A Markov‐switching analysis of Nigeria's business cycles: Are election cycles important?

The study examines Nigeria's business cycles between October 1998 and October 2017 and ascertains the importance of general elections cycles in engendering cyclical fluctuations in different measures of business cycles. A framework based on political business cycles theory was estimated with a dynamic Markov‐switching regression technique. The study finds that election cycles are adequate in predicting cycles in food prices, non‐farm prices, exports, and imports in Nigeria while a significant effect of election cycles on the stock market, general price level, and exchange rate could not be established. The study concludes that cycles in food, non‐farm prices, imports, and exports can be predicted by future general elections while re‐election seeking behaviour of politicians lacks the power to influence stock market performance and exchange rate in Nigeria. Hence, artificial business cycles that result primarily from politicians manipulating certain fiscal tools targeted at stimulating the economy only to increase the re‐election chances could be minimized if monetary and fiscal institutions are strong, effective, and truly independent. This will ensure that policies are not manipulated between elections by politicians but are well targeted at achieving a set of long‐term developmental goals.     

论我国大气污染生态补偿法律机制的完善

大气污染生态补偿法律机制对于促进区域大气污染联合治理、实现大气污染治理法律正义、创新与完善生态补偿法律机制等具有重要意义。我国现有法律法规就大气污染生态补偿进行了原则性规定,特别是山东、陕西、湖北等地方性法规更是对大气污染生态补偿进行了探索性规范,为大气污染生态补偿法律机制完善提供了有益经验。但从总体来看,我国大气污染生态补偿法律机制尚存在缺乏专门法律支撑、生态补偿主体过窄、补偿方式单一、补偿标准不合理、法律责任不完善等问题。为促进生态文明战略与强化大气污染生态补偿的法律保障,我国应以科学理念为指导,采取有效措施推进大气污染生态补偿法律机制完善。     

自治、博弈与激励:我国农村人居环境污染治理的制度安排

基于中央政府、地方政府及农民的互动视角,采用博弈分析方法,系统考察了我国农村人居环境污染的逻辑机制。研究发现:我国农村人居环境污染的根源在于规制失灵;农村人居环境公共资源的“公地悲剧”不是必然现象,可以在农民之间建立一种自实施的自治机制,避免导致“公地悲剧”;由于利益目标的差异,中央政府与地方政府之间的激励问题、地方政府与农户之间的博弈行为,导致了农村人居环境规制失灵。研究启示是,制度的建立健全是农村人居环境治理顺利推进的保障,更将有利于乡村振兴战略的实施以及我国农村的可持续发展。     

中国沿海地区经济结构变动对海洋环境的影响

中国沿海经济结构的研究对海洋环境的发展意义重大,然而二者之间的定量关系及内在机理尚不完全清楚。以2007-2016年为研究时段,我国沿海11省(区、市)为研究区域,借助固定效应以及门槛模型,测度经济结构变动与海洋环境之间的关系。结果表明:①在经济结构中产业结构(-0.099)对海洋的弹性系数最大,其次是经济增速(-0.058),投资对象为正向影响,但不显著;非经济结构中,技术进步(0.052)的弹性系数最大,其中环境规制(-0.045)、人口规模(-0.045)抑制海洋环境的改善。②区域对比北部、东部海洋经济圈产业结构对海洋环境起抑制作用,另外,东部海洋经济圈环境规制、人口规模与海洋环境水平呈明显的负相关性;南部海洋经济圈相对于其他两个区域,结果不显著。③将产业结构、技术进步作为门槛变量,在各自的作用下分别存在双重门槛和单一门槛。产业结构门槛值为0.533、0.462,仅河北,福建未跨越第二门槛;科研能力门槛值为40,仅河北、福建、海南未跨过门槛值。因此,应适度调整产业结构,注重经济增长的质量,合理控制城镇人口的流动,积极鼓励科研创新,实现经济与海洋环境协调发展。     

浅谈铁路建设项目资格预审申请文件、商务标编写方法及建议

2014年以来,铁路固定资产投资每年基本稳定在8000亿元左右,对施工企业而言,要抓住当前的有利机会,争取更多的施工任务。结合当前铁路建设项目资格预审及招标的特点,简要介绍资格预审申请文件、商务标的编写方法,提出相关建议,以期为从业人员提供借鉴。     

基于业财融合的铁路运输企业全面预算管理体系研究

随着铁路运输企业不断深化改革和转型升级,作为企业财务管理有效工具之一的全面预算管理也应适应经济发展而不断优化。以业财融合为出发点,结合我国铁路运输企业的经营业务和预算管理的研究现状,对预算管理指标体系进行了总体分析及结构设计,构建了“国铁集团—路局—基层站段”三级次的预算指标模型,并设计了国铁集团到路局层面以及路局到站段层面的闭环式预算编制流程,健全和完善了相应的预算管理流程和责任分工。     

Dreaming of the West: The power of the brand in Soviet Lithuania, 1960s–1980s

Abstract

The article reveals the interest in foreign trademarks observed in Lithuanian society from the 1960s through the 1980s, when the demand for brand names spread after Western culture reached the Soviet Union. The consumption of Western cultural products, or imitations thereof, became one of the key symbolic expressions of freedom in Soviet society. In Lithuania, the most popular clothes were those bearing fake trademarks, even though Soviet authorities attempted to prevent the desire for and the wearing of these garments through the use of ideological tools.     

Net-zero emission targets and the role of managerial environmental awareness,customer pressure,and regulatory control toward environmental performance

To avoid the worst effects of global warming, countries agreed to limit warming below 2.0°C and ideally to 1.5°C preindustrial level. This requires countries to drop half of their greenhouse gas emission by 2030 and reach net-zero emission by 2050. In this regard, current study explores the role of green production as a mediator in the impact of managerial environmental awareness, customer pressure, and regulatory control on environmental performance. The data collected from 381 managers was analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) technique. Results indicate that customer pressure, regulatory control, and managerial environmental awareness play a pivotal role toward green production, whereas only managerial environmental awareness among them directly influences environmental performance. Green production fully mediates the relationship from customer pressure and regulatory control to environmental performance. However, it partially mediates the relation between managerial environmental awareness and environmental performance. Similarly, the importance of green production for environmental performance is highlighted.     

Above and beyond? How businesses can drive sustainable development by promoting lasting pro-environmental behaviour change: An examination of the IKEA Live Lagom project

Current global changes require new business approaches driving sustainable development on all fronts. To date, most business approaches have focused on sustainable marketing and corporate social responsibility initiatives. In this field study, we examine IKEA's Live Lagom project, a 3-year behaviour change initiative that aimed to explore how to go above and beyond conventional approaches demonstrating how businesses could support sustainable development by supporting their customers' attempts to live more sustainable lifestyles. We examined the effectiveness of the project involving multifaceted behaviour change interventions, testing for behavioural changes both during and after the project period. In addition, we explored changes in participants' attitudes towards the company. Findings show that the extensive set of interventions led to changes in pro-environmental behaviours across all three participant groups with potentially positive impacts on the customer–company relationship. The article thus provides a call for further businesses to engage in similar behaviour change projects that would allow citizens to engage in more sustainable lifestyles and behaviours across contexts.     

广西民间传统手工艺转型发展商业模式探究--以博白竹藤编织工艺为例

民间传统手工艺是一个民族文化的重要组成部分。广西是一个多民族聚居区,存在丰富多样的传统手工艺文化。面对如今经济社会快速发展的时代,现代化工业的快速发展、社会环境的浮躁、缺乏关注导致创新的缺失等原因使得民间传统手工艺的传承和发展面临较大的困难。除了政府的制度和措施,也应积极探索其他方式。论文以广西博白竹藤编织手工艺面临的困境为研究对象,对其创新发展的市场潜力与可行性、商业模式的转型发展进行探索,以期对我国民间传统手工艺的传承与壮大提供一定的参考和借鉴。