Work-Life Reconciliation Policies From Well-Being To Development: Rethinking EU Gender Mainstreaming

Across the European Union (EU), gender policies are cross-cutting initiatives incorporated within the major axes of regional operational programs, and specifically, within active labor-market, local development and inclusion policies. This is the so-called gender mainstreaming across EU Structural Funds, calling for increasing policy instruments integration. The aim of this paper is to understand if and how to improve women’s well-being and subsequently participation in collective action through reconciliation policies. These measures aim to allow women and men to choose how they can reconcile family care, paid work, career advancement, and leisure. The idea is that such a choice implies a time allocation pattern, which is not exclusively determined by market mechanisms and/or policy measures, but also by cultural trajectories, moral values, intrinsic motivations and rules (Folbre, Nelson 2002; North, 2005; Witt 2003), varying across regions and within groups. Furthermore, the outcomes of this choice are not completely internalized as individual well-being but they can also create positive externalities. First, this paper reconstructs reconciliation policies and their governance structures across less-developed regions in Italy (so-called EU Objective 1 areas) within the EU programming phase 2000-2006. Drawing upon this reconstruction, out analysis seeks to account for differences in both contextual conditions and individual characteristics, which, in turn, shape regional development processes. Second, the paper focuses on the design of conciliation policies to unveil what underlying microeconomic premises explain the expected beneficiaries’ behavioural change. Departing from the inadequacy of standard economics, whereby work-life reconciliation would be reduced to a unique choice pattern at the individual level, the paper examines those factors of subjective identities and contextual characteristics that actually affect work-life reconciliation choices, and by this way they can have a development impact (Bowles 1998, Ray, 2000, Sen 1999). In fact, the traditional public choice approach to gender policy may not only perpetuate a male-dominated structure of socioeconomic relations but it may also keep the economy working at a less efficient level. In other words, reconciliation policies may end up reinforcing a path dependent equilibrium of low efficiency, accentuating institutional, economic, social, and cultural traps (Bowles, Durlauf and Hoff 2006). By contrast, our idea is that reconciliation policies can work as development policies as long as they alter current power structures and enhance women capabilities. Building upon this critical review of the existing gender policy framework, we put forward a cognitive framework for work-life reconciliation as a driving force to development.Microeconomic behaviour; Gender Mainstreaming; Intrinsic Motivations; Local Development; Conciliation; Power Structures

Assessing the volcanic hazard for Rome. 40Ar/39Ar and In-SAR constraints on the most recent eruptive activity and present-day uplift at Colli Albani Volcanic District

We present new 40Ar/39Ar data which allow us to refine the recurrence time for the most recent eruptive activity occurred at Colli Albani Volcanic District (CAVD) and constrain its geographic area. Time elapsed since the last eruption (36 kyr) overruns the recurrence time (31 kyr) in the last 100 kyr. New interferometric synthetic aperture radar data, covering the years 1993–2010, reveal ongoing inflation with maximum uplift rates (>2 mm/yr) in the area hosting the most recent (<200 ka) vents, suggesting that the observed uplift might be caused by magma injection within the youngest plumbing system. Finally, we frame the present deformation within the structural pattern of the area of Rome, characterized by 50 m of regional uplift since 200 ka and by geologic evidence for a recent (<2000 years) switch of the local stress-field, highlighting that the precursors of a new phase of volcanic activity are likely occurring at the CAVD

MV-algebras freely generated by finite Kleene algebras

If V and W are varieties of algebras such that any V-algebra A has a reduct U(A) in W, there is a forgetful functor U: V->W that acts by A |-> U(A) on objects, and identically on homomorphisms. This functor U always has a left adjoint F: W->V by general considerations. One calls F(B) the V-algebra freely generated by the W-algebra B. Two problems arise naturally in this broad setting. The description problem is to describe the structure of the V-algebra F(B) as explicitly as possible in terms of the structure of the W-algebra B. The recognition problem is to find conditions on the structure of a given V-algebra A that are necessary and sufficient for the existence of a W-algebra B such that F(B) is isomorphic to A. Building on and extending previous work on MV-algebras freely generated by finite distributive lattices, in this paper we provide solutions to the description and recognition problems in case V is the variety of MV-algebras, W is the variety of Kleene algebras, and B is finitely generated--equivalently, finite. The proofs rely heavily on the Davey-Werner natural duality for Kleene algebras, on the representation of finitely presented MV-algebras by compact rational polyhedra, and on the theory of bases of MV-algebras.Comment: 27 pages, 8 figures. Submitted to Algebra Universali

Electromagnetic wave absorption and structural properties of wide-band absorber made of graphene-printed glass-fibre composite

Lightweight composites combining electromagnetic wave absorption and excellent mechanical properties are required in spacecraft and aircraft. A one- dimensional metamaterial absorber consisting of a stack of glass fibre/epoxy layers and graphene nanoplatelets/epoxy films was proposed and fabricated through a facile air-spraying based printing technology and a liquid resin infusion method. The production process allows an optimum dispersion of graphene nanoplatelets, promoting adhesion and mechanical integration of the glass fibre/epoxy layers with the graphene nanoplatelets/epoxy films. According to experimental results, the proposed wide-band absorber provides a reflection coefficient lower than −10 dB in the range 8.5–16.7 GHz and an improvement of flexural modulus of more than 15%, with a total thickness of ∼1 mm. Outstanding electromagnetic wave absorption and mechanical performance make the proposed absorber more competitive in aeronautical and aerospace applications

The payoffs to agricultural biotechnology: an assessment of the evidence

Transgenic crops are relatively new technologies being adopted rapidly in the United States and in a few other countries. The economic impacts of these technologies have, thus far, been estimated in a piecemeal fashion. The purpose of this study was to collect and characterize the economic evidence available to date, organize it, and determine if any general implications can be drawn from it. The general classes of economic impacts at the farm level are discussed. The types of studies that generate estimates of these benefits are also characterized and categorized in terms of the implications for measuring economic impacts when the set of things held constant in the type of study does not correspond to those that economic theory suggests. The evidence is presented, along with some general implications drawn from the analysis. These implications are: (1) growing transgenic cotton is likely to result in reduced pesticide use in most years and is likely to be profitable in most years in most U.S. states in the Cotton Belt, 2) Bt corn will provide a small but significant yield increase in most years across the U.S. Corn Belt, and in some years and some places the increase will be substantial, and (3) although there is some evidence of a small yield loss in the Roundup Ready soybean varieties, in most years and locations savings in pesticide costs and, possibly, tillage costs will more than offset the lost revenue from the yield discrepancy. There is not yet enough evidence to generalize even these few conclusions to other countries. More farm- level studies in more years and across more locations are required before any additional implications can be drawn. Studies that measure the non-pecuniary benefits and costs of these technologies should be undertaken, as well.Transgenic plants., Technological innovations., Agricultural research Economic aspects., Rate of return., Impact assessment,

Design in Action Knowledge Exchange Process Model:Design-led Knowledge Exchange for Business Innovation

Design is no longer strictly limited to the designing and appearance of graphics and objects, the understanding of design has expanded to include methodologies for innovation applied in the development of products and services, systems and business models. Similarly, the impact of design has evolved from one of styling to an approach for improving processes and strategic thinking, and as driver of business innovation. Moreover, design is being recognised as strategic tool for public sector innovation (c.f. Design for Public Good1 and Designing Democracy2). Addressing its wide potential, Innovate UK's recent 'Design in Innovation Strategy 2015-2019' promises to '[a]dvocate the use of excellent early-stage design, and raise awareness of the value of design in innovation'

Research returns redux: a meta-analysis of the returns to agricultural R&D

A total of 289 studies of returns to agricultural R&D were compiled and these provide 1821 estimates of rates of return. After removing statistical outliers and incomplete observations, across the remaining 1128 observations the estimated annual rates of return averaged 65 per cent overall — 80 per cent for research only, 80 per cent for extension only, and 47 per cent for research and extension combined. These averages reveal little meaningful information from a large body of literature, which provides rate‐of‐return estimates that are often not directly comparable. This study was aimed at trying to account for the differences. Several features of the methods used by research evaluators matter, in particular assumptions about lag lengths and the nature of the research‐induced supply shift.Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,