The Effectiveness of Voluntary Environmental Programs—A Policy at a Crossroads?

Voluntary environmental programs (VEPs) have been used as a policy tool in the United States since the early 1990s and come in many forms. Early assessments of VEPs targeting changes in production processes showed that industrial participants improved their environmental performance and VEPs were celebrated as a viable alternative to more traditional regulation. Recent analyses using more sophisticated techniques, however, paint a less favorable picture. On the one hand, firms appear willing to sign up to VEPs, and in some cases, participants may be able to create a shield against future losses in shareholder value. On the other hand, these VEPs targeting production processes appear not to generate significant pollution abatement. The latter finding is particularly disturbing and this article discusses various explanations, including institutional failure and participant motivations. Future research needs to focus on understanding the firm motivation to invest in production‐related pollution abatement under a VEP. For policymakers, the research offers a warning on the limited impact to date of VEPs targeting production processes. However, the multitude of other VEPs, such as those which target new product development and changing market demands, merit a closer look to determine the overall potential of VEPs to engender positive environmental change.     

从引文分析看大陆华侨华人研究——基于CSSCI（1998-2005）的研究

以中国社会科学引文索引(CSSCI)为操作平台,以核心作者群的被引论著为样本,对样本篇数、篇次、作者、机构、地域分布、主题分布、年代分布等因素进行了引文分析和量化的描述,并从文献的角度对大陆华侨华人研究现状进行评估。结果表明:大陆华侨华人研究1993—2002年是高峰期,形成了以福建、北京、广东为主的核心作者群,高等院校仍是华侨华人研究的主要机构,研究主题以经济、社会、历史为主,学术论文的利用率不高,高水平的研究成果不多。华侨华人研究在学术界的整体影响力不大,某些不够科学和规范的引证态度和方法亟需改进。     

What drives export performance of firms in Eastern and Western Poland?

We use a unique firm-level survey dataset that draws from the EFIGE (European Firms in a Global Economy) questionnaire to unveil differences in factors driving export performance in the most structurally diverse areas of Poland. While conventional results regarding the role of size, foreign ownership and innovation activity are confirmed at the aggregate level, the picture breaks down when Western and Eastern macroregions are extracted. Our results suggest that the common perception of a more developed West (Poland ‘A’) and a backward East (Poland ‘B’) might be outdated. Rather, firms in both regions seem to follow distinct strategies for and have dissimilar success factors in competing internationally. Interestingly, export performance in the East is found to benefit from family ties in business, but also from product innovation and non-price competitiveness. In the West, it is associated mostly with size and foreign ownership. Overall, our results, on the one hand, add support to the ‘new’ new trade theory and the ‘new’ new economic geography’s premises related to the importance of microeconomic factors and, on the other, contribute to the discussion on the pattern of regional development in Poland. We also discuss some implications for policymakers and managers and suggest directions for further research.     

A Contribution to the Study on Sanguo Yanyi

This is a study of the Sanguo yanyi (hereafter Yanyi), one of the four great literary classics of China, in terms of its political standpoint, character evaluation, and character development. It questions the traditional views related to Yanyi’s stance of revering Liu Bei 劉備 and belittling Cao Cao 曹操. The argument here is that the novel's political standpoint is mainly based on zhongyi 忠義 (loyalty and righteousness), rather than lineage, benevolence, and other factors. Although Yanyi has a clear political position, it is relatively objective and neutral in evaluating historical figures from different camps. The character development of Yanyi is very successful. The character images are round and rich, rather than flat and stereotypical. Both positive and negative characters have their merits and weaknesses.     

中国与环南海国家(地区)贸易竞争性和互补性格局

环南海因其重要的地缘战略意义,对中国国家安全和对外合作发展具有重要意义.本文在产品层次,揭示了中国与环南海国家(地区)的贸易竞争性和互补性格局,有助于加深理解中国与该区域的地缘经济竞合关系.结果表明:①中国大陆与环南海国家(地区)的贸易规模不断增大.中国大陆与香港、台湾、越南、菲律宾、新加坡、泰国的出口相似度较高,在世...     

China's Emergence and Impact on Technology in East Asia: The Case of Machinebuilding

Two Taiwan-based economists estimate the technology content of exports by the machinebuilding industry of the East Asia region during 2004-2008, using comparative analysis to clarify changes in the relative competitiveness of four East Asian nations (China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan) accompanying the formation of a regional trading bloc and production networks. In particular, they examine the technology content of these countries' machinebuilding sub-industries' exports within the Southeast Asian market (documenting the rise of the machinebuilding industry in China) as well as the penetration of Japanese, South Korean, and Taiwanese sub-industries into China's market. The results point to areas of emerging competition among China, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan for East Asian markets, which can only be expected to intensify in the future. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: F14, F15, F36, O14, P23. 7 tables, 36 references.     

接近与嫡系心智模式是旅行社增强竞争力的主要障碍

心智模决定人们的思维方式和行为习惯。章认为接近与嫡系不良心智模式是旅行社增强竞争力的主要障碍。旅行社应积极倡导学习与效益型的心智模式。     

论旅游产业核心竞争力

竞争力是反映一个产业的素质和发展潜能的重要标志。旅游产业是旅游业的重要经济特征,旅游产业的竞争力表现在产业内部的旅游产品、旅游企业、旅游服务等以及产业外部的旅游功能。本文运用波特的竞争力理论并结合旅游产业的自身特点,提出以旅游资源为内核所形成的旅游吸引物是旅游产业竞争力的核心,它和旅游设施、旅游服务等共同构成旅游产业,旅游设施和旅游服务是围绕旅游吸引物这一核心而展开的。     

响应社会需求的旅游动态课程体系构建研究——以云南民族大学旅游管理专业为例

20多年来,旅游管理课程体系建设取得很大成绩,但依然存在课程老化固化、缺乏对社会需求响应能力等问题。通过往届毕业生、网络、新业态和旅游组织机构等多端口的职业需求信息的监测与评估,在理论和技术上可以构建一个既能响应社会需求,又能满足学生个人兴趣,还能符合国家专业要求的“三位一体”的响应社会需求的旅游动态课程体系。通过该课程体系的建设可以加强现有专业对社会需求的响应能力,减少一些短周期新专业的应急性增设,从而节约教育资源、积累教育资本、避免学生同业竞争、缓解就业压力。基于以上理论和实证研究,云南民族大学旅游管理专业未来至少可以增设美食与营养、旅游技术与工程两门课程以响应社会需求,并形成其核心竞争能力.     

1998-2002年《史学月刊》作者队伍状况分析

从1998—2002年《史学月刊》的发文作者发文量、合作度、地区和机构分布、年龄、职称及他们利用文献状况的统计分析,可以看出《史学月刊》不愧为综合性的史学专业核心期刊,它拥有一支高素质、高水平、高学历、高职称的作者队伍。