Disability in the Workplace in China: Situation Assessment

A compelling argument can be made that employment of people with disabilities should be gaining recognition as an underutilized weapon in the talent wars of Asia. One has only to look at the proportion of people with disabilities that make up our communities, the continuing employment disparities that people with disabilities continue to face and the resulting high levels of poverty for this population – up against the talent shortages in fast-growth markets across the region. As China’s skewed demographic dynamics become increasingly apparent, resulting in a rapidly aging population and a diminishing supply of workforce entrants, an increasing share of the workforce will include older employees with disabilities, necessitating a fundamental change in workplace practices involving people with disabilities, as well as a greater need to look at persons with disabilities as a potential source of talent. Although China has created a broad legislative framework to protect the right to work for persons with disabilities, it lacks specificity and clear measures of enforcement, as evidenced in continued employment marginalization, poor educational outcomes, and thus higher poverty levels of persons with disabilities. To further understanding of workforce inclusion of persons with disabilities in China, and to identify practical ways forward for employers, The Conference Board China Center and the K. Lisa Yang and Hock E. Tan Institute on Employment and Disability (YTI) at Cornell University’s ILR School partnered to explore how companies can tap the talent pool of people with disabilities and improve their employment outcomes. The scope of the research encompassed a series of interviews with disability rights-focused NGOs in China, a detailed literature review, a comprehensive review of China’s regulatory framework supporting employment for persons with disabilities, and a detailed assessment of the demographics of disability and the status of people with disabilities in China such as prevalence rates, access to education, employment disparities and resulting poverty and household income rates. This report draws from the broader research findings and provides business practitioners with an overview of the current situation, challenges, and root causes of employment barriers for persons with disabilities in China. To complement this work, The China Center and YTI convened a practitioner roundtable in Beijing in September 2018. Participants explored in detail how the official, publicly available data on living and working conditions of persons with disabilities compare to actual experiences of employers in China, whether companies are actively recruiting disabled workers, what the internal and external obstacles are to recruitment, and what the impact of the government quota system is, for good or for bad. A separate report on this roundtable is also availabl

Energy and environmental performances of small and innovative solar cooling systems

The development of renewable energy technologies is a critical tool for reducing climate change and the reliance on fossil fuels. However, renewable energy technologies cannot be considered totally clean because they require energy consumption and have environmental impacts that cannot be neglected during their life cycle. This paper presents the results of two researches related to the application of solar thermal system for building heating and cooling. It is focused on small and compact systems of two different typologies. An innovative compact Solar DEC system is analysed in terms of potential competitor of stand alone electrically driven HVAC systems. The performances of small absorption chillers coupled with low temperature solar collectors is investigated by the means of Life Cycle Assessment approach in order to highlight their environmental impacts also during manufacturing and end-of-life phases.Bajada New Energy, General Membrane, EcoGroup, Econetique, Energy Investment, JMV Vibro Blocks, Solar Engineering, Solar Solutionspeer-reviewe

The Journal of International Relations, Peace and Development Studies 8th Edition Introduction

Our 8th annual edition of The Journal of International Relations, Peace Studies & Development, presents the following papers for their unique and valuable contribution to the broader discussion. Olivier Sempiga’s The impact of geopolitical risks on price variation and political trust in France: analyzing the Ukraine-Russia conflict, provides a geopolitical analysis demonstrating the far-reaching consequences of the conflict far from the Ukraine-Russian border. Camilla Gironi’s Decolonizing Kyiv’s politics of memory: current and potential implications of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine on Ukrainian monuments and toponyms, presents an insightful examination of the conflict’s influenced Ukraine’s politics of memory, in the process to revive its national identity. Renée Stoute’s Bring On the Heat, discusses the opportunities, due to the conflict, for the European Union to accelerate its adoption of sustainable energy alternatives given its rejection of Russian oil and gas. Katherine Wallentine’s Never Enough: EU Military Spending Challenges in the Face of Open Conflict, which analyzes the EU’s military spending in light of the Ukraine-Russia conflict

The Journal of International Relations, Peace and Development Studies 7th Edition Introduction

Introduction to The Journal of International Relations, Peace Studies, and Development, Volume 7

The Journal of International Relations, Peace and Development Studies 6th Edition, Issue 2 Introduction

This second issue of the journal is special publication to exhibit the works that were present at the 2021 AGS International Graduate Student Conference, on April 30th, which discussed the various causes, consequences and solutions of statelessness

Lobbying in Malta : environmental NGOs and social capital

This paper explores the usage of social capital by Maltese Environmental Non-Governmental Organisations in their lobbying strategies and access to resources, particularly within the context of Malta as a new EU member state. The findings of the empirical research carried out in this regard show that as regards lobbying, Maltese ENGOs tend to prefer forming homogenous alliances with similar organisations. Besides, there is no direct link between access to resources and usage of social capital.peer-reviewe

Perception of the level of difficulty by post-secondary Maltese students of the biology advanced level practical examination paper

Maltese students sit for the Matriculation and Secondary Education Certificate (MATSEC) Advanced-level biology exam at the end of a two-year ‘sixth form’ course as a requirement to pursue studies related to science at the University of Malta. The exam consists of four papers, where Paper 1 consists of compulsory structured questions, Paper 2 involves essay-writing, Paper 3 is based on practical work related to theory, and Paper 4 consists of a single experimental design question. A questionnaire based on a Likert five-point scale was administered to students (N=102) two months before they sat for the MATSEC examination. The aim was to investigate the level of difficulty that students encounter with each of the exam papers as well when answering ten typical questions presented in Paper 4. No significant difference in the difficulty rating evaluation for males and females for Paper 1, 2 and 3 was found; however females found Paper 4 significantly more difficult than males. When presented with a test at school modelled on Paper 4, males felt more confident than females however they felt equally nervous. On the other hand, females felt more panicky than males. There was no significant difference between the level of difficulty encountered in each paper and the grade obtained at ‘Ordinary’ level biology (the examination taken at the end of secondary school). Students that were repeating their ‘sixth form’ second year encountered the same level of difficulty in each paper as those who were not. The same questionnaire was administered to tutors (N=13) in order to investigate whether student and tutor perceptions differ. Students and tutors rated the level of difficulty of each paper differently. None of the tutors perceived Papers 2, 3 and 4 as ‘easy’ whereas students did. Another difference in perception was noted in Paper 1: students rated Paper 1 as ‘difficult’ while tutors did not. Students and tutors also differed in the rating of level of difficulty in Paper 4 questions. Students found the question about devising an experiment as presenting the highest level of difficulty while for tutors the most difficult was that concerned was stating the sources of error. Writing a null hypothesis presented the least difficulty for students whereas drawing graphs was rated as least difficult by tutors. These differences in perception imply that tutors may be dedicating more time preparing students for papers and questions they (the tutors) perceive as difficult and thus may not be meeting the real needs of the students.peer-reviewe