Czech Regions Research Articles

Territorial Justice and Sport: Public Subsidies to Sport in Czech Regions

Territorial Justice and Sport: Public Subsidies to Sport in Czech Regions

Gravity Models of Internal Migration – the Czech Case Study

Abstract In this paper, the models of internal migration flows between regions (NUTS 3) in the Czech Republic in time series from 1991 to 2012 are tested. The paper aims to find out how size, distance and economic variables explain migration flows between Czech regions. Several versions of an extended gravity model were used for testing, where economic factors which are frequently mentioned in literature on migration were used as regressors (i.e. average wage, registered unemployment rate, job vacancies and job vacancies per applicant). Internal migration flow is the dependent variable. In comparison to the pure gravity model, the extending of models with the economic variables improves the results of the models only slightly. The results show that the highest explanatory value of migration is given by models with rates of the variables tested.

Araneofauna of the Křéby National Nature Monument (Eastern Moravia, Czech Republic) with some notes to conservation management of the locality

This paper makes a faunistic contribution to knowledge of spider composition in the xerothermic habitats of the Křéby National Nature Monument which is located in Kroměříž district, eastern Moravia. Spiders were collected by four different methods during 25 April–28 October 2013: pitfall traps, sweeping of herb vegetation, individual collecting and beating the branches of shrubs and trees. In total, 1070 individuals (865 adult spiders) were collected and identified as 114 species of 19 families. The species diversity in the Křéby area is rather high, representing approximately 13% of Czech araneofauna. Of the identified species, five are listed in the Red List of Threatened Species in the Czech Republic. These included critically endangered Dysdera hungarica Kulczynski 1897, endangered Alopecosa solitaria (Herman, 1879), Cheiracanthium montanum (C. L. Koch, 1877) and vulnerable Lathys stigmatisata (Menge, 1869) and Haplodrassus dalmatensis (L. Koch, 1866). The findings of Alopecosa solitaria and Dysdera hungarica belong to the northernmost occurrence of these rare species in the Czech Republic. In general, the great richness of spider fauna and the occurrence of rare and threatened species for Czech region confirm the high biotic value of the investigated area. In addition, the author discussed management methods of the locality and suggest management conservation system for slowing down the succession rate on overgrown places.

Jak zkoumat českou krajskou paradiplomacii? Koncepty, modely a aplikace na případ Jihomoravského kraje

The article centres on research into paradiplomacy, the international involvement of sub-national units. It aims at finding appropriate concepts for use in research into the paradiplomacy of Czech regions. The main international scholarship on paradiplomacy is reviewed and the most popular concepts and typologies are introduced. Subsequently, several contradictions and deficiencies are revealed. Then, contemporary research into paradiplomacy in the Czech Republic is summarized. The article argues that Czech research has already identified genuine regional paradiplomacy, but lacks definition with respect to its specifics. The main argument is that, although it was appropriate to apply some concepts from research into federal states for the identification of paradiplomacy, extensive use of these concepts and typologies cannot bring results in research into the content of Czech paradiplomacy. Thus, a step back is suggested. Brian Hocking’s approach, which perceives non-central governments as genuine actors of international politics, is suggested. Keating’s typology seems the most appropriate for empirical research. In addition, it is argued that further research should focus mainly on the content of the paradiplomacy of Czech regions. The final part of the article proposes the application of such a research strategy on the example of the South Moravian Region. Its expected merits and benefits are then summed up in the conclusion.

VÝVOJ REGIONÁLNÍHO HDP V KRAJÍCH ČR SE ZAMĚŘENÍM NA METODICKÉ ASPEKTY

The regional GDP is used in the European Union as the important indicator to the distribution of the European funds. However in the Czech Republic this indicator has had only a short history because regional GDP started to be constructed in the half of the ninetieth. The aims of the paper are to present and evaluate the progress in the process of the regionalization of the GDP in the Czech Republic, review economic productivity of the Czech regions (level NUTS 2 and NUTS 3) and finally point out the persisting weaknesses of the regionalization of the GDP in the Czech Republic. First part of the paper describes problematic beginnings of the process of the regionalization of the GDP, evaluates changes of the methodology and discusses the actual state of this affair. Second part of the paper describes the variability of GDP among the Czech regions at level NUTS 2 and NUTS 3. Alternative modifications of the indicator GDP (for example GDP, GDP per capita, rate of growth) are used in this regional analysis. Consecutively relative positions of individual regions in the Czech Republic are discussed. There are pointed out some contradictions in the Czech regional statistics in this paper. The defined drawbacks indicate possible way of the research into the future.

PROGNÓZA VĚKOVÉ STRUKTURY A STÁRNUTÍ OBYVATEL V KRAJÍCH ČESKÉ REPUBLIKY

We analyzed the age structure of population in Czech regions, assessed the differences in the levels of the regions’ population age, and based upon the quantification of assumed changes we assessed the pace of ageing up to 2050. The analysis does not include the population migration, and is based on the indicators “ratio of productive population” and “ageing index” based on the factor analysis of the indicators closely related to the age of population. By means of cluster analysis we arranged the regions according to both mentioned indicators into groups where we, to be able to compare the groups, used their standard values and mean growth coefficient. The pivotal result is the order of regions from the points of view of the level of population age in 2005 – 2050 and the pace of population ageing in the predicted period of time 2005 – 2050. For better illustration we made out graphs where the structure of regions according to the age of population and the process of ageing can be deduced.

Creative Clusters in the Czech Republic—Strategy for Local Development or Fashionable Concept?

Abstract In an era of globalization and increasing competition among cities, creative industries are gaining greater attention as a catalyst for local and regional development. This is reflected in the theory of Richard Florida, which was accepted after 2002 by professionals in the field of urban planning, especially in North America and Western Europe, but critically analyzed by the academic community in the field of urban and regional development for its insufficient empirical evidence. Creative industries might be fostered through clusters that are widely accepted as concepts for improving the economic efficiency of regions. This paper introduces the concept of creative clusters into discussions by Czech geographers, while analysing the pioneer projectled development of an Audiovisual Cluster in the Zlín Region, and the possible transfer of the creative clusters concept to other Czech regions.

Competitiveness and convergence of czech regions: persistence of discrepancies

Competitiveness and convergence of czech regions: persistence of discrepancies

Input-Output Innovativeness of the Visegrad Group Regions

Observation that regional factors could influence innovative capacity of firms caused interest growth of innovation analysis at regional level. The objective of the paper is to measure and compare INPUT and OUTPUT innovativeness of 35 NUTS-2 Visegrad Group (V4) regions in the years 2004-2009. The indexes of regional innovativeness are based on synthetic measure. The variables correspond with the variables proposed in Regional Innovation Scoreboard. The first part of the paper contains a survey of innovativeness measures. In the next part I apply INPUT-OUTPUT analysis. The research procedure consist of three steps. The construction of matrix of regional innovativeness data was the first step. The next step was the measurement of innovation indexes. The last step was the comparison of regions based on INPUT and OUTPUT indexes. The results show that there have been and continue to be substantial differences among the V4 regions as regards innovativeness. Differences are particularly visible in case of capital regions, which are characterised by the highest INPUT and OUTPUT indexes (except for mazowieckie). In 2009, high indexes have also 2 Czech regions: Strední Cechy and Jihovýchod. In the V4, high value of INPUT index not always corresponds to high value of OUTPUT index. The most numerous group consisted of regions with medium values of both indexes. The lowest OUTPUT indexes were recorded for Polish Eastern regions. To the group characterised by low or medium INPUT indexes and high OUTPUT indexes belonged mainly Czech and Hungarian regions. In Slovak regions low INPUT indexes corresponded to medium OUTPUT indexes. Analysing the results, one should not forget that they are based on seven variables, which are a resultant of – in some measure – random choice and data accessibility. However it should not underrate the importance of this research.

State and development analysis of human resources in Czech region South-West

Within determination of regional development strategies it is necessary to analyze the present development of all groups of indicators expressing the state and development of the region and especially to identify factors determining the region development, and to evaluate and quantify their significance. The state and development analyses of human resources in the region have the irreplaceable place here. Human resources are the determining resource of regional development; therefore it is necessary to give them appropriate attention because the further economic development and prosperity of the given territory depend just on them. The paper aim is to evaluate the state and development of human resources in a complex effect of all relevant factors in districts of the region South-West and on base of the analyses to set groups of districts with a similar development and to determine groups of districts or districts which can be marked from the given view-point as endangered. As the basic areas for the analysis the demographic indicators, an economic activity of inhabitants and unemployment of inhabitants were chosen. Besides the basic statistical dynamics indicators also multidimensional statistical methods were used for the analyses – a principal component analysis and a cluster analysis. By their help indicators were selected whose influence showed themselves as the strongest in the given period, and further they served for establishment of homogeneous groups of districts with a similar state of human factors. It enabled to characterize from the given point of view particular groups of districts and to reveal strong and weak places of human potential development in them.

Mobilization Against the Left? Partisan Consequences of Voter Turnout in the Post-Communist Context

AbstractDoes higher turnout support left-wing parties, as many previous studies assume? Theoretical discussions thus far have been relatively inconclusive. This study proposes three different explanatory mechanisms for examining an aggregate-level relationship between turnout and electoral support for political parties in the post-communist milieu. The conventional hypothesis, based on the assumptions of a successful re-stratification of society and the relevance of class voting, states that higher turnout benefits the left. The second hypothesis is derived from the Michigan model of party identification. In this case, political parties with less loyal electorates would be expected to profit from higher rates of electoral participation. However, this article makes the case for a third possible explanation, termed simply “mobilization against the left,” which reverses the conventional hypothesis. The idea is that the more people come to the polls, the stronger the post-communist right-wing parties will be. This analysis includes two Czech regions that can be said to be farthest away from each other in terms of their socioeconomic and political characteristics. Having analyzed the 2010 Czech parliamentary election results across 1444 electoral districts in two regions, Central Bohemia and Moravia-Silesia, we conclude that there is certain empirical evidence that supports the proposed explanatory mechanism regarding the relationship between voter turnout and share of votes for political parties.

Vertical variability in the position of the zero isochion in geomorphologic regions of Czechia

Knowledge of the volume of water retained in mountainous areas serves as an important source of information for the anticipation of spring floods, as well as for other purposes, such as those related to agricultural management. Similarly, the extent and distribution of snow coverage (snow cover area – SCA) in lowlands are factors influencing the threat of large-scale floods caused by the melting of even a thin layer of snow cover. Every week during the winter months, the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (CHMI) provides up to date information on the snow water equivalent present in Czech regions and especially within important hydrological basins. This information comes predominantly from an observation of net and field measurements. The position of the zero isohione, determined through remote sensing, helps to increase the accuracy of the calculations of such spatial distribution in Czechia. As a consequence of this practical use, changes in the accumulation and distribution of snow cover can be readily observed via remote senzing. This is further made easier by Czechia’s orographic disposition, specifically its interconnected system of border mountains and a central highland. As a result, the position of the zero isohione can be determined with an accuracy of 50 m a.s.l. If we compare selected geomorphological regions, we can find statistically substantiated differences in the position of the zero isohione of more than 200 m.

Ist es notwendig, ein Heiliges Grab für die Aufführungen der Karfreitagsoratorien einzurichten? : einige Bemerkungen zur Aufführung der Karfreitagsoratorien aus der böhmischen Region

Ist es notwendig, ein Heiliges Grab für die Aufführungen der Karfreitagsoratorien einzurichten? : einige Bemerkungen zur Aufführung der Karfreitagsoratorien aus der böhmischen Region

Zmeny v zahranicn�m obchodu se zemedelsk�mi komoditami v Cesk� republice

Czech economy went in last two decades through two important changes. The first of the changes was transition of central planned economy to market economy. Since this moment the Czech economy has been confronted with products from the entire world. The second important change was the EU entrance in 2004. Although in the period 2007–2013 one of the priorities of the European Commission was support of competitiveness, the new member countries did not have the same conditions for their economy – at this case agriculture – as the old members. The result of the uneven set conditions is enlargement of disparities in agricultural sector between old and new member countries. Nine years with lower volume of subsidies caused lower competitiveness of agriculture in most of new member countries, including the Czech Republic. That is one of the reasons why number of animals lowered very significantly and structure of plant production has changed according to subsidy schemes. Czech agriculture, mainly the animal production, is not able to product so many commodities as are needed, and is forced to import more products than in previous years. Aim of the article is to analyse by basic statistical and cartographic methods the change of export and import of the main agricultural products according to the SITC classes in last 10 years from the view of spatial distribution. Also some results of questionnaire survey with farmers in Czech regions will be introduced, mainly the opinions of farmers on barriers of development, problems with EU regulations and subsidies. These barriers are connected with foreign trade as well.

The economic performance of regions in the Czech Republic

Regional development in the Czech Republic contributed to the fact that at present none of the regions is significant backward compared to other. Individual regions have shown among themselves certain differences. This applies in particular to the economic performance of regions. This paper introduce results of our research. Main aim of the work was to indentify economic performace affecting factors of regions NUTS 3 in Czech Republic. It was necessary to define quantity of economic performance to meet this goal. We used them to create method of valuating economic performance of regions. We weighed quantities (e.g. GDP, unemployment rate, net disposable income) according to their importance. This procedure was applied to individual regions. We determined the level of economic performance of Czech regions. We present overview of factors and using statistical methods we test their importance to the economic performance of Czech regions.

Analysis of the EU Territorial Differences in Terms of Natural Conditions with Special View of Czech Nuts 2 Regions

AbstractThis paper analyses differences and similarities between the NUTS 2 regions of the European Union in terms of natural conditions with the subsequent evaluation of differences in land use, size structure, enterprise focus and selected economic indicators. The paper is also focused on the evaluation of the position of regions of the Czech Republic. NUTS 2 EU regions were classified into four groups, where the first represented favorable conditions for agriculture, on the other side the other group with conditions unsuitable for intensive agriculture - mountainous areas and the last two groups represented a transition between them. Czech regions were found in all groups except mountainous areas. Based on the analysis can we say that between clusters were found significant differences in the structure of farms, size of the enterprises, business focus but differences were not found in the economic indicators.

Clinical Stages in Patients with Primary and Subsequent Cancers Based on the Czech Cancer Registry 1976–2005

Of 1,486,984 new cancers registered in the Czech Cancer Registry in 1976-2005, 290,312 (19.5%) were multiple malignant neoplasms (MMNs), of which there were 65,292 primary and 89,796 subsequent cases in men and 59,970 primary and 75,254 subsequent cases in women. The duplicities were higher in women, and the triplicities and others (3–6 MMNs) were higher in men. The most frequent diagnoses were the primary cancers of skin, gastrointestinal and urinary tract, male genital organs, respiratory tract in men, and cancers of skin, breast, female genital organs, and gastrointestinal tract in women. The analysis of the early and advanced clinical stages shows that the number of subsequent advanced stages increased after primary advanced stages. Their time-age-space distributions visualized maps of MMNs in 14 Czech regions. These results support the improvement of algorithms of dispensary care for the early detection of the subsequent neoplasms.

Seismic activity in the Czech Republic in 2010

The Czech Regional Seismological Network (CRSN), consisting of fifteen permanent digital broadband stations and two data centres, recorded and detected about 11120 seismic events from all epicentral distances in 2010. Most of these events were located by the Czech Seismological Service, and many of them were analyzed in detail. This paper provides basic information on the configuration of the CRSN, routine data processing, seismicity in the Czech Republic in 2010 as well as macroseismic observations collected in 2010. The seismic activity on the territory of the Czech Republic and surrounding regions has been traditionally reported in annual bulletins published on the web sites of the Institute of Geophysics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague (http://www.ig.cas.cz), and in reports issued by the Institute of Physics of the Earth of Masaryk University, Brno (http://www.ipe.muni.cz). The bulletins however include events from local to teleseismic distances which makes the search for regional information complicated. The aim of this paper is to provide a quick overview of earthquakes and mining-induced seismic events which originated in the Czech Republic in 2010. The overview follows the contribution to the seismic activity in 2007 (Zednik and Pazdirkova, 2009), 2008 (Zednik and Pazdirkova, 2010) and 2009 (Zednik and Pazdirkova, 2012). Earthquakes and mining-induced events in the Bohemian Massif in 19951999 were discussed by Zednik et al. (2001).

The Innovative Regions in the Czech Republic and their Position in the International Labour Market of Highly Skilled Workers

Bernard J., Kostelecký T. and Patočková V. The innovative regions in the Czech Republic and their position in the international labour market of highly skilled workers, Regional Studies. This paper analyses the possibilities and potential barriers of development of an Island of Innovation in the most innovative regions in a post-Communist country – the Czech Republic. The relation between the labour market of these regions and the Islands of Innovation is explored and the consequences of the situation for further R&D development are assessed. The analysis concludes that the most innovative Czech regions are able to attract highly qualified labour from other locations and do not suffer from a quantitatively important brain drain. On the other hand, mutual interconnections with the most developed Islands of Innovation are weak.

Quality indicators of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.) venison from two different Czech regions

This study focused on differences in the monitored quality indicators of roe deer venison depending on the region of the Czech Republic where roe deer are hunted. Quality of roe deer venison was evaluated based on pH values, colour (CIEL*a*b* system) and chemical composition (content of haem pigments, dry matter, pure protein, collagen and fat). Samples of muscle from the leg (m. gluteus medius) were taken from 22 female roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.) from two hunting regions (Liberec and South Moravia) in the Czech Republic. In roe deer from Liberec, higher pH value (5.65, P < 0.001) was found; muscles were darker (L* = 36.03), contained higher redness (a* = 14.41, P < 0.001) and yellowness values (b* = 12.10) and higher chroma (C* = 18.86). In roe deer from South Moravia, higher (P < 0.05) hue (h°) values, and higher level of haem pigments (2.45 mg·g-1) were found. Muscles from roe deer from South Moravia contained higher amounts of dry matter (29.52%, P < 0.001), pure protein (23.84%, P < 0.001) and total collagen (0.86%), and lower amounts of intramuscular fat (0.48%). These results may provide an important source of information for consumers of roe deer meat because several differences in the quality (chemical composition) of muscles from South Moravian region and Liberec region were found. Presumably, the differences between muscles from animals living in two different Czech regions were due to the diet, form of land use (more agricultural land in Southern Moravia, and forests and mountains in Liberec) and climatic conditions (Liberec lies in the northern part of the Czech Republic). It is the first study of this topic in the Czech Republic.