makers" made accountable to the public for their decisions?   This report attempts to answer these important questions by presenting the Danish contribution to the EU-funded project, Analysing Public...

75 FR 49508 - Recovery Policy, RP9525.7, Labor Costs-Emergency Work

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-13

...] Recovery Policy, RP9525.7, Labor Costs--Emergency Work AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS... (FEMA) is accepting comments on RP9525.7, Labor Costs--Emergency Work. This is an existing policy that is scheduled for review to ensure that Recovery Directorate policies are up to date, incorporate...

Domestic petroleum product pricing policy: Old issues in new perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhattacharyya, S.C.

1995-01-01

It appears that the economic basis of domestic petroleum product pacing has, hitherto, received inadequate attention from economists. International comparisons of petroleum product pricing show that domestic markets are highly distorted This article argues that despite significant developments in theoretical and applied economics, economic theories do not provide any ready made solutions for energy pricing issues to the policy makers who have to deal with a large set of practical issues. As a result, it is not unusual to encounter gross misapplication of economic rules in petroleum pricing policies. This work also focuses on the possible effects of changing domestic market structure vis-a-vis pricing policies

Company Policies on Working Hours and Night Work in Relation to Older Workers' Work Ability and Work Engagement : Results From a Dutch Longitudinal Study with 2 Year Follow-Up

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Meer, Laudry; Leijten, Fenna R M; Heuvel, Swenneke G; Ybema, J.F.; de Wind, Astrid; Burdorf, Alex; Geuskens, Goedele A

2016-01-01

Purpose To longitudinally investigate (1) whether lower work ability and work engagement predict the use of company policies on reduced working hours and exemption from evening/night work among older workers, and (2) whether using such policies subsequently contribute to higher work ability and work

Cancer beliefs and prevention policies: comparing Canadian decision-maker and general population views.

Science.gov (United States)

Nykiforuk, Candace I J; Wild, T Cameron; Raine, Kim D

2014-12-01

The knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs of key policy influencers and the general public can support or hinder the development of public policies that support cancer prevention. To address gaps in knowledge concerning healthy public policy development, views on cancer causation and endorsement of policy alternatives for cancer prevention among government influencers (elected members of legislative assemblies and senior ministry bureaucrats), non-governmental influencers (school board chairs and superintendents, print media editors and reporters, and workplace presidents and senior human resource managers), and the general public were compared. Two structured surveys, one administered to a convenience sample of policy influencers (government and non-governmental) and the other to a randomly selected sample of the general public, were used. The aim of these surveys was to understand knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs regarding health promotion principles and the priority and acceptability of policy actions to prevent four behavioral risk factors for cancer (tobacco use, alcohol misuse, unhealthy eating, and physical inactivity). Surveys were administered in Alberta and Manitoba, two comparable Canadian provinces. Although all groups demonstrated higher levels of support for individualistic policies (e.g., health education campaigns) than for fiscal and legislative measures, the general public expressed consistently greater support than policy influencers for using evidence-based policies (e.g., tax incentives or subsidies for healthy behaviors). These results suggest that Canadian policy influencers may be less open that the general public to adopt healthy public policies for cancer prevention, with potential detriment to cancer rates.

Toward an Innovation Policy for Pakistan

OpenAIRE

Speakman, John; Afzal, Kiran; Yuge, Yasuhiko; Hanna, James

2012-01-01

This policy paper aims to assist policy makers, as they develop the Pakistan Innovation Policy, with an independent assessment of where Pakistan stands now, an international perspective on policy priorities, a review of policy options and some implementation and institutional perspectives. The paper begins with a review of the key lessons of international experience together with a study of ...

Política de autogestión hospitalaria en Chile: percepciones de los tomadores de decisiones Hospital self-management policy in Chile: perceptions of decision-makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claudio A. Méndez

2013-01-01

Full Text Available OBJETIVO: Conocer las percepciones de los tomadores de decisiones respecto de la etapa de implementación de la política de autogestión hospitalaria en dos hospitales de alta complejidad del sur de Chile. MÉTODOS: Se realizó un estudio cualitativo descriptivo y exploratorio basado en entrevistas semiestructuradas en profundidad a tomadores de decisiones de los hospitales Regional de la ciudad de Valdivia y San José de la ciudad de Osorno, durante el período de agosto de 2010 a diciembre de 2011. Se seleccionó una muestra por conveniencia de 26 tomadores de decisiones. Las 26 entrevistas fueron grabadas y transcritas en forma literal. El análisis de la información se hizo utilizando la técnica de análisis de contenido, en su aproximación inductiva. RESULTADOS: Para los entrevistados, la conceptualización de la autogestión está determinada por la autonomía para la toma de decisiones respecto de la asignación de recursos y el financiamiento de la provisión de servicios de salud en las instituciones hospitalarias. También manifestaron que para mejorar la etapa de implementación se deben incluir políticas de recursos humanos y de financiamiento de la función de provisión de servicios de salud. A las debilidades, por su parte, las relacionaron con la ausencia de capacidades organizacionales y competencias gerenciales de los equipos de salud para la implementación de los cambios. CONCLUSIONES: La política de autogestión hospitalaria es conceptualizada desde la autonomía financiera, y su implementación está determinada por las brechas de capacidad que persisten en el diseño de la política.OBJECTIVE: To learn the perceptions of decision-makers concerning the imple­men­t­ation stage of a hospital self-management policy in two highly complex hospitals in southern Chile. METHODS: A descriptive, exploratory, qualitative study based on semi-structured in-depth interviews of decision-makers at the Regional Hospital of Valdivia

Enhancing the Resilience of the Australian National Electricity Market: Taking a Systems Approach in Policy Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Barry Newell

2011-06-01

Full Text Available As the complexity and interconnectedness of present-day social-ecological systems become steadily more apparent, there is increasing pressure on governments, policy makers, and managers to take a systems approach to the challenges facing humanity. However, how can this be done in the face of system complexity and uncertainties? In this paper we briefly discuss practical ways that policy makers can take up the systems challenge. We focus on resilience thinking, and the use of influence diagrams, causal-loop diagrams, and system archetypes. As a case study, set in the context of the climate-energy-water nexus, we use some of these system concepts and tools to carry out an initial exploration of factors that can affect the resilience of the Australian National Electricity Market. We stress the need for the electricity sector to prepare for the impacts of global change by encouraging innovation and diversity, supporting modularity and redundancy, and embracing the need for a policy making approach that takes account of the dynamics of the wider social-ecological system. Finally, taking a longer term view, we conclude by recommending that policy makers work to reduce reliance on conventional market mechanisms, institute continuing cross-sector dialogue, and promote basic education in system dynamics.

Policy Review on Adult Learning: The Adult Non-Formal Education Policy of Mali, West Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Gadio, Moussa

2011-01-01

This article focuses on the issue of policy development for adult learning in Mali, West Africa. On January 2007, the Malian government adopted the "Adult Non-formal Education Policy Document," which was intended to regulate the adult learning sector and federate the actions of policy makers, adult education providers, and adult…

The Association between Education and Work Stress: Does the Policy Context Matter?

Science.gov (United States)

Lunau, Thorsten; Siegrist, Johannes; Dragano, Nico; Wahrendorf, Morten

2015-01-01

Objectives Several studies report socioeconomic differences in work stress, where people in lower socioeconomic positions (SEP) are more likely to experience this burden. In the current study, we analyse associations between education and work stress in a large sample of workers from 16 European countries. In addition we explore whether distinct national labour market policies are related to smaller inequalities in work stress according to educational attainment. Methods We use data collected in 2010/11 in two comparative studies (‘Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe’ and the ‘English Longitudinal Study of Ageing’; N = 13695), with samples of men and women aged 50 to 64 from 16 European countries. We measure highest educational degree according to the international standard classification of education (ISCED) and assess work stress in terms of the demand-control and the effort-reward imbalance model. National labour market policies are measured on the basis of policy indicators which are divided into (1) ‘protective’ policies offering financial compensation to those excluded from the labour market (e.g. replacement rate), and (2) ‘integrative’ policies supporting disadvantaged individuals on the labour market (e.g. investments into active labour market policies or possibilities for further qualification in later life). In addition to country-specific analyses, we estimate multilevel models and test for interactions between the indicators of national policies and individual education. Results Main findings demonstrate consistent associations between lower education and higher levels of work stress in all countries. The strength of this association, however, varies across countries and is comparatively small in countries offering pronounced ‘integrative’ policies, in terms of high investments into measures of an active labor market policy and high participation rates in lifelong learning activities. Conclusions Our results point to

Use of national clinical databases for informing and for evaluating health care policies.

Science.gov (United States)

Black, Nick; Tan, Stefanie

2013-02-01

Policy-makers and analysts could make use of national clinical databases either to inform or to evaluate meso-level (organisation and delivery of health care) and macro-level (national) policies. Reviewing the use of 15 of the best established databases in England, we identify and describe four published examples of each use. These show that policy-makers can either make use of the data itself or of research based on the database. For evaluating policies, the major advantages are the huge sample sizes available, the generalisability of the data, its immediate availability and historic information. The principal methodological challenges involve the need for risk adjustment and time-series analysis. Given their usefulness in the policy arena, there are several reasons why national clinical databases have not been used more, some due to a lack of 'push' by their custodians and some to the lack of 'pull' by policy-makers. Greater exploitation of these valuable resources would be facilitated by policy-makers' and custodians' increased awareness, minimisation of legal restrictions on data use, improvements in the quality of databases and a library of examples of applications to policy. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Barriers to optimizing investments in the built environment to reduce youth obesity: policy-maker perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, Jill L; MacKay, Kathryn C; Manuel, Patricia M; McHugh, Tara-Leigh F

2010-01-01

To identify factors which limit the ability of local governments to make appropriate investments in the built environment to promote youth health and reduce obesity outcomes in Atlantic Canada. Policy-makers and professionals participated in focus groups to discuss the receptiveness of local governments to introducing health considerations into decision-making. Seven facilitated focus groups involved 44 participants from Atlantic Canada. Thematic discourse analysis of the meeting transcripts identified systemic barriers to creating a built environment that fosters health for youth aged 12-15 years. Participants consistently identified four categories of barriers. Financial barriers limit the capacities of local government to build, maintain and operate appropriate facilities. Legacy issues mean that communities inherit a built environment designed to facilitate car use, with inadequate zoning authority to control fast food outlets, and without the means to determine where schools are built or how they are used. Governance barriers derive from government departments with distinct and competing mandates, with a professional structure that privileges engineering, and with funding programs that encourage competition between municipalities. Cultural factors and values affect outcomes: people have adapted to car-oriented living; poverty reduces options for many families; parental fears limit children's mobility; youth receive limited priority in built environment investments. Participants indicated that health issues have increasing profile within local government, making this an opportune time to discuss strategies for optimizing investments in the built environment. The focus group method can foster mutual learning among professionals within government in ways that could advance health promotion.

Enhancing the contribution of research to health care policy-making: a case study of the Dutch Health Care Performance Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Hegger, Ingrid; Marks, Lisanne K; Janssen, Susan W J; Schuit, Albertine J; van Oers, Hans A M

2016-01-01

The Dutch Health Care Performance Report, issued by the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, aims to monitor health care performance in The Netherlands. Both the National Institute and the Ministry of Health wish to increase the contribution of the Report to health care policy-making. Our aim was to identify ways to achieve that. We used contribution mapping as a theoretical framework that recognizes alignment of research as crucial to managing contributions to policy-making. To investigate which areas need alignment efforts by researchers and/or policy-makers, we interviewed National Institute researchers and policy-makers from the Ministry of Health and assessed the process for developing the 2010 Report. We identified six areas where alignment is specifically relevant for enhancing the contributions of future versions of the Dutch Health Care Performance Report: well-balanced information for different ministerial directorates; backstage work; double role actors; reports of other knowledge institutes; data collection/generation and presentation forms. The contribution of health care performance reporting to policy-making is complex and requires continuous alignment efforts between researchers and policy-makers. These efforts should form an inseparable part of health care performance reporting and although this demands considerable resources, it is worth considering since it may pay back in better contributions to policy-making. © The Author(s) 2015.

The research, policy and practice interface: reflections on using applied social research to promote equity in health in Malawi.

Science.gov (United States)

Theobald, Sally; Nhlema-Simwaka, Bertha

2008-09-01

The case for research to promote equity in health in resource poor contexts such as Malawi is compelling. In Malawi, nearly half of all the people with tuberculosis cannot afford to access free tuberculosis services. In this scenario, there is a clear need to understand the multiple barriers poor women and men face in accessing services and pilot interventions to address these in a way that engages policy makers, practitioners and communities. This paper provides a critical reflection on our experience as applied social researchers working at the REACH (Research for Equity and Community Health) Trust in Malawi. Our work largely uses qualitative research methodologies as a tool for applied social research to explore the equity dimensions of health services in the country. We argue that a key strength of qualitative research methods and analysis is the ability to bring the perceptions and experiences of marginalised groups to policy makers and practitioners. The focus of this paper is two-fold. The first focus lies in synthesising the opportunities and challenges we have encountered in promoting the use of applied social research, and in particular qualitative research methods, on TB and HIV in Malawi. The second focus is on documenting and reflecting on our experiences of using applied social research to promote gender equity in TB/HIV policy and practice in Malawi. In this paper, we reflect on the strategic frameworks we have used in the Malawian context to try and bring the voices of poor women and men to policy makers and practitioners and hence intensify the research to policy and practice interface.

Flexible working policies and environments in UK Local Authorities: current practice

OpenAIRE

Price, Ilfryn

2001-01-01

The research surveys the uptake of 'modern' or flexible working practices in UK Local Authorities, especially as it impacts on property and office accommodation.\\ud Nearly all permit flexible starting and finishing times for as many employees as is practical while forms of accredited hours working for at least some appropriate employees are policy in a majority. Flexible practices with property and ICT implications, working from home without a dedicated work station, formal policies, 'hot' de...

Integrated Assessment of the Policy of Working Capital Management in Housing and Utilities Enterprises

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vladimir Petrovich Poluyanov

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The article describes the approaches to the management of current assets in the enterprises of various industries in economic literature. We discuss theoretical, methodological and applied issues concerning the formation and improvement of the working capital management policy in utility companies, which require further study. The authors propose to assess the policy of working capital management in these enterprises by means of the integrated approach based on the system of reasoned indicators defining the type of working capital management policy. It includes indicators characterizing the policy of working capital management, management of the liquidity of working capital and the policy of financing sources management. The indicators which define the type of the policy of working capital management have been chosen as the most influential for each vector of the improvement of management policy. The range of values is set taking into account the current market conditions for the housing and utilities companies based on theoretical standard values adapted to modern situation. The paper proposes to use an integrated indicator for the evaluation of the policy of working capital management in housing and utilities enterprises. We have substantiated the technique of the integrated assessment of the policy of working capital management in housing and utilities companies. As an example of the application of this indicator, we defined the type of the policy of working capital management in Rostovvodokanal Company. The initial data for the calculation of integrated indicators are the official data on the structure of the balance and financial results of Rostovvodokanal Company during the period from 2012 to 2016. At the Rostovvodokanal Company, it is necessary to bring the type of the policy of working capital management and sources of its financing closer to moderate or conservative type. The authors have substantiated the optimal type of policy of

Integrating Deliberative Justice Theory into Social Work Policy Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Morrow, Helen

2011-01-01

Deliberation that upholds the social work values of justice and inclusion is an essential component of the policy-making process; yet most social welfare policy curricula focus instead on the goals of distributive justice. This article presents a model that demonstrates how deliberative justice can be easily incorporated into beginning level…

A Mysterious European Threesome: Work-care Regimes, Policies and Gender

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anália Torres

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Arguing that European family lives are affected by many societal factors, this article discusses the interplay between three sets of phenomena: the management of work and care responsibilities, workcarepolicies and regimes, and gender order within the family context. Based on discussions about orientations to work and care, we compare European countries and analyze regularities and singularities among them. Identifying and assessing the interplay between structural, institutional and cultural determinants of orientations we try to explain country diversity mobilizing data from the European Social Survey (rounds 2002, 2004 and 2006 and data from Eurobarometer 2003.The paper is organized around three analytical axes. First, we nalyze how work and family orientations are perceived by the Europeans. Secondly, we assess different European political policies regarding work and care arrangements, the outcome being a proposal for a workcare political typology. And finally we discuss the connectionsbetween those policies and the production or reproduction of gender order within the family. We conclude that in countries with more egalitarian gender values and policies targeted at workcarearrangements, individuals experience less workfamily conflict. Conversely, in countries with more traditional gender values and restricted or disadvantaged policies we found more familyworkconflict. But institutional constraints don’t act alone: orientations to work and care differ according to age, education, family forms and employment status.

Compulsory Attendance Policies: About Age or Intervention? SREB Focus Report

Science.gov (United States)

Grove, Jeffrey

2014-01-01

Over the past decade, SREB state policy-makers have focused on actions to reduce dropout rates and increase high school graduation rates. Some policy-makers have suggested that raising their state's compulsory attendance age (often called the dropout age) to require students to stay in school until age 17 or 18 is an important step. However,…

Why Social Policy Needs Objective Indicators

NARCIS (Netherlands)

R. Veenhoven (Ruut)

2002-01-01

textabstractThere are many qualms about subjective indicators, and some believe that social policy would be better for not using them. This paper consists of a review of these objections. It is argued that policy makers need subjective indicators. The main reasons being: 1. Social policy is never

Beginning RPG Maker VX Ace

CERN Document Server

Perez, Darrin

2014-01-01

Beginning RPG Maker VX Ace takes you through the process of using the RPG Maker VX Ace game development engine to create your very own role playing game. The book has been designed with the complete beginner in mind who has little to no experience with the engine. Tutorials and exercises will take you from installing the software to putting the final touches upon your first project. Game design can be quite a daunting challenge, as it generally involves a large amount of programming know-how on top of having to plan everything out that makes a good game what it is. RPG Maker VX Ace

Promoting Election-Related Policy Practice among Social Work Students

Science.gov (United States)

Pritzker, Suzanne; Burwell, Christianna

2016-01-01

Political involvement is an integral component of the social work profession, yet there is no explicit reference to social work participation in election-related activities in either the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics or the Council on Social Work Education Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. Social work…

Developing effective policy strategies to retain health workers in rural Bangladesh: a policy analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Rawal, Lal B; Joarder, Taufique; Islam, Sheikh Md Shariful; Uddin, Aftab; Ahmed, Syed Masud

2015-05-20

Retention of human resources for health (HRH), particularly physicians and nurses in rural and remote areas, is a major problem in Bangladesh. We reviewed relevant policies and provisions in relation to HRH aiming to develop appropriate rural retention strategies in Bangladesh. We conducted a document review, thorough search and review of relevant literature published from 1971 through May 2013, key informant interviews with policy elites (health policy makers, managers, researchers, etc.), and a roundtable discussion with key stakeholders and policy makers. We used the World Health Organization's (WHO's) guidelines as an analytical matrix to examine the rural retention policies under 4 domains, i) educational, ii) regulatory, iii) financial, and iv) professional and personal development, and 16 sub-domains. Over the past four decades, Bangladesh has developed and implemented a number of health-related policies and provisions concerning retention of HRH. The district quota system in admissions is in practice to improve geographical representation of the students. Students of special background including children of freedom fighters and tribal population have allocated quotas. In private medical and nursing schools, at least 5% of seats are allocated for scholarships. Medical education has a provision for clinical rotation in rural health facilities. Further, in the public sector, every newly recruited medical doctor must serve at least 2 years at the upazila level. To encourage serving in hard-to-reach areas, particularly in three Hill Tract districts of Chittagong division, the government provides an additional 33% of the basic salary, but not exceeding US$ 38 per month. This amount is not attractive enough, and such provision is absent for those working in other rural areas. Although the government has career development and promotion plans for doctors and nurses, these plans are often not clearly specified and not implemented effectively. The government is

The Wellbeing of Financial Counselors: A Study of Work Stress and Job Satisfaction

Science.gov (United States)

Griffiths, Margaret F.; Baxter, Stacey M.; Townley-Jones, Maureen E.

2011-01-01

The valuable social and economic contribution of financial counselors receives little public attention, as discourse related to consumer credit and debt invariably focuses on the impacts of consumer defaults for consumers and the broader community. Policy makers and organizations sustaining the work of financial counselors must ensure they care…

Workplace Policies and Mental Health among Working-Class, New Parents

OpenAIRE

Perry-Jenkins, Maureen; Smith, JuliAnna Z.; Wadsworth, Lauren Page; Halpern, Hillary Paul

2016-01-01

Little research has explored linkages between workplace policies and mental health in working-class, employed parents, creating a gap in our knowledge of work-family issues across social class levels. The current U.S. study addresses this gap by employing hierarchical linear modeling techniques to examine how workplace policies and parental leave benefits predicted parents' depressive symptoms and anxiety in a sample of 125, low-income, dual-earner couples interviewed across the transition to...

Conflict between Work and Family: An Investigation of Four Policy Measures

Science.gov (United States)

Ruppanner, Leah

2013-01-01

Welfare states enact a range of policies aimed at reducing work-family conflict. While welfare state policies have been assessed at the macro-level and work-family conflict at the individual-level, few studies have simultaneously addressed these relationships in a cross-national multi-level model. This study addresses this void by assessing the…

Climate change and local policy. Report of the workshop 2 December 1998, KIT, Amsterdam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schol, E.; Van Vuuren, V.C.; Burger, H.

1999-01-01

The objective of the title workshop was to exchange knowledge among Dutch experts and local policy makers on the possibilities for cities to reduce their CO 2 -emissions. The workshop was subdivided into three working groups: (1) Monitoring and Benchmarking; (2) Liberalization of the Energy Market; and (3) Mobilization of the Target Groups

They aren't all first cousins: Bedouin marriage and health policies in Lebanon.

Science.gov (United States)

Mansour, Nisrine; Chatty, Dawn; El-Kak, Faysal; Yassin, Nasser

2014-01-01

Fertility and consanguineous marriages among the Bedouin tribes of the Middle East have long generated interest particularly around health outcomes and social relations. In particular, Bedouin in Lebanon have increasingly embraced the Lebanese national bio-medical health system in the past two decades, while Lebanese policy-makers' responses continue to be minimal and ill-informed. This paper investigates the mismatch between policy-makers' formulations of Bedouin consanguineous marriages and the Bedouins's actual reproductive practices and discusses the implications of these formulations on the Bedouins's access to health services. The findings are drawn from the data collected as part of the Bedouin Health Project, an EU-funded five-year study (2005-2010), aiming at assessing access to reproductive and child health care among the Bedouin in Lebanon. The data was collected from 6 clusters representing the main Bedouin informal and unrecognized settlements in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon. The data consists of 111 socioeconomic questionnaires with Bedouin women users of local public, private, and nongovernmental reproductive and child health-focused clinics, in addition to 40 in-depth interviews with Bedouin women across the clusters and 17 semi-structured interviews with policy-makers. The findings suggest a gap between the perceptions of policy-makers and the incidence of consanguineous marriages and reproductive practices among the Bedouin. While there was no national data available for the Bedouin populations, policy-makers relied on a constructed 'Bedouin reproductive profile' that portrayed them as 'a problematic health group'. The national policy formulation of the Bedouin reproductive profile has an exclusionary impact on the Bedouin population as they are ignored from any targeted health policies or provided with politically motivated palliative care provision. These findings highlight the importance of addressing stereotyping and discrimination among health

Policy and identity change in youth social work

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vitus, Kathrine

2017-01-01

_ Summary: This article analyses – by drawing on ideology critical and psychoanalytical concepts from Slavoj Zizek and Glynos et al. – how political, social and fantasmatic logics interplay and form social workers’ professional identities within two youth social work institutions that operate...... within different social policy paradigms: a socialinterventionist paradigm in 2002 and a neoliberal paradigm in 2010. _ Findings: The article shows how the current neoliberalisation of public policy permeates social work practices through fantasmatic narratives that create professional identities to heal...... discrepancies in and conceal the political dimension of everyday life. In one institution, within a welfare state-based ideology a compensating-including social professional identity is created in response to the young people’s alleged deficiencies; in the other institution, within a neoliberal ideology...

Environmental research organizations and climate change policy analytical capacity : an assessment of the Canadian case

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Howlett, M.; Oliphant, S.

2010-01-01

Climate change is a topic of increasing interest to contemporary decision makers. In order for governments to make informed decisions in climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts, environmental policy makers require strong research and analytical capabilities to design and implement effective policies to deal with wide-ranging and complex policy issues. This articles presented a 7-criteria model of policy analytical capacity (PAC) and applied it to 3 prominent Canadian environmental policy research organizations. The 2 governmental organizations examined in this study were Environment Canada and the British Columbia Ministry of the Environment, while the non-government organization was the David Suzuki Foundation. Following the 7 principles that determine the PAC of an organization, each case study examined the education/training of the organization's employees; the types and mix of policy analysis techniques used by the organization; the culture and structure of decision making in the organization; the nature and source of demand for the organization's research; and the organization's access to necessary data and information to conduct work at a high level of competence. Interview data provided information on the status of each organizations' current research capacity and the effect this has on overall government policy-making capability in the face of climate change challenges. 75 refs.

Enacting Policy: The Capacity of School Leaders to Support Early Career Teachers through Policy Work

Science.gov (United States)

Sullivan, Anna M.; Morrison, Chad

2014-01-01

Early career teachers often feel overwhelmed by the complex, intense and unpredictable nature of their work. Recently, policy initiatives have been introduced to provide new teachers with extra release-time from face-to-face classroom teaching duties to assist them in their transition to the workforce. This paper reports on a critical policy study…

29 CFR 786.100 - Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work..., DEPARTMENT OF LABOR STATEMENTS OF GENERAL POLICY OR INTERPRETATION NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO REGULATIONS MISCELLANEOUS EXEMPTIONS Switchboard Operator Exemption § 786.100 Enforcement policy concerning performance of...

Radioactive waste management policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morrison, R.W.

1983-06-01

The speaker discusses the development of government policy regarding radioactive waste disposal in Canada, indicates overall policy objectives, and surveys the actual situation with respect to radioactive wastes in Canada. He also looks at the public perceptions of the waste management situation and how they relate to the views of governmental decision makers

Carbon footprint of canned mussels from a business-to-consumer approach. A starting point for mussel processors and policy makers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iribarren, Diego; Hospido, Almudena; Moreira, Maria Teresa; Feijoo, Gumersindo

2010-01-01

The increasing demand for environmental information on the global warming impact of products requires a solid methodological framework which guarantees comparability and communicability. The publicly available specification PAS 2050 combines approaches to a variety of greenhouse gas specific assessment issues to deliver a globally applicable product Carbon Footprinting (CF) method, which is expected to be widely accepted. Specifically, this paper aims to demonstrate the implementation of a CF scheme for a common canned mussel product according to PAS 2050 guidelines. A final value of 4.35 kg CO 2 e per triple pack of round cans of mussels was calculated. Furthermore, this CF study led to identify primary packaging (can production) and mussel shell management as the main activities where efforts should focus for climate change mitigation. Throughout this case study, CF opportunities and drawbacks are discussed. The whole text tries to provide a starting point for both mussel processors and policy makers to benefit from the potential advantages of a responsible use of this increasingly popular tool.

The "Good Governance" of Evidence in Health Policy

Science.gov (United States)

Hawkins, Benjamin; Parkhurst, Justin

2016-01-01

Calls for evidence-based policy often fail to recognise the fundamentally political nature of policy making. Policy makers must identify, evaluate and utilise evidence to solve policy problems in the face of competing priorities and political agendas. Evidence should inform but cannot determine policy choices. This paper draws on theories of…

To what extent are Canadian second language policies evidence-based? Reflections on the intersections of research and policy.

Science.gov (United States)

Cummins, Jim

2014-01-01

THE PAPER ADDRESSES THE INTERSECTIONS BETWEEN RESEARCH FINDINGS AND CANADIAN EDUCATIONAL POLICIES FOCUSING ON FOUR MAJOR AREAS: (a) core and immersion programs for the teaching of French to Anglophone students, (b) policies concerning the learning of English and French by students from immigrant backgrounds, (c) heritage language teaching, and (d) the education of Deaf and hard-of hearing students. With respect to the teaching of French, policy-makers have largely ignored the fact that most core French programs produce meager results for the vast majority of students. Only a small proportion of students (languages, preferring instead to leave uncorrected the proposition that acquisition of languages such as American Sign Language by young children (with or without cochlear implants) will impede children's language and academic development. The paper reviews the kinds of policies, programs, and practices that could be implemented (at no additional cost) if policy-makers and educators pursued evidence-based educational policies.

29 CFR 786.150 - Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Enforcement policy concerning performance of nonexempt work..., DEPARTMENT OF LABOR STATEMENTS OF GENERAL POLICY OR INTERPRETATION NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO REGULATIONS MISCELLANEOUS EXEMPTIONS Employers Subject to Part 1 of Interstate Commerce Act § 786.150 Enforcement policy...

Stakeholder involvement: views from a policy maker

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gray, Elizabeth

2006-01-01

In 1999 powers and responsibilities were devolved from the UK government to the new devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. This paper deals with the issue of radioactive waste management in the Scottish context as, following devolution, responsibility for radioactive waste management in Scotland is a devolved responsibility of the Scottish Parliament. The founding principles of the Scottish Parliament are: Openness and participation, Accountability, Power sharing, Equal opportunities. The government of Scotland is known as the Scottish Executive and has 22 Ministers covering a wide range of devolved responsibilities including: wider environmental matters, health, socioeconomic, skills and education. The Scottish Ministers also have specific responsibility in legislation regarding the governance of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA). Scotland also has its own agencies to deliver his government policies, such as the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and enterprise and skills delivery bodies. There is a high level of interest in nuclear and radioactive waste issues in Scotland as Scotland has both civil nuclear and defense sites around the country which generate radioactive waste. Alongside this is its close proximity to the largest nuclear site in the UK: Sellafield

Towards health in all policies for childhood obesity prevention

NARCIS (Netherlands)

A.-M. Hendriks (Anna-Marie); S.P.J. Kremers (Stef); J.S. Gubbels (Jessica); H. Raat (Hein); N.K. de Vries (Nanne); M.W.J. Jansen (Maria W.)

2013-01-01

textabstractThe childhood obesity epidemic can be best tackled by means of an integrated approach, which is enabled by integrated public health policies, or Health in All Policies. Integrated policies are developed through intersectoral collaboration between local government policy makers from

Communication with U.S. federal decision makers : a primer with notes on the use of computer models as a means of communication.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Webb, Erik Karl; Tidwell, Vincent Carroll

2009-10-01

This document outlines ways to more effectively communicate with U.S. Federal decision makers by outlining the structure, authority, and motivations of various Federal groups, how to find the trusted advisors, and how to structure communication. All three branches of Federal governments have decision makers engaged in resolving major policy issues. The Legislative Branch (Congress) negotiates the authority and the resources that can be used by the Executive Branch. The Executive Branch has some latitude in implementation and prioritizing resources. The Judicial Branch resolves disputes. The goal of all decision makers is to choose and implement the option that best fits the needs and wants of the community. However, understanding the risk of technical, political and/or financial infeasibility and possible unintended consequences is extremely difficult. Primarily, decision makers are supported in their deliberations by trusted advisors who engage in the analysis of options as well as the day-to-day tasks associated with multi-party negotiations. In the best case, the trusted advisors use many sources of information to inform the process including the opinion of experts and if possible predictive analysis from which they can evaluate the projected consequences of their decisions. The paper covers the following: (1) Understanding Executive and Legislative decision makers - What can these decision makers do? (2) Finding the target audience - Who are the internal and external trusted advisors? (3) Packaging the message - How do we parse and integrate information, and how do we use computer simulation or models in policy communication?

How Do Organizational Policies and Practices Affect Return to Work and Work Role Functioning Following a Musculoskeletal Injury?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Amick, Benjamin C; Lee, Hyunmi; Hogg-Johnson, Sheilah; Katz, Jeffrey N; Brouwer, Sandra; Franche, Renée-Louise; Bültmann, Ute

Purpose Organizational-level policies and practices that promote safety leadership and practices, disability management and ergonomic policies and practices are considered key contextual determinants of return to work. Our objective was to examine the role of worker-reported organizational policies

Credibility of Policy Announcements Under Asymmetric Information

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Michael

1999-01-01

In a simple macro-economic model, where the monetary authorities process superior information about a real shocks, the scope for an active stabilization policy is shown to depend on the credibility of the policy maker. Lack of credibility increases the need for an active stabilization policy...

A Collaborative Approach to Bridging the Research-Policy Gap through the Development of Policy Advice Software

Science.gov (United States)

Milne, Barry John; Lay-Yee, Roy; McLay, Jessica; Tobias, Martin; Tuohy, Pat; Armstrong, Ann; Lynn, Robert; Pearson, Janet; Mannion, Oliver; Davis, Peter

2014-01-01

We have developed a software-based tool to support a dynamic micro-simulation model of life-course development (to age 13) as an aid to policy makers assessing the impact of policies affecting children. We demonstrate how this approach bridges the research-policy gap by creating: (1) an easy transfer of evidence in a form that policymakers can use…

MakerBot projects blueprints

CERN Document Server

Larson, Joseph

2013-01-01

MakerBot Projects Blueprints is a project-based book, with each chapter taking you through the creation of an awesome stand-alone project. MakerBot Project Blueprints is for anyone with an interest in the 3D printing revolution and the slightest bit of computer skills. Whether you own a 3D printer or not you can design for them. All it takes is Blender, a free 3D modeling tool, this book and a little creativity and someday you'll be able to hold something you designed in the computer in your hands.

Developing a public health policy-research nexus: an evaluation of Nurse Practitioner models in aged care.

Science.gov (United States)

Prosser, Brenton; Clark, Shannon; Davey, Rachel; Parker, Rhian

2013-10-01

A frustration often expressed by researchers and policy-makers in public health is an apparent mismatch between respective priorities and expectations for research. Academics bemoan an oversimplification of their work, a reticence for independent critique and the constant pressure to pursue evaluation funding. Meanwhile, policy-makers look for research reports written in plain language with clear application, which are attuned to current policy settings and produced quickly. In a context where there are calls in western nations for evidence based policy with stronger links to academic research, such a mismatch can present significant challenges to policy program evaluation. The purpose of this paper is to present one attempt to overcome these challenges. Specifically, the paper describes the development of a conceptual framework for a large-scale, multifaceted evaluation of an Australian Government health initiative to expand Nurse Practitioner models of practice in aged care service delivery. In doing so, the paper provides a brief review of key points for the facilitation of a strong research-policy nexus in public health evaluations, as well as describes how this particular evaluation embodies these key points. As such, the paper presents an evaluation approach which may be adopted and adapted by others undertaking public health policy program evaluations. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Environmental policy and environment-saving technologies. Economic aspects of policy making under uncertainty

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ossokina, I.

2003-07-01

It is generally known that natural environment is profoundly influenced by technological change. The direction and the size of this influence are, however, surrounded by uncertainties, which substantially complicate environmental policy making. This dissertation uses game-theoretical models to study policy making under uncertainty about (a) the costs of technological advances in pollution control, (b) the preferences of the policy maker and the voters, and (c) the consequences of policy measures. From a positive point of view the analysis provides explanations for environmental policies in modern democracies. From a normative point of view it gives a number of recommendations to improve environmental policies.

Workplace disability management programs promoting return-to-work

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gensby, Ulrik; Lund, Thomas; Kowalski, Krystyna

Return-to-work (RTW) following work related injuries or illnesses is receiving continued attention from a wide spectrum of research fields and is an important topic for many policy- and decision-makers. In particular long-term sickness absence is a challenge associated with a series of negative...... is still needed. This review will evaluate the effect of workplace disability management programs promoting RTW - i.e. report on the evidence and describes and combine results from individual studies on workplace disability management programs and explain possible variations in practice....

NIGERIA AND THE ENIGMA OF POLICY IMPLEMENTATION Osita ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

NGOZI

This calls for a change of attitude on the part of policy implementers and the target .... implementation by policy decision makers while it is often taken that once a policy is ... only to attract public acclaim and attention with less regard to their.

Advocating for Ethnographic Work in Early Childhood Federal Policy: Problems and Possibilities

Science.gov (United States)

Adair, Jennifer Keys

2011-01-01

Initiated as part of the Council on Anthropology and Education's Policy Engagement Working Group, the policy brief "Ethnographic Knowledge For Early Childhood" focused on making the case for ethnography as evidence within early childhood federal policy. This article describes the creation and distribution of the policy brief as well as the…

Challenges : adopting GIS for diplomacy and foreign policy

Science.gov (United States)

Christian, Carol

Foreign policy and diplomacy are, by definition, location specific. GIS-related tools can be useful to decision makers and problem solvers to merge diverse data that impinges on policy issues. While to a degree, such technologies have been adopted for natural disaster response, security, and environmental studies, widespread adoption of GIS into policy tasks has been slow. Decision makers and nonexperts are reluctant to assimilate new tools into old cultures because of a number of hurdles. Yet clearly, information sharing would be advantageous and allow visualization of information and situations in a more productive environment. This presentation will touch upon some of the challenges and stimulate discussion.

Flexibility in faculty work-life policies at medical schools in the Big Ten conference.

Science.gov (United States)

Welch, Julie L; Wiehe, Sarah E; Palmer-Smith, Victoria; Dankoski, Mary E

2011-05-01

Women lag behind men in several key academic indicators, such as advancement, retention, and securing leadership positions. Although reasons for these disparities are multifactorial, policies that do not support work-life integration contribute to the problem. The objective of this descriptive study was to compare the faculty work-life policies among medical schools in the Big Ten conference. Each institution's website was accessed in order to assess its work-life policies in the following areas: maternity leave, paternity leave, adoption leave, extension of probationary period, part-time appointments, part-time benefits (specifically health insurance), child care options, and lactation policy. Institutions were sent requests to validate the online data and supply additional information if needed. Each institution received an overall score and subscale scores for family leave policies and part-time issues. Data were verified by the human resources office at 8 of the 10 schools. Work-life policies varied among Big Ten schools, with total scores between 9.25 and 13.5 (possible score: 0-21; higher scores indicate greater flexibility). Subscores were not consistently high or low within schools. Comparing the flexibility of faculty work-life policies in relation to other schools will help raise awareness of these issues and promote more progressive policies among less progressive schools. Ultimately, flexible policies will lead to greater equity and institutional cultures that are conducive to recruiting, retaining, and advancing diverse faculty.

The Virtual Workplace Ethnography: Positioning Student Writers as Knowledge Makers

Science.gov (United States)

Sommers, Jeff

2015-01-01

The Virtual Workplace Ethnography is a first-year composition assignment that positions students as knowledge makers by requiring them to apply a theoretical lens ("Working Knowledge") to a video representation of a workplace. The lens provides multiple terms for analysis of workplace behaviors in context, providing a scaffolding for…

Work-life balance policies: challenges and benefits associated with implementing flexitime

OpenAIRE

Downes, Caroline; Koekemoer, Frieda Eileen

2011-01-01

Orientation: Helping employees to balance their work and family lives is a business imperative. Work–life balance policies (like flexitime) aim to support employees to do so. However, implementing these policies is problematic. Research purpose: The aim of this article is to report on the challenges and benefits associated with implementing flexitime as a work–life balance policy. Motivation for the study: Organisations must develop and implement work–life balance policies. This r...

Ciclovía initiatives: engaging communities, partners, and policy makers along the route to success.

Science.gov (United States)

Zieff, Susan G; Hipp, J Aaron; Eyler, Amy A; Kim, Mi-Sook

2013-01-01

Recent efforts to increase physical activity through changes to the built environment have led to strategies and programs that use existing public space, including bicycle lanes, temporary parks, and the ciclovia initiative (scheduled events in which streets are closed to motorized vehicles and opened for recreational activities) popularized in South America. This article describes and compares the processes and structures involved in developing and implementing a ciclovia-type program in 2 US urban contexts: San Francisco, California, and St Louis, Missouri. Considering the current growth of and interest in ciclovia initiatives, important outcomes, lessons learned are offered for application in other, similar settings. Primary sources from both initiatives and from published research on ciclovias constitute the body of evidence and include year-end reports, grant applications, meeting minutes, budgets, published ciclovia guidelines, evaluation studies and Web sites, media sources, and interviews and personal communication with the organizers. Primary source documents were reviewed and included in this analysis if they offered information on 3 grounded questions: What processes were used in developing the initiative? What are the current structures and practices used in implementation of initiatives? What are important lessons learned and best practices from initiatives for recommendations to stakeholders and policy makers in other contexts? Among the categories compared, the structures and processes for implementation regarding buy-in and city department collaboration, route selection, programming, partnerships, media promotion, community outreach, and merchant support were relatively similar among the 2 initiatives. The categories that differed included staffing and volunteer engagement and funding. Buy-in from community partners, merchants, residents, and city agencies is critical for a positive experience in developing and implementing ciclovia-type initiatives

WORK-LIFE BALANCE POLICIES IN JORDANIAN TELECOMMUNICATION COMPANIES

OpenAIRE

Mahmoud Abubaker; Christopher Bagley

2016-01-01

No published work is available on work-life balance (WLB) programs in Jordan. Drawing on the methodology of Critical Realism, interviews with ten senior managers, and case studies in two large telecommunication companies were undertaken. WLB practices had both similarities and differences from those in developed countries. WLB policy and practice was constructed within three main areas: social and cultural practices; financial practices; leave arrangements. In comparison with developed countr...

The Link between National Paid Leave Policy and Work-Family Conflict among Married Working Parents

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Allen, T.D.; Lapierre, L.M.; Spector, P.E.; Poelmans, S.A.Y.; O'Driscoll, M.P.; Sanchez, J.I.; Cooper, G.L.; Walvoord, A.G.; Antoniou, A.S.; Brough, P.; Geurts, S.A.E.; Kinnunen, U.; Pagon, M.; Shima, S.; Woo, J.M.

2014-01-01

We investigated relationships between four dimensions of work–family conflict (time- and strain-based work interference with family, time- and strain-based family interference with work) and three key national paid leave policies (paid parental leave, paid sick leave, paid annual leave) among a

Macroprudential Policy: A Summary

OpenAIRE

Mahdi Ebrahimi Kahou; Alfred Lehar

2016-01-01

The 2007 global financial crisis brought sharply into focus the need for macroprudential policy as a means of controlling systemic financial stability. This has become a focal point for policy-makers and numerous central banks, including the Bank of Canada, but it has its drawbacks, particularly here in Canada. As a counterbalance to microprudential policy, the idea of a macroprudential outlook reaches beyond the notion that as long as every banking institution is healthy, financial stability...

Working Toward Policy-Relevant Air Quality Emissions Scenarios

Science.gov (United States)

Holloway, T.

2010-12-01

Though much work has been done to develop accurate chemical emission inventories, few publicly available inventories are appropriate for realistic policy analysis. Emissions from the electricity and transportation sectors, in particular, respond in complex ways to policy, technology, and energy use change. Many widely used inventories, such as the EPA National Emissions Inventory, are well-suited for modeling current air quality, but do not have the specificity needed to address "what if?" questions. Changes in electricity demand, fuel prices, new power sources, and emission controls all influence the emissions from regional power production, requiring a plant-by-plant assessment to capture the spatially explicit impacts. Similarly, land use, freight distribution, or driving behavior will yield differentiated transportation emissions for urban areas, suburbs, and rural highways. We here present results from three recent research projects at the University of Wisconsin—Madison, where bottom-up emission inventories for electricity, freight transport, and urban vehicle use were constructed to support policy-relevant air quality research. These three studies include: 1) Using the MyPower electricity dispatch model to calculate emissions and air quality impacts of Renewable Portfolio Standards and other carbon-management strategies; 2) Using advanced vehicle and commodity flow data from the Federal Highway Administration to evaluate the potential to shift commodities from truck to rail (assuming expanded infrastructure), and assess a range of alternative fuel suggestions; and 3) Working with urban planners to connect urban density with vehicle use to evaluate the air quality impacts of smart-growth in major Midwest cities. Drawing on the results of these three studies, and on challenges overcome in their execution, we discuss the current state of policy-relevant emission dataset generation, as well as techniques and attributes that need to be further refined in order

Addressing the Challenges in Tonsillectomy Research to Inform Health Care Policy: A Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Mandavia, Rishi; Schilder, Anne G M; Dimitriadis, Panagiotis A; Mossialos, Elias

2017-09-01

Eighty-five percent of investment in medical research has been wasted, with lack of effect on clinical practice and policy. There is increasing effort to improve the likelihood of research being used to influence clinical practice and policy. Tonsillectomy is one of the most common otorhinolaryngologic surgical procedures, and its frequency, cost, and morbidity create a clear need for evidence-based guidelines and policy. The first systematic review on tonsillectomy was conducted 40 years ago and highlighted the lack of definitive evidence for the procedure. Since that study, the body of evidence has still not been able to sufficiently inform policy. This review provides an overview of the key challenges in research to inform tonsillectomy policy and recommendations to help bridge the evidence-policy gap. The challenges in using research to inform policy can be summarized as 4 main themes: (1) non-policy-focused evidence and lack of available evidence, (2) quality of evidence, (3) communication of research findings, and (4) coordinating time frames. Researchers and decision makers should be aware of the limitations of research designs and conflicts of interest that can undermine policy decisions. Researchers must work with decision makers and patients throughout the research process to identify areas of unmet need and political priority, align research and policy time frames, and disseminate research findings. Incentives for researchers should be reorganized to promote dissemination of findings. It is important to consider why evidence gaps in tonsillectomy research have not been addressed during the past 40 years despite considerable investment in time and resources. These findings and recommendations will help produce research that is more responsive to policy gaps and more likely to result in policy changes.

Work in corporate sustainability policies: the contribution of ergonomics.

Science.gov (United States)

Bolis, I; Brunoro, C M; Sznelwar, L I

2014-01-01

By introducing policies for sustainability and social responsibility, companies declare their interest in caring for all stakeholders, including workers. To analyze how and which themes related to work practices and to workers are approached in the discourse of corporations are considered sustainable and socially responsible. Based on ergonomic principles, more elements are brought into this discussion, viewed from a strategic perspective for the development of corporations and society. Data collected from 20 corporations considered more sustainable according to an assessment made by the Corporate Knights organization. Multiple-case study, based on the analysis of secondary sources content (websites and reports). Analysis of websites and reports by their content, and their classification according to the aspects present in the thematic of work practices and of human rights elaborated by standard ISO 26000. Corporations show that the worker is one of the stakeholders to be considered in their sustainability and social responsibility policies. However, it's not possible using this method to obtain effective evidences related to actual programs performed by companies in order to demonstrate the real importance of workers in sustainable polices. The discipline of ergonomics could be active in improving the implementation of corporate social responsibility policies, especially by emphasizing the social dimension of these policies.

Improving policy making through government-industry policy learning: The case of a novel Swedish policy framework

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stigson, Peter; Dotzauer, Erik; Yan Jinyue

2009-01-01

Climate change poses an unprecedented challenge for policy makers. This paper analyzes how industry sector policy expertise can contribute to improved policy making processes. Previous research has identified that policy making benefit by including non-governmental policy analysts in learning processes. Recent climate and energy policy developments, including amendments and the introduction of new initiatives, have rendered current policy regimes as novel to both governments and the industry. This increases business investment risk perceptions and may thus reduce the effectiveness and efficiency of the policy framework. In order to explore how government-industry policy learning can improve policy making in this context, this article studied the Swedish case. A literature survey analyzed how policy learning had been previously addressed, identifying that the current situation regarding novel policies had been overlooked. Interviews provided how industrial actors view Swedish policy implementation processes and participatory aspects thereof. The authors conclude that an increased involvement of the industry sector in policy design and management processes can be an important measure to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of climate and energy policies

Climatic change and local policy, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Policy options and implementation strategies to reduce emission of CO2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schol, E.; Van den Bosch, A.; Ligthart, F.A.T.M.; Roemer, J.C.; Ruijg, G.J.; Schaeffer, G.J.; Dinkelman, D.H.; Kok, I.C.; De Paauw, K.F.B.

1998-04-01

Insight is given into the local policy options with respect to climate change, in this case within the sphere of influence of Amsterdam local authorities. A list of new policy options for CO2-reduction has been made with the assistance of local policy makers and representatives of interest groups. These policy options have been divided into three qualitative scenarios: Institutional Cultural Change, Technological Innovation and Least Regrets. The environmental, economic and other effects have been described for each policy option. The three most interesting policy options have been selected by local policy makers and representatives of interest groups during a workshop. Implementation strategies have been developed for the options selected. These strategies have been discussed during a second workshop. The reduction target, stabilization of CO2-emissions in 2015 compared to 1993, can be realized by a combination of all the new policy options. The three selected policy options count for 40% of this total CO2-emission reduction. Finally, a general outline on the methodology to construct local policies for climate protection has been described. This methodology can also be applied to other cities and municipal administrators, e.g. participants of Cities for Climate Protection, an initiative of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, or the Netherlands Climate Association. 136 refs

Databases as policy instruments. About extending networks as evidence-based policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stoevelaar Herman

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background This article seeks to identify the role of databases in health policy. Access to information and communication technologies has changed traditional relationships between the state and professionals, creating new systems of surveillance and control. As a result, databases may have a profound effect on controlling clinical practice. Methods We conducted three case studies to reconstruct the development and use of databases as policy instruments. Each database was intended to be employed to control the use of one particular pharmaceutical in the Netherlands (growth hormone, antiretroviral drugs for HIV and Taxol, respectively. We studied the archives of the Dutch Health Insurance Board, conducted in-depth interviews with key informants and organized two focus groups, all focused on the use of databases both in policy circles and in clinical practice. Results Our results demonstrate that policy makers hardly used the databases, neither for cost control nor for quality assurance. Further analysis revealed that these databases facilitated self-regulation and quality assurance by (national bodies of professionals, resulting in restrictive prescription behavior amongst physicians. Conclusion The databases fulfill control functions that were formerly located within the policy realm. The databases facilitate collaboration between policy makers and physicians, since they enable quality assurance by professionals. Delegating regulatory authority downwards into a network of physicians who control the use of pharmaceuticals seems to be a good alternative for centralized control on the basis of monitoring data.

What Attracts Decision Makers' Attention?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bentzen, Eric; Christiansen, John K.; Varnes, Claus J.

2011-01-01

portfolio meetings. The study seeks to investigate how managers allocate their attention and the role of different factors for their attention. Observations also make it possible to compare prior research and expectations with the actual observed behavior of decision makers. Design....../methodology/approach – The present analysis draws on insights from previous research into decision making in product and portfolio management and studies on organizational decision making. The authors frame why the attention of decision makers is so critical in complex situations. Data for this study were collected through direct......Purpose – Managers' attention is a scarce resource in complex innovation settings. Prior research on the factors to which managers pay attention is mostly based on surveys. The present study aims to address the need for knowledge about the behavior of decision makers based on observations from...

WOMEN IN BUSINESS. THE NEED FOR POLICIES TO FOSTERING WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN ROMANIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Borza Adriana

2012-12-01

Full Text Available In developing economies, the issue of overcoming the gaps in public policies regarding gender is closely linked to the ability of governments to identify policies that have worked successfully in regions with similar economic circumstances. Equally, there is a need for innovative data solutions that have the capacity to determine a real change of socio-economic relations. For now, as far as the Romanian context is concerned, female entrepreneurs do not enjoy as much government support as it is really needed. What literature refers to as the "glass ceiling" seems to be doubled in Romania by collective suspicion towards the discrepancy between the ambition and the skills of women who find themselves in the position of decision makers at top management level. This crisis of confidence faced by women makes their management tasks even more difficult. Not incidentally, literature mentions opinions according to which a woman must work twice as hard as a man to reach a certain position. The crisis brought about by the lack of models is confirmed by numerous studies and researches, all highlighting the urgent need for mentoring. Given such gender related constraints, it is only natural to expect that decision makers at government level would show a special interest for policies designed to encourage female entrepreneurship, and, in general, to support increase of employment of women in economic activities.

Managing work-life policies : disruption versus dependency arguments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dulk, Laura den; Ruijter, Judith de

2008-01-01

What factors shape managerial attitudes towards the utilization of work-life policies? The influence of disruptiveness (Powell and Mainiero 1999) and dependency (Klein, Berman and Dickson 2000) arguments on managerial attitudes is examined using a vignette design. In this study, managers in four

Cost-containment as part of pharmaceutical policy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Almarsdóttir, Anna Birna; Traulsen, Janine Marie

2005-01-01

and profit controls; 2) reimbursement system charges; 3) other fiscal measures; 4) quality measures. Pharmaceuticals policy has suffered from the pervasive misunderstanding that drugs are like any other commodity; resulting in policy makers viewing pharmaceuticals expenditures without thinking about drugs...

Workplace Policies and Mental Health among Working-Class, New Parents.

Science.gov (United States)

Perry-Jenkins, Maureen; Smith, JuliAnna Z; Wadsworth, Lauren Page; Halpern, Hillary Paul

2017-01-01

Little research has explored linkages between workplace policies and mental health in working-class, employed parents, creating a gap in our knowledge of work-family issues across social class levels. The current U.S. study addresses this gap by employing hierarchical linear modeling techniques to examine how workplace policies and parental leave benefits predicted parents' depressive symptoms and anxiety in a sample of 125, low-income, dual-earner couples interviewed across the transition to parenthood. Descriptive analyses revealed that, on average, parents had few workplace policies, such as schedule flexibility or child care supports, available to them. Results revealed, however, that, when available, schedule flexibility was related to fewer depressive symptoms and less anxiety for new mothers. Greater child care supports predicted fewer depressive symptoms for fathers. In terms of crossover effects, longer maternal leave predicted declines in fathers' anxiety across the first year. Results are discussed with attention to how certain workplace policies may serve to alleviate new parents' lack of time and resources (minimize scarcity of resources) and, in turn, predict better mental health during the sensitive period of new parenthood.

An exploratory study identifying where local government public health decision makers source their evidence for policy.

Science.gov (United States)

Stoneham, Melissa; Dodds, James

2014-08-01

The Western Australian (WA) Public Health Bill will replace the antiquated Health Act 1911. One of the proposed clauses of the Bill requires all WA local governments to develop a Public Health Plan. The Bill states that Public Health Plans should be based on evidence from all levels, including national and statewide priorities, community needs, local statistical evidence, and stakeholder data. This exploratory study, which targeted 533 WA local government officers, aimed to identify the sources of evidence used to generate the list of public health risks to be included in local government Public Health Plans. The top four sources identified for informing local policy were: observation of the consequences of the risks in the local community (24.5%), statewide evidence (17.6%), local evidence (17.6%) and coverage in local media (16.2%). This study confirms that both hard and soft data are used to inform policy decisions at the local level. Therefore, the challenge that this study has highlighted is in the definition or constitution of evidence. SO WHAT? Evidence is critical to the process of sound policy development. This study highlights issues associated with what actually constitutes evidence in the policy development process at the local government level. With the exception of those who work in an extremely narrow field, it is difficult for local government officers, whose role includes policymaking, to read the vast amount of information that has been published in their area of expertise. For those who are committed to the notion of evidence-based policymaking, as advocated within the WA Public Health Bill, this presents a considerable challenge.

Prospective analysis of energy security: A practical life-cycle approach focused on renewable power generation and oriented towards policy-makers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

García-Gusano, Diego; Iribarren, Diego; Garraín, Daniel

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Formulation and application of the Renewable Energy Security Index (RESI). • Prospective analysis combining Energy Systems Modelling and Life Cycle Assessment. • Feasibility proven through two case studies of power generation in Spain and Norway. • Good coverage of key energy security aspects (availability, affordability, etc.). • Novel and easy-to-report index suitable for energy policy-making. - Abstract: Energy security is a wide-ranging term to encompass issues such as security of supply, reliability of infrastructures, affordability and environmental friendliness. This article develops a robust indicator – the Renewable Energy Security Index, RESI – to enrich the body of knowledge associated with the presence of renewable energy technologies within national electricity production mixes. RESI is built by combining environmental life cycle assessment and techno-economic energy systems modelling. Spain and Norway are used as illustrative case studies for the prospective analysis of power generation from an energy security standpoint. In the Spanish case, with a diversified electricity production mix and a growing presence of renewable technologies, RESI favourably “evolves” from 0.36 at present to 0.65 in 2050 in a business-as-usual scenario, reaching higher values in a highly-restricted CO_2 scenario. The Norwegian case study attains RESI values similar to 1 due to the leading role of renewable electricity (mainly hydropower) regarding both satisfaction of national demand and exportation of electricity surplus. A widespread use of RESI as a quantifiable energy security index of national power generation sectors is found to be feasible and practical for both analysts and energy policy-makers, covering a significant number of energy security aspects.

Beyond engagement in working with children in eight Nairobi slums to address safety, security, and housing: Digital tools for policy and community dialogue.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Claudia; Chege, Fatuma; Maina, Lucy; Rothman, Margot

2016-01-01

This article studies the ways in which researchers working in the area of health and social research and using participatory visual methods might extend the reach of participant-generated creations such as photos and drawings to engage community leaders and policy-makers. Framed as going 'beyond engagement', the article explores the idea of the production of researcher-led digital dialogue tools, focusing on one example, based on a series of visual arts-based workshops with children from eight slums in Nairobi addressing issues of safety, security, and well-being in relation to housing. The authors conclude that there is a need for researchers to embark upon the use of visual tools to expand the life and use of visual productions, and in particular to ensure meaningful participation of communities in social change.

The Appreciative System of Urban ICT Policies: An Analysis of Perceptions of Urban Policy Makers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cohen-Blankshtain, G.; Nijkamp, P.

2004-01-01

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has become an important tool to promote a variety of public goals and policies. In the past years much attention has been given to the expected social benefits from deploying ICTs in different urban fields (transportation, education, public

Policies for Renewable Heat

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2012-07-01

This paper builds on IEA publications, Deploying Renewables, Principles for Effective Policies and Deploying Renewables, Best and Future Policy Practice, that discuss the 'integrated policy approach,' whereby renewable energy technologies require different support policies at different stages of their maturity pathways. The paper discusses how the integrated policy approach applies to renewable heat. It attempts to provide guidance for policy-makers on renewable heat throughout the different phases of the policy lifecycle, allowing for the specific challenges of renewable heat and needs of the many stakeholders involved. Stimulating a market for heat involves challenges that are different and, often, more difficult to overcome than in the electricity and transport sectors.

School-to-Work Transitions in the OECD: Do Education Systems Make a Difference?

Science.gov (United States)

Karmel, Tom

2017-01-01

High unemployment among the young is a concern in many OECD countries. A key issue for policy makers is whether the education system has a role to play in assisting the transition from education to work or whether economic issues dominate. This paper uses OECD country-level data to see whether the structure of countries' education systems,…

FileMaker Pro 9

CERN Document Server

Coffey, Geoff

2007-01-01

FileMaker Pro 9: The Missing Manual is the clear, thorough and accessible guide to the latest version of this popular desktop database program. FileMaker Pro lets you do almost anything with the information you give it. You can print corporate reports, plan your retirement, or run a small country -- if you know what you're doing. This book helps non-technical folks like you get in, get your database built, and get the results you need. Pronto.The new edition gives novices and experienced users the scoop on versions 8.5 and 9. It offers complete coverage of timesaving new features such as the Q

Between system maker and privileges taker: the role of China in the Greater Mekong Sub-region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Truong-Minh Vu

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Utilizing China's leadership projects in the Great Mekong Sub-Region (GMS as a case study, this paper aims to investigate whether China qualifies as an international leader. This work argues that its geographic position and economic rise allow China to be a "system maker and privilege taker," which is a dual role forming in economic-political relations in the GMS in the last ten years. China is among major driving forces to set up an economic zone in GMS. Growing Chinese regional power is intimately related to the creation of various hubs connecting regional transportation, communication and energy systems that foster the economic development of this region. However, China also proves dark sides of rising powers which take advantage of their privileges to gain benefits. As a "system maker" with its own position and capability, China has notably benefited from building hydropower systems. More importantly, while China is pursuing its benefits and privileges, its hydropower projects have caused some negative effects for the ecosystem in the region. The inflation of dam constructions in both China and GMS countries is raising concerns about using natural resources of the Mekong River. Our concluding part addresses the pressing need to start a serious discussion on the balance between national interests and regional solidarity within the formulation of Chinese foreign policy in GMS.

Truth and Credibility in Sincere Policy Analysis: Alternative Approaches for the Production of Policy-Relevant Knowledge.

Science.gov (United States)

Bozeman, Barry; Landsbergen, David

1989-01-01

Two competing approaches to policy analysis are distinguished: a credibility approach, and a truth approach. According to the credibility approach, the policy analyst's role is to search for plausible argument rather than truth. Each approach has pragmatic tradeoffs in fulfilling the goal of providing usable knowledge to decision makers. (TJH)

Policies for school-to-work transitions in Sweden, Denmark and Finland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Christian Helms; Lundahl, Lisbeth; Järvinen, Tero

2018-01-01

All over Europe, a range of policy measures to support young people’s school-to-work transitions have been initiated. However, these transition policies have rarely been studied systematically, particularly not from a comparative perspective. The aim of this article is to compare Swedish, Danish...... and Finnish policies for supporting young people’s edu¬ca¬¬tional and school-to-work transitions, with a particular focus on NEETs and dropouts. The comparison is exploratory and aims to illuminate the strengths and weaknesses of each system in reducing dropout rates and promoting smooth transitions. We draw...... and migrant youth, the political discourse is marked more by ideas of employability and vulnerability than of personal development and citizenship....

Environmental policy (Republic of Macedonia)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

With a defined set of policy goals, policy makers face an important decision on how and at what cost to the economy environmental compliance can be achieved. The costs of environmental compliance for Macedonia are still to be determined. However, environmental cost estimates, even those done with the highest degree of precision will not provide the actual burden that the society will face. The level of actual costs and their distribution in the economy will depend on the type of instruments that will be used by policy makers. In general, there are two policy options to be considered, namely command and control which relies on administrative instruments and market based which uses economic instrument. The command and control based environmental policy requires that ambient standards, emission standards and new source performance standards are in place, together with a permitting system and compliance monitoring to ensure enforcement. A market based environmental policy aims at achieving higher levels of environmental quality by correcting the imperfections of the market. This is done by what is called internalizing negative environmental externalities. In simple words, polluters are forced to pay a pollution charge or a tax and include the costs of pollution in the costs of production and finally in the prices of goods. (author)

Analysis of International Policies In The Solar Electricity Sector: Lessons for India

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Deshmukh, Ranjit; Bharvirkar, Ranjit; Gambhir, Ashwin; Phadke, Amol

2011-08-10

Although solar costs are dropping rapidly, solar power is still more expensive than conventional and other renewable energy options. The solar sector still needs continuing government policy support. These policies are driven by objectives that go beyond the goal of achieving grid parity. The need to achieve multiple objectives and ensure sufficient political support for solar power makes it diffi cult for policy makers to design the optimal solar power policy. The dynamic and uncertain nature of the solar industry, combined with the constraints offered by broader economic, political and social conditions further complicates the task of policy making. This report presents an analysis of solar promotion policies in seven countries - Germany, Spain, the United States, Japan, China, Taiwan, and India - in terms of their outlook, objectives, policy mechanisms and outcomes. The report presents key insights, primarily in qualitative terms, and recommendations for two distinct audiences. The first audience consists of global policy makers who are exploring various mechanisms to increase the penetration of solar power in markets to mitigate climate change. The second audience consists of key Indian policy makers who are developing a long-term implementation plan under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission and various state initiatives.

The case for policy-relevant conservation science.

Science.gov (United States)

Rose, David C

2015-06-01

Drawing on the "evidence-based" (Sutherland et al. 2013) versus "evidence-informed" debate (Adams & Sandbrook 2013), which has become prominent in conservation science, I argue that science can be influential if it holds a dual reference (Lentsch & Weingart 2011) that contributes to the needs of policy makers whilst maintaining technical rigor. In line with such a strategy, conservation scientists are increasingly recognizing the usefulness of constructing narratives through which to enhance the influence of their evidence (Leslie et al. 2013; Lawton & Rudd 2014). Yet telling stories alone is rarely enough to influence policy; instead, these narratives must be policy relevant. To ensure that evidence is persuasive alongside other factors in a complex policy-making process, conservation scientists could follow 2 steps: reframe within salient political contexts and engage more productively in boundary work, which is defined as the ways in which scientists "construct, negotiate, and defend the boundary between science and policy" (Owens et al. 2006:640). These will both improve the chances of evidence-informed conservation policy. © 2015 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc., on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology.

Conceptualizing Education Policy in Democratic Societies

Science.gov (United States)

Perry, Laura B.

2009-01-01

Although theorists and policy makers agree that schooling should be democratic, what this exactly means often varies. This article establishes a conceptual model for analyzing education policy in democratic societies, based on the key concepts of equality, diversity, participation, choice, and cohesion. The model facilitates the design,…

Summary for Policy Makers: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report Renewable Energy Sources (SRREN)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arvizu, Dan; Bruckner, Thomas; Christensen, John; Devernay, Jean-Michel; Faaij , Andre; Fischedick, Manfred; Goldstein, Barry; Hansen, Gerrit; Huckerby , John; Jager-Waldau, Arnulf; Kadner, Susanne; Kammen, Daniel; Krey, Volker; Kumar, Arun; Lewis , Anthony; Lucon, Oswaldo; Matschoss, Patrick; Maurice, Lourdes; Mitchell , Catherine; Moomaw, William; Moreira, Jose; Nadai, Alain; Nilsson, Lars J.; Nyboer, John; Rahman, Atiq; Sathaye, Jayant; Sawin, Janet; Schaeffer, Roberto; Schei, Tormod; Schlomer, Steffen; Sims, Ralph; von Stechow, Christoph; Verbruggen, Aviel; Urama, Kevin; Wiser, Ryan; Yamba, Francis; Zwickel, Timm

2011-05-08

The Working Group III Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation (SRREN) presents an assessment of the literature on the scientific, technological, environmental, economic and social aspects of the contribution of six renewable energy (RE) sources to the mitigation of climate change. It is intended to provide policy relevant information to governments, intergovernmental processes and other interested parties. This Summary for Policymakers provides an overview of the SRREN, summarizing the essential findings. The SRREN consists of 11 chapters. Chapter 1 sets the context for RE and climate change; Chapters 2 through 7 provide information on six RE technologies, and Chapters 8 through 11 address integrative issues.

To What Extent Are Canadian Second Language Policies Evidence-Based? Reflections on the Intersections of Research and Policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jim eCummins

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The paper addresses the intersections between research, ideology, and Canadian educational policies focusing on four major areas: (a core and immersion programs for the teaching of French to Anglophone students, (b policies concerning the learning of English and French by students from immigrant backgrounds, (c heritage language teaching, and (d the education of Deaf and hard-of hearing students. With respect to the teaching of French, policy-makers have largely ignored the fact that most core French programs produce meager results for the vast majority of students. Only a small proportion of students (< 10% attend more effective alternatives (e.g. French immersion and Intensive French programs. With respect to immigrant-background students, a large majority of teachers and administrators have not had opportunities to access the knowledge base regarding effective instruction for these students nor have they had opportunities for pre-service or in-service professional development regarding effective instructional practices. Educational policies have also treated the linguistic resources that children bring to school with, at best, benign neglect. In some cases (e.g., Ontario school systems have been explicitly prohibited from instituting enrichment bilingual programs that would promote students’ bilingualism and biliteracy. Finally, with respect to Deaf students, policy-makers have ignored overwhelming research on the positive relationship between academic success and the development of proficiency in natural sign languages, preferring instead to perpetuate the falsehood that acquisition of languages such as American Sign Language by young children (with or without cochlear implants will impede children’s language and academic development. The paper reviews the kinds of policies, programs, and practices that could be implemented (at no additional cost if policy-makers and educators pursued evidence-based educational policies.

How important are work-family support policies? A meta-analytic investigation of their effects on employee outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Butts, Marcus M; Casper, Wendy J; Yang, Tae Seok

2013-01-01

This meta-analysis examines relationships between work-family support policies, which are policies that provide support for dependent care responsibilities, and employee outcomes by developing a conceptual model detailing the psychological mechanisms through which policy availability and use relate to work attitudes. Bivariate results indicated that availability and use of work-family support policies had modest positive relationships with job satisfaction, affective commitment, and intentions to stay. Further, tests of differences in effect sizes showed that policy availability was more strongly related to job satisfaction, affective commitment, and intentions to stay than was policy use. Subsequent meta-analytic structural equation modeling results indicated that policy availability and use had modest effects on work attitudes, which were partially mediated by family-supportive organization perceptions and work-to-family conflict, respectively. Additionally, number of policies and sample characteristics (percent women, percent married-cohabiting, percent with dependents) moderated the effects of policy availability and use on outcomes. Implications of these findings and directions for future research on work-family support policies are discussed. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

The effect of work-life balance policies on women employees turnover

OpenAIRE

Chiang Hui-Yu; Noriaki Mamiko Takeuchi

2008-01-01

In this paper, we explore the relationship between work-life balance policies and three outcomes of interest to employers and employees: the job tenure of women employees, turnover rate of women employees and retention rate of new women graduates. In the cross sectional analysis, we find that firms with work-life balance policies such as the full amount of maternity pay practice and flextime system are positively associated with the job tenure of women employees. We also find that the full am...

Eco-informatics for decision makers advancing a research agenda

Science.gov (United States)

Cushing, J.B.; Wilson, T.; Brandt, L.; Gregg, V.; Spengler, S.; Borning, A.; Delcambre, L.; Bowker, G.; Frame, M.; Fulop, J.; Hert, C.; Hovy, E.; Jones, J.; Landis, E.; Schnase, J.L.; Schweik, C.; Sonntag, W.; ,

2005-01-01

Resource managers often face significant information technology (IT) problems when integrating ecological or environmental information to make decisions. At a workshop sponsored by the NSF and USGS in December 2004, university researchers, natural resource managers, and information managers met to articulate IT problems facing ecology and environmental decision makers. Decision making IT problems were identified in five areas: 1) policy, 2) data presentation, 3) data gaps, 4) tools, and 5) indicators. To alleviate those problems, workshop participants recommended specific informatics research in modeling and simulation, data quality, information integration and ontologies, and social and human aspects. This paper reports the workshop findings, and briefly compares these with research that traditionally falls under the emerging eco-informatics rubric. ?? Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2005.

Policy implications of the purchasing intentions towards energy-efficient appliances among China’s urban residents: Do subsidies work?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Zhaohua; Wang, Xiaomeng; Guo, Dongxue

2017-01-01

Incentive policies are always used to sway purchase, retail stocking, and production decisions toward energy-efficient products by many countries or regions. So the effectiveness of such subsidies has been of much concern to scholars. This research focused on whether, or not, subsidy policies have guided people's intentions and behaviours. We investigated 436 urban residents from 22 provinces in China, covering the seven major geographic regions, and made an empirical analysis of the factors influencing Chinese urban residents’ purchasing intentions towards energy-efficient appliances based on the structural equation model. On theoretical aspect, we developed the theory of planned behaviour. Our results show that the variable “POLICY” is insignificant which indicates that policy environment and media propaganda in China do not have significant effect on Chinese residents’ willingness to pay for energy-efficient appliances. While, the residents’ environmental awareness, past purchasing experiences, social relationships, age, and level of education all exert a significant influence on Chinese residents’ purchasing intentions. Finally, based on the above research results, the corresponding policy suggestions which mainly focus on the time of subsidy, the object of subsidy and the method of subsidy are offered for policy makers. - Highlights: • We researched people’s behaviour combined with a policy implementation background. • We found that the subsidy policy didn’t change people’s purchase intentions. • Past purchasing experiences significantly influence consumers’ purchase intentions. • We proposed policy advices about the time, types and methods of incentive policies.

Energy sector methane recovery and use: the importance of policy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tom Kerr; Michelle Hershman

2009-08-15

To raise awareness about appropriate policy options to advance methane recovery and use in the energy sector, the IEA has conducted a series of analyses and studies over the past few years. This report continues IEA efforts by providing policy makers with examples and best practices in methane mitigation policy design and implementation. This report offers an overview of four types of methane mitigation projects that have the strongest links to the energy sector: oil and gas methane recovery and reduction of leaks and losses; coal mine methane; landfill methane; and manure methane recovery and use. It identifies successful policies that have been used to advance these important projects. This information is intended to guide policy makers as they search for low-cost, near-term solutions to climate change. 38 refs., 10 figs., 1 app.

Finding facts for policy makers. IPCC's Special Reports and the Third Assessment Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leemans, R.; Verbeek, K.

2000-01-01

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an international body of the WMO (World Meteorological Organization) and UNEP (United Nations Environmental Programme) that publishes authoritative reports on the scientific, technical and socio-economic aspects of climate change and climate policy. The knowledge contained in the IPCC reports forms the basis for the development of global climate policy by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The three volumes of the Third Assessment Report will be published early in 2001, shortly after Cop6 (Sixth Convention of Parties, The Hague, Netherlands, November 2000). This broadly supported summary of scientific insights will be important for the further substantiation of climate policy

Psychology, behavioral economics, and public policy

OpenAIRE

Amir, O; Ariely, D; Cooke, A; Dunning, D; Epley, N; Gneezy, U; Koszegi, B; Lichtenstein, D; Mazar, N; Mullainathan, S; Prelec, D; Shafir, E; Silva, J

2005-01-01

Economics has typically been the social science of choice to inform public policy and policymakers. In the current paper we contemplate the role behavioral science can play in enlightening policymakers. In particular, we provide some examples of research that has and can be used to inform policy, reflect on the kind of behavioral science that is important for policy, and approaches for convincing policy-makers to listen to behavioral scientists. We suggest that policymakers are unlikely to in...

[Workplace health promotion in public health policies in Poland].

Science.gov (United States)

Puchalski, Krzysztof; Korzeniowska, Elzbieta

2008-01-01

In this paper the author analyses how far in Poland the idea of workplace health promotion (WHP) does exist in the area of public health understood in its broadest sense. The analysis encapsulates the following issues: (a) the national legislative policy, (b) strategies, programs and projects concerning health issues launched or coordinated by the state or local administration, (c) grassroots initiatives for health promotion supported by local and regional administration, (d) civic projects or business strategies for health. In addition, the author emphasizes the marginalization of workplace health promotion and lack of cohesive policy in this field as well as, the fact that health problems of the working population arising from current demographic, technological, economic and social changes that could be dealt with through developing and implementing WHP projects are not yet fully perceived by public health policy makers.

Experimentation at the interface of science and policy : a multi-case analysis of how policy experiments influence political decision-makers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

McFadgen, Belinda; Huitema, Dave

2017-01-01

For decades now, scholars have grappled with questions about how knowledge producers can enhance the influence of their knowledge on users and improve policy making. However, little attention has been paid to how policy experiments, a flexible and ex ante method of policy appraisal, obtain influence

Travelling Policies and Contextual Considerations: On Threshold Criteria

Science.gov (United States)

Nir, Adam; Kondakci, Yasar; Emil, Serap

2018-01-01

Educational policy borrowing has become rather common in our globalised world. However, the literature lacks contextual criteria that may be employed by researchers and policy makers to assess the correspondence of a particular policy to the local context of a borrowing system. Based on a secondary analysis of documents and research reports, this…

Policy on manager involvement in work re-integration: managers' experiences in a Canadian setting.

Science.gov (United States)

Maiwald, Karin; Meershoek, Agnes; de Rijk, Angelique; Nijhuis, Frans J N

2014-01-01

In Canada and other countries, sickness absence among workers is a significant concern. Local return-to-work policies developed by both management and workers' representatives are preferred to tackle the problem. This article examines how managers perceive this local bipartite agreed upon return-to-work policy, wherein a social constructivist view on the policy process is taken. In-depth interviews were held with 10 managers on their experiences with execution of this policy in a Canadian healthcare organization. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and qualitative analyses were completed to gain deep insight into the managers' perspectives. Results show that the managers viewed themselves as a linchpin between the workplace and the worker. They did not feel heard by the other stakeholders, wrestled with worker's limitations, struggled getting plans adjusted and became overextended to meet return-to-work objectives. The study shows that the managers felt unable to meet the responsibilities the policy demanded and got less involved in the return-to-work process than this policy intended. RTW policy needs to balance on the one hand, flexibility to safeguard active involvement of managers and, on the other hand, strictness regarding taking responsibility by stakeholders, particularly the health care and re-integration professionals.

The evidence-policy divide: a 'critical computational linguistics' approach to the language of 18 health agency CEOs from 9 countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, Erica; Seidel, Bastian M

2012-10-30

There is an emerging body of literature suggesting that the evidence-practice divide in health policy is complex and multi-factorial but less is known about the processes by which health policy-makers use evidence and their views about the specific features of useful evidence. This study aimed to contribute to understandings of how the most influential health policy-makers view useful evidence, in ways that help explore and question how the evidence-policy divide is understood and what research might be supported to help overcome this divide. A purposeful sample of 18 national and state health agency CEOs from 9 countries was obtained. Participants were interviewed using open-ended questions that asked them to define specific features of useful evidence. The analysis involved two main approaches 1)quantitative mapping of interview transcripts using Bayesian-based computational linguistics software 2)qualitative critical discourse analysis to explore the nuances of language extracts so identified. The decision-making, conclusions-oriented world of policy-making is constructed separately, but not exclusively, by policy-makers from the world of research. Research is not so much devalued by them as described as too technical- yet at the same time not methodologically complex enough to engage with localised policy-making contexts. It is not that policy-makers are negative about academics or universities, it is that they struggle to find complexity-oriented methodologies for understanding their stakeholder communities and improving systems. They did not describe themselves as having a more positive role in solving this challenge than academics. These interviews do not support simplistic definitions of policy-makers and researchers as coming from two irreconcilable worlds. They suggest that qualitative and quantitative research is valued by policy-makers but that to be policy-relevant health research may need to focus on building complexity-oriented research methods for

Distributed Solar Photovoltaics for Electric Vehicle Charging: Regulatory and Policy Considerations (Brochure)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2014-09-01

Increasing demand for electric vehicle (EV) charging provides an opportunity for market expansion of distributed solar technology. A major barrier to the current deployment of solar technology for EV charging is a lack of clear information for policy makers, utilities and potential adopters. This paper introduces the pros and cons of EV charging during the day versus at night, summarizes the benefits and grid implications of combining solar and EV charging technologies, and offers some regulatory and policy options available to policy makers and regulators wanting to incentivize solar EV charging.

Energy research shows the way to sustainable energy policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glatthard, T.

2000-01-01

This article takes a look at the work of the Swiss research programme on energy economics basics that aims to provide advice for policy makers. The programme investigates not only the technological but also the social and economic factors to be taken into consideration. In particular, the article reviews the programme's work on promotion strategies for sustainability in the energy area in connection with a proposed levy on energy. Examples are given of possible implementation strategies concerning new and existing buildings. The responsibilities of the parties to be involved in the implementation of promotional measures such as cantonal authorities, professional associations and agencies are discussed

The sixteenth-century altar painting of the Cattaran (Kotor fraternity of leather-makers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Živković Valentina

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The altar painting that the Cattaran Fraternity of Leather-makers commissioned from the Venetian painter Girolamo da Santa Croce in the first half of the sixteenth century contains the images of Sts Bartholomew, George and Antoninus. The presence of the first two saints is looked at from the perspective of a long-established religious tradition, while the reasons for depicting the archbishop Antoninus giving alms to the poor appear to reside in the then prevailing religious policy and the local social situation.

Stepping stones to significant market shares for renewables. The European forum for market players and decision makers in the renewable energy industry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2007-07-01

This invitation to a two-day European Forum for market players and decision makers in the renewable energy business lists the presentations made at the conference in 2007. The programme included contributions in the following areas: Policies and market deployment initiatives, market trends and experience - from support schemes to market experience, opportunities in a changing framework in Switzerland, instruments and infrastructure requirements - how to make the market work and supply and demand aspects of a growing market. The conference examined how renewable forms of energy can gain significant market shares and reach a quota of 50% renewables in 50 years. The first session examined policies and market deployment initiatives, the second market trends and experiences, the third opportunities for Switzerland in a changing framework. The second day featured sessions on instruments and infrastructure requirements as well as on supply and demand aspects in a growing market. The conference was complemented with four workshops.

Stepping stones to significant market shares for renewables. The European forum for market players and decision makers in the renewable energy industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2007-01-01

This invitation to a two-day European Forum for market players and decision makers in the renewable energy business lists the presentations made at the conference in 2007. The programme included contributions in the following areas: Policies and market deployment initiatives, market trends and experience - from support schemes to market experience, opportunities in a changing framework in Switzerland, instruments and infrastructure requirements - how to make the market work and supply and demand aspects of a growing market. The conference examined how renewable forms of energy can gain significant market shares and reach a quota of 50% renewables in 50 years. The first session examined policies and market deployment initiatives, the second market trends and experiences, the third opportunities for Switzerland in a changing framework. The second day featured sessions on instruments and infrastructure requirements as well as on supply and demand aspects in a growing market. The conference was complemented with four workshops.

Renewable electricity production costs-A framework to assist policy-makers' decisions on price support

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dinica, Valentina

2011-01-01

Despite recent progress, the production costs for renewable electricity remain above those for conventional power. Expectations of continuous reductions in production costs, typically underpin governments' policies for financial support. They often draw on the technology-focused versions of the Experience Curve model. This paper discusses how national-contextual factors also have a strong influence on production costs, such as geographic, infrastructural, institutional, and resource factors. As technologies mature, and as they reach significant levels of diffusion nationally, sustained increases in production costs might be recorded, due to these nationally contextual factors, poorly accounted for in policy-making decisions for price support. The paper suggests an analytical framework for a more comprehensive understanding of production costs. Based on this, it recommends that the evolution of specific cost levels and factors be monitored to locate 'sources of changes'. The paper also suggests policy instruments that governments may use to facilitate cost decreases, whenever possible. The application of the framework is illustrated for the diffusion of wind power in Spain during the past three decades. - Highlights: → Models, frameworks for policy-making on price support for renewable electricity production costs. → Policy instruments to help reduce production costs. → Limits to the influence of policies of production costs reductions.

Assimilation of tourism satellite accounts and applied general equilibrium models to inform tourism policy analysis

OpenAIRE

Rossouw, Riaan; Saayman, Melville

2011-01-01

Historically, tourism policy analysis in South Africa has posed challenges to accurate measurement. The primary reason for this is that tourism is not designated as an 'industry' in standard economic accounts. This paper therefore demonstrates the relevance and need for applied general equilibrium (AGE) models to be completed and extended through an integration with tourism satellite accounts (TSAs) as a tool for policy makers (especially tourism policy makers) in South Africa. The paper sets...

Policy Challenges for Bilingual and Immersion Education in Australia: Literacy and Language Choices for Users of Aboriginal Languages, Auslan and Italian

Science.gov (United States)

de Courcy, Michele

2005-01-01

This paper deals with the author's recent work on political, sociolinguistic and educational aspects of bilingual and immersion education in Australia. Among the cases considered are: the development of a professional position statement on bilingual and immersion education, to be disseminated to policy makers; advising on an Auslan (Australian…

The design of the Work Programme in international context

OpenAIRE

Finn, Dan

2011-01-01

This report compares the design and procurement of the Work Programme (WP) with pertinent experience in Australia, the USA and the Netherlands. It considers the risks in the implementation of performance based contracts, their implications for the WP, and their address in the other countries. The review finds that contract and procurement systems in the comparator countries have been in flux as policy makers have sought to secure the advantages of contracting out whilst minimising attendant r...

The Current Mind-Set of Federal Information Security Decision-Makers on the Value of Governance: An Informative Study

Science.gov (United States)

Stroup, Jay Walter

2014-01-01

Understanding the mind-set or perceptions of organizational leaders and decision-makers is important to ascertaining the trends and priorities in policy and governance of the organization. This study finds that a significant shift in the mind-set of government IT and information security leaders has started and will likely result in placing a…

Flexible Work: The Impact of a New Policy on Employees' Sedentary Behavior and Physical Activity.

Science.gov (United States)

Olsen, Heidi M; Brown, Wendy J; Kolbe-Alexander, Tracy; Burton, Nicola W

2018-01-01

The aim of the study was to assess change in physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) in office-based employees after the implementation of a flexible work policy that allowed working at home. A total of 24 employees (62% female; 40 ± 10 years) completed an online questionnaire 4 weeks pre- and 6 weeks post-implementation of the policy. Changes in PA and SB were assessed using Wilcoxon signed rank test. There were no changes in PA after the introduction of the flexible work policy (Z = -0.29, P > 0.05). Sitting time increased on days the employees worked at home (Z = -2.02, P > 0.05) and on days they worked at the office (Z = -4.16, P > 0.001). A flexible work policy may have had a negative impact on sedentary behavior in this workplace. Future work is needed to explore the potential impact on workplace sitting time.

Producing More Actionable Science Isn't the Problem; It's Providing Decision-Makers with Access to Right Actionable Knowledge

Science.gov (United States)

Trexler, M.

2017-12-01

Policy-makers today have almost infinite climate-relevant scientific and other information available to them. The problem for climate change decision-making isn't missing science or inadequate knowledge of climate risks; the problem is that the "right" climate change actionable knowledge isn't getting to the right decision-maker, or is getting there too early or too late to effectively influence her decision-making. Actionable knowledge is not one-size-fit-all, and for a given decision-maker might involve scientific, economic, or risk-based information. Simply producing more and more information as we are today is not the solution, and actually makes it harder for individual decision-makers to access "their" actionable knowledge. The Climatographers began building the Climate Web five years ago to test the hypothesis that a knowledge management system could help navigate the gap between infinite information and individual actionable knowledge. Today the Climate Web's more than 1,500 index terms allow instant access to almost any climate change topic. It is a curated public-access knowledgebase of more than 1,000 books, 2,000 videos, 15,000 reports and articles, 25,000 news stories, and 3,000 websites. But it is also much more, linking together tens of thousands of individually extracted ideas and graphics, and providing Deep Dives into more than 100 key topics from changing probability distributions of extreme events to climate communications best practices to cognitive dissonance in climate change decision-making. The public-access Climate Web is uniquely able to support cross-silo learning, collaboration, and actionable knowledge dissemination. The presentation will use the Climate Web to demonstrate why knowledge management should be seen as a critical component of science and policy-making collaborations.

Language Policy, Multilingual Education, and Power in Rwanda

Science.gov (United States)

Samuelson, Beth Lewis; Freedman, Sarah Warshauer

2010-01-01

The evolution of Rwanda's language policies since 1996 has played and continues to play a critical role in social reconstruction following war and genocide. Rwanda's new English language policy aims to drop French and install English as the only language of instruction. The policy-makers frame the change as a major factor in the success of social…

Improving drug policy: The potential of broader democratic participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Ritter, Alison; Lancaster, Kari; Diprose, Rosalyn

2018-05-01

Policies concerned with illicit drugs vex governments. While the 'evidence-based policy' paradigm argues that governments should be informed by 'what works', in practice policy makers rarely operate this way. Moreover the evidence-based policy paradigm fails to account for democratic participatory processes, particularly how community members and people who use drugs might be included. The aim of this paper is to explore the political science thinking about democratic participation and the potential afforded in 'deliberative democracy' approaches, such as Citizens Juries and other mini-publics for improved drug policy processes. Deliberative democracy, through its focus on inclusion, equality and reasoned discussion, shows potential for drug policy reform and shifts the focus from reliance on and privileging of experts and scientific evidence. But the very nature of this kind of 'deliberation' may delimit participation, notably through its insistence on authorised modes of communication. Other forms of participation beyond reasoned deliberation aligned with the ontological view that participatory processes themselves are constitutive of subject positions and policy problems, may generate opportunities for considering how the deleterious effects of authorised modes of communication might be overcome. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Public Policy and Protection from Exclusion - Phase III | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Public Policy and Protection from Exclusion - Phase III ... and decision-makers active in the promotion of equitable health policies, with a view to promoting the emergence of an observatory of health systems in the ... Policy in Focus publishes a special issue profiling evidence to empower women in the labour market.

Bioenergy systems sustainability assessment & management (BIOSSAM) guidance portal for policy, decision and development support of integrated bioenergy supply interventions

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Stafford, WHL

2010-08-01

Full Text Available . There are several new bioenergy interventions (policies, projects, or programmes) that are being considered and these developments must be assessed in terms of their sustainability. Both public and private sector policy makers, decision makers, and technology...

Financial Aid Research: The Nexus of Academic, Practitioner, and Policy Work

Science.gov (United States)

Heller, Donald E.

2017-01-01

Academic research often does not find its way into the policy arena because of the nature of the work. Policymakers often find journal articles and academic books too long, difficult to understand, and lacking in policy-relevant ideas and recommendations. This article provides suggestions to academic and other researchers on how to make their…

Challenges of linking scientific knowledge to river basin management policy: AquaTerra as a case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slob, A.F.L.; Rijnveld, M.; Chapman, A.S.; Strosser, P.

2007-01-01

The EU Project AquaTerra generates knowledge about the river-soil-sediment-groundwater system and delivers scientific information of value for river basin management. In this article, the use and ignorance of scientific knowledge in decision making is explored by a theoretical review. We elaborate on the 'two-communities theory', which explains the problems of the policy-science interface by relating and comparing the different cultures, contexts, and languages of researchers and policy makers. Within AquaTerra, the EUPOL subproject examines the policy-science interface with the aim of achieving a good connection between the scientific output of the project and EU policies. We have found two major barriers, namely language and resources, as well as two types of relevant relationships: those between different research communities and those between researchers and policy makers. - Using scientific output in River Basin Management requires researchers and policy makers to acknowledge the multiple rationalities and different viewpoints that are brought in by the variety of stakeholders involved

Fathers and work-life balance in France and the UK:Policy and practice

OpenAIRE

Gregory, Abigail; Milner, Susan

2011-01-01

Purpose – This paper focuses on the role of organizations in mediating the impact of national work-life balance (WLB) policy on employees, in particular fathers. Design/methodology/approach – It presents existing research about WLB policy implementation in organizations as well as the findings of empirical work in insurance and social work in France and the UK (questionnaire survey, case study analysis, interviews with national and sector-level trade union officials). Findings – These indicat...

Combining informal care and paid work: The use of work arrangements by working adult-child caregivers in the Netherlands.

Science.gov (United States)

Oldenkamp, Marloes; Bültmann, Ute; Wittek, Rafael P M; Stolk, Ronald P; Hagedoorn, Mariët; Smidt, Nynke

2018-01-01

An increasing number of people combine paid work with the provision of informal care for a loved one. This combination of work and care may cause difficulties, necessitating adaptations at work, i.e. work arrangements. The present study explores what types of work arrangements are used by working caregivers, and which caregiver, care and work characteristics are associated with the use of these work arrangements. Within the Lifelines Informal Care Add-on Study (Lifelines ICAS), data on 965 Dutch informal caregivers in the North of the Netherlands were collected between May 2013 and July 2014 (response rate 48%), and data on 333 working adult-child caregivers (aged 26-68 years, 82% female) were used in this study. A small majority (56%) of the working caregivers used one or more work arrangement(s): taking time off (41%), individual agreements with supervisor (30%), formal care leave arrangement (13%), and reduction in paid work hours (6%). Logistic regression analyses showed that long working hours (OR 1.06, 95% CI 1.01-1.08), and the experience of more health problems (OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.56-4.05) or a disrupted schedule due to caregiving (OR 2.50, 95% CI 1.66-3.78) increased the chance to have used one or more work arrangements. Lower educated working caregivers were less likely to have used a formal care leave arrangement (tertiary vs. primary education OR 2.75, 95% CI 1.13-6.67; tertiary vs. secondary education OR 1.27, 95% CI 1.27-5.09). Policy makers should inform working caregivers about the availability of the different work arrangements, with specific attention for low educated working caregivers. Employers need to consider a more caregiver-friendly policy, as almost half of the working adult-child caregivers did not use any work arrangement. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Global change research: Science and policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rayner, S.

1993-05-01

This report characterizes certain aspects of the Global Change Research Program of the US Government, and its relevance to the short and medium term needs of policy makers in the public and private sectors. It addresses some of the difficulties inherent in the science and policy interface on the issues of global change. Finally, this report offers some proposals for improving the science for policy process in the context of global environmental change

Policy makers ignoring science and scientists ignoring policy: the medical ethical challenges of heroin treatment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Small Dan

2006-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract A decade of research in Switzerland, The Netherlands, Germany, and Spain now constitutes a massive body of work supporting the use of heroin treatment for the most difficult patients addicted to opiates. These trials concur on this method's safety and efficacy and are now serving as a prelude to the institution of heroin treatment in clinical practice throughout Europe. While the different sampling and research protocols for heroin treatment in these studies were important to the academic claims about specific results and conclusions that could be drawn from each study, the overall outcomes were quite clear – and uniformly positive. They all find that the use of prescribed pharmaceutical heroin does exactly what it is intended to do: it reaches a treatment refractory group of addicts by engaging them in a positive healthcare relationship with a physician, it reduces their criminal activity, improves their health status, and increases their social tenure through more stable housing, employment, and contact with family. The Canadian trial (NAOMI, now underway for over a year, but not yet completed, now faces a dilemma about what to do with its patients who have successfully completed 12 months of heroin and must be withdrawn from heroin and transferred to other treatments in accordance with the research protocol approved by Government of Canada, federal granting body and host institutions. The problem is that the principal criterion for acceptance to NAOMI was their history of repeated failure in these very same treatment programs to which they will now be referred. The existence of the results from abroad (some of which were not yet available when NAOMI was designed and initiated now raises a very important question for Canada: is it ethical to continue to prohibit the medical use of heroin treatment that has already been shown to be feasible and effective in numerous medical studies throughout the world? And while this is being worked

Energy poverty policies in the EU: A critical perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bouzarovski, Stefan; Petrova, Saska; Sarlamanov, Robert

2012-01-01

Once confined to the UK context – where it was struggling to receive political recognition for years – the concept of energy (or fuel) poverty is slowly entering the EU's agenda, where it has crept into a number of regulatory documents and policy proposals. Using evidence gathered from an international workshop and semi-structured interviews with decision-makers, experts and advocacy activists in Brussels and Sofia, this paper explores the adoption of policies aimed at addressing energy poverty within (i) the organisational context of the EU; and (ii) national state institutions in Bulgaria – a member state facing considerable problems at the energy affordability – social inequality nexus. While the former are largely nascent and poorly co-ordinated, the latter have already been implemented de jure to a significant extent. However, many unresolved issues surrounding their de facto implementation remain. At the same time, national policy makers remain largely unaware of the existence of direct energy poverty related initiatives at the EU level. - Highlights: ► This paper explores the adoption of energy poverty policies within the EU and Bulgaria. ► We establish the existence of a range of nascent efforts to address the issue at EU level. ► Bulgaria has been good at implementing EU energy poverty relevant directives. ► However, policy makers speak a different language when it comes to direct energy poverty action.

Lessons Learned from the Energy Policies of IEA Countries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2009-07-01

This information paper provides policy makers and managers, facing tough energy policy challenges, with a wider perspective of how the same issues are being addressed by different IEA member countries. The topics included are: Government structures for co-ordinating energy and climate policies; The use of long-term energy forecasts and scenarios; and Progress in the delivery of key energy security policies.

Policy to Foster Civility and Support a Healthy Academic Work Environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Cynthia M; Ritter, Katy

2018-06-01

Incivility in academic workplaces can have detrimental effects on individuals, teams, departments, and the campus community at large. Alternately, healthy academic workplaces generate heightened levels of employee satisfaction, engagement, and morale. This article describes the development and implementation of a comprehensive, legally defensible policy related to workplace civility and the establishment of a healthy academic work environment. A detailed policy exemplar is included to provide a structure for fostering a healthy academic work environment, a fair, consistent, confidential procedure for defining and addressing workplace incivility, a mechanism for reporting and subsequent investigation of uncivil acts if indicated, and ways to foster civility and respectful workplace behavior. The authors detail a step-by-step procedure and an incremental approach to address workplace incivility and reward policy adherence. [J Nurs Educ. 2018;57(6):325-331.]. Copyright 2018, SLACK Incorporated.

Establishing a community of practice of researchers, practitioners, policy-makers and communities to sustainably manage environmental health risks in Ecuador.

Science.gov (United States)

Spiegel, Jerry M; Breilh, Jaime; Beltran, Efrain; Parra, Jorge; Solis, Fernanda; Yassi, Annalee; Rojas, Alejandro; Orrego, Elena; Henry, Bonnie; Bowie, William R; Pearce, Laurie; Gaibor, Juan; Velasquez, Patricio; Concepcion, Miriam; Parkes, Margot

2011-11-08

The Sustainably Managing Environmental Health Risk in Ecuador project was launched in 2004 as a partnership linking a large Canadian university with leading Cuban and Mexican institutes to strengthen the capacities of four Ecuadorian universities for leading community-based learning and research in areas as diverse as pesticide poisoning, dengue control, water and sanitation, and disaster preparedness. In implementing curriculum and complementary innovations through application of an ecosystem approach to health, our interdisciplinary international team focused on the question: "Can strengthening of institutional capacities to support a community of practice of researchers, practitioners, policy-makers and communities produce positive health outcomes and improved capacities to sustainably translate knowledge?" To assess progress in achieving desired outcomes, we review results associated with the logic framework analysis used to guide the project, focusing on how a community of practice network has strengthened implementation, including follow-up tracking of program trainees and presentation of two specific case studies. By 2009, train-the-trainer project initiation involved 27 participatory action research Master's theses in 15 communities where 1200 community learners participated in the implementation of associated interventions. This led to establishment of innovative Ecuadorian-led master's and doctoral programs, and a Population Health Observatory on Collective Health, Environment and Society for the Andean region based at the Universidad Andina Simon Bolivar. Building on this network, numerous initiatives were begun, such as an internationally funded research project to strengthen dengue control in the coastal community of Machala, and establishment of a local community eco-health centre focusing on determinants of health near Cuenca. Strengthening capabilities for producing and applying knowledge through direct engagement with affected populations and

Establishing a community of practice of researchers, practitioners, policy-makers and communities to sustainably manage environmental health risks in Ecuador

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Henry Bonnie

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Sustainably Managing Environmental Health Risk in Ecuador project was launched in 2004 as a partnership linking a large Canadian university with leading Cuban and Mexican institutes to strengthen the capacities of four Ecuadorian universities for leading community-based learning and research in areas as diverse as pesticide poisoning, dengue control, water and sanitation, and disaster preparedness. Methods In implementing curriculum and complementary innovations through application of an ecosystem approach to health, our interdisciplinary international team focused on the question: “Can strengthening of institutional capacities to support a community of practice of researchers, practitioners, policy-makers and communities produce positive health outcomes and improved capacities to sustainably translate knowledge?” To assess progress in achieving desired outcomes, we review results associated with the logic framework analysis used to guide the project, focusing on how a community of practice network has strengthened implementation, including follow-up tracking of program trainees and presentation of two specific case studies. Results By 2009, train-the-trainer project initiation involved 27 participatory action research Master’s theses in 15 communities where 1200 community learners participated in the implementation of associated interventions. This led to establishment of innovative Ecuadorian-led master’s and doctoral programs, and a Population Health Observatory on Collective Health, Environment and Society for the Andean region based at the Universidad Andina Simon Bolivar. Building on this network, numerous initiatives were begun, such as an internationally funded research project to strengthen dengue control in the coastal community of Machala, and establishment of a local community eco-health centre focusing on determinants of health near Cuenca. Discussion Strengthening capabilities for producing and

Hydropedology as a powerful tool for environmental policy research

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bouma, J.

2006-01-01

Rather than produce clear-cut answers to well-defined problems, research on future environmental policy issues requires a different approach whereby researchers are partners in joint learning processes among stakeholders, policy makers, NGOs (Non-Governmental Organisations) and industry. This

An Investigation into the Decision Makers's Risk Attitude Index ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

An Investigation into the Decision Makers's Risk Attitude Index Ranking Technique for Fuzzy Critical Path Analysis. ... Nigerian Journal of Technology ... for a benchmark problem, the decision maker's risk attitude index ranking method produces unrealistic results when the decision maker's attitude towards risk was neutral.

The role of financial intermediaries in monetary policy transmission

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beck, T.H.L.; Colciago, A.; Pfajfar, D.

The recent financial crisis has stimulated theoretical and empirical research on the propagation mechanisms underlying business cycles, in particular on the role of financial frictions. Many issues concerning the interactions between banking and monetary policy forced policy makers to redefine

Does the market maker stabilize the market?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zhu, M.; Chiarella, C.; He, X.Z.; Wang, D.

2009-01-01

The market maker plays an important role in price formation, but his/her behavior and stabilizing impact on the market are relatively unclear, in particular in speculative markets. This paper develops a financial market model that examines the impact on market stability of the market maker, who acts

Marijuana: A Study of State Policies & Penalties.

Science.gov (United States)

Peat, Marwick, Mitchell and Co., Columbia, MD.

This study is a comprehensive analysis of issues concerning marijuana that are of importance to state policy makers. It reviews the medical, legal, and historical dimensions of marijuana use and examines the range of policy approaches toward marijuana possession and use which state officials have considered. Attention is directed to the experience…

Agricultural pricing policy in Kenya : scope and impact

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meilink, H.A.

1985-01-01

Reviews the findings of available studies and reports thought to be of relevance to policy makers. A discussion of the institutional framework, of criteria used in price-setting procedures, and of scope and objectives of the agricultural pricing policies is folowed by an examination of what these

The ERS role on Tobacco Control Policy in Europe

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christina Gratziou

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The European Respiratory Society is an international medical organisation that brings together physicians, healthcare professionals, scientists and other experts working in respiratory medicine. Its aim is to alleviate suffering from respiratory diseases and promote lung health globally through science, education and advocacy. ERS has since its founding in 1990 demonstrated strong commitment to tobacco control. Through scientific assemblies, education courses, various alliances and collaboration (Framework Convention Alliance, European Chronic Disease Alliance, World Health Organisation etc. As well as a Tobacco Control Committee (TCC dedicated to advocacy, ERS constantly strives to promote strong and evidence-based policies to reduce the burden of tobacco related diseases. One of the main outcome of the TCC is the creation of Smokehaz, a website aimed at providing policy-makers with scientific information on the Health hazards associated with smoking. Recently, ERS created the Latin-America Working Group which aims at strengthening tobacco control activities in Spain, Portugal and Latin-American countries.

Social Policies and Families in Stress: Gender and Educational Differences in Work-Family Conflict from a European Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Notten, Natascha; Grunow, Daniela; Verbakel, Ellen

2017-01-01

In modern welfare states, family policies may resolve the tension between employment and care-focused demands. However these policies sometimes have adverse consequences for distinct social groups. This study examined gender and educational differences in working parents' perceived work-family conflict and used a comparative approach to test whether family policies, in particular support for child care and leave from paid work, are capable of reducing work-family conflict as well as the gender and educational gaps in work-family conflict. We use data from the European Social Survey 2010 for 20 countries and 5296 respondents (parents), extended with information on national policies for maternity and parental leave and child care support from the OECD Family Database. Employing multilevel analysis, we find that mothers and the higher educated report most work-family conflict. Policies supporting child care reduce the level of experienced work-family conflict; family leave policy appears to have no alleviating impact on working parents' work-family conflict. Our findings indicate that family policies appear to be unable to reduce the gender gap in conflict perception and even widen the educational gap in work-family conflict.

Why Do Policy-Makers Adopt Global Education Policies? Toward a Research Framework on the Varying Role of Ideas in Education Reform

Science.gov (United States)

Verger, Antoni

2014-01-01

Globalization is profoundly altering the education policy landscape. It introduces new problems in education agendas, compresses time and space in policy processes, and revitalizes the role of a range of supra-national players in educational reform. This deterritorialization of the education policy process has important theoretical and…

Work–life balance policies and practices in Nigeria: experiences from managerial and non managerial employees in the banking sector

OpenAIRE

Ojo, Stella Ibiyinka

2016-01-01

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University London Work design and content is changing. Accompanying this change has been an increasing demand by workers for policy makers to factor the issue of managing workers’ work and life. Work–life balance as a concept has attracted attention for several years as a result of individuals attempting to juggle multiple demands from both work and outside the workplace. The number of multiple demand...

Nuclear power: the decision makers speak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cohen, R.L.; Lichter, S.R.

1983-01-01

In October 1980, the authors surveyed selected scientific experts, decision-makers in financial and regulatory communities and Congress, and directors of major activist groups for national environmental organizations. Questions concerned policy preferences for and general attitudes toward nuclear energy, problems, energy resources, and considerations important to most influential groups in nuclear development. The survey revealed, surprisingly, that most regulators, congressional leaders, outside experts, and financiers are as united in their support of nuclear energy development as are industry executives, Three Mile Island notwithstanding. The antinuclear perspective is represented almost entirely by the heads of activist groups and a few scattered allies in Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Energy. A relatively few dissenters have played a major role in blocking nuclear development. Implications for the regulatory process from these survey results are that cost-benefit analyses and empirical findings on nuclear power issues will not convince activists and their followers; it appears that they have acquired a kind of veto over nuclear development. Through actively political behavior in the contest for nuclear energy's future, and through sympathetic media, activists have won the American public to their side. 7 tables

Climate change and energy policies, coal and coalmine methane in China

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang Ming [3E and T International, Suite 1506, Building No. 10, Luo Ma Shi Street, Xuanwu District, Beijing 100052 (China)], E-mail: ming.yang7@gmail.com

2009-08-15

The Chinese government has made many energy policies on coal, and coalmine methane (CMM) use. However, not all of these policies have effects or positive impacts. For example, it has been quite a few years since the national government made policies to encourage coalmine methane power to be sold to the grid. Practice showed that not any kilowatt of electricity was sold from a coalmine methane power plant to the grid in Sichuan and Guizhou Provinces as of December 2008. The objectives of this paper are to review and evaluate the Chinese government energy and climate policies that are related to coal and coalmine methane, analyze relevant policy barriers, and make recommendations to overcome these barriers and avoid policy failures. This paper provides the literature review, challenges, resources, policies and other updated information on China's CMM recovery and utilization. The paper concludes that China needs to further reform its energy and environment management system, engage provincial governments in CMM capture and use activities, and provide incentives to qualified engineers and skilled workers to work in remote coal mining areas. This paper transfers key messages to policy makers for them to make better CMM capture and use policies.

Climate change and energy policies, coal and coalmine methane in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Ming

2009-01-01

The Chinese government has made many energy policies on coal, and coalmine methane (CMM) use. However, not all of these policies have effects or positive impacts. For example, it has been quite a few years since the national government made policies to encourage coalmine methane power to be sold to the grid. Practice showed that not any kilowatt of electricity was sold from a coalmine methane power plant to the grid in Sichuan and Guizhou Provinces as of December 2008. The objectives of this paper are to review and evaluate the Chinese government energy and climate policies that are related to coal and coalmine methane, analyze relevant policy barriers, and make recommendations to overcome these barriers and avoid policy failures. This paper provides the literature review, challenges, resources, policies and other updated information on China's CMM recovery and utilization. The paper concludes that China needs to further reform its energy and environment management system, engage provincial governments in CMM capture and use activities, and provide incentives to qualified engineers and skilled workers to work in remote coal mining areas. This paper transfers key messages to policy makers for them to make better CMM capture and use policies.

Re-thinking the relevance of philosophy of education for educational policy making

OpenAIRE

Griffiths, Morwenna

2014-01-01

The overall question addressed in this article is,‘What kind of philosophy of education is relevant to educational policy makers?’ The article focuses on the following four themes: The meanings attached to the term philosophy (of education) by philosophers themselves; the meanings attached to the term philosophy (of education) by policy makers; the difference place and time makes to these meanings; how these different meanings affect the possibility of philosophy (of education) influencing po...

Upper extremity cumulative trauma disorders in the makers of Maraş pounded ice cream

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Betül Bakan

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Objective: Upper Extremity Cumulative Trauma Disorders(UE-CTD are among the major health problems affectingthe workers. The aim of this study was to investigateUE-CTD in the makers of Maras pounded ice cream(MMPICMethods: This study was conducted among 50 volunteerswho work as a MMPIC and 50 control in our downtownarea. During face-to-face conversion, the participantsfilled out a survey inquiring about age, duration ofwork (in years in job, daily working time, occupation withanother job, health history, and medication usage. Thesubjects were questioned regarding the musculoskeletalcomplaints within the last six months and upper bodyphysical examination was performed in all participants.Results: The study group was composed of males.The mean age of study group and control group were31.78±6.58 and 30.74±5.99 years (p=0.411, respectively.The mean duration of work in pounded ice creambusiness and the mean duration of work in control were11.64± 6.26 years and 10.68±5.48 years (p=0.417, respectively.The mean daily working time in the studygroup and in control group were 10.64±1.82 hours and11.12±1.62 hours (p= 0.168, respectively. Musculoskeletalcomplaints of the upper extremity were found in 52%of the study group, and 28% of the control group. Musculoskeletaldisease of upper extremity was found in 28% ofthe study group and in 12% of the control group. Upperextremity musculoskeletal system complaints and illnesswere difference statistically between the two groups (p=0.014; p= 0.046, respectively.Conclusion: UE-CTD was seen in the makers of poundedice cream and its prevalence was similar to the otherlaborers work in the areas needing repetitive arm andhand motion.Key words: Makers of Maras pounded ice cream, cumulativetrauma disorders, upper extremity problems

Nordsøen Movie Maker

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2013-01-01

Tag på ekspedition under havets overflade med Nordsøen Movie Maker, hvor din tur i Nordsøen Oceanarium får et helt nyt virtuelt lag. Rejs ud til de syv destinationer og hold øje med de unikke ‘moviespots‘ i nærheden af akvarierne. Her kan du med Nordsøen Movie Maker filme og dokumentere dine...... oplevelser med legesyge sæler, susende hvirvelstrømme og gigantiske klumpfisk. Nordsøen Movie Maker giver filmen et ekstra virtuelt lag, og via augmented reality bliver der tilføjet seje og morsomme, animerede specialeffekter. 1) Download app’en 2) Find et moviespot ved ekspeditionsposterne i Nordsøen...... Oceanarium. Kig efter klaptræet. 3) Vælg den rigtige post i app’en og start med at filme dit filmklip Downloader du app’en før dit besøg, er du allerede klar til at starte ekspeditionen i det øjeblik, du træder ind i Oceanariets tusmørke, hvor de første moviespots er gemt. God fornøjelse med ekspeditionen...

Policies for Migration and Development: A European Perspective. Policy Brief No. 30

Science.gov (United States)

Katseli, Louka T.; Lucas, Robert E. B.; Xenogiani, Theodora

2006-01-01

Managing migration has become a priority for policy makers both in developed and developing countries. Large immigration or emigration flows relative to domestic population's impact on almost all aspects of an economy and society: family structures, community life, educational and health systems, labour markets, security systems, governance and…

Stabilization policies for the tourist sector

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjalager, A. M.

1999-01-01

Over the past few decades, tourism has increasingly been included in economic policies at all levels. Not surprisingly, the tourism sector is highly satisfied with this development: the inclusion in economic policies can be taken as an indication of its acceptance as a respectable player - on equal...... and entries of firms. Data from the tourism sector in Denmark serve to illustrate the problems with considerable turbulence in the population of tourism enterprises. Instability can be regarded as a major challenge for policy makers. Within the policy tradition of interventionism, two main types of measures...

Ethical challenges related to elder care. High level decision-makers' experiences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kihlgren Mona

2007-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Few empirical studies have been found that explore ethical challenges among persons in high public positions that are responsible for elder care. The aim of this paper was to illuminate the meaning of being in ethically difficult situations related to elder care as experienced by high level decision-makers. Methods A phenomenological-hermeneutic method was used to analyse the eighteen interviews conducted with political and civil servant high level decision-makers at the municipality and county council level from two counties in Sweden. The participants worked at a planning and control as well as executive level and had both budget and quality of elder care responsibilities. Results Both ethical dilemmas and the meaning of being in ethically difficult situations related to elder care were revealed. No differences were seen between the politicians and the civil servants. The ethical dilemmas mostly concerned dealings with extensive care needs and working with a limited budget. The dilemmas were associated with a lack of good care and a lack of agreement concerning care such as vulnerable patients in inappropriate care settings, weaknesses in medical support, dissimilar focuses between the caring systems, justness in the distribution of care and deficient information. Being in ethically difficult situations was challenging. Associated with them were experiences of being exposed, having to be strategic and living with feelings such as aloneness and loneliness, uncertainty, lack of confirmation, the risk of being threatened or becoming a scapegoat and difficult decision avoidance. Conclusion Our paper provides further insight into the ethical dilemmas and ethical challenges met by high level decision-makers', which is important since the overall responsibility for elder care that is also ethically defensible rests with them. They have power and their decisions affect many stakeholders in elder care. Our results can be used to

Ethical challenges related to elder care. High level decision-makers' experiences.

Science.gov (United States)

Mamhidir, Anna-Greta; Kihlgren, Mona; Sorlie, Venke

2007-04-10

Few empirical studies have been found that explore ethical challenges among persons in high public positions that are responsible for elder care. The aim of this paper was to illuminate the meaning of being in ethically difficult situations related to elder care as experienced by high level decision-makers. A phenomenological-hermeneutic method was used to analyse the eighteen interviews conducted with political and civil servant high level decision-makers at the municipality and county council level from two counties in Sweden. The participants worked at a planning and control as well as executive level and had both budget and quality of elder care responsibilities. Both ethical dilemmas and the meaning of being in ethically difficult situations related to elder care were revealed. No differences were seen between the politicians and the civil servants. The ethical dilemmas mostly concerned dealings with extensive care needs and working with a limited budget. The dilemmas were associated with a lack of good care and a lack of agreement concerning care such as vulnerable patients in inappropriate care settings, weaknesses in medical support, dissimilar focuses between the caring systems, justness in the distribution of care and deficient information. Being in ethically difficult situations was challenging. Associated with them were experiences of being exposed, having to be strategic and living with feelings such as aloneness and loneliness, uncertainty, lack of confirmation, the risk of being threatened or becoming a scapegoat and difficult decision avoidance. Our paper provides further insight into the ethical dilemmas and ethical challenges met by high level decision-makers', which is important since the overall responsibility for elder care that is also ethically defensible rests with them. They have power and their decisions affect many stakeholders in elder care. Our results can be used to stimulate discussions between high level decision-makers and health

Maker Cultures and the Prospects for Technological Action.

Science.gov (United States)

Nascimento, Susana; Pólvora, Alexandre

2018-06-01

Supported by easier and cheaper access to tools and expanding communities, maker cultures are pointing towards the ideas of (almost) everyone designing, creating, producing and distributing renewed, new and improved products, machines, things or artefacts. A careful analysis of the assumptions and challenges of maker cultures emphasizes the relevance of what may be called technological action, that is, active and critical interventions regarding the purposes and applications of technologies within ordinary lives, thus countering the deterministic trends of current directions of technology. In such transformative potential, we will explore a set of elements what is and could be technological action through snapshots of maker cultures based on the empirical research conducted in three particular contexts: the Fab Lab Network, Maker Media core outputs and initiatives such as Maker Faires, and the Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA). Elements such as control and empowerment through material engagement, openness and sharing, and social, cultural, political and ethical values of the common good in topics such as diversity, sustainability and transparency, are critically analysed.

Gender inequalities in the workplace: the effects of organizational structures, processes, practices, and decision makers' sexism.

Science.gov (United States)

Stamarski, Cailin S; Son Hing, Leanne S

2015-01-01

Gender inequality in organizations is a complex phenomenon that can be seen in organizational structures, processes, and practices. For women, some of the most harmful gender inequalities are enacted within human resources (HRs) practices. This is because HR practices (i.e., policies, decision-making, and their enactment) affect the hiring, training, pay, and promotion of women. We propose a model of gender discrimination in HR that emphasizes the reciprocal nature of gender inequalities within organizations. We suggest that gender discrimination in HR-related decision-making and in the enactment of HR practices stems from gender inequalities in broader organizational structures, processes, and practices. This includes leadership, structure, strategy, culture, organizational climate, as well as HR policies. In addition, organizational decision makers' levels of sexism can affect their likelihood of making gender biased HR-related decisions and/or behaving in a sexist manner while enacting HR practices. Importantly, institutional discrimination in organizational structures, processes, and practices play a pre-eminent role because not only do they affect HR practices, they also provide a socializing context for organizational decision makers' levels of hostile and benevolent sexism. Although we portray gender inequality as a self-reinforcing system that can perpetuate discrimination, important levers for reducing discrimination are identified.

Thermodynamic Analysis of a Rankine Cycle Powered Vapor Compression Ice Maker Using Solar Energy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bing Hu

2014-01-01

Full Text Available To develop the organic Rankine-vapor compression ice maker driven by solar energy, a thermodynamic model was developed and the effects of generation temperature, condensation temperature, and working fluid types on the system performance were analyzed. The results show that the cooling power per square meter collector and ice production per square meter collector per day depend largely on generation temperature and condensation temperature and they increase firstly and then decrease with increasing generation temperature. For every working fluid there is an optimal generation temperature at which organic Rankine efficiency achieves the maximum value. The cooling power per square meter collector and ice production per square meter collector per day are, respectively, 126.44 W m−2 and 7.61 kg m−2 day−1 at the generation temperature of 140°C for working fluid of R245fa, which demonstrates the feasibility of organic Rankine cycle powered vapor compression ice maker.

The development of health policy in Malawi: The influence of context ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Within the health policy field, a growing literature is attempting to understand the diverse responses of policy makers to research, and to explain why certain research findings make their way into policy while others are effectively ignored. In this paper we apply a policy analysis framework to the development of cotrimoxazole ...

Situating School District Resource Decision Making in Policy Context

Science.gov (United States)

Spain, Angeline K.

2016-01-01

Decentralization and deregulation policies assume that local educational leaders make better resource decisions than state policy makers do. Conceptual models drawn from organizational theory, however, offer competing predictions about how district central office administrators are likely to leverage their professional expertise in devolved…

Sustainability Science: Sustainable Energy for Mobility and Its Use in Policy Making

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabio Orecchini

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Since the 1980s sustainability has clearly become the challenge of the 21st century. In a process toward a sustainable society it is crucial that different stakeholders start collaboration and exchange ideas with technicians and academics. To finalize the policy decisions on important issues such as energy sustainability, collaboration between policy makers, academia and the private sector is important. This work intends to give Italian policy makers concrete advice and solutions to develop energy systems for mobility. The analysis proceeds from the context of Sustainability Science, a new science, which has emerged as one of the most important disciplines of international scientific research. Using a new approach, trans-disciplinary and integrated, this research is oriented to study and understand the complexity of the interactions between economy, society and nature. This broad approach permits proposing concrete solutions to complex problems locally and globally. We propose a scheme of definition of Sustainability Energy, defining five pillars of reference, and we redefine the energy systems for mobility in the context of Sustainability Science. In this paper, we start from the idea that we are living in a crucial passage, we are moving from the era of petroleum to the era of energy vectors. Energy systems, including mobility, should be redefined within this new approach.

Development of policies for Natura 2000 sites: a multi-criteria approach to support decision makers.

Science.gov (United States)

Cortina, Carla; Boggia, Antonio

2014-08-01

The aim of this study is to present a methodology to support decision makers in the choice of Natura 2000 sites needing an appropriate management plan to ensure a sustainable socio-economic development. In order to promote sustainable development in the Natura 2000 sites compatible with nature preservation, conservation measures or management plans are necessary. The main issue is to decide when only conservation measures can be applied and when the sites need an appropriate management plan. We present a case study for the Italian Region of Umbria. The methodology is based on a multi-criteria approach to identify the biodiversity index (BI), and on the development of a human activities index (HAI). By crossing the two indexes for each site on a Cartesian plane, four groups of sites were identified. Each group corresponds to a specific need for an appropriate management plan. Sites in the first group with a high level both of biodiversity and human activities have the most urgent need of an appropriate management plan to ensure sustainable development. The proposed methodology and analysis is replicable in other regions or countries by using the data available for each site in the Natura 2000 standard data form. A multi-criteria analysis is especially suitable for supporting decision makers when they deal with a multidimensional decision process. We found the multi-criteria approach particularly sound in this case, due to the concept of biodiversity itself, which is complex and multidimensional, and to the high number of alternatives (Natura 2000 sites) to be assessed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Collaboratively-Derived Science-Policy Research Agenda

Science.gov (United States)

Sutherland, William J.; Bellingan, Laura; Bellingham, Jim R.; Blackstock, Jason J.; Bloomfield, Robert M.; Bravo, Michael; Cadman, Victoria M.; Cleevely, David D.; Clements, Andy; Cohen, Anthony S.; Cope, David R.; Daemmrich, Arthur A.; Devecchi, Cristina; Anadon, Laura Diaz; Denegri, Simon; Doubleday, Robert; Dusic, Nicholas R.; Evans, Robert J.; Feng, Wai Y.; Godfray, H. Charles J.; Harris, Paul; Hartley, Sue E.; Hester, Alison J.; Holmes, John; Hughes, Alan; Hulme, Mike; Irwin, Colin; Jennings, Richard C.; Kass, Gary S.; Littlejohns, Peter; Marteau, Theresa M.; McKee, Glenn; Millstone, Erik P.; Nuttall, William J.; Owens, Susan; Parker, Miles M.; Pearson, Sarah; Petts, Judith; Ploszek, Richard; Pullin, Andrew S.; Reid, Graeme; Richards, Keith S.; Robinson, John G.; Shaxson, Louise; Sierra, Leonor; Smith, Beck G.; Spiegelhalter, David J.; Stilgoe, Jack; Stirling, Andy; Tyler, Christopher P.; Winickoff, David E.; Zimmern, Ron L.

2012-01-01

The need for policy makers to understand science and for scientists to understand policy processes is widely recognised. However, the science-policy relationship is sometimes difficult and occasionally dysfunctional; it is also increasingly visible, because it must deal with contentious issues, or itself becomes a matter of public controversy, or both. We suggest that identifying key unanswered questions on the relationship between science and policy will catalyse and focus research in this field. To identify these questions, a collaborative procedure was employed with 52 participants selected to cover a wide range of experience in both science and policy, including people from government, non-governmental organisations, academia and industry. These participants consulted with colleagues and submitted 239 questions. An initial round of voting was followed by a workshop in which 40 of the most important questions were identified by further discussion and voting. The resulting list includes questions about the effectiveness of science-based decision-making structures; the nature and legitimacy of expertise; the consequences of changes such as increasing transparency; choices among different sources of evidence; the implications of new means of characterising and representing uncertainties; and ways in which policy and political processes affect what counts as authoritative evidence. We expect this exercise to identify important theoretical questions and to help improve the mutual understanding and effectiveness of those working at the interface of science and policy. PMID:22427809

Healthy public policy in poor countries: tackling macro-economic policies.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohindra, K S

2007-06-01

Large segments of the population in poor countries continue to suffer from a high level of unmet health needs, requiring macro-level, broad-based interventions. Healthy public policy, a key health promotion strategy, aims to put health on the agenda of policy makers across sectors and levels of government. Macro-economic policy in developing countries has thus far not adequately captured the attention of health promotion researchers. This paper argues that healthy public policy should not only be an objective in rich countries, but also in poor countries. This paper takes up this issue by reviewing the main macro-economic aid programs offered by international financial institutions as a response to economic crises and unmanageable debt burdens. Although health promotion researchers were largely absent during a key debate on structural adjustment programs and health during the 1980s and 1990s, the international macro-economic policy tool currently in play offers a new opportunity to participate in assessing these policies, ensuring new forms of macro-economic policy interventions do not simply reproduce patterns of (neoliberal) economics-dominated development policy.

Climate science information needs among natural resource decision-makers in the Northwest US

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth Allen

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Managing water resources, air quality, forests, rangelands and agricultural systems in the context of climate change requires a new level of integrated knowledge. In order to articulate a role for university-based research teams as providers of climate services, this paper analyzes environmental change concerns and expectations about climate models among natural resources decision-makers in the Northwest US. Data were collected during a series of workshops organized by researchers from BioEarth, a regional earth systems modeling initiative. Eighty-three stakeholders from industry, government agencies and non-governmental organizations engaged with a team of academic researchers developing integrated biophysical and economic climate modeling tools. Analysis of transcripts of workshop discussions, surveys, and questionnaires reveals diverse attitudes among stakeholders about: 1 preferred modes of engaging in climate science research, 2 specific concerns and questions about climate change impacts, and 3 the most relevant and usable scope and scale of climate change impacts projections. Diverse concerns and information needs among natural resource decision-makers highlight the need for research teams to define clear and precise goals for stakeholder engagement. Utilizing the skills of research team members who have communication and extension expertise is pivotally important. We suggest impactful opportunities for research teams and natural resource decision-makers to interface and learn from one another. Effective approaches include structuring group discussions to identify gaps in existing climate change impacts information, explicitly considering changing policies, technologies and management practices, and exploring possible unintended consequences of decisions.

Are Sexual and Reproductive Health Policies Designed for All? Vulnerable Groups in Policy Documents of Four European Countries and Their Involvement in Policy Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olena Ivanova

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Background Health policies are important instruments for improving population health. However, experience suggests that policies designed for the whole population do not always benefit the most vulnerable. Participation of vulnerable groups in the policy-making process provides an opportunity for them to influence decisions related to their health, and also to exercise their rights. This paper presents the findings from a study that explored how vulnerable groups and principles of human rights are incorporated into national sexual and reproductive health (SRH policies of 4 selected countries (Spain, Scotland, Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine. It also aimed at discussing the involvement of vulnerable groups in SRH policy development from the perspective of policymakers. Methods Literature review, health policy analysis and 5 semi-structured interviews with policy-makers were carried out in this study. Content analysis of SRH policies was performed using the EquiFrame analytical framework. Results The study revealed that vulnerable groups and core principles of human rights are differently addressed in SRH policies within 4 studied countries. The opinions of policy-makers on the importance of mentioning vulnerable groups in policy documents and the way they ought to be mentioned varied, but they agreed that a clear definition of vulnerability, practical examples, and evidences on health status of these groups have to be included. In addition, different approaches to vulnerable group’s involvement in policy development were identified during the interviews and the range of obstacles to this process was discussed by respondents. Conclusion Incorporation of vulnerable groups in the SRH policies and their involvement in policy development were found to be important in addressing SRH of these groups and providing an opportunity for them to advocate for equal access to healthcare and exercise their rights. Future research on this topic should include

New policies help faculty members balance work, rest of life

OpenAIRE

Trulove, Susan

2007-01-01

Virginia Tech has joined a cadre of leading universities with progressive work/life policies that provide flexibility for faculty members and graduate students to address special family and personal issues without jeopardizing their professional progress.

Dose/response relationships and policy formulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robinson, P.D.

1981-01-01

The ICRP 26 cost/benefit approach to establishing operational radiation protection guidelines is discussed. The purpose is to aid the policy maker in the decision making process, using as a basis the dose-response curve

Does Age Matter in HR Decision Making? Four Types of Age Policies in Finnish Work Organizations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Pärnänen

2012-08-01

Full Text Available The extension of work careers is one of the key targets of social policy in the EU as well as in Finnish national policy-making. But how is this objective of lengthened work life received at the workplace level? This study examines the aim of extending working careers at an organizational level. The data comprise interviews with human resources managers, shop stewards, and employees reaching the end of their working life, conducted in ten Finnish work organizations. Four different age policy lines can be distinguished from the data. First, the age policy practices of manufacturing enterprises are very much alike in that a clear turn has occurred from favoring the unemployment pension path in the case of dismissals to extending working careers. Second, the age policy of public sector organizations encourages investment in extending the working careers of older employees, though young people are clearly preferred in recruitment. The third line can be found in private service sector enterprises that utilize age segmentation based on the age of their customers – young waiters for young customers, for example – while the fourth can be described by the words ‘situation-specific’ and ‘passive’. No input is made into extending working careers and the unemployment route is used as the means of dismissal where needed. The study reveals that the organizations’ age policies are strategic in nature: longer working careers are supported and older people are hired only if it is strategically sound. It can be said that workplaces currently determine the boundaries of who and at what age people are fit for work and of ‘working age’.

Policy-maker attitudes to the ageing of the HIV cohort in Botswana ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: The roll out of antiretroviral therapy in Botswana, as in many countries ... planning, strategies and policies that govern social, physical and medical intervention ... Respondents also noted the lack of defined geriatric care within the ...

Ethics Instruction for Future Geoscientists: Essential for Contributions to Good Public Policy

Science.gov (United States)

Leinen, M.; Mogk, D. W.

2016-12-01

Geoscientists work in a world of uncertainty in the complex, dynamic, and chaotic Earth system that is fraught with opportunities to become involved in ethical dilemmas. To be effective contributors to the public discourse on Earth science policy, geoscientists must conduct their work according to the highest personal and professional ethical standards. The geosciences as a discipline relies on the fidelity of geoscience data and their interpretations, geoscience concepts and methodologies must be conveyed to policy makers in ways that allow them to make informed decisions, corporations require a workforce that conducts their affairs according to the highest standards, and the general public expects the highest standards of conduct of geoscientists as they underwrite much of the research supported through tax dollars and the applications of this research impacts personal and societal lives. Geoscientists must have the foundations to identify ethical dilemmas in the first instance, and to have the ethical decision-making skills to either prevent, mitigate or otherwise address ethical issues that arise in professional practice. Awareness of ethical issues arises in many dimensions: Ethics and self (engaging self-monitoring and self-regulating behaviors); Ethics and profession (working according to professional standards); Ethics and society (communicating effectively to policy makers and the general public about the underlying science that informs public policy); and, Ethics and Earth (recognizing the unique responsibilities of geoscientists in the stewardship of Earth). To meet these ethical challenges, training of future geoscientists must be done a) at the introductory level as all students should be aware of ethical implications of geoscience concepts as they impact societal issues; undergraduate geoscience majors need to be explicitly trained in the standards and norms of the geoscience community of practice; graduate students need to be fully prepared to deal

Applying theories to better understand socio-political challenges in implementing evidence-based work disability prevention strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Ståhl, Christian; Costa-Black, Katia; Loisel, Patrick

2018-04-01

This article explores and applies theories for analyzing socio-political aspects of implementation of work disability prevention (WDP) strategies. For the analysis, theories from political science are explained and discussed in relation to case examples from three jurisdictions (Sweden, Brazil and Québec). Implementation of WDP strategies may be studied through a conceptual framework that targets: (1) the institutional system in which policy-makers and other stakeholders reside; (2) the ambiguity and conflicts regarding what to do and how to do it; (3) the bounded rationality, path dependency and social systems of different stakeholders; and (4) coalitions formed by different stakeholders and power relations between them. In the case examples, the design of social insurance systems, the access to and infrastructure of healthcare systems, labor market policies, employers' level of responsibility, the regulatory environment, and the general knowledge of WDP issues among stakeholders played different roles in the implementation of policies based on scientific evidence. Future research may involve participatory approaches focusing on building coalitions and communities of practice with policy-makers and stakeholders, in order to build trust, facilitate cooperation, and to better promote evidence utilization. Implications for Rehabilitation Implementation of work disability prevention policies are subject to contextual influences from the socio-political setting and from relationships between stakeholders Stakeholders involved in implementing strategies are bound to act based on their interests and previous courses of action To promote research uptake on the policy level, stakeholders and researchers need to engage in collaboration and translational activities Political stakeholders at the government and community levels need to be more directly involved as partners in the production and utilization of evidence.

Nigerian language policy and its implication in the school curriculum ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper observes that the Nigerian language policy, failed to take into consideration the socio-linguistic habits of Nigerians. Since English language is a focal point for communication it then implies that policy makers to formulate language policies based on realities of language need. This is the only way that the ...

The Many Meanings of Money: A Health Policy Analysis Framework for Understanding Financial Incentives

OpenAIRE

Mita Giacomini; Jeremiah Hurley; J Lomas; V Bhatia; L Goldsmith

1996-01-01

Health funding reforms often fail to change organizations’ and individuals’ behaviour in the way that policy makers intend. This is perhaps because financial incentive systems traditionally have been designed according to a “reward-punishment,” or behaviourist, model of influencing human behaviour. We argue that this model inadequately captures the way that funding reforms work in real institutional environments. To supplement the behaviourist view, we propose a “communication model” for unde...

Scenarios use to engage scientists and decision-makers in a changing Arctic

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, O. A.; Eicken, H.; Payne, J. F.

2015-12-01

Scenarios provide a framework to develop more adaptive Arctic policies that allow decision makers to consider the best available science to address complex relationships and key uncertainties in drivers of change. These drivers may encompass biophysical factors such as climate change, socioeconomic drivers, and wild-cards that represent low likelihood but influential events such as major environmental disasters. We outline some of the lessons learned from the North Slope Science Initiative (NSSI) scenarios project that could help in the development of adaptive science-based policies. Three spatially explicit development scenarios were identified corresponding to low, medium and high resource extraction activities on the North Slope and adjacent seas. In the case of the high energy development scenario science needs were focused on new technology, oil spill response, and the effects of offshore activities on marine mammals important for subsistence. Science needs related to community culture, erosion, permafrost degradation and hunting and trapping on land were also identified for all three scenarios. The NSSI science needs will guide recommendations for future observing efforts, and data from these observing activities could subsequently improve policy guidance for emergency response, subsistence management and other issues. Scenarios at pan-Arctic scales may help improve the development of international policies for resilient northern communities and encourage the use of science to reduce uncertainties in plans for adapting to change in the Arctic.

A scientist's guide to engaging decision makers

Science.gov (United States)

Vano, J. A.

2015-12-01

Being trained as a scientist provides many valuable tools needed to address society's most pressing environmental issues. It does not, however, provide training on one of the most critical for translating science into action: the ability to engage decision makers. Engagement means different things to different people and what is appropriate for one project might not be for another. However, recent reports have emphasized that for research to be most useful to decision making, engagement should happen at the beginning and throughout the research process. There are an increasing number of boundary organizations (e.g., NOAA's Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessment program, U.S. Department of the Interior's Climate Science Centers) where engagement is encouraged and rewarded, and scientists are learning, often through trial and error, how to effectively include decision makers (a.k.a. stakeholders, practitioners, resource managers) in their research process. This presentation highlights best practices and practices to avoid when scientists engage decision makers, a list compiled through the personal experiences of both scientists and decision makers and a literature review, and how this collective knowledge could be shared, such as through a recent session and role-playing exercise given at the Northwest Climate Science Center's Climate Boot Camp. These ideas are presented in an effort to facilitate conversations about how the science community (e.g., AGU researchers) can become better prepared for effective collaborations with decision makers that will ultimately result in more actionable science.

Assessment report on NRP sub-theme 'International instruments for climate change policy'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruggink, J.J.C.; Van Beek, P.; Folmer, H.; Zhang, Z.X.; Blok, K.; Phylipsen, D.; Worrell, E.; Gupta, J.; Junne, G.; Van der Wurff, R.

1995-01-01

The projects implemented in the Dutch National Research Programme on Global Air Pollution and Climate Change are organised in several themes and sub-themes. Within the theme on Sustainable Solutions five projects are grouped under the heading International Instruments for Climate Change Policy. These five projects deal primarily with issues concerning the position of developing countries in the debate on limiting global CO2-emissions. They cover a broad spectrum of topics: international negotiation strategies, tropical deforestation, industrial energy conservation, national energy scenarios, emission guidelines. This contribution presents an overview of the objectives, methodologies and results of the projects and includes a critical evaluation of the potential relevance of the work for policy makers. 1 tab., 36 refs

Belonging together: dealing with the politics of disenchantment in Australian Indigenous policy

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Sullivan, Patrick

2011-01-01

.... Advancing the body of knowledge in the field of the anthropology of policy and public administration, this empirical study is a must-read for policy-makers, academics, and indigenous peoples alike.

Innovation: Editorial Policies

African Journals Online (AJOL)

for Researchers · for Journals · for Authors · for Policy Makers · about Open Access · Journal Quality. 521 African Journals. Browse By Category · Browse Alphabetically · Browse By Country · List All Titles · Free To Read Titles This Journal is Open Access. Featuring journals from 32 Countries: Algeria (5); Benin (2); Botswana ...

Innovation Policy in European Union

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marta-Christina Suciu

2006-11-01

Full Text Available The innovation policies aim to analyze priority factors shaping innovative performance and to reflect the increasing appreciation of the economic and social importance of innovation. This paper is commissioned to examine topics of current interest or concern to innovation policy-makers in Europe. Based on literature and the framework of the European Action Plan for Innovation, this paper investigates different levels and fields of European innovational systems and practices.

Policy, inquiries, and the courts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jowell, J.

1982-01-01

In relation to nuclear power policy, two objectives of a liberal democracy are examined: the accountability of the decision-maker to the public; and the efficient and effective implementation of management policy. The places of Parliament, administrative law, planning constraints and the public enquiry are discussed, with special reference to legal aspects of the procedure at the public enquiry to ensure that it is as fair and effective as possible. (U.K.)

Movements, Countermovements and Policy Adoption: The Case of Right-to-Work Activism

Science.gov (United States)

Dixon, Marc

2008-01-01

Research on social movements and public policy has expanded tremendously in recent years, yet little of this work considers the role of movement opponents in the political process or how the movement-countermovement dynamic is influential in contests over policy. This historical study begins to fill this void by analyzing the contestation between…

Decision Making with Imperfect Decision Makers

CERN Document Server

Guy, Tatiana Valentine; Wolpert, David H

2012-01-01

Prescriptive Bayesian decision making has reached a high level of maturity and is well-supported algorithmically. However, experimental data shows that real decision makers choose such Bayes-optimal decisions surprisingly infrequently, often making decisions that are badly sub-optimal. So prevalent is such imperfect decision-making that it should be accepted as an inherent feature of real decision makers living within interacting societies. To date such societies have been investigated from an economic and gametheoretic perspective, and even to a degree from a physics perspective. However, lit

A Quasi-Feed-In-Tariff policy formulation in micro-grids: A bi-level multi-period approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taha, Ahmad F.; Hachem, Nadim A.; Panchal, Jitesh H.

2014-01-01

A Quasi-Feed-In-Tariff (QFIT) policy formulation is presented for micro-grids that integrates renewable energy generation considering Policy Makers' and Generation Companies' (GENCOs) objectives assuming a bi-level multi-period formulation that integrates physical characteristics of the power-grid. The upper-level problem corresponds to the PM, whereas the lower-level decisions are made by GENCOs. We consider that some GENCOs are green energy producers, while others are black energy producers. Policy makers incentivize green energy producers to generate energy through the payment of optimal time-varying subsidy price. The policy maker's main objective is to maximize an overall social welfare that includes factors such as demand surplus, energy cost, renewable energy subsidy price, and environmental standards. The lower-level problem corresponding to the GENCOs is based on maximizing the players' profits. The proposed QFIT policy differs from the FIT policy in the sense that the subsidy price-based contracts offered to green energy producers dynamically change over time, depending on the physical properties of the grid, demand, and energy price fluctuations. The integrated problem solves for time-varying subsidy price and equilibrium energy quantities that optimize the system welfare under different grid and system conditions. - Highlights: • We present a bi-level optimization problem formulation for Quasi-Feed-In-Tariff (QFIT) policy. • QFIT dictates that subsidy prices dynamically vary over time depending on conditions. • Power grid's physical characteristics affect optimal subsidy prices and energy generation. • To maximize welfare, policy makers ought to increase subsidy prices during the peak-load

Beyond Foucault: Toward a User-Centered Approach to Sexual Harassment Policy.

Science.gov (United States)

Ranney, Frances J.

2000-01-01

Discusses how United States national policy regarding sexual harassment exemplifies the Foucauldian paradigm in its attempt to regulate sexuality through seemingly authorless texts. Proposes a user-centered approach to policy drafting that values the knowledge of workers as users and makers of workplace policy. Argues that regulation through such…

Diffusion of Complete Streets policies Across US communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreland-Russell, Sarah; Eyler, Amy; Barbero, Colleen; Hipp, J Aaron; Walsh, Heidi

2013-01-01

Complete Streets policies guide planning in communities by making the transportation system accommodating to all users including vehicle drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists, as well as those using public transportation. While the number of Complete Streets policies has increased over the past decade, no research has explored the factors attributing to the widespread diffusion of these policies. The purpose of this study was to apply concepts of the Diffusion of Innovation Theory to data related to Complete Streets policies in order to identify potential patterns and correlates. The main outcome of this study was policy adoption. Using the Diffusion of Innovation Theory and results from previous literature, we identified several factors that had the potential to affect the rate of Complete Streets policy diffusion: rural/urban status, state obesity rate, state funding for transportation, state obesity prevention funding, percentage of people who walk or bike to work in the state, presence of a state Complete Streets policy, and the number of bordering communities with Complete Streets policy. We used event history analysis as the main analysis method. Data from 49 community-level policies were analyzed, with a "community" defined as a city, a county, or a regional/Metropolitan Planning Organization. Three variables were significant predictors of Complete Streets policy adoption: state obesity rate (odds ratio [OR] = 1.465; confidence interval [CI] = 1.10-1.96) percentage of people who bike or walk to work in the state (OR = 1.726; CI = 1.069-2.79), and presence of a border community with a Complete Streets policy (OR = 3.859; CI = 1.084-13.742). Communities with Complete Streets policies varied in geographic and sociodemographic factors. Information about communities that are more likely to adopt a policy can be a tool for advocates and policy makers interested in this topic. Because adoption does not imply implementation, further research is needed to study

Work stress and depressive symptoms in older employees: impact of national labour and social policies.

Science.gov (United States)

Lunau, Thorsten; Wahrendorf, Morten; Dragano, Nico; Siegrist, Johannes

2013-11-21

Maintaining health and work ability among older employees is a primary target of national labour and social policies (NLSP) in Europe. Depression makes a significant contribution to early retirement, and chronic work-related stress is associated with elevated risks of depression. We test this latter association among older employees and explore to what extent indicators of distinct NLSP modify the association between work stress and depressive symptoms. We choose six indicators, classified in three categories: (1) investment in active labour market policies, (2) employment protection, (3) level of distributive justice. We use data from three longitudinal ageing studies (SHARE, HRS, ELSA) including 5650 men and women in 13 countries. Information on work stress (effort-reward imbalance, low work control) and depressive symptoms (CES-D, EURO-D) was obtained. Six NLSP indicators were selected from OECD databases. Associations of work stress (2004) with depressive symptoms (2006) and their modification by policy indicators were analysed using logistic multilevel models. Risk of depressive symptoms at follow-up is higher among those experiencing effort-reward imbalance (OR: 1.55 95% CI 1.27-1.89) and low control (OR: 1.46 95% CI 1.19-1.79) at work. Interaction terms indicate a modifying effect of a majority of protective NLSP indicators on the strength of associations of effort - reward imbalance with depressive symptoms. Work stress is associated with elevated risk of prospective depressive symptoms among older employees from 13 European countries. Protective labour and social policies modify the strength of these associations. If further supported findings may have important policy implications.

Child Labour, Education Policy and Governance in Cambodia

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Chae-Young

2011-01-01

This paper considers how the issue of child labour is located in Cambodian education policy debates and how it is affected by the major constraints surrounding the Cambodian education sector. In particular, it asks why Cambodian policy makers have not sought to address the issue explicitly despite its considerable, and adverse, impact on…

Trajectories to reconcile sharing and commercialization in the maker movement

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Langley, David; Zirngibl, M.; Sbeih, J.; Devoldere, B.

2017-01-01

Maker technologies, including collaborative digital fabrication tools like 3-D printers, enable entrepreneurial opportunities and new business models. To date, relatively few highly successful maker startups have emerged, possibly due to the dominant mindset of the makers being one of cooperation

Nurses' work environment and intent to leave in Lebanese hospitals: implications for policy and practice.

Science.gov (United States)

El-Jardali, Fadi; Alameddine, Mohamad; Dumit, Nuhad; Dimassi, Hani; Jamal, Diana; Maalouf, Salwa

2011-02-01

development were key work environment challenges contributing to the attrition on nurses from Lebanese hospitals. Although some of the issues identified are country specific, others would certainly be relevant to other countries in the EMR. Addressing these challenges would require a strong and coordinated action from governments, professional bodies, policy makers and health managers. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Big ideas: innovation policy

OpenAIRE

John Van Reenen

2011-01-01

In the last CentrePiece, John Van Reenen stressed the importance of competition and labour market flexibility for productivity growth. His latest in CEP's 'big ideas' series describes the impact of research on how policy-makers can influence innovation more directly - through tax credits for business spending on research and development.

Measuring the Effect of Gender-Based Policies on Economic Growth

OpenAIRE

Pierre-Richard Agénor; Otaviano Canuto

2012-01-01

To this day, policy makers, policy advisers, and economists in development institutions do not have any practical tools to help them to assess the impacts of policies aimed at promoting gender equality and quantify the effect of these policies on growth. Yet, there has been limited effort in that direction. This note lays out such a tool, a framework for quantifying the growth effects of g...

Policies of school-to-work transitions and VET in Sweden, Denmark and Finland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Christian Helms; Lundahl, Lisbeth; Järvinen, Tero

All over Europe, a range of policy measures to support young people’s school-to-work transitions have been initiated. However, these transition policies have rarely been studied systematically, particularly not from a comparative perspective. The aim of this article is to compare Swedish, Danish...... and Finnish policies for supporting young people’s edu¬ca¬¬tional and school-to-work transitions, with a particular focus on NEETs and dropouts. The comparison is exploratory and aims to illuminate the strengths and weaknesses of each system in reducing dropout rates and promoting smooth transitions. We draw...... and migrant youth, the political discourse is marked more by ideas of employability and vulnerability than of personal development and citizenship....

New prospects in EU environmental policies. The Integrated Product Policy (IPP)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carnimeo, G.; Iraldo, F.

2000-01-01

The Integrated Product Policy - IPP - is becoming one of the top priorities for the European Commission within the framework of the product-oriented environmental policies. Rather than a new policy, this is an innovative approach aimed at co-originated existing and forthcoming environmental policies, in order to manage in an integrated way and minimise the impacts connected with the whole product life-cycle. The underlying life-cycle guideline requires the management of each phase by considering what happens in all the other phases. What clearly emerges from a research carried out by Iefe Bocconi is, on the one hand, the effectiveness of co-operation and networking between all the actors involved in the product environmental management within the different phases of its life cycle (policy makers, producers, retailers, consumers, NGOs, etc.) and, on the other, the opportunity of developing an integrated management of both environmental policy instruments and corporate management tools [it

Organisational Factors Affecting Policy and Programme Decision Making in a Public Health Policy Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Zardo, Pauline; Collie, Alex; Livingstone, Charles

2015-01-01

Organisational factors can affect the success of interventions aimed at increasing research use. Research is needed to identify organisational factors affecting research use in specific public health policy contexts. Qualitative interviews with decision makers from a specific public health context identified a range of organisational factors that…

Gaining Momentum: How Media Influences Public Opinion To Push Civil-Military Decision Makers Into Formulating Foreign Policy

Science.gov (United States)

2016-02-09

1 AIR WAR COLLEGE AIR UNIVERSITY GAINING MOMENTUM: HOW MEDIA INFLUENCES PUBLIC OPINION TO PUSH CIVIL-MILITARY DECISION MAKERS INTO...engagements from the past, evidence suggest the media or press does have an influence over public opinion, especially during times of war and humanitarian...changes and that leaders must take into consideration that public opinion and the media may provide a large amount of influence over how the nation

Climate policy and nonrenewable resources : The green paradox and beyond

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pittel, Karen; van der Ploeg, Rick; Withagen, Cees

2014-01-01

Recent developments suggest that well-intended climate policies–including carbon taxes and subsidies for renewable energy – might not accomplish what policy makers intend. Hans-Werner Sinn has described a "green paradox," arguing that these policies could hasten global warming by encouraging owners

Innovation-enabling policy and regime transformation towards increased energy efficiency: The case of the circulator pump industry in Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ruby, Tobias Møller

2015-01-01

When new energy efficient products are struggling with their commercialisation and diffusion into widespread applications you would typically expect policy-makers and green lead-users to guide the way. This paper examines the case of the hot water circulator pump industry in Europe, where parts...... of the industry envisioned and worked for a voluntary energy label, bringing technological innovation, new business and energy savings of approx. 85% for each new circulator pump. The case study explores the complexities of innovation processes where technology, market, actors and policy co-evolve over time...

What Do Policy Makers Think of Educational Research & Evaluation? Or Do They?

Science.gov (United States)

Florio, David H.; And Others

1979-01-01

Twenty-six congressional staff members dealing with educational legislation were surveyed concerning their sources of information and the relative importance and value of educational inquiry in various stages of the policy process. Conclusions were drawn and recommendations regarding improvement of the process were made. (MH)

Addressing refugee health through evidence-based policies: a case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Thiel de Bocanegra, Heike; Carter-Pokras, Olivia; Ingleby, J David; Pottie, Kevin; Tchangalova, Nedelina; Allen, Sophia I; Smith-Gagen, Julie; Hidalgo, Bertha

2017-05-12

The cumulative total of persons forced to leave their country for fear of persecution or organized violence reached an unprecedented 24.5 million by the end of 2015. Providing equitable access to appropriate health services for these highly diverse newcomers poses challenges for receiving countries. In this case study, we illustrate the importance of translating epidemiology into policy to address the health needs of refugees by highlighting examples of what works as well as identifying important policy-relevant gaps in knowledge. First, we formed an international working group of epidemiologists and health services researchers to identify available literature on the intersection of epidemiology, policy, and refugee health. Second, we created a synopsis of findings to inform a recommendation for integration of policy and epidemiology to support refugee health in the United States and other high-income receiving countries. Third, we identified eight key areas to guide the involvement of epidemiologists in addressing refugee health concerns. The complexity and uniqueness of refugee health issues, and the need to develop sustainable management information systems, require epidemiologists to expand their repertoire of skills to identify health patterns among arriving refugees, monitor access to appropriately designed health services, address inequities, and communicate with policy makers and multidisciplinary teams. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

India and Iran's nuclear issue: the three policy determinants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rajiv, S. Samuel C.

2011-01-01

Three broad policy determinants can be discerned in Indian reactions to the Iranian nuclear issue. These include: 'strategic autonomy' as it relates to Indian foreign policy decision making; concerns regarding 'regional strategic stability' as it relates to events in its 'proximate neighbourhood'; and 'national security' implications on account of operative clandestine proliferation networks. Issues relating to the role of the US in influencing Indian policy positions at international forums and vis-a-vis domestic policy were prominent as regards the first determinant. Threats and 'advice' by American policy makers and law makers on specific issues like the Indo-US nuclear deal and the Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline gave further grist to critics. However, an analysis of India's concerns regarding the other two policy considerations, i.e., strategic stability and national security were 'real and present' and also dominated public discourse as well. With India having become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council from January 2011, it should be the task of Indian diplomacy, at the UNSC as well as at other bilateral and multilateral settings, to help expand the space for the application of 'satisfactory strategies' and reduce the range of 'unsatisfactory strategies'. (author)

Working Capital Management Policies and Returns of Listed Manufacturing Firms in Ghana

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adam Anokye M.

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This study sought to determine the effects aggressive/conservative current asset investment and financing policies have on firms′ return for six manufacturing firms listed at Ghana Stock Exchange for a period of 2000-2013. Data were obtained from the annual reports of the firms and the Ghana Stock Exchange. The study adopted longitudinal explanatory non-experimental research design applied to dynamic panel ARDL framework in analyzing the data. The results revealed that the current asset investment and financing policies have highly significant positive effects on returns to equity holders in the long-run. The empirical evidence suggests that conservative current asset investment policies increase firms return while conservative financing policies yields negative returns. The study therefore would enable finance managers to be able to fashion out the appropriate working capital management policies. A firm pursuing conservative current asset investment policy should balance it with aggressive current asset financing policy in order to enhance profitability and create value for their investors.

Does the market maker stabilize the market?

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Mei; Chiarella, Carl; He, Xue-Zhong; Wang, Duo

2009-08-01

The market maker plays an important role in price formation, but his/her behavior and stabilizing impact on the market are relatively unclear, in particular in speculative markets. This paper develops a financial market model that examines the impact on market stability of the market maker, who acts as both a liquidity provider and an active investor in a market consisting of two types of boundedly rational speculative investors-the fundamentalists and trend followers. We show that the market maker does not necessarily stabilize the market when he/she actively manages the inventory to maximize profits, and that rather the market maker’s impact depends on the behavior of the speculators. Numerical simulations show that the model is able to generate outcomes for asset returns and market inventories that are consistent with empirical findings.

The use of a policy dialogue to facilitate evidence-informed policy development for improved access to care: the case of the Winnipeg Central Intake Service (WCIS).

Science.gov (United States)

Damani, Zaheed; MacKean, Gail; Bohm, Eric; DeMone, Brie; Wright, Brock; Noseworthy, Tom; Holroyd-Leduc, Jayna; Marshall, Deborah A

2016-10-18

Policy dialogues are critical for developing responsive, effective, sustainable, evidence-informed policy. Our multidisciplinary team, including researchers, physicians and senior decision-makers, comprehensively evaluated The Winnipeg Central Intake Service, a single-entry model in Winnipeg, Manitoba, to improve patient access to hip/knee replacement surgery. We used the evaluation findings to develop five evidence-informed policy directions to help improve access to scheduled clinical services across Manitoba. Using guiding principles of public participation processes, we hosted a policy roundtable meeting to engage stakeholders and use their input to refine the policy directions. Here, we report on the use and input of a policy roundtable meeting and its role in contributing to the development of evidence-informed policy. Our evidence-informed policy directions focused on formal measurement/monitoring of quality, central intake as a preferred model for service delivery, provincial scope, transparent processes/performance indicators, and patient choice of provider. We held a policy roundtable meeting and used outcomes of facilitated discussions to refine these directions. Individuals from our team and six stakeholder groups across Manitoba participated (n = 44), including patients, family physicians, orthopaedic surgeons, surgical office assistants, Winnipeg Central Intake team, and administrators/managers. We developed evaluation forms to assess the meeting process, and collected decision-maker partners' perspectives on the value of the policy roundtable meeting and use of policy directions to improve access to scheduled clinical services after the meeting, and again 15 months later. We analyzed roundtable and evaluation data using thematic analysis to identify key themes. Four key findings emerged. First, participants supported all policy directions, with revisions and key implementation considerations identified. Second, participants felt the policy roundtable

Gender Mainstreaming and Work-Family Reconciliation. An Analysis of Family Policies in Romania and Germany

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oana Crușmac

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Gender Mainstreaming (GM was introduced by the European Union (EU in 1997, as a strategy to achieve gender equality in all policy areas. Yet, European countries greatly diverge in their progress of implementation. We investigate the role GM played in Romanian and German policies aimed at achieving work-family reconciliation, using concepts from feminist policy analysis. Our analysis shows that pre-existing policies and discourse, the economic situation, as well as the relationship with the EU have shaped and impeded the implementation process of GM in both countries. While Germany slowly moves towards more egalitarian policies, GM as label and strategy did not succeed. In Romania, GM has only impacted work and family reconciliation indirectly through EU legislation.

Nuclear Belief Systems and Individual Policy-Makers: Duncan Sandys, Unmanned Weaponry, and the Impossibility of Defence

OpenAIRE

Betts, Lewis

2014-01-01

This thesis attempts to explore the influence that Duncan Sandys' experiences of the Second World War had on his policy preferences, and policy-making, in relation to British defence policy during his years in government. This is a significant period in British nuclear policy which began with thermonuclear weaponry being placed ostentatiously at the centre of British defence planning in the 1957 Defence White Paper, and ended with the British acquiring the latest American nuclear weapon techn...

Injury and violence prevention policy: celebrating our successes, protecting our future.

Science.gov (United States)

Koné, Rebecca Greco; Zurick, Elizabeth; Patterson, Sara; Peeples, Amy

2012-09-01

Policy strategies for injury and violence prevention influence systems development, organizational change, social norms, and individual behavior to improve the health and safety of a population. Injury and violence prevention professionals should consider how their issues resonate with various audiences, including policy makers, the public, and other decision makers. As the cost of healthcare continues to rise and greater demands are placed on the healthcare system, the use of public health policy becomes increasingly critical to protect the public's health and prevent injury and violence and its related morbidities and disabilities (Degutis, 2011). This article highlights some impactful policy successes from the field, allows us to reflect on the Injury Center's 20th anniversary, and describes steps to address injuries and violence into the future. The purpose of this paper is to discuss policy as a public health strategy and the critical role it plays in injury and violence prevention. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Models for policy-making in sustainable development. The state of the art and perspectives for research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boulanger, Paul-Marie; Brechet, Thierry

2005-01-01

More and more frequently policy-makers are urged to assess the impact of their strategies and policies in terms of sustainable development. This necessitates the use of applied scientific models as tools for identifying and evaluating the likely environmental, economic and social impacts of alternative policies. The objective of this paper is to provide a framework to help decision-makers choose the most appropriate-or the most appropriate mix-of models, by assessing their relative strengths and weaknesses. The paper also allows potential improvements in modeling techniques to be identified. Six modeling paradigms are assessed, both on a general basis and with respect to two specific policy contexts (energy policy, and land use and transport planning)

The global agenda council on the ageing society: policy principles

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olshansky, S. Jay; Biggs, Simon; Achenbaum, W. Andrew

2011-01-01

In 2008, the World Economic Forum (WEF) created the Global Agenda Councils – an amalgamation of scientists, public policy makers, academics, physicians and business leaders with the task of devising transformational innovation in global governance for the purpose of advancing knowledge and collab......In 2008, the World Economic Forum (WEF) created the Global Agenda Councils – an amalgamation of scientists, public policy makers, academics, physicians and business leaders with the task of devising transformational innovation in global governance for the purpose of advancing knowledge......, proposing solutions, devising strategies, making public policy proposals and evaluating the effectiveness of actions using measurable benchmarks. This report is the first product of the WEF’s Council on the Ageing Society – our goal is to lay down the initial principles that will guide our actions...

Trust makers, breakers and brokers: building trust in the Australian food system.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Annabelle; Coveney, John; Henderson, Julie; Meyer, Samantha; Calnan, Michael; Caraher, Martin; Webb, Trevor; Elliott, Anthony; Ward, Paul

2013-03-15

The importance of consumer trust in the food supply has previously been identified, and dimensions of consumer trust in food-who they trust and the type of trust that they exhibit-has been explored. However, there is a lack of research about the mechanisms through which consumer trust in the food supply is developed, maintained, broken and repaired. This study seeks to address this gap by exploring if, and how, consumer trust in the food supply is considered by the media, food industry and governments when responding to food scares. The aim of the research is to develop models of trust building that can be implemented following food scares. Semi-structured interviews will be undertaken with media, public relations officials and policy makers in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Participants will be recruited through purposive sampling and will be asked to discuss a hypothetical case study outlining a food incident, and any experiences of specific food scares. Models of trust development, maintenance and repair will be developed from interview data. Comment on these models will be sought from experts in food-related organizations through a Delphi study, where participants will be asked to consider the usefulness of the models. Participants' comments will be used to revise the models until consensus is reached on the suitability and usability of the models. This study will contribute to the literature about systems-based trust, and explore trust as a social and regulatory process. The protocol and results will be of interest and use to the food industry, food regulators, consumer advocate groups, media seeking to report food-related issues and policy makers concerned with public health and consumer health and well-being. This research represents an important contribution to the translation of the theoretical conceptualizations of trust into practical use in the context of food.

Climate change and energy policies, coal and coalmine methane in China

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ming Yang [3E& amp; T International, Beijing (China)

2009-08-15

The Chinese government has made many energy policies on coal, and coalmine methane (CMM) use. However, not all of these policies have effects or positive impacts. For example, it has been quite a few years since the national government made policies to encourage coalmine methane power to be sold to the grid. Practice showed that not one kilowatt of electricity was sold from a coalmine methane power plant to the grid in Sichuan and Guizhou Provinces as of December 2008. This paper reviews and evaluates the Chinese government energy and climate policies that are related to coal and coalmine methane, analyzes relevant policy barriers, and makes recommendations to overcome these barriers and avoid policy failures. The paper provides a literature review, challenges, resources, policies and other updated information on China's CMM recovery and utilization. The paper concludes that China needs to further reform its energy and environment management system, engage provincial governments in CMM capture and use activities, and provide incentives to qualified engineers and skilled workers to work in remote coal mining areas. This paper transfers key messages to policy makers for them to make better CMM capture and use policies. 15 refs., 3 figs., 3 tabs.

Climate change and energy policies, coal and coalmine methane in China

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, Ming [3E and T International, Suite 1506, Building No. 10, Luo Ma Shi Street, Xuanwu District, Beijing 100052 (China)

2009-08-15

The Chinese government has made many energy policies on coal, and coalmine methane (CMM) use. However, not all of these policies have effects or positive impacts. For example, it has been quite a few years since the national government made policies to encourage coalmine methane power to be sold to the grid. Practice showed that not any kilowatt of electricity was sold from a coalmine methane power plant to the grid in Sichuan and Guizhou Provinces as of December 2008. The objectives of this paper are to review and evaluate the Chinese government energy and climate policies that are related to coal and coalmine methane, analyze relevant policy barriers, and make recommendations to overcome these barriers and avoid policy failures. This paper provides the literature review, challenges, resources, policies and other updated information on China's CMM recovery and utilization. The paper concludes that China needs to further reform its energy and environment management system, engage provincial governments in CMM capture and use activities, and provide incentives to qualified engineers and skilled workers to work in remote coal mining areas. This paper transfers key messages to policy makers for them to make better CMM capture and use policies. (author)