Kommunale Wirtschaftsförderung

Einleitung Die nachhaltige Globalisierung der Wirtschaft versch?rft nicht nur den internationalen Standortwettbewerb für Unternehmen, sondern führt auch zu einem gro?en Anpassungsdruck für die deutschen Kommunen. Gleichzeitig engt die angespannte Finanzlage den Handlungsspielraum der Kommunen nicht unerheblich ein. Die kommunale Wirtschaftsf?rderung als Mittler zwischen Verwaltung und Unternehmen kann – bei effizienter Aufgabengestaltung – gro?en Einflu? auf die Anpassung der ?rtlichen Wirtschaft auf die Ver?nderungen nehmen Auch wenn die kommunale Wirtschaftsf?rderung selbst keine Finanzmittel oder Subventionen an die Unternehmen ausgeben darf, bieten die M?glichkeiten der Wirtschaftsf?rderung gro?en Spielraum. Nach wie vor ist die Beeinflussung materieller Standortfaktoren, wie z.B. in der Gewerbefl?chenpolitik, von zentraler Bedeutung. Zus?tzlich gewinnen aber “klimatische”, also im weitesten Sinne weiche, Faktoren an Bedeutung. Hierauf weisen nicht nur aktuelle theoretische Konzepte zur Regionalentwicklung hin, sondern auch empirische Befunde der Unternehmen. Zu diesen, auch als Fühlungsvorteile bezeichneten “weichen” Standortfaktoren z?hlen, z.B. die Geschwindigkeit, mit der Unternehmensantr?ge bearbeitet oder Genehmigungen beschieden werden, das Engagement der Wirtschaftsf?rderung bei der Beseitigung von Investitionshemmnissen sowie bei der Herstellung von Kontakten und Beziehungen zwischen allen lokalen und regionalen, bisweilen auch überregionalen Akteuren. Eine Studie des Instituts für Mittelstandsforschung Bonn (IfM), deren Ergebnisse u.a. auf Fallbeispielen aus Nordrhein–Westfalen, Bayern und Brandenburg basieren, zeigt, dass die Notwendigkeit zu einer Neuorientierung von nahezu allen untersuchten Kommunen erkannt, eine tats?chliche umfassende Umsetzung jedoch nur von den wenigsten realisiert wird. Insbesondere im Bereich der Organisationsstruktur sowie bei der Abstimmung mit anderen regionalen Akteuren offenbart sich nach wie vor gro?er Handlungsbedarf. Auch das Neue Steuerungsmodell hat bisher zu keiner grundlegenden Verbesserung geführt, da seine Einführung zumeist auf die Fach?mter für Finanzen beschr?nkt ist. Eine Reform, die auf eine st?rkere Kundenorientierung der kommunalen Verwaltung abzielt, mu? jedoch insbesondere die Unternehmen als Adressaten im Blick haben. Deren Interessen werden aber vor allem in der Wirtschaftsf?rderung berücksichtigt, insofern bedeutet die Realisierung von Kundenorientierung vorrangig eine effiziente und auf die Unternehmensbedürfnisse ausgerichtete Organisationsstruktur der Wirtschaftsf?rderung. Diese Problemstellung nahm das IfM Bonn zum Anla?, ein idealtypisches Modell einer kommunalen Wirtschaftsf?rderung zu entwickeln, das als Grundlage für weiterführende Diskussionen dienen soll. Das Modell setzt sich aus drei Stufen zusammen, in denen die interne Organisationsstruktur der Wirtschaftsf?rderung sowie ihre Einbindung in ein intra- sowie interregionales Beziehungsgeflecht betrachtet wird. Zus?tzlich berücksichtigt das Modell die beiden in der Praxis gel?ufigsten Organisationsformen der kommunalen Wirtschaftsf?rderung: Das Amt für Wirtschaftsf?rderung sowie die privatrechtlich organisierte Gesellschaft.     

Infrared radiofluorescence (IR-RF) dating of middle pleistocene fluvial archives of the Heidelberg Basin (Southwest Germany)

The infrared radiofluorescence (IR-RF) dating technique was applied to eight fluvial samples that were collected from two sediment cores at the Heidelberg Basin located near Viernheim and Ludwigshafen in southwest Germany. Based on the IR-RF derived ages of the samples it was possible to establish a chronological framework for the Mid-Pleistocene fluvial deposits of the Heidelberg Basin. The results allow us to distinguish between four main periods of aggradation. The lowermost sample taken from 100 m core depth lead to an IR-RF age of 643 ± 28 ka pointing to a Cromerian period of aggradation (OIS 17–16). For the Elsterian it is now possible to distinguish between two aggradation periods, one occurring during the Lower Elsterian period (OIS 15) and a second during the Upper Elsterian period (OIS 12–11). For the so called Upper interlayer (or “Oberer Zwischenhorizont” — a layer of organic-rich and finer-grained deposits), the IR-RF results point to a deposition age of around 300 ka, with samples taken directly on top and out of this layer yielding IR-RF ages of 288 ± 19 ka and 302 ± 19 ka, respectively. Hence, the measured IR-RF ages clearly point to a deposition during the Lower Saalian period (OIS 9–8) whereas earlier studies assumed a Cromerian age for the sediments of the Upper Interlayer based on pollen records and also mollusc fauna. The new IR-RF dataset indicates that significant hiatuses are present within the fluvial sediment successions. In particular the Eemian and Upper Saalian deposits are missing in this part of the northern Upper Rhine Graben, as the 300 ka deposits are directly overlain by Weichselian fluvial sediments. It is obvious that time periods of increased fluvial aggradation were interrupted by time periods of almost no aggradation or erosion which should have been mainly triggered by phases of increased and decreased subsidence of the Heidelberg Basin.     

URBAN GROWTH EXTERNALITIES AND NEIGHBORHOOD INCENTIVES: ANOTHER CAUSE OF URBAN SPRAWL?*

ABSTRACT This paper suggests a cause of low density urban development or urban sprawl that has not been given much attention in the literature. There have been a number of arguments put forward for market failures that may account for urban sprawl, including incomplete pricing of infrastructure, environmental externalities, and unpriced congestion. The problem analyzed here is that urban growth creates benefits for an entire urban area, but the costs of growth are borne by individual neighborhoods. An externality problem arises because existing residents perceive the costs associated with the new residents locating in their neighborhoods, but not the full benefits of new entrants which accrue to the city as a whole. The result is that existing residents have an incentive to block new residents to their neighborhoods, resulting in cities that are less dense than is optimal, or too spread out. The paper models several different types of urban growth, and examines the optimal and local choice outcomes under each type. In the first model, population growth is endogenous and the physical limits of the city are fixed. The second model examines the case in which population growth in the region is given, but the city boundary is allowed to vary. We show that in both cases the city will tend to be larger and less dense than is optimal. In each, we examine the sensitivity of the model to the number of neighborhoods and to the size of infrastructure and transportation costs. Finally, we examine optimal subsidies and see how they compare to current policies such as impact fees on new development.     

Braucht die Theoretische Physik den Religiösen Glauben ? Neo-Scholastik und Positivismus in der Dritten Republik

As common wisdom has it, Pierre Duhem was one of the most important proponents of French philosophy of science around 1900. Usually, his conception of physical theories is regarded as the incarnation of the ancient — proto-positivistic - programme of “saving the phenomena”. This view is correct, but it needs to be supplemented by taking account of the discursive context of Duhem’s position. In this paper it is argued that Duhem’s philosophical colleague Abel Rey played a central role in this connection.     

REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION'S EXPORT EARNINGS OUTSIDE THE FORMER SOVIET UNION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR REGIONAL ECONOMIC AUTONOMY

The distribution of foreign export earnings by area of origin is analyzed for the Russian Federation, to convertible and non-convertible currency areas, as well as for four major commodity categories. The paper focuses on identifying, because of Russia's narrow export composition, oblast-level units (and commodities) that contribute disproportionately to the Federation's overall convertible currency earnings. It then explores the implications of the extremely uneven spatial districution of such earnings for the Russian government's efforts to devise a workable formula for distributing export revenues between the “Center” and the localities.     

The crisis before the crisis: the ‘problems of modern society’ and the OECD, 1968–74

‘Economic crisis’ is conventionally understood as the absence of economic growth. However, far from being straightforward and self-explanatory, this understanding is itself an expression of a very particular ensemble of statistical techniques, economic theory, state practices and broader societal beliefs; it is not adequate for the historical analysis of what people have historically perceived as economic crises. This article aims at illustrating this divergence by analysing debates within the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on the so-called ‘problems of modern society’ from 1968 to 1974. These problems, which occurred at a time of comparatively robust economic performance, were perceived by contemporaries as a crisis closely related to the economic system. This debate led to a new impetus to recast the formerly dominant quantitative-growth paradigm in terms of environmental policies and qualitative growth. It was spearheaded by critical intellectuals within the OECD Secretariat and the OECD's Committee on Science and Technology Policy, who were at the same time launching the Club of Rome. In this article I will draw out the main arguments, actors, relevant contexts and effects of this discussion to highlight some of the characteristics of the intellectual uncertainty so distinctive of this period. The author argues that a historical understanding of this ‘crisis before the crisis’ demands a broader conception of economic crisis, one that is able to grapple with the divergence of economic growth, human welfare and environmental sustainability.     

The calm before the storm: A punctuated equilibrium theory of international politics

Research has shown that policymaking in numerous domestic policies, across a multitude of polities, systematically produces a pattern of change that matches Punctuated Equilibrium Theory (PET), characterized by many incremental and occasional dramatic changes. The field of International Relations (IR), however, has paid surprisingly little attention to PET, even though the same pattern of change is also found in international politics. This study attempts to fill this gap and explains stability and change in international politics based on PET. Specifically, we detail the dynamics behind this pattern of behavior, both at the domestic and the international level, as well as their interplay. The empirical section shows that different indicators of international politics, including troop deployments, foreign aid and international trade, follow a leptokurtic pattern of change, which characterizes Punctuated Equilibrium, and whereby changes in countries' behavior are generally incremental, representing periods of relative stability, and punctuated by large changes that dramatically overthrow existing policies. Moreover, our results indicate that policy outputs where greater friction is at play are more punctuated than those policies that cannot as easily or directly be managed. This study urges future research to further explore the dynamics of stability and change at the aggregate, international level.