Transportation sector has been a major contributing factor to the overall emissions of most pollutants and thus their impacts on the environment. Among all transportation activities, on-road travel accounts for most part of the Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and fuel use. It also has a very un-desirable impact on the transportation network conditions increasing the traffic congestion levels. The main aim of transportation planning agencies is to implement the policy changes that will reduce automobile dependency and increase transit and non-motorized modes usage. However, planning agencies can come up with proactive economic, land-use and transportation policies provided they have a model which is sensitive to all the above mentioned factors to predict the vehicle fleet composition and usage of households. Moreover, the type of vehicle that a household gets (vehicle type choice) and the annual mileage (usage) associated with that vehicle is very closely related to the person in the household who uses that vehicle the most (allocation to primary driver). So, it is no longer possible to view all these decisions separately. Instead, we need to model all these decisions- vehicle type choice, usage, and allocation to primary driver simultaneously at a household level. In this study, we estimate and apply a joint household-level model of the number of vehicles owned by the household, the vehicle type choice of each vehicle, the annual mileage on each vehicle, as well as the individual assigned as the primary driver for each vehicle. A version of the proposed model system currently serves as the engine for a household vehicle composition and evolution simulator, which itself has been embedded within the larger SimAGENT (for Simulator of Activities, Greenhouse emissions, Networks, and Travel) activity-based travel and emissions forecasting system for the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) planning region. / text

In year 2030 approximately six out of every ten people will live on the urban area. This movement is especially strong in Asias mega cities like for example Tokyo, Delhi, Mumbai and Shanghai. Accelerating globalization is driving us towards the situation where each little peace of transportation must be optimized to gain space, time and efficiency to reduce the greenhouse effect. Personal transportation is a sector which will inexorably face major changes. It might not be as acceptable as it is nowadays. It is simple. Cars are unefficient the way they appear at the moment. To be able to accept them as a part of the future traffic, they need to be designed differently. Future personal transportation must be able to multitasking outside of traffic. It is important that the usage ratio would be improved considerably compared to the current one. When autonomous driving technology enter the market, a big step towards expanding the scope of the vehicles will be taken. It is still consequential to undestand that improving efficiency will not only require Cutting-Edge technology. With re-designed constructions and the creation of new ideas and preferences, one can also go far. While the vehicles are being redesigned, it is also necessary to renew the way people perceive it. If users adopt a new kind of vehicle ideology, it will lead to a positive development curve. The used design process was rather traditional. The research phase was started in January being followed by an ideation phase. After ideation the project moved in to the refinement phase and ultimately to the execution of the design in form of 3D-model and at the end physical model. Measurements and proportions were tested in Virtual Reality and in 2D 1:1 scale so that the correct size of the scale was secured since the project incorporates a space intended for living and longer stays. The Final Result is a new type of vehicle construction that appears in two main piece. It is designed to be more efficient and to serve the user in another dimension as well. Project Heliotrope combines future transportation with temporary living by transforming the vehicle's cabin into a part of your housing while tarveling. The secondary function will in fact become firstrate importance in the optimal situation, when traveling time will be shorter in relation to living time. This is the way that future transportation should be seen and designed. Driving becomes the seconday function. The Lexus Heliotrope styling is audacious and different. It does not obey the proportions or main lines of existing sedans. One of the main goals of the design has been to show the vehicle's duality, which is an important part of the concept. The architecture coprises two side-forming panels, the interposed capsule forming the vehicle cab. The design respects Lexus's traditional front graphics giving it the familiar softness from the past, instead of current murderous sharpness. The center of the visual balance is closer to the rear axle that is well known Lexus trademark. The top view introduces a beautifully flowing design that also shows the typical organic nature of the brand. A long, streamlined body can be seen as a very long lasting design.

China has blossomed from going from one of the poorest economies to a financial leader. The private consumption in China has grown 8,3% annually the last two decades. The dining out expenditures have grown 10,2%, and is an exciting market for foreign entrepreneurs to establish themselves in. Previous research has suggested that foreign Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises should join forces with a Chinese counterpart in order to get access to market experience and network contacts, in order to succeed in the Chinese market (Wilson and Brennan, 2003). Deng (2001) claims that the most popular investment vehicle Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise increases in popularity among all company sizes.   This dissertation aims to investigate to which extent MSME foreign entrepreneurs use networking and guanxi, depending on ownership registration. A qualitative research method was used with an abductive approach and an interpretivist research philosophy to explore this phenomenon. The results of this thesis show that foreign entrepreneurs can start up successfully both as WFOEs and JVs. WFOEs and JVs share many of the same contacts, but networking activities and usage of guanxi has some influencing factors. The Registration Status of company influence strategic networking decisions, the perception and expectation of the nature and benefits of guanxi and perceived necessity of gift giving also affected the networking activities.  JV owners perceive guanxi contacts to be necessary to succeed in China and finds cultivation and utilization of it to be beneficial.  Entrepreneurs who establish Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprises both use and have a more “Western” approach to social networking, and almost exclusively don’t have guanxi contacts. The Investment Vehicle Network Scheme shows that JVs have more complex networks than WFOE, since they receive Chinese guanxi and networking contacts through their partners. The Guanxi Network Ownership Model shows the network intensity during the startup phases of the companies. The research also indicates that guanxi smoothens out the start-up process for the entrepreneurs who enter JVs.

There is a housing shortage in attractive urban areas in Europe and Sweden. The waiting lists for affordable rental housing are increasing and that in turn creates pressure on owner-occupied housing. Inflated asset prices and household debt have become a major concern for policy makers. Shared ownership is a mixture of equity and debt, therefore, a mixture of owner-occupation and rental accommodation. In the UK it´s used by the non-profit sector to help households to buy their own home. In this research a shared ownership model is developed for the Swedish property market. The model is commercially viable and used to extend traditional mortgage finance. The findings suggest that the proposed model can increase household affordability and lower their exposure to the financial markets. An investor will gain a market rate of return and access a market segment different from rental housing, shared ownership is an investment in owner-occupational housing. The major drawback of the model is the relationship between the bank and the investor. The bank will require priority to the collateral which results in a complicated and inflexible model. Further research should investigate the possibility of sharing collateral which would result in a simpler and more flexible model. / Bostadsbristen i europeiska och svenska storstadsregioner har resulterat i långa köer till rimliga hyresrätter. Detta har ökar pressen på bostadsrätter och ökat hushållens skuldsättning, vilket ses som ett potentiellt hot mot ekonomin. Hybridköp av bostäder innebär att bostadskonsumenten hyr en del av bostaden och köper den andra. I Storbritannien subventioneras detta av staten för att hjälpa hushåll att köpa sin bostad. Målet med denna studie är att skapa en modell för hybridköp i Sverige. Modellen kommer att komplimentera bostadslån och drivas på kommersiella grunder. Resultatet av studien visar att konsumenten kan ökar sin köpkraft och minska exponeringen mot den finansiella marknaden. Investeringen har en marknadsmässig avkastning och ger en möjlighet att investera i bostadsrätter och småhus, ett segment som skiljer sig från hyresrätter. Den största nackdelen är att banken kommer att kräva prioritet till säkerheten som ligger i bostaden vilket resulterar i en komplicerad modell. Fortsatta studier borde utforska möjligheten att dela säkerheten mellan investeraren och banken.

I maj 2009 infördes ägarlägenheter i Sverige. Ägarlägenhetsinnehavaren har äganderätt till skillnad från en bostadsrättsinnehavare som endast innehar nyttjanderätt. Bostadsformen har hittills inte haft den genomslagskraft som förväntades av lagstiftaren. I Norge är möjligheten att äga sin lägenhet mer etablerad än i Sverige. Syftet med detta examensarbete var att se om fastighetsbildningsprocessen för ägarlägenheter kan göras effektivare genom att jämföra den med Norges bildningsprocess för eierseksjoner, vilken benämns seksjonering. Handlingar som upprättats i samband med fastighetsbildning respektive seksjonering granskades för att ta reda på hur hanteringen skiljer sig däremellan. Intervjuer med sakkunniga i Sverige och Norge genomfördes via personlig kontakt och e-post för att få en djupare kunskap i hur fastighetsbildningen och seksjoneringen går till. En komparativ metod, där den norska seksjoneringen av eierseksjoner ställdes mot den svenska fastighetsbildningen för ägarlägenheter, användes för att utreda om fastighetsbildningen för ägarlägenheter kan effektiviseras. Seksjonering av eierseksjoner och fastighetsbildning av ägarlägenheter skiljer sig en del i hur mycket ansvar som ligger hos exploatören  Gemensamma utrymmen regleras mer vid bildning av ägarlägenheter än vid bildning av eierseksjoner. Gränserna mellan enheterna i de olika fallen skiljer sig speciellt då det för ägarlägenheter upprättas fastighetsgränser där lantmäterimyndigheten upprättar en koordinatförteckning, bruksgränserna som dras för eierseksjoner har inte samma noggrannhet. Att införa ändringar i ansökan hämtat från hur den sker i Norge vid seksjonering, och att upprätta en checklista för gemensamma utrymmen som den sökande fyller i, och ändring av fastställningen av de gemensamma utrymmena, är möjligheter till effektivisering av fastighetsbildningen för ägarlägenheter. / In may 2009 the condominium ownership model was introduced in Sweden. The owner has ownership, unlike with the condominium user right model where the owner only has a legal right to use the apartment. So far, the ownership model hasn’t had quite a breakthrough, as expected by the Swedish legislator. In Norway, the condominium ownership model is more established. The aim of this study was to see if the real estate formation of the Swedish condominium ownership model can be made more effective, by comparing it with the formation of theNorwegian condominium ownership model. Documents created in conjunction with the two separate formation processes has been reviewed to find out the differences between the two. Interviews with experts in the area, in both Sweden and Norway was carried through face to face and by e-mail, to get a deeper understanding in the formation process. A comparative method, where the Norwegian formation process of the Norwegian model was compared to the Swedish model, was used to find out if the formation for the Swedish model can be more effective. The formation of the Norwegian model and the real estate formation of the Swedish model differentiate a bit in how much responsibility the real estate owner has. Shared spaces are being more regulated at the formation of the Swedish model than the Norwegian model. The real estate boundaries between the units in the different cases separate especially when the real estate boundaries being determined for the Swedish model and the Swedish cadastral authority establish a coordinate list. The user right boundaries made for the Norwegian model don’t have the same accuracy. To introduce changes in the application from how it works in Norway, and establish a checklist for the shared spaces that the person who apply complete, and impliment changes of the establishment of the shared spaces, are possibilities to make the formation more effective for the Swedish model.

Close to two decades after the break-up of the Soviet Union, there is still a marked difference in developmental paths, including institutional as well as economic development and performance among the states emerging from the ruins of the vast empire. Turning attention to the least successful post-Soviet region, Central Asia, and Tajikistan in particular, this thesis provides a contribution to the discussion of how to institutionalize social power and build the foundations for political community in post-colonial societies. It is argued here that increased institutional stability may be achieved through inter-organizational cooperation among main actors within an institutional setting. Through the dispersion of intra- and inter-organizational effects of cooperation beyond the action situations where they are produced, several goals may be achieved. These are increased predictability, transparency and durability in governance, a more equitable distribution of wealth, and (in relation to the kinship-foundation of Tajik society) the embracing of kin-divisions in society. The study examines how and why organizations decide to get involved in cooperative collective activities within the Tajik cotton industry, an industry infamous for its unscrupulous financing schemes to which local investors tie farmers; schemes lacking business ethics and the interconnection of the social and economic with political relations. The study, through an embedded case study of one project (the Farmers’ Ownership Model), also examines the institutional implications of inter-organizational collective activities. The study’s empirical base is a combination of data derived from literature, reports, reviews of official documents, as well as from interviews and an expert survey conducted among organizational representatives with expert knowledge on the Tajik cotton industry.                The results suggest that it is possible to divide the forms of cooperation into three broad categories; business based cooperation, development and support-based cooperation and unilateral cooperative activity. The latter category contains interactions based on helping as well as on coercion. The motives for cooperating follow the same divisions, with profit and position-related motives dominating business-based cooperation. Development and support-based cooperation are primarily motivated by non-profit factors, such as community-(re)building and knowledge enhancement, as well as position-related motives. Within the group of unilateral interactions, the same divisions valid for business-based cooperation (unilateral cooperative activity based on coercion) and development and support-based cooperation (unilateral cooperative activity based on helping) are found. The actors approached for this study confirm that the institutional setting is “difficult” and that the social and political climate is not supportive of inter-organizational cooperative collective activities. Despite this, the actors agree that the time is right for cooperative efforts. The implications of inter-organizational cooperative collective activities within the frameworks of the examined Farmers’ Ownership Model project are many and important from a stabilizing perspective. Numerous strategic effects have been identified, among which is the creation of the first open farmer-owned joint stock company in the country, providing crop financing, high quality input, and technical assistance to the farmers in the northern Sugd region.  This is the most tangible effect, as is legislative change related to the marketing of cotton. The learning and knowledge-creation effects as a result of inter-organizational interactions within the project are also substantial. Client as well as non-client farmers have, through the technical assistance provided through the project company, managed to improve awareness in terms of their legal status. In addition, the technical assistance component of the project has served to improve productivity and the quality of the cotton grown. Despite indications of attitudinal changes within the action situations examined, there is no clear-cut evidence of trust effects at the institutional level. The results of empirical examination of the Tajik cotton industry to a large extent support the central thesis of the study.

New digital distribution and value capture models have emerged on the global music industry scene in the last ten years. These models are highly dependent on a strong underlying communications and broadband internet infrastructure which is largely present in most developed markets. South Africa, however, is a developing country whose broadband infrastructure is still nascent and not as widely available or accessible. Due to the permeation of mobile technology, most broadband internet access is likely to occur through the mobile networks in most developing markets. This stands in stark contrast to developed markets where broadband internet access occurs primarily via fixed line infrastructure with mobile as a secondary option.This research set out to investigate whether digital value distribution and value capture models which succeeded in developed countries would be suitable for the South African music industry given the broadband infrastructure constraints and the different internet access methodologies prevalent in this developing market. This research employed an exploratory research methodology in order to investigate this question and found that a mixture of value distribution and value capture models would address the entire market requirement, with mobile-centric digital distribution models being most suitable for mass market deployment. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted