Transnational private authority, regulatory space and workers' collective competences: Bringing local contexts and worker agency back in

The impact of transnational private regulation on labour standards remains in dispute. While studies have provided some limited evidence of positive effects on 'outcome standards' such as wages or occupational health and safety, the literature gives little reason to believe that there has been any significant effect on 'process rights' relating primarily to collective workers' voice and social dialogue. This paper probes this assumption by bringing local contexts and worker agency more fully into the picture. It outlines an analytical framework that emphasizes workers' potential to act collectively for change in the regulatory space surrounding the employment relationship. It argues that while transnational private regulation on labour standards may marginally improve workers access to regulatory spaces and their capacity to require the inclusion of enterprises in them, it does little to increase union leverage. The findings are based on empirical research work conducted in Sub-Saharan Africa.

IN DUBIO PRO NATURA? A Philosophical Analysis of the Precautionary Principle in Environmental and Health Risk Governance

In this book, I apply a philosophical approach to study the precautionary principle in environmental (and health) risk decision-making. The principle says that unacceptable environmental and health risks should be anticipated, and they ought to be forestalled before the damage comes to fruition even if scientific understanding of the risks is inadequate. The study consists of introductory chapters, summary and seven original publications which aim at explicating the principle, critically analysing the debate on the principle, and constructing a basis for the well-founded use of the principle. Papers I-V present the main thesis of this research. In the two last papers, the discussion is widened to new directions. The starting question is how well the currently embraced precautionary principle stands up to critical philosophical scrutiny. The approach employed is analytical: mainly conceptual, argumentative and ethical. The study draws upon Anglo-American style philosophy on the one hand, and upon sources of law as well as concrete cases and decision-making practices at the European Union level and in its member countries on the other. The framework is environmental (and health) risk governance, including the related law and policy. The main thesis of this study is that the debate on the precautionary principle needs to be shifted from the question of whether the principle (or its weak or strong interpretation) is well-grounded in general to questions about the theoretical plausibility and ethical and socio-political justifiability of specific understandings of the principle. The real picture of the precautionary principle is more complex than that found (i.e. presumed) in much of the current academic, political and public debate surrounding it. While certain presumptions and interpretations of the principle are found to be sound, others are theoretically flawed or include serious practical problems. The analysis discloses conceptual and ethical presumptions and elementary understandings of the precautionary principle, critically assesses current practices invoked in the name of the precautionary principle and public participation, and seeks to build bridges between precaution, engagement and philosophical ethics. Hence, it is intended to provide a sound basis upon which subsequent academic scrutiny can build.

Corporate governance ja omistajaohjaus - valtioenemmistöiset yhtiöt ja valtion osakkuusyhtiöt

Tutkimuksessa muodostetaan osakeyhtiön corporate governance - viitekehys lähtien sen taustateorioista ja -malleista sekä käsitteistä. Tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan osakeyhtiön yhtiöoikeudellisia toimielimiä sekä niiden tehtäviä ja keskinäisiä suhteita. Tutkimusmetodina käytetään oikeustaloustieteellistä lainoppia. Erityisenä tutkimuskohteena ovat valtioenemmistöiset yhtiöt ja valtion osakkuusyhtiöt. Julkisen sektorin uudelleenorganisoinnin ja tehokkuusvaatimuksien vuoksi valtion omistamien yhtiöiden merkitys tullenee jatkossa kasvamaan. Osakkeenomistajien residuaalisen vaateen perusteella yhtiökokouksella on osakeyhtiön ylin päätösvalta. Yhtiökokous voi kuitenkin lähtökohtaisesti päättää vain sille lain tai yhtiöjärjestyksen mukaan kuuluvista tehtävistä. Hallituksella on yleistoimivalta, jonka perusteella hallitus vastaa kaikista niistä hallinnon tehtävistä, joita ei ole osoitettu muille toimielimille. Toimitusjohtaja vastaa juoksevan hallinnon hoitamisesta sekä kirjanpidon lainmukaisuudesta ja varainhoidon järjestämisestä luotettavalla tavalla. Hallintoneuvoston tehtävät rajoittuvat nykyisin lähinnä yhtiön muun johdon valvontaan. Useimmissa osakeyhtiöissä on oltava myös tilintarkastaja, jonka on tarkastettava yhtiön kirjanpito, tilinpäätös, toimintakertomus ja hallinto. Valtioenemmistöisten yhtiöiden ja valtion osakkuusyhtiöiden yhtiöoikeudellisten toimielinten asema ei lainsäädännön tai corporate governance - suositusten perusteella poikkea muista yhtiöistä. Vaikka yhtiön toimielinten vastuuketju on aiempaa selkeämpi, niin yhtiökäytännössä toimielinten tehtävien tosiasialliset rajat vaihtelevat suuresti riippuen erityisesti yhtiön toiminnan laajuudesta, omistusrakenteesta ja toimialasta.

CSR : a new governance approach for regulating professional sport ? : the case of french professionnal sports clubs

The purpose of this paper is to examine the CSR practices and their implementation in the context of French professional sports clubs. In doing so, it analyses the link between the governance of sports clubs and CSR, which is viewed as a component of governance expanded to stakeholders and contributing to the creation of shared value. Drawing on interview data with key stakeholders of four professional sport clubs (football and basketball) and secondary material, the study sheds light on the determinants, the implementation as well as the impact of CSR on the governance of the professional clubs under examination.

Improving anterior deltoid activity in a musculoskeletal shoulder model - an analysis of the torque-feasible space at the sternoclavicular joint.

Modelling the shoulder's musculature is challenging given its mechanical and geometric complexity. The use of the ideal fibre model to represent a muscle's line of action cannot always faithfully represent the mechanical effect of each muscle, leading to considerable differences between model-estimated and in vivo measured muscle activity. While the musculo-tendon force coordination problem has been extensively analysed in terms of the cost function, only few works have investigated the existence and sensitivity of solutions to fibre topology. The goal of this paper is to present an analysis of the solution set using the concepts of torque-feasible space (TFS) and wrench-feasible space (WFS) from cable-driven robotics. A shoulder model is presented and a simple musculo-tendon force coordination problem is defined. The ideal fibre model for representing muscles is reviewed and the TFS and WFS are defined, leading to the necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a solution. The shoulder model's TFS is analysed to explain the lack of anterior deltoid (DLTa) activity. Based on the analysis, a modification of the model's muscle fibre geometry is proposed. The performance with and without the modification is assessed by solving the musculo-tendon force coordination problem for quasi-static abduction in the scapular plane. After the proposed modification, the DLTa reaches 20% of activation.

Peatlands and plantations in Sumatra, Indonesia : Complex realities for resource governance, rural development and climate change mitigation

Peatlands play a crucial role in Indonesia's economic development, and in its stated goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Improved peatland management - including a national moratorium on the granting of any new conversion licenses - forms a cornerstone of Indonesia's climate change mitigation commitment. At the same time, rapid expansion of the plantation sector is driving wide-scale drainage and conversion of peat swamp ecosystems. The province of Riau, in central Sumatra, finds itself at the crossroads of these conflicting agendas. This essay presents a case study of three islands on Riau's east coast affected by industrial timber plantation concessions. It examines the divergent experiences, perceptions and responses of communities on the islands. A mix of dramatic protests, localised everyday actions and constructive dialogue has succeeded in delaying or perhaps halting one of the concessions, while negotiations and contestation with the other two continue. With the support of regional and national non-governmental organisations and local government, communities are pursuing alternative development strategies, including the cultivation of sago, which requires no peat drainage. While a powerful political economy of state and corporate actors shapes the contours of socio-environmental change, local social movements can alter trajectories of change, promoting incremental improvements and alternative pathways.

Urban transport governance reform in Barcelona

The unusual mixed public-private structure of the urban bus market in the metropolitan area of Barcelona provides an interesting context in which to analyze the management challenges and opportunities of the partial privatization of public services. Initiatives used by the public regulator to promote competition for contracts, such as short term concessions to private contractors and the removal of entry barriers, have considerable potential for improving efficiency and quality. The growth in the share of routes managed by private firms in recent years shows that privatization is a credible threat that may well stimulate improved performance among public managers. The type of reform implemented in Barcelona is of interest to all metropolitan areas large enough to operate under constant returns to scale regimes, and suitable for potential concessions of routes in segregated areas inside the metropolitan area, so as not to miss out on the benefits of economies of density.

Which governance for which Olympic sport organization? : a postface

This brief conclusion suggests that, although governance is an important goal for sport organizations, it must be applied by taking into consideration the type of sport organizations, in particular whether the organization is an association of moral or physical persons and whether these persons are direct beneficiaries or not of the organization.