47,650 research outputs found

    Entrepreneurial attitude, geographical isolation and university students - some evidence from the Atlantic

    Get PDF
    Some regions like Island of Madeira show high levels of firm birth rate. But the entrepreneurial experience is quite different from the European reality given the high level of micro-business owing o subsistence reasons, as a response to the reduced opportunity costs, the lack of profitable employment options and the high levels of unemployment. As a consequence the high level of entrepreneurship is only partially related to high tech innovative firms, qualified employment growth and economic diversification. The majority of the new firms are linked with traditional sectors (restaurants, boutiques, personal services and civil construction. Firm creation is also a result of the EU integration and cohesion policies. On the other hand infra-structure development policies explain the increasing importance of the public administration in terms of employment and consequently the low levels of unemployment. Traditionally, in the islands, the government intervention in terms of employment, economic planning is considered excessive. The island economies have been able to benefit from large streams of international solidarity in terms of high external aid per capita especially due to their strategic relevance. But the global economic and political change associated with the globalisation put increasing pressure on the island forcing them to reformulate their economic, social and political options. International donors and institutions like World Bank stresses issues such as economic diversification, economic and social modernisation and macroeconomic policies focused o supply side effects and the development of economic growth determining factors. Due to the reduced levels of international aid, islands are obliged to diminish levels of government intervention connected to public employment and direct production activities and to enhance private initiatives and entrepreneurship. In what concerns the outermost regions the EU enlargement demands increasing levels of competitivity, financial autonomy, economic diversification and entrepreneurial attitude. Given the lack of studies in this geographical area, the on-going economic, social and cultural modernisation induced by the integration in The EU sphere and the widespread perception about the changing times, we intend in this study to give some answers to the following questions: .how is the entrepreneurial attitude affected by the historical record of high levels of government intervention and public employment? .what kind of impacts results from the perceived “island penalty”, in terms of propensity towards entrepreneurship? .What is the main obstacle to the entrepreneurial event? .Should one wish to create a firm, what is the probability of the stated preference is in the high tech sectors? What kind of support will be required and welcomed from the public institutions? Studies and academic studies in islands have some advantages. The agglomeration of institutions, populations, firms and social networks in a reduced geographical space enable us to capture in some detail a vast group of variables, relationships and cause effects linked to a specific subject. Islands societies have a large and cohesive social capital, and share a homogenous set of values and cultural attitudes, which facilitates experiences of collective action. To conduct an empirical test in order to find out the most influential variables in the entrepreneurship attitude we use logit equations. The sample is made up of local university students, theoretically the most apt in developing innovative firms. We investigate also the differences between economics and managements and humanities students in terms of entrepreneurship propensity. An important matter in isolated, peripheral and underdeveloped regions is the diffusion of innovations. Consequently, student’s sources of information and knowledge regarding the overall tendencies of profitable, innovative and fashionable entrepreneurial experiences must be identified. Therefore, this paper describes the changing and uncertain economic and political environment faced by islands societies. A contextualisation of the relationship between entrepreneurship, economic growth and insular penalty is stretched and lastly, we provide an empirical study related to the entrepreneurial attitude in an insular region: The Island of Madeira.

    Review Of China\u27s Changing Population By J. Banister

    Get PDF

    Yemaya, No. 25, July 2007

    Get PDF
    Battling against Wind and Tide - Latin America/ Uruguay. Women’s Changing Participation - Oceania/ Pacific Islands. From Challenge to Opportunity - Latin America/ Chile. AKTEA Meets Again - European Union. Why Are We in CONAPE? - Latin America/ Brazil. Women in Fisheries, Policy - Asia/ Philippines. A Disaster in the Making - Asia/ India. Texas Gold - Film

    Collection Development and the Value of the Library

    Get PDF
    This is a draft 2 of a discussion paper written for Boston University LibrariesDiscusses recent trends in scholarly communication and library collection developmen

    Censorship challenges to books in Scottish public libraries

    Get PDF
    Censorship challenges to books in UK public libraries have received renewed attention recently. This study sought to establish the incidence of censorship challenges to books in Scottish public libraries in the years 2005-2009 and the actions taken in response to these challenges. It was found that eight local authorities in Scotland had received formal censorship challenges to books, with a total of 15 challenges throughout the country. The most common action taken in response to these challenges was for the book to be kept in stock in its original position with the rationale for this explained to the complainer, with the second most common action being taken to move the title to another section of the library. Two books were removed from the library in response to a censorship challenge. The largest numbers of challenges were made against books on the basis of sexual material

    Eco-Tourism Resorts: A Case Study of Best Practices at the Hamanasi Resort in Belize

    Get PDF
    The objective of this research is to investigate best practice initiatives of sustainability involved in the successful development and management of Hamanasi Resort, an award winning eco-tourism resort located in Belize. The four phases of research at Hamanasi as originally proposed, found in Part I of the thesis, are outlined as follows: Phase one includes hands-on research through shadowing in different hotel departments, observation of management practices in Hamanasi, interviews conducted with employees, and questionnaires administered to guests; Phase two begins a study of the business and organizational model of Hamanasi along with an examination of the critical issues encountered during the start-up phases; Phase three is a SWOT analysis of Hamanasi and a market analysis of other properties that compete with the eco-resort; Phase four investigates eco-tourism promotions and policies in Belize and Hamanasi, and examines the different eco-certification practices. Part II of the thesis reports on the findings of this research with an emphasis placed on important findings

    Greek Monetary Economics in Retrospect: The Adventures of the Drachma

    Get PDF
    This paper enumerates the adventures of the drachma step by step, dividing its story into seven parts. Specifically, its main purpose is to present some historical perspective on the behaviour of the monetary and fiscal policies pursued in Greece during the period from the early 1830s until the introduction of the euro. For Greece and for the drachma, the lessons from the past are very important. Since the formation of the modern Greek State, government officials have striven – sometimes making hard efforts – to keep abreast of international monetary developments. This was because they understood that the participation of a peripheral, poor and inflation-prone country with a weak currency and an underdeveloped money market, like Greece of the time, in a monetary club of powerful economies could dramatically improve her international credit standing and imply important benefits in terms of exchange rate and monetary stability, and long-term foreign borrowing.fiscal disturbances, metallic monetary standards, fiat money
    • 

    corecore