Operationalising climate adaptation through institutional change : conceptual and empirical insights

Adaptation is increasingly understood as a necessary response in respect of climate change impacts on urban settlements. Australia is heavily urbanised and climate change is likely to impact severely on its urban environments. Accordingly, climate adaptation must become a key component of urban management. This paper is part of a wider project and reports early insights into the problem of how adaptation may be institutionally operationalised within a planning regime. In this instance, the operationalisation of adaptation refers to adaptation becoming incorporated, codified and implemented as a central principle of planning governance. This paper has three key purposes: first, to set out a conceptual approach to climate adaptation as an institutional challenge; second, to identify the intersection of this problem with planning; third, to report on an on-going empirical investigation in Southeast Queensland (SEQ). Informed by key social scientific theories of institutionalism, this paper develops a conceptual framework that understands the metro-regional planning system of SEQ as an institutional regime capable of undergoing a process of change to respond to the adaptation imperative. It is posited that the success or failure of the SEQ regime’s response to the adaptation imperative is contingent on its ability to undergo institutional change. A capacity for change in this regard is understood to be subject to the influence of various internal and external barriers and pathways that promote or hinder processes of institutional change. Specific attention is paid to the role of ‘storylines’ in facilitating or blocking institutional change.

Institutional specifics and unemployment insurance eligibility in Canada : how sensitive are employment duration effects?

The paper examines the influence of unemployment insurance on the duration of employment spells in Canada using the 1988–90 Labour Market Activity Survey. The primary focus of the paper is to evaluate whether estimated UI effects are sensitive to the degree to which institutional rules and regulations governing UI eligibility and entitlement are explicitly modelled. The key result of the paper is that it is indeed important to allow for institutional detail when estimating unemployment insurance effects. Estimates using simple proxies for eligibility indicate small, often insignificant UI effects. The size and significance of the effects rise as more realistic versions of the variables are adopted. The estimates using the eligibility variables incorporating the greatest level of institutional detail suggest that a jump in the hazard rate by a factor of 2.3 may not be an unreasonable estimate of the effect.

A Critical Perspective of the Indonesian Institutional Framework for PPP Toll Roads

The development of toll roads in Indonesia started around 1978. Initially, the management and development of toll roads sat directly under the Government of Indonesia (GoI) being undertaken through PT JasaMarga, a state owned enterprise specifically established to provide toll roads. Due to the slow growth and low capability of toll roads to fulfil infrastructure needs in the first ten years of operation (only 2.688kms/year), GoI changed its strategy in 1989 to one of using private sector participation for roads delivery through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) scheme. In this latter period, PT JasaMarga had two roles, both as regulator on behalf of the private sector as well as being the operator. However, from 1989 to 2004 the growth rate of toll roads actually decreased further to 2.300kms/year. Facing this challenge of low growth rate of toll roads, in 2004GoI changed the toll road management system and the role of regulator was returned to the Government through the establishment of the Toll Road Regulatory Agency (BPJT). GoI also amended the institutional framework to strengthen the toll road management system. Despite the introduction of this new institutional framework, the growth of toll roads still showed insignificant change. This problem in toll road development has generated an urgent need for research into this issue. The aim of the research is to understand the performance of the new institutional framework in enhancing PPP procured toll road development. The methodology of the research was to undertake a questionnaire survey distributed to private sector respondents involved in toll road development. The results of this study show that there are several problems inherent in the institutional framework, but the most significant problem comes from the uncertainty of the function of the strategic executive body in the land expropriation process.

The Chinese state enterprise sector: Labour market reform and the impact on male–female wage structure

The paper examines the wage structure in the Chinese state enterprise sector between 1981 and 1987. This period is of particular interest given the introduction of major labour market reforms in China during the early 1980s. In essence the reforms represented a movement away from administratively determined prices towards a market–oriented system combined with a relatively flexible system of labour allocation. The Juhn, Murphy and Pierce (1991) decomposition is employed to shed light on the role of changing labour market institutions over the period.

Career implications of multi-layered institutional settings

Project work has grown significantly in volume and recognition in recent decades as projects have ‘become a common form of work organization in all sectors of the economy’ (Lindgren & Packendorff, 2006: 841). This increase in project-based work is just one of the many changes that have been affecting the nature of work, the employment relationship and the associated conceptualization and experience of careers (Baruch, 2004b; Söderlund & Bredin, 2006). A career can be defined as a process of development along a path of work experience and roles in one or more organizations (Baruch & Rosenstein, 1992), and careers involving project-based work take place within multi layered institutional settings. Projects are generally undertaken by small temporary organizations (Ekstedt, Lundin, Söderholm & Wirdenius, 1999; Pettigrew, 2003; Söderlund, 2012) which in turn may form part of larger, permanent entities; involve people drawn from a number of disciplines and organizations; or be formed as partnerships, joint ventures or strategic alliances between two or more organizations (Scott, 2007).

It takes more than good intentions : institutional and attitudinal impediments to engaging young people in participatory planning

While participatory processes have become an important part of planning, young people are a particularly vulnerable group in terms of potential marginalisation and exclusion from effective participation. Including the views of young people in participatory planning is not simply a matter of bringing them into existing processes. Instead, participatory processes must find ways to integrate and accommodate their needs and ways of expressing their views. Without these adjustments young people may simply move from being kept outside the planning process to a situation where, although they are formally included, their claims are not taken seriously and they are not treated with equal respect. In this paper we reflect on the success of a community advisory committee, formed to consider water planning issues, in integrating the views of young people into their deliberations. Using Iris Marion Young’s (1995) ideas of communicative democracy we highlight the challenges and opportunities presented by this participatory approach, as articulated by both the young people involved and the adult participants. We specifically consider how the elements of greeting, rhetoric and narrative were reflected in the committee process. We argue that both planners and adult participants need to ensure that participatory processes allow for the equal engagement of all participants and place equal value on their contributions. Our research shows that this involves both an institutional and attitudinal commitment to include the views of young people. The institutional commitment requires young people to be included in processes and for their involvement to be supported. However, the attitudinal commitment it is equally important and requires that adult participants be prepared not only to accept the views of younger participants but to actively encourage and support their full participation.

Nurses' experiences of practice and political reform in long-term aged care in Australia : implications for the retention of nursing personnel

Keywords gerontological nursing;health care reform;health policy;long-term care;recruitment and retention Aim  The aim of the study was to explore registered nurses’ experiences in long-term aged care in light of the political reform of aged care services in Australia. Background  In Australia, the aged care industry has undergone a lengthy period of political and structural reform. Despite reviews into various aspects of these reforms, there has been little consideration of the effect these are having on the practice experiences and retention of nursing staff in long-term care. Methods  In this critical hermeneutic study, 14 nurses from long-term care facilities in Australia were interviewed about their experiences during the reform period. Results  The data revealed a sense of tension and conflict between nurses’ traditional values, roles and responsibilities and those supported by the reforms. Nurses struggled to renegotiate both their practice roles and values as the reforms were implemented and the system evolved. Nursing management support was an important aspect in mediating the effect of reforms on nursing staff. Conclusion  This research highlights both the tensions experienced by nurses in long-term aged care in Australia and the need to renegotiate nursing roles, responsibilities and values within an evolving care system. This research supports a role for sensitive and proactive nursing management during periods of industry reform as a retention strategy for qualified nursing personnel.

Searching for value : the influence of policy and reform on nurses’ sense of value in long-term aged care in Australia.

Contemporary literature on long-term aged care focuses heavily on issues associated with the recruitment and retention of nursing staff, such as job satisfaction and attitudes towards caring for older people. This paper aims to highlight one aspect of a larger study of registered nurses' experiences in long-term aged care in Australia and the influence that government policy and reform has in shaping that experience. This insight into aspects of nurses' everyday experience also contributes to a broader understanding of job satisfaction in long-term care. Findings from this study suggest that registered nurses experience tension in their search for value in their practice, which incorporates professional, political and social mediators of value and worth. These issues are discussed in relation to the impact of policy and reform on nurses' sense of value in long-term aged care and highlight the need for sensitive policy initiatives that support issues of value in nursing practice.

The cultural impact of institutional remix : the formalisation of textual reappropriation within the ABC

In 2009, Mark Deuze proposed an updated approach to media studies to incorporate ‘media life’, a concept he suggests addresses the invisibleness of ubiquitous media. Media life provides a useful lens for researchers to understand the human condition in media and not with media. At a similar time, public service media (PSM) strategies have aligned audience participation with the so‐called Reithian trinity which suggest the PSB should inform, educate and entertain while performing its core values of public service broadcasting (Enli 2008). Remix within the PSM institution relies on audience participation, employing ‘the people formerly known as the audience’ (Rosen 2006) as cultural artifact producers, and draws on their experience from within the media. Remix as a practice then enables us to examine the shift of the core PSM values by understanding how audience participation, informed by a human condition mobilised from our existence of being in media and not merely with media. However, remix within PSM challenges the once elitist construction of meaning models with an egalitarian approach towards socially reappropriated texts, questioning its affect on the cultural landscape. This paper draws on three years of ethnographic data from within the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), exploring the remix culture of ABC Pool. ABC Pool operates under a Creative Commons licensing regime to enable remix practice under the auspices of the ABC. ABC Pool users provide a useful group of remix practitioners to examine as they had access to a vast ABC archival collection and were invited to remix those cultural artefacts, often adding cultural and fiscal value. This paper maintains a focus on the audience participation within PSM through remix culture by applying media dependency theory to remix as cultural practice and calls to expand and update the societal representation within the ABC.

Communication models of institutional online communities : the role of the ABC cultural intermediary

The co-creation of cultural artefacts has been democratised given the recent technological affordances of information and communication technologies. Web 2.0 technologies have enabled greater possibilities of citizen inclusion within the media conversations of their nations. For example, the Australian audience has more opportunities to collaboratively produce and tell their story to a broader audience via the public service media (PSM) facilitated platforms of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). However, providing open collaborative production for the audience gives rise to the problem, how might the PSM manage the interests of all the stakeholders and align those interests with its legislated Charter? This paper considers this problem through the ABC’s user-created content participatory platform, ABC Pool and highlights the cultural intermediary as the role responsible for managing these tensions. This paper also suggests cultural intermediation is a useful framework for other media organisations engaging in co-creative activities with their audiences.

Communication models of institutional online communities : the role of the ABC cultural intermediary

The co-creation of cultural artefacts has been democratised given the recent technological affordances of information and communication technologies. Web 2.0 technologies have enabled greater possibilities of citizen inclusion within the media conversations of their nations. For example, the Australian audience has more opportunities to collaboratively produce and tell their story to a broader audience via the public service media (PSM) facilitated platforms of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). However, providing open collaborative production for the audience gives rise to the problem, how might the PSM manage the interests of all the stakeholders and align those interests with its legislated Charter? This paper considers this problem through the ABC’s user-created content participatory platform, ABC Pool and highlights the cultural intermediary as the role responsible for managing these tensions. This paper also suggests cultural intermediation is a useful framework for other media organisations engaging in co-creative activities with their audiences.

The need for legislative reform of the privity doctrine in commercial contracts in Malaysia : a comparative analysis

This thesis commences with the proposition that the first limb of the doctrine of privity causes injustice to third party beneficiaries in Malaysia, particularly in commercial contracts. The doctrine of privity has been the subject of criticism by the judiciary and academic commentators in common law jurisdictions, mainly directed at the first limb of the doctrine, whereby only parties to a contract can sue and be sued. The first limb prevents a third party from enforcing benefits conferred on them by those contracts thereby resulting in third parties suffering loss and injustice to those parties. In several common law countries, such as England, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, legislative reform of the doctrine has occurred. The legislative reform has abrogated to a significant extent the doctrine of privity in commercial contracts. Malaysia is a common law country, where the doctrine of privity is still applied to contracts. An analysis of Malaysian case law demonstrates that the most affected third party beneficiaries are those seeking to enforce insurance and construction contracts. While a small number of other third parties to commercial contracts, such as agreements to pay for work done, sale and purchase agreements and tenancy agreements are also affected, the detriment is not as significant. As a consequence, this thesis focuses primarily on the impact of the doctrine of privity on commercial contracts in the areas of insurance and construction in Malaysia The thesis aims to recommend appropriate reforms to address the injustices arising from the privity doctrine for third parties seeking to obtain the benefit of insurance and construction contracts, which may also benefit third parties to other types of commercial contracts. While the Malaysian insurance, consumer protection, negotiable instruments and agency laws allow third party beneficiaries to enforce benefits in contracts, the rights are found to be inadequate. As not all third parties seeking to enforce an insurance or construction contract can rely upon the legislation, the injustice arising from the doctrine of privity remains and needs to be addressed. To achieve this aim, a comparative analysis of the rights of third party beneficiaries under insurance and construction contracts in Malaysia, Australia and England is undertaken. The results of the analysis are used to identify appropriate elements for a legislative framework guided by the three essential criteria for effective law reform developed in the thesis. The three criteria are certainty, public interest and justice. The thesis recommends first the enactment of general legislation applicable to all commercial contracts including insurance contracts. Secondly, the thesis recommends specific targeted legislation to address the injustice faced by third party beneficiaries in construction contracts.

Collaboration, connections and consequences : a study of cultural intermediation within the ABC Pool institutional online community

This thesis addresses the question of what it means to be a public broadcaster in the context of a rapidly changing media landscape, in which audiences no longer only watch and consume but now also make and share media content. Through a close investigation of the ABC Pool community, this thesis documents how the different interests of the stakeholders within an institutional online community intersect and how those interests are negotiated within the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It demonstrates a new approach towards the cultural intermediation of user-created content within institutional online communities. The research moves beyond the exploration of the community manager role as one type of intermediary to demonstrate the activities of multiple cultural intermediaries that engage in collaborative peer production. Cultural intermediation provides the basis for institutional online community governance.

Exploring CSR communication: Linking institutional pressures, legitimacy, and rhetoric

By presenting an overview of institutional theory, specifically the concepts of organizational fields, institutional pressures, and legitimacy, in addition to classical rhetoric, we have sought to highlight that there are links within the literature between the concepts of institutional theory and legitimacy, and also legitimacy and classical rhetoric. To date however, the three concepts – institutional pressures, legitimacy, and rhetoric – have not been explicitly linked. Through building on the current literature, and using the notion of legitimacy as the axis to connect institutional pressures with rhetoric, we argue that certain rhetorical devices may in fact be used to build and construct legitimacy in relation to the different institutional pressures an organization may face within a field. We believe that this preliminary framework may be useful to the field of CSR communication, whereby it may assist in constructing legitimate CSR communication in response to the various pressures an organization may face in relation to CSR.