Assessing the Cost Effectiveness of obesity interventions - the ACE model

A workshop presentation

The demography of investor heaven : a synthesis of international research on the characteristics, attitudes, and investment behaviour of business angels

The purpose of this paper was to compile and compare the findings of all robust international research providing national profiles of business angels (informal venture capitalists). At the outset, it was not clear how comparable studies would be and, as the project advanced, it became clear that few direct comparisons would be possible. Nevertheless, there were broad categories common to many studies and consequently a template was developed and used to summarise each study in a consistent format. The resulting report thus provides a summary of the data across 16 studies covering 9 different countries, with key points from the findings of each study.

This is by no means an elegant report, but the authors believe it is a useful one. It provides a compendium of international angel research neatly bundled in one package. It should benefit anyone considering conducting the first study of business angels for their country or building on research already completed.

Analysis of the cost performance of structural building frames in Australia

The significance of this research is that it is the first comprehensive analysis of cost performance across Australia. It is well known that measuring cost performance is not an easy task; comparisons of building projects on a `like-for-like’ basis are uncommon, and rarely occur in the real world. However, this paper analyses 120 different structural frame models that represent various; structural designs, construction methods, grid spans, and locations.

The research produced price models that were representative of structural frames used in medium-rise non-residential buildings. It is based on pricing a number of standard building frame designs in five Australian cities. The results represent the cost of producing the same building in different locations, using similar building construction techniques. By utilizing a standard model, project variables like building quality, ground conditions and access were eradicated, thereby facilitating an unbiased comparison of cost performance. I addition, the results are an indicator of building productivity based on costs per square metre of various construction types.

This research provides the Australian industry with robust data about the relative cost performance of various structural building frames. In addition, this research has wider implications because the models may also become useful data for the measuring relative cost performance in other countries.

The cost of housing : more than just dollars

Australians were recently awarded the dubious honour of building the largest homes in the world. Our new homes are now seven percent larger than those in the United States and nearly three times larger than those in the United Kingdom. At the same time, the price of an average residential property is now five times what it was 20 years ago. Although incomes have risen over the same period, they have not kept pace with rising house prices. In terms of disposable income, the cost of housing has almost doubled. While traditional housing affordability is measured in terms of house prices and incomes, a broader and more encompassing perspective also indicates that we can no longer ‘afford’ to build houses as we have done in the past. The environmental impact of modern Australian housing is significant. Australians have resisted the need for increased urban density as their capital city populations grow and new houses have been built on the outskirts of the existing cities, encroaching on the greenwedge and agricultural lands, destroying and degrading existing fauna and flora. The houses built have increased carbon emissions because of their size, embodied energy and reliance on the motor car. This paper discusses the environmental ‘affordability’ of current Australian housing and argues that this must be considered alongside traditional affordability criteria so that a more holistic approach to the issues is adopted.

Putting the Australian Labor Party in international perspective

This paper assesses the Australian Labor Party's current debates over future directions with reference to attempts by the left of centre political parties in other western nations, especially in Western Europe, to deal with the end of the economic "golden age" since the early 1970s and the widespread resurgence of neo-liberal ideologies since the late 1970s. The dominant recent view of such comparisons has been through the ideological lens of the "Third Way". This vision however tends not to see relevant variations between the experiences of social democratic parties in individual Western European nations as they have sought to deal with adverse circumstances since the early 1970s. Nor does the Third Way view sufficiently extend to the widely varying background landscapes: that is, the different levels of historical achievement by left of centre parties in the different nations. Some social democratic parties in European countries are pursuing more progressive political agendas than the British Labour Party under Tony Blair and they are starting from a very different basis of policy achievement and political strength than either the British or Australian labour parties. The nature and extent of these international differences need now to be highlighted from an Australian political perspective in order to better inform the current debate about the range of options for the ALP and the current comparative condition of the Australian party system. As part of this analysis, the relationship between the erosion of the traditional blue-collar support bases of the major left of centre parties in various nations, amid economic restructuring and challenges to traditional immigration patterns, and the rise of support for anti-immigrant policies and parties, need to be carefully examined and evaluated.

The human cost of fracture

In this population-based, observational study, we document the personal burden of fracture and utilization of community and health services for women during the 12-month period following a fracture. Participants were 598 women (aged 35-92 years) with incident fracture in the years 1994-1996 who were enrolled in the Geelong Osteoporosis Study. Almost all hip fracture cases and 27% of nonhip fracture cases were hospitalized. Homes were modified in 14% of cases, and 32% of the women purchased or hired equipment to assist with activities of daily living. Three-quarters of women with hip, pelvis, or lower limb fractures were confined to the home, had to walk with a walking aid, or could walk only short distances for several weeks. After a year, nearly one-half had not regained prefracture mobility. One-seventh of women with upper-limb fractures did not venture outside the home for at least 6 weeks. Nearly half of all fracture cases needed help with personal care and housework during the first 6 weeks. After 6 months, 3.4% of all patients and 19.6% of hip, 12.8% of humeral, and 4.7% of spine fracture patients required assistance with bathing and showering. After a year, more than half of the hip fracture cases remained restricted regarding housework, gardening, and transport. These findings have important implications for rehabilitation therapy. A fracture, regardless of site, had a major impact on a woman's lifestyle and well-being. Most women were restricted in their activities of daily living and suffered loss of confidence and independence. Short-term morbidity was common for all fractures, with varying degrees of prolonged morbidity often extending to at least a year postfracture.

Insights into international travel by students

Although research on international travelers abounds in the literature, international travel by students remains a neglected area of research. This article reports the findings from a survey of 370 university students in New Zealand. The survey identified student motives for undertaking international travel, the planning process, and the preferred destinations and methods of financing international trips. Logit models were developed and estimated for two important aspects of international travel by students. In addition, the study also included cross-cultural comparisons of travel behavior. The findings indicate that students traveling overseas represent a distinct market with specific needs and preferences. Travel behaviors vary significantly for different cultures and the article shows that it is possible to model such behaviors.

International collaborative project to compare and track the nutritional composition of fast foods

Background
Chronic diseases are the leading cause of premature death and disability in the world with over-nutrition a primary cause of diet-related ill health. Excess quantities of energy, saturated fat, sugar and salt derived from fast foods contribute importantly to this disease burden. Our objective is to collate and compare nutrient composition data for fast foods as a means of supporting improvements in product formulation.
Methods/design
Surveys of fast foods will be done in each participating country each year. Information on the nutrient composition for each product will be sought either through direct chemical analysis, from fast food companies, in-store materials or from company websites. Foods will be categorized into major groups for the primary analyses which will compare mean levels of saturated fat, sugar, sodium, energy and serving size at baseline and over time. Countries currently involved include Australia, New Zealand, France, UK, USA, India, Spain, China and Canada, with more anticipated to follow.
Discussion
This collaborative approach to the collation and sharing of data will enable low-cost tracking of fast food composition around the world. This project represents a significant step forward in the objective and transparent monitoring of industry and government commitments to improve the quality of fast foods.