This research examined how public policy addresses long-term societal challenges. The case study focused on policy narratives and frames of resource efficiency in the ‘Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe’ of the European Commission (EC). The study followed an interpretive constructionist perspective on public policy and assumed a research strategy based on a single critical case study. The literature review examined perspectives on policy narratives, frames, knowledge and social learning in the interpretive policy analysis and organisation studies literature. Foresight and futures literature also provided insights on the use and nature of knowledge and policy learning in the process of deliberation of future visions. The empirical enquiry was based on a series of in-depth interviews with policy stakeholders, formal EU policy documents and speeches as well as participation in targeted policy events. The thesis makes contributions in three areas. First, the study developed and applied a new conceptual and methodological approach – a policy narrative framework analysis(POLFRAME) – to examine different discursive and narrative layers of policy narratives of the resource efficiency agenda. The framework can lend itself to interrogate any policy narrative, notably ones with explicit or implicit future scenarios and vision. Second, the policy case study contributed to knowledge on the evolving EU policy area of resource efficiency, addressing challenges of the sustainable use of natural resources. The research provided insights into how a complex societal, economic and environmental challenge of resource efficiency was understood by different stakeholders and intentionally framed in the official policy narrative. The emerging EU agenda on resource efficiency was intentionally reframed to advance a broader approach to environmental policy that moves beyond a traditional goal of environmental protection towards a systemic transition of economic system to achieve decoupling of economic growth from environmental impacts. While the study found evidence of a significant shift in scoping the challenge, their framing has not led to radical changes in underlying normative assumptions on the relation between nature and society or on the central role of economic growth in transition. Third, the research discussed theoretical implications of introducing a long-term challenge-driven perspective to public policy narratives. Introducing a future vision to policy narrative added a stronger normative orientation to policy argumentation. The case study demonstrated that an inclusion of a long-term societal challenge to the resource efficiency agenda influenced the selection, interpretation and use of evidence in policy narratives. The design of challenge-driven long-term policies bears a family resemblance to the perspective of post-normal science. Finally, the thesis puts forward messages and recommendations for policy makers and practitioners interested in the process of radical policy reframing. It also suggests further research encompassing a comparative dimension and longer periods of enquiry of policy frames, which would allow for better understanding the effects of the reframing of policy on various phases of policy cycles.

Low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs) have a higher mortality-to-incidence ratio for breast cancer compared to high-income countries (HICs) because of late-stage diagnosis. Mammography screening is recommended for early diagnosis, however, current screening guidelines are only generalized by economic disparities, and are based on extrapolation of data from randomized controlled trials in HICs, which have different disease burdens and all-cause mortality compared to LMICs. Moreover, the infrastructure capacity in LMICs is far below that needed for adopting current screening guidelines. This study analyzes the impact of disease burden, infrastructure availability, and other cause mortality on optimal mammography screening schedules for LMICs. Further, these key features are analyzed under the context of overdiagnosis, epidemiologic/clinical uncertainty in pathways of the initial stage of cancer, and variability in technological availability for diagnosis and treatment. It uses a Markov decision process (MDP) model to estimate optimal schedules under varying assumptions of resource availability, applying it to six LMICs. Results suggest that screening schedules should change with disease burden and life-expectancy. For countries with similar life-expectancy but different disease burden, the model suggests to screen age groups with higher incidence rates. For countries with similar incidence rate and different life expectancy, the model suggests to screen younger age groups for countries with lower life-expectancy. Overdiagnosis and differences in screening technology had minimal impact on optimal schedules. Optimality of screening schedules were sensitive to epidemiologic/clinical uncertainty. Results from this study suggest that, instead of generalized screening schedules, those tailored to disease burden and infrastructure capacity could help optimize resources. Results from this study can help inform current screening guidelines and future health investment plans.

The EU integration process has led to severe changes in policy-making. On the one hand, authority shifted from the national level to the EU. On the other hand, national level executives have gained power relative to the national legislatures. However, since the Treaty of Lisbon entered into force, scholars argue for a comeback of national legislatures. In Germany, parliamentary standing committees have gained considerable power throughout these developments. Nonetheless, their traditional role as policy shaper is contested among scholars. Thus, clarification of their role is needed. While, previous analysis has mainly focused on the Bundestag as a unitary actor. This thesis investigates the role of two standing committees of the Bundestag – Ausschuss für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung and Ausschuss für Gesundheit – in the EU policy-making process across two different competence areas emerging due to the Lisbon Treaty. To answer the research questions, semi-structured interviews with committee members have been conducted. The results of the study show a diverging picture. The members of the Ausschuss für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung are considerably constrained in their ability to act as a policy shaper. The members of the Ausschuss für Gesundheit can secure their policy-shaping powers to a great extent. The former committee lacks these qualities concerning the shift of an increasing amount of policy authority in agriculture to the EU, the restricted use and abilities of the Early Warning Mechanism and the constrained ability to influence the minister’s position in the Council. The members of the latter are more successful in securing policy authority in public health at the national level by making use of the EWM. Nonetheless, the restricted ability to influence the minister’s position in the Council is present, too. We can conclude that the Ausschuss für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung has inherited the role of a scrutiniser and executer meanwhile the Ausschuss für Gesundheit can be described as policy shaper.

Achieving sustained economic growth and development has been an area of concern for policy-makers in the Anglophone Caribbean since the transition from colonial rule to self-governance. To date, the researcher did not find any research that has explicitly examined the role of policy-making effectiveness as a strategy for achieving the goals of sustainable development. This qualitative multiple case study of Barbados and Grenada was conceptualized from the perspective of critical theory from the World Commission on Environment and Development to explore and understand why sustainability has not been sufficiently realized and how sustainable development may be pursued in territories that are small and prone to hazards. Purposive sampling was used to identify 30 candidates for the study. Eighteen key policy-makers participated in semi-structured interviews. Secondary data from publicly available government documents in Barbados and Grenada were acquired. All data were inductively coded and data analysis was carried out at three levels using thematic, content, and cross-case analyses. Key findings suggest a need exists to increase understanding of the concept of sustainable development and the unique characteristics of the territories to enable policy-makers to better define the safe operating space for human development. Recommendations for positive social change include advice to strengthen institutional capacity across the full spectrum of policy-making practice for sustainable development including mechanisms to promote a learning culture and accountability in policy-making practice in the Anglophone Caribbean, particularly among those territories that are small and prone to hazards.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(医学) / 甲第24285号 / 医博第4901号 / 新制||医||1061(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院医学研究科医学専攻 / (主査)教授 髙折 晃史, 教授 小杉 眞司, 教授 佐藤 俊哉 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Medical Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

This thesis examines the political economy of national ownership in situations of aid-dependent and oil-dependent, with particular reference to the case of the reconstruction of the healthcare system in Timor-Leste. The study demonstrates that, in a range of areas, the FRETILIN government (2002-2007) was able to exercise some autonomous decision-making even though it was heavily aid dependent. Conversely, under CNRT government (2007-2017), elites were empowered by oil resources and consequently they had greater control over development. The study identifies three main approaches used in development policy-making: patronage-based, populist and rationalist, and argues that, from 2002 onwards, the Timorese government generally used patronage-based strategies that benefitted elite political networks, increasing corruption. However, the creation of a ‘modern’ healthcare system that would benefit future Timorese generations was central to elites’ political ideology and consequently healthcare became subject to populist rather than patronage-based politics. Analysis of four key health programmes, funded separately by the World Bank, the Cuban government, WHO, and USAID, shows that ownership in the field of healthcare has become concentrated among powerful groups (donors, elites, MoH, and the Church). Meanwhile, health professionals, who advocate a liberal approach, lack a political voice. These case studies indicate that the Paris Declaration’s focus on country ownership to ensure better aid delivery was unrealistic because, in reality, ‘ownership’ becomes subject to contestation among powerful actors with different power resources. Findings on the analysis of the four programmes also suggest that Timorese elites did not worry much about healthcare, rather than it being ‘central’ to their ideology. / Directorate General of Resources for Science, Technology and Higher Education, Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education of Indonesia

The demand for social housing has grown recently more than its supply, particularly in the United Kingdom (UK). The existing literature addresses the lack of a sustainability policy and its contribution to the lack of political intent to support the achievement of social housing homeownership predominantly under the Right-to-Buy. This research highlights that several government projects have failed in the past to deliver satisfying outcomes for the public; thus, their value to social housing tenants and public value has been largely neglected. The main aim of this research project is to evaluate social housing policies through the lens of public value that drives the decision-making process and to construct a conceptual framework to enhance the accountability and efficiency of social housing tenants in the context of local government. This has been achieved through key research objectives and the key citizens, barriers and recommendations have been explored to enlighten social housing sustainability policy. This conceptual framework was tested in UK local government authorities and with local citizens who had recently started to address diverse sustainability factors in terms of social housing policy. The result was a qualitative case study enquiry based on the use of focus group-interviews, the vignettes approach and documentary evidence to explore the validity of the conceptual framework as a tool for supporting the decision-making process in this field. The findings obtained from the in-depth case study provided an insight into the social housing evaluation criteria and the influences of a sustainability policy from both a practical background and an internal organisational perspective. The findings addressed the poor affordability of a whole-life value of a property, insufficient funding due to austerity, poor legal frameworks, poor governance, a lack of suitable designs for social cohesion, poverty, the well-organized use of resources and environmental protection.

Since the establishment of People's Republic of China in 1949, Chinese think tanks have experienced significant development during the transformative process of China's political reform and modernization, and their influence has become more notable than before. However, think tanks historically have been given little attention by the public as well as social scientists in China, so scholarly study on Chinese think tanks is limited. This thesis explores the political roles and characteristics of Chinese think tanks by investigating the transformation and classification of Chinese think tanks from 1949 to the present. Furthermore, through a case study of one of the significant projects in contemporary China—the Three Gorges Project—this thesis examines the performance and influence of three Chinese nonpolitical think tanks—the Chinese Academy of Social Science (CASS), the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) on the process of government policy-making in China. Based on this analysis of Chinese think tanks, I draw the conclusion that professionalism and institutionalization are very urgent requirements for contemporary China's think tanks. / Master of Arts

The overall health of marine resources is deteriorating since last few decades, raising serious concerns. At the same time, multiple policies aid liberalizing international trade regulations and enhancing fisheries subsidies, affecting ecological dynamics in fisheries sector. Such policies boost economic growth by generating welfare gains. On the other hand, if such policies are myopic, it might lead to excessive harvesting which does not give the resources a chance to recover. As a result, in the long run, declining stock leads to high harvest cost and loss of potential revenue. Therefore, the inherent ambiguity of long term welfare effects of such policies needs further investigation. Furthermore, the concern of declining environmental health has affected consumer's choices in buying seafood products. It has been observed that sustainably sourced seafood products earn significant market premium. This relatively new demand trend gives rise to `consumer stock effect' where value of fish increases with the increase in it's stock. This effect might lead to significant implications for optimal fisheries management. This doctoral thesis analyses welfare and management implications of economic determinants including international trade, subsidies and consumer preferences in fisheries. More specifically, the thesis attempts to answer whether the above mentioned economic aspects lead to a positive or negative outcome on both ecological resources and economic growth in the long run. Using a mix of qualitative and quantitative approach to investigate the problems, this thesis shows that both trade liberalization and fisheries subsidies impact resource stock negatively. In terms of long-run welfare, trade may affect high-income and low-income countries differently, whereas subsidies affect welfare depending on the health of the stock size in long run. Furthermore, consumer preferences for sustainability can significantly influence long-run harvest pattern under optimal management, where catches will be much lower than without considering the consumer preferences for sustainability.

Yes / The concept of smart city is emerging as a key strategy to tackle the problems generated by the urban population growth and rapid development. It is widely recognised that Information and Communications Technology (ICT) play a key role in addressing some of the urban societal challenges such as improving energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions. Although there are various ICT tools providing intelligence and services relating to energy consumption and monitoring processes, they mostly tend to work in isolation. Therefore, this paper presents the outcomes and impacts of the concept of DAREED which aims to deliver an integrated ICT service platform to drive energy efficiency and low carbon activities at neighbourhood, city and district levels. Furthermore, the research highlights the need for ICT-driven policy making using platforms such as DAREED in the context of e-Government. This paper contributes to the current understandings of e-Government literature in terms of how ICT can help public authorities and stakeholders such as policy makers to achieve and drive energy efficiency. From a practical stance, the paper offers valuable insights to public administrations on how ICT can be used to address pressing societal challenges such as efficient energy use and facilitate better policy making.