Radiative Corrections to the Neutrino Counting Process e+e−→ννγ

The standard model weak corrections to the process e+e- -» vvy which are important from the point o f view o f consistent renormalization are calculated. The calculations o f the hard bremsstrahlung corrections to the process are done and they are found to be in good agreement with the former results

weltwärts: Volunteers and their Civic Engagement in Germany

The development volunteer service “weltwärts” enables young adults to participate in a volunteer service in countries of the Global South. The weltwärts programme is implemented by over 150 civil society sending organisations and their partner organisations in the host countries. Since the programme was founded in 2007, more than 30,000 young adults have already taken part in weltwärts. Measured in terms of both the number of annual assignments and the volume of funding, weltwärts is the largest international youth volunteer service in Germany and one of the largest development volunteer services for young adults worldwide. The evaluation focuses its analysis on what volunteers learn, how they are changed by participating in weltwärts, and their civic engagement after they return to Germany. Another question pursued is whether diverse population groups take part in weltwärts and benefit from the programme’s assumed positive effects. The evaluation follows a programme-theory-based approach and implements a mixed-methods design. The core of the methodology is a quasi-experimental design based on cross-sectional surveys of volunteers and of a representative demographic sample of the weltwärts target group. This procedure enables reliable capture of data on the volunteers’ learning and the ways in which they are changed. Group discussions were also held in which volunteers’ voices were heard. Furthermore, members of the volunteers’ families and friends and representatives of the sending organisations were surveyed by means of online questionnaires. Finally, expert interviews and analyses of secondary data and documents were conducted

Human Rights in German Development Cooperation: Aspirations and Implementation

In 2021 the German Institute for Development Evaluation (DEval) evaluated the BMZ’s human rights work for the first time. The first part of the evaluation, the findings of which are summarised in this Policy Brief, examined the conceptual foundations of the human rights-based approach and its implementation

The Convergence of a Transition Economy: The Case of the Czech Republic

In this paper we develop a two-country dynamic general equilibrium model by means of which we seek to explain the long-run paths of a converging emerging market economy. The model’s novel feature is the inclusion of quality investment to the standard framework of applied general equilibrium two-country models. This extension proves crucial ingredient for explanation of the trend in real exchange rate. Using a case study calibration of productivity and deep parameters for the Czech economy we demonstrate the ability of the model to consistently explain dynamics in key macroeconomic variables that are essential inputs for commonly used ‘gap models’ in monetary policy practice.Convergence, monetary policy, two-country modeling.

Jugendbewegungen in Westafrika: die Ambivalenzen politischer Nähe der malischen Jugendbewegung

"Nach dem arabischen Frühling im Norden Afrikas werden auch im Afrika südlich der Sahara Jugendbewegungen hoffnungsvoll betrachtet. Auf eine empirische Untersuchung der lokalen Umweltpolitik Malis aufbauend, beschäftigt sich der vorliegende Artikel mit der Frage, welche alltäglichen politischen Handlungsweisen den Bewegungsorganisationen der Jugendlichen zugrunde liegen und wie diese von den Jugendlichen bewertet werden. Es kann gezeigt werden, dass die Jugendlichen auf lokaler Ebene intensive Kontakte zu politisch relevanten Stellen haben. Mit dieser Nähe geht aber auch die Vereinnahmung der Jugendlichen durch die Politik einher. Die Möglichkeiten, fundamentale Kritik am politischen System zu üben, sind durch dieses Spannungsverhältnis eingeschränkt." (Autorenreferat)"In response to the revolutions in Northern Africa, hope has risen that youth movements in African societies south of the Sahara will also contribute to political change. Based on an empirical research about local environmental politics in Mali, the article tries to find an answer to the question, how youth movements act politically on an everyday basis and how this political action is viewed by them. The article shows that local youth organizations have an intense relationship with the relevant local political representations. But with this proximity to political decision makers comes the instrumentalization of youth by politicians. Therefore, their possibilities to criticize more fundamentally the local political system are limited." (author's abstract

Human Rights in German Development Policy. Part 2: Implementation and Effectiveness of the Human Rights-Based Approach in the Area of Action "Private Sector and Financial System Development"

Human rights are a "guiding principle" and "quality criterion" of the work of Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). This strategy is based on a human rights-based approach (HRBA) that has been comprehensively assessed for the first time in this evaluation. The second part of the evaluation looks at the mainstreaming of human rights standards and principles in bilateral projects of German development cooperation and at the effectiveness of these efforts in partner countries in terms of human rights

Human Rights in German Development Cooperation: Mainstreaming and effectiveness in private sector and financial system development

In order to strengthen human rights in development cooperation (DC) partner countries, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) has adopted a human rights-based approach that requires all bilateral DC projects to mainstream human rights standards and principles. DEval analysed how successfully do DC Projects implement these requirements in practice in the second part of the evaluation "Human Rights in German Development Policy". The analysis focussed on projects from the intervention area "Private sector and financial system development". This policy brief summarises the key findings of this evaluation