abstract: Research literature were reviewed regarding the land-use economic theory of bid-rent curves and the modern emergence of polycentric cities. Two independent Geographic Information System (GIS) analyses were completed to test the hypothesis that bid-rent methodology could be used to tease out trends in residential locations, and hence contribute to present-day urban planning efforts. Specifically, these analyses sought to address the relationships between place of work and place of residence in urban areas. A generalizable set of benchmarks for identifying urban employment centers were established for 10 study cities in the United States, and bid-rent curves were calculated under separate monocentric assumptions and polycentric assumptions. The results presented wide variations in real bid-rent curves that a) overall deviated dramatically from the hypothetical distribution of rent, and b) spoke to the unique residential patterns in individual U.S. cities. The implications of these variations were discussed with regard to equitable housing for marginalized groups and access to centers of employment. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.U.E.P. Geography 2014

Esta pesquisa analisa um conjunto de 76 decisões proferidas pelo Tribunal de Contas da União Brasileiro, relativas às irregularidades de sobrepreço em contratos de obras publicas federais licitadas e executadas, com o objetivo de identificar estratégias de captura de renda e as respostas da Corte de contas. Estas decisões são denominadas de acórdãos e foram selecionadas pelo próprio Tribunal para servirem de paradigma para futuras decisões. A pesquisa identificou 4 diferentes estratégias de captura de renda envolvendo manipulação de índices referenciais de preço de itens unitários e verificou que as determinações contidas nos acórdãos analisados limitam-se a corrigir a irregularidade e a penalizar os responsáveis com multas previamente conhecidas. / The study analyzes 76 decisions made by the Brazilian Supreme Audit Court, regarding overpricing irregularities in public bidding contracting for federal construction and execution, in order to identify rent-seeking strategies and Court responses. These decisions are called \"acórdãos\" and they were selected by the Supreme Audit Court to guide future decision making. The study identified 4 different rent-seeking strategies involving the manipulation of price reference indexes for unit items and it also verified that the decisions are limited to correct the irregularity and to penalize the responsible ones with prior known fines.

Essa dissertação tem como objeto de estudo o preço da terra como elemento político na produção pública de habitação e na produção do espaço em Curitiba. A habitação de interesse social configura-se hoje como um falso problema. Falso, não porque as carências no setor habitacional não existam e não se configurem enquanto um problema. É um falso problema porque sua formulação está baseada somente em explicações economicistas que ignoram o preço da terra como um elemento político. Para a reformulação do problema da habitação a partir de suas características intrísecas, a produção da Companhia de Habitação Popular de Curitiba foi analisada desde a sua fundação em 1965 até o ano de 2010, ano de início dessa pesquisa, demontrando a relação entre o preço da terra e as transformações das tipologias e localização de unidades habitacionais produzidas. Demonstra-se ainda que ao longo dos diversos planos, projetos e leis elaborados, principalmente pelo Instituto de Pesquisa e Planejamento Urbano de Curitiba e pela Companhia de Habitação Popular de Curitiba o discurso sobre o preço da terra como problema e a descrição da natureza de problema que ele constitui, diverge ao longo do tempo, bem como as soluções formuladas que normalmente tem o sentido de buscar terras mais baratas ao invés de pautar o preço destas. Os principais elementos apontados pela COHAB-CT ao longo de sua história como limitantes para a produção habitacional: a escassez de terra, a especulação imobiliária e o alto preço da terra, são desconstruídos e aparecem como políticas de obscurecimento à medida em que naturalizam o preço da terra e o tornam um elemento reificado, sempiterno e imutável. Imutável não no sentido que este não varie, mas no sentido de que este varia sem qualquer relação com os processos de produção e reprodução do capital e portanto sem possibilidades de intervenção. Esse desvelamento do obscurecimento da formulação do preço da terra como problema na produção da habitação popular e, por consequência, o desvelamento do problema da habitação, acabam por demonstrar o embricamento da Companhia de Habitação Popular de Curitiba nos movimentos do mercado imobiliário. / The present dissertation has the purpose of studying the price of the land as a political factor on the public housing production and on the production of space in Curitiba. The social housing figures today as a false problem. False, not because the needs in the housing sector supposedly don\'t exist or don\'t figure as a problem. It is false because its formulation is based only on economistic explanations that ignore the price of the land as a political factor. To reformulate the housing question based on its intrinsic characteristics, we analyzed the production of the Companhia de Habitação Popular de Curitiba - COHAB-CT (popular housing company of Curitiba), considered the period from 1965 to 2010, the year the present research started, demonstrating the relation between the price of the land and the transformation of the typologies and locations of the housing units produced in the period. It is also demonstrated that, after several plans, projects, and laws passed, drafted in many cases by the Instituto de Pesquisa e Planejamento Urbano de Curitiba (Urban planning and research institute of Curitiba) and the Companhia de Habitação Popular de Curitiba (popular housing company of Curitiba), the discourse about the price of the land as a problem, and the description of the nature of the problem that it makes up, differ during the period, as well as the solutions given, which, normally, has the sense of seeking cheaper lands instead of stating their price. The main factors pointed out by COHAB-CT, during its history, as limits to the housing production, are: the lack of land, the property speculation and the high price of the land. These factors fall down and show up as eclipsing policies as far as they naturalize the price of the land and make it up reified, everlasting, and immutable. Immutable not in a sense that it doesn\'t vary, but in the sense that it varies without relation to the processes of production and reproduction of Capital, therefore without possibilities of intervention. The unveiling of the eclipsing policies within the formulation of the price of the land as a problem within the popular housing and, as a consequence, the unveiling of the housing question, end up to demonstrate the interwoven of the Companhia de Habitação Popular de Curitiba (popular housing company of Curitiba) and the movements of real estate market.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2016-04-12T15:52:27Z No. of bitstreams: 1 lucasguedesvilasboas.pdf: 3842812 bytes, checksum: e6dc34ca34aa887a5e3a7d6434318b95 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2016-04-24T03:31:48Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 lucasguedesvilasboas.pdf: 3842812 bytes, checksum: e6dc34ca34aa887a5e3a7d6434318b95 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-24T03:31:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 lucasguedesvilasboas.pdf: 3842812 bytes, checksum: e6dc34ca34aa887a5e3a7d6434318b95 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-01-15 / CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / No panorama nacional, houve um intenso processo de êxodo rural, ocasionado devido a processos como a mecanização agrícola e a especulação fundiária, que repercutiram nas dietas alimentares dos brasileiros. A alimentação é importantíssima à saúde dos indivíduos, garantindo-lhes o suprimento de nutrientes indispensáveis ao funcionamento ideal de seus organismos. Destarte, esta dissertação almeja analisar e comparar a alimentação de um grupo populacional recém-migrado para a cidade com a de um conjunto de habitantes do campo, que não possua nenhum vínculo com procedimentos agroecológicos ou movimentos sociais. Para este objetivo, o trabalho utiliza a categoria de análise segurança alimentar, pois se julga que esta possui muitos aspectos concernentes à relação entre agricultura e dieta alimentar e permite a averiguação de aspectos relacionados à alimentação e à saúde dos pesquisados. O local de estudo é o município de Nepomuceno, situado na mesorregião Sul/Sudoeste de Minas Gerais, que possui sua economia assentada sobre a agricultura, sobretudo na produção cafeeira. A pesquisa engloba a agricultura municipal, sobretudo a familiar, almejando avaliar elementos como os insumos urbano-industriais utilizados na produção agrícola, as formas de renda fundiária encontradas no campo em Nepomuceno, entre outros. A renda da terra foi uma categoria utilizada no estudo, pois possibilita a constatação de relações e processos tipicamente capitalistas no campo. As modalidades de trabalho e de arrendamentos presentes no contexto municipal também foram analisadas, assim como as repercussões da especulação fundiária e imobiliária na dinâmica agrícola local. Para a averiguação da segurança alimentar dos grupos estudados, aplicou-se o questionário da Escala Brasileira de Insegurança Alimentar (EBIA) em quarenta imóveis camponeses e em quarenta domicílios citadinos de Nepomuceno. Ademais, outros aspectos que influenciam na segurança alimentar dos indivíduos, como o alcoolismo, a obesidade, o uso de agrotóxicos, os problemas psicológicos, entre outros, também foram avaliados. Neste contexto, o diálogo com os sujeitos da pesquisa, bem como um tempo mais prolongado de contato com eles, foram cruciais ao desenrolar deste estudo. Assim, o estudo pretende mostrar algumas das influências da questão agrária na alimentação dos homens e mulheres estudados, reverberando, consequentemente, na saúde deles. / On the national scene, there was an intense process of rural exodus, caused due to processes such as agricultural mechanization and land speculation, which had an impact on Brazilian food diets. Food is very important to the health of individuals, guaranteeing their supply of nutrients essential for the optimal functioning of their bodies. Thus, this work aims to analyze and compare the power of a newly migrated population group to the city with a number of rural inhabitants who do not have any link with agroecological procedures or social movements. For this purpose, the study uses the analysis category of food security, because conceives it is thought that this has many aspects concerning the relationship between agriculture and diet and allows the investigation of aspects related to food and health of responders. The study site is the municipality of Nepomuceno, located in the middle South/Southwest region of Minas Gerais, which has its economy based on agriculture, mainly in coffee production. The research covers the municipal agriculture, especially the family agriculture, aiming to evaluate elements like the urban-industrial inputs used in agricultural production, forms of the land rent found in the field in Nepomuceno, among others.The land rent category will be used in this analysis because it enables the realization of relations and typically capitalist processes in the field. Working and leases arrangements present in the municipal context were also analyzed, as well as the repercussions of land and property speculation on local agricultural dynamics. For the investigation of food safety groups, applied the questionnaire of the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale (EBIA) in forty farm properties and forty city homes of Nepomuceno. Furthermore, other aspects that influence food security of individuals, like alcoholism, obesity, use of pesticides, psychological problems, among others, were also evaluated. In this context, dialogue with the research individuals and a longer period of contact with them, were crucial to the conduct of this study. Thus, the study aims to show some of the influences of the agrarian question in the feed of men and women studied, reverberating consequently on their health.

Deteriorating quantity and quality of wetland ecosystem services is a major challenge for the conservation of the Lawuba wetland: socioeconomically the most important wetland area in Swaziland. In response, this study was designed to assess local dependent communities’ factual knowledge of the benefits and threats to the wetland, and their attitudes towards its conservation. In addition, the study employed environmental valuation techniques to estimate the annual economic value of the wetland’s fibre provisioning services and four notions of resource rent associated with the harvested fibre: rent on fibre consumed on site as a final product; and rent on fibre transported for 90 kilometres to Manzini market where it is sold, either as a final product or used as an intermediate input in the production of handicrafts. The fibre ecosystem service was specifically selected on account of its socioeconomic significance. Value of the fibre provisioning service was estimated using market price-based methods, while the magnitude of the different notions of resource rent was estimated using the net price method. A random sample of 63 respondents was used to provide data on the benefits, threats, attitudes, and annual economic value which households attach to the harvested fibre. This sample also provided data used to compute the resource rent associated with fibre harvested and consumed on-site. A random sample of 5 respondents provided data used to compute the resource rent on fibre transported and sold in Manzini as a final consumption good. Finally, a random sample of 5 respondents provided data used to compute the resource rent on fibre manufactured at Lawuba and sold in Manzini. Households had high levels of knowledge of the benefits and threats to the Lawuba wetland. They also had positive attitudes towards its conservation. Chi-square and ANOVA tests rejected the null hypothesis of no association between household: (i) knowledge of the benefits derived from the wetland and income (F = 12.67, p = 0.000), (ii) knowledge of the threats endangering the wetland and education (χ2 = 38.474, p = 0.000), (iii) knowledge of the threats endangering the wetland and income (F = 7.25, p = 0.000), (iv) attitudes towards its conservation and income (F = 13.320, p = 0.000) and (v) attitudes towards its conservation and gender (χ2 = 11.854, p = 0.003). The value of fibre provisioning services was estimated at between US $20,310 and US $32,673 per annum, which translates to US $70 per capita per annum. Magnitude of the resource rent increased along the value chain as theory would predict. It was estimated at US $1.92 (for fibre harvested and consumed on site), US $2.27 (for fibre sold at Manzini as a final product), and US $18 (for fibre manufactured at Lawuba and sold in Manzini). Inasmuch as the study established a positive resource rent, no institutions currently exist for rent capture and appropriate re-investment to support sustainable wetland conservation. The study thus recommends the need to set up suitable resource management institutions. / Dissertation (MSc Agric)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / gm2014 / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / unrestricted

La composition des parcs électriques nationaux est basée sur le classement des différents moyens de production par rapport à leur coût marginal de génération d’électricité. Ainsi, les réserves considérables d’hydrocarbure dans les pays producteurs de pétrole ont favorisé l’usage abusif du pétrole ou du gaz naturel dans le parc de production d’électricité. L’objectif de ce travail de recherche est d’analyser des parcs de production pour ces pays producteurs en construisant le parc optimal d’électricité concernant l’usage rationnel (du point de vue économique) des différents moyens de génération d’électricité. Dans ce travail, nous évaluons la situation actuelle et future de la production d’électricité en Arabie Saoudite, en Egypte et en Iran grâce à plusieurs approches de modélisation : linéaire, dynamique et statistique. Ensuite, nous allons mener une analyse de sensibilité afin d’évaluer l’optimalité et l’efficacité de la production d’électricité en tenant compte de l’intégration des autres ressources alternatives non-carbonées. / National power generation mix composition is based on the ranking (merit-order) of the various means of production from their marginal cost of electricity generation. Thus, significant reserves of hydrocarbons in oil-producing countries favoured the abusive use of oil or natural gas in the electricity mix. The purpose of this research is to analyze the power generation mix of these countries by constructing an optimal electricity mix based on the rational use (from an economic point of view) of various electricity production means. In this work, we assess the current and future situation of electricity production in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran, thanks to linear, dynamic and statistical modeling efforts. Thereafter, we will conduct sensitivity analysis to measure the optimality and efficiency of electricity generation by taking into account the integration of alternative non-fossil-fuel based resources.

This dissertation analyses the South African Rental Housing Act 50 of 1999 ("the RHA") with the aim of determining whether the RHA sufficiently protects the landlords‘ rights and interests as opposed to those of tenants (which it does indeed safeguard). Due to the current saturation of rental property in South Africa, landlords are no longer in an advantageous a position as before. In fact, the RHA was introduced to redress the imbalance caused by discrimination against tenants. However, times have changed. The researcher submits that the RHA needs to be re-examined in light perception of the landlord as a consumer. Having regard to both common and foreign law, the researcher identified the following four fundamental legal and practical rights on the part of the landlord: the right to freely contract; the right to safeguard financial interests; the right to safeguard proprietary interests; and the right to evict a defaulting tenant. The research reveals that the RHA does not give adequate recognition to these fundamental legal rights, and accordingly does not sufficiently protect the landlord as a consumer. In total nineteen recommendations how the RHA can adequately recognize and protect the landlord‘s interests are made.

The diploma thesis is focused on the problems in the sector of rental and co-operative housing since the nineties of the twentieth century in the Czech Republic. Firstly the thesis deals with the description of the basic concepts such as housing, supply and demand for housing, housing policy and instruments through which it achievs its goals. Further the thesis analyzes the current situation in the housing stock and its allocation to individual sectors. The third chapter concentrates on the issue of rental and co-operative housing. This chapter provides ample space for development of regulation as well as deregulation of rents. The end of the chapter foccuses the attention on the issue of social housing not only in the Czech Republic but also in selected countries of the European Union. The last two chapters deal with state housing support, where in addition to promoting the supply side mentioned is also housing benefit and satisfaction with living in the Czech Republic.

Countries with rich natural resource endowments suffer from lower economic growth and various other ills. This work tests whether the resource curse also extends to the quality of regulation and the level of corruption. A theoretical framework is developed that informs the specification of interactive random effects models. A cross-national panel data set is used to estimate these models. Due to multicollinearity, only an effect of metals and ores exports on corruption can be discerned. Marginal effects computations show that whether nature corrupts or not crucially depends on a country's institutions. A broad tax base and high levels of education appear to serve as inoculations for countries against the side-effects of mineral wealth.

This diploma thesis on „Apartment rent and the influencing factors in the village of Kyjov “ aims to analyze and to compare housing costs of advertised flats in Kyjov area. Its objective is to examine the factors responsible for shaping the costs of private housing. Found data has been classified into following categories (1+1 a 1+kk, 2+1 a 2+kk, 3+1 a 3+kk). There is a map available for each category where particular flats are recorded according to the amount of housing charges.