The aim of this article is to investigate the determinants of the foreign direct investment (FDI) in some European countries from 2003 to 2010. This period is interesting because it was characterized by huge investments of capital before 2008 and after this date a cooling of the economy due the subprime mortgage implosion. Panel Data of 23 European countries were analyzed among the several FDI macroeconomic triggers proposed by the UNCTAD in the United Nations Conference For Trade and Development report of 2012. Our empirical results are consistent with the objectives of the UNCTAD model. The FDI has become in a very important goal for all the countries because it has positive spillovers that act as boosters for the growing of their economies. Within the positive effects we highlight the transferring of technology to domestic firms, the creation of new and better jobs, the increasing in the number of tax payers and, besides, these investments are a clean source of income with the benefit of not assuming the risk linked to the debt. Consequently, the governments have the need and the duty to promote policies for attracting FDI. If we analyze the case of Europe, one can differentiate three groups of development and several kind of challenges, i.e., the high unemployment rates that some Mediterranean countries are facing, the adverse selection problem that hinders the credit flow across the productive value chain and the migration of the manufacturing to developing countries. Hence nowadays the understanding of the factors determining the FDI is a key issue to link the policy making with the potential investors.

Abstract: Geographical Indication (GI) contains a number of economic tools and, due to the close relationship with their territory of origin, GIs are used as a mechanism to reach and benefit local communities through the increased remunerative value associated with their agricultural, handicraft and artisan production. Empirical evidence indicates GIs provide economic, social, and environmental effects over their territory of origin although; the grade of impact differs from case to case. Inadequate structures and weak governance also generate unexpected outcomes such as; abandonment of traditional practices, or the destruction of biodiversity —especially in developing countries where scarcity of economic resources and the inability of sustaining long–term commitments has been evident. GIs require a careful analysis of the circumstances in which the product is embedded under GI recognition, as well as the study of resources available for its implementation. GIs are a legitimate form of intellectual property —a status which guarantees the owner’s right to economically exploit it. Due to connection to the land, GIs could also generate social and environmental impacts over local communities that are not trivial. This paper aims to outline a GI implementation process that has a wider scope of variables, in order to obtain not only economic, but social and environmental benefits for the region to which the GI is linked. This paper is organized in two parts of three sections each. The first section describes the objectives, structure, and methodology used by the author. In the second, a “state of the art” for GI is explained; outlining some expected benefits and challenges. The third section establishes a legal basis for GIs, providing a background of the international legal schemes and current discussions. In Part 2, Section 4 analyses five existing GI cases; describing the circumstances and focus undertaken by GI policy makers. In the analysis that follows, specific patterns and relationships between variables and outcomes are discussed. Section 5 outlines an implementation process—including precise objectives, variables, and suggestions that can be adapted to specific circumstances. Section 6 summarises the main findings and final conclusions. Resumen: Las indicaciones geográficas (GIs por sus siglas in ingles) contienen un gran numero de herramientas, que debido a su estrecha relación con el territorio de origen, son utilizadas como un mecanismo que beneficia a las comunidades del lugar donde son producidas, este beneficio es generalmente concebido a través del mayor valor que el productor percibe dado el trabajo agrícola y artesanal relacionado con el GI. Aunque sus impactos difieren de caso a caso, evidencia empírica indica que GIs producen efectos económicos, sociales y ambientales sobre sus territorios de origen. Sin embargo, estructuras inadecuadas y pobre gobernanza pueden generar resultados inesperados tales como: abandono de practicas tradicionales o incluso, destrucción de la biodiversidad de la región – especialmente en países en desarrollo donde han sido evidentes la escases de recursos económicos y la inhabilidad de sostener compromisos al largo plazo. Por lo anterior, es claro que GIs requieren de un análisis cuidadoso sobre las circunstancias en las cuales el producto objeto de reconocimiento de GI es enmarcado, así como también, requiere de un estudio minucioso sobre los recursos disponibles para su implementación. GIs son una forma legitima de propiedad intelectual – un estatus que le garantiza al dueño del derecho a explotarlo económicamente. Debido a su estrecha conexión con la tierra, las GI también pueden generar impactos sociales y ambientales sobre las comunidades locales, adyacentes a su lugar de producción. Este documento tiene como objetivo establecer un proceso de implementación de GIs que logre obtener beneficios no solo económicos sino también sociales y ambientales a las regiones ligadas a las GIs. Este documento esta organizado en dos partes, cada uno con tres secciones. En la primera parte, la primera sección describe los objetivos, estructura y metodología utilizada por el autor. En la segunda sección, el “estado de arte” de GIs es explicado, resaltando algunos de los beneficios y retos que estas contienen. La tercera sección establece un base legal para las GIs, proporcionando un análisis general de los esquemas legales internacionales y las discusiones que se están llevando a cabo en el momento.

The debate around the possibilities of using green consumption as a strategy to address the current environmental crisis is still open. This paper, using elements from the sociology of consumption found in the work of Zygmunt Bauman, and the aesthetics of existence from Michael Foucault, problematize the current notions about the political value of green consumption and its relation to the development of collective action. It is argued that green consumption represents a fertile ground for political participation through the care of others. The argument is developed in reference to diverse initiatives inside the Local Food Movement. This article develops the idea of a subject able to resist by opening diverse consumption spaces that challenge many aspects of the current global economy.

CD34+ cell dose in the transplanted product is still considered a measure of the engraftment potential in haemopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). CD34+ selected products are characterised by their high purity and depleted T-cells. These characteristics have made them traditionally suitable to decrease the incidence of graft versus host disease, particularly in haploidentical HSCT. The CliniMACS is a state of the art cell sorting system based on magnetic particles conjugated to CD34 antibodies. This study retrospectively evaluated the CliniMACS system performance in terms of CD34+ purity and cell recovery, and T-cell depletion in the selected product. The results were compared against target values fixed by the processing centre, as well as against published data. Factors affecting the CD34+ cell recovery were also investigated and a pilot study was carried out to assess the effect of cryopreservation on the viability of the selected products. In total, 151 procedures were analysed. The mean recovery and purity were 64.82 + 16.19 and 88.0 + 11.0% respectively. The mean T-cell depletion was 4.7021 + 0.5129 logs. Only purity was slightly below the specification (90%), with the lowest values obtained from peripheral blood (PB) collections. Factors affecting the recoveries were the overall age of the product (p=0.001), overnight storage (p=0.002), and the use of a particular tubing set with the instrument (p=0.002). The mean CD34+ viability was not significantly different to the value before cryopreservation (p=0.068). Results from this study were comparable with published data of the CliniMACS system performance. Local investigations regarding the purity of PB products should be performed. For the first time, using a magnetic separation method, factors affecting CD34+ recovery were identified. The significance of the effect of product age and overnight storage on cell recovery, provide a rationale for further prospective studies

The Legal Transplant Theory proposed by A. Watson, K. Pistor and D. Berkowitz is defined as movement of a rule or a system of law from one country to another. Under this theory, the mentioned authors conclude that a legal change does not perform in an equal manner in the transplanting country as in the origin country. They argue that the adoption of it in the latter is the result of a comprehensive study of the socio-economic circumstances of the nation, while transplanting countries import the legal entity without having similar circumstances. Furthermore, under this theory, the successfulness of a legal transplant is determined by an adaptation process that the legislator, the governmental institutions and the society of the transplanting country shall undertake to prepare the scenario for the introduction. In consequence, transplanted legal changes are called to fail due to uninformed or erroneous decision made by the law-makers. Pistor and Berkowitz analyzed company regulation in various countries, among them Colombia, to support their theories. Regarding the Colombian case, they referred to the Codes of Commerce of 1853 and 1887, concluding that they were unsuccessful legal transplants from Spain and Chile, respectively.  This paper analyzes the abovementioned theory pretending to determine if the legal transplant theory was correctly applied to the Colombian case. Particular attention deserves the Sociedad por Acciones Simplificadas (S.A.S), which is a new hybrid business form adopted in Colombia as a transplant from the United States’ Limited Liability Company. In the light of this case, the document will determine whether this is called to be an unsuccessful legal transplant (as predicted by the Legal Transplant Theory). If the answer is negative, the document will determine if the S.A.S. is merely an exception of the theory or if it demonstrates the failure of such assumption.

The growing concern of continuous increases in health care expenditure, particularly due to high-cost medicines’ reimbursement, as well as international trends, promotes the feasibility and a positive scenario to establish a means for Health Technology Assessment (HTA) in Colombia. Methodology: This policy analysis paper utilizes a literature review to support the context surrounding the Colombian Health System, focusing on HTA, and a regional perspective. Following, personal interviews were conducted to provide a description of the policy process of agenda setting and policy implementation, as well as stakeholders’ opinions about the establishment and functioning of such a HTA Agency.

International trade markets are shaped by different standards and technical regulations across countries and regions affecting trade. This paper analyzes the relationship between international standards and exports for manufacture firms in Latin America. The study tests the hypothesis that internationally-recognized quality standards compliance helps firms to export. Throughout an econometric approach, a logit model examines the relationship between firm’s decision to export (yes/no), and the variable of whether or not a firm has an internationally-recognized quality standard. The study uses data from the World Bank Enterprise Survey. It concludes that for each firm’s export determinant, the probability to export is consistently higher when firms comply with the internationally-recognized quality standards. This means that, regardless of the size, age, foreign ownership, use of communication technologies, manufacture sector and country type, a firm benefits in terms of exports, from internationally-recognized quality standard compliance. In this sense, policymakers may create programs to proactively support trade; such as training firms on how achieve compliance with international standards and subsidize part of the cost. On the institutional framework, these policies could be achieved by improving capacity by rethinking the role and evaluate the performance of (1) the Export Promotion Agency and (2) the National Standards Body. Which opens a new line of research for these topics of public policy and public administration.

Para evaluar la dinámica temporal y espacial de la comunidad de aves del transecto Volcán Barva - La Selva, Cordillera Volcánica Central de Costa Rica, se estimó la riqueza de aves por estrato (la altura en metros en la cual está ubicada la parcela de muestreo) y total, teniendo en cuenta y excluyendo a las especies migratorias latitudinales. Se comparó la riqueza de aves de los años 2005 y 2008 y se calculó la probabilidad de detección para cada año, probabilidad de extinción local y tasa de colonización de especies de aves. Para evaluar la estructura espacial se compararon los estratos más distanciados del transecto muestreado (100 m y 500 m) y se calcularon la riqueza de especies de cada estrato, probabilidad de que especies que viven en los 500 m ocurran en los 100 m, probabilidad de que especies que viven en los 100 m ocurran en 500 m y probabilidad de detección para cada estrato. La mayor riqueza ocurre en la parcela de los 500 metros. Por otro lado, la estructura de la comunidad permaneció estable entre los años 2005 y 2008 ya que se da una compensación por extinciones y colonizaciones locales. Para analizar la dinámica poblacional de 38 especies en decline, se modeló y seleccionó siete de estas por ser las de mayor detectabilidad y estar relacionadas con la insectivoría del sotobosque. Se estimó un índice de abundancia para los años 2005, 2006, 2007 y 2008, tasa de reclutamiento, probabilidad de sobrevivencia aparente y probabilidad de detección.Se concluye que las siete especies de insectívoras del sotobosque evaluadas presentan tendencia hacia el incremento de su abundancia entre los años 2005 y 2008, aunque se debe tener en cuenta que cuatro años pueden hacer parte de un período de fluctuaciones naturales de estas especies.

In earlier decades, a number of authors have been looking at how commuters value the usefulness of travel time and at which point it is still considered to be a disutility to minimize. This document presents the results of a survey which was carried out on different transportation modes in Northern California. The results of this study show how the utility of travel time may change from one person to another, unveiling the latent relationship between several factors (i.e. Attitudinal factors, primary mode of transportation, age, gender, etc.) and what we consider the usefulness of travel time. This study included several considerations made from different approaches, including linear regression analysis and ordered probit models. The dependent variable was always considered to be the usefulness of travel time represented in the final survey by an ordinal variable. Moreover, the study comprised data segmentation (i.e. primary mode of transportation) which explained some conceptual differences between a pooled model and “active-passive” models. Finally, the outcome of this study shows how active travel modes (i.e. Car driving) are usually the most unattractive, for the reason that the possibility of engaging in different activities while traveling is very limited. Similarly, how the activity itself may change the perception of travel from a disutility to minimize to a transition or mostly useful time.

In many cultures palms offer a vast number of products, especially Non-Timber-Forest Products (NTFPs), which have been traditionally used by indigenous and mestizo groups in Latin America. Some species have gone beyond the domestic use and their commercialization has reached local, national and international markets. Among the palm products that are widely commercialized in South America are palm heart (Euterpe oleracea), extracted from the young unfolded spear leaves of the palms, and the handicraft woven from fibers (Astrocaryum chambira, A. malybo and A. standleyanum), all extracted from the leaflets. In Colombia, these four palm species are economically important for the harvesting communities as well as for wholesalers and retailers. However, commercialization has been based on the extraction of raw material from wild palm stands up to the point that several palm species are threatened by developing markets for their products, and the need of income for the harvest communities and industry. The general objective of this thesis is to describe the value chains of palm products from E. oleracea, A. chambira, A. malybo and A. standleyanum in different Colombian regional markets, as well as national and international markets, and to analyze the economic importance, potentials and implications of this trade. Data on the four value chains was gathered through interviewing all actors of the value chain and revising the literature about the commercialization of these palm products. This study assesses the main actors or organizations in the commercialization chains, their specific activities, different routes to trade products, and how well the chains currently work by conducting a qualitative and quantitative value chain analysis.Major results involve particular dynamics and distributions of the profits along each value chain, as well as common aspects: the value chains are short, simple, the commercialization channels need to be strengthened, the scarcity of the raw material is a crucial constraint for the commercialization of the products. Unsustainable harvest practices are common. Moreover, the marketing potential of each group of palm products as well as promised target markets are characterized. The principal contribution of this thesis consists in shedding light on the current status of the value chains of these four palm species in Colombia, and proposing possible routes of development to strive for sustainability in each of the value chains analysed. Moreover, this study provides information about the economic importance of the palm products to the local communities and the need to upgrade the commercialization channels, products and communal incentives to assign equitable incomes along the chain.