Informal Food Production in the Enlarged European Union

How widespread is the production of food in old and new member states of the European Union and what is the social meaning or logic of such activities? We show that growing food is (a) more widespread in former communist countries than in traditional market economies and (b) is predominantly a hobby or recreational activity in affluent countries, but a coping strategy in reaction to experienced difficulties in making ends meet in poorer nations, and especially so in the former communist countries.     

高校物业管理改革趋势分析

提高教育投资效益,已成为决定一个高校展的关键要素.改革高校物业管理已势在必行,改革的总趋势是物业管理服务化;服务方式商品化;商品服务市场化;市场服务竞争化;竞争服务效益化;效益服务优质化.改革的过程是渐变,而非突变.     

深化户籍管理制度改革 进一步适应市场经济发展

改革开放动摇了传统户籍管理制度,市场经济发展要求建立城乡一体化的劳动力市场,在传统户籍管理制度基础上的修修改改已不能满足时代要求。因此,必须建立与市场经济发展相一致的全新户籍管理制度。     

唯物史观视野中的“知识经济”问题

当前西方“知识经济”理论试图用科学知识的创造与应用状况来规定人类发展高阶段的社会文明和历史时代的本质及规律。这与唯物史观从经济基础与上层建筑的统一来定位社会形态和历史时代的原则相去甚远 ,对此我们不能盲目认同 ,但我们也不能对之虚无主义地完全排斥。应该看到 ,“知识经济”问题的研究将会推动我们对马克思主义实践观中科学知识要素的关注 ;将会加深我们对在新的历史时期实施科教兴国战略的理解 ;将会更新我们对知识分子历史地位的认识。这些都将有助于丰富和拓展唯物史观的视野     

契机与考验并存——浅谈加入世贸组织对青海民族地区经济的影响及对策

本文结合青海民族地区实际 ,对世界贸易组织情况及其与中国谈判所涉及的领域作了简要介绍 ,分析了加入世贸组织后给青海民族地区经济建设带来契机与严峻考验 ,并有针对性地提出了对策。     

New cultural economies of marginality: revisiting the West Coast,South Island,New Zealand

Marginal regions have been the subject of political concern and remedial action in western states for several decades now. The West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand is an interesting case study in this regard, for recent economic growth has confounded earlier expectations of post-restructuring decline, while also contradicting several of the nostrums of new regionalism. In an effort to understand this trajectory, this paper draws on documents from public and private sector organisations, newspaper articles and field visits to examine developments in four key sectors of the West Coast's economy: mining, dairy farming, forestry and tourism. Economic growth is found to be closely linked to the cultivation of new markets for primary products, but efforts to rework the cultural dimensions of marginality have also been important. Value has been added to specific products through the insertion of references to the region's alpine and forested landscapes. Isolation and peripherality have been recast in more positive terms, echoing the broader reframing of New Zealand as a scenic, unspoiled destination. In adopting a cultural economic perspective on marginal regions, the paper illustrates the significance of symbolic forms of value, the potentially flexible nature of marginality as a discursive category, and the importance of the networks which connect regions to national and international flows of capital and tourists.     

Older workers’ employment in dynamic technology changes

Discrimination against older workers and the higher barriers for entrance to the workforce that these workers face are well documented in the literature. This situation becomes even worse when technological changes take place. In this paper the different responses of younger and older workers to those technological changes were analyzed, and it was revealed that older workers can be severely harmed when such changes occur. It was found that providing a subsidy for older workers could aid in reducing the unemployment among older workers, together with increasing growth of the economy and decreasing the inequality of income distribution.     

Commodified language in Chinatown: A contextualized approach to linguistic landscape1

In Washington DC's newly gentrified Chinatown, recent commercial establishments, primarily non‐Chinese owned chains, use Chinese‐language signs as design features targeted towards people who neither read nor have ethnic ties to Chinese. Using this neighborhood as a case study, we advocate a contextualized, historicized and spatialized perspective on linguistic landscape which highlights that landscapes are not simply physical spaces but are instead ideologically charged constructions. Drawing from cultural geography and urban studies, we analyze how written language interacts with other features of the built environment to construct commodified urban places. Taking a contextually informed, qualitative approach, we link micro‐level analysis of individual Chinese‐language signs to the specific local socio‐geographic processes of spatial commodification. Such a qualitative approach to linguistic landscape, which emphasizes the importance of sociohistorical context, and which includes analysis of signage use, function, and history, leads to a greater understanding of the larger sociopolitical meanings of linguistic landscapes.     

Financial Intermediation Modernization in Countries with Transition Economy

During the modern phase of economic reforms directed at the establishment of market economy, many countries with transition economies face the challenge of solving the issue of formation and rational usage of internal sources of financing the real sector of the economy, as well as attracting considerable volume of direct foreign investment. In general, financial market imperfections hold back innovation and growth, and that public policy can complement financial markets. Therefore, the most relevant issue at the present time is the formation of attendant and complex supervision institutions, as well as an exigency of innovative economy governance as mainframe principles for further banking system elaboration and financial sector development in general. We have taken Armenia as a case study for transition economy as far as Armenia is currently in the stage of capital market development through integration into international financial markets.      

长江三角洲区域新一轮经济发展前瞻

中国区域合作的发展正呈现出从“极化发展”向“泛化发展”的新态势,在这一背景下,长三角地区的区域合作也表现出一些新的特点。特别是国家关于《进一步推进长江三角洲地区改革开放和经济社会发展的指导意见》的提出,更为长三角地区的发展提供了新的发展契机和方向。研究《指导意见》,有助于从宏观上把脉长三角地区发展的重点及难点,并为珠三角、京津冀等城市群的发展提供借鉴。