Cooperation Of Local Communities Research Articles

Digital tools of territorial communities in improving the quality of services to the population

The article considers the main aspects of the introduction of digital tools of local communities and their role in improving the quality of services to the population.The purpose of the study is an analysis of the ways and scope of use of digital tools by the United Territorial Communities (UTC) in it's activities, in particular to: involve residents in decision-making processes in these communities and improve the quality of services to the population - as a result of UTC cooperation through digital communications. The study focuses on interaction with residents of relevant UTCs, and on the cooperation of local communities in improving the quality of services to the population. Peculiarities and main aspects of digital interaction with the residents of the territorial community and effective coverage of the government's activities with digital tools are identified. It is proposed as a mechanism of cooperation of UTC by means of digital communications to improve the quality of services to the population of territorial communities implementation of the digital communication strategy.

TAX INSTRUMENTS FOR ENSURING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND COOPERATION OF TERRITORIAL COMMUNITIES

Topicality. Tax instruments that are aimed on stimulation of economic activity are widely used as regulators of regional territorial economic systems in developed countries, especially in the EU, and for Ukraine this practice, on the author's opinion and on the opinion of many experts in taxation sphere, will also support economic development priorities and would be appropriate and effective. The processes of voluntary formation of united territorial communities and decentralization of administrative-territorial organization in Ukraine did not bring the expected growth in the economic development of territorial economic systems and this necessitates the formation of a comprehensive policy to promote economic development of territorial complexes with special emphasis on economic growth. Supporting the priorities of economic development of regional, subregional economic systems and parts of functional areas at the basic level can be effectively implemented through tax instruments, because such measures are effective and can stimulate the rapid direction of financial, commodity, logistics, investment flows towards favorable business conditions. A promising direction for the development of territorial economic systems is the support of economic cooperation in communities, because this will provide conditions for the division of labor in the territorial dimension and will stimulate the creation of extended value chains.Aim and tasks. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the feasibility and determine the potential effectiveness of tax instruments that are to stimulate the economic development and cooperation of territorial communities in Ukraine in the context of administrative and territorial reform and according to the impact of modern challenges of the ensuring of the competitiveness of domestic economic complexes in context of integration into world economic systems.Research results. The article considers the tools of economic cooperation of communities as means of functional territories creating, which is an alternative to the process of united territorial communities forming, and as a universal mean of ensuring of the economic capacity of communities in terms of unification, which is especially relevant during the completing of decentralization reform, when delegation of all powers is provided to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.Measures of economic capacity increase of territorial communities with the use of economic cooperation tools are developed in the article, including tax, organizational, financial, informational levers that are relevant to the current conditions of development of territorial communities in Ukraine and regions. Particular attention is paid to tax measures and mechanisms that are to stimulate economic development and cooperation of local communities, as it is proved that such levers of regulation are among the most effective.Conclusion. It is determined that stimulation of investment activity, general economic development and cooperation by tax regulation measures is already possible and appropriate institutional support for such tools has already been formed, but for further introduction of a comprehensive mechanism of tax stimulation of cooperation and formation of functional territories on the basis of effective division of labor support, additional more significant and systemic changes to the current institutional environment, especially to the Tax Code of Ukraine are needed.

Comparing Conservation Attitudes of Park-Adjacent Communities: The Case of Mole National Park in Ghana and Tarangire National Park in Tanzania

The success of biodiversity conservation in African countries depends to a large extend on the cooperation of local communities. This study compared factors that influence attitudes of local communities toward the conservation of the Tarangire National Park (Tarangire NP) in Tanzania and Mole National Park (Mole NP) in Ghana. The purpose was to find out if the predominantly agricultural-communities around the Mole NP in Ghana will differ in park-attitude than the predominantly pastoral-communities around the Tarangire NP in Tanzania. Household survey was used to assess attitudes and focus group discussions used to elicit further information from respondents to complement the survey data. The study surveyed 365 households in 7 villages: 3 villages adjacent to the Tarangire NP and 4 villages adjacent to the Mole NP. There was significant difference between the park-attitudes of residents in communities near the Mole NP and their counterparts in communities near the Tarangire NP. However, respondents in both countries showed slightly positive and negative attitudes toward the parks as ecological entities and as community development agents, respectively. Factors that had significant effects on attitudes include: “knowledge of park rules,” “employment in park,” “distance between village and park,” “household size,” “access to non-timber forest products,” and “livelihood activity.” The findings suggest that any efforts aimed at increasing local community support for any of the two national parks should critically consider livelihoods diversification, population control, and extensive conservation education in neighboring communities.

Impact of Community Engagement on Public Construction Projects -- Case Study of Hammanskraal Pedestrian Bridge, City of Tshwane, South Africa

Construction projects in the public sector are often affected by major challenges with regards to project ownership by stakeholders particularly with the co-operation of local communities. Local community participation is a requirement for various development initiatives in South Africa. Various government policies and regulations exist, to support the free and fair participation of small and medium scale enterprises within the built environment, particularly with public sector projects. This research study seeks to investigate the influence of local communities on public sector construction projects and will focus on the impact of the local community involved in the construction of the Hammanskraal Pedestrian Bridge over the R101 in Hammanskraal, Pretoria. The sample population will consist of the main contractor, the professional team involved in the project and the municipality officials overseeing the project. This research will also focus on the engagement of the professional engineer and project managers with the project steering community.

Development cooperation of local communities (inter-municipal cooperation – IMC) under the implementation of local government reform

The hereby article has analyzed the issue of the territorial communities’ cooperation (intermunicipal cooperation – IMC), in particular in the framework of the on-going local self-government reform in Ukraine.It is proved justification of the researches of the notion «territorial community» as an object of the public administration science. It is also defined the main characteristics of the territorial communities’ cooperation (intermunicipal cooperation – IMC), in particular taking into account the concepts of «new public management» and «good governance». It is pointed out the particularities of the current status and further IMC evolution in Ukraine. The experience of other countries in the field of local self-government reform implementation and IMC development have been studied and systematized. It has been also analyzed the possibilities of the implementation in Ukraine of the best national and international practices in this field.The main directions of further IMC development are examined in order to ensure the implementation of the provisions of the European Charter of Local Self-Government. It is also noted that IMC represents an innovative tool for local sustainable development and municipal consolidation in Ukraine and other European countries.The benefit of the article is to highlight the main stages of IMC projects realization. The article also provides a deep analysis of key advantages and possible difficulties in IMC projects realization. It shows that IMC gives the opportunity for local authorities to unite their resources (financial, economic, perssonel etc.) for increasing the efficiency of their work and improving the quality of the municipal services to be provided for the citizens. Consequently, provision of the high quality services to the citizens became a main mission of all local public authorities in the framework of the implementation of the new public management and good governance standards on all levels. It reflects also the main European tendencies in the field of public administration reform which are fixed in the different documents of the international organizations and European institutions. By analysis of the current status of local self-government reform, the best national and international practices, the proposals on further IMC development in Ukraine are presented. Thus, the author proposed to set up more valuable and effective cooperation between the respective local public authorities, organization of the special training programmes in order to ensure further IMC development.

Cooperation between territorial communities: theory and practice

Problem Setting. The paper analyzes the problems in the system of legal regulation of cooperation between communities, highlights the advantages and disadvantages of such cooperation in Ukrainian local government.Analysis of the recent researches and publications. The legal basis for cooperation in the field of local government are provisions of the Constitution and laws of Ukraine, by-laws. The organizational principles of communities cooperation, principles, forms and mechanisms of such cooperation and its promotion, financing and monitoring prescribed by the Law of Ukraine «On cooperation of local communities» 17 June 2014, which provides five possible forms of cooperation.Paper main body. The first form - delegation to one party of cooperation by another parties of cooperation execution of one or few tasks with transferring of appropriate resources - one of the most difficult to implement, therefore in Ukraine it is not yet implemented.The second form – realization of joint projects, involving coordination of activities between parties of cooperation and accumulating them for a certain period resources to joint implementation of appropriate measures - one of the most common. This form is popular because of its simplicity and versatility. Parties are determining the purpose of the project, terms and conditions of its implementation, a list of activities and conditions for their implementation, financial liabilities, other forms of local governments participation in implementation of the project and mechanism of coordination.The third and fourth forms aimed on the creation and maintenance of communal enterprises, institutions and organizations - joint infrastructure projects by parties of cooperation. This form of cooperation with the prospect of widespread use because it is aimed at ensuring effective use of resources of local communities based on common application available in one of the subjects of cooperation of municipal infrastructure.The fifth form – creations by cooperation parties joint body of management - complex, not properly regulated, so there is no example of this type of cooperation in Ukraine.The basic directions of improvement of legal regulation of relations in this area proposed by author. These are formation of associations (Union of Communities), public legal structures with significantly higher levels of integrated territorial cooperation to jointly address most or all local matters, however local communities united in an alliance should not lose their legal status.Conclusions. The inter-municipal cooperation relatively new direction of local government in Ukraine and therefore requires a broad coverage of positive practices and benefits of voluntary restrictions of their own local communities autonomy for improving the quality of life of citizens in the territory. Cooperation should be based on clear goals and desired by strengthening solidarity and partnership to achieve result.

Passages and Destinations: A Tourism Studio Road to Rural Development

This paper describes the goals and development of a rural tourism Studio for Masters-level students in the Southern Tier of Western New York over the last decade. The main goal of the Studios has been to explore how tourism may be used to promote general economic development in a relatively impoverished rural area and so help to improve living conditions, including housing. The studio experience is considered to be an important part of the preparation for a career in planning. Studios almost always enter into, and attempt to contribute to, an ongoing planning and development process and are undertaken with the cooperation of local communities and agencies. The paper describes the background of students, their disciplinary skills and work experience, ethnic, age and geographic mix, and general unfamiliarity with rural issues. Also described are the various constraints and compromises with respect to course requirements and schedules, location, local participation and engaging communities. The paper illustrates some of the housing-related findings and recommendations—recreational and second homes, low-income properties, retirement and mobile homes—and concludes with an evaluation of the Studio overall including its limitations and suggestions for a continuing “planning-bus”approach to University-community collaboration.

Restoration Ecology of Lowland Tropical Peatlands in Southeast Asia: Current Knowledge and Future Research Directions

Studies of restoration ecology are well established for northern peatlands, but at an early stage for tropical peatlands. Extensive peatland areas in Southeast Asia have been degraded through deforestation, drainage and fire, leading to on- and off-site environmental and socio-economic impacts of local to global significance. To address these problems, landscape-scale restoration measures are urgently required. This paper reviews and illustrates, using information from on-going trials in Kalimantan, Indonesia, the current state of knowledge pertaining to (i) land-cover dynamics of degraded peatlands, (ii) vegetation rehabilitation, (iii) restoration of hydrology, (iv) rehabilitation of carbon sequestration and storage, and (v) promotion of sustainable livelihoods for local communities. For a 4500 km2 study site in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, we show a 78% reduction in forest cover between 1973 and 2003 and demonstrate that fire, exacerbated by drainage, is the principal driver of land-use change. Progressive vegetation succession follows infrequent, low-intensity fires, but repeated and high-intensity fires result in retrogressive succession towards non-forest communities. Re-wetting the peat is an important key to vegetation restoration and protection of remaining peat carbon stocks. The effectiveness of hydrological restoration is discussed and likely impacts on greenhouse gas emissions evaluated. Initial results indicate that raised water levels have limited short-term impact on reducing CO2 emissions, but could be critical in reducing fire risk. We conclude that successful restoration of degraded peatlands must be grounded in scientific knowledge, relevant to socio-economic circumstances, and should not proceed without the consent and co-operation of local communities.

Promoting Coexistence by Means of Conflict Education: The MACBE Model

This article presents a conflict education program designed to restore relationships among adversaries experiencing protracted, seemingly intractable intergroup conflict. It is designed on the basis of a systems model. The underlying assumption is that breaking the escalation cycle and ameliorating the adversaries' relationships requires a comprehensive intervention. Consequently, the curriculum imparts knowledge about conflict dynamics and teaches constructive conflict resolution skills, enhancing the probability of behavior and attitude change. The program is deemed relevant to efforts of improving Arab‐Jewish relations in Israel. Implementation of the intervention requires ample resources, cooperation of local communities, and forbearance of program initiators and participants, which rarely exist in tandem. Nonetheless, even partial implementation can contribute to peaceful coexistence of Arabs and Jews.