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| 1 |
ID:
122475
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2013.
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| Summary/Abstract |
There are several changes to the system of qualifications and examinations at ages 16 and 17, including the new English Baccalaureate. There are many problems: the constant churn in new qualifications reduces their vale to higher education and to employers; they are implemented without proper trialling; the EBacc in particular narrows the learning experience. There is a need for a moratorium on change and for a long, hard look by a non-politically partisan advisory committee on the development of a qualification system.
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| 2 |
ID:
140858
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In his recent memoir, William Waldegrave wrote that no country run by John Major and Robin Butler was likely to be in much danger of systemic corruption. The fact remains that a quarter of a century ago, John Major, with the guidance and support of his cabinet secretary, decided to establish the Committee on Standards in Public Life under the chairmanship of Lord Nolan. The apparent prevalence of ‘sleaze’ issues in public life—most notably the ‘cash for questions’ scandals involving Tory MPs—provoked the decision. Lord Nolan's committee immediately enunciated seven principles of public life: honesty, accountability, integrity, selflessness, openness, opportunity and leadership. Over the years, many of the Committee's recommendations have been accepted. There is today vastly greater transparency. The principles have been widely accepted; it is clear the public expects that they should be observed by public servants, including, perhaps especially, MPs. Yet it is equally clear that there is a widespread and still deepening mood of public cynicism on standards matters. The Committee is determined to defend the Nolan principles, but without more help from the political class it will be like Mrs Nupkins in The Pickwick Papers: inculcating moral lessons of great importance and generally ignored.
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| 3 |
ID:
151584
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Significant efforts towards environmental transparency have been made by the Chinese government since 2008. This paper focuses on the technical decisions shaping a database of official pollution information built and operated by a Chinese NGO known as the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (IPE). Issues of standardization, power distribution and institutional fragmentation are discussed. The paper illustrates a case of NGOs integrating enforcement capabilities as data centres amidst the growing reliance on processes of informational governance of environmental issues.
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| 4 |
ID:
169753
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Fuel economy standards are a key measure to increase the rate of efficiency improvements in passenger cars. The fuel consumption of vehicles can be improved in three ways: incremental technical efficiency improvements within powertrain technologies, market shifts to more efficient types of powertrains and by limiting increases in the size and performance of vehicles. This study quantifies the effect of each of these three drivers on the fuel consumption of British vehicles between 2001 and 2018 using driver-reported data on real-world fuel consumption. Analysis shows the introduction of EU fuel economy standards in 2008/09 had little effect on the rate of real technical efficiency improvements in British vehicles. Instead of adopting technical improvements at a higher rate or limiting the size and power of vehicles, these results suggest vehicle manufacturers met emissions standards by increasing the divergence between laboratory tests and real-world fuel consumption. This study adds to the growing literature calling for official test procedures to be representative of real-world driving.
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| 5 |
ID:
096746
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2010.
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| Summary/Abstract |
After nearly a century with the internal combustion engine dominating the personal transportation sector, it now appears that the electric vehicle is on the verge of experiencing rapid growth in both developed and developing vehicle markets. The broad-scale adoption of the electric vehicle could bring significant changes for society in terms of not only the technologies we use for personal transportation, but also moving our economies away from petroleum and lessoning the environmental footprint of transportation. This article investigates the role of standards, related training and certification for the electric vehicle. It is argued that the potential for the electric vehicle will be stunted without adequate attention being paid to standards, not only in terms of the speed of its uptake and smoothness of this transition, but also in terms of maintaining compatibility between jurisdictions, safety of the public, and helping to ensure environmental sustainability. We highlight a number of areas where new or adaptations of current standards, training and certification may be needed, notably in terms of batteries and charging infrastructures, electricity distribution and accounting for the environmental characteristics of this electricity, and different aspects of vehicle-to-grid and smart grid technologies.
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| 6 |
ID:
097601
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2010.
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After nearly a century with the internal combustion engine dominating the personal transportation sector, it now appears that the electric vehicle is on the verge of experiencing rapid growth in both developed and developing vehicle markets. The broad-scale adoption of the electric vehicle could bring significant changes for society in terms of not only the technologies we use for personal transportation, but also moving our economies away from petroleum and lessoning the environmental footprint of transportation. This article investigates the role of standards, related training and certification for the electric vehicle. It is argued that the potential for the electric vehicle will be stunted without adequate attention being paid to standards, not only in terms of the speed of its uptake and smoothness of this transition, but also in terms of maintaining compatibility between jurisdictions, safety of the public, and helping to ensure environmental sustainability. We highlight a number of areas where new or adaptations of current standards, training and certification may be needed, notably in terms of batteries and charging infrastructures, electricity distribution and accounting for the environmental characteristics of this electricity, and different aspects of vehicle-to-grid and smart grid technologies.
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| 7 |
ID:
180286
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Since its inception, the BRICS has received attention as a geopolitical challenger to the already established institutions of the Global North. BRICS members have also been vocal on issues concerning global environment. Brazil, India, China and South Africa have raised important issues at international conferences on Climate Change. The article looks at the specific issue of vehicular pollution in the BRICS countries. Vehicular pollution standards already in existence through the United Nations Environment Programme and the most cited and practised standards of the European Union remain the yardstick to be followed around the world. The article looks at the standards set up by the individual BRICS countries. Subsequently efforts of the BRICS as a group are explored through their joint statements. The article argues that despite important players in global vehicle market, the BRICS as a grouping has not been able to formulate any viable alternative standards for vehicular emissions.
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| 8 |
ID:
163242
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Voluntary sustainability standards are used as both a means of securing coffee supply by large coffee firms and a development intervention to address rural poverty and environmental management in the Global South. Using a case‐study approach, we have examined the interface between a value‐chain sustainability programme and the livelihood trajectories of smallholder producers in upland Sumatra. Our research found the programme has had minimal impacts for coffee producers to date. The level of commitment required of producers appears incompatible with the particular way that coffee is currently embedded within local landscapes, livelihoods and poverty alleviation pathways. Various sustainability standards articulate a narrative of rural development underpinned by an assumption that agricultural modernisation is the preferred pathway out of poverty for rural households. As a result, there is some risk that sustainability programmes may be inadvertently attempting to encourage household investment in a particular kind of agriculture, which is intended to assist sustainability of supply, but is poorly aligned with prevailing processes of poverty alleviation. These observations are based on a detailed study of agrarian change among the Semendo people of South Sumatra province, where processes of rural development are far more complex than assumptions presented by mainstream sustainability standards.
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| 9 |
ID:
086261
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2009.
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This paper analyses the extent and character of product innovation in defence technologies where there are strong network effects, but where there is not a generally accepted system of open standards. Specifically, we examine the implications for innovation from the development of network-centric defence agencies accompanied by the creation of system integrators in the defence industry. The results show that although these developments are expected to have a number of positive impacts, such as enhanced security and gate-keeping of the relevant technologies, they are also likely to have an adverse effect on the available variety of new defence products.
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| 10 |
ID:
163558
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Currently, the US federal government sets fuel economy and greenhouse gas standards for passenger vehicles and promotes innovation for electric vehicles, including plug-in and fuel cell vehicles. Many states are considering their own transportation policies that would promote the adoption of electric vehicles. In principle, federal and state policies may interact in important ways, either positively or negatively. We examine federal subsidies for electric vehicles, and find that additional state policies that target only emissions of new vehicles and particularly electric vehicles are unlikely to decrease national greenhouse gas emissions in the short run, primarily due to interactions with federal regulations. We examine the conditions under which state and federal vehicle policies can have positive long-run social benefits, and suggest areas for future research to inform policy choices.
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| 11 |
ID:
145666
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In Arabic, halal literally means ‘permissible’ or ‘lawful’. Halal is no longer an expression of an esoteric form of production, trade and consumption, but part of a huge and expanding globalized market in which certification, standards and technoscience play important roles. Over the past three decades, Malaysia has become a world leader in the global expansion of halal markets. This has come about in large part because the state and government of Malaysia have taken on the role of halal-certifying authority within the country. In effect, it has certified, standardized and bureaucratized halal production, trade and consumption. Based on fieldwork in Malaysia, this article explores how manufacturing companies understand and practise halal certification, standards and technoscience. I argue that while existing studies of halal overwhelmingly explore micro-social aspects such as the everyday consumption among Muslim groups, ‘the bigger institutional picture’ that frames such consumption production and regulation are not well understood. By studying halal production, I provide an ethnography of the overlapping technologies and techniques of production and regulation that together warrant a product as ‘halal’ and thereby help to format the market.
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| 12 |
ID:
186519
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U.S. criticism of its client/ally Saudi Arabia regarding the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi immediately diminished the kingdom’s ability to secure funds for its latest mega development project, the Neom convention center. U.S. intelligence pinned the crime on aides to Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman (MBS). At the same time, a seemingly unauthorized operation, later attributed to former president Donald Trump, killed a top Iranian commander, Qasem Suleimani, by a drone strike. Congress was not involved and the UN protested this as a violation of Article 51 of its Charter, emphasizing that this was justified in a case of imminent threat, undertaken only by a state. Encouraged by drone technology, the U.S. found it easy to locate the target and minimize collateral damage. International lawyers and military experts are still debating the legitimacy of such action. The U.S. is persisting in claiming that it upholds the standards of international humanitarian law which sometimes sanctions targeted killing. A number of international law professors continue to deride U.S. action as illegal, while the latter continues to describe its actions as defensive in nature. Organizations such as Human Rights Watch lament the reluctance of previous U.S. presidents to define targeted killing.
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| 13 |
ID:
138887
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| Summary/Abstract |
The legislation on recall of MPs, introduced as a response to the parliamentary expenses scandal, was presented as filling an accountability gap. The nature of this alleged gap is examined, and it is argued that the accountability of Members of Parliament is more complicated than the recall proposal suggests. This includes issues about the regulation of parliamentary standards. Finally, the recall proposal is located within the context of discussion about the condition of representative democracy.
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| 14 |
ID:
134122
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2014.
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This article examines the legal foundations and methodology of the activity of international observers who are following the preparations for and holding of elections. It studies the international obligations in keeping with which the election system of the Kyrgyz Republic is developing. It carries out a comparative analysis of the participation of international observers in the Kyrgyz Republic presidential elections held in 2009 and 2011. The article also presents a brief review of the recommendations for Kyrgyzstan to carry out its international obligations in the election system given by such organizations as the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the CIS Observer Mission.
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| 15 |
ID:
096101
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2010.
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| Summary/Abstract |
The paper discusses the importance of standards for sustainable bioenergy production. Sustainability of bioenergy production is crucial if bioenergy is supposed to contribute effectively to climate change mitigation. First, a brief overview of current bioenergy policies and of initiatives and legislation for bioenergy sustainability are given. Then, the authors show that under free market conditions undersupply of sustainable bioenergy will prevail. Two types of market failures are identified: information asymmetry and externalities in bioenergy production. Due to these market failures bioenergy is less sustainable than it could be. It is shown that mandatory certification and subsequent labeling can help to overcome the information asymmetry and lead to a more efficient market outcome since consumers can choose products according to their preferences. The authors conclude, however, that the existence of production externalities asks for stronger market intervention, for example in the form of binding minimum standards or taxes. The paper discusses the efficiency and feasibility of such policy measures and shows that mandatory certification combined with binding minimum standards can be an adequate policy choice to regulate the bioenergy market.
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| 16 |
ID:
143722
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| Summary/Abstract |
THE 23RD OF OCTOBER 2015 was the final day of the 11th round of negotiations between the European Union and the United States on a proposed free trade treaty. The full name of the accord, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), reflects its comprehensive character. The proposed agreement aims not only to remove customs barriers but also to harmonize various regulatory standards, protect investors, put restrictions on the use of subsidies, provide foreign companies with equal access to government procurement contracts, and solve a whole range of other sensitive problems. TTIP may bring into being a mega-bloc that would account for a nearly 40% share of the gross world product and run one-third of international trade.
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