Occupations,fields of study and returns to education

This paper considers several possible channels behind the well‐documented effect of education on earnings. The first channel is that education makes workers more productive on a given task, as in a conventional human capital framework. The second channel is based on the idea that education helps workers get assigned to higher‐paying occupations where output is more sensitive to skill. A third and final channel is that workers are more productive and earn more when they are matched to a job related to their field of study. Using data from the 2005 National Graduate Survey and the 2006 Canadian Census, I find that channels two and three account for close to half of the conventionally measured return to education. The results indicate that the return to education varies greatly depending on occupation, field of study and the match between these two factors.     

Wealth inequality: Theory,measurement and decomposition

This paper reviews the basic principles of inequality measurement, underlining the advantages and shortcomings of alternative measures from a theoretical standpoint and in the context of the study of the distribution of wealth. Adopting the two most popular measures, the Gini index and the P‐shares, the paper documents wealth inequality in Canada using the 1999, 2005 and 2012 Survey of Financial Security (SFS). It carries out several decompositions with covariates, featuring DFL‐type reweighting methods and Gini and P‐shares RIF regressions. The latter parallel decompositions deepen our understanding of how changes in socio‐demographic characteristics, including the compensating role of family formation and human capital, impact wealth inequality.     

Balancing the dual mandate of conservation and visitor use at a Canadian world heritage site in an era of rapid climate change

Abstract

National parks in Canada operate under the dual mandate of conservation and visitor use, which involves balancing ecological integrity and nature-based tourism activities. Climate-induced environmental change may increase the existing tension between conservation and visitor use as major tourism resources located in protected areas (PAs) are projected to undergo large-scale changes. This study draws upon the behavioural approach, scenario planning, and landscape visualizations to examine the relationship between climate change impacts, visitor perceptions, and visitor experience management at the Athabasca Glacier in Jasper National Park, Canada. Four tourism development scenarios defined by two management drivers (ecological integrity and visitor demand) with corresponding storylines and visualizations were developed for 2050. The visualized scenarios were presented to visitors (n?=?304) in a survey to understand potential implications on visitor satisfaction. The results suggest that park managers need to find a balance between ecological integrity and visitor use in a way that ensures commercialized tourism development is limited, educational material is prioritized, and ecological integrity is maintained. While understanding the behaviour of future tourists is complex, it is a critical component of climate change adaptation planning and decision-making processes that needs to be prioritized by policymakers and PAs managers.     

The training of Chinese managers: a critical analysis of using overseas training for management development

Chinese policy makers are aware that developing China's managers is crucial to creating competitive advantage in the post-WTO period. Consequently, large numbers of Chinese managers have been sent abroad, particularly to Western and developed countries, on management training courses in order to bring new ideas and approaches to their organisations. This paper questions whether these training programmes have successfully achieved their objectives. An empirical study is adopted to invite the opinions of different stakeholder groups involved in the training process (526 participants). Specific characteristics of China's overseas management training are discussed and problem areas are also explored.     

Motivations to engage in last chance tourism in the Churchill Wildlife Management Area and Wapusk National Park: the role of place identity and nature relatedness

The threat that climate change impacts pose to rare and vulnerable destinations has given rise to a phenomenon known as last chance tourism. This travel behaviour involves tourists increasingly travelling to destinations they perceive to be critically threatened, while contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change impacts in these very places. For last chance destinations to be managed effectively in the face of climate change, a clearer understanding of what drives this travel behaviour is needed. Drawing on the importance of place and nature to identity construction, this research uses a structural equation modelling approach to examine last chance tourism motivations in Churchill, Canada. Results provide evidence of a motivation to engage in a last chance experience. They also indicate that this motivation is related to a desire to share a connection to nature with similar individuals, and to become part of the local story. Beyond this, results show that visitors' sense of place identity and nature relatedness contribute significantly to their motivation to engage in last chance tourism. Findings from this research are important to the management of last chance destinations, including protected areas that are legislated to preserve significant natural and cultural features.     

Prospects for Canada's protected areas in an era of rapid climate change

Given the known and potential impacts of climate change on ecosystem composition, structure, and function, some recent studies question the efficacy and relevancy of current protected area policies and management objectives. For example, in a rapidly changing climate is it practical to continue to identify and protect ‘representative’ samples of the natural heritage estate? This paper examines a number of climate-related issues that now confront agencies and organizations responsible for the protection of natural heritage areas, including the roles of protected areas, representation targets, ecological integrity, protected area design, management techniques, research and monitoring needs, and agency capacity to respond. Potential avenues for adaptation are proposed in light of these issues. The development and implementation of a cross-jurisdictional landscape-scale strategic conservation framework focused on protecting, connecting, and restoring ecosystems will be fundamental to enhancing ecological resilience to climate change. We conclude that even though climate change presents unprecedented and significant challenges, the protected area contribution to ecosystem function and human health and well-being will remain an essential and worthwhile investment in the 21st century.     

The Volitionist'sManifesto

Many popular business strategies, such as re-engineering, core competency, and value engineering, may achieve short-term profits by antagonizing workers and alienating customers. We contend that self-actualized companies must create an ethical business environment grounded in three ethical principles. To suggest these principles, which characterize all "volitionist companies", we first review two typical problems and the questionable ways that some companies resolved them. Then, we discuss these principles and compare "volitionism" to three well- known normative ethical theories. Finally, we show that these principles form the core of at least four popular management theories.     

The impact of unionization on the incidence of and sources of payment for training in Canada

This paper uses the Adult Education and Training Survey (AETS) to look at the effect of unions on the incidence and sources of payment for training in Canada. Simple tabulations indicate that union workers are more likely to engage in training activities than nonunion workers. The higher incidence of training among union workers is driven by the fact that they are more likely to take training courses offered by their employers than nonunion workers. This suggests that union workers are more likely to participate in training activities that enhance their firm-specific human capital. This union effect disappears, however, once we control for a variety of factors such as age, education, and in particular, firm size and seniority. Everything else being equal, unions have little effect on the provision of training in Canada. Finally, we present some limited evidence that unions help increase the participation of firms in the financing of training activities.     

Education, earnings, and the 'Canadian G.I. Bill'

Canadian Second World War veterans benefited from an extensive educational program similar to the U.S. G.I. Bill. Because of differences in military enlistment rates, however, a much lower fraction of Quebec men were eligible for these benefits than men from other provinces. Building on this fact, we analyse inter-cohort patterns of education and earnings for English-speaking men from Ontario, using French-speaking men from Quebec as a control group. We find that the instrumental variables estimates of the return to schooling are typically as big or bigger than the corresponding OLS estimates. JEL Classification: J24, I21
Education, revenus, et le 'G.I. Bill canadien.' Les anciens combattants canadiens de la deuxième guerre mondiale ont bénéficié d'un programme d'aide aux études similaire au G.I. Bill américain. Relativement peu de Québécois ont cependant pu bénéficier de ce programme en raison de la faible proportion de ces derniers qui ont fait leur service militaire durant cette période. Sur la base de cette observation, nous analysons les différences intergénérationelles dans la scolarisation et les revenus des Ontariens anglophones en se servant des Québécois francophones comme groupe témoin. Nos résultats indiquent que les estimés du taux de rendements de l'éducation obtenus à l'aide de la méthode des variables instrumentales sont comparables sinon plus élévés que ceux obtenus par moindres carrés ordinaires.