Sustainability: I know it when I see it

Anyone trying to communicate and implement sustainable practices quickly runs into definitional difficulties, which translate into operational difficulties. Simply put, sustainability, and its predecessor term, sustainable development, mean different things to different people. How can we hope to achieve a shared vision when we're not certain what vision we are sharing? This is not simply a rhetorical question — businesses and other organizations require measurable, manageable objectives to achieve progress in this area of endeavor.The challenge of defining sustainability has already been noted by a number of writers. The most common definition, “development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” first appeared in the World Commission on Environment and Development's report, Our Common Future (World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987), but there are many, many more definitions and interpretations.This note takes a different approach. Rather than seeking or proposing yet another definition of sustainability, it uses Wordle, a web-based data visualization tool, to generate a “tag cloud” of the common elements in over one hundred previously-published definitions. The result is a visually-appealing menage of terms providing a composite picture of the essence of sustainability.     

我如何工作

全神贯注.戈恩就是这样做的,因为他同时管理着两家全球500强公司.     

I. BOOK REVIEWS

Gerhard W eisser , Professor at Cologne University: Grenzen und Probleme des Planung
Capitalism, Market Socialism and Central Planning-Readings in Comparative Economic Systems (ed. Wayne A. LEEMAN)
Francesco VITO et al.: Lo sviluppo economico regionale
Nicolas S pulber , Professor of Economics, Indiana University: Soviet Strategy for Economic Growth and Foundations of Soviet Strategy for Economic Growth
Charles B ettelheim : L'lnde indipendante, Paris, Librairie Armand Colin, 1962, 526pp.
Pierre DES M azis : Le vocabulaire de l'économie politique. Essai sur i'apport du langage commun
Deuxième Conférence des coopératives de I'Arctique – Second Conference on Arctic Co-operatiues (trilingual document in French, English and Eskimo).     

I. BOOK REVIEWS

Joseph S tassart (Associate Lecturer, Faculty of Law, Liége University): Les avantages et les inconvénients économiques d'une population stationnaire
Alain BARRÈRE, Professor, Faculty of Law and Economics, University of Paris: Economie et institutions financières
Alain B ienaymé : Croissance et monnaie en plein emploi— Contribution à l'étude des effets du plein emploi sur la relation entre les flux réels et les flux monétaires
Philipp H erder -D orneich : Zur Theorie der sozialen Steuerung
Leo S olari : L'impresa pubblica nel Trattato Istitutivo della Comunità Economica Europa
Verstaatlichung in Österreich (Nationalisations in Austria), Ed. Prof. Dr. Wilhelm W eber
Dr. E. H aselmann : Aus eigener Kraft
Laurence D. H aber (in collaboration with), Chief, Economic and Social Surveys Branch, Division of Research and Statistics (U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Social Security Administration): The Disabled Worker under OASDI     

Should I guess?

Formula scoring, or the use of a correction (or penalty) for guessing, has been commonly practiced on standardized tests for almost 100 years. The correction deducts a portion of the question’s point value for an incorrect response, with no points awarded or deducted for an omitted response. The optimal response strategy is dependent on the student’s risk attitude and is thus difficult to identify and convey, as discussed. This study uses survey data to examine the advice that has been provided (often at some cost) to students facing a test with a correction. The impact of some of this advice as well as explanations for its persistence is discussed. In so doing, the study does provide support for the apparent ongoing abandonment of this scoring practice.     

I. BOOK REVIEWS

Anton E. R auter : Verbraucherpolitik und Wirtschaftsentwicklung
José L inhard / Klaus V oll (publishers): Weltmarkt und Entwicklungslander
Angelos A ngelopoulos : Pour une nouvelle politique du développement international     

I. BOOK REVIEWS

George Davidovic : Towards a Co-operative World Marc Millette : Les marchés d'exportation et les coopératives du Québec International Co-operative Alliance : Consumer Co-operation in South-East Asia Ram Kumar Mishra : Problems of Working Capital Liam E. Pickett : The Use of Statistics - A Handbook for Co-operatives Georges Lasserre : Réformer l'entreprise en 1975 ?– des pouvoirs pour les travailleurs