Investigating corporate social responsibility in supply chains: a SME perspective

This paper analyzes the practices adopted and difficulties experienced by Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to transfer socially responsible behaviors to suppliers that operate in developing countries. In particular, a multiple case study was conducted on five Italian socially responsible SMEs. It was found that companies use different strategies as well as diverse management systems and tools to address Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) issues along their supply chains (SCs). The paper is innovative mainly since few are the existing studies that investigate the CSR practices adopted by SMEs in the SC. Furthermore, it is argued that our research can be helpful to SME managers willing to deal with CSR issues along their SCs, especially when developing countries are involved.     

社会转型期做好环境信访工作的对策和建议

通过社会转型期环境信访现状和种类,以及产生的原因分析,探索了解决环境信访问题的对策、思路和方法。     

内蒙古开展国民经济和社会发展规划战略环境评价的实证研究

战略环境评价被引入我国后,政府部门和众多专家学者对其进行了广泛研究和探讨,在国内开展了不同层面的规划环评试点工作,但目前仍然存在执行面较窄和实际作用有限等诸多问题。本文以内蒙古自治区国民经济和社会发展“十一五”规划纲要战略环境评价为例,剖析该案例在评价工作介入时机和评价成果应用于规划调整等方面所具有的典型示范效应,同时通过对评价提出的经济发展规模调整建议、环境影响预测结果与实际经济发展现状的对比,揭示出由于市场化经济体系固有的调节机制和我国经济发展具有的行政化宏观调控特征,导致定量化的优选替代方案和环境影响预测结果,有时难以准确吻合经济社会发展现实这一战略环评中存在的共性问题,直接影响最终环境决策的科学性。     

地震群测群防的历史回顾与发展策略

群测群防的根本含义是群众性的测报和群众性的防御,它是我国防震减灾工作中的一项群众性基础工作,具有重要的历史地位,发挥着重要的现实作用。自其诞生以来,大至经历了起步—高潮—调整—复兴四个发展阶段。在新时期复兴群测群防,应以＂三网一员＂建设为基础,以群众性防御为重点,拓展思路,创新模式,强化制度建设和组织管理。     

脆弱生态区类型划分及其脆弱特征分析

本文应用聚类分析方法,根据全国各县市耕地面积等26项指标的有关数据,对我国生态区进行了类型划分,还分别以环境资源因子、经济发展水平因子、经济技术替代能力因子、域外支持能力因子以及社会发展水平因子等5类因子为聚类变量,对我国脆弱生态区进行了类型划分,并对脆弱特征进行了分析。     

新型农村社会养老保险收入再分配效应研究

通过政策分析发现,新农保制度的收入再分配效应主要体现在政府补贴方面,在本质上是财政的再分配,其中个人账户部分体现为代内再分配,基础养老金部分体现为代际再分配。新农保制度几乎对所有制度内人群都具有正的收入再分配效应。以净转移额来度量新农保收入再分配效应的程度,通过建立模型进行测算发现:在现行财政补贴政策下,新农保的收入再分配偏向于选择较高档次缴费的人群、缴费困难群体、寿命长的人群、女性农民、长期缴费的人群以及农村计划生育家庭;政府缴费补贴越多,个人账户投资收益率越高,基础养老金调整系数越大,参保人养老金的净转入额就越多;"捆绑式缴费"政策产生了逆向的收入再分配效应。     

建设项目的社会成本研究

随着大型建设项目的增多和人们环保意识与可持续发展意识的逐渐增强,关注建设项目对社会、环境等的影响已势在必行。基于这一认识,首先在分析建设项目对交通、经济、环境以及社会等方面造成负面影响的基础上,尝试构建建设项目社会成本体系,进而详细分析该体系中每个单项成本的内涵。然后。改变现有建设项目成本估算中只考虑建造成本的现状。将社会成本纳入到建设项目总成本之中,使建设项目总成本的内容更加科学、完善。最后,研究建设项目社会成本以及总成本的估算方法,并给出每种估算方法的适用范圈。为建设项目的社会成本评估提供一个相对完整、具体的框架,也为建设项目的发展提供了一个全新的思路。     

四川省森林资源动态变化及其影响因素分析

四川省森林资源在长江上游生态屏障建设和长江经济带发展中具有举足轻重的地位,其动态变化特征及其影响因素对区域生态文明建设乃至全国生态安全格局具有重要的理论和现实意义.针对四川省近20 a森林资源动态变化,选取森林面积、人均森林面积、森林蓄积量、活立木蓄积量、人工造林面积5个森林资源指标,GDP、人均GDP、年末常住人口、...     

Why are larvae of the social parasite wasp <Emphasis Type="Italic">Polistes sulcifer</Emphasis> not removed from the host nest?

A challenge for parasites is how to evade the sophisticated detection and rejection abilities of potential hosts. Many studies have shown how insect social parasites overcome host recognition systems and successfully enter host colonies. However, once a social parasite has successfully usurped an alien nest, its brood still face the challenge of avoiding host recognition. How immature stages of parasites fool the hosts has been little studied in social insects, though this has been deeply investigated in birds. We look at how larvae of the paper wasp obligate social parasite Polistes sulcifer fool their hosts. We focus on cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs), which are keys for adult recognition, and use behavioral recognition assays. Parasite larvae might camouflage themselves either by underproducing CHCs (odorless hypothesis) or by acquiring a chemical profile that matches that of their hosts. GC/MS analyses show that parasite larvae do not have lower levels of CHCs and that their CHCs profile is similar to the host larval profile but shows a reduced colony specificity. Behavioral tests show that the hosts discriminate against alien conspecific larvae from different colonies but are more tolerant towards parasite larvae. Our results demonstrate that parasite larvae have evolved a host larval profile, which overcomes the host colony recognition system probably because of the lower proportion of branched compounds compared to host larvae. In some ways, this is a similar hypothesis to the odorless hypothesis, but it assumes that the parasite larvae are covered by a chemical blend that is not meaningful to the host.     

GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE AND PUBLIC PERCEPTION: THE CHALLENGE OF TRANSLATION1

ABSTRACT: Global climate change is examined from the perspective of its relevancy and urgency as a public policy issue. Interpreting from literature specific to investigations into public awareness and concern, climate change is seen as a legitimate though less than urgent issue. The literature reveals that the general public holds surprising misconceptions about the processes contributing to climate change, including failure to grasp the fundamental connection to CO₂. General ambivalence is also suggested from the results of two surveys conducted by The Groundwater Foundation. They first asked participants in a recent Groundwater Guardian Conference to rate levels of discussion and concern for water resources implications in the participants' communities. A second survey polled national water resource organizations about the extent climate change has been a focus of their educational, investigative, or advocacy efforts. The paper concludes by describing basic barriers to stimulating public response to climate change, which education about the issue should address, and by offering a model to educate and involve citizens based on the Groundwater Guardian program developed by the The Groundwater Foundation.