In this contribution to the history of theory, the author reconsiders the impact of the Latin American dependency paradigm on Europe. The analysis does not deal with the reception of the Latin American dependency school itself, the focus lies on elements of this school as they were used to explain the European situation in the 1970s and 1980s. For that purpose, it delineates research networks and their analyses of core-periphery relations in Europe. All these networks had a critical attitude towards the old development paradigm. Some called it development "from above" or "to the outside". A new paradigm was to include strategic elements of a "selective spatial closure" and "self-reliance". For many, the European integration process played an important role in their estimates of future developments. Much of this analysis still seems relevant and topical today. The author considers it fruitful to take up the research agenda of the "European dependency school", to re-define it and adapt it to altered contemporary circumstances.

This thesis is a manifestation of efforts to integrate FM into the development process through a greater involvement of Facilities Managers in the property development industry. It also presents an original contribution to knowledge in a form of a validated best practice, which is identified as the facilities management-development process (FM-DP) integration framework. The framework potentially serves as a guide to Facilities Managers and other professionals in various organisations in the property development industry to optimise the value of Facilities Management (FM) in the development project and to achieve sustainable development. The study was conducted as an exploratory sequential mixed methods design in order to identify the issues that limit Facilities Managers from being involved in the property development industry, when they are known to be an appropriate professional to optimise the value of FM in the development process. Qualitative approach has been used as a core component of this research in order to obtain confirmation of the critical issues obtained from the literature review. To develop the framework, a survey questionnaire was used followed by relevant statistical procedure and analysis. To ensure validation, a member-checking approach was implemented through focus group interview. The validated framework reveals that there are 52 best practices to be considered by Facilities Managers or other professionals in the property development industry to optimise the role of FM in the development process for sustainable development. In addition, the framework discovers that best practices are required in all stages of the development process. Nevertheless, Stage 4: Technical Design is crucial, as it requires most of the best practices that drive the integration of FM into the development process. The framework demonstrates a ‘killing two birds with one stone’ strategy: (i) exploiting the framework is expected to increase the profile of FM among other professionals, (ii) encouraging a greater involvement of Facilities Managers in the property development industry, which (iii) leads the project to a sustainable development agenda.

Effective distribution of hydrogen in refinery hydrogen networks is a major concern for refiners tackling the stringent specifications on maximum sulphur levels in middle distillates and the increasing global demand of diesel fuel. A major challenge is the implementation of a shift from conventional to ultra-deep methods of desulphurisation. Meanwhile, the capacity of secondary conversion processes such as fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) and hydrocracking in refineries has steadily increased in converting the bottom of the barrel into high-value lighter products resulting in increased levels of hydroprocessing, which exerts a higher demand on refinery hydrogen systems. Previous methodologies on hydrogen network optimization have been developed mainly based on the assumption of fixed hydroprocessing performance with constant hydrogen consumption and light hydrocarbon yields, in order to reduce the complexity of the optimisation problem. Consequently, critical interactions among feed and catalyst properties, hydroprocessor operating conditions, product quality and yields, and hydrogen consumption are usually neglected. This research work involves three major aspects: 1. Development of semi-empirical nonlinear lumped hydrodesulphurisation (HDS) and hydrocracker models that are robust and sufficiently detailed to capture the behaviour of the process with changes in feed characteristics and operating conditions. The formation of light hydrocarbons during HDS reactions have been accounted for. Hydrocracker conversion models and five/six-lumped product yield models for vacuum gas oil (VGO) and vacuum residue (VR) feedstocks have been developed from a combination of first principles and empirical methods based on several process parameters. The proposed models are validated with different feedstocks and shows good agreement with industrial data. 2. Integration of HDS and hydrocracker performance models into refinery hydrogen network models to explore existing interactions between processes and the hydrogen network, and their combined effect on the overall network objective. 3. Optimization of the overall superstructure under different operating scenarios to facilitate the efficient distribution and utilization of hydrogen and the maximization of clean high-value products. The integrated superstructure network model is developed and optimized within the General Algebraic Modelling System (GAMS). The model is representative of the dynamic interactions between hydrodesulphurisation and hydrocracking processes in the refinery hydrogen network as demonstrated by the reproducibility of industrial refinery data. Thus, this work presents a holistic and realistic implementation of refinery hydrogen management technique.

The aim of this thesis is to explore the different forms of global integration and artistic and economic performance factors in order to explain their contribution to the development of film industry as one of the &ldquo / core cultural industries&rdquo / (Hesmondhalgh, 2007, s. 12) accepted as &ldquo / the driver of local economic development at selected locations like cosmopolitan cities&rdquo / (Scott, 2004a, p. 463). In this regard, this thesis attempts to explore globalization process of film industry within different forms of integration and artistic and economic success factors for films and film companies. The main hypothesis of the thesis is that globally integrated film industry is the outcome of artistic and economic successes at film, firm, and organizational level and the function of strong local and global networks, different forms of production strategies and social network structures as well as the high level of social, human, and material capital. Thus, while film, firm and organization specific variables and their effects are tried to be examined for economic performances / human, social, and economic capitals are explored for artistic performances. For the identification of the level of global integration and artistic and economic successes for Istanbul film industry both qualitative and quantitative methods are employed together with social network analysis throughout the thesis. In this way, this thesis describes the types and levels of integration for the case study area and evaluates its relative successes gained in the domestic market with the perspective of global film market. The analyses show that it is a fast growing industry in Istanbul and has managed to succeed in global market at different levels with different strategies. However, the findings demonstrate that production organization of film industry, which is generating economic growth in domestic market / remain incapable against the changing dynamics of film industry in global market. It is still small scale industrial activity and located on the periphery of global film market. For the global integration and sustainable economic growth, it seems very difficult to maintain the existing dynamics of film production in Istanbul.

The imminent consequences of the deteriorating state of the socio-ecological systems pose significant challenges to the well-being of society and societal functioning. The financial sector, specifically banks, plays a crucial role in the transition toward sustainable development because they hold the financial resources and the power to allocate these resources. For banks to contribute to this transition, credit risk assessment (CRA) can serve as an impactful process for sustainability integration. However, as CRA is a well-incorporated process within banks, it is unclear if it is strategic enough to support a transition toward sustainability. This research, therefore, aims to analyse the key gaps, opportunities, and limitations for integrating sustainability considerations into the credit risk assessment process using a strategic sustainable development (SSD) lens. The Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD) was used as a conceptual framework to give a better understanding of the sustainability challenge and to analyse how credit risk assessment can contribute to sustainable development. Data were collected through document review and semi-structured interviews with practitioners from Nordic banks who have relevant experience to explain how banks incorporate sustainability into their credit risk assessment practices within corporate lending and credit. A semi-systematic literature review was also done to determine the views and methods of integrating sustainability considerations into the credit risk assessment process according to academic literature. The findings were structured using the FSSD’s 5-Level Model (5LM) to identify the key gaps, limitations, and opportunities in literature and practice. The results suggest that the key gaps in integrating sustainability into the credit risk assessment process are sustainability data inadequacy, inaccessibility, incomparability, trustworthiness, and storage, and the qualitative manner of sustainability data. Further to these limitations is a competence gap where crucial skillsets needed include systems and sector-specific sustainability knowledge.

No description available.

Věra Thea Zoubková Europeanization of Urban Development Policy Comparative Case Study: UK and Germany Diploma Thesis Abstract This thesis deals with the vertical (top-down, bottom up) and horizontal Europeanization of urban development policy. Involvement in EU-sponsored programmes has provided urban institutions with unprecedented access to new sources of information, legitimacy, and financial support. This thesis seeks to evaluate whether European working has provoked shifts in the institutionalised norms and values at the national and city level, focusing on the experience of Great Britain and Germany. The legacy of the Bristol Accord and the Leipzig Charter, two examples of the uploading of national policy, is then examined. It can be argued that by drawing closely on domestic policy agenda, as well as wide ranging-nature of the agenda, little has resulted from the UK's contribution to the emerging EU urban agenda. This contrasts with the more sustained legacy of the Leipzig Charter. And third, the involvement of British and German cities, as well as impact of their participation in European urban cooperation programs is examined and evaluated. It is argued that previous experiences with the programs facilitate joining in other EU projects of city cooperation.

L'energia rappresenta un elemento fondamentale dell'architettura economica della regione euro-mediterranea. Tuttavia, le relazioni energetiche regionali non sono mai state analizzate all'interno di un comprensivo quadro analitico capace valutare il potenziale ruolo dell'energia come catalizzatore di nuove forme di cooperazione economica e politica a livello regionale. Questa tesi aspira a colmare questa lacuna della letteratura esistente, fornendo un'analisi basata sulla seguente domanda di ricerca: può un nuovo schema di relazioni energetiche euro-mediterranee rafforzare l'integrazione economica e politica della regione? Questa domanda di ricerca viene esplorata applicando gli strumenti analitici forniti da International Political Economy e funzionalismo a due casi studio rappresentanti i più importanti progetti di cooperazione energetica mai tentati nella regione: Nabucco e Desertec. Questa analisi non solo consente di trovare una risposta precisa alla suddetta domanda di ricerca, ma permette altresì di definire una serie di policy recommendations disegnate per aprire la strada ad un nuovo schema di cooperazione energetica euro-mediterranea finalizzato a rafforzare la più ampia integrazione economica e politica della regione. / Energy represents a cornerstone in the Euro-Mediterranean economic architecture. However, the regional energy relations have never been framed into a comprehensive analytical framework able to assess the actual potential role of energy in acting as a catalyst for the overall regional economic and political cooperation. This thesis aspires to fill this research gap by providing an analysis based on the following research question: could a new Euro-Mediterranean energy relations scheme strengthen the economic and political integration of the overall region? This research question is explored by applying the analytical tools provided by International Political Economy and Functionalism to two empirical case studies representing the most important energy cooperation projects ever attempted in the region: Nabucco and Desertec. This analysis not only allows to find an accurate answer to the research question, but it also permits to define a set of policy recommendations aimed at paving the way for a new Euro-Mediterranean energy cooperation scheme designed to strengthen the economic integration of the overall region.

Questa tesi offre un’analisi complessiva della posizione e del ruolo giocato dall’Argentina nell’economia globale durante l’ultimo decennio, attraverso l’uso di diverse metodologie tipiche dell’analisi economica. La ricerca parte dall’analisi della dimensione economica interna del Paese, fornendo uno studio della struttura produttiva dell’Argentina e del suo sviluppo economico. In seguito l’analisi si focalizza sullo studio delle variabili determinanti dei flussi commerciali dell’Argentina con i suoi partners regionali tramite un’applicazione econometrica del modello gravitazionale. Infine, si concentra sull’analisi del ruolo dell’Argentina nella gestione dell’economia globale studiandone il ruolo nel Fondo Monetario Internazionale, nel G20 e nel MERCOSUR attraverso un approccio di International Political Economy. Il risultato principale è la scoperta dell’esistenza di un collegamento tra la dimensione interna e quella esterna. Infatti la persistente instabilità macroeconomica e inappropriate politiche economiche adottate a livello nazionale provocano una perdita di competitività globale che potrebbe danneggiare nel lungo periodo la performance economica dell’Argentina, ostacolandone il raggiungimento dello status di Paese completamente sviluppato. Inoltre, populismo e nazionalismo economico stanno isolando l’Argentina dal resto della regione sudamericana e dal mondo, portando il Paese verso la condizione di ‘pariah’ nelle relazioni internazionali. / This thesis offers a comprehensive analysis of Argentina’s position and role within the global economy during the last decade, adopting different methodologies of the economic analysis. The focus of the research starts from the analysis of the domestic economic dimension of the country, providing a study of Argentina’s economic structure and development pattern. It then examines the study of the determinants of Argentina’s trading flows with its regional partners with an econometric application of the gravity model of international trade. It finally focuses on the analysis of Argentina’s global inclusion in the management of the global economy through the description of Argentina’s behavior in the IMF, the G20 and MERCOSUR with an approach taken from International Political Economy. The main finding is that there is a link from the internal to the external dimension, since persistent macroeconomic instability and inappropriate economic policies result into a lack of global competitiveness which might affect in the long run the economic performance of Argentina, preventing it from achieving the status of a completely developed country. Moreover, populism and economic nationalism are isolating Argentina from the rest of South America and the world, driving the country to the status of a ‘pariah’ in international relations.

Thesis (M.A. )--Miami University, Dept. of Educational Psychology, 2008. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 35-37).