Renewables 2010: Global Status Report

The Renewables 2010 Global Status Report provides an integrated perspective on the global renewable energy situation. Since the first Global Status Report was produced five years ago, the analysis has become the most frequently referenced report on renewable energy business and policy, serving a wide range of audiences from investors and government decision makers to students, project developers, researchers, and industrial manufacturers. It provides testimony of the undeterred growth of electricity, heat, and fuel production capacities from renewable energy sources, including solar PV, wind power, solar hot water/heating, biofuels, hydropower, and geothermal.

Read this report from the World Watch Institute here.

Assessing the effects of ICT in education

Despite the fact that education systems have been heavily investing in technology since the early 1980s, international indicators on technology uptake and use in education are missing. This book aims to provide a basis for the design of frameworks, the identification of indicators and existing data sources, as well as gaps in areas needing further research.

The contributions stem from an international expert meeting in April 2009 organised by the Centre for Research on Lifelong Learning, in co-operation with OECD (CERI), on benchmarking technology use and effects in education. The contributions clearly demonstrate the need to develop a consensus around approaches, indicators and methodologies.

Read this EU/OECD report here.

De geografie van de sociale zekerheid in België

Lees de volledige publicatie van het Centrum Herman DeLeeck van de UA hier.

The pursuit of happiness

Australians are among the most satisfied people in the world with almost 90 per cent very satisfied or satisfied with their lives, despite having to work harder to juggle family, job and financial pressures, according to the latest AMP.NATSEM Income and Wealth Report.

Australia ranks equal third with the United States and Sweden in overall life satisfaction among OECD countries, with an average score of 7.9 out of 10, beaten only by Ireland, Norway and Denmark (equal first) and Finland and Canada (equal second).

The AMP.NATSEM Income and Wealth Report: The pursuit of happiness explores life satisfaction trends in Australia, examining how different aspects of people's lives impact on happiness.

Read this AMP report here.

Obama's Policies Seen as Better than Bush's for Improving the Economy

While most Americans disapprove of Barack Obama’s handling of the economy, far more think his administration’s policies – rather than those of the Bush administration – would do more to improve economic conditions over the next few years. As Congress gears up for debate over the tax cuts passed when Bush was president, the public is divided, with roughly equal numbers in favor of keeping all of Bush’s tax cuts, repealing only those for wealthy Americans, or scrapping them entirely. Read the results of the Pew Research poll here.

What do we know about the causes of the crisis?

The global crisis has left many calling for early warning systems to prompt authorities into action before it’s too late. This column argues that such a system is restricted by our understanding of what caused the crisis in the first place. Indeed, it shows that popular explanations for the current crisis have little to no ability to predict past crises. Read the complete article on EUVOX here.

Do Kindergarten Teachers Matter More than Parents?

New research on the value of kindergarten teachers is remarkable. Read Greg Mankiw's blogpost here.

Federal Debt and the Risk of a Fiscal Crisis

Read this CBO publication here.

Inégalité de traitement entre travailleurs licenciés

Dans leur malheur, les travailleurs licenciés en masse perçoivent souvent “une enveloppe” en plus de la réparation classique. Par contre, un travailleur – au même profil – licencié d’une PME ne percevra qu’un seul dédomagement.

Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.

Entreprendre est à nouveau à la mode en Flandre

La plupart des nouveaux entrepreneurs sont situés dans la province d'Anvers, suivie par la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale et la Flandre orientale.

Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.