Natural resources conservation management and strategies in agriculture

This paper suggests a holistic framework for assessment and improvement of management strategies for conservation of natural resources in agriculture. First, it incorporates an interdisciplinary approach (combining Economics, Organization, Law, Sociology, Ecology, Technology, Behavioral and Political Sciences) and presents a modern framework for assessing environmental management and strategies in agriculture including: specification of specific “managerial needs” and spectrum of feasible governance modes (institutional environment; private, collective, market, and public modes) of natural resources conservation at different level of decision-making (individual, farm, eco-system, local, regional, national, transnational, and global); specification of critical socio-economic, natural, technological, behavioral etc. factors of managerial choice, and feasible spectrum of (private, collective, public, international) managerial strategies; assessment of efficiency of diverse management strategies in terms of their potential to protect diverse eco-rights and investments, assure socially desirable level of environmental protection and improvement, minimize overall (implementing, third-party, transaction etc.) costs, coordinate and stimulate eco-activities, meet preferences and reconcile conflicts of individuals etc. Second, it presents evolution and assesses the efficiency of diverse management forms and strategies for conservation of natural resources in Bulgarian agriculture during post-communist transformation and EU integration (institutional, market, private, and public), and evaluates the impacts of EU CAP on environmental sustainability of farms of different juridical type, size, specialization and location. Finally, it suggests recommendations for improvement of public policies, strategies and modes of intervention, and private and collective strategies and actions for effective environmental protection

Sustainability Assessment Methods for the Gulf Region

This paper describes the development of a sustainability assessment framework designed to be used in the Gulf Region, which is an area which has experienced large scale building development and also a region in which sustainability assessment is not yet widely used. The complexity and time resources needed to apply existing methods act as a deterrent to active use. Three well-known methods available at the time of the study were investigated in some detail. These were: BREEAM Gulf; Green Building Council LEED; and Estidama Pearl. Cross comparisons of the factors involved in each method were carried out on several levels including: theoretical comparison; practical development and usability; compliance with regulations and standards; and ability to achieve synchronization. A considerable degree of compatibility was found to exist between the methods, particularly if focused on key criteria. As a result a new and specific framework was developed which grouped 24 indicators under five principal headings: site/location, biodiversity and accessibility; energy; water; occupant well-being; and resources and wastes. This new framework was then evaluated by testing with practitioners resulting in confirmation of 20 out of the 24 indicators, and identification of suitable benchmarks

Empirical analysis of the integration activity of business structures in the regions of Russia

The article investigates the integration activity of business structures in the regions of Russia. A wide variety of approaches to study the problems and prospects of economic integration and the current dispute on the role of integration processes in the regional economic development determined the complexity in the review of the concepts «integration» and «integration activities» in order to form objective conditions to analyse the integration activity of business structures in the Russian regions. The monitoring of the current legal system of the Russian Federation carried out in the area of statistics and compiling statistical databases on mergers and acquisitions showed the absence of formal executive authority dealing with the compiling collections of information on the integration activity at the regional level. In this connection, the data of Russian information and analytical agencies made the information base of the research. As research tools, we used methods of the analysis of structural changes, methods of the analysis of economic differentiation and concentration, methods of non-parametric statistics. The article shows the close relationship between the social and economic development of the subjects of Russia and integrated business structures functioning on its territory. An investigation of the integration activity structure and dynamics in the subjects of the Russian Federation based on statistical data for the period from 2003 to 2012 has revealed the increasing heterogeneity of the integration activity of business structures in the regions of Russia. The hypothesis of a substantial divergence of the mergers and acquisitions of corporate structures in Russian regions has been confirmed by high values of the Gini coefficient, the Herfindahl index and the decile coefficient of differentiation. The research results are of practical importance, since they can be used to improve the existing federal programs aimed at evening-out disproportions in the social and economic development of Russian regions. The qualitative infrastructure formation of the merger and acquisition market and the development of regional policies in order to increase the competitiveness of Russian regions can be possible on the basis of the analysis presented

Reforming the implementation of European structural funds: A next development step

The authors assess the performance of the Structural Funds’ implementation system in six Member States of the European Union. Considering the strengths and weaknesses, they develop a reform model for the implementation of European structural policy after 1999. The strengths of the existing implementation system lie mainly in innovation effects triggered by the Structural Funds' model of policy implementation. Its main weaknesses, inter alia, are an interwoven structure of the decision-making processes, an insufficient time management and a lack of in-built improvement loops in the implementation process. To overcome these shortcomings, the authors propose a strategic management and decentralisation model. It demands a de-coupling of strategic programming on the one hand, and detailed programming and implementation on the other. Under this model, the Commission and the Member State would negotiate on the strategic issues. In the framework of the agreement, the Member State together with the monitoring committees would be responsible for the implementation of the programmes. Strengthened feedback loops would help to assure the attainment of the strategic objectives. -- Die Autoren untersuchen die Leistungsfähigkeit des Implementationssystems der Strukturfondsförderung in sechs Mitgliedstaaten der Europäischen Union. Vor dem Hintergrund der Stärken und Schwächen entwickeln sie ein Reformmodell zur Implementation der Strukturfonds in der nächsten Förderperiode nach der Reform 1999. Die Stärken des bestehenden Implementationssystems liegen vor allem in den prozeduralen Innovationen, die z.T. auf das Politikmodell der Strukturfonds und seine Kopplung an mitgliedstaatliche Verwaltungsprozesse zurückgeführt werden können. Die wichtigsten Schwächen sind u.a. die verflochtene Struktur der Entscheidungsprozesse, ein ungenügendes Zeitmanagement und fehlende inhärente Verbesserungsmechanismen des Implementationsprozesses. Um diese Schwächen zu überwinden, schlagen die Autoren ein strategisches Management- und Dezentralisierungsmodell vor. Sein Kern besteht in der Trennung von strategischer Programmierung einerseits und Detailprogrammierung und Implementation andererseits. Die Europäische Kommission und der jeweilige Mitgliedstaat handeln demnach die strategischen Teile der Programme aus. Im Rahmen dieser strategischen Vereinbarung ist dann der Mitgliedstaat für die Detailprogrammierung und Umsetzung der Programme verantwortlich, wobei er vom Begleitausschuß unterstützt wird. Verstärkte Feedbackinstrumente tragen dazu bei, die Einhaltung der strategischen Vorgaben zu sichern.

Research and in situ conservation of owl monkeys enhances environmental law enforcement at the Colombian-Peruvian border

This study reports on impacts of illegal trade in owl monkeys (Aotus nancymaae, A. vociferans) for the biomedical research market in the Colombian-Peruvian Amazonian border. Through freedom of information requests and interviews with hunters we found that 912 owl monkeys, including A. nancymaae captured in Peru, were trapped over a 3-month period in 2012 to supply a malaria research facility based in Leticia, Colombia, which had trapping permits for the use of only 800 A. vociferans annually yet experimentation took place using A. nancymaae. High levels of extraction in Peru have had population-level impacts with significantly lower densities of Aotus spp. (3-24individuals/km2) compared to Colombian sites with low hunting pressure (26-44individuals/km2). Post-experimental release of this species in Colombian territory has created a new distribution whose status and impacts on resident populations of A. vociferans remain unknown. The trapping method has also had environmental impact, with loss of over 65,000 trees (including sleeping sites), annually. As Aotus species are registered under the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendix II, international trade requires official permission and evidence that extraction does not impact wild populations. However, no official records exist and CITES legislation has failed, due principally to a lack of appropriate monitoring by national authorities responsible for compliance. Of further concern is that we had previously documented and reported the illegal trade to the appropriate governmental authorities yet still no action was taken-as demonstrated by the continuing trade in 2013. Enforcement eventually occurred when a non-governmental organization initiated legal action against organizations responsible. A successful second instance ruling by the Colombian State's Council in 2013 revoked trapping permits. Using the trade in owl monkeys as a case study we consider implementation, compliance, and enforcement of CITES in the border area to identify mechanisms to improve enforcement of environmental legislation. Am. J. Primatol. 76:658-669, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Regional biotechnology regulations: Design options and implications for good governance

"Many developing countries are currently in the process of designing regulatory systems that should allow them to use genetically modified organisms (GMOs) for agricultural development, while also managing the food safety and environmental risks potentially associated with these technologies. Various regions of the developing world are seeking to establish regional systems of biotechnology regulation. However, considerable costs are associated with biotechnology regulation, and biosafety specialists are scarce. In addition, there is no consistent understanding of how regional systems of biotechnology regulation can be designed to be effective and efficient, while also fulfilling the principles of good governance, such as transparency, voice and accountability, control of corruption, and avoidance of special interest capture. There are a wide variety of possible regional approaches, differing with regard to the level of centralization, the scope of the regional system, the types of regional institutions and processes, and the types of financing mechanisms. Here, based on findings in the fields of environmental and fiscal federalism and transaction costs economics, we develop a conceptual framework for the assessment of regional systems of biotechnology regulation. The framework specifies design options and assessment criteria, and identifies major trade-offs and their mediating factors. We use the case of West Africa to illustrate this framework, and refer to the European Union for comparison. Our analysis indicates that involving regional experts, stakeholders and policy-makers in the design of a regional regulatory system will help fill knowledge gaps and generate conclusions regarding the trade-offs involved in regional biotechnology regulation." from Author's AbstractRegional biotechnology regulation, Regulatory systems, Transaction cost economics, European Union, Governance,

"Regulating Healthcare Technologies and Medical Supplies: A Comparative Overview"

A complex relationship exists among EU regulations, current national practices and rules, institutional capacities to implement regulatory adjustments and the legacy of past health and regulatory policy and traditions. However, there is little empirical information on medical devices policy, the medical devices industry, and the assurance of medical device safety and usage. Drawing on a review of the secondary literature and on-going field work, the evidence suggests that the current mix of statecentric and self-regulatory traditions will be as important in determining the implementation and final outcomes of EU-rules as the new rules themselves. EU directives redesign rules, but they do not necessarily lead to institutional change, create institutional capacities, or alter old practices in the short term. Neither EU directives nor national regulatory adjustments determine the "man-machine/skill-experience" interface which is shaped and influenced by local medical traditions and the acceptance of these traditions by local publics

Economic Complexity Unfolded: Interpretable Model for the Productive Structure of Economies

Economic complexity reflects the amount of knowledge that is embedded in the productive structure of an economy. It resides on the premise of hidden capabilities - fundamental endowments underlying the productive structure. In general, measuring the capabilities behind economic complexity directly is difficult, and indirect measures have been suggested which exploit the fact that the presence of the capabilities is expressed in a country's mix of products. We complement these studies by introducing a probabilistic framework which leverages Bayesian non-parametric techniques to extract the dominant features behind the comparative advantage in exported products. Based on economic evidence and trade data, we place a restricted Indian Buffet Process on the distribution of countries' capability endowment, appealing to a culinary metaphor to model the process of capability acquisition. The approach comes with a unique level of interpretability, as it produces a concise and economically plausible description of the instantiated capabilities

Innovative activities of SMEs in Russia : constraints and growth factors

Puprose: The article is aimed at comprehensive study of small enterprises’ innovative activity in Russia and highlights the key constraints factors as well as factors promoting small business innovative activity. Design/Methodology/Approach: We conduct a review of modern domestic and foreign studies on innovative development of SMEs their components and factors to give a comparative description of the innovation activity of SMEs in Russia and the EU countries. We also consider the factors of innovation activity of SMEs in Russia, to identify their regional differences, and to determine the prospects for the innovation activity of small businesses in Russia. The methodological approach is based on the exploration analysis procedures, principal component analysis (PCA), multidimentional classification and logicitic regression. Findings: This analysis revealed that Russian small enterprises are characterized by lower indicators of innovation activity than in many developed countries. The constraints to the growth of the innovation activity of small businesses in Russia are the insufficient level of development of credit financing and the backlog of the production and technological bases. Practical implications: This approach could be used in the development of promotion measures for new innovative process participants, taking into account the regional context. Originality/Value: The main contribution of this study is that the approach can be used in the course of the study to confirm regional differences in the innovative development of small enterprises and allows to identify three clusters with different indicators of the innovative activity of small businesses.The research was supported by Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project № 18-01000960).peer-reviewe