Reporting from Local Initiatives

2021 ◽  
pp. 200-201
Author(s):  
Olaf Jacobs
Keyword(s):  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 45-69
Author(s):  
Benoit Challand ◽  
Joshua Rogers

This paper provides an historical exploration of local governance in Yemen across the past sixty years. It highlights the presence of a strong tradition of local self-rule, self-help, and participation “from below” as well as the presence of a rival, official, political culture upheld by central elites that celebrates centralization and the strong state. Shifts in the predominance of one or the other tendency have coincided with shifts in the political economy of the Yemeni state(s). When it favored the local, central rulers were compelled to give space to local initiatives and Yemen experienced moments of political participation and local development.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 44
Author(s):  
O. V. Kelasyev

The article probes into the conflicts in the local self-government bodies of St. Petersburg which unfold after the election held September 8th, 2019. A fairly large number of so-called “independent” deputies were elected to several district councils, where their activities contravene the prevailing behaviour patterns of the local deputies elected earlier. There have been conflicts with groups of traditionalist deputies and local administrations, there has been a general increase in conflicts within the local self-government bodies. These conflicts are of specific character. Their subjects are tradition-oriented local deputies (“traditionalists”) and new groups of deputies mostly comprising young people (“innovators”) joined by local activists, many of whom ran for a seat in the district council but lost the election, as well as deputies of St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly and district administrations. The object of the conflicts may lie in a local resource, status (leadership, power in the district) and the deputies’ value orientations which are sometimes determined by a significant disparity in age, mentality or life experiences. The intensification of conflict introduced by the “innovators” has both negative and positive features. The negative ones include delays in decision-making, increasing tension, aggravation of the overall negative emotions, rejection of the existing local experience which in many cases is positive. The positive features include a strengthening political competition, democratization, mutual control, actual inclusion of the population in decision-making processes. Furthermore, there is a transition of interaction between the local authorities and residents from the level of manipulation and neglect to an equitable partnership, improvement of self-organization processes among the population and grass-roots local initiatives. It would seem that the positive features outweigh the negative ones.


2021 ◽  
pp. 108482232098693
Author(s):  
Christofer Rydenfält ◽  
Roger Persson ◽  
Inger Arvidsson ◽  
Charlotte Holgersson ◽  
Gerd Johansson ◽  
...  

Home care for the elderly constitutes a large and growing part of the social welfare system. Though, home care work is associated with a number of work environment-related challenges, including an increased risk for injuries, musculoskeletal disorders, high levels of sick leave and staff turnover, as well as stress and high workload, research is sparse. The present study explores local initiatives to improve the work environment initiated by the home care organizations themselves, and asks whether or not these initiatives affected gender equality. A qualitative web survey was sent to Swedish home care organizations, with open questions about change initiatives intended to have a positive effect on the work environment. There is an impressive amount of local work environment-related change initiatives going on. 80 categories of change initiatives were identified in answers from 178 units. However, these change initiatives were seldom evaluated or made accessible to stakeholders outside the organization. Main themes were concerned with work organization, digitalization, and planning, which largely follows trends in society (ie, digitalization, teamwork), rather than the actual needs identified by research (eg, musculoskeletal disorders). Despite apparent gender-related challenges, little of the work was associated with gender equality. The results indicates that there is a huge learning potential as the identified initiatives can serve as inspiration for others. However, to fully take advantage of these type of initiatives, more systematic evaluations are required.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (13) ◽  
pp. 3783
Author(s):  
Mateusz Andrychowicz

The paper shows a method of optimizing local initiatives in the energy sector, such as energy cooperatives and energy clusters. The aim of optimization is to determine the structure of generation sources and energy storage in order to minimize energy costs. The analysis is carried out for the time horizon of one year, with an hourly increment, taking into account various RES (wind turbines (WT), photovoltaic installations (PV), and biogas power plant (BG)) and loads (residential, commercial, and industrial). Generation sources and loads are characterized by generation/demand profiles in order to take into account their variability. The optimization was carried out taking into account the technical aspects of the operation of distribution systems, such as power flows and losses, voltage levels in nodes, and power exchange with the transmission system, and economic aspects, such as capital and fixed and variable operating costs. The method was calculated by sixteen simulation scenarios using Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP).


2000 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 373-379 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Kehoe

With the arrival of clinical governance, psychiatrists working for the National Health Service (NHS) can no longer work in isolation, and commitment to both clinical effectiveness and continuing professional development (CPD) is expected and likely to become mandatory. Clinical governance gives clinical effectiveness a high priority within NHS organisations, both at primary and secondary care levels, together with clearer lines of accountability.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Kruse ◽  
Eric Schmitt

We elucidate the significance of active ageing from an individual as well as from a societal perspective. Taking an individual perspective, maintaining activity in later years is linked to successful ageing because of empirical relationships to positive self-perception, satisfaction with life, and development of competences, whereas from a societal perspective, active ageing implies usage of older people’s life competences as a human capital of society—a societal imperative, particularly in times of demographic change but also more basically substantiated in an ethics of responsibility, intergenerational solidarity, and generation equity. We focus on the psychological construct of generativity which is interpreted as an aspect of the philosophical-anthropological category of joint responsibility. Our own research in Mexico and the Baltic States supports the notion that maintaining access to the public sphere and active engagement for others is a more basic individual concern than a life-stages specific developmental task. We report background and results of a Dialogue Forum Project Funding, a research cooperation between our institute and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility, and Future aimed to improve generativity in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine by implementing and supporting local initiatives offering opportunities for intergenerational dialogue.


2009 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 105-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Davies ◽  
Christine Rawlings

AbstractIn the UK, radiotherapy research is being conducted at national and international levels which include multi-centre clinical trials. Local initiatives and trials are also ongoing where work is being performed to develop techniques or protocols for new technologies and service development. Active participation within these studies is now leading to a culture change with radiographers (radiation therapists) becoming an integral part of the research process. There are currently 70 radiographers in the UK participating in research. This accounts for 2.5% of the UK profession. With the extension of role diversification, research radiographers are undertaking many new roles; however, there is still scope for further development. The therapists’ role in working within this research environment is to ensure improved standards of care focussed on evidence-based practice.


2005 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 203-220 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Paxman ◽  
Abu Sayeed ◽  
Ann Buxbaum ◽  
Sallie Craig Huber ◽  
Charles Stover

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