Organizational Unit:

School of Public Policy

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https://hdl.handle.net/1853/70716

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Organizational Unit

Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts

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Organizational Unit

Technology Policy and Assessment Center

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https://finding-aids.library.gatech.edu/agents/corporate_entities/1033

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Publication Search Results

Now showing 1 - 10 of 25

Examining the representativeness of Georgia's state water plan

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010-11-18) Marshall, Amanda Christine

This thesis provides an analysis of the Georgia statewide regional water planning process; a system deemed to be operating in the adaptive management framework. The principal focus of this analysis is to detail a novel paradigm capable of dynamic response to changing resource demands which stems from adaptive management principles and ensures representativeness. The paradigm extends directly from application of the theories of bounded rationality and adaptive management. Development of the framework is accomplished through application of theory and correlated empirical analysis. Extreme drought conditions signal a punctuated-equilibrium effecting statewide water resource management which in turn drives the issuance of an executive-level directive to prioritize and effectively manage critical state water resources. This study evolves directly from analysis of the current effort to establish unified regional water plans which address rapid population growth, and escalating water resource conflicts with Alabama and Florida while satisfying priorities established within the executive directive. Fundamental to this analysis is the survey of currently seated regional water planning council members. The essential function of the survey is to provide a qualitative assessment of the perceptions of appointed council members. These perceptions influence water management techniques prescribed by the final policy. While this is a fuzzy correlation, a primary function of this analysis is to quantify the strength of correlation between perceptions and developed policy. This survey details appointed council member attitudes and attributes and affords analysis of future decision making outcomes. The method prescribed herein unifies multi-level decision making processes under a dynamic adaptive management paradigm, and is intended to link the regional water planning processes with continuous annual assessment in order to achieve the pluralistic benefits of adaptive management decision making.
MBE policy as economic development: an examination of public contracting in Georgia

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010-07-09) Dickson, Austin Cartwright

Many scholars suggest that Minority Business Enterprises help disadvantaged populations and achieve greater equity in society. Rooted in the affirmative action policies of the 1960s and 1970s, Minority Business Enterprise designations have become a standard way for the federal government to assist minority entrepreneurs as well as protect against discrimination in contracting. Some scholars even suggest that these policies go beyond protection from discrimination and actually foster economic development in minority communities. This thesis examines those claims and utilizes an example from 12 years of the Georgia Department of Transportation's records on contracting with MBEs to answer the question: who is helped by these federal policies? This examination sheds light on the current literature linking MBEs with economic development as well as adds to the sparse literature on outcomes for MBE policy. The results of data analysis show that , over a 12-year period, White female business enterprises receive the twice as many contracting dollars as all other Minority Business Enterprises combined.
Campesino community participation in watershed management

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010-07-08) Galewski, Nancy

A series of threats face campesino communities' water management practices in the Callejón de Huaylas (upper region of the Santa Watershed). Competition for water resources is escalating due to increasing demand, decreasing supply, and a rise in contamination levels, leaving campesino communities in a precarious state as a result of their marginalized position in Peruvian society. Competition for water resources occurs between upstream and downstream users and amongst sectors including mining, agriculture, hydropower, and domestic water users. The national government recently passed an integrated water resource management system to improve water governance. However, bureaucratic tendencies make it unlikely that campesinos will receive an adequate share of resources. Campesino communities in the Callejón need to adopt new strategies to improve their position vis á-vis other sectors and resist capture of resources. Campesinos are important to the discussion of water resource management because they have long established systems of self-regulated management and need to be included in the new system of watershed governance. This research first examines local water management strategies and integrated water management through four characteristics: 1) how is water framed, 2) is decision-making participatory, 3) is water management appropriate to the local and regional level, and 4) is it possible to monitor activity and impose consequences for unauthorized water usage. Interviews with campesino community members and leaders, local officials, regional representatives, and non-governmental organizations found opportunities to collaborate between groups and transfer some management responsibilities to a more regional watershed scale. Second, this research examines the opportunities and barriers to scaling up traditional management practices to meet regional needs while ensuring local water availability. Scaling decision-making is imperative for successful integrated water management and will allow campesino communities to continue to manage their water to meet local needs. Shifting the decision-making scale may facilitate more effective watershed governance with campesino community participation.
Business innovation and regulatory enforcement: case studies of the big box retail industry and enforcement of RCRA

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010-04-15) Guard, Misty Ann

The purpose of this research is to examine the following research question: how has enforcement of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) adapted to the Big Box business system innovation? Additionally, the study explored the possible nature of regulatory choke points that may emerge from the enforcement of RCRA in the Big Box retail system. This study used contingency theory to establish a foundation for analysis of the Big Box business system innovation through identification of structural elements, external influences, and their subsequent interactions associated with the Big Box retail system in terms of environmental compliance with the RCRA enforced by the United States (US) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This research employed an embedded comparative case study design using the comparison of two Big Box firms, Walmart Stores, Inc. and Target Corporation, nationally and for the following states with opposing enforcement strategies: Arizona, Kentucky, Missouri, and Texas. The data used was obtained from third-party federal or firm-maintained sources. Findings indicate Walmart adheres to the structural models developed using contingency theory principles and incurs more impacts from regulatory agencies due to the enforcement of RCRA. Furthermore, it was observed that inspections of the firms are not distributed throughout the organizational structural elements by all states. Additionally, the use of different enforcement strategies resulted in the emergence of regulatory choke points by Arizona, Kentucky, and Texas; however, Missouri appears to balance enforcement without causing a regulatory choke point. This research has identified that the enforcement of RCRA has not universally adapted to the demands of the Big Box business system innovation. Agency implications, firm implications, directions for further research, and continued development of a regulatory choke point theory are discussed.
Child health in Pakistan: an analysis of problem structuring

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2009-08-26) Panwhar, Samina T.

This study presents an analysis of policies addressing child mortality in Pakistan focusing on problem structuring, using a comparison with Bangladesh. Pakistan's progress in addressing child mortality rate has been much slower than that of Bangladesh despite the fact that Pakistan has excelled in economic growth, and the two countries have comparable populations and share political history. This study analyzes and provides an explanation for differential outcomes in terms of problem structuring in the two countries. A comparative analysis of policy documents reviewed for the two countries illustrates the fact that Bangladesh, in formulating its child health policy, has emphasized the input factors such as nutrition and environmental aspects, besides health services. Pakistan, on the other hand, maintains a general problem formulation strategy focusing mainly on health service and ignoring the social, environmental, and other factors causing morbidity and mortality in children. Another comparison between policy formulation in each country and the extensive literature available on child mortality suggest that neither country pays as much attention to structural factors as the literature does. The analysis provides some insight into differentials in policy formulation associated with child mortality in the two countries, but more importantly, it provides an understanding of the underlying elements for inadequate policy outcomes in case of Pakistan.
A comparative analysis of state emergency plans: improving response to vulnerable populations

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2009-05-18) Bennett, DeeDee Marie

As of 2007, according to the Census Bureau, there were more than 37 million people over the age of 65 and 38.22 million people with disabilities (5 years and older). In 2008, the National Response Framework (NRF) replaced the National Response Plan (NRP). One of the criticisms that lead to this change in policy is that during Hurricane Katrina, response to a number of vulnerable populations was not effective as should have been. This thesis addresses the concern for vulnerable populations in regards to planning and preparing for emergencies by assessing their inclusion in the state emergency plans of FEMA Region IV. Vulnerable populations is defined (in this paper) as individuals living with a disability, individuals 65 years or older and individuals with combination of the two. This research is based upon the assumption that there is a need for emergency management at all levels of government for all residents. In order to assess the inclusion of specific vulnerable populations in state emergency plans this thesis will look at the policy change made in the national plans. Using a content analysis, comparative analysis of national plans and an overall analysis of FEMA Region IV States, a standard of measurement is identified and significant influences affecting state emergency management are found. The Region IV states being compared are Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The claim is that the inclusiveness of state emergency plans in regards to response to vulnerable populations does not match that of the NRF. This research also suggests there are issues with the guiding documents for state emergency plans. The findings of this analysis can lead to a number of future research endeavors related to how states improve emergency preparedness and response.
Emergency preparedness planning and; policy and vulnerable populations in public schools: a literature analysis

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2008-07-15) Brandon, Brook Estelle

The U.S. disability population is growing at significant rates among adults as well as youth. According to the 2000 Current Population Reports, approximately 54 million Americans about 1 in 5 - are affected by the presence of a disability stemming from birth or life incident. Demographic increases are also noted among American youth as well, with one in 166 children is diagnosed with autism - estimated 67 children each day. Consequently, there have been federal-level responses in the form of legislation, executive orders and local-level program flinding such as REMS grants - addressing various disability issues. Likewise in recent years, another critically important matter has emerged with increasing priority on the nation s policy agenda: school emergency preparedness planning. A broad spectrum of crises incidents, ranging from student-initiated assaults to natural or man-made disasters, has become a well-documented reality where schools have experienced tragic impacts sometimes as severe as mass casualties These occurrences, coupled with an expected increase in potential evacuees with special needs, demonstrate the critical need for inclusive school evacuation planning at all levels of administration that actively considers its impact on vulnerable populations. This is of particular importance to public schools today; the presence of disabled students can be deduced from U.S. Census and NOES statistics while studies conducted by Georgia Tech s Center for Assistive Technology and Environmental Access (CATEA) illustrate the presence of teachers with disabilities. As the scope of interest in this field expands, the availability of related literature becomes more prevalent as well. While disability preparedness planning in schools is briefly mentioned in some articles and reports on emergency preparedness in general, it has yet to be the sole focus of one to date. Policymakers and practitioners in preparedness planning would likely benefit by broadening to its literature scope to include research that focuses solely on analyzing policy strategies and processes used in school emergency preparedness planning for students and teachers with disabilities. Therefore, this thesis project will compile available related literature into a topology in aimotated bibliography form through the lens of disability preparedness planning and policy in public schools. The research goal is to provide a qualitative assessment of available literature in the form of a reference guide of strategies and recommendations on disability preparedness, specifically intended for public school settings. Additionally, this compilation will outline the rationale supporting a more inclusive policy and planning formulation processes that actively engage the needs students and teachers with disabilities prior to the implementation stage.
The influence of entrepreneurial activities on teaching at Universities in the United States

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2008-07-09) Kim, Hyung Hoon

This study is to investigate the influence of entrepreneurial activities on teaching at universities. Specifically, the study focuses on entrepreneurial activities' effect on professors' time allocation. The dataset analyzed was constructed from the survey conducted by University of Illinois at Chicago in 1998. The sample was drawn from American academic professional associations' members of the four fields: experimental biology, physics, mathematics, and sociology. Based on the data of 133 professors, the study shows that professors with paid consulting work tend to spend less time in teaching when research activities are controlled. Insignificant are the other variables about entrepreneurial activities: patent application, industry funding, and research collaboration with industry. Also, more research time is likely to result in less teaching time. Insignificant are the other research-related variables: research funding at large and collaborative research in general. In terms of personal and institutional conditions, assistant professors tend to invest more time in teaching than senior professors, but they are likely to reduce more time on teaching than their senior counterparts for increasing research time. Finally, biology and sociology professors tend to allocate less time to teaching than physics and mathematics professors. In a word, entrepreneurial activities and research tend to conflict with teaching at the level of individual professors' time allocation.
The Net Fiscal Effects of Illegal Immigrants: Evidence from the Urban Counties of Georgia

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007-11-26) Glover, Victoria Anne

This thesis engages in a review of the existing literature and empirical analysis, which addresses the impact of immigrants, specifically illegal, on urban counties in Georgia. It is increasingly accepted that immigration plays a significant role in many aspects of government services, and that immigrants in some form, do provide income, but the debate wages between how much transfers an immigrant takes and the taxes an immigrant pays. However, little attention has been focused on illegal immigrants and their local fiscal effects on government taxes and transfers. This area has not been the focus of systematic inquiry or substantive critical consideration because most studies center around legal immigrants and their federal impacts. The results from this thesis call for a mobilization of a heightened enthusiasm for addressing research challenges in this field and for current immigration policy to strive to maximize the well-being of the native population.
School-university partnerships for math and science education

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007-07-17) Sosinska, Olga Halina

Math and Science Programs for improving math and science education at K12 level through are analyzed in terms of a policy that establishes shool-university partnerships.