Adaptation of WASH Services Delivery to Climate Change and Other Sources of Risk and Uncertainty

This report urges WASH sector practitioners to take more seriously the threat of climate change and the consequences it could have on their work. By considering climate change within a risk and uncertainty framework, the field can use the multitude of approaches laid out here to adequately protect itself against a range of direct and indirect impacts. Eleven methods and tools for this specific type of risk management are described, including practical advice on how to implement them successfully

Patient centred diagnosis: sharing diagnostic decisions with patients in clinical practice.

Patient centred diagnosis is best practised through shared decision making; an iterative dialogue between doctor and patient, whichrespects a patient’s needs, values, preferences, and circumstances. Shared decision making for diagnostic situations differs fundamentally from that for treatment decisions. This has important implications when considering its practical application. The nature of dialogue should be tailored to the specific diagnostic decision; scenarios with higher stakes or uncertainty usually require more detailed conversation

The future of pension systems in europe: a reappraisal.

In this paper we examine and ultimately challenge the traditional viewpoint on the future of current pension systems in Europe, according to which the effects of the ageing bomb will inevitably bring down our unfunded PA YG public pension systems. First, we claim that the projected dramatic increase in the pension burden in mostly due to labour market problems and the generosity of the system, rather than to demographic factors. Secondly, we conclude that a fully funded system cannot be achieved without a substantial reduction in current pension payments unless it is financed by issuing earnmarked public debt. Finally we claim that a socially efficient pension system should be a mixed one, partly funded and partly PA VG, on the basis of optimal portfolio allocation in a context of uncertain returns to both human and physical capital and on the role ofPAYG for financing the accumulation of human capital.Pension systems; Funded and unfunded systems; Human and physical capital accumulation;

Leading Change Handbook: Concepts and Tools

Provides tools and step-by-step guidance for assessing and improving readiness for change processes, engaging stakeholders, planning early wins, reducing resistance, planning collaboratively, and bringing initiatives to scale and ensuring sustainability

Marine Protected Areas: Economic and Social Implications

This paper is a guide for citizens, scientists, resource managers, and policy makers, who are interested in understanding the economic and social value of marine protected areas (MPAs). We discuss the potential benefits and costs associated with MPAs as a means of illustrating the economic and social tradeoffs inherent in implementation decisions. In general, the effectiveness of a protected area depends on a complex set of interactions between biological, economic, and institutional factors. While MPAs might provide protection for critical habitats and cultural heritage sites and, in some cases, conserve biodiversity, as a tool to enhance fishery management their impact is less certain. The uncertainty stems from the fact that MPAs only treat the symptoms and not the fundamental causes of overfishing and waste in fisheries.Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), marine reserves, fisheries

Dealing with Major Technological Risks

This article is concerned with the management of major hazards stemming from technology and entailing potentially dreadful consequences. It proposes a brief survey of the0501n difficulties and policy issues arising both in public and private decision making when dealing with major technological risks. Three themes are considered: risk assessment, risk sharing and risk control. Issues related to evaluation methods, to risk perception and to the acceptable level of risk are first examined. The article then goes on to explore the problem of optimal risk sharing between the different stakeholders. The firm's liability and extended liability to the firm's partners are considered. Insurance issues are also discussed. Lastly, the survey addresses the control of risks both from a prevention and from a damage mitigation point of view. The various instruments available to the State to reduce risks are reviewed and several issues are also raised with respect to the measures firms can take to reduce risks. Investment in safety, human error, organisational design and information disclosure are addressed in this section. The topics of siting and urban planning are analysed as mitigation strategies, and the important aspect of emergency planning ends the survey. Cet article d'intérêt général porte sur la gestion des risques d'origine technologique aux conséquences potentiellement catastrophiques. Il s'agit d'un document de synthèse destiné à cerner les problèmes fondamentaux en matière de gestion publique et privée des risques technologiques majeurs. Trois thèmes y sont traités: l'évaluation, la distribution et le contrôle des risques. Les questions se rapportant aux méthodes d'évaluation, à la perception des risques et aux difficultés liées à l'établissement d'un seuil de tolérance sont d'abord passées en revue. La seconde partie du document met en lumière les difficultés que présente le partage optimal du risque entre les différents agents. La responsabilité civile de la firme et de ses partenaires est alors examinée. Les problèmes liés à l'assurance contre ce type de risque sont aussi brièvement décrits. Cet article traite enfin du contrôle des risques en couvrant à la fois les approches préventives et les stratégies d'atténuation des dommages. On y aborde premièrement les instruments de contrôle dont dispose l'État pour réduire les risques. Du côté des firmes, les sujets tels que l'investissement en sécurité, l'erreur humaine, le design organisationnel et la divulgation de l'information sont passés en revue. L'aménagement du territoire et la gestion des urgences sont ensuite abordés de façon succincte dans la dernière partie de l'article.Safety, major risks, risk assessment, risk sharing, risk control, prevention, mitigation, Sécurité, risques majeurs, évaluation des risques, distribution des risques, contrôle des risques, prévention, atténuation

Risk in agriculture as impediment to rural lending: the case of North-Western Kazakhstan

On the basis of portfolio selection theory, this paper finds that whole-farm risk must be regarded as a major reason for the low level of credit flow to agriculture in North-western Kazakhstan. A quadratic programming model was used in order (a) to demonstrate the comparatively high overall risk exposition of a typical farm, (b) to show that an inflow of working capital could contribute to risk reduction, and (c) to illustrate short-term risk management strategies. Although there may be a role for the government in reducing risk exposition of agriculture in its current form, natural and economic constraints suggest to pave the way for structural reforms that reduce the importance of agriculture in the rural economy. -- G E R M A N V E R S I O N: Auf Grundlage der Portfolio selection-Theorie kommt dieser Beitrag zu dem Ergebnis, dass das einzelbetriebliche Risiko in der Landwirtschaft Nordwest-Kasachstans als ein Hauptgrund für geringen Kreditzufluss angesehen werden muss. Ein quadratisches Programmierungsmodell wurde verwendet, um (a) die vergleichbar hohe Riskoexposition eines typischen Betriebes zu verdeutlichen, (b) zu zeigen, daß ein Zufluss von Umlaufkapital zur Risikoreduktion beitragen kann und (c) kurzfristige Risikomanagement-Strategien zu illustrieren. Obwohl es bestimmte Politikoptionen zur Verminderung des Risikos in der Landwirtschaft in ihrer gegenwärtigen Form gibt, legen natürliche und ökonomische Rahmenbedingungen tiefgreifendere Strukturreformen nahe. Diese sollten dazu beitragen, mittelfristig die Bedeutung der Landwirtschaft im ländlichen Raum zu verringern.Agricultural credit,Kazakhstan,Portfolio selection theory,Risk programming,Agrarkredit,Kasachstan,Portfolio selection-Theorie,Risiko-Programmierung

Agriculture and climate change: An agenda for negotiation in Copenhagen

Table of Contents: •Overview by Gerald C. Nelson •Agricultural Science and Technology Needs for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation by Rudy Rabbinge •Reducing Methane Emissions from Irrigated Rice by Reiner Wassmann, Yasukazu Hosen, and Kay Sumfleth •Direct and Indirect Mitigation Through Tree and Soil Management by Brent M. Swallow and Meine van Noordwijk •The Potential for Soil Carbon Sequestration by Rattan Lal •Mitigating Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems by M. Herrero and P. K. Thornton •The Role of Nutrient Management in Mitigation by Helen C. Flynn •Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification Methodologies for Agriculture, Forestry, and Other Land Use by Sean Smukler and Cheryl Palm •Synergies Among Mitigation, Adaptation, and Sustainable Development by Pete Smith •The Importance of Property Rights in Climate Change Mitigation by Helen Markelova and Ruth Meinzen-Dick •The Important Role of Extension Systems by Kristin E. Davis •Adaptation to Climate Change: Household Impacts and Institutional Responses by Futoshi Yamauchi and Agnes Quisumbing •The Constructive Role of International Trade by Franz FischlerClimate change, Copenhagen, Science and technology, rice, Soil fertility management, Greenhouse gas, Nutrients, Forestry resources, Land use, Sustainable development, International trade, extension activities, Household behavior, Institutional Impacts,