Nine years of comparative effectiveness research education and training: initiative supported by the PhRMA Foundation

The term comparative effectiveness research (CER) took center stage with passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (2009). The companion US$1.1 billion in funding prompted the launch of initiatives to train the scientific workforce capable of conducting and using CER. Passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (2010) focused these initiatives on patients, coining the term ‘patient-centered outcomes research’ (PCOR). Educational and training initiatives were soon launched. This report describes the initiative of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association of America (PhRMA) Foundation. Through provision of grant funding to six academic Centers of Excellence, to spearheading and sponsoring three national conferences, the PhRMA Foundation has made significant contributions to creation of the scientific workforce that conducts and uses CER/PCOR

Strategic approaches to science and technology in development

Watson, Crawford, and Farley examine the ways in which science and technology (S&T) support poverty alleviation and economic development and how these themes have been given emphasis or short shrift in various areas of the World Bank's work. Central to their thesis is the now well-established argument that development will increasingly depend on a country's ability to understand, interpret, select, adapt, use, transmit, diffuse, produce, and commercialize scientific and technological knowledge in ways appropriate to its culture, aspirations, and level of development. The authors go beyond this tenet, analyzing the importance of S&T for development within specific sectors. They present policy options for enhancing the effectiveness of S&T systems in developing countries, review previous experience of the World Bank and other donors in supporting S&T, and suggest changes that the World Bank and its partners can adopt to increase the impact of the work currently undertaken in S&T. The authors'main messages are: 1) S&T has always been important for development, but the unprecedented pace of advancement of scientific knowledge is rapidly creating new opportunities for and threats to development. 2) Most developing countries are largely unprepared to deal with the changes that S&T advancement will bring. 3) The World Bank's numerous actions in various domains of S&T could be more effective in producing the needed capacity improvements in client countries. 4) The World Bank could have a greater impact if it paid increased attention to S&T in education, health, rural development, private sector development, and the environment. The strategy emphasizes four S&T policy areas: education and human resources development, the private sector, the public sector, and information communications technologies.Public Health Promotion,Environmental Economics&Policies,ICT Policy and Strategies,Decentralization,Health Economics&Finance,Environmental Economics&Policies,ICT Policy and Strategies,Health Economics&Finance,Poverty Assessment,Agricultural Research

The Practice of Telecommuting: A Fresh Perspective

Telecommuting has been a popular practice for an increasing number of firms and governmental bodies over the past decade or more. This research paper reviews antecedents, implementation considerations, known consequences, barriers, and recommendations that need to be determined prior to the adoption of telecommuting practices. The paper demonstrates that the phenomenon of telecommuting is the result of historical, sociological, and technological shifts and advancements. While firms have successfully implemented various elements of telecommuting practices, challenges along the way have yielded insights and lessons that merit further examination and discussion. This paper asserts that with selected individuals, proper structure, and sufficient feedback mechanisms in place, the adoption of telecommuting has the capacity to strengthen a firm’s bottom line and provide tangible benefit for its employees. As a case in point, online learning, developed in parallel with the growth of telecommuting, yields substantial benefits for employees and the companies in which they serve. For employees, online learning is convenient, accommodates multiple learning styles, and is an engaging learning mechanism. For corporations, online learning encourages cost-effectiveness, uniformity in quality and flexibility, and enhanced cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary communications, all necessary to meet the challenges of the ever-changing global marketplace.telecommuting; technology; online learning; social media; innovation; institutional learning; cross-cultural communications.

Evaluating Workforce Programs: A Guide to What Policymakers Need to Know to Structure Effective, User-Friendly Evaluations

This brief discusses the value and purpose of program evaluations, highlights different evaluation tools and techniques, and illustrates how policy makers and program managers can structure and implement evaluations of workforce development programs

The Evolution, Expansion and Evaluation of the Family Economic Security Program

In 2008, the Fund for Women & Girls of Fairfield County's Community Foundation created the Family Economic Security Program (FESP). The goal of the program is to assist low- and moderate-income working students – particularly women who are single parents – in securing postsecondary educational degrees that can lead to careers offering family-sustaining wages and benefits.This paper reviews the research that prompted the original design of FESP; examines the results of the initial pilot demonstration at one community college; and highlights current efforts to test an expanded, enhanced version of the FESP initiative at a second community college in Fairfield County. The paper also discusses the broader local and national context within which these efforts have been occurring

On the Cutting Edge: Border Integration and Security in Europe and North America

Within the rich literature on regional integration and immigration, many scholars discuss border issues. Nonetheless, rarely are border areas comparatively examined, despite the fact that they are most exposed to these international phenomena. This paper comparatively analyzes the development of regional politics and economies in border areas in Europe and North America, and its impact on immigration regimes. It responds to three inter-related research questions: 1) How has regional integration affected cross-border cooperation at the sub-national level? 2) How have recent socio-economic transformations related to cross-border cooperation affected migration regimes? 3) How well have border control strategies responded to recent changes in migration regimes? It contends that border integration is actually the most effective means of border control.immigration policy; regional development; immigration policy

ERAWATCH Country Reports 2012: Germany

This analytical country report is one of a series of annual ERAWATCH reports produced for EU Member States and Countries Associated to the Seventh Framework Programme for Research of the European Union (FP7). The main objective of the ERAWATCH Annual Country Reports is to characterise and assess the performance of national research systems and related policies in a structured manner that is comparable across countries. The Country Report 2012 builds on and updates the 2011 edition. The report identifies the structural challenges of the national research and innovation system and assesses the match between the national priorities and the structural challenges, highlighting the latest developments, their dynamics and impact in the overall national context. They further analyse and assess the ability of the policy mix in place to consistently and efficiently tackle these challenges. These reports were originally produced in December 2012, focusing on policy developments over the previous twelve months. The reports were produced by independent experts under direct contract with IPTS. The analytical framework and the structure of the reports have been developed by the Institute for Prospective Technological Studies of the Joint Research Centre (JRC-IPTS) and Directorate General for Research and Innovation with contributions from external experts.JRC.J.2-Knowledge for Growt

East Midlands Transport Equipment Sector Strategy

Transport equipment has been identified as a key sector in the East Midlands economy. This strategy sets out a vision for the development of the sector and how it can contribute to the attainment of regional economic development objectives