A Measure of Social Loss for Production Economies with Externalities

In this paper we consider a production economy and adopt a cooperative approach to equilibrium analysis which allows each individual to cooperate with others and to form a coalition whose members have access to the available technologies. Our definition of the core requires a blocking coalition to take account of the consequences of its blocking for the production of the counter-coalition. Following Montesano (2002), we introduce a measure of social loss with respect to the core of the economy which characterizes the corresponding core allocations. Our characterization holds in the presence of consumption externalities and an optimistic attitude of coalition agents with respect to the behavior of outsiders

Optimal Monetary Policy with Durable Consumption Goods and Factor Demand Linkages

This paper deals with the implications of factor demand linkages for monetary policy design. We consider a dynamic general equilibrium model with two sectors that produce durable and non-durable goods, respectively. Part of the output of each sector serves as a production input in both sectors, in accordance with a realistic input-output structure. Strategic complementarities induced by factor demand linkages significantly alter the transmission of exogenous shocks and amplify the loss of social welfare under optimal monetary policy, compared to what is observed in standard two-sector models. The distinction between value added and gross output that naturally arises in this context is of key importance to explore the welfare properties of the model economy. A flexible inflation targeting regime is close to optimal only if the central bank balances inflation and value added variability. Otherwise, targeting gross output variability entails a substantial increase in the loss of welfare.Input-Output Interactions, Durable Goods, Optimal Monetary Policy

Re-establishing an Ecological Discourse in the Debate over the Value of Ecosystems and Biodiversity

The approach of conceptualizing biodiversity and ecosystems as goods and services to be represented by monetary values in policy is being championed not just by economists, but also by ecologists and conservation biologists. This new environmental pragmatism is now being pushed forward internationally under the guise of hardwiring biodiversity and ecosystems services into finance. This conflicts with the realisation that biodiversity and ecosystems have multiple incommensurable values. The current trend is to narrowly define a set of instrumental aspects of ecosystems and biodiversity to be associated with ad hoc money numbers. We argue that ecosystem science has more to offer the policy debate than pseudo-economic numbers based on assumptions that do not reflect ecological or social complexity. Re-establishing the ecological discourse in biodiversity policy implies a crucial role for biophysical indicators as policy targets e.g., the Nature Index for Norway. Yet there is a recognisable need to go beyond the traditional ecological approach to create a social ecological economic discourse. This requires reviving and relating to a range of alternative ecologically informed discourses (e.g. intrinsic values, deep ecology, ecofeminism) in order to transform the increasingly dominant and destructive relationship of humans separated from and domineering over Nature. (author's abstract)Series: SRE - Discussion Paper

From Comparison to Collaboration: Experiments with a New Scholarly and Political Form

Society and the workplace are two factors that are important for the individual's health status. It is important that the individuals has the right skills to take care of their health. For organizations, it is important to strive for the welfare of their employees. This has proven to have a positive impact on work performance, reduced absenteeism and reduced costs for rehabilitation. In 2007, the local authorities in Umeå implemented a wellness offering for all employees working in the municipality administration. They later saw a need to assist employees who needed help getting started with new exercise habits. This study aims to examine how the participants in the "Get Started Programme", succeeded in creating lasting exercise habits , 3-4 years after completing the program. Research questions are: How have the participants increased their knowledge practically and theoretically after the programme has finished? How have the participants succeeded in creating the content of the programme in their daily lives? How do the participants assess their health compared to before they participated in the programme? Are there any beneficial factors highlighted by the participants as during the program? The study was conducted on the basis of semi-structured interviews with eight voluntary participants who previously participated in the Get Started Programme. The results show that six of the eight participants succeeded to get started with the goals for behavioral change, and still maintain a sufficient physical activity level today. Participants who do not consider themselves to have succeeded in reaching the goals they set up in the beginning of the program, point out that they have the tools needed to go on and continue the behavioral change they strive for

Metropolis on the margins: talent attraction and retention to the St. John’s city-region

The objective of this research is to examine the factors that influence the attraction and retention of creative and highly educated workers in a small-sized Canadian city. The study examines two hypotheses: that the social dynamics of city-regions constitute the foundations of economic success in the global economy; and, that talented, highly educated individuals will be attracted to those city-regions that offer a richness of employment opportunity, a high quality of life, a critical mass of cultural activity and social diversity. The hypotheses are explored through in-depth interviews with creative and highly educated workers, employers and intermediary organizations. The evidence from the interviews suggests mixed support for the hypotheses. In view of these findings, we contend that the specificities of place must be more carefully theorized in the creative class literature and be more carefully considered by policy-makers designing policies directed towards attracting and retaining talented and highly educated workers

How does intellectual capital align with cyber security?

Purpose – To position the preservation and protection of intellectual capital as a cyber security concern. We outline the security requirements of intellectual capital to help Boards of Directors and executive management teams to understand their responsibilities and accountabilities in this respect.Design/Methodology/Approach – The research methodology is desk research. In other words, we gathered facts and existing research publications that helped us to define key terms, to formulate arguments to convince BoDs of the need to secure their intellectual capital, and to outline actions to be taken by BoDs to do so.Findings – Intellectual capital, as a valuable business resource, is related to information, knowledge and cyber security. Hence, preservation thereof is also related to cyber security governance, and merits attention from boards of directors.Implications – This paper clarifies boards of directors’ intellectual capital governance responsibilities, which encompass information, knowledge and cyber security governance.Social Implications – If boards of directors know how to embrace their intellectual capital governance responsibilities, this will help to ensure that such intellectual capital is preserved and secured.Practical Implications – We hope that boards of directors will benefit from our clarifications, and especially from the positioning of intellectual capital in cyber space.Originality/Value – This paper extends a previous paper published by Von Solms and Von Solms (2018), which clarified the key terms of information and cyber security, and the governance thereof. The originality and value is the focus on the securing of intellectual capital, a topic that has not yet received a great deal of attention from cyber security researchers

Optimal Monetary Policy with Durable Consumption Goods and Factor Demand Linkages

This paper deals with the implications of factor demand linkages for monetary policy design. We develop a dynamic general equilibrium model with two sectors that produce durable and non-durable goods, respectively. Part of the output produced in each sector is used as an intermediate input of production in both sectors, according to an input-output matrix calibrated on the US economy. As shown in a number of recent contributions, this roundabout technology allows us to reconcile standard two-sector New Keynesian models with the empirical evidence showing co-movement between durable and non-durable spending in response to a monetary policy shock. A main result of our monetary policy analysis is that strategic complementarities generated by factor demand linkages amplify social welfare loss. As the degree of interconnection between sectors increases, the cost of misperceiving the correct production technology of each sector can rise substantially. In addition, the transmission of different sources of exogenous perturbation is altered, compared to what is commonly observed in standard two-sector models without factor demand linkages. In this respect, the role of the relative price of non-durable goods is crucial, as this does not only influence the user cost of durables through the conventional demand channel, but also affects in opposite directions the real marginal cost of production in either sector through the intermediate input channel.input-output interactions, durable goods, optimal monetary policy

The ‘Brain Drain’ Academic and Skilled Migration to the UK and its Impacts on Africa

In December 2004 the Association of University Teachers and the College and Lecturers Union NATFHE jointly commissioned research to review some of the literature on ‘the Brain Drain’ with a specific emphasis on developing countries in Africa and on academic labour in the UK. This report is the culmination of that research. The project aimed to review some of the available literature on the ‘Brain Drain’, to locate this in debates and contemporary approaches to international development and to consider especially the impact of the Brain Drain on Africa, where possible drawing reference to the impact on higher education. The report also considers the scale of migration to work in UK higher education and suggests ways in which AUT/NATFHE might work together and with others to offset the impact of Brain Drain factors and to build the capacity of higher education, and those working in it, in developing countries. Migration is an emotive issue and debate in this country is often shaped by populist and right-wing arguments, sometimes with racist and xenophobic undertones. This project aimed to develop a more progressive approach to the debate on migration, explicitly addressing the motivations behind migration decisions. This project was shaped by a background understanding that the UK undoubtedly benefits enormously from skilled labour migration, economically, socially and culturally. However, the project is also shaped by a concern to ensure that individual choices to migrate are taken freely, not as a result of political repression, a lack of life chances or vocational opportunities. The project also aimed to assess the extent to which skilled labour migration, and the unequal relationships between rich and developing countries which drives it, is further embedding that inequality. Failing to address these issues, risks leaving the debate on migration to those that seek to use the issue to generate a regressive and dangerous politics of fear and difference