Social Investment and State Capacity. CEPS Working Document No. 419/February 2016

This paper looks at the difference between the levels and nature of social policy expenditure in northern and northwest European countries and the countries of southern, central, and eastern Europe, and examines the relationship between social investment and state capacity in these country groupings. The authors show that southern and eastern countries have a much greater preference for ‘compensating’ rather than ‘capacitating’ social policy spending. Furthermore, the state capacity in these countries is lower, which generates less state revenue. Based on these observations they conclude that low state capacity and low state revenue go hand in hand with the preference for capacitating social policies, as these policies involve less delegation and discretion than social investment policies. This paper shows that high state capacity is probably a necessary precondition for effective social investment policies, although some limited alternative paths do exist.

Changing ecology of Lake Victoria cichlids and their environment: evidence from C13 and N15 analyses

Eutrophication is an increasing global threat to freshwater ecosystems. East Africa’s Lake Victoria has suffered from severe eutrophication in the past decades which is partly responsible for the dramatic decline in haplochromine cichlid species diversity. However, some zooplanktivorous and detritivorous haplochromine species recovered and shifted their diet towards macro invertebrates and fish. We used four formalin preserved cichlid species caught over the past 35 years to investigate whether stable isotopes of these fish are reflecting the dietary changes, habitat differences and if these isotopes can be used as indicators of eutrophication. We found that d15N signatures mainly reflected dietary shifts to larger prey in all four haplochromine species. Shifts in d13C signatures likely represented habitat differences and dietary changes. In addition, a shift to remarkably heavy d13C signatures in 2011 was found for all four species which might infer increased primary production and thus eutrophication although more research is needed to confirm this hypothesis. The observed temporal changes confirm previous findings that preserved specimens can be used to trace historical changes in fish ecology and the aquatic environment. This highlights the need for continued sampling as this information could be of essence for reconstructing and predicting the effects of environmental changes.

Trade Policy, Investment and Migration: The Liberalisation Paradigm

Presentation by Thomas Cottier & Charlotte Sieber-Gasser prepared for the Markets for Migration and Development (M4MD) Conference, Bern, 13-15 September 2011. This presentation is part of Session 1 "Why Trade, Development and Migration?" of the M4MD conference, which was one of the thematic meetings held in the context of the 2011 Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) chaired by Switzerland. Session 1 seeked to understand to what extent international trade and foreign direct investment drives migration and why states find it more difficult to liberalise the trans‐boundary movement of persons than to liberalise cross‐border trade in goods and services. One discussed aspect was why globalisation, trade liberalisation and FDI can lead not only to more, but also to less migration and what the corresponding effects on development would be. This Session provided a timely opportunity to broaden the perspective on international migration and explore the interaction between migration, development and trade policymaking.

Law of the sea : hearing before the Subcommittee on Oceans and International Environment of the Committee on Foreign Relations, United States Senate, Ninety-fourth Congress, first session, on achievements of the Geneva session of the third United Nations Law of the Sea Conference, May 22, 1975.

Mode of access: Internet.

Oversight hearings on U.S. international monetary policies : hearings before the Subcommittee on International Trade, Investment, and Monetary Policy of the Committee on Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs, House of Representatives, Ninety-seventh Congress, first session, November 4, and 5, and December 10, 1981.

Item 1013-A, 1013-B (microfiche).

Oversight hearings on the Export-Import Bank : hearings before the Subcommittee on International Trade, Investment and Monetary Policy of the Committee on Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs, House of Representatives, Ninety-sixth Congress, second session, June 12 and 19, 1980.

"Serial no. 96-71."

Export trading companies legislation : hearings before the Subcommittee on International Trade, Investment, and Monetary Policy of the Committee on Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs, House of Representatives, Ninety-sixth Congress, second session, on H.R. 7310 ... H.R. 7364 ... H.R. 7436 ... H.R. 7463 ... July 1 and 2, 1980.

Item 1013

The Eurocurrency market control act of 1979 : hearings before the Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and the Subcommittee on International Trade, Investment, and Monetary Policy of the Committee on Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs, House of Representatives, Ninety-sixth Congress, first session, on H.R. 3962 ... June 26, 27, and July 12, 1979.

"Serial no. 96-23."

Monetary policy : goals and conduct for the 1980's : hearings before the Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and the Subcommittee on International Trade, Investment, and Monetary Policy of the Committee on Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs, House of Representatives, Ninety-sixth Congress, first session, November 13, 27, and December 4, 1979.

Mode of access: Internet.

The Marine Mammal Commission compendium of selected treaties, international agreements, and other relevant documents on marine resources, wildlife, and the environment /

Mode of access: Internet.

Maternal, child health, and family planning services [microform] : hearings before the Subcommittee on Health and the Environment of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, House of Representatives, One Hundredth Congress, second session, February 25, 1988--healthy children, investing in the future; April 22, 1988--Title X of the Public Health Service Act (H.R. 3769).

"Serial no. 100-149."

Waterfowl decline in the Mississippi Flyway [microform] : hearing before the Subcommittee on Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation and the Environment of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representatives, One Hundredth Congress, second session, on the decline of waterfowl in the Mississippi Flyway and the loss of wintering habitat in the Mississippi Flood Plain, September 22, 1988.

"Serial no. 100-91."

Nuclear waste transportation [microform] : hearing before the Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, House of Representatives, One Hundredth Congress, second session, on H.R. 1649 ... H.R. 3836 ... H.R. 4041 ... hearing held in Washington, DC, May 12, 1988.

"Serial no. 100-49."

Food irradiation : hearing before the Subcommittee on Health and the Environment of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, House of Representatives, One Hundredth Congress, first session on H.R. 956 ... June 19, 1987.

Item 1019-A, 1019-B (microfiche)

Study design for resource management decisions : OCS oil and gas development and the environment.

"October 1, 1978."