Reinventing Nordic Openness : Transparency and State Information in Finland

The study explores new ideational changes in the information strategy of the Finnish state between 1998 and 2007, after a juncture in Finnish governing in the early 1990s. The study scrutinizes the economic reframing of institutional openness in Finland that comes with significant and often unintended institutional consequences of transparency. Most notably, the constitutional principle of publicity (julkisuusperiaate), a Nordic institutional peculiarity allowing public access to state information, is now becoming an instrument of economic performance and accountability through results. Finland has a long institutional history in the publicity of government information, acknowledged by law since 1951. Nevertheless, access to government information became a policy concern in the mid-1990s, involving a historical narrative of openness as a Nordic tradition of Finnish governing Nordic openness (pohjoismainen avoimuus). International interest in transparency of governance has also marked an opening for institutional re-descriptions in Nordic context. The essential added value, or contradictory term, that transparency has on the Finnish conceptualisation of governing is the innovation that public acts of governing can be economically efficient. This is most apparent in the new attempts at providing standardised information on government and expressing it in numbers. In Finland, the publicity of government information has been a concept of democratic connotations, but new internationally diffusing ideas of performance and national economic competitiveness are discussed under the notion of transparency and its peer concepts openness and public (sector) information, which are also newcomers to Finnish vocabulary of governing. The above concepts often conflict with one another, paving the way to unintended consequences for the reforms conducted in their name. Moreover, the study argues that the policy concerns over openness and public sector information are linked to the new drive for transparency. Drawing on theories of new institutionalism, political economy, and conceptual history, the study argues for a reinvention of Nordic openness in two senses. First, in referring to institutional history, the policy discourse of Nordic openness discovers an administrative tradition in response to new dilemmas of public governance. Moreover, this normatively appealing discourse also legitimizes the new ideational changes. Second, a former mechanism of democratic accountability is being reframed with market and performance ideas, mostly originating from the sphere of transnational governance and governance indices. Mobilizing different research techniques and data (public documents of the Finnish government and international organizations, some 30 interviews of Finnish civil servants, and statistical time series), the study asks how the above ideational changes have been possible, pointing to the importance of nationalistically appealing historical narratives and normative concepts of governing. Concerning institutional developments, the study analyses the ideational changes in central steering mechanisms (political, normative and financial steering) and the introduction of budget transparency and performance management in two cases: census data (Population Register Centre) and foreign political information (Ministry for Foreign Affairs). The new policy domain of governance indices is also explored as a type of transparency. The study further asks what institutional transformations are to be observed in the above cases and in the accountability system. The study concludes that while the information rights of citizens have been reinforced and recalibrated during the period under scrutiny, there has also been a conversion of institutional practices towards economic performance. As the discourse of Nordic openness has been rather unquestioned, the new internationally circulating ideas of transparency and the knowledge economy have entered this discourse without public notice. Since the mid 1990s, state registry data has been perceived as an exploitable economic resource in Finland and in the EU public sector information. This is a parallel development to the new drive for budget transparency in organisations as vital to the state as the Population Register Centre, which has led to marketization of census data in Finland, an international exceptionality. In the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the post-Cold War rhetorical shift from secrecy to performance-driven openness marked a conversion in institutional practices that now see information services with high regards. But this has not necessarily led to the increased publicity of foreign political information. In this context, openness is also defined as sharing information with select actors, as a trust based non-public activity, deemed necessary amid the global economic competition. Regarding accountability system, deliberation and performance now overlap, making it increasingly difficult to identify to whom and for what the public administration is accountable. These evolving institutional practices are characterised by unintended consequences and paradoxes. History is a paradoxical component in the above institutional change, as long-term institutional developments now justify short-term reforms.

Ühis- ning erijooni Soome ja Eesti Kaitseliitude puhkpillimuusikas aastatel 1925-1934.

This study focuses on the similarities and differences between the Estonian Defence League and the Finnish Civil Guard brass bands during the period 1925-1934. By 1934 this paramilitary volunteer state defence organisation had reached stability in its development, such that social, cultural and patriotic education of the people - with the help of brass band music among other means- had acquired a significant role, in addition to prioritised military and sports activities. The study begins with introductory paragraphs I and II, which describes the founding of the organisations, their participation in the Wars of Independence and their subsequent peace time activities as well as their representation in the media at the time. The thesis also briefly introduces military music in Finland and Estonia, as well as describes the influence of military music on the Defence League brass bands. The period under review includes the global economic crisis, which undoubtedly concerned the Defence League/Civil Guard and the Lapua and War of Independence movements, which greatly affected the apolitical principles of the organisations. The main emphasis of the thesis is the Defence League/Civil Guard brass band`s musical activities in two counties - Etelä-Pohjanmaa and Pärnumaa, while also including a general overview of the Estonian Defence League brass bands´ activities. One of the most important benefits of the thesis is its introduction of the brass band repertoire in use at the time, which was played by both professional and as well as amateur orchestras the latter of which also included the brass bands of the Defence League/Civil Guard and the Fire Services. Brass band music held a secondary, yet significant position in the Defence League/Civil Guard, where the orchestra as a musical grouping was obliged to perform not only at inner-organisational and national celebrations but also at any event requiring brass band music, such as song festivals, singing days, and other local cultural events. The professional preparation of the band conductors at the beginning of the period under review was not well specialised, but the training of the Defence League/Civil Defence brass band conductors was carried out regularly in both republic according to the opportunities and dedicated training programmes available. The musicians of the Defence League/Civil Defence brass bands were at the same time members of the military organisations as well as amateur musicians, which placed upon them extra demands - they were under close public supervision in all situations. Based on the principle of chronology it appeared that both Finnish and Estonian respective organisations´ brass bands used the gradually improving economic situation for purchasing musical instruments, obtaining repertoire and training musicians/conductors. Despite the fact that brass band music in the Defence League/Civil Guard was considered an amateur activity and a hobby, the more far-reaching objective of the organisation was to resemble the Defence Forces´ orchestras as closely as possible in all aspects. The Defence League/Civil Guard brass band music definitely had a significant influence on forming, developing and enriching music life in both republics. The reviewed nine-year period introduced the musical activities of the Defence League/Civil Guard against the background of the everyday life of the organisation and the need for brass band music and its continuity in the voluntary state defence institutions of both republics.

The principled executive

Resumen: El artículo presenta el problema de la escisión del hombre de negocios entre su esfera pública en el ámbito del management, y el ámbito privado de la vida familiar y religiosa. Señala la importancia del documento pontificio al detectar este problema e intentar establecer modos de mitigarlo. El autor analiza el tema de la vocación empresaria en el mundo actual, que los nuevos líderes deben poseer para poder enfrentar los problemas propios del mundo financiero tras la crisis económica mundial del año 2008. Finalmente, hace referencia a la importancia de la educación, especialmente dentro del marco de las Universidades católicas

Democracias republicanas y estados fuertes : estrategia económica después de la crisis

Resumen: El artículo analiza el desarrollo económico mundial actual a partir de la crisis de las hipotecas de 2008, que perfila el fin del paradigma neoliberal. Frente a la debilidad de las democracias republicanas, los Estados fuertes propios de países emergentes y BRIC se convirtieron en el motor económico mundial. El autor examina el caso puntual de China y Rusia, los modelos centrales de los Estados fuertes, y luego estudia las estrategias desarrollistas de Brasil y Argentina. Estos casos ilustran que las nuevas formas de organización económica tienen por eje a un Estado fuerte. Observando esta realidad a la luz de la Doctrina Social de la Iglesia, se señala el riesgo que esto implica en detrimento del sistema democrático, donde el centro de la economía es el hombre.

El análisis del entorno político y legal en el marco de la planificación estratégica en el sector turístico y hotelero

[ES] Las empresas turísticas se encuentran inmersas en un entorno cambiante, caracterizado por los avances tecnológicos, al aumento de la competencia global y a las consecuencias derivadas de la crisis económica mundial. Ante estas circunstancias, las empresas turísticas se ven obligadas a diseñar estrategias de marketing y llevar a cabo planes estratégicos. Pues bien, para entender el marketing y desarrollar estrategias eficaces, es fundamental entender el contexto en el que opera la empresa, puesto que en él se generan las oportunidades del mercado y se presentan las amenazas que van a condicionar su futuro. Entre las fuerzas que integran el entorno empresarial se encuentran la economía, la sociedad, la política o la demografía, entre otras.

Managing and resisting ‘degeneration’ in employee-owned businesses: a comparative study of two large retailers in Spain and the UK

Employee-owned businesses have recently enjoyed a resurgence of interest as possible ‘alternatives’ to the somewhat tarnished image of conventional investor-owned capitalist firms. Within the context of global economic crisis, such alternatives seem newly attractive. This is somewhat ironic because, for more than a century, academic literature on employee-owned businesses has been dominated by the ‘degeneration thesis’. This suggested that these businesses tend towards failure – they either fail commercially, or they relinquish their democratic characters. Bucking this trend and offering a beacon - especially in the UK - has been the commercially successful, co-owned enterprise of the John Lewis Partnership (JLP) whose virtues have seemingly been rewarded with favourable and sustainable outcomes. This paper makes comparisons between JLP and its Spanish equivalent Eroski – the supermarket group which is part of the Mondragon cooperatives. The contribution of this paper is to examine in a comparative way how the managers in JLP and Eroski have constructed and accomplished their alternative scenarios. Using longitudinal data and detailed interviews with senior managers in both enterprises it explores the ways in which two large, employee-owned, enterprises reconcile apparently conflicting principles and objectives. The paper thus puts some new flesh on the ‘regeneration thesis’.

Low Climate Stabilisation under Diverse Growth and Convergence Scenarios

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Low Climate Stabilisation under Diverse Growth and Convergence Scenarios

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Entrepreneurship in the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU)

Currently entrepreneurship is a basic pillar in the socioeconomic area of any country since it contributes to attain the government objectives of job creation and boost of dynamism and competitiveness of the business network. These aspects are even more crucial nowadays due to the global economic crisis. This paper attempts to provide some new insights about the scientific field entrepreneurship in the Basque Country analyzing some aspects related to the entrepreneurial activity, the profile of the entrepreneur and the characteristics of the entrepreneurial businesses. It also aims to provide empirical evidence that proves the good features of the spin-offs and TBF groups as job creators, technology transferors to the society and important actors in the growth and development of the economies for both the business network and its surrounding society. To this aim, a descriptive study has been performed of the firms belonging to the Zitek Program of Bizkaia Campus of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU).

O sistema internacional pós-crise de 2008 e as relações China- Estados Unidos: uma análise em três frentes

As relações sino-americanas passaram a desempenhar um papel ordenador fundamental na condução dos assuntos internacionais neste século XXI, ao ponto de alguns analistas criarem o termo G-2. A crise financeira de 2008, por representar um golpe profundo nos países desenvolvidos e nos direcionamentos de valores do estágio atual de desenvolvimento do sistema, levou a relação China-Estados Unidos a um outro patamar. Ao passo que os norte-americanos tiveram de se preocupar em resolver as turbulências causadas na economia doméstica, o país asiático passou a desempenhar um papel crucial no processo de recuperação da economia global. O presente trabalho tem o objetivo, então, de analisar de que forma a crise de 2008, também chamada de crise do subprime, impactou os ordenamentos centrais do Sistema Internacional neste período de recuperação e como as relações sino-americanas podem ser usadas para uma melhor compreensão deste fenômeno. Na busca por traçar respostas mais sólidas, a pesquisa delineia-se em três frentes principais de análise: as relações diretas entre China e Estados Unidos; as relações dos dois países com um terceiro ator, a saber, a África; e os posicionamentos adotados por ambas as partes nas instituições multilaterais. Para tal, primeiro buscou-se aliar análises qualitativas e quantitativas, baseadas em instrumentais matemáticos e também na Ciência Política, História e Economia Política Internacional, para alcançar os resultados definidos nos objetivos da pesquisa. A dissertação é dividida em cinco capítulos, onde os três primeiros tratam de introduzir o assunto estudado e as principais vertentes teóricas utilizadas ao longo do trabalho. Os últimos envolvem a aplicação prática dos conceitos interdisciplinares escolhidos como aliados do trabalho empírico e a apresentação dos resultados finais. Em linhas gerais, concluiu-se que a crise acentuou os aspectos de interdependência entre China e Estados Unidos em todas as frentes estudadas. Avaliando as relações sino-americanas e os rumos do sistema internacional pós-crise em três facetas, concluímos também que tal exercício analítico ofereceu recursos mais palpáveis no fornecimento das respostas procuradas pela dissertação.

Esportes e lazer como instrumentos políticos da Era Vargas e governo Lula: aproximações e particularidades

Esta Tese de Doutorado foi elaborada com a pretensão de contribuir para as reflexões políticas acerca do lazer e dos esportes. A compreensão que há confusões conceituais entre eles e a convicção de que suas características favorecem o uso ideológico dessas práticas foram determinantes para o aprofundamento destes estudos. Nosso entendimento é que essas atividades se legitimam como direitos sociais e, como tal, deveriam ser contempladas no conjunto das Políticas Públicas sejam em nível federal, estadual ou municipal. Entretanto, aqui se revelam as contradições que subsidiam as análises centrais dessa Tese. É fato que o lazer e os esportes estiveram presentes nos programas das políticas sociais de diferentes governos brasileiros em distintas épocas, entretanto, o protagonismo atribuído a eles está marcado pela ideologização de suas propostas de ação. Essa hipótese pôde ser comprovada na recuperação histórica que fizemos neste trabalho. O objetivo principal da pesquisa era a análise das Políticas Públicas de Esportes e Lazer implementadas pela Era Vargas e Governo Lula para estabelecer comparações entre eles e, por esse motivo nos dedicamos a esses dois períodos históricos, emblemáticos e permeados de contradições políticas e sociais. Inquietava-nos a percepção de que, dois governos ideologicamente distintos fizessem uso dos mesmos instrumentos no diálogo com a classe trabalhadora. A contextualização dos governos dos dois líderes demarcou a analogia entre eles na utilização dos preceitos desenvolvimentistas, nacionalistas e populistas. Ainda que essas aproximações em níveis mais gerais tenham apontado coincidências relevantes, a principal constatação de nossa Tese foi a similaridade no uso ideológico do lazer e dos esportes, o que comprovou nossas intuições iniciais. Enquanto Getúlio Vargas associou as concessões de direitos trabalhistas aos programas de Recreação Operária e ao estímulo do ufanismo nacional articulado com a seleção brasileira de futebol, Lula adotou o assistencialismo explícito, incentivou a espetacularização dos esportes de rendimento e proporcionou a realização histórica dos Megaeventos Esportivos em série, no Brasil. Na Era Vargas foi possível constatar o lazer contribuindo para a domesticação dos corpos, os esportes para estabelecer uma relação harmoniosa entre dominantes e dominados e o futebol para a divulgação do regime interna e externamente. Já no Governo Lula, percebemos a retração das políticas sociais nas questões do lazer; os programas de esportes, predominantemente voltados para a descoberta de talentos e a priorização do espetáculo esportivo. A análise que fizemos não deixa dúvidas que os princípios liberais de fortalecimento do capital e aumento dos lucros, norteadores da política econômica mundial e balizadores da política macro do Governo Lula, se refletiram na definição de suas Políticas Públicas de Esportes e Lazer, que em nosso entendimento se resumiram na realização dos Megaeventos Esportivos.

Habitação social e fundo público no contexto de crise do capital

Compreender o financiamento da habitação social requer identificar as mediações necessárias para sua problematização crítica. Orientado pelo método marxista, o estudo utiliza como metodologia a pesquisa bibliográfica, de documentos legais e o estudo das peças orçamentárias. A produção do espaço no capitalismo é produto de relações sociais voltadas a exploração e a acumulação capitalista. Por ser objeto da luta de classes, o Estado responde as necessidades habitacionais dos trabalhadores por meio de políticas urbanas fragmentadas e desfinanciadas, abertas as investida do mercado. A institucionalização do arcabouço legal para a habitação, como a conquista do Fundo Nacional de Habitação de Interesse Social - FNHIS não representou mudanças efetivas sobre as condições de moradia nas cidades. Marcado pelo desfinanciamento (os recursos corresponderam a 1,3% do orçamento do Ministério das Cidades, em 2012) e pela baixa envergadura dos programas sob sua responsabilidade (recursos para Urbanização de Assentamentos Precários e Provisão Habitacional ficaram em R$ 4,7 bilhões, nos anos estudados), o FNHIS é esvaziado no seu sentido político de satisfazer as necessidades habitacionais da população. Em 2009, é criado o Programa Minha Casa Minha Vida - PMCMV. Há o incremento do Estado como indutor da macroeconomia fortalecedora da reestruturação do mercado imobiliário e das medidas para minimizar os efeitos da crise econômica mundial, pondo em marcha o social-liberalismo. Foram destinados R$ 16 bilhões de 2009 a 2012, com produção de 2 milhões de unidades habitacionais pelo PMCMV. Contudo, pelo caráter privilegiador do produtor privado, o PMCMV fez com que o mercado imobiliário continuasse a realizar a punção de parte de fundo público no desenvolvimento de projetos que fortalecem a periferização, o bloqueio a cidade para os trabalhadores e a redução a responsabilidade do Estado sob a política de habitação social como direito humano.

Basileia III e os dilemas da supervisão do sistema bancário internacional

A regulação e supervisão do sistema financeiro sempre foram motivos de apreensão por parte das principais autoridades econômicas mundiais. A globalização, o processo de liberalização financeira e a consequente interconexão econômica entre países maximizaram o risco sistêmico, aumentando a necessidade de marco regulatório e fiscalização mais eficientes. Assim, com a eclosão da crise norte-americana em 2008, o G-20 começou a atuar de forma mais ativa em prol da manutenção da higidez do sistema financeiro mundial. Para os bancos, o G-20 instruiu as principais instituições reguladoras como o Fundo Monetário Internacional, o Conselho de Estabilidade Financeira e o Comitê de Basileia (BCBS) a desenvolverem recomendações a fim de se solucionar o considerado principal problema da regulação dos mercados, o fato destes atualmente serem pró-cíclicos. Diante de tal cenário, em dezembro de 2009, o Comitê publicou um documento que considerou uma série de medidas a fim de solucionar tal problema, entre estas estava a inclusão do buffer de capital contracíclicodo novo marco regulatório proposto pelo Comitê, o Basileia III. O intuito do presente estudo é estudar esse buffer e analisar sua aplicabilidade no sistema bancário brasileiro e, porventura, sugerir metodologias alternativas de cálculo.

Regulation: A Burden in Biopharmaceutical Industry? The Case of EU-Risk Management Plans

The generation of new medicinal products is both a contributor to global economic growth and a source of valuable benefits to human health. Given their direct responsibility for public health, regulatory authorities monitor closely both the development and exploitation of the underlying technologies and the products derived from them. The manner in which such regulation is implemented can result in regulators constraining or facilitating the generation of new products. This paper will study as an example the impact of EU Risk Management Plans (EU-RMPs), which have been mandatory for the approval of new medicines since 2005, on both the industry and regulatory authorities. In interviews, the responses of those who had experience of the implementation of EU-RMPs were mixed. Although the benefits of a more structured and predictable approach to the evaluation of risk were appreciated, some respondents perceived the regulation as an excessive burden on their organisations. The exploration of factors that influence how EU-RMP regulation affects individual firms provides new insights for both regulators and managers, and demonstrates one aspect of the complexity of the process by which new medicinal products are brought to market.

Regulation: A burden in biopharmaceutical industry? The case of EU-risk management plans

The generation of new medicinal products is both a contributor to global economic growth and a source of valuable benefits to human health. Given their direct responsibility for public health, regulatory authorities monitor closely both the development and exploitation of the underlying technologies and the products derived from them. The manner in which such regulation is implemented can result in regulators constraining or facilitating the generation of new products. This paper will study as an example the impact of EU Risk Management Plans (EU-RMPs), which have been mandatory for the approval of new medicines since 2005, on both the industry and regulatory authorities. In interviews, the responses of those who had experience of the implementation of EU-RMPs were mixed. Although the benefits of a more structured and predictable approach to the evaluation of risk were appreciated, some respondents perceived the regulation as an excessive burden on their organisations. The exploration of factors that influence how EU-RMP regulation affects individual firms provides new insights for both regulators and managers, and demonstrates one aspect of the complexity of the process by which new medicinal products are brought to market. © 2010 IEEE.