An Inquiry of Changes in Environmental Governance by Community-driven Process

Urban environmental depletion has been a critical problem among industrialized-transformed societies, especially at the local level where administrative authorities’ capacity lags behind changes. Derived from governance concept, the idea of civil society inclusion is highlighted. Focusing on an agglomerated case study, Bang Plee Community in Thailand, this research investigates on a non-state sector, 201-Community organization, as an agent for changes to improve urban environments on solid waste collection. Two roles are contested: as an agent for neighborhood internal change and as an intermediary toward governance changes in state-civil society interaction. By employing longitudinal analysis via a project intervention as research experiment, the outcomes of both roles are detected portrayed in three spheres: state, state-civil society interaction, and civil society sphere. It discovers in the research regarding agglomerated context that as an internal changes for environmental betterment, 201-Community organization operation brings on waste reduction at the minimal level. Community-based organization as an agent for changes – despite capacity input it still limited in efficiency and effectiveness – can mobilize fruitfully only at the individual and network level of civil society sectors, while fails managing at the organizational level. The positive outcomes result by economic waste incentive associated with a limited-bonded group rather than the rise of awareness at large. As an intermediary agent for shared governance, the community-based organization cannot bring on mutual dialogue with state as much as cannot change the state’s operation arena of solid waste management. The findings confine the shared governance concept that it does not applicable in agglomerated locality as an effective outcome, both in terms of being instrumental toward civil society inclusion and being provocative of internal change. Shared environmental governance as summarized in this research can last merely a community development action. It distances significantly from civil society inclusion and empowerment. However, the research proposes that community-based environmental management and shared governance toward civil society inclusion in urban environmental improvement are still an expectable option and reachable if their factors and conditions of key success and failure are intersected with a particular context. Further studies demand more precise on scale, scope, and theses factors of environmental management operation operated by civil society sectors.

Smallholder group certification in Uganda - Analysis of internal control systems in two organic export companies

The organic agricultural sector of Uganda is among the most developed in Africa in terms of its professional institutional network and high growth rates of number of certified farmers and land area. Smallholder farmers are certified organic through contract production for export companies using a group certification scheme (internal control system - ICS). The ICS is a viable and well-accepted tool to certify small-scale producers in developing countries all over the world. Difficulties in certification are still stated to be among the main constraints for Uganda’s organic sector development. Therefore, this paper reports a qualitative case study comprising 34 expert interviews in two organic fresh-produce export companies in central Uganda, aiming to explore the challenges which underlie organic certification with ICS. The study shows that farmers cannot be labelled as ‘organic by default’ but deliberately engage in organic production as a marketing strategy. The small quantities purchased by the organic companies lead to a difficult marketing situation for the farmers, causing production and infiltration risks on the farm level. These risks require increased control that challenges the companies organizationally. The risks and control needs are a reason to involve farmers in ICS procedures and innovatively adapt the ICS by means of a bypass around formal perspective restrictions. The paper discusses different perspectives on risks, risk control and certification.

Enterprise Modelling Approach based on Maturity and Business Scope perspectives

This paper introduces a framework that supports users to implement enterprise modelling within collaborative companies. These enterprise models are the basis for a holistic interoperability measurement and management methodology which will be presented in the second part of the paper. The discipline of enterprise modelling aims at capturing all dimensions of an enterprise in a simplified model. Thus enterprise models are the appropriate basis for managing collaborative enterprise as they reduce the complexity of interoperability problems. Therefore, a first objective of this paper is to present an approach that enables companies to get the most effect out of enterprise modelling in a collaborative environment based on the maturity of their organisation relative to modelling. Within this first step, the user will get recommendations e.g. for the correct modelling language as well as the right level of detail.

Strategische Erfolgsfaktoren für ein kosten-risiko-optimales Public Debt Management - Organisatorische und inhaltliche Parameter im internationalen Vergleich

Aus den im Rahmen dieser Forschungsarbeit empirisch gewonnenen Erkenntnissen werden Gestaltungsempfehlungen für das Public Debt Management abgeleitet. Diese zeigen, dass ein wirtschaftliches Public Debt Management nicht ein ausschließlich kostenminimierendes (sparsames), sondern ein kosten-risiko-optimales Public Debt Management mit effektiven internen und externen Überwachungsinstrumenten und wirksamer externer Finanzkontrolle sein muss.