Attitude Of Local Authorities Research Articles

Managing the Organic Municipal Waste in Palestine: Linking Policy, Practice and Stakeholders’ Attitude Towards Composting

Local authorities in Palestine are the service providers for solid waste management. Given that the organic fraction is the largest in municipal solid waste, and with ineffective management policies, the study of attitudes and behavioral aspects of personnel involved are very-important parameters in developing an effective waste management system and assisting policymakers in rectifying these policies. This study aims to assess the attitude of local authorities (LAs) in the southern West Bank of Palestine towards organic municipal solid waste composting and the factors that affect their attitude. The data was gathered via a structured questionnaire from all local authorities in the study area. The results showed that the local authorities’ attitude towards organic solid waste composting is low and can be considered dissatisfactory since only 36.5% of the local authorities are planning for composting compared to 63.5% who are not. The results also showed that municipal solid waste composting is significantly affected by nine factors, including financial capacity, proper machinery, enough refuse collection vehicles to collect solid waste fractions separately, availability of area of land to be used for composting, familiarity with composting systems, staff previous-experience in compost production, acceptance of the rapid composting system, staff training in compost production, and believe that solid waste composting is within the LAs’ responsibility. Implications municipal solid waste is growing continuously due to the population growth, increase methane emissions, and add more pressure on the landfills, which faces political and social restrictions for expansion in Palestine. In addition, there is severe restrictions on the import of chemical fertilizers imposed by Israel. Therefore, composting the organic fractions of solid waste can, to a large extent, extend the life of the landfills and compensate the shortage of fertilizers in the market, encourage organic farming and reduce methane emissions as well. Moreover, it can contribute to achieve the objective of the national strategy on solid waste management.

The political process evolution in the Volyn region (1991−2021)

A scientific analysis of the political process in the Volyn region for thirty years of existence of independent Ukraine has been carried out in the article. Emphasis has been placed on institutional and non-institutional practices of political activity and participation of subjects of socio-political relations, which determined/determine the nature and direction of the political process in Volyn. The sequence of actions of the government and the opposition to dismantle the institutions of power of the Soviet era, the decommunization of the symbolic space of the settlements of the region, creation of civil society institutions and parties, paradigm shifts in the attitude of local authorities to churches and their denominations, participants in national liberation struggles, etc. have been revealed. Significant influence on the direction of the political process is determined by the electoral participation of citizens in elections to higher and local authorities and, accordingly, qualitative composition of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and local councils. Along with the analysis of the party representation from Volyn in the parliamentary corps of the Ukrainian parliament, there has been traced the dynamics of participation and preferences of certain political forces and parties in the elections to the regional council. The process of party-political structuring in the region has been periodized. The significant attention has been paid to the analysis of socio-political activity of Volyn residents during the Orange Revolution and the Revolution of Dignity. The author came to the conclusion that in general, the political process in Volyn reflects the direction of the political process in Ukraine with its simultaneous diversification in the following main areas: first, the abandonment of authoritarian-totalitarian institutional forms and the transition to democratic ones; secondly, the decommunization of public space and the modeling of historical memory, accompanied by the return of national (local) traditions, rituals and symbols; thirdly, enriching the „paletteˮ of domestic experience in political activities and participation in regional practices.

The place of local government bodies in a unified system of public government bodies of Russia: issues of theoretical implementation

The introduction of amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation necessitated a theoretical understanding of the established legal norms after their legislative update. Inclusion in the text of the state basic law of the public authorities concept, which requires its theoretical understanding, is of unconditional interest. To identify the specifics of the position of local self-government bodies in the state mechanism, depending on a particular model of state governance, it is necessary to study the experience of organization and functioning of the state apparatus at various historical stages. The aim of the study is to analyze the concepts of theoretical scientists on the legal nature and role of public authorities in the life of the state and to determine the position of local authorities in the public authority system in connection with consolidation of their unity with public authorities in the basic law of the state. In the process of research, the authors used general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis, as well as specific scientific methods - historical and comparative legal. It is concluded that, despite the novelty of the concept of public authorities in the text of the basic law of the state, conceptually it does not change the basis of the functional interaction of public authorities and local governments. Nevertheless, the normative consolidation of the unity of public authorities in the Constitution of the Russian Federation does not abolish the organizational separation of local self-government and its bodies from public authorities.

“... And Their Mosques From Churches of God to Build in Distant Places”: to Qquestion of Formation of Interethnic and Interfaith Borders in Western Siberia in 18<sup>th</sup> Century

The process of building ethno-religious boundaries in the 18th century in the social space of Western Siberia is considered on the example of the provincial center — Tobolsk. The relevance of the study is due to the transformation of ethno-confessionalism from a cultural phenomenon into an instrument that can be used for political purposes in modern Russia. One of the methodological research tools is the method of analysis of the “new local history”, which allows you to create a holistic perception of the study of the social life of the past “at a local object”. The main stages of the state ethno-confessional policy in the 18th century are highlighted. The facts of the forced Christianization of Muslims are clarified. The authors draw attention to the role of the personal (subjective) factor in the processes under study. On the example of the activities of Metropolitan Sylvester Glovatsky and the governor F. I. Soimonov, the vector of the development of interfaith relations is considered, which often depends on the foresight and ideological attitudes of local authorities. Particular attention is paid to government decrees reflecting the position of the state in the ethno-religious sphere. The features are revealed and the main stages of the process of Christianization of Siberian Muslims during the 18th century are highlighted. The process of formation of interfaith boundaries in the multiethnic Siberian region is analyzed. The historiography of the topic under study is presented.

An assessment framework for improving protected areas based on morphological spatial pattern analysis and graph-based indicators

Zoning protected areas is essential for ecological protection and environmental management. However, the protected areas generated via bottom-up processes depend highly on the attitudes of local authorities. Moreover, the performance of protected areas will inevitably be weakened by human activities if there exists an inconsistency between protection and land development. To reveal and solve these problems through top-down approaches, a novel framework for the improvement of protected areas (ERL) is presented in this study. First, the ecological conditions of both the previously-established ERL and land use status quo were assessed through morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA) and a set of graph-based indicators (e.g., connectivity indices). Second, the low-quality parts of the ERL were improved based on a comparison with the observed land use condition. The results indicated that the ecologically important areas that were excluded from the previously-established ERL can be effectively identified by the combination of MSPA and graph-based indicators. The percentages of high-quality components moderately increased after the improvement. Specifically, low-level core patches can be upgraded by incorporating the ecologically important pixels that were previously neglected. Moreover, many low-quality small islets can be enhanced to better serve the function of temporary habitats. In summary, these results are expected to provide practical guidance for ecological conservation planning and management. More importantly, our proposed zoning framework can be further generalized to the analysis in many other fast-growing regions.

Changes in Selected Aspects of Environmental Management: The Case of Natura 2000 in South-Eastern Poland

Purpose: The aim of the study was to check whether in recent years there have been changes affecting selected, important aspects of managing Natura 2000 areas at the local level towards their more effective protection, and whether the attitude of local authorities to these forms of protection as a potential factor stimulating the socio-economic development of communes is changing. Design/Methodology/Approach: The panel study included a group of people managing the work of local governments in 87 municipalities located in the Lublin Voivodeship in south-eastern Poland. All these administrative units are characterized by the presence of Natura 2000 areas. The method of a diagnostic survey based on a questionnaire was used. The form contained closed-ended questions, one of the proposed options had to be selected at each point. The answers were assigned an appropriate score and statistically tested using the signs test based on the Bernoulli binomial distribution. Findings: As a result, positive changes from the point of view of nature conservation were found, such as: an increase in the number of officials with appropriate education and substantive preparation, possession by local governments of newer documentation in the field of nature inventory, increasing the frequency of carrying out environmental impact assessments and a more favorable attitude of commune mayors to the presence of Natura 2000 areas in the context of its impact on local development. At the same time, there has been a deterioration in the timeliness of spatial development studies on which local development plans are based. Practical Implications: The conclusions of the study can be used primarily by institutions responsible for the development and implementation of environmental policy. In particular, mechanisms should be taken to encourage local self-government authorities to even greater involvement in various activities for the protection of natural resources. Originality/Value: The article indicates the trends of changes in the management of protected natural values at the lowest local government level. These changes will gain in importance with the implementation of formal Natura 2000 protection plans.

Бывшие сотрудники МВД Тамбовской губернии после Февральской революции 1917 г.

The problems of changing the position of the Ministry of Internal Affairs after the events of February–March 1917 in the Tambov Governorate are investigated. We study the state policy, the attitude of local authorities and the public to representatives of this socio-professional group, individual features of the adaptation of its representatives to new socio-political conditions. The relevance of the research is due to both significant gaps in the historiography of the issue, especially at the regional level of the study of the problem, and a certain consonance with the modern problems of Russian law enforcement agencies in the context of transformations. It is concluded that representatives of the broad popular strata and the soldier masses treated former em-ployees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs extremely negatively, which was especially pronounced in the period that followed the revolutionary events of February 1917. However, the leadership of both the governorate as a whole and in individual counties pursued an ambivalent policy towards representatives of this social and professional group. On the one hand, the tasks were set for the maximum removal of former law enforcement officers from participation in public and political life, and on the other, their professional skills were in demand in the newly created militia bodies.

Planning the transition to autonomous driving: A policy pathway towards urban liveability

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) are expected to flood urban roads in the next future. Despite the optimism of the automotive industry and technology enthusiasts, AVs may have undesired impacts on urban liveability, especially if their diffusion is let to the market and not governed by public administrations. The door-to-door service they could provide and wider access to individual car trips can lead to an increase of short intra-urban car trips, to the detriment of public transport and active mobility. With few exceptions, the attitude of local authorities is dominated by a laissez-faire approach. The difficulty of dealing with high degrees of uncertainty and the absence of clear ideas on desirable visions are among the main reasons for this policy inaction. As a result of a collaborative backcasting process, this paper presents a vision to 2050, grounded on the extensive application of the superblock model, and the policy pathway to steer the transition to autonomous driving towards liveability and sustainability of the city. Governing the transition to AVs towards a desired vision is a complex process, that requires immediate action, farsighted planning and the cooperation of various sectors.

The Use of Geo-Questionnaire in Spatial Planning

Changes in the attitude of local authorities towards the managerial processes of local governments have opened the area for cooperation of many actors in decision making processes. Taking into account the complexity of urban planning it is necessary to search for methods facilitating the participatory planning processes. Of potential use are internet tools based on GIS, supporting the engagement of the public in the processes of management and consolidation of local inhabitants. One of such tools is the geo-questionnaire developed within the project: Geoportal supporting public participation in urban planning (GEOPLAN). The aim of the article is to present these results of six pilot studies of e-consultations performed in Poznań and Łódź agglomerations (Poland). Subsequent sections of the article present characterization of Public Participation Geographic Information System (PPGIS) tools and assessment of the possibilities of their use for spatial management on the basis of opinions of local inhabitants and local authorities. Attention is also paid to the legal and organizational challenges related to implementation of internet consultation processes in Poland. Solving these problems may lead to increased contribution of local society and greater effectiveness of decisions made in spatial management at local levels.

Znaczenie turystyki w rozwoju Krynicy-Zdroju

Krynica-Zdrój od lat opiera swój rozwój na turystyce. W powyższym podejściu ważne są przedsiębiorcza i aktywna postawa lokalnych władz, konkretny plan działań zapisany w dokumentach strategicznych oraz stała analiza zmieniającego się profilu turysty. Celem niniejszej pracy było ukazanie obecnego znaczenia turystyki w rozwoju Krynicy-Zdroju oraz zbadanie preferencji, zadowolenia i opinii turystów, którzy na przestrzeni ostatnich lat odwiedzają to uzdrowisko. Wykorzystane metody badawcze to badania ankietowe przeprowadzone wśród turystów w roku 2013 i 2017 oraz analiza dokumentów strategicznych. Uzyskane wyniki wskazują, że turystyka odgrywa decydującą rolę w rozwoju gospodarczym, przestrzennym i funkcjonalnym Krynicy-Zdroju. Bogata i zróżnicowana oferta kurortu, w tym kreowana przez lokalne władze, stanowi jego silną przewagę konkurencyjną. Zmienia się jednak profil turysty i charakter wizyt, pomimo że walory zdrojowe i krajobrazowe na przestrzeni lat pozostają głównym impulsem przyjazdów.

Polityka władz lokalnych wobec rosyjskojęzycznych towarzystw kulturalno-oświatowych na terytorium guberni białoruskich w latach 1905–1914

The key points of the relations between the local authorities and the Russian-speaking cultural and educational societies in the Belarusian lands in the period of 1905–1914 are con­sidered in this article. During its activity such organisations often engaged in cooperation with political parties, which caused a negative reaction from the authorities.Local administrations saw potential revolutionary ideas in the cultural and educational societies, and in 1905–1914 had all initiatives of Belarusian intelligentsia organisations under strict control.Such position of local authorities apparently weakened the cultural and educational movement in the territory of the Belarusian provinces.

The phenomenon of urban sprawl in modern Poland: Causes, effects and remedies

Objectives: The objective of this article is to identify the reasons for the emergence of urban sprawl in Poland, with particular reference to selected medium-sized cities in the Malopolska voivodeship, located at different distances from Krakow. The second objective of this article is to indicate the awareness of the authorities of these cities of the influence of the core city (Krakow) and their efforts to use this phenomenon for their own developmental goals. Research Design & Methods: Documents defining the socio-economic development policies of Limanowa, Niepolomic and Nowy Targ were used for the analysis, as well as selected quantitative data indicating the direction and strength of the urban sprawl. An important element of this article is an indication of the consequences of this phenomenon and remedies for public administration of various levels in Poland. The model of gravitational potential was utilised as the research basis. Contribution / Value Added: As an added value, an attempt should be made to indicate the relation between the values of indicators and the policy of local development (actions of local authorities to eliminate negative effects of the urban sprawl phenomenon). Implications / Recommendations: Although the urban sprawl phenomenon is involuntary (and ubiquitous), it can be controlled, and the lack of actions to control consequences will make them even more acute. Solutions should be systemic in nature and implemented at the level of central administration in Poland, but the attitude of local authorities is also important. In addition, the influence of Krakow on its functional surroundings has a different strength and character. From the point of view of local authorities, it is important to diagnose strength and character (positive or negative) in order to properly choose the direction of the given city’s development policy.

From Policy to Practice: Exploring Practitioners\u2019 Perspectives on Social Enterprise Policy Claims

While there has been significant academic focus on social enterprise policy for a number of years now, the links between policy and the practice of social enterprise have received comparatively less attention. Scotland is recognised as having a particularly supportive environment for social enterprise; the Scottish Government has publicly endorsed social enterprise and made considerable investment into the sector. Based upon an in-depth qualitative analysis of the perceptions of social enterprise practitioners and stakeholders across Scotland, we explore whether the rhetoric of support matches practitioners experience of ‘doing’ social enterprise. Reviewing emerging issues and reflecting upon the complex nature of the Scottish context, including in relation to welfare reform, we find that in contrast to the claims of politicians, the attitude of local authorities in Scotland, coupled with a lack of understanding of the needs and requirements of social enterprise at the local authority level, has led to a rather more ‘patchwork’ picture than the rhetoric would seem to suggest. While some local authorities recognise the potential of social enterprise for their local economies and privilege and encourage cooperation, others are less inclined to openly support social enterprise, particularly those that are small in scale. Underpinning these contentions, we argue, are unrealistic expectations about the prospects of social enterprises being able to become ‘sustainable’, and how this could be achieved.

Factors of Local E-Government Development in Poland: The Case of the Poznań Agglomeration

Abstract This paper seeks to analyse factors of e-government development at the local government level in Poland. The analysis proceeded in three stages. In the first, a survey of the literature on the subject was made and a model of factors of e-government development was constructed. In the second, the factors distinguished were operationalised: indicators representing them were constructed. The third stage involved an empirical verification of the model using partial correlation and multiple regression methods; significant factors of e-government development were distinguished at the local government level. The analysis was conducted for a group of 18 communes making up the Poznań agglomeration. It was demonstrated that significant factors of local e-government development in Poland included the level of socio-economic development, inhabitants’ access to ICT, their attitudes and skills, the size of administrative units, attitudes of local authorities and leaders, a vision and a strategy of e-government development, human resources in offices, and the financial situation of a commune.

Providing Public Sport Facilities in Post-Socialist Times: The Case of the Czech Republic

Abstract The paper aims to investigate current approaches to the management of public sport facilities by local governments. In the Czech Republic, local clubs traditionally played a key role in providing sport to the public. With decreasing participation in organized sport, a significant number of clubs have been forced to transfer their facilities to local governments and the sport position of local authorities has strengthened considerably in recent years. In consequence, there have been alterations in the management of public sport facilities. The findings of statistical analysis emphasize an increasing role of specialized organizations at the expense of in-house management or external provision (facilities hired out to sport clubs). Moreover, local population and type of facility were found to be the possible reasons for different approaches. In-house management is associated with smaller municipalities whereas most of their facilities have the character of public goods. In contrast, publicly funded organizations and municipal enterprises appear in municipalities with larger populations providing sport facilities of regional importance in the form of mixed goods. Finally, clubs, as representatives of external provision, mostly provide sport facilities primarily intended for their own purposes - club goods. In the context of recent works and contemporary trends in sport participation, the research findings indicate that different forms of management may have significant effects not only on efficiency of public budgets but also on conditions for sport at local level - especially on targeting those who would participate in sport if they had access to new opportunities or leisure programs.

Hybrid spatialities: Multi-storey extensions of socialist blocks of flats under post-socialist transition in Serbia, the case of Nis

The aim of this research is to study the emergence and evolution of the multi-storey extension (MSE) of socialist blocks of flats in the form of additional storeys or lofts on top of host buildings, which is seen as a dominant model of post-socialist spatial change in inherited multi-storey housing areas in Serbia. Relying on an analysis of empirical data sources, interviews, observation and a comparative analysis, the paper investigates the MSE as a predominantly self-organising process. It also considers its manifestations at different operational and spatial levels in the study area of the city of Nis. It is argued that the MSE, under conditions of low economic capacity, an indifferent attitude of local authorities, an inconsistent legislative environment, and the market as an essential driving force of the process, results in uneven urban transformations, both in physical and social terms.

From Planning Obligations to Community Infrastructure Levy: A New Planning Tool for England

The English system of developers’ contributions towards community infrastructure and services remained unchanged for a 40 year period from 1968 to 2008. In 2008 a reform of paramount importance that introduced a new system of developers contributions was passed by the parliament. Thus, negotiated planning obligations were scaled back to include affordable housing and site specific contributions only and provisions for the Community Infrastructure Levy were made. The present paper aims at understanding the potential of this new tool for delivering community infrastructure and services and how it is perceived by local planning authorities who are to set out charging schedules. For this purpose a questionnaire survey was submitted to nearly 300 local authorities in order to obtain their views on the new system. The answers to the questionnaire allowed to explore the implications of planning obligations for the whole planning system. Furthermore, it allowed the attitude of local authorities towards the new tool to be understood as well as the advantages and downsides that may derive from the use of the Community Infrastructure Levy, before it is actually introduced by all local planning authorities, and other planning policy changes.

Factors affecting the attitude of tourism-destination local authorities towards sustainable planning tools in a networking context: the Balearic Sustainability Network

Empirical evidence regarding Local Agenda 21 (LA21) seems to indicate that higher LA21 dissemination is linked to networking. However, it is not entirely clear which features explain the favourable attitude of local authorities towards networks. This research takes a step forward towards filling this gap by studying the variables that are able to create favourable attitude towards participative sustainable planning tools by tourism-destination local authorities in a networking context. We focus on tourism destinations as singularly interesting areas for studying sustainability issues. Our research context is a region in Spain, the Balearic Islands, which was chosen due to its great dependence on tourism and its apparent involvement with LA21 processes. Our findings suggest that favourable attitudes are associated with a mix of variables that reflect the management approach of the promoters, the internal characteristics of the municipalities and the benefits emerging from networking. From a more disaggregated view, more cognitive-related variables (such as prior expertise, purposive benefits and learning) seem to be more important than more affective-related variables (such as entertainment, trust, identification and relations with network promoters) to explain attitudes towards LA21.

Examination of leadership in the local authorities in the North Great Plain region

Abstract This study deals with the leadership attitudes of local authorities in the North Great Plain region. The study is part of a research project dealing with organisational culture. In order to examine the organisational culture, the GLOBE (Global Leadership and Organisational Behaviour Effectiveness) questionnaire was used, which was also applied in the research programme “Compete the World!” at the Corvinus University in Budapest. Koopman, Den Hartog, Konrad et al. (1999) examined the culture variables of 21 European countries, while Brodbeck et al. examined the values of leadership variables in European clusters. This study deals with the examination of the leadership variables of local authorities. No similar examination of local authorities has ever been presented in the Hungarian and international specialised literature.

¿Participar para transformar? La experiencia de los presupuestos participativos en la provincia de Barcelona

¿Qué cabe esperar de los procesos de participación ciudadana en las políticas públicas locales?, ¿es razonable esperar transformaciones políticas significativas? En este artículo se identifican aquellas condiciones que, a nivel teórico, podemos prever que determinen la capacidad transformadora de la participación ciudadana. Esta discusión teórica da lugar a un marco de evaluación de las prácticas de participación que se aplica al análisis de las 11 experiencias vigentes de presupuestos participativos en la provincia de Barcelona. El análisis pone en evidencia los límites de este tipo de prácticas de participación, los cuales están relacionados con tres factores principales: su posición institucional periférica; el escaso margen de decisión que se concede a la ciudadanía; y la escasa movilización social. Sin embargo, los casos analizados obtienen buenos resultados en dos aspectos importantes: el impacto de las propuestas ciudadanas en la toma de decisiones públicas y la transformación de las actitudes políticas, técnicas y ciudadanas hacia la participación. El marco de evaluación propuesto nos ayuda a identificar ámbitos críticos de mejora de los procesos participativos y de fortalecimiento de su capacidad transformadora.