Kriteeristö energiatehokkuuden toteutumiseksi kaupungin julkisissa rakennushankkeissa

Työssä esitetään kriteeristö tehostamaan energiatehokkuuden toteutumista kaupungin julkisissa rakennushankkeissa. Kriteeristön tarkoituksena on edistää julkisen uudisrakennushankkeen energiatehokkuutta, ottaen huomioon hankkeen kokonaistaloudellisuus. Energiatehokkuutta ja kokonaistaloudellisuutta kunnallisessa rakentamisessa stimuloivat mm. kansainvälisten ja kansallisten sopimusten energiansäästötavoitteet, sekä kuntien tiukka budjettitilanne. Jotta kokonaistaloudellisuustavoitteet täyttyisivät, työssä käytettiin hyväksi elinkaariajattelutapaa. Työssä selvitettiin kirjallisuuden ja ammattilaisten haastattelujen tarjoaman tiedon pohjalta, mitkä näkökohdat vaikuttavat julkisen palvelurakennuksen energiatehokkuuteen sen elinkaaren eri vaiheissa. Hankitun tiedon avulla luotiin kaupungin rakennusinvestointien hankinnasta vastaavien tahojen käyttöön tarkoitettu kriteeristö, joka auttaa tunnistamaan ja valitsemaan energiatehokkuuden ja kokonaistaloudellisuuden kannalta parhaimmat hankkeen toteutustavat. Jatkotoimenpiteenä työssä laadittua kriteeristöä tullaan kehittämään edelleen case-kohteista saatavien kokemusten perusteella. Tutkimus osoitti, että uudisrakentamisen energiataloudellisuuden lisäksi on panostettava energiataloudelliseen korjausrakentamiseen, koska olemassa oleva rakennuskanta muodostaa merkittävän osan kaupungin energiankulutuksesta.

Balance between education- and research-oriented publications from a Brazilian University Hospital

We analyzed the trends of scientific output of the University Hospital, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. A total of 1420 publications were classified according to pattern and visibility. Most were non-research publications with domestic visibility. With time, there was a tendency to shift from non-research (or education-oriented) publications with domestic visibility to research publications with international visibility. This change may reflect new academic attitudes within the institution concerning the objectives of the hospital and the establishment of scientific research activities. The emphasis of this University Hospital had been on the training of new physicians. However, more recently, the production of new knowledge has been incorporated as a new objective. The analysis of the scientific production of the most productive sectors of the hospital also showed that most are developing non-research studies devoted to the local public while a few of the sectors are carrying out research studies published in journals with international status. The dilemma of quality versus quantity and of education versus research-oriented publication seems, however, to continue to exist within the specialized sectors. The methodology described here to analyze the scientific production of a university hospital can be used as a tool to better understand the evolution of medical research in Brazil and also to help formulate public policies and new strategies to include research among the major objectives of University Hospitals.

Sobre a economia política do desenvolvimento e a contribuição dos serviços

On the political economy of development and the contribution of services. This paper aims to ponder on recent approaches to Political Economy of Development, that bring about new concepts about the role of services activities in the economic development process. The analysis begins by checking the new attributions of services entailed by the productive paradigm changes that have occurred since the 1970's. Then, it examines the debate about the new kind of society, called "post-industrial", which is centered in the services dynamics. Finally, it discusses the relevance of social capital disponibility, as a prime factor to attain economic development

El éxito del Mercosur posible

The success of the possible Mercosur. Mercosur can be observed from two different perspectives. One from an ideal integration project, whose reference is the European Union. The other, based in the profound prevailing asymmetries within the region and the progress achieved since the founding bilateral agreements of presidents Alfonsin and Sarney, in 1985. From the first perspective, Mercosur in a failure; from the second, it has achieved considerable success. The integration process is displayed in three levels: the national density prevailing in the member countries, the rules of the game of the system and the common standings vis a vis the rest of the world. The future of Mercosur depends on progress achieved in these three levels and the opening of new possibilities of national development for each member country in a regional framework.

Pluriatividade e política pública: o caso do Sul do Brasil

The growth of contingent of pluriactive farm families (pluriactivity) has increasingly been accepted as important in reducing rural poverty and unemployment since at least two decades in the EU and very recently in Brazil. This paper supports that, differently from the EU, in the South Brazil, region of modern capitalist agriculture, it is hard to the pluriactivity to grow through the years, and in order for it to increase the public policies, it must be led mainly to avoid the exclusion of the small farms, their gradual abandonment of the traditional agricultural activities, and not only to offer them non agricultural occupations.

O milagre irlandês como exemplo da adoção de uma estratégia nacional de desenvolvimento

This paper discusses the Irish experience in the 90s, and details the main aspects of the impressive and rapid transition from a situation of excessive indebtedness, economic stagnation and high unemployment to sustainable growth. The presence of a national development strategy seems to be the crucial institutional tool that allowed this transition.

Trabalho infantil e o status ocupacional dos pais

Child labor and the parents' status of employment. The objective of this paper is to verify the hypothesis of the effect of the status of employment of the head of the family on the occurrence of child labor, as well as to analyze other characteristics which can influence such behavior. A probit model was used to realize the statistical tests. The results ratify the hypothesis proposed that the families whose head works as an independent worker show higher probability for the occurrence of child labor than those whose head works as a formal salaried worker. Among other results, it must be highlighted, making simulations, that increasing parents' schooling is more efficient than augmenting income to reduce the use of child labor. These results endorse the proposition that the status of employment should be used, complementing the criteria of income per capita, to select families in the cash transfers programmes or others to eradicate child labor.

A globalização no Brasil: responsável ou bode expiatório?

After the sequence of structural adjustments decisions suggested by the IMF, Brazilian economy became wider opened, as the consequences from financial globalization were stronger than those from commercial globalization. Nevertheless, social and economical reality didn't show much improvement. On the contrary, figures on economic increase and inequalities show Brazil behind the average of developing countries. Even if the effects caused by "mondialisation" on weakened economies are well known, globalization can not be taken as the only guilty of weak economic increase, for maintaining the high level of inequalities or for the increase of precariousness. Responsibility must be searched on high inequalities in where operates "mondialisation", on weakness of public policies, on irresponsible way of opening of the economy and in fiscal policy in favor of financial sector. Other countries have reached quite different results, once the have adopted different public policies, which goal was to establish control and reduction upon the negatives effects of globalization.

O neoliberalismo na America Latina

Neoliberalism in Latin America. Neoliberalism and globalization had decisive influence in shaping public policies both internal and foreign in Latin America. Less state, trade and market freedoms, social goals subordinated to economic criteria, are part and parcel of the neoliberal utopia. Price stability was erected as the main social objective; import substitution resulted replaced by exports as the main source of growth. The neoliberal net results as applied to Latin America are: less growth, deindustrialization, income concentration and precarious employments. Therefore, countries public policies should try to gain autonomy to use jointly markets and public intervention in a constructive and innovative fashion.

Instituições e políticas regionais: uma proposta para a nova Sudene

Sudene is the Brazilian Federal Agency for Northeast development. The Agency was recreated last year and this article discusses the possibility of its success. The main point argued here is that financial incentives per se are not the best way for a sustained economical and social progress. It is necessary a change in the institutions which maintain the status quo of the underdevelopment. The article shows the Sudene history and the motives of its failure.

Democracia e eficiência: a difícil relação entre política e economia no debate contemporâneo

Democracy and efficiency: hard relations between politics and economy. Many economists see politics as an irrational activity. They also think state action usually generates market inefficiencies and democratic institutions, such as elections, often work as obstacles to sound economic measures. Showing that vision has been embedded into the main currents of economic thought since the last century, we also argue those ideas are exported to great part of contemporary political science, including the area of public policies. Examining the literature, we show that rational choice political scientists, as the economists, claim governability and effective decisions will be guaranteed mainly through concentrated arenas or through insulated arrangements able to protect policy makers from political interference. In other words, governability depends on the reduction of the political arenas. On the contrary, we reject this technocratic solution of splitting politics from economy. With the support of classical pluralist thinkers, we stand another conception, arguing politics is the privileged social space for building interests and values in an institutionalized way. The difficulties to surpass current international crises since 2008 reveal this is a crucial problem: reducing politics would prevent societies from improving institutional solutions which are the only ones able to give space to emerging conflicts and, then, reach eventual consensus around them.

Estado, bloco no poder e acumulação capitalista: uma abordagem teórica

State, power block and capitalist accumulation: a theoretical approach. This article aims to elaborate a theory, based on Poulantzas, about the role of the State in a capitalist economy through a relational perspective that perceives the State as a field and a strategic process for the disputes of class fractions within the power bloc. In order to do so, it exposes the relation between State and accumulation at an abstract-formal level, emphasising the limitations of studies that use only this dimension. Next, it analyzes the role of the power bloc in mediating between the abstract and concrete levels of the State, observing that public policies are elaborated as a result of the clashes within the power bloc. Finally, it promotes a discussion on the external constraints (international system) that are affected and affect the State and, consequently, the dynamics of the power bloc.

Políticas productivas y competitividad industrial: El caso de Argentina y Brasil

This article aims, on the one hand, to analyze the increase of productive asymmetries between Argentina and Brazil that have been evidencing during the last two decades, and are currently reveled in the structural trade deficit of industrial products that affects Argentina in the bilateral relationship. On the other hand, it intends to contribute to understanding the roots of these asymmetries based on the differences in the public policies implemented by both countries during the period extending from the implementation of the Mercosur, in the early 1990s, until 2008. The focus is set on the technological pattern of industrial production and trade structures, considering a non neutral impact over the long term development.

On the creative economy chain in Brazil: potential and challenges

ABSTRACT The article presents an analysis of the Creative Economy in Brazil, showing its development potential for the generation of income and employment, in order to the country's development resumption. They are initially presented concepts and features of the Creative Economy for, in sequence, to analyze the economic development profile and potential of this industry in Brazil. The empirical part introduces some methodological aspects, in continuing with the analysis of the creative chain contribution to the generation of Value Added and employment in the country, and a vision of their foreign trade.potential. Finally, the challenges to the implementation of public policies are investigated.

Investigating the environmental risks of transgenic crops

Legitimation of public policies that support the widespread plantings of transgenic crops presuppose, among other conditions, that (1) evidence supports that there are no unmanageable environmental risks and (2) there are no better ways to produce enough nourishing food that can dispense with the transgenics-oriented ways. This paper discusses: (a) the kinds of scientific inquiry that are needed to address (1) adequately, (b) the connections between investigations of (1) and (2), and (c) how these investigations are related with controversial social values.