The High Cost of Mandatory Consumer Arbitration

This article critically examines a sampling of arbitration agreements and the rules of the major arbitration service providers and concludes that the cost of arbitration is often prohibitively high, either because consumers simply cannot afford the fees attendant to filing and prosecuting a claim or because the costs of bringing a claim outweigh the benefits of any potential remedies

Pawnshop of hearts? The dynamics of identification and meaning creation in a property management organization.

Title: Pawnshop of hearts? – The dynamics of identification and meaning creation in a property management organization. Submission Date: 22nd of May 2013 Course: BUSN49- Degree Project in Managing People, Knowledge and Change (Master level) Authors: Linnea Hansson and Mathilda Welin Brook Supervisors: Jens Rennstam and Stephan Schaefer Department of Business Administration School of Economics and Management, Lund University, Sweden Keywords: identity, organizational identity, identification, meaningfulness, work, meaning creation Thesis purpose: The purpose of our thesis is to create interesting theoretical and practical insights by exploring the dynamics of different sources of identification and meaning creation. Our aim is not to provide any generalizable “truths” of how identity and meaning creation “work” in a rational sense. We are more interested in how people relate to these concepts and how they might “work” in real life. Methodology: Our research concerns an investigative study, conducted from an interpretive qualitative perspective. Theoretical perspective: We examine and build upon existing literature on identity, identification and meaning creation and the link between the concepts in order to analyze and elaborate on our research findings. Research question: How do individuals at GoodLiving experience identification and create meaning around their work? Empirical foundation: Our research is founded upon an empirically driven case study within one of the 31 local autonomous organizations of GoodLiving, a Swedish non-professional cooperative service firm in the property management industry. Empirical material was collected through semi- structured in depth interviews. Conclusion: Employees seem to have an ambivalent relationship to the organizational identity and do not seem to establish meaningfulness through identifying with the organization as such. Meaning appears to be created by identifying with different aggregates and entities both inside and outside an organization. This leads us to speculate that meaning at work is a complex patchwork of identifications, resulting from the individuals negotiating different identities and meanings simultaneously

Soil Compaction Effects on Root-Zone Hydrology and Vegetation in Boreal Forest Clearcuts

Soil compaction is a common consequence of forestry traffic traversing unprotected, moist soils; it decreases porosity and affects hydraulic conductivity even in coarse-textured soils. The aim here was to study root-zone hydrology and vegetation in three microsites (in, between, and beside wheel tracks) 4 to 5 yr after forwarder traffic, on stony and sandy till soils in two clearcuts in northern Sweden. Measurements of soil volumetric water content (VWC), vegetation indicators and one-dimensional hydrological modeling (Hydrus-1D) of wheel tracks and undisturbed soil were conducted. Soil VWC was monitored hourly during 2017 and 2018 in three or four plots along a slope on each site. Soil VWC was also measured once with a portable sensor in 117 plots along two slopes at each site, where the vegetation was recorded and analyzed using Ellenberg indicator indexes. Soil VWC was highest in wheel tracks and lowest between tracks; this was corroborated by the species composition in the wheel tracks (Ellenberg indicator for soil moisture). Bare soil was more frequent in wheel tracks and between tracks than in undisturbed soil. The model simulations indicated that the changed soil hydraulic properties influenced the VWC results in the wheel tracks. However, the differences in average pressure heads in the root zone were small between the microsites and only apparent during dry periods. In the wheel tracks, air-filled porosity was <0.10 m3 m-3, indicating insufficient soil aeration during 82% (Site T) and 23% (Site R) of the 2017 growing season. Insufficient aeration could be one explanation for the presence of some still unvegetated areas

Comparisons of infiltration capacitites in different parklands and farming systems of semi-arid Burkina Faso

The organic matter content of the soil (SOM) is a key property for soil aggregation and water infiltration in the semi-arid parklands of West Africa. This study is comparing infiltration capacities (IC) in fields, where SOM is managed in different ways, in two villages in the western part of Burkina Faso. Steady-state IC was measured with a tension disc infiltrometer. In the village of Dossi, measurements were made before tilling (in June 2005) under and in between trees in fields of Vitellaria paradoxa and Faidherbia albida and with the addition of extra leaves in the latter field. In Bondoukuy infiltration capacity was measured before and after tilling in plots with or without compost and with annual or biannual tillage. The results showed that infiltration capacity was higher under trees (104 mm/h) than in between trees (69 mm/h) and higher in the Vitellaria-field (117 mm/h) than in the Faidherbia-field (58 mm/h). The addition of compost increases IC (79 mm/h vs. 58 mm/h) and biannual tillage could also have an improving effect (75 mm/h vs. 62 mm/h). The study demonstrated the potential of improving infiltration by managing trees and soil organic matter. Résumé La teneur en matière organique du sol (MOS) joue un rôle important dans l'agrégation du sol et l'infiltration de l'eau dans les parcs en zone semi-arid de l'Afrique de l'ouest. Cette étude a été menée dans deux villages de l'ouest du Burkina Faso et compare la capacité d'infiltration dans des champs dont la gestion de la MOS est différente. La stabilité d'infiltration a été mesurée avec un infiltromètre à membrane. Dans le village de Dossi, les mesures on été faites avant labour (en juin 2005) dans deux parcs agroforestiers à Vitellaria paradoxa et à Faidherbia albida en dessous et entre les arbres. Dans le parc à F. albida, des feuilles de V. Paradoxa ont été apportées. Dans le village de Bondokuy, les mesures d'infiltration ont été faites avant et après labour dans des parcelles avec ou sans apport de compost et avec labour annuel ou bi-annuel. Les résultats ont montré que la capacité d'infiltration était plus élevée en dessous des arbres (104 mm/h) qu'entre les arbres (69 mm/h) et plus élevée dans le parc à Vitellaria paradoxa (117 mm/h) par rapport au parc Faidherbia albida (58 mm/h). Le labour bi-annuel pourrait amélioré la capacité d'infiltration (75mm/h vs. 62 mm/h). Cette étude a démontré la potentielle amélioration de l'infiltration par une gestion adéquate des arbres et de la matière organique du sol. Sammanfattning I de halvtorra jordbrukssystemen i Västafrika är jordens organiska material (SOM) viktigt för bildandet av aggregat, vilka i sin tur underlättar infiltrationen av regnvattnen. Denna studie jämför infiltrationskapaciteten (IC), i västra delen av Burkina Faso, på fält där SOM skötts på olika sätt. Den slutliga infiltrationskapaciteten (steady-state IC) mättes med en tensiondiskinfiltrometer. I byn Dossi gjordes mätningarna före plöjning (i juni 2005) på två fält, under och mellan träd. På det första växte Vitellaria paradoxa och på det andra Faidherbia albida och där fanns det även en behandling med extra löv. I Bondoukuy mättes IC före och efter plöjning på provytor med eller utan kompost samt med plöjning varje eller vartannat år. Resultaten visade att infiltrationskapaciteten var högre under träd (104 mm/h) än mellan träd (69 mm/h) och högre där Vitellaria växte (117 mm/h) än där Faidherbia växte (58mm/h). Kompost ökar IC (79 mm/h mot 58 mm/h) och plöjning vartannat år kan också ha en förbättrande effekt (75 mm/h mot 62 mm/h). Studien visar vilken potential som finns för att förbättra infiltrationen genom att sköta träden och jordens organiska material på rätt sätt.La teneur en matière organique du sol (MOS) joue un rôle important dans l’agrégation du sol et l’infiltration de l’eau dans les parcs en zone semi-arid de l’Afrique de l’ouest. Cette étude a été menée dans deux villages de l’ouest du Burkina Faso et compare la capacité d’infiltration dans des champs dont la gestion de la MOS est différente. La stabilité d’infiltration a été mesurée avec un infiltromètre à membrane. Dans le village de Dossi, les mesures on été faites avant labour (en juin 2005) dans deux parcs agroforestiers à Vitellaria paradoxa et à Faidherbia albida en dessous et entre les arbres. Dans le parc à F. albida, des feuilles de V. Paradoxa ont été apportées. Dans le village de Bondokuy, les mesures d’infiltration ont été faites avant et après labour dans des parcelles avec ou sans apport de compost et avec labour annuel ou bi-annuel. Les résultats ont montré que la capacité d’infiltration était plus élevée en dessous des arbres (104 mm/h) qu’entre les arbres (69 mm/h) et plus élevée dans le parc à Vitellaria paradoxa (117 mm/h) par rapport au parc Faidherbia albida (58 mm/h). Le labour bi-annuel pourrait amélioré la capacité d’infiltration (75mm/h vs. 62 mm/h). Cette étude a démontré la potentielle amélioration de l’infiltration par une gestion adéquate des arbres et de la matière organique du sol

Impacts of forestry operations on soil physical properties, water and temperature dynamics

Soil physical disturbances caused by forestry operations can be both intentional, e.g., soil scarification, and unintentional, e.g., soil compaction and rutting as a consequence of off-road traffic. All disturbances may alter the soil, and thus change its water and temperature dynamics, with consequences for both forest production and the surrounding ecosystems. The overall aim of this thesis was to summarize how forestry operations – here: off-road traffic and soil scarification – affect the soil, its water content and tem-perature at clearcuts, as well as what implications this may have for, e.g., tree seed-ling establishment, field vegetation, and the surrounding ecosystems. The sum-mary is based on four studies, three on off-road traffic at two clearcuts in northern Sweden and one on soil scarification (disc trenching) at a clearcut in central Sweden. The methods used were soil sampling, X-ray tomography, image and soil physical analyses, in situ measurements of soil temperature and water content, vegetation survey, evaluation of abiotic growing conditions, and finally, hydrolog-ical modelling. The most notable results were that even stony till soils in recharge areas were compacted by off-road traffic, which especially affected hydraulic conductivity, reducing it by 70%. Changes in soil physical properties caused by traffic may lead to longer periods of high water content, increased risk of surface runoff and insufficient root aeration. Five years after the operation, volumetric water content was higher in wheel tracks, and this was corroborated by the species composition of the vegetation. Simulations demonstrated how the changed soil hydrological properties influenced the water dynamics. Restricted aeration was more frequent in wheel tracks and could explain patches of bare soil in the lower parts of the slopes of the experimental plots. Logging mats and residues prevented creation of deep wheel tracks by off-road traffic, despite the additional passes necessary to apply (and remove) them. However, the logging residues were pressed into the soil, with potential soil compaction and element concentration beneath them as a result. To con-clude, care should be taken when planning off-road traffic, even on sandy till soils with high stone content. After soil scarification, the soil temperature during growing season was higher in the furrows than in the area without disc trenching; the temperature effect lasted for at least six years, but decreased over time. No microsite was wet enough to hamper soil aeration after disc trenching. In conclusion, furrows offered a suitable microclimate for planting at the dry, boreal site

Rätten till bostad : endast för den skötsamma medborgaren?

This work deals primarily with the question whether it is enough to be a citizen to take part of all civil and human rights, or are there additional requirements like “good character” involved? There are 34 000 citizens in Sweden living in homelessness of which 40% have some sort of abuse-or addictionproblem. In this work, I try to find out how Sweden explains their situation of homelessness by doing a discourse analysis of the concepts and definitions that I will find in the survey done by the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare “Hemlöshet och utestängning från bostadsmarknaden 2011 – omfattning och karaktär” and in the national strategy against homelessness, ”Hemlöshet många ansikten mångas ansvar – en strategi för att motverka hemlöshet och utestängning från bostadsmarknaden”. Above all, I seek answers to how the homelessness of the person with some sort of alcoholproblem is explained, to thereby receive an answer on the question if all citizens' right to housing is self-evident or if some citizens must "blame themselves". The analysis is based on Kavehs theory of “the conditional permit” and I will be using the conception of “the good character ideal” by Ambjörnsson.Detta arbete behandlar frågan ifall det endast krävs att en människa är medborgare i en stat för att hen ska få ta del av alla de medborgerliga och mänskliga rättigheterna, eller om det finns ytterligare villkor så som skötsamhet? I Sverige lever 34 000 medborgare i hemlöshet, varav 40% av dessa har någon form av missbruks-eller beroendeproblematik. Jag försöker få svar på hur den svenska staten förklarar hemlöshetssituationen i Sverige, detta genom att göra en diskursanalys av de begrepp och definitioner som används i socialstyrelsens kartläggning “Hemlöshet och utestängning från bostadsmarknaden 2011 – omfattning och karaktär” samt i regeringens strategi ”Hemlöshet många ansikten mångas ansvar – en strategi för att motverka hemlöshet och utestängning från bostadsmarknaden”. Det huvudsakliga syftet med arbetet är att undersöka hur hemlöshet bland medborgare med någon form av alkoholproblematik förklaras, för att på så sätt få svar på frågan ifall rätten till bostad är en självklar medborgerlig rättighet eller ifall vissa hemlösa medborgare själv anses vara ansvariga för den situation de befinner sig i. Analysen är baserad på Kavehs teori om ”det villkorade tillståndet” samt på Ambjörnssons begrepp om ”skötsamhetsidealet”

Sveriges jämställdhetsmål i Afghanistan

Afghanistan is the one country in the world with the most oppression against women. Meanwhile, Sweden, which is one of Afghanistan's many aid-givers, is one of the countrys in the world with most equality between men and women. Equality and women's rights are thereby a priority in Sweden international development strategies, as well is the Swedish strategy for their developing-aid in Afghanistan. Spivak and other postcolonial theorists argue that democracy, human rights and gender equality is a Western concept that you have to stay critical to. My question is if Sweden's development cooperation with Afghanistan of post colonialist nature or is consistent with Afghanistan's vision for gender equality and women's rights? To answer this I conduct a comparative analysis between relevant documents of different sort

Logging Mats and Logging Residue as Ground Protection during Forwarder Traffic along Till Hillslopes

Forest soils in Northern Europe are generally trafficked by forest machinery on several occasions during a forest rotation. This may create ruts (wheel tracks), which could increase sediment transport to nearby surface water, reduce recreational value, and affect tree growth. It is therefore important to reduce soil disturbance during off-road forest transportation. In this study, rut depth was measured following forwarder traffic on study plots located along four harvested till hillslopes in Northern Sweden with drier soil conditions uphill and wet conditions downhill. The treatments included driving 1) using no ground protection, 2) on logging residue (on average, 38–50 kg m–2) and 3) on logging mats measuring 5×1×0.2 m. The hillslopes contain areas with a high content of boulders, stones, and gravel as well as areas with a significant content of silt. Six passes with a laden forwarder with four bogie tracks were performed. On the plots with ground protection, the application of logging residue and the application and removal of logging mats necessitated additional passes. Rut depth was measured using two methods: 1) as the difference in elevation between the interpolated original soil surface and the surface of the rut using GNSS positioning (Global Navigation Satellite Systems), and 2) manually with a folding rule from an aluminium profile, placed across the rut, to the bottom of the rut. The two methods generally gave similar results. Driving without ground protection in the upper part of the hillslopes generated ruts with depths <0.2 m. Here, the rut depth was probably modified by the high content of boulders and stones in the upper soil and drier soil conditions. In the lower part of the hillslopes, the mean rut depth ranged from 0.21 to 0.34 m. With a few exceptions, driving on logging residue or logging mats prevented exposure of mineral soil along the entire hillslope. Soil disturbance can thus be reduced by acknowledging the onsite variability in ground conditions and considering the need for ground protection when planning forest operations

How to decrease the step between the provision producers and the consumers

Varför köper inte svenskar mer närproducerad mat? Den globala trenden går mot ett samhälle som ska vara mer självförsörjande för att minska den negativa klimatpåverkan. Hur ska vi få svenskar att äta livsmedel som är närproducerade? Svaret är inte enkelt men att erbjuda konsumenter närproducerade livsmedel är en bra början. Vårt arbete ska resultera i en inspirationshandbok för landsbygdens matproducenter, den ska vara inspirerande och öppna nya vägar när det gäller att distribuera sina produkter. Vi har valt att avgränsa oss från ekonomistyrning och istället ligger tyngdpunkten i vårt arbete på marknadsföring. Vi har genomfört fem intervjuer med företag som har lyckats med en småskalig och lokal livsmedelsproduktion. Vårt syfte med intervjuerna var att få fram det som företagarna anser vara viktigt för deras framgång. Vi har valt företagare utifrån deras verksamhet. Vi har intervjuat företagare med ett gårdsslakteri, ett gårdsmejeri, en grönsaksodling, en gårdsbutik med internationella kontakter och ett musteri. I intervjuerna har vi bett företagarna att tipsa om vad de tror är viktigt för deras framgång. Svaren vi har fått fram ligger till grunden för vår litteraturstudie. Litteraturstudien innehåller grundläggande marknadsföringsbegrepp som företagets planering på lång och kort sikt, marknadsundersökning och konkurrens. En del i vårt arbete har varit att undersöka om det finns organisationer som specialiserar sig på att hjälpa småskaliga livsmedelsproducenter. Arbetet har resulterat i en inspirationsfolder som är ett första steg i processen till en handbok. I foldern har vi behandlat intervjuerna, litteraturstudien och en del av de olika organisationerna som är aktiva inom småskalig livsmedelsproduktion. I vårt resultat presenteras framgångsfaktorer och hur man kan öka utbudet av lokalproducerad mat på marknaden. Vi tror att fler konsumenter kommer att köpa närproducerade livsmedel om det erbjuds på marknaden. Det viktiga för matproducenterna är att de framhäver sina fördelar genom en strategiskt planerad marknadsföring. Genom att erbjuda något unikt med många mervärden kan producenten växa sig stark på en marknad som är dominerad av bulkproduktion.Why don’t the Swedes buy more food that is produced locally? The global trend seems to be that every country is self- supporting to reduce the dangerous climate effect. How can we change the Swedes habits and make them eat food that is produced in their own area? There isn’t any good answer but a good start would be to offer more locally produced food. This report is going to result in a handbook full of inspiration intended to the contractors of the countryside. In this handbook the contractors can read about different ways to distribute their products and they will get a lot of inspiration and help from people in their business who has succeeded. The centre of gravity in our report is the marketing. We have chosen to demarcate the report from financial aspects. The foundation of the report is five interviews with small companies who have succeed with a small local provision production. From this interviews we have used what the owner of the business enterprise consider to be important for there success. It was the enterprise of the business that made us choose the companies. We have visited a slaughter- house with an own butcher’s, a dairy where they process cheese by goat milk, a vegetable farm with a greengrocer’s, a farm store with Icelandic fish and an apple juice factory. In the interviews we asked the owners of the business to give us win of the pools for their success. Their answers gave us a foundation for our literature study. The literature study is including the fundamental conception within marketing. For example the business plan, the examination of the market and competition. A part of our report is to investigate if there are some organisations that take care of small provision producers. In the inspiration handbook we have cuts from the interviews, cuts from the literature study and a presentation of some of the organisations we have found that helps small provisions producers. In the result of the report we present how to become successful and how it is possible to increase the offering locally produced products on the market. We consider that more and more consumers are going to buy products produced in the area if more products of that kind are offered in the market. The provision producers have to emphasize their advantages and a good help can be a thorough and strategic marketing. If they offer a unique product with many advantages it is possible for the producer to be a strong actor on a market that is dominated by mass-produced food