根據世界銀行的資料顯示，佔全球面積約19%的2500萬平方公里之地球表面，及佔全球一半以上人口的34億人是相對的暴露在一個以上天然災害之威脅下。隨著全球化的來臨，我們居住在一個風險共享的社會中，而在全球環境安全被視為全球公共財的同時，如何在集體行動的邏輯下進行全球危機管理，已成為全球行動者的主要課題。例如如何透過國際合作來對抗SARS，禽流感等危機，皆是當前全球行動者關注的議題。值得注意的是，儘管近二十年來國際社會對於減災所做的承諾與投入的資源日益增加，災害所造成的經濟損失及受到災害影響之人口卻也逐漸上升。面對這些現象，本研究最主要想要探究的研究問題即在於什麼樣的因素影響著全球減災合作。 本研究主要的研究問題，係探求在全球行動者為何要參與減災合作，而此全球減災合作又如何運作的呢？全球減災合作、理性選擇與全球社會資本的分析架構將被運用。從理論上粹取的因素，例如風險意識、能力素養、偏好、制度限制、資訊、可信的承諾與信任等，被用來分析行動者如何決定參與合作，以及此合作如何運作。鑑於2004年印度洋海嘯所造成的重大傷亡以及後續國際社會對救災及減災的承諾，本研究將以印度洋海嘯預警系統的個案為例，並透過在4個國家共計22人次對參與此系統的國際行動者之訪談資料，以及對參與印度洋海嘯預警系統之人員發放共計591份問卷進行調查及分析，回收問卷目前共計61份，然進行論文分析時為59份。換言之，實際上的回收率為10.66%，而本研究用以分析之問卷回收率為10.32%。本研究最主要的發現為風險意識及能力素養的提升，結合理性選擇與社會資本的不同因素作用下，將對全球減災合作的結果有正面的影響。最後，本研究也對未來國際減災合作提出相關之建議。 / Writing on the issue of global environmental security, the World Bank has noted that approximately “25 million square kilometers (about 19 percent of the Earth’s land area) and 3.4 billion people (more than half of the world’s population) are relatively highly exposed to at least one hazard.” With the coming of the globalization era, we .also live in a shared risk society. Since global environmental security is seen as a global public good, how to act for global crisis management under the logic of collective action has become a primary subject for global actors. Coping with the crises of SARS or Bird Flu through international cooperation has become a significant issue for these global actors. One of the main dilemmas of international cooperation for disaster reduction is the reconciliation of different individual actions. Interestingly, in spite of two decades efforts of international cooperation, the amount of damage caused by natural disasters and the total number if people affected have gradually increased since the 1960s. This research focuses on two questions in the present research: why do global actors cooperate in disaster reduction, and how does this cooperation operate? The frameworks of international cooperation in disaster reduction, rational choice and global social capital are employed here, to explore the issue of international cooperation. Several factors, such as awareness of risk, capacity, preferences, institutional constraints, information, credible commitment, and trust, are used to examine how an actor engages in decision-making and how cooperation occurs. Because of the tremendous damage that resulted from the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 and the engagement of the global society in disaster recovery and reduction, the above issues will be explored through a case study of the development of the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System (IOTWS). Twenty-two interviews were conducted in four countries and these constitute the qualitative data for this analysis. 591 questionnaires also have been sent to the participants in the IOTWS to collect the quantitative data. I analyzed the quantitative data from 59 returned questionnaires (10.32% returning rate) and the qualitative data from 22 interviewees in four countries. These analyses resulted in several suggestions to facilitate international cooperation for disaster reduction.

The aim of this thesis is to explore how livelihoods are recovering in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka through the lens of the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and the social networks approach—methods of inquiry that have gained considerable impetus in livelihoods research. The study is conducted with reference to two tsunami-affected fisher villages in the Hambantota District, Southern Province. It employs a qualitative ethnographic methodology that examines narratives emerging from households, local officials of government and non-government organizations, office bearers of community-based organizations, local politicians, village leaders, and key informants. Focus is on evaluating how particular roles, activities, and behaviour are given importance by these groups in specific post-tsunami contexts and how these aspects relate to broader conceptualizations of social networks, informal politics, social inequality, and ethnographic research in South Asia. The findings support four major contributions to the literature. First, social networks are significant as an object of study and a method of inquiry in understanding livelihoods post-disaster. Second, paying heed to varied forms of informal politics is critical in post-disaster analyses. Third, the concept of intersectionality can extend and improve upon prevailing approaches to social inequality in disaster recovery. Fourth, ethnographic research is valuable for understanding everyday networks, informal politics, and change in South Asia. Collectively, these findings present a human geography of post-tsunami livelihoods in Sri Lanka, where networks, politics, and inequalities, which form an essential part of everyday livelihoods, have been reproduced in disaster recovery. The thesis constitutes a means of offering expertise in the sphere of development practice, highlighting internal differentiation in access to aid as a key issue that needs to be identified and systematically addressed by policymakers and practitioners.

In this work we review 12 years of developments in the field of residual based discretizations for hyperbolic problems and their application to the solution of the shallow water equations. Fundamental concepts related to the topic are recalled and he construction of second and higher order schemes for steady problems is presented. The generalization to time dependent problems by means of multi-step implicit time integration, space-time, and genuinely explicit techniques is thoroughly discussed. Finally, the issues of C-property, super consistency, and wetting/drying are analyzed in this framework showing the power of the residual based approach.

國內壽險公司面臨資金不斷累積與同業間激烈競爭，加上全球經濟動盪不安，國際金融偶有黑天鵝事件發生，尤以2008年金融海嘯重創全球產業為最，壽險業亦難以倖免，肇致壽險業者經營益顯艱困。因此，為維繫公司永續經營，規劃長期財務穩健性至關重要。是故，如何訂定投資策略與妥適資產配置，並兼顧風險管理，為當前壽險公司重要課題。 本研究分析郵政壽險資產配置行為，歸納影響公司資產配置之內、外在因素，例如流動性風險、利率風險、信用風險、資本適足率、匯率風險及法令規範等因素，皆影響資產配置策略。另為建構最佳資產配置，提升獲利，逐步改善財務結構，在現行法令限制下，運用Markowitz之投資組合理論為分析工具，導出效率前緣線，再運用夏普指標績效分析，來建立最佳投資組合。 另外分析壽險公司必須正視未來「國際會計準則」（International Financial Reporting Standards, IFRS）IFRS 4第二階段適用公平價值評估負債，利差損問題會更加嚴重，對業務發展與負債評價將產生巨大衝擊。尤其我國壽險業發行商品大都以長年期終身險為主，若壽險商品負債評價與資產不一致時，其缺口將因利率變化影響損益波動。 / Abstract Domestic life insurers are in a challenging environment with increasing asset size to manage and fierce competition within the industry. Moreover, the world economy is going down a bumpy path. Every now and then in the global financial system, we encounter a black swan event. Among them, the financial tsunami of 2008 hit global industries most severely. The financial tsunami of 2008 also left life insurers having an increasingly difficult time running the business. It is crucial to have sound long-term financial plans in order to ensure business sustainability. Therefore, how to form an investment strategy, determine asset allocation and manage risks at the same time becomes a critical issue for life insurers. The research studies the asset allocation behavior of Chunghwa Post insurance sector and lists both the internal and the external factors affecting asset allocation. Factors like liquidity risk, interest rate risk, credit risk, capital adequacy, currency risk and regulations all have some influence on the asset allocation strategy. Meanwhile, the research constructs efficient frontier with Markowitz Portfolio Theory and adopts Sharpe ratio as the performance measure to build an optimal portfolio under current regulations with the goal of optimizing asset allocation, boosting profits and gradually improving the financial structure. The research also studies the tremendous impact of IFRS 4 on business development and liability valuation of life insurance companies. The implementation of IFRS 4 Phase II will require fair value measurement of liabilities, which will exacerbate the negative interest spread problem. When the liability valuation approach of insurance products is not in line with asset valuation, the gap will intensify the income fluctuations from interest rate movements, especially for domestic life insurers whose main products are long-term whole life policies.

No description available.

中國大陸自西元1979年開始實行經濟改革政策，銀行體系同時經歷了三十年的改革發展，依據中國加入世界貿易組織之承諾，其必須於2006年12月11日全面開放外資銀行登陸投資。為了面對外資銀行業可能帶來的激烈競爭與挑戰，中國政府大力支持與協助國有商業銀行進行一連串的體制改造及上市計畫，近年來中國銀行業整體的表現十分亮眼。 兩岸政府於2010年6月29日簽署之兩岸經濟合作架構協議(ECFA)，正式地為台灣的銀行業開啟通往大陸投資的一扇門，此篇論文藉由全面的研究分析中國銀行業的發展，並透過比較中國、美國及台灣具代表性的銀行在獲利能力、資產品質、流動性風險管理及新巴賽爾資本協議規定指標遵循情形等四個面向的表現，以期提供有意赴中國大陸投資之銀行業者對於當地情況有更多的概念與了解。 / After thirty years of economic and financial reforms, banking system in China has transformed from rigidly controlled to marketization nowadays with a variety of banking institutions coexist in the financial market. Among different kinds of banking institutions, large state-owned commercial banks dominate over half of total banking assets, their huge scale allow themselves to have leading positions and monopoly power in China’s banking industry. Under WTO regulations China must fully open markets for foreign banks’ investment started on December 11, 2006, before that most large state-owned commercial banks have restructured into joint-stock companies and went public sequentially in order to enhance competition for fierce challenges brought from foreign banks. Attributing to China government’s effort and support, the overall domestic banking performance has made a lot of progress in the past few years. By comparing banking performance with USA and Taiwan in four aspects of profitability, assets quality, liquidity risk management and capital adequacy ability, the study results demonstrate that general performance of banking sector and large state-owned commercial banks in China have improved greatly and even better than advanced countries in some respects. The signing of ECFA between cross-strait governments on June 29, 2010 starts a new page of Taiwan banks’ development in China, the study suggests that in the initial stage banks from Taiwan can explore markets of corporate banking by using their expertise in loans for small and medium enterprises which are always neglected by banks in China, and by providing services to Taiwan business people in China to explore markets of consumer banking, and then gradually expand market share.

Nearly four decades of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-European Union (EU) relationship have witnessed the importance of ideas and identity alongside the economic interests in shaping the behaviour of the two sides. The study takes interest in understanding the EU’s actorness and the EU as a normative actor with and within Southeast Asia through a reflectivist lens. The thesis is an attempt to provide a new perspective on a relationship commonly assessed from an economic angle. It outlines the opportunity of non-traditional security (NTS) challenges to enhance EU actorness and normative influence in Southeast Asia. Against this backdrop, the study explores the dialogue and cooperative initiatives of two regions, which attach relatively little salience to each other. The study employs a NTS lens and draws upon the case of the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997-98, the haze in relation to forest governance, the Bali bombings of 2002 and the political conflict in Aceh. The study assumes that these NTS issues can stimulate processes of threat convergence as well as threat ‘othering’. It argues that these processes enhance European engagement in Southeast Asia and contribute to shaping regional stability in Southeast Asia. Furthermore, NTS crises present situations, where norms can become unstable, contested and substituted. This allows us to better examine the EU as a normative actor. To establish an understanding of the EU’s actorness and the EU as a normative actor, the empirical evidence will focus on the threat perceptions, motivations of action and activities of the EU and its member states. For the purpose of differentiating the EU as a normative actor, the study will also include the discussion of the normative objectives and behaviours of the EU and its member states and apply a reflectivist theoretical framework. Hypothetically, NTS crises trigger external assistance and normative influence and thus, they offer an opportunity to establish a more nuanced picture of the EU in the region. At the same time, the study acknowledges that there are a variety of constraints and variables that complicate the EU’s actorness. The thesis seeks to identify and discuss these. So far, scholarly publications have failed to apply the NTS perspective systematically. This thesis provides the first monograph-length treatment of the EU in Southeast Asia through a NTS and reflectivist lens.

One of the great challenges facing human systems today is how to prepare for, manage, and adapt successfully to the profound and rapid changes wreaked by disasters. Wellington, New Zealand, is a capital city at significant risk of devastating earthquake and tsunami, potentially requiring mass evacuations with little or short notice. Subsequent hardship and suffering due to widespread property damage and infrastructure failure could cause large areas of the Wellington Region to become uninhabitable for weeks to months. Previous research has shown that positive health and well-being are associated with disaster-resilient outcomes. Preventing adverse outcomes before disaster strikes, through developing strengths-based skill sets in health-protective attitudes and behaviours, is increasingly advocated in disaster research, practise, and management. This study hypothesised that well-being constructs involving an affective heuristic play vital roles in pathways to resilience as proximal determinants of health-protective behaviours. Specifically, this study examined the importance of health-related quality of life and subjective well-being in motivating evacuation preparedness, measured in a community sample (n=695) drawn from the general adult population of Wellington’s isolated eastern suburbs. Using a quantitative epidemiological approach, the study measured the prevalence of key quality of life indicators (physical and mental health, emotional well-being or “Sense of Coherence”, spiritual well-being, social well-being, and life satisfaction) using validated psychometric scales; analysed the strengths of association between these indicators and the level of evacuation preparedness at categorical and continuous levels of measurement; and tested the predictive power of the model to explain the variance in evacuation preparedness activity. This is the first study known to examine multi-dimensional positive health and global well-being as resilient processes for engaging in evacuation preparedness behaviour. A cross-sectional study design and quantitative survey were used to collect self-report data on the study variables; a postal questionnaire was fielded between November 2008 and March 2009 to a sampling frame developed through multi-stage cluster randomisation. The survey response rate was 28.5%, yielding a margin of error of +/- 3.8% with 95% confidence and 80% statistical power to detect a true correlation coefficient of 0.11 or greater. In addition to the primary study variables, data were collected on demographic and ancillary variables relating to contextual factors in the physical environment (risk perception of physical and personal vulnerability to disaster) and the social environment (through the construct of self-determination), and other measures of disaster preparedness. These data are reserved for future analyses. Results of correlational and regression analyses for the primary study variables show that Wellingtonians are highly individualistic in how their well-being influences their preparedness, and a majority are taking inadequate action to build their resilience to future disaster from earthquake- or tsunami-triggered evacuation. At a population level, the conceptual multi-dimensional model of health-related quality of life and global well-being tested in this study shows a positive association with evacuation preparedness at statistically significant levels. However, it must be emphasised that the strength of this relationship is weak, accounting for only 5-7% of the variability in evacuation preparedness. No single dimension of health-related quality of life or well-being stands out as a strong predictor of preparedness. The strongest associations for preparedness are in a positive direction for spiritual well-being, emotional well-being, and life satisfaction; all involve a sense of existential meaningfulness. Spiritual well-being is the only quality of life variable making a statistically significant unique contribution to explaining the variance observed in the regression models. Physical health status is weakly associated with preparedness in a negative direction at a continuous level of measurement. No association was found at statistically significant levels for mental health status and social well-being. These findings indicate that engaging in evacuation preparedness is a very complex, holistic, yet individualised decision-making process, and likely involves highly subjective considerations for what is personally relevant. Gender is not a factor. Those 18-24 years of age are least likely to prepare and evacuation preparedness increases with age. Multidimensional health and global well-being are important constructs to consider in disaster resilience for both pre-event and post-event timeframes. This work indicates a need for promoting self-management of risk and building resilience by incorporating a sense of personal meaning and importance into preparedness actions, and for future research into further understanding preparedness motivations.

Seafloor compliance is a non-intrusive geophysical method sensitive to the shear modulus of the sediments below the seafloor. A compliance analysis requires the computation of the frequency dependent transfer function between the vertical stress, produced at the seafloor by the ultra low frequency passive source-infra-gravity waves, and the resulting displacement, related to velocity through the frequency. The displacement of the ocean floor is dependent on the elastic structure of the sediments and the compliance function is tuned to different depths, i.e., a change in the elastic parameters at a given depth is sensed by the compliance function at a particular frequency. In a gas hydrate system, the magnitude of the stiffness is a measure of the quantity of gas hydrates present. Gas hydrates contain immense stores of greenhouse gases making them relevant to climate change science, and represent an important potential alternative source of energy. Bullseye Vent is a gas hydrate system located in an area that has been intensively studied for over 2 decades and research results suggest that this system is evolving over time. A partnership with NEPTUNE Canada allowed for the investigation of this possible evolution. This thesis describes a compliance experiment configured for NEPTUNE Canada’s seafloor observatory and its failure. It also describes the use of 203 days of simultaneously logged pressure and velocity time-series data, measured by a Scripps differential pressure gauge, and a Güralp CMG-1T broadband seismometer on NEPTUNE Canada’s seismic station, respectively, to evaluate variations in sediment stiffness near Bullseye. The evaluation resulted in a (- 4.49 x10-3± 3.52 x 10-3) % change of the transfer function of 3rd October, 2010 and represents a 2.88% decrease in the stiffness of the sediments over the period. This thesis also outlines a new algorithm for calculating the static compliance of isotropic layered sediments.

Seafloor compliance is a non-intrusive geophysical method sensitive to the shear modulus of the sediments below the seafloor. A compliance analysis requires the computation of the frequency dependent transfer function between the vertical stress, produced at the seafloor by the ultra low frequency passive source-infra-gravity waves, and the resulting displacement, related to velocity through the frequency. The displacement of the ocean floor is dependent on the elastic structure of the sediments and the compliance function is tuned to different depths, i.e., a change in the elastic parameters at a given depth is sensed by the compliance function at a particular frequency. In a gas hydrate system, the magnitude of the stiffness is a measure of the quantity of gas hydrates present. Gas hydrates contain immense stores of greenhouse gases making them relevant to climate change science, and represent an important potential alternative source of energy. Bullseye Vent is a gas hydrate system located in an area that has been intensively studied for over 2 decades and research results suggest that this system is evolving over time. A partnership with NEPTUNE Canada allowed for the investigation of this possible evolution. This thesis describes a compliance experiment configured for NEPTUNE Canada’s seafloor observatory and its failure. It also describes the use of 203 days of simultaneously logged pressure and velocity time-series data, measured by a Scripps differential pressure gauge, and a Güralp CMG-1T broadband seismometer on NEPTUNE Canada’s seismic station, respectively, to evaluate variations in sediment stiffness near Bullseye. The evaluation resulted in a (- 4.49 x10-3± 3.52 x 10-3) % change of the transfer function of 3rd October, 2010 and represents a 2.88% decrease in the stiffness of the sediments over the period. This thesis also outlines a new algorithm for calculating the static compliance of isotropic layered sediments.