Op afstand maar toch verbonden: samen voor het publieke belang

Essay voor de gemeente Rotterdam over verbonden partijen, aandeelhouderschap en publieke belangen

E-cycling to work: Incentivizing behavioral change and the road to well-being

This research focuses on the effects of an e-cycling incentive program on short- and longer-term behavioral changes, and how these outcomes be understood from underlying behavioral processes and external factors. The investigation also looked into the change in behavior and how this resulted in changes in travel satisfaction. By applying a longitudinal approach, a group of participants in an e-bike incentive program was followed, using a series of online questionnaires and GPS-data. In total, two-thirds of the original commuting trips were replaced by e-bike trips. The research reveals two substitution effects. For distances up to 10 kilometers, conventional bicycle trips are substituted by the use of the e-bike and for distances above 10 kilometers, e-bikes replace car trips. This research also shows that two-thirds of all participants are consistent when comparing their behavioral intention and actual behavior. During the program, the other participants adjust their behavior, with this group making more use of the e-bike. The research results also show that the likelihood of e-bike use is influenced by air temperature, wind speed and precipitation. Despite the technical advantages of the electric bicycle, which reduces the required physical effort which leads to an increase in the use of e-bikes, the adverse weather conditions seem to make the choice to permanently abandon the car too difficult. This research shows that there is a positive relationship between the increase in physical health and travel satisfaction, which increases the attractiveness of e-bike use and positively influences behavioral change. This study contributes to both scientific knowledge in the field of longitudinal behavior change as well as practical implications when it comes to developing behavioral change incentive programs

Controlling externally autonomised entities by Dutch local governments

Contains fulltext : 128037.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)- Purpose – This paper aims to address the possibilities for (performance‐based) control of externally autonomised (empowered) entities which operate at the level of local government in The Netherlands. The idea is that Dutch regulations do not cover controlling all institutional structures, which might result in unobserved risks for local governments. - Design/methodology/approach – Two basic methods are used: a literature study on the variety of institutional structures meant to design an overview. This is completed by a secondary research approach on the findings of 34 local audit offices that have studied the problem for their local government. - Findings – In The Netherlands, there is no all‐encompassing framework to cover control of autonomised entities at the local level. The most important problems to be solved are related to the specification of services to be delivered by local governments and the role conflict emerging from being owner/financial stakeholder in the organisation, on the one hand, and commissioner for the services of the organisation, on the other. This holds for almost all cases. The problem is even stronger in those cases where autonomised entities operate under a national framework for delivering services that have to fit in with local planning and control systems. - Originality/value – The analysis draws attention to the organisations not included in the standard regulatory framework of local governments; and contributes to the awareness of different roles of local government, being both commissioner and owner/financial stakeholder.19 p

Implementation of EU initiatives on gender diversity and executive directors’ pay in municipally-owned enterprises in Germany and The Netherlands

Contains fulltext : 191861.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access