The Advantages of Ambiguity? Development,Rule Formation and Property Rights During Transition in China

Legally protected individual private property rights and a constrained state are doctrines of neoclassical economics-derived development theory. But what about China? It lacks strong rule of law, property rights can be collective, contested and ambiguous, and the state is relatively unconstrained and maintains a central role in the economy; yet it has seen impressive economic growth to take it to the world’s second largest economy. I argue that in the absence of legal/rational protections of individual property rights, political and social networks can provide alternative methods of property protection, allowing for economic development – with political protection substituting for legal. The novel claim I make is that ambiguity of property rights can provide opportunities and spaces for development and innovation, with the building of meaning and institutions found in a transitional state, where rules are unclear and contested, and where formal rules can “catch up” if apparent success can be demonstrated.     

明代黄淮运交汇区域的水系结构与水环境变化

明代大运河的启用,使黄淮运交汇区域成为治水的关键区域。官方为了维护运河的畅通,采取了使水系结构与水情产生变化的措施。明前期的河道基本上沿袭了元代河道多股并流、迭为主次的特点。随着运河、淮河与黄河的治理,特别是筑堤的兴起,黄河各水道有一个从面到线,再从一线到清口一点的集中过程。第一阶段是黄河北流断绝,第二阶段是徐邳河道与上游固定于一线。黄河固定集中于徐邳一线以后,嘉靖年间河多决于徐州的上游,嘉靖四十四年以后,河多决于下游。黄运合一区域的河道治理,从一个跨越南北的扇形面,发展到南部半个扇形面,再集中于一线,最后集中于清口。总体的治理过程,基本上为保运服务。从面到点,从大区域的治理到小区域甚至于一点的工程治理,这是明代黄淮运水利工程的水流控制特色。这种随水环境变迁而进行的治水工程调整,充分体现出古人大区域地利用水环境的智慧,具有鲜明的生态特色。     

武陵山区公路交通优势度与县域经济水平协调度研究

武陵山区是我国典型的集中连片特困地区,研究其公路交通与经济社会的协调关系及其影响因素对深入认知我国贫困地区交通和经济的发展具有重要参考价值。本研究构建路网连通度、公路交通优势度、县域经济水平等指标体系,采用因子分析法和协调度评价模型等方法探究2000-2016年期间武陵山区公路交通优势度和县域经济水平的协调度演变及其影响因素。主要结论如下：①省道以上公路的路网结构得到优化,从可达性良好的状态发展为完善状态。②公路交通优势度相对较好的区域从北部、东部转移到中部,相对较差的区域从西部和南部转移到南北两端,县域经济水平由东部优于西部的格局演变为相对无序的格局,“天窗”县的公路交通优势度和县域经济水平均相对较好。③将协调度分为高度协调、中度协调、勉强协调、轻度失调、中度失调和严重失调6种类型,协调度未得到明显改善,大部分县属于不同程度的失调类型。④公路交通优势度与县域经济水平同向匹配程度不高、远离省会城市及地级城市带动能力弱、开发建设水平低以及少数民族自治县相对贫困落后等因素制约协调度的改善。     

Social Policy Perspectives on Economic Inequality in Wealthy Countries

This essay reviews the policy‐oriented literature on economic inequality in wealthy countries published from 2008 to 2018. We focus on this decade because it is a period bookended by both the beginnings of the Great Recession of 2008–2009 as well as the recovery. During this timeframe, attention to inequality by social policy scholars grew substantially, which we argue reflects an interest in both inequality trends as well as redistributive social policy. We observe in the literature sustained efforts to understand both the relationship between social policy and economic inequality, as well as determinants of changes to redistributive social policy. We also note substantial variation in research traditions, as well as opportunities to address substantive, methodological, and theoretical gaps. Our review summarizes the approaches and findings from the literature and discusses the implications of the findings for the study of economic inequality within the academic field of public policy.     

THE FIRST WORLD WAR AND THE REGULATORY STATE

It is well-established in various strands of historiography that the First World War was a formative phase in the evolution of the modern state. This article deals with the Danish case, in which the politics of neutrality made a previously unseen kind of economic regulation necessary. This led to a heated debate about the functions and role of the state, especially its role in economic life. On the one hand, the Social Liberals in government saw the great potential of economic regulations, and their experiences during the war confirmed their beliefs in the importance of a strong state in dealing with the problems of capitalism; on the other, liberals and conservatives began to voice strong criticism of this slide towards stronger state control. Hence different visions of the role of the state came to be the dividing line between Left and Right, and the ideologies of the liberal and conservative Right were redefined in direct opposition to socialism and economic regulation.     

Regional embeddedness,relatedness and inter-regional linkages among less developed regions in Central Europe

This paper aims at a comprehension of existing intra-/inter-regional production flows in a dynamically transforming, export-oriented economy in Central Europe. Drawing on evolutionary economic geography combined with input–output approaches, we have assessed the sectoral compositions and relationships between regions from a buyer-supplier interactions perspective. Inspired by contemporary literature we applied concepts of regional embeddedness, relatedness and vertically related variety. Conceptually we argue that the degree of embeddedness of regions is differentiated and spatially non-random. The differences will depend to a large extent on the economic characteristics and on the ability of key actors and institutions in these regions to respond actively to changing opportunities and threats. Empirically we have found: that economically more developed regions are relatively more embedded in terms of production flows and have greater sectoral variety, whereas regions with high export-dependence are economically backward, and have higher concentration of industry and negative associations with innovation activity and overall innovation potential. The intensity of interregional production flows increases as the regional economies vary more from each other, but beyond a certain level of structural difference the rate of mutual flows decreases; and that the intensity of interregional relations depends on the relatedness of the economic bases.     

Economic Diversity and Regional Socioeconomic Performance: An Empirical Analysis of the Western Australian Grain Belt

One of the truisms ingrained in much regional development policy and practice is the claimed importance of economic diversity in contributing to socio-economic stability and well-being. There is, however, very little recent research examining this contention in the context of rural Australia. This paper examines the extent to which economic diversity affects the socio-economic performance of local areas in the Western Australian grain belt. The results indicate that employment diversity across industry sectors is clearly associated with population growth, labour force expansion, labour force participation, and rising median incomes. However, the paper also argues that economic diversity is not necessarily the cause of these changes, but simply one, albeit important, component of the dynamics of regional change.     

兰新高铁对西北地区可达性及经济联系的影响

高铁正在深刻改变和影响我国区域空间格局，兰新高铁作为丝绸之路经济带上重要交通线，对西北地区经济发展具有重要推动作用。通过GIS网络分析及成本加权栅格法构建模型，综合选用最短时间距离、加权平均旅行时间及经济联系强度指标，定量分析兰新高铁对西北地区可达性及经济联系的影响。结果发现：兰新高铁引发了非均衡的时空收敛效应，影响和重塑了区域空间结构，沿线城市可达性提升优于非沿线城市，“核心-边缘”格局得到强化；兰新高铁提升了中心城市的辐射能力，加速中心城市的空间扩张和重构，中心城市一日交流圈面积（3h）均有增加，在空间上沿高铁线呈带状分布；兰新高铁增强了城市间经济联系，促进高铁沿线经济带的发展，沿线城市经济联系中心度得到提高，区域经济联系模式“廊道效应”明显。本研究为完善西北地区交通网络及推动丝绸之路经济带建设提供参考。     

The role of heritage conservation districts in achieving community economic development goals

Most jurisdictions have some kind of measures to protect physical fabric and manage change within historic neighbourhoods. In Ontario, Canada’s largest province, these are called Heritage Conservation Districts. While much has been written about such aspects as identifying such districts, the designation process and their role in the urban landscape, less exploration has been devoted to understanding their potential role in economic development. This study examined two heritage districts in the Town of Markham, a fast-growing exurban municipality north-east of Toronto. Both of these neighbourhoods and both designated heritage areas have in place an economic development mechanism called a Business Improvement Area. The research involved interviews, household questionnaires, observation and statistical analysis. It was found that overall the data indicated that the management of the heritage resources supported and enhanced economic development. It was also found that there were considerable differences between the two areas in spite of their close proximity. The reasons for those differences are outlined.