基于“政府-企业”间委托代理关系的节能激励机制

运用委托代理理论基本原理,分析了节能管理中政府与企业的利益关系;侧重分析了作为委托者的政府与作为代理人的企业在节能问题上的理性水平差异,以及由此决定的双方在行为选择上的不同.研究表明:“委托-代理”模型是一个富有效率的机制,在委托代理机制下,政府和企业在节能上的利益具有一致性.在一定条件下,地方政府通过改变激励策略,不仅可以使企业的节能努力水平产生变化,还会使信息不对称的格局发生改变,实现节能调控的帕累托最优;企业获得财务意义上的好处,地方政府不仅因节能调控成效显著而得到中央的奖励,还会因其良好的政府形象而得到公众的支持.     

基于委托代理模型的我国矿产资源优化配置研究

矿产资源对经济社会的发展起到举足轻重的作用,对矿产资源的产权管理是解决目前供需缺口的主要方向。本文以信息经济学中的委托代理模型为基础,通过对矿产资源产权的明确界定,以及目前我国矿产资源产权管理存在的问题进行分析,通过建立多重委托代理模型,即政府垄断产权的委托代理一体化,政府所有、经营产权与企业使用产权的委托代理关系,以及引入资产经营管理公司后的双重委托代理关系,逐个分析各个模型中委托人和代理人的行为选择所带来的收益和潜在问题,探讨哪种产权配置更有效率。模型分析结果表明:构建政府、资产经营管理公司和矿业企业的三级矿产资源产权安排是最优的,能同时满足政府部门收益最大化和企业利润最大化目标。本文的结论致力于为有效解决矿产资源资产化管理中的产权配置问题提供了改革和创新思路。     

农地整理项目农民参与行为的机理研究

农地整理项目实施涉及众多的利益相关者,尤其是项目区的广大农民。农民对农地整理项目的支持、关注和参与行动都会对农地整理项目的实施效果产生重要影响,研究农民参与行为具有重要的政策含义和现实意义。基于湖北省5个县区7个农地整理项目农民参与问卷调查数据,本文利用计划行为理论和结构方程模型构建了农地整理项目农民参与行为的理论模型,并分析了农地整理项目农民参与行为的影响因素及其影响路径。研究结果表明,行为态度、主观规范、行为控制知觉都对农地整理项目农民参与行为意向有显著影响;行为控制知觉对行为态度有显著影响;主观规范对行为控制知觉有显著影响;行为态度在行为控制知觉对行为意向影响过程中起中介作用;行为控制知觉在主观规范对行为意向影响过程中起中介作用。因此,要加强对农民的农地整理政策和相关知识培训;制定农民参与农地整理的程序化政策,使参与活动有制度保障;营造农民积极参与的氛围;实行项目信息全公开制度,减少农民参与的障碍。     

农户有效参与提升农地整治项目绩效的机理研究

农民是农地整治项目最终的受益者和核心利益相关者,农民有效参与可以提高农地整治决策的科学性与合理性,增强农地整治的实施性和操作性,进而对促进农地整治项目的绩效具有重要意义。厘清农户有效参与影响农地整治项目绩效的机理,可为提升农地整治项目绩效提供思路。首先,在文献回顾的基础上,本文提出农户有效参与、项目管理行为、农地整治项目绩效3个变量之间路径的基本假设,建立了农地整治项目农户有效参与、项目管理行为、项目绩效的指标体系,并进一步构建了农户有效参与对农地整治项目绩效影响机理的结构方程理论模型。然后,运用湖北省15个县(市、区)农地整治项目区实地调研的数据检验并修正了该理论模型,结果表明:农户有效参与对农地整治项目管理行为的优化具有直接的积极影响,而项目管理行为的优化又进一步对农地整治项目绩效产生直接的积极影响;此外,农户有效参与对农地整治项目绩效也有直接的积极影响。本研究提出以下对策建议:应树立农民在农地整治项目建设中的主体地位,实现政府角色转变;明确农民的参与领域,确保农民全程参与农地整治;鼓励真正代表农户利益的民间农民组织参与农地整治,以确保农民的参与能力和参与主体的代表性;针对具体事项为农民提供多种适宜的参与渠道,确保参与深度;制定农民参与的利益表达与协调机制,确保农民参与的效度。     

农地整理项目后期管护中农户出资行为研究——基于交易效用理论的实证分析

农地整理项目后期管护资金缺失是目前后期管护滞后的主要原因之一,探索农户在农地整理项目后期管护中的出资行为,为解决农地整理项目后期管护资金缺失问题提供借鉴。交易效用理论被广泛用于不同领域解释消费者购买和投资行为,但将交易效用理论用来解释消费者对准公共物品投资行为的相关报道比较罕见。本文基于行为经济学的"交易效用理论"提出农户对农地整理项目后期管护出资行为的假说,并以湖北省部分县市342份农户问卷为样本,采用多元线性回归模型,分析了农户出资行为的影响因素,得到如下研究结果:农户对农地整理项目后期管护的出资额受到农地整理项目后期管护资金差额部分是否需要农户集资、农户对农地整理项目后期管护工作的了解程度等因素显著的正影响,受到农户对农地整理项目工程质量的满意度、户主受教育程度等因素显著的负影响,家庭总收入和农业收入占家庭总收入的比例等因素对农户出资额也产生正向影响,而农地整理项目后期管护资金差额部分是否需要政府补贴对农户出资额产生负向影响。研究结论如下:①投资主体多元化是解决农地整理项目后期管护资金匮乏的真正出路,政府和农户都应是农地整理项目后期管护的出资主体;②交易效用的感知是农户对农地整理项目后期管护出资的重要原因,合理确定政府和农户的出资配比有利于农户感知交易效用;③农业长期增产增效是农户对农地整理项目后期管护出资的内在动机,着眼于现代农业发展的农地整理项目有利于激发广大农民对农地整理项目后期管护的出资热情;④对农地整理的认知是农民对农地整理项目后期管护出资的重要前提,加强有关农地整理政策和农地整理项目的宣传力度,有利于提高农户的认知度;⑤提高农地整理项目工程质量是减轻农户出资负担的重要保证,建立健全农地整理项目施工建设的监管制度和长效机制是目前的重要任务。     

农地整理对农户农地固定资本投入的影响研究

农地整理是政府农村公共投入的一种,农户的农地固定资本投入是农户的私人投资,研究农地整理对农户农地固定资本投入的投入效应将为农地整理的有效实施和促进农业机械化提供理论依据。在理论分析的基础上,基于农户调查数据,分别运用Tobit和Logit模型,分析了农地整理变量对农户农地固定资本投入的现状和意愿的影响。研究结果表明:农户对农地整理的满意程度对农户农地固定资本投入有正向影响;农户参与农地整理的意愿对农户农地固定资本投入意愿有正向作用;农地整理对农户农地固定资本投入的意愿比农户农地固定资本投入现状影响更为明显。因此,需要提高农地整理的质量,确保农地整理的实施;应该完善农户参与农地整理的机制,提高农户参与农地整理项目的意识和程度,充分保障农民权益;在农地整理项目实施的基础上,应该进一步克服农业机械化的障碍,从而推动农户发展农业机械化。     

基于委托代理模型的环境治理公众参与研究

公众参与是我国环境治理中的热门话题,尤其是近年来环保事故频出和极端天气频现后,社会各界对公众参与寄予厚望,因此对公众参与环境治理效果的研究具有适时性和重要性。本文基于新制度经济学中有关监督和激励理论,对公众参与环境治理构建了P-S-A(委托人政府;监察者公众;代理人企业)三层委托代理分析模型,对我国环境治理中没有公众参与、公众事后参与、公众事前参与和赋予公众环境损害赔偿权等不同参与模式的治理效果进行了对比分析。研究结果表明:灵活的激励制度和治理技术水平的提升是提高环境治理效能的必要条件;公众事后对企业实施低技术类型的监督,如举报企业偷排漏排行为等,反而会产生对政府监督的挤出效应,最终社会整体的环境治理效果不一定最佳;公众事前参与对企业或项目环境决策实施高技术类型的监督,如公众参与环评等举措,则会更有效地提高社会整体环境治理效果;而赋予公众环境损害索赔权,则是改变目前我国环境"软治理"约束的根本性举措。     

江苏省太湖流域工业水环境监管体系构建

为解决水环境质量与经济发展矛盾的问题,研究行之有效的工业水环境监管体系。对江苏省太湖流域现行工业水环境监管体系的现状进行分析,提出其中存在的关键问题。从监管参与主体的委托-代理关系出发,采用信号博弈的理论方法,构建委托-代理关系的博弈模型,并得出博弈均衡,对江苏省太湖流域现行工业水环境监管体系构建进行模型分析。结果表明:增加地方官员纵容污染的政治成本,提高公众参与的程度,对于实现地方政府与排污企业的博弈均衡、保障监管有效实施有着重要作用。在此基础上,构建江苏省太湖流域工业水环境监管体系。变革传统监管体系中地方政府作为唯一监管主体,为兼容上级政府的行政、司法监督和公众等社会性监督的中央-地方-公众合作监管体系。形成了核心层面与辅助层面组成的双层监管结构,以及自上而下监管和自下而上监督的双向监管模式。最后为江苏省太湖流域设计中央-地方-公众合作的工业水环境监管体系运行流程。     

制度模糊性下中国城镇化进程中的社会冲突

我国快速城镇化进程中社会冲突频发并呈现出迅速累积和扩散的趋势。制度模糊性为政府和强势集团对城镇化利益进行策略性分配提供了行为空间,成为城镇化利益分配冲突的制度根源。在城镇化进程中,作为主导力量的地方政府具有强烈的获利机会进行城镇化运动的动机,成为积极谋取城镇化净收益的"第一行动集团"。由于委托代理机制的失灵,中央政府对城镇化发展的目标定位、利益诉求都会落空。在信息高度不对称的情况下,地方政府、资本投资者等利益主体有着采取策略性行为的动机和能力。由于他们在城镇化运动中存在着狭隘的共容利益,他们更容易在城镇化推进过程中形成非正式的利益联盟,来谋取城镇化收益而转嫁成本。因此,社会冲突的有效治理需要加速制度变迁以促进制度系统与城镇化的有效调适,明晰制度规则以压缩强势集团策略性分配城镇化利益的行为空间,减少地方政府对城镇化的过度干预以促进城乡社会的自然融合,建立社会安全阀制度实现社会冲突的动态治理。     

农地整治项目农民有效参与的实证研究

农地整治对协调人地矛盾、优化土地利用结构、促进现代农业发展和保障城镇发展空间具有重要意义。农地整治项目成功必须依赖于项目区农民的支持和配合,农民有效参与是提升农地整治项目绩效的重要途径,农民有效参与的政策制定必须基于其影响因素作用机理的把握之上,本研究正是对此进行了深入探究。本文以托马斯的公众参与的有效决策模型及相关学者在此基础上重构的新模型为基础,建立了农地整治项目农民有效参与的指标体系;基于人因系统理论从农民的参与能力、参与机会及参与动力等方面分析了农地整治项目农民有效参与的影响因素;运用有序Logistic模型、湖北省岗前平原工程模式区和丘陵工程模式区农地整治项目调研的数据进行了实证研究。研究结论表明:从总体样本来看,农民的协商沟通能力、农民的资源集聚能力、信息公开程度、参与程序明确程度、参与渠道的明确程度、损失补偿的标准、对农业收入的增加程度、对农民自身价值的提升程度等因素对农地整治项目农民有效参与有显著影响,其中损失补偿标准的影响程度最大,其次是项目信息公开的程度;而从不同工程模式区来看,农民的资源集聚能力对岗前平原工程模式区农民有效参与有一定作用,对农业收入的增加程度能影响丘陵工程模式区的农民有效参与。本研究提出以下对策建议:为提升农民有效参与,应树立农民在农地整治项目建设中的主体地位,实现政府的主导型角色向导向型较色转变;建立健全代表农民利益的民间社会组织;建立农民参与的具体制度和相关的配套机制。     

Ethnosciences––A step towards the integration of scientific and indigenous forms of knowledge in the management of natural resources for the future

Integration of indigenous knowledge and ethnoscientific approaches into contemporary frameworks for conservation and sustainable management of natural resources will become increasingly important in policies on an international and national level, both in countries that are industrialised and those that have a developing status. We set the scene on how this can be done by exploring the key conditions and dimensions of a dialogue between ȁ8ontologiesȁ9 and the roles, which ethnosciences could play in this process. First, the roles of ethnosciences in the context of sustainable development were analysed, placing emphasis on the implications arising when western sciences aspire to relate to indigenous forms of␣knowledge. Secondly, the contributions of ethnosciences to such an ȁ8inter- ontological dialogueȁ9 were explored, based on an ethnoecological study of the encounter of sciences and indigenous knowledge in the Andes of Bolivia, and reviewed experiences from mangrove systems in Kenya, India and Sri Lanka, and from case-studies in other ecosystems world-wide, incl. Australia, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Indonesia, Nepal, Niger, Philippines, Senegal, South-Africa and Tanzania.     

Paradoxical ozone associations could be due to methyl nitrite from combustion of methyl ethers or esters in engine fuels

We review studies of the effects of low ambient ozone concentrations on morbidity that found a negative coefficient for ozone concentration. We call this a Paradoxical Ozone Association (POA). All studies were in regions with methyl ether in gasoline. All but one study carefully controlled for the effects of other criterion pollutants, so the phenomenon cannot be attributed to them. One was in southern California in mid-summer when ozone levels are highest. Because ozone is created by sunlight, the most plausible explanation for a POA would be an ambient pollutant that is rapidly destroyed by sunlight, such as methyl nitrite (MN). A previously published model of engine exhaust chemistry suggested methyl ether in the fuel will create MN in the exhaust. MN is known to be highly toxic, and closely related alkyl nitrites are known to induce respiratory sensitivity in humans. Support for the interpretation comes from many studies, including three linking asthma symptoms to methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and the observation that a POA has not been seen in regions without ether in gasoline. We also note that studies in southern California show a historical trend from more significant to less significant ozone-health associations. The timing of those changes is consistent with the known timing of the introduction of gasoline oxygenated with MTBE in that region.     

Distributions of personal VOC exposures: a population-based analysis

Information regarding the distribution of volatile organic compound (VOC) concentrations and exposures is scarce, and there have been few, if any, studies using population-based samples from which representative estimates can be derived. This study characterizes distributions of personal exposures to ten different VOCs in the U.S. measured in the 1999-2000 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Personal VOC exposures were collected for 669 individuals over 2-3 days, and measurements were weighted to derive national-level statistics. Four common exposure sources were identified using factor analyses: gasoline vapor and vehicle exhaust, methyl tert-butyl ether (MBTE) as a gasoline additive, tap water disinfection products, and household cleaning products. Benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, xylenes chloroform, and tetrachloroethene were fit to log-normal distributions with reasonably good agreement to observations. 1,4-Dichlorobenzene and trichloroethene were fit to Pareto distributions, and MTBE to Weibull distribution, but agreement was poor. However, distributions that attempt to match all of the VOC exposure data can lead to incorrect conclusions regarding the level and frequency of the higher exposures. Maximum Gumbel distributions gave generally good fits to extrema, however, they could not fully represent the highest exposures of the NHANES measurements. The analysis suggests that complete models for the distribution of VOC exposures require an approach that combines standard and extreme value distributions, and that carefully identifies outliers. This is the first study to provide national-level and representative statistics regarding the VOC exposures, and its results have important implications for risk assessment and probabilistic analyses.     

Long-term increase in climatic dryness in the East-Mediterranean as evidenced for the island of Samos

The Eastern Mediterranean region is among the regions which were predicted to become drier under IPCC climate scenarios. Here, we document a gradual reduction of rainfall and tree growth and the loss of rural springs during the last decades of the twentieth century. Years with severe drought are associated with very low tree growth (dendrochronology) and dry falling of springs as evidenced by interviews with local stakeholders. The paper discusses the consequences of accelerating drought on natural vegetation and agriculture and points at the interaction with fire dynamics and economy, both likely to enhance the drought effect.     

Comparative analysis of the effect of predator odor on morphological and physiological parameters of adult male Campbell hamsters (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Phodopus campbelli</Emphasis>) and dwarf hamsters (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Phodopus sungorus</Emphasis>)

The effect of long-term exposure to natural excretions of the European polecat on the morphological parameters and hormonal status of adult male Campbell hamsters (Phodopus campbelli) and dwarf hamsters (Ph. sungorus) was studied. Exposure to volatile components of natural excreta of a potential predator did not have any significant effect on hamsters. The combined influence of volatile and nonvolatile components of the polecat’s excretions caused physiological stress in Ph. campbelli, while in Ph. sungorus, on the contrary, an increase in thymus weight and the plasma testosterone level was recorded.     

How Do Groups Solve Local Commons Dilemmas? Lessons from Experimental Economics in the Field

The use of experimental settings to observe human behaviour in a controlled environment of incentives, rules and institutions, has been widely used by the behavioural sciences for sometime now, particularly by psychology and economics. In most cases the subjects are college students recruited for one to two hour decision making exercises in which, depending on their choices, they earn cash averaging US$ 20. In such exercises players face a set of feasible actions, rules and incentives (payoffs) involving different forms of social exchange with other people, and that in most cases involve some kind of externalities with incomplete contracts, such as in the case of common-pool resources situations. Depending on the ecological and institutional settings, the resource users face a set of feasible levels of extraction, a set of rules regarding the control or monitoring of individual use, and sometimes ways of imposing material or non-material costs or rewards to those breaking or following the rules. We brought the experimental lab to the field and invited about two hundred users of natural resources in three Colombian rural villages to participate in such decision making exercises and through these and other research instruments we learned about the ways they solve - or fail to - tragedies of the commons with different social institutions. Further, bringing the lab to the field allowed us to explore some of the limitations of existing models about human behaviour and its consequences for designing policies for conserving ecosystems and improving social welfare.     

Latitudinal variation in size of freshwater pulmonate mollusks (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Pulmonata) in Western Siberia

The size of shells in some freshwater pulmonate mollusk species abundant in Western Siberia (Lymnaea fragilis, L. terebra, Planorbis planorbis, and Anisus leucostoma) is relatively large in the south and decreases in the north. It is supposed that this phenomenon is explained by the fact that the season with conditions allowing the growth of mollusks is shorter in the north than in the south of Western Siberia.     

Quantifying the transfer of radionuclides to food products from domestic farm animals

Databases have been compiled to derive parameter values relevant to the transfer of radionuclides from feedstuffs to domestic animal products to provide a revision to the IAEA Handbook on transfer parameters TRS 364. Significant new data inputs have been incorporated into the databases from an extensive review of Russian language information and inclusion of data published since the early 1990s. Fractional gastrointestinal absorption in adult ruminants presented in the revised handbook are generally similar to those recommended for adult humans by the ICRP. Transfer coefficient values are presented in the handbook for a range of radionuclides to farm animal products. For most animal products, transfer coefficient values for elements additional to those in TRS 364 are provided although many data gaps remain. Transfer coefficients generally vary between species with larger species having lower values than smaller species. It has been suggested that the difference is partly due to the inclusion of dietary dry matter intake in the estimation of transfer coefficient and that whilst dietary intake increases with size nutrient concentrations do not. An alternative approach to quantifying transfer by using concentration ratios (CR), which do not consider dietary intake, has been evaluated. CR values compiled for the handbook vary considerably less between species than transfer coefficient values. The advantage of the CR approach is that values derived for one species could be applied to species for which there are no data. However, transfer coefficients will continue to be used as few studies currently report CR values or give data from which they can be estimated.     

A Dynamic model of Cs accumulation by fish of different age classes

A dynamic model of radionuclide accumulation in fish is developed. In the model, the fish population is represented by a set of discrete age classes. Each age class is characterized by a specific growth rate, diet and activity of metabolic processes. The model describes all known types of size effect in the contamination of fish with radiocaesium. The detailed dynamics of ¹³⁷Cs accumulation by fish are demonstrated using the results of the model's application to ichtiofauna in a water body which has a high level of contamination with radiocaesium — namely, the cooling pond of the Chernobyl NPP.     

Greenwashed sports and environmental activism: Formula 1 and FIFA†

ABSTRACT

Formula 1 motor sport and the Men's World Cup of association football, two major sporting events on our calendars, are indirectly and directly responsible for environmental despoliation. They serve as advertisements for heavy industry, are designed for elite as much as mass consumption, and provide sponsors with dubious social licenses to operate. This occurs through the very mechanisms of the events themselves (engines in Formula 1, tourism in the World Cup) as well as their promotional externalities. I look at greenwashing claims made about these two sporting events and examine counter-discourses, then investigate economic and ecological citizenship. I suggest that a progressive agenda can be forwarded if Greenpeace, which runs campaigns related to these sports, works with its fellow elites, in the case of Formula 1, and with fans in the case of football. Doing so may be more effective than business-as-usual direct action.