Allocation and Ex Ante Cost Efficiency of a Swedish Subsidy for Environmental Sustainability: The Local Investment Program

We evaluate the allocation rationality and ex ante cost efficiency of a major Swedish investment subsidy program, the “Local Investment Program” (LIP). The LIP, effective between 1998-2002, had dual purposes: to step up the pace at which Sweden transforms into an ecologically sustainable society and to reduce unemployment. During the program period, more than 6.2 billion Swedish kronor (approximately Euro 670 million) were granted to different municipal projects. By using data on the projects’ subsidies and anticipated environmental and employment effects, we find that these effects to a high degree explain the magnitude of the subsidy granted. We find that the marginal LIP subsidy for carbon dioxide (CO2) reductions does not vary significantly over the projects, implying that the LIP was cost efficient for such reductions. Furthermore, for a majority of the projects, the marginal subsidy for CO2 reductions was lower than the, at the time, prevailing CO2 tax. Assuming successful project fulfillment, we conclude that the LIP was a low cost, cost efficient environmental policy for reducing CO2 emissions provided that the projects generate spillover effects large enough to justify the subsidy.Environmental policy; evaluation; greenhouse gas; spillover effect; subsidy

Portfolio saliency and ministerial turnover: Dynamics in Scandinavian postwar cabinets

© 2013 The Author(s) Scandinavian Political Studies © 2013 Nordic Political Science Association. This is the accepted version of the following article: Hansen, M. E., Klemmensen, R., Hobolt, S. B. and Bäck, H. (2013), Portfolio Saliency and Ministerial Turnover: Dynamics in Scandinavian Postwar Cabinets. Scandinavian Political Studies, 36: 227–248, which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-9477.12004/abstract.Why do certain ministers remain in their post for years while others have their time in office cut short? Drawing on the broader literature on portfolio allocation, this article argues that the saliency of individual portfolios shapes ministerial turnover. The main argument is that ministerial dismissals are less likely to occur the higher the saliency attributed to the ministerial portfolio since ministers appointed to important posts are more likely to have been through extensive screening before appointment. Importantly, it is also posited in the article that the effect of portfolio salience is conditioned by government approval ratings: when government ratings are on the decline, prime ministers are less likely to reshuffle or fire important ministers than when approval ratings are improving. To test these claims, Cox proportional hazards models are applied to a new dataset on ministerial turnover in Scandinavia during the postwar period. The results strongly support the proposition that portfolio saliency matters for ministerial survival, and that this effect is moderated by government popularity

the case of Sida in Bolivia

In this paper, I use the concept of discourse to reflect upon how varying understandings of climate change permeate a certain political arena: international development cooperation. Starting off in the international political context, I move on to focus on Swedish development cooperation politics in the area of climate change, which I argue is much in line with the dominant international discourse. Swedish politicians also like to depict Sweden as an important actor and a forerunner on climate and development. In the final parts I outline the political context and climate discourses in Bolivia, one of Sweden’s partner countries for development cooperation and a country which has lately kept a high profile in international politics of climate change. I sketch out how the climate discourse promoted by the Bolivian government differs radically from the one brought forward by the Swedish development cooperation agency, and argue for further research on these matters to understand how these discourses are formed and reproduced, and what may be the effects when they collide in the context of development cooperation

Adaptive Governance and Resilience Capacity of Farms: The Fit Between Farmers’ Decisions and Agricultural Policies

Greater resilience is needed for farms to deal with shocks and disturbances originating from economic, environmental, social and institutional challenges, with resilience achieved by adequate adaptive governance. This study focuses on the resilience capacity of farms in the context of multi-level adaptive governance. We define adaptive governance as adjustments in decision-making processes at farm level and policy level, through changes in management practices and policies in response to identified challenges and the delivery of desired functions (e.g. private and public goods) to be attained. The aim of the study is twofold. First, we investigate how adaptive governance processes at farm level and policy level influence the resilience capacity of farms in terms of robustness, adaptability and transformability. Second, we investigate the “fit” between the adaptive governance processes at farm level and policy level to enable resilience. We study primary egg and broiler production in Sweden taking into consideration economic, social and environmental challenges. We use semi-structured interviews with 17 farmers to explain the adaptive processes at farm level and an analysis of policy documents from the Common Agricultural Policy program 2014–2020, to explain the intervention actions taken by the Common Agricultural Policy. Results show that neither the farm level nor policy level adaptive processes on their own have the capacity to fully enable farms to be robust, adaptable and transformable. While farm level adaptive processes are mainly directed toward securing the robustness and adaptability of farms, policy level interventions are targeted at enabling adaptability. The farm- and the policy level adaptive processes do not “fit” for attaining robustness and transformability

The American and Swedish Criminal Justice System: A Comparative Study

Hosting 22 percent of the world’s prison population, the United States is the number one country in the world regarding incarceration rates where 1 in 109 adults are locked up behinds bars and about two-thirds of offenders will recidivate within three years of their release (Durose, Coope, & Snyder, 2014; Kaeble, Glaze, Tsoutis, & Minton, 2016; U.S. Census Bureau, 2015; Walmsley, 2013). Sweden has one of the lowest recidivism and incarceration rates in the world where only 29 percent reoffend and 1 in 2,278 of their total population is behind bars (Kriminalvården, 2017; The World Bank, 2016). The purpose of this study is to understand the underlying reasons to these differences by comparing the U.S. and Swedish criminal justice systems and to find possible solutions of improvement to diminish the incarceration, recidivism, and crime rates in the U.S. Specifically, the policing, court, and correctional systems will be further compared

Scope, Roles and Visions of Swedish Foundations

Sweden has a long and rich foundation history, but foundations are today also found in the midst of a number of challenging societal transformations. Excluding the absolutely smallest, some 15 000 larger foundations operate in a wide variety of fields. I will here focus on the approximately 11 500 larger public benefit foundations. Excluded are “labour-market” foundations and very small foundations. In Sweden, foundations are grant-making as well as operating and can be administered either autonomously by their own board or through another organisation’s board. They represent an important share of nonprofit sector expenditures and their economic importance will be further highlighted. However, foundations are not only of economic interest. The dominant role for Swedish foundations seems to be one of complementarity to the public sector. Foundations substituting public welfare arrangements are less frequent. Other roles discussed are organisational tools and governance instruments for economic control and ideological governance. Foundations are created by wealthy people and often rooted in a more conservative or liberal tradition. Still, segments of the foundation population today can be understood as embedded in a social-democratic vision. Also identified are a number of alternative visions, among which the strongest is a liberal vision.foundations; roles; functions; philantrophy; history; legal environment; economic importance; Sweden

Gender mainstreaming and the promotion of gender equality in Swedish development cooperation: A qualitative content analysis of Sweden's results strategies

Gender equality (GE) is one of Sweden’s three thematic prioritizations in foreign aid and have so been since 2007. Gender equality is emphasized as important for development and as a question in which Sweden has added value in promoting. The thesis examines what type of gender equality Sweden promotes in development cooperation with nine African countries and how it has changed in the country and results strategies from 2003 to 2014. It is done through a case study of Sweden and a qualitative content analysis of the Swedish long-term country and results strategies. Three gender equality models underpinned by feminist theories have constituted the theoretical framework and informed the analysis. The thesis concludes that Sweden has promoted gender equality by using gender mainstreaming (GM) in lines with the transforming model. Although, in recent years there has been a shift from addressing power relations and structures to a less radical model promoting special support and equal outcomes

Ett mångkulturellt dilemma ­ om pedagogers syn på en mångkulturell undervisning i olika miljöer

__________________________________________________________________________ Att arbeta mångkulturellt är något vi finner viktigt inom skolan. Läroplanen nämner faktorer av mångkulturell prägel som skolans grundläggande värden. Våra erfarenheter säger oss att detta värde inte efterlevs. Vad kan det bero på? Vårt syfte är att ta reda på hur pedagoger uppfattar mångkultur och hur deras mångkulturella undervisning ser ut. Litteraturstudier har visat på att mångkulturell undervisning i huvudsak bedrivs i områden av stor kulturell mångfald. Är det beroende på skolans kulturella samhällskontext en mångkulturell undervisning tillämpas? Utifrån dessa litteraturstudier vi beaktar har vi utfört intervjuer och observationer på två skolor: en skola i ett i majoritet svenskt område i Sverige och en svensk skola i Thailand med i majoritet svenska elever. Intervjuerna har visat hur pedagoger ser på begreppen och hur de arbetar idag samt hur de tror deras mångkulturella undervisning skulle se ut i ett annat område. Resultatet innefattar pedagogernas egen syn på mångkultur och tar oss vidare till diskussionen där vi jämför intervjuerna med tidigare litteraturstudier. Våra frågeställningar och syfte samt litteratur argumenteras kring och avsaknaden av mångkultur i skolan blir ett faktum. Arbetet belyser svårigheten med att arbeta mångkulturellt på grund av begreppets komplexa definition och på grund av samhällets fortgående vi och dom-perspektiv

Dental healthcare: a human right in Sweden?

Embora os cuidados com a saúde dental não tenham visibilidade mediática, as consequências de cuidados dentários inadequados são infeções, cáries e outras doenças agudas e crónicas. Negligenciar os cuidados com a saúde dentária traz consequências que, mais tarde, são custosas para os indivíduos e para o sistema de saúde. Os tratamentos de emergência futuros serão muito mais caros do que os serviços de consultório odontológico que poderiam tê-los evitado, o que se traduz numa perda de longo prazo para o beneficiário da assistência médica e para o Estado. As estatísticas do Eurostat mostram um aumento nos gastos com saúde na maioria dos países europeus, incluindo a Suécia. É natural que os orçamentos governamentais aumentem devido a fatores como imigração, crescimento populacional, arrecadação de impostos, aumento dos gastos com a expansão do Estado social, entre outros fatores. Esses fatores podem interferir com as dotações orçamentais no sector da saúde e, em particular, na prestação de cuidados de medicina dentária, dado que podem causar uma perceção imprecisa da afetação de verbas ao sistema nacional de saúde. O objetivo desta dissertação é demonstrar, com factos e dados estatísticos, os efeitos positivos da intervenção precoce em saúde dentária na Suécia. Com o planeamento financeiro de longo prazo, a possibilidade de taxas de assistência odontológica e de benefícios financeiros altamente reduzidos para a Suécia deve não apenas ser desejável, mas também viável.Although dental healthcare does not make the headlines, the consequences of improper dental care lead to infections, tooth decay and numerous other acute and chronic illnesses. Just like poor medical care, neglecting oral health care will turn costly. Future emergency treatments will certainly be far more expensive than dental office care that could have prevented them. This might encompass a long-term loss for both healthcare recipients and the government. Eurostat statistical data show increased healthcare spending by the majority of the European countries, including Sweden. Government budgets increase due to factors such as immigration, population growth, increased taxes, higher spending with the spreading of the welfare state, among other factors. These factors ought to be accounted for in this study and a net result is desirable to be taken into consideration, given the fact that these factors can produce an inaccurate perception of certain calculations. The aim of this dissertation is to demonstrate, with facts and statistical data, the positive effects of early oral healthcare intervention in Sweden. With short-, and long-term financial planning, the possibility of reduced fees of dental healthcare and financial benefits for Sweden should not only be desirable, but also feasible