Can Environmental Protection in Ecological Functional Zones Break Free from the Constraints of Focusing Just on Economic Benefits? — A Case Study of the Plateau Ecological Zone’s Tiamitcheen

2018 ◽  
Vol 06 (03) ◽  
pp. 1850018
Author(s):  
Wei JIANG
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Environmental Protection ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
Tibet Plateau ◽  
Ecological Protection ◽  
Functional Zones

Following the 2015 publication and revision of the 2008 National Ecological Functional Division, China, in 2017, added 240 counties (cities, districts, and banners) to its national key ecological functional zone system. Ecological functional zones, in practice, are often caught in a dilemma between environmental protection and economic development, with actions aimed at the promotion of locally-based economic advances frequently conflicting with the goals of ecological functional divisions. To investigate this dilemma, the paper selected Tiamitcheen County in the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, a key ecological function zone, as the site for a field investigation, case study. The primary methodologies applied in this study included a questionnaire survey and in-depth interviews. Based on the observation of three main reasons for the dilemma between environmental protection and economic development, the author proposed that ecological functional zones should be further subdivided based on the National Ecological Functional Division according to the zones’ respective characteristics at the local level. More efforts should also go into better specifying the scope of ecological “red lines”, and to the demarcation of the boundaries of ecological functional core zones, buffer zones, and experimental zones. This would help in the formulation of local development planning, while at the same time increasing the support directed to ecological protection zones. In addition, “differentiated” and “greening” zoning assessment mechanisms should also be fully implemented, whereby different assessment factors and weights are established according to the characteristics of the different functional zones. An expanded array of economic indicators should also be delineated, which more specifically indicates the differences between ecological functional zones and other functional zones. This would, via a “differentiated” and “green” assessment system, help to ease the conflicts arising between local governments’ efforts at both economic promotion and ecological protection. Within ecological functional zones, it would also encourage local governments to break through the need to adhere strictly to efforts at economic promotion so as to ensure ecological security.

Analysis of the Gyeonggi Bay Ecomuseum as a Wide-Area Ecomuseum

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 685-697
Author(s):  
Hanju Lee
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Human Resources ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Wide Area ◽  
Resident Participation ◽  
Gyeonggi Province ◽  
Integrated Programs ◽  
Area Unit

This study aims to examine the features of the creation and operation of ecomuseums at wide-area and (metropolitan) local government levels and to analyze their improvements and limitations based on an analysis of a case study on the “Gyeonggi Bay Ecomuseum.” This study also reveals the necessity and direction for ecomuseums led by metropolitan local governments. It attempts to find ways to expand the Gyeonggi Bay Ecomuseum and apply lessons from this ecomuseum to other planned wide-area ecomuseums in South Korea. Overall, this study intends to derive the sustainability of wide-area ecomuseums, and their utility and potential as a means to revitalize the region.  The Gyeonggi Bay Ecomuseum is a meaningful case study as it was created in a wide area called the Gyeonggi Bay and was led by a metropolitan local government, along with the official claim as an ecomuseum; the museum creation project also progressed in a phased approach. However, there are issues such as organization problems of the ecomuseum and the absence of resident participation, integrated programs, and an archive center.  Therefore, this study presents measures to overcome these obstacles: the establishment of a core ecomuseum and an exhibition center, the development of joint programs, the continuous security of funds and human resources, and measures to generate economic benefits for residents. This study also suggests spatial/functional expansion from being the “Gyeonggi Bay Ecomuseum” to the “Gyeonggi Province Ecomuseum.”   Keywords: Ecomuseum, Wide-area unit, Lead of local governments, Gyeonggi Bay, Regional revitalization   

scholarly journals Evaluation of the Policy Effect of China’s Environmental Interview System for Effective Air Quality Governance

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (17) ◽  
pp. 9006
Author(s):  
Xue Jin ◽  
Ussif Rashid Sumaila ◽  
Kedong Yin ◽  
Zhichao Qi
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Environmental Protection ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Interview System

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People’s Republic of China formally proposed an environmental interview system in May 2014, which applies pressure on local governments to fulfill their responsibility toward environmental protection by conducting face-to-face public interviews with their officials. In this paper, 48 cities that were publicly interviewed from 2014–2020 were considered the experimental group and 48 cities surrounding them were the control group. First, the dynamic panel model is applied to initially determine the effect of the policy. Then, a regression discontinuity method (Sharp RD) is used to analyze the short-term and long-term effects and compare the reasons for the differences observed among the estimates of various types of samples. Finally, a series of robustness tests were also conducted. The results show that the environmental interview system can improve air quality. However, because an emergency short-term local governance system exists at present, the governance effect is not long-term and, therefore, not sustainable. Therefore, it suggests that the government should continue to improve the environmental interview system, establish an optimal environmental protection incentive mechanism, and encourage local governments to implement environmental protection policies effectively in the long term. The results of the research are of great significance to the environmental impact assessment system of the world, especially in countries with similar economic systems, which are facing a trade-off between economic growth and environmental sustainability.

Is a Self-help Orientation Sufficient Basis for Local [Economic] Development?

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 151-166
Author(s):  
Eris D. Schoburgh
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Economic Development ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Participatory Development ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Governance Reform ◽  
Local Authorities

Local government reform in Jamaica aims (i) to refocus local authorities to providing leadership and a coordinating framework for the collective efforts of the people towards local development and (ii) to assess local service distribution modalities between central and local governments, the private sector and CSOs for more cost-effective arrangements. The institutional context in which these objectives are to be pursued is characterized by a new local governance framework populated by ‘a federated system of development committees’. Development committees are expected to work in partnership with local authorities in pursuit of economic transformation of geographic spaces. Participatory development that development committees exemplify conjures up images of ownership of local [economic] development projects and an empowered citizenry that has the capacity to direct resources in their favour. Development committees represent a differentiated method of local economic governance. But the concern is: Are development committees fit for purpose? This is the fundamental question with which this research is concerned. A survey of parish development committees (PDCs) was conducted to determine the extent to which the organizations are giving effect to their mandate. The study is exploratory in design and relies on qualitative methodologies. The results of the study will be important for assisting the local governance reform process currently underway in Jamaica but should contribute to the discourse on the alternative approaches to managing development in developing countries.

scholarly journals Visiting Dark Murals: An Ethnographic Approach to the Sustainability of Heritage

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 677
Author(s):  
María de-Miguel-Molina
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Local Economic Development ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
Ethnographic Approach ◽  
Community Solidarity ◽  
Depth Study ◽  
History Of

Political, war-themed and controversial murals aim to show the history of a community, making the intangible tangible, and, because these events are still recent, they stir people’s emotions. Visitors to this type of heritage have a mixture of artistic and dark interests that lead to what we call ‘dark mural attractions’. These political murals need a public strategy to be preserved, become better known and attract local economic development funds to make them sustainable. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to analyse how communities could build a co-narrative around murals to generate a sustainable local development. To achieve this goal, an in depth study needs to be performed to establish what kind of narrative will enable political murals to attract dark visitors and examine how communities can build a sustainable co-narrative around a dark mural. As a case study, we analyse the Battle of Cable Street mural in London, located in the non-touristic borough of Tower Hamlets, by means of an ethnographic qualitative approach based on stakeholders’ opinions, among other sources. In this case, results show that dark murals have the potential to attract visitors, but they require a public strategy for the sustainability of heritage, based on a narrative of community solidarity for educational and discovery purposes.

scholarly journals Legitimacy of uncertain policy work: Exploring values in local economic development projects

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 440-459
Author(s):  
Albin Olausson
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Organization Theory ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Economic Development ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Development Work ◽  
Development Projects ◽  
Observation Data ◽  
To Come ◽  
Development Agents

This article takes the standpoint that, due to high levels of uncertainty, local economic development work suffers from both input- and output-based legitimacy. Nevertheless, local governments are active development agents and try to come up with economic development initiatives. In order to better understand the legitimate basis for uncertain economic development work, this article offers an unconventional analysis of economic development projects. Drawing on scholars of organization theory, legitimacy is defined as congruence in values between the studied projects and the stakeholders in the surrounding environment. The article examines what kinds of values pervade local governments’ economic development projects. The empirical material is based on thick interview and observation data derived from a study of eight local development projects in Sweden. The results show that values of professionalization and deliberation pervade the analysed projects. Taking the two sets of values together, the results indicate that local government administration seeks to legitimize its economic development work as being based on professional directed processes of public deliberation. Both these sets of values challenge the local representative democratic system of government as the prime source of the legitimacy of local governments’ interventions.

Evaluating Economic Benefits of Newly Opened Expressways in China

2003 ◽  
Vol 1839 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-127
Author(s):  
Louie Nan Liu
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Operating Costs ◽  
Analysis Method ◽  
Investment Environment ◽  
Methods Development ◽  
Time Savings

In the past decade, expressways have been developed rapidly in China. It is evident that a number of opened expressways generated promoting effects on regional economic development. Most existing studies tend to assess the effects in a qualitative way. The purpose of this study was to develop quantitative methods to evaluate the economic benefits of expressway projects during the operational period. The benefits discussed include user benefits (reduced vehicle operating costs, time savings, and safety benefits), which are the direct effects of the expressway projects. The estimation of user benefits is carried out on the basis of well-defined quantitative methods. Development benefits, which are the indirect effects of the expressway projects, were also examined. Their indirect nature makes them inherently more difficult to analyze quantitatively. A comparative analysis method was developed to tackle the problem. These methodologies were applied to a case study of the Hangzhou-Ningbo Expressway in Zhejiang Province, one of the fastest-growing provinces in China in economic activity. The estimation results show that, since its opening in December 1996, the expressway has generated significant user benefits in the region. Statistical data have provided some evidence that the expressway promoted the region's economic development by improving the investment environment, promoting exchange and circulation of commodities, providing convenient transportation for tourists, and promoting development in small towns and urbanization.

LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STIMULATION. EVALUATION OF EFFECTIVENESS OF NONFINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

2012 ◽  
Vol 166 (4) ◽  
pp. 177-185
Author(s):  
Iwona CHOMIAK-ORSA ◽  
Michał FLIEGER
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Competitive Advantage ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Economic Development ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Financial Instruments ◽  
Research Results ◽  
Local Leaders

Local governments support local development with various instruments. It is often the case that they focus on financial instruments. Thus they are no longer the base of competitive advantage and local governments have to search for nonfinancial instruments to attract companies to the region. Those instruments are of different effectiveness, so it seems crucial for local leaders to know which instruments are the most effective. The article presents the research results indicating the level of effectiveness of each nonfinancial instrument that local offices may use.

Determinants of Creative Capital Development at a Local Level: Case Study Municipalities of Podkarpackie, Poland

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 529-549
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Szara
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Time Perspective ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Creative Class ◽  
Local Populations ◽  
Creative Capital ◽  
Capital Development

Although it is highly controversial, the concept proposed by R. Florida has an interesting and important feature, visible from a time perspective. Indeed, the theory of creative class started research into economic development based on creativity. Generally, there are no empirical studies focusing on these issues at the local level. The present study is an attempt to identify determinants of local development and to assess municipalities from the viewpoint of creative capital engagement. To achieve this the study analysed opinions acquired from representatives of municipal offices and representatives of local populations across Podkarpackie, one of the 16 regions of Poland. The findings show that municipalities of the Podkarpackie Region vary in terms of determinants for creative capital development.

scholarly journals Municipal Development Strategy as an Instrument of Local Economic Development Policy

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 13-25
Author(s):  
Mariusz Wiktor Sienkiewicz
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Development Strategy ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Public Management ◽  
Local Economic Development ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
Management Tools ◽  
Economic Development Policy ◽  
Development Policies

The main objective of this paper is to determine the importance of local development strategies for formulating and implementing local economic development policies by local authorities. In particular, an attempt is made to answer the question of whether local authorities properly and effectively use public management tools (i.e. a development strategy) to promote economic development in their area. Furthermore, the aim of this article is to analyse instruments for supporting economic development, which can be potentially used by local governments in Poland.

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