Simultaneous metrizability of coarse spaces

A metric space can be naturally endowed with both a topology and a coarse structure. We examine the converse to this. Given a topology and a coarse structure we give necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a metric giving rise to both of these. We conclude with an application to the construction of the coarse assembly map.<br/

‘Brexit means Brexit’ – but is Whitehall up to the challenge?

Brexit presents the UK civil service with its greatest challenge since the end of the second world war. It must start preparations for withdrawal from the EU whilst simultaneously undergoing a major restructuring. The creation of new ministries, especially the Department for Exiting the European Union, is intended to better equip it to deliver on the promise that ‘Brexit means Brexit’ by enabling clear political leadership and control, as well as policy clarity. Nonetheless, such change entails significant risks in terms of strategy, process and resource allocation and management. If a ‘good Brexit’ is to be achieved, Nick Wright argues these challenges must be addressed before the UK triggers Article 50

Willingness to pay for the conservation and management of wild geese in Scotland

In past times wild geese were an important resource, providing a source of meat, grease for lubrication and waterproofing, and feathers for bedding and arrow flights. Today, with the sale of goose meat no longer allowed in law, the only current market for geese is commercial shooting of non-endangered species such as the pink-footed goose. However, there are other benefits associated with geese which are not priced in the marketplace, but are valued. For example, some people positively value the opportunity to observe geese in the wild (a use-value), while others may take pleasure from simply knowing that they exist (a non-use value). These benefits cannot be provided by conventional markets because it would be prohibitively expensive to exclude people from watching geese and impossible to exclude them from caring about geese. In recent years a number of techniques such as Contingent Valuation (CV) and Choice Experiments (CE) have been established to establish the monetary values of non-market benefits. These techniques aim to measure the willingness to pay (WTP) of beneficiaries through the establishment of hypothetical markets

Developing measures for valuing changes in biodiversity : final report

This document reports the findings from the DEFRA funded research project 'Developing measures for valuing changes in biodiversity'. The aim of the research was to develop an appropriate framework that will enable cost-effective and robust valuations of the total economic value of changes to biodiversity in the UK countryside. The research involved a review of ecological and economic literature on the valuation of biodiversity changes. The information gathered from this review, along with the findings from a series of public focus groups and an expert review of valuation methodologies, were used to develop a suite of valuation instruments that were used to measure the economic value of different aspects of biodiversity. Contingent valuation and choice experiment studies were administered to households in Cambridgeshire and Northumberland, while valuation workshops were conducted in Northumberland only. The data from these studies were also used to test for benefits transfer