What are the conditions under which private, voluntary certification programs like the Rainforest Alliance or Fairtrade can successfully promote environmental and social standards? We propose that the efficacy of a certification program depends on three variables: its sustainability standards,...

Evaluation is essential to planning and implementing effective develop- ment programs. The resource limitations, multidimensionality of develop- ment program impacts, cultural barriers between evaluators and those impacted, and the diversity of settings in which evaluations must be con- ducted...

Die Monopolkommission und die von der Bundesregierung eingesetzte Deregulierungskommission haben schon vor Jahren eine grundlegende Reform der Handwerksordnung gefordert. Inwieweit haben sich diese Forderungen in politischen Maßnahmen niedergeschlagen? Wie stellt sich die rot/grüne...

An analysis of one of the oldest residential conservation programs in the United States (i.e., the Davis, California Energy Conservation Building Code) reveals a 15% reduction in electricity consumption in the first 41 months of implementation. This reduction, which has been corrected for...

Drawing on Niklas Luhmann's theory of social systems, we analyse the importance of different styles of expectation (cognitive and normative) for global research and development. In our study, we find that contrary to Luhmann's prediction in 1971, the normative expectation style still plays a...