scholarly journals Municipal Green Purchasing in Mexico: Policy Adoption and Implementation Success

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (20) ◽  
pp. 8339
Author(s):  
Ana R. Leal ◽  
David Perez-Castillo ◽  
José Ernesto Amorós ◽  
Bryan W. Husted
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
Operator Method ◽  
Policy Adoption ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
State University ◽  
Environmental Practices ◽  
Adoption And Implementation ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Green Purchasing ◽  
Purchasing Policy

In this paper, we seek to determine what factors drive the adoption of green purchasing among municipalities in Mexico and the success of their implementation. Given the lack of research and theory in the area, this study is exploratory in nature. We applied the green purchasing survey developed by Arizona State University to all municipalities in Mexico with a population of 25,000 or more inhabitants. Using the least absolute shrinkage and selector operator method (LASSO), we reduced the set of measures, which we then employed in a logistic regression to predict whether the municipality would adopt a green purchasing policy. We found that complementary environmental practices, department rules, and city-wide contracts to reduce purchasing costs have a positive and significant effect on the propensity to adopt green purchasing policies, but the time for routine low-cost purchases has a negative effect on green purchasing policy adoption. Then, using two-stage least squares, we developed a model of the factors leading to successful implementation of green purchasing. We found that complementary environmental policies, environmental practices, environmental program knowledge, and city-wide contracts to reduce purchasing costs are positively and significantly related to successful implementation. However, department resources and the time for routine low-cost purchase are significant, but negatively related.

The Impact of Competitive Quasi-Market on Service Delivery in Benue State University, Makurdi Nigeria

GIS Business ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 85-98
Author(s):  
Idoko Peter
Keyword(s):  
Service Delivery ◽  
A Priori ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Secondary Source ◽  
State University ◽  
Ordinary Least Square ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

This research the impact of competitive quasi market on service delivery in Benue State University, Makurdi Nigeria. Both primary and secondary source of data and information were used for the study and questionnaire was used to extract information from the purposively selected respondents. The population for this study is one hundred and seventy three (173) administrative staff of Benue State University selected at random. The statistical tools employed was the classical ordinary least square (OLS) and the probability value of the estimates was used to tests hypotheses of the study. The result of the study indicates that a positive relationship exist between Competitive quasi marketing in Benue State University, Makurdi Nigeria (CQM) and Transparency in the service delivery (TRSP) and the relationship is statistically significant (p<0.05). Competitive quasi marketing (CQM) has a negative effect on Observe Competence in Benue State University, Makurdi Nigeria (OBCP) and the relationship is not statistically significant (p>0.05). Competitive quasi marketing (CQM) has a positive effect on Innovation in Benue State University, Makurdi Nigeria (INVO) and the relationship is statistically significant (p<0.05) and in line with a priori expectation. This means that a unit increases in Competitive quasi marketing (CQM) will result to a corresponding increase in innovation in Benue State University, Makurdi Nigeria (INVO) by a margin of 22.5%. It was concluded that government monopoly in the provision of certain types of services has greatly affected the quality of service experience in the institution. It was recommended among others that the stakeholders in the market has to be transparent so that the system will be productive to serve the society effectively

Can Virtual Replace In-person Coaching? Experimental Evidence on Teacher Professional Development and Student Learning in South Africa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacobus Cilliers ◽  
Brahm Fleisch ◽  
Janeli Kotzé ◽  
Nompumelelo Mohohlwane ◽  
Stephen Taylor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Oral Language ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Home Language ◽  
Oral Language Proficiency ◽  
Virtual Coaching ◽  
Negative Effect

Virtual communication holds the promise of enabling low-cost professional development at scale, but the benefits of in-person interaction might be difficult to replicate. We report on an experiment in South Africa comparing on-site with virtual coaching of public primary school teachers. After three years, on-site coaching improved students' English oral language and reading proficiency (0.31 and 0.13 SD, respectively). Virtual coaching had a smaller impact on English oral language proficiency (0.12 SD), no impact on English reading proficiency, and an unintended negative effect on home language literacy. Classroom observations show that on-site coaching improved teaching practices, and virtual coaching led to larger crowding-out of home language teaching time. Implementation and survey data suggest technology itself was not a barrier to implementation, but rather that in-person contact enabled more accountability and support.

Motivating Compliance: Firm Response to Mandatory Disclosure Policies

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-119
Author(s):  
Colleen M. Boland ◽  
Chris E. Hogan ◽  
Marilyn F. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Policy Adoption ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Regulated Firms ◽  
Firm Response ◽  
Disclosure Rules ◽  
The Impact

SYNOPSIS Mandatory existence disclosure rules require an organization to disclose a policy's existence, but not its content. We examine policy adoption frequencies in the year immediately after the IRS required mandatory existence disclosure by nonprofits of various governance policies. We also examine adoption frequencies in the year of the subsequent change from mandatory existence disclosure to a disclose-and-explain regime that required supplemental disclosures about the content and implementation of conflict of interest policies. Our results suggest that in areas where there is unclear regulatory authority, mandatory existence disclosure is an effective and low cost regulatory device for encouraging the adoption of policies desired by regulators, provided those policies are cost-effective for regulated firms to implement. In addition, we find that disclose-and-explain regulatory regimes provide stronger incentives for policy adoption than do mandatory existence disclosure regimes and also discourage “check the box” behavior. Future research should examine the impact of mandatory existence disclosure rules in the year that the regulation is implemented. Data Availability: Data are available from sources cited in the text.

scholarly journals All-Optical Non-Inverted Parity Generator and Checker Based on Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1499
Author(s):  
Bingchen Han ◽  
Junyu Xu ◽  
Pengfei Chen ◽  
Rongrong Guo ◽  
Yuanqi Gu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Optical Amplifiers ◽  
Signal To Noise Ratio ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Extinction Ratio ◽  
Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers ◽  
Optical Signal ◽  
Probe Light ◽  
All Optical ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Parity Generator

An all-optical non-inverted parity generator and checker based on semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) are proposed with four-wave mixing (FWM) and cross-gain modulation (XGM) non-linear effects. A 2-bit parity generator and checker using by exclusive NOR (XNOR) and exclusive OR (XOR) gates are implemented by first SOA and second SOA with 10 Gb/s return-to-zero (RZ) code, respectively. The parity and check bits are provided by adjusting the center wavelength of the tunable optical bandpass filter (TOBPF). A saturable absorber (SA) is used to reduce the negative effect of small signal clock (Clk) probe light to improve extinction ratio (ER) and optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR). For Pe and Ce (even parity bit and even check bit) without Clk probe light, ER and OSNR still maintain good performance because of the amplified effect of SOA. For Po (odd parity bit), ER and OSNR are improved to 1 dB difference for the original value. For Co (odd check bit), ER is deteriorated by 4 dB without SA, while OSNR is deteriorated by 12 dB. ER and OSNR are improved by about 2 dB for the original value with the SA. This design has the advantages of simple structure and great integration capability and low cost.

scholarly journals Barriers to training in laparoscopic surgery in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review

2021 ◽  
pp. 004947552199818
Author(s):  
Ellen Wilkinson ◽  
Noel Aruparayil ◽  
J Gnanaraj ◽  
Julia Brown ◽  
David Jayne
Keyword(s):  
Laparoscopic Surgery ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Surgical Care ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Technological Advances ◽  
Local Access ◽  
And Training ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Laparoscopic surgery has the potential to improve care in resource-deprived low- and-middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aims to analyse the barriers to training in laparoscopic surgery in LMICs. Medline, Embase, Global Health and Web of Science were searched using ‘LMIC’, ‘Laparoscopy’ and ‘Training’. Two researchers screened results with mutual agreement. Included papers were in English, focused on abdominal laparoscopy and training in LMICs. PRISMA guidelines were followed; 2992 records were screened, and 86 full-text articles reviewed to give 26 key papers. Thematic grouping identified seven key barriers: funding; availability and maintenance of equipment; local access to experienced laparoscopic trainers; stakeholder dynamics; lack of knowledge on effective training curricula; surgical departmental structure and practical opportunities for trainees. In low-resource settings, technological advances may offer low-cost solutions in the successful implementation of laparoscopic training and improve access to surgical care.

Electroless plating process for the manufacture of radiation protection suits for pregnant woman: Effect of bending on its electromagnetic shielding performance

2022 ◽  
pp. 152808372110682
Author(s):  
Chengmei Gui ◽  
Di Sun ◽  
Wenya Liu ◽  
Haodong Ma ◽  
Zhenming Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Woman ◽  
Radiation Protection ◽  
Noble Metals ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Fiber Surface ◽  
Electroless Nickel ◽  
Electromagnetic Shielding ◽  
Shielding Effectiveness ◽  
Blend Fiber ◽  
Negative Effect

Multi-ion fabrics (especially silver ion fabrics) have special advantages as electromagnetic radiation, but the use of noble metals enhances its cost. Electroless nickel plating (EP-Ni) has great potential application in fabricating low-cost metallized material. Here, EP-Ni on pure cotton surface to fabricate radiation protection suits for pregnant woman was established to replace traditional protection suits with silver film. The active groups on the cotton/polyester blend fiber surface could absorb tin and palladium ions, acting as catalytic centers, which can catalyze the reduction of Ni2+ in the plating solution. Ni particle with (111) crystal plane preferential oriented crystal structure deposited on cotton surface with a coarse microstructure. The Ni deposited amount is about 19%. The fabricated material exhibited a shielding effectiveness of 29.5 dB. Studies also shown that bending has no negative effect on crystallinity and electrical property. But more bending times could lead to crack, which would decline electromagnetic shielding performance by 24%.

Abstract P144: Successful Regional Implementation of a Large Vessel Occlusion Screening Tool: An Interdisciplinary Process Improvement Project

Stroke ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Werner ◽  
Brian L Kaiser
Keyword(s):  
Screening Tool ◽  
Retrospective Chart Review ◽  
Interdisciplinary Team ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Staff Education ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Improvement Project ◽  
Adoption And Implementation ◽  
One Year

Introduction: Recommendations have recently been updated to support use of an LVO screening tool to assist in the identification and routing of eligible patients to endovascular stroke centers. Despite the recommendations for the use of an LVO screening tool, the general adoption and implementation is incomplete amongst many stroke systems nationwide. Methods: An interdisciplinary team selected the Vision, Aphasia, Neglect (VAN) tool for use amongst a series of Primary Stroke Centers and freestanding emergency departments. Educational plans surrounding the tool were developed and disseminated to prehospital EMS crews, Emergency Department nurses, and specialty transport crews. Staff education was bolstered utilizing existing EMR-based tools and the development of quick access materials for all personnel. Over a 12-month period, a combination of real time feedback and retrospective chart review were performed to ensure staff compliance and accuracy of LVO evaluations. Results: A total of 687 stroke alert patient were reviewed over a 12-month period—339 were triage arrivals and 348 were EMS arrivals. Initial compliance was low across both EMS and nursing, with only 23% of patients being screened for LVO status during the initial 6 months of implementation but increased to 66% compliance over the last 6 months. Sensitivity of VAN assessments increased from 88% to 93% and specificity increased from 80% to 86% over the same one-year period. Conclusions: Successful implementation of an LVO screening tool requires an interdisciplinary team to adopt a tool that is both user-friendly and validated for detection of LVO. Initial staff education and continuous feedback are essential elements to ensure the overall compliance and accuracy of assessments. Ongoing efforts are underway with a one-year goal of 80% compliance of screening while maintaining a high-level of accuracy. Additional staff education directed at the most common reason for a false positive screening, mistaking dysarthria for aphasia.

The effect of green purchasing on purchasing performance: the moderating role played by long-term relationships and strategic integration

2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 312-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier González-Benito ◽  
Gustavo Lannelongue ◽  
Luis Miguel Ferreira ◽  
Carmen Gonzalez-Zapatero
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Purchasing Management ◽  
Environmental Practices ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Integration ◽  
Green Purchasing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Moderating Role

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relationship between the environmental management of purchases and firm performance. The authors examine the moderating role played by two variables: the establishment of long-term relationships with suppliers and the strategic integration of the purchasing function. Design/methodology/approach – The authors conduct an empirical study on a sample of 100 Portuguese firms. Findings – Evidence reveals that green purchasing management improves the performance of the purchasing function, although the impact is greater when the organisation forges lasting alliances with its suppliers. Originality/value – This paper contributes to the study of the consequences of introducing environmental practices into the purchasing function, especially with regards to the formation of a panel of sustainable suppliers. Specifically, this research provides evidence to show that the implementation of those practices has positive impacts on the operating performance of the purchasing function and that the said effect is greater when a firm establishes long-term relationships with its suppliers.

scholarly journals Probabilistic Design of Wind Turbine Blades with Treatment of Manufacturing Defects as Uncertainty Variables in a Framework

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trey W. Riddle ◽  
Jared W. Nelson ◽  
Douglas S. Cairns
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Probabilistic Models ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Turbine Blades ◽  
Design Parameters ◽  
State University ◽  
Wind Turbine Blades ◽  
Manufacturing Defects ◽  
Montana State University ◽  
Blade Failure

Abstract. Given that wind turbine blades are such large structures, the use of low-cost composite manufacturing processes and materials has been necessary for the industry to be cost competitive. Since these manufacturing methods can lead to inclusion of unwanted defects, potentially reducing blade life, the Blade Reliability Collaborative tasked the Montana State University Composites Group with assessing the effects of these defects. Utilizing the results of characterization and mechanical testing studies, probabilistic models were developed to assess the reliability of a wind blade with known defects. As such, defects were found to best be assessed as design parameters in a parametric probabilistic analysis allowing for establishment of a consistent framework to validate categorization and analysis. Monte Carlo simulations were found to adequately describe the probability of failure of composite blades with included defects. By treating defects as random variables, the approaches utilized indicate the level of conservation used in blade design may be reduced when considering fatigue. In turn, safety factors may be reduced as some of the uncertainty surrounding blade failure is reduced when analysed with application specific data. Overall, the results indicate that characterization of defects and reduction of design uncertainty is possible for wind turbine blades.

scholarly journals Flying in the Face of Adversity: A Drosophila-based Virtual CURE Provides Semester-long Authentic Research Opportunity to the Flipped Classroom.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward A Waddell ◽  
Dara Ruiz-Whalen ◽  
Alana M O'Reilly ◽  
Nathan T. Fried
Keyword(s):  
Flipped Classroom ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Research Experiences ◽  
Complex Design ◽  
Research Opportunity ◽  
The Face ◽  
Upper Level

A call for the integration of research experiences into all biology curricula has been a major goal for educational reform efforts nationally. Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) have been the predominant method of accomplishing this, but their associated costs and complex design can limit their wide adoption. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced programs to identify unique ways to still provide authentic research experiences while students were virtual. We report here a full guide for the successful implementation of a semester-long virtual CURE that uses Drosophila behavioral assays to explore the connection between pain and addiction with the use of a "lab-in-a-box" sent home to students. Individual components were piloted across three semesters and launched as a 100-level introductory course with 19 students. We found that this course increased science identity and successfully improved key research competencies as per the Undergraduate Research Student Self-Assessment (URSSA) survey. This course is ideal for flipped classrooms ranging from introductory biology to upper-level neuroscience courses and can be integrated directly into the lecture period without the need for building a new course. Given the low cost, recent comfort with virtual learning environments, and the current proliferation of flipped biology classrooms following the 2020 pandemic, this curriculum could serve as an ideal project-based active-learning tool for equitably increasing access to authentic research experiences.

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