Local interests or centralized targets? How China’s local government implements the farmland policy of Requisition–Compensation Balance

The Requisition–Compensation Balance of Farmland (RCBF) is a strict policy in China aimed at controlling farmland conversion and replenishing farmland loss caused by urban expansion through a set of top-down quotas. These conflict with local interests, since land conversion from agriculture to construction is a key tool by which local governments attract investment and raise fiscal revenue. How should local authorities respond to this centralized policy? This paper presents a framework “quantity–quality–productivity–environment” to investigate local governments’ coping strategy and the holistic performance of the RCBF. The empirical study indicated that local jurisdictions placed economic and financial growth first and continued expropriating farmland on a large-scale, including land of high quality, for development. However, impelled by compulsory quotas and supervision from governments at higher levels, local authorities would partly replenish the quantity loss through farmland exploitation, regardless of the quality of the new cropland and the possible environmental impact. Consequently, fast requisition and unqualified compensation undermined the capacity of regional agricultural output. We suggest that the RCBF is not capable of guaranteeing food security, whilst farmland supplementation threatens the local environment.     

Understanding Equity in the Recreation User Fee Context

Equity is a major public concern related to recreation fees on public lands. The purpose of this study was to test a three-dimensional model of equity and to examine the perceptions of equity across demographic segments. Data were collected by a telephone survey with residents (N = 366) of two western states. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the three-dimensional equity model in a recreation fee context. People tended to support democratic equity more than compensatory equity. Greater support was shown for discounted fees for the elderly and persons with disabilities than for discounts for ethnic minorities, low income people, or large families, suggesting the possibility of two sub-dimensions of the compensatory equity construct. Overall, the results do not support that disadvantaged groups seek discounted fees.     

困境与回应：罗尔斯对“原初状态”理论的修正

＂原初状态＂理论既是罗尔斯正义理论的逻辑起点,又是罗尔斯正义原则的论证方法,其要素包括选项预设、信息预设、主体预设、环境预设、心理预设五个方面。虽然罗尔斯的正义理论行文结构严谨,论证审慎小心,结论豁达易行,但他的＂原初状态＂理论同样受到＂社群主义＂和＂自由主义＂的批判。前者批评的焦点集中在契约各方——主体的假设上,后者则集中在社会合作必要性、可能性和利益性方面。出于对以上批评的回应,罗尔斯对＂原初状态＂理论的三个方面即理论适用范围、社会特征、契约主体作了认真的修正,以期进一步增强理论的说服力。     

Aggregate supply response in Tanzanian agriculture

Tanzania is among the many African countries that have engaged in agricultural liberalization since the mid-1980s. in the hope that reforms that introduce price incentives and efficient marketing will encourage producers to respond. This paper assesses that claim by examining the supply response of agricultural output in Tanzania. Our estimates suggest that aggregate agricultural supply response is quite high so that the potential for agricultural sector response to liberalization of agricultural prices and marketing may be quite significant. The long-run elasticity of aggregate food crop output to relative prices was almost unity. Short-run supply responses were estimated at about 0.35 for aggregate food crops and for all (food and export) crops. Liberalization of agricultural markets, where it increases the effective prices paid to farmers, can be effective in promoting production, although complementary interventions, to improve infrastructure, marketing, access to inputs and credit, improved production technology etc, are probably necessary.     

AMBITIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR ASSESSING MILITARY PERFORMANCE IN CRISIS RESPONSE OPERATIONS

This paper addresses the issue of measuring armed forces’ performance in crisis response operations. By means of interviews (17 respondents) and a large scale survey (1,253 respondents) field and general officers of the Netherlands Armed Forces (NAF) have been questioned on perceived organisational success in crisis response operations. The Dutch officers assess the NAF's performance positively. A number of senior officers are hesitant about the usefulness of measuring the performance of crisis response operations. According to them the context in which the operations are being executed is too complex. Most interviewees, however, are convinced that measuring performance is useful and should be improved. These military leaders express a strong need for criteria to assess their performance on the job.     

页岩的地震属性分析综述

在最近几年里,非常规页岩气和页岩油勘探已经进入公众的视线里,引起大家的注意。这些新的成藏是地球物理学许多新发展的催化剂,尤其是新地震属性的应用。近来,三维地震数据和地震属性技术已经在断层、裂缝方位和密度、储层富集带,可能的水力压裂障碍,孔隙压力,岩石力学以及增产的有效性和优化提供信息。下面介绍的是从三维地面地震资料中获得的信息,这些信息是怎样影响非常规页岩发展的。     

中小学教师职业压力的成因与自我调适

中小学教师承受的职业压力主要来自考试压力、新课改的挑战、工作强度大、角色冲突等几个方面。教师个体的自我调适是缓解压力的关键所在,教师只有合理认知并积极应对,才能变压力为动力,从而提升自身的职业幸福感。     

Service Problems,Service Crises and Service Disasters

ABSTRACT

This paper discusses the need for tourism service organisations to implement effective ways of responding to their clients when a problem occurs in the delivery of a service. Failure to recognise or respond appropriately to a problem when it occurs can cause a crisis which requires more organisational resources and skills to overcome, and if this is not achieved the original problem may result in desertion of the company by its clients, or adverse publicity impacting severely on the company's success. The paper presents a short illustrative case study. The paper suggests that organisations may learn from analysing service problems how to adopt adaptive strategies to minimse the negative consequences of future service failures. It indicates the need for further studies to improve the responsive of organisations to service problems.     

Why persistent high inflation impedes growth? An empirical assessment of threshold level of inflation for India

In the policy debate on growth–inflation trade-off and the role of monetary policy in managing the trade-off in the short-run, theoretical and empirical research suggests the presence of a country specific threshold level of inflation. Empirical findings of this paper suggest that for India the threshold level of inflation could be around 6%. The inflation target for monetary policy may have to be somewhat lower than the growth maximizing threshold, since any positive inflation could be a risk to inclusive and sustainable growth objective.     

应对美国对华贸易保护政策的路径选择

文章指出,金融危机以来,伴随着全球贸易的急剧萎缩,贸易保护主义也风起云涌,特别是美国等一些西方国家近期针对中国的贸易保护措施更是纷纷出台,对我国经济发展造成了不利影响,成为我国经济发展的一个制约因素。文章认为,面对日益严重的贸易保护主义,政府、企业应采取积极的应对措施,建立健全贸易救济系统、充分利用WTO争端解决机制、实现对外贸易保护前置化和鼓励创立自主品牌等,以突破美国对华贸易保护的藩篱。