Economic profile, Economic Development Partnership

This document contains statistics on economic data, demographic data, industry data, occupation and employment data and education data for the Upper Savannah Region. Also included is a list and directory of higher educational institutions in the region.

LATIN AMERICA; ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND REGIONAL DIFFERENTIATION

Trata sobre el estudio realizado por Arthur Morris del desarrollo y la planificacion regional referido a America Latina.

Dithienopyrrole-based materials: development of new polymeric derivatives

The possibility to control molar mass and termination of the growing chain is fundamental to create well-defined, reproducible materials. For this reason, in order to apply polydithienopyrrole (PDTP) as organic conjugated polymer, the possibility of controlled polymerization needs to be verified. Another aspect that is still not completely explored is bound to the optical activity of the PDTP, which bearing appropriate substituents may adopt a helical conformation. The configuration of the helix, built up from achiral co-monomers, can be established in an enantiopure way by using only a small percentage of the chiral monomer co-polymerized with achiral co-monomer. The effect, called “sergeants and soldiers effect”, is expressed by the nonlinear increase of the chiral response vs the ratio of the chiral co-monomer used for the polymerization. To date, this effect is still not completely explored for PDTP. In this framework the project will investigate, firstly, the possibility to obtain a controlled polymerization of PDTP. Then, monomers with different side chains and organometallic functions will be screened for a CTCP-type polymerization. Also a Lewis-acid based cationic polymerization will be performed. Moreover the chemical derivatization of dithienopyrrole DTP is explored: the research is going to concern also block copolymers, built up by DTP and monomers of different nature. The research will be extended also to the investigation of optically active derivates of PDTP, using a chiral monomer for the synthesis. The possibility to develop a supramolecular distribution of the polymeric chains, together with the “sergeants and soldiers effect” will be checked investigating a series of polymers with increasing amounts of chiral monomer.

Knowledge-based Chord Embeddings

This thesis develops AI methods as a contribution to computational musicology, an interdisciplinary field that studies music with computers. In systematic musicology a composition is defined as the combination of harmony, melody and rhythm. According to de La Borde, harmony alone "merits the name of composition". This thesis focuses on analysing the harmony from a computational perspective. We concentrate on symbolic music representation and address the problem of formally representing chord progressions in western music compositions. Informally, chords are sets of pitches played simultaneously, and chord progressions constitute the harmony of a composition. Our approach combines ML techniques with knowledge-based techniques. We design and implement the Modal Harmony ontology (MHO), using OWL. It formalises one of the most important theories in western music: the Modal Harmony Theory. We propose and experiment with different types of embedding methods to encode chords, inspired by NLP and adapted to the music domain, using both statistical (extensional) knowledge by relying on a huge dataset of chord annotations (ChoCo), intensional knowledge by relying on MHO and a combination of the two. The methods are evaluated on two musicologically relevant tasks: chord classification and music structure segmentation. The former is verified by comparing the results of the Odd One Out algorithm to the classification obtained with MHO. Good performances (accuracy: 0.86) are achieved. We feed a RNN for the latter, using our embeddings. Results show that the best performance (F1: 0.6) is achieved with embeddings that combine both approaches. Our method outpeforms the state of the art (F1 = 0.42) for symbolic music structure segmentation. It is worth noticing that embeddings based only on MHO almost equal the best performance (F1 = 0.58). We remark that those embeddings only require the ontology as an input as opposed to other approaches that rely on large datasets.

Intellectual capital management in international and Russian software companies

The importance of the company’s intellectual capital (IC) increased during the last decades due to knowledge-based economy development. Despite the clear understanding of the IC importance, researchers agree on the fact that many difficulties in management of intangibles still exist from the both theoretical and practical points of view. The goal of the study is to conduct a comparison of IC management approaches used in international and Russian software companies. To carry out a proper comparison and identify similarities and differences, software firms are explored from the point of view of IC, and then be compared in the context of international and Russian sectors. At the end of the study, current IC management findings in international and Russian software companies are presented, and comparison of IC management is done. It was investigated from the comparison that international and Russian software companies have similarities and few principal differences in several IC management areas. The comparison of IC management approaches between international and Russian software companies provide helpful information to both, researchers and practitioners.

The Intersection of Economics and Politics in a Small OPEC Country: the Case of Ecuador, 1990 - March 2014

Today, crude oil remains a vital resource all around the world. This non-renewable resource powers countries worldwide. Besides serving as an energy source, crude oil is also the most important component for different world economies, especially in developing countries. Ecuador, a small member of the OPEC oil cartel, presents a case where its economy is oil dependent. A great percentage of the country¿s GDP and government¿s budget comes from oil revenues. Ecuador has always been a primary exporter of raw materials. In the last centuries, the country experienced three important economic booms: cacao, bananas, and, ultimately, crude oil. In this sense, the country has not been able to fully industrialize and begin to export manufactured goods, i.e., Ecuador suffers from the Dutch disease. The latter has deterred Ecuador from achieving broad-based economic development. Given crude oil¿s importance for the Ecuadorian economy, the government has always tried to influence the oil industry in search of profits and benefits. Therefore, this thesis, explores the question: how and to what extent have political interventions affected the oil industry in Ecuador from 1990 until March 2014? In general, this thesis establishes an economic history context during the last twenty-four years, attempting to research how political interventions have shaped Ecuador¿s oil industry and economy. In the analysis, it covers a period where political instability prevailed, until Rafael Correa became president. The thesis examines Ecuador¿s participation in OPEC, trying to find explanations as to why the country voluntarily left the organization in 1992, only to rejoin in 2007 when Correa rose to power. During the ¿Revolución Ciudadana¿ period, the thesis researches reforms to the Law of Hydrocarbons, variations in the relations with other nations, the controversy surrounding the Yasuní-ITT oil block, and the ¿Refinería del Pacífico¿ construction. The thesis is an Industrial Organization detailed case study that analyzes, updates, and evaluates the intersection of economics and politics in Ecuador¿s crude oil industry during the last 24 years. In this sense I have consulted past theses, newspaper articles, books, and other published data about the petroleum industry, both from a global and Ecuadorian perspective. In addition to published sources, I was able to interview sociologists, public figures, history and economics academics, and other experts, accessing unique unpublished data about Ecuador¿s oil industry. I made an effort to collect information that shows the private and public side of the industry, i.e., from government-related and independent sources. I attempted to remain as objective as possible to make conclusions about the appropriate Industrial Organization policy for Ecuador¿s oil industry, addressing the issue from an economic, social, political, and environmental point of view. I found how Ecuador¿s political instability caused public policy to fail, molding the conduct and market structure of the crude oil industry. Throughout history, developed nations have benefited from low oil prices, but things shifted since oil prices began to rise, which is more beneficial for the developing nations that actually possess and produce the raw material. Nevertheless, Ecuador, a victim of the Dutch disease due to its heavy reliance on crude oil as a primary product, has not achieved broad-based development.

Safer sex choices among African-American college women

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore and describe the factors that influence the safer sex choices of African-American college women. The pandemic of HIV and the prevalence of other sexually transmitted diseases has disproportionately affected African-American females. As young women enter college they are faced with a myriad of choices. Unprotected sexual exploration is one choice that can lead to deadly consequences. This dissertation explores, through in-depth interviews, the factors associated with the decision to practice or not practice safe sex. ^ The first study describes the factors associated with increased sexual risk taking among African-American college women. Sexual risk taking or sex without a condom was found to be more likely when issues of self or partner pleasure were raised. Participants were also likely to have sexual intercourse without a condom if they desired a long term relationship with their partner. ^ The second study examined safe sex decision making processes among a group of African-American college women. Women were found to employ both emotional and philosophical strategies to determine their safe sex behavior. These strategies range from assessing a partner's physical capabilities and appearance to length of the dating relationship. ^ The third study explores the association between knowledge and risk perception as predictors for safer sex behaviors. Knowledge of HIV/AIDS and other STDs was not found to be a determinant of safer sex behavior. Perception of personal risk was also not highly correlated with consistent safer sex behavior. ^ These studies demonstrate the need for risk-based safer sex education and intervention programs. The current climate of knowledge-based program development insures that women will continue to predicate their decision to practice safer sex on their limited perception and understanding of the risks associated with unprotected sexual behavior. Further study into the emotional and philosophical determinants of sexual behavior is necessary for the realistic design of applicable and meaningful interventions. ^

The role of neighborhood organizations in the production of gentrifiable urban space: The case of Wynwood, Miami's Puerto Rican barrio

Partnerships between government and community-based actors and organizations are considered the hallmark of contemporary governance arrangements for the revitalization and gentrification of economically distressed, inner city areas. This dissertation uses historical, narrative analysis and ethnographic methods to examine the formation, evolution and operation of community-based governance partnerships in the production of gentrifiable urban space in the Wynwood neighborhood of Miami, FL between 1970 and 2010. This research is based on more than four years of participant observation, 60 in-depth interviews with respondents recruited through a purposive snowball sample, review of secondary and archival sources, and descriptive, statistical and GIS analysis. This study examines how different organizations formed in the neighborhood since the 1970s have facilitated the recent gentrification of Wynwood. It reveals specifically how partnerships between neighborhood-based government agencies, nonprofit organizations and real estate developers were constructed to be exclusionary and lead to inequitable economic development outcomes for Wynwood residents. The key factors conditioning these inequalities include both the rationalities of action of the organizations involved and the historical contexts in which their leaders’ thinking and actions were shaped. The historical contexts included the ethnic politics of organizational funding in the 1970s and the “entrepreneurial” turn of community-based economic development and Miami urban politics since the 1980s. Over time neighborhood organizations adopted highly pragmatic rationalities and repertoires of action. By the 2000s when Wynwood experienced unprecedented investment and redevelopment, the pragmatism of community-based organizations led them to become junior partners in governance arrangements and neighborhood activists were unable to directly challenge the inequitable processes and outcomes of gentrification.

Issues in language and development in multilingual settings: a case-study of knowledge exchange and teacher education in South Africa

The quality of a country’s human-resource base can be said to determine its level of success in social and economic development. This study focuses on some␣of the major human-resource development issues that surround the implementation of South Africa’s policy of multilingualism in education. It begins by discussing the relationship between knowledge, language, and human-resource, social and economic development within the global cultural economy. It then considers the situation in South Africa and, in particular, the implications of that country’s colonial and neo-colonial past for attempts to implement the new policy. Drawing on the linguistic-diversity-in-education debate in the United Kingdom of the past three decades, it assesses the first phase of an in-service teacher-education programme that was carried out at the Project for Alternative Education in South Africa (PRAESA) based at the University of Cape Town. The authors identify key short- and long-term issues related to knowledge exchange in education in multilingual societies, especially concerning the use of African languages as mediums for teaching and learning.

Local environmental knowledge: a key input for the sustainable development of Andean mountain communities

Local knowledge is crucial to both human development and environmental conservation. This is especially the case in mountain regions, where a combination of remoteness, harsh climatic conditions, rich cultural heritage, and high biological diversity has led to the development of complex local environmental knowledge systems. In the Andes for instance, rural populations mainly rely on their own environmental knowledge to ensure their food security and health. Recent studies conducted within Quechua communities in Peru and Bolivia showed that this knowledge was both persistent and dynamic, and that it responded to socio-economic and environmental changes through cultural resistance and adaptation. As this paper argues, combining local knowledge and so-called scientific knowledge – especially in development projects – can lead to innovative solutions to the socio-environmental challenges facing mountain communities in our globalized world. Based on experiences from the Andes, this paper will provide concrete recommendations to policymakers and practitioners for integrating local knowledge into development and natural resource management initiatives.

Sustainable Development and Collective Learning: Theory and a European Case Study. Bruges European Economic Policy (BEEP) Briefing 7/2004

Network governance of collective learning processes is an essential approach to sustainable development. The first section of the article briefly refers to recent theories about both market and government failures that express scepticism about the way framework conditions for market actors are set. For this reason, the development of networks for collective learning processes seems advantageous if new solutions are to be developed in policy areas concerned with long-term changes and a stepwise internalisation of externalities. With regard to corporate actors’ interests, the article shows recent insights from theories about the knowledge-based firm, where the creation of new knowledge is based on the absorption of societal views. This concept shifts the focus towards knowledge generation as an essential element in the evolution of sustainable markets. This involves at the same time the development of new policies. In this context innovation-inducing regulation is suggested and discussed. The evolution of the Swedish, German and Dutch wind turbine industries are analysed based on the approach of governance put forward in this article. We conclude that these coevolutionary mechanisms may take for granted some of the stabilising and orientating functions previously exercised by basic regulatory activities of the state. In this context, the main function of the governments is to facilitate learning processes that depart from the government functions suggested by welfare economics.

Empirical analysis of human capital development and economic growth in Europe

Recent discussion of the knowledge-based economy draws increasingly attention to the role that the creation and management of knowledge plays in economic development. Development of human capital, the principal mechanism for knowledge creation and management, becomes a central issue for policy-makers and practitioners at the regional, as well as national, level. Facing competition both within and across nations, regional policy-makers view human capital development as a key to strengthening the positions of their economies in the global market. Against this background, the aim of this study is to go some way towards answering the question of whether, and how, investment in education and vocational training at regional level provides these territorial units with comparative advantages. The study reviews literature in economics and economic geography on economic growth (Chapter 2). In growth model literature, human capital has gained increased recognition as a key production factor along with physical capital and labour. Although leaving technical progress as an exogenous factor, neoclassical Solow-Swan models have improved their estimates through the inclusion of human capital. In contrast, endogenous growth models place investment in research at centre stage in accounting for technical progress. As a result, they often focus upon research workers, who embody high-order human capital, as a key variable in their framework. An issue of discussion is how human capital facilitates economic growth: is it the level of its stock or its accumulation that influences the rate of growth? In addition, these economic models are criticised in economic geography literature for their failure to consider spatial aspects of economic development, and particularly for their lack of attention to tacit knowledge and urban environments that facilitate the exchange of such knowledge. Our empirical analysis of European regions (Chapter 3) shows that investment by individuals in human capital formation has distinct patterns. Those regions with a higher level of investment in tertiary education tend to have a larger concentration of information and communication technology (ICT) sectors (including provision of ICT services and manufacture of ICT devices and equipment) and research functions. Not surprisingly, regions with major metropolitan areas where higher education institutions are located show a high enrolment rate for tertiary education, suggesting a possible link to the demand from high-order corporate functions located there. Furthermore, the rate of human capital development (at the level of vocational type of upper secondary education) appears to have significant association with the level of entrepreneurship in emerging industries such as ICT-related services and ICT manufacturing, whereas such association is not found with traditional manufacturing industries. In general, a high level of investment by individuals in tertiary education is found in those regions that accommodate high-tech industries and high-order corporate functions such as research and development (R&D). These functions are supported through the urban infrastructure and public science base, facilitating exchange of tacit knowledge. They also enjoy a low unemployment rate. However, the existing stock of human and physical capital in those regions with a high level of urban infrastructure does not lead to a high rate of economic growth. Our empirical analysis demonstrates that the rate of economic growth is determined by the accumulation of human and physical capital, not by level of their existing stocks. We found no significant effects of scale that would favour those regions with a larger stock of human capital. The primary policy implication of our study is that, in order to facilitate economic growth, education and training need to supply human capital at a faster pace than simply replenishing it as it disappears from the labour market. Given the significant impact of high-order human capital (such as business R&D staff in our case study) as well as the increasingly fast pace of technological change that makes human capital obsolete, a concerted effort needs to be made to facilitate its continuous development.

Regional competitiveness, economic growth and stages of development

This paper positions the concept of regional competitiveness within theories concerning regional economic growth and stages of economic development. It examines the sources of regional competitiveness encompassing an analysis based on the particular stage of economic development that the nations within which regions are situated have reached. As a means to achieve this, the paper undertakes an empirical analysis of data stemming from the World Competitiveness Index of Regions, and identifies regional competitiveness as a dual concept that explains relative differences in rates of economic development across regions, as well as an understanding of the future economic growth trajectories of regions at a similar stage of economic development. As with endogenous growth and development theory, the notion of regional competitiveness presented here places knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurship at the forefront of conceptualisations of regional economic differentiation.

Towards a knowledge society

Economies are moving towards competitive stadiums based on knowledge and innovation. The changing environment and the level of globalization demand important efforts in order to sustain competitive advantages. Portugal has experienced a remarkable evolution since its adhesion to the European Union in several fields: economic development, Research & Development (R&D) consolidation, health parameters and social cohesion. As other developed economies, Portugal started its journey towards a knowledge-based economy and has been consolidating an innovation system during the last 35 years. The following report aims to analyze the evolution of a system since its creation to its last transformation within a globalized context. Challenges such as the lack of maturity of the system, the economic crisis, the European paradox, and closing the gap with other European countries are addressed in the next chapters. Likewise, recommendations on these points are provided by the end of the report as potential solutions.

Demand-based structural change and balanced economic growth

[eng] We analyze the equilibrium of a multi-sector exogenous growth model where the introduction of minimum consumption requirements drives structural change. We show that equilibrium dynamics simultaneously exhibt structural change and balanced growth of aggregate variables as is observed in US when the initial intensity of minimum consumption requirements is sufficiently small. This intensity is measured by the ratio between the aggregate value of the minimum consumption requirements and GDP and, therefore, it is inversely related with the level of economic development. Initially rich economies benefit from an initially low intensity of the minimum consumption requirements and, as a consequence, these economies end up exhibiting balanced growth of aggregate variables, while there is structural change. In contrast, initially poor economies suffer from an initially large intensity of the minimum consumption requirements, which makes the growth of the aggregate variables unbalanced during a very large period. These economies may never exhibit simultaneously balanced growth of aggregate variables and structural change.