Discretion in the “Backyard of Law”: Case Handling of Debt Relief in Sweden

This article explores discretion in welfare professional work. The aim is to analyse what room for discretionary decision-making that exist in case handling of debt relief at the Swedish Enforcement Authority (SEA). The analysis is guided by a conceptual distinction between structural and epistemic aspects of discretion, as well as between substantive and procedural aspects. The data comprises official and internal SEA documents, interviews with management and staff and field notes from observations. The analysis points to a change in the balance between standards and discretion in relation to the on-going formalization of case handling at the SEA, though not in the simplistic sense that discretion is diminished through formalization. When taking into account the different analytical aspects of discretion, it is concluded that discretion is narrowed only in some respects. There is still space for case officers in selecting and interpreting information and assess-ing the conditions regarding subject matter

Carbon Dioxide Capture from Ambient Air Using Amine-Grafted Mesoporous Adsorbents

Anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) have been identified as a major contributor to climate change. An attractive approach to tackle the increasing levels of CO2 in the atmosphere is direct extraction via absorption of CO2 from ambient air, to be subsequently desorbed and processed under controlled conditions. The feasibility of this approach depends on the sorbent material that should combine a long lifetime with nontoxicity, high selectivity for CO2, and favorable thermodynamic cycling properties. Adsorbents based on pore-expanded mesoporous silica grafted with amines have previously been found to combine high CO2 adsorption capacity at low partial pressures with operational stability under highly defined laboratory conditions. Here we examine the real potential and functionality of these materials by using more realistic conditions using both pure CO2, synthetic air, and, most importantly, ambient air. Through a combination of thermogravimetric analysis and Fourier transform infrared (TGA-FTIR) spectroscopy we address the primary functionality and by diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) spectroscopy the observed degradation of the material on a molecular level

Discretion in the “Backyard of Law”: Case Handling of Debt Relief in Sweden

This article explores discretion in welfare professional work. The aim is to analyse what room for discretionary decision-making that exist in case handling of debt relief at the Swedish Enforcement Authority (SEA). The analysis is guided by a conceptual distinction between structural and epistemic aspects of discretion, as well as between substantive and procedural aspects. The data comprises official and internal SEA documents, interviews with management and staff and field notes from observations. The analysis points to a change in the balance between standards and discretion in relation to the on-going formalization of case handling at the SEA, though not in the simplistic sense that discretion is diminished through formalization. When taking into account the different analytical aspects of discretion, it is concluded that discretion is narrowed only in some respects. There is still space for case officers in selecting and interpreting information and assess-ing the conditions regarding subject matter

Simrishamn

The aim of the projekt: This report on the situation of urban archaeology in Simrishamn is written as part of the project The Medieval Town: Implications of Early Urbanization for Modem Planning, under the auspices of Riksantikvarieämbetet och Statens historiska museer. The aim of the project is to make a detailed survey and documentation of the situation of urban archaeology and itsimplications for physical planning and make a scholarly evaluation of the uncovered material. The project deals mainly with those places which obtained town rights in the formal legal sense during the Middle Ages. The arrangement of the report: Chapters 1 and 2 give an account of a number of data which in various ways are important for the early development of the town. The information is collected from available literature (mainly as regards documentary material) as well as from primary material in the archives (archaeological data, records from borings). In the firstmentioned case no attempt has been made to correct possible faults through independent research. As regards the archaeological material, the aim has been to include all archaeological observations, even if for different reasons this has not always been possible. One important aim during work on the report has been to appraise and evaluate the archaeological material and to what extent it throws light on essential problems concerning urban history. The basic idea is that archaeological material can provide information about chronology, function, social structure and economic bases. The material has been arranged on the assumption that the form of settlement which took place and is reflected in the archaeological material is the result of a functional adaption to certain decisive prerequisites such as topography, communications, and economical-geographical conditions. The data have been chosen and structured on this basis. The selection gives both a general view of the available material concerning the development of the medieval town and a basis for further work on this material. This in turn will provide a foundation for the antiquarian evaluation in relation to future work. The English summary gives a broad outline of the contents, mainly based on the maps of the report. [...

Fotnoter till förvaltningspolitiken : Lärande, styrning and all that jazz...

"Det systematiska lärandet har aldrig riktigt fått fotfäste i staten. Politiska logiker är mestadels framåtblickande, och inriktade mot hur man genom reformer och andra åtgärder ska kunna uppnå önskvärda framtider. Trots expansionen av granskning under senare år är reflektioner kring den existerande organiseringens ändamålsenlighet en bristvara." Bengt Jacobsson diskuterar i denna essä hur man kan förstå den styrning som förekommer i staten, hur styrningen i dagens statsförvaltning har utvecklats över tiden och hur mål och resultatstyrningen kommit att dominera i svensk statsförvaltning. Avslutningsvis ger han förslag på hur regeringen både skulle kunna stimulera myndigheternas men också sin egen förmåga att på ett systematiskt sätt lära av erfarenheter. Bengt Jacobsson är professor i företagsekonomi och verksam vid Förvaltningsakademin, Södertörns högskola. Förvaltningsakademin är en mångvetenskaplig centrumbildning vid Södertörns högskola som bedriver uppdragsutbildning och forskar om statsförvaltning samt verkar för kvalificerade möten mellan forskning och praktik

The forest management planning package: theory and application

The Forest Management Planning Package represents a general fundamental structure of a forest management planning system based on two inventory phases. It is an existing calculation system used in practical forestry in Sweden. The Forest Management Planning Package integrates economic theory, objective inventory measurements and accurate growth forecasts. The core of the system is a chain of models depicting the production possibilities of a forest holding. Detailed growth forecasts and economic calculations with high resolution (individual trees) permit analysis of various silvicultural treatment options in all types of Swedish stands. A non-linear objective function and mathematical optimization result in a compromise between maximum net present value and sustained net-revenue profile. Application of the system contributes to a much improved economic result through the removal of uncertainties concerning the real production possibilities and it has significantly altered the management strategies of the forest companies that have implemented it