Multicultural Services in Local Government in Australia: An Uneven Tale of Access and Equity

This paper explores equitable access to local government services and participation in decision-making processes for ethnic communities in Australia. The findings are from the first national survey of local government's response to the needs of diverse cultural groups. Given the current context of profound cultural diversity across Australia, local government is compelled to institute a systematic response to the needs of different cultural groups. Our research reveals a mixed response including some innovative and inclusive approaches, as well as pockets of conservativism and resistance to multiculturalism. Much more must be done to ensure that all citizens are accorded full access to local services and the decision-making processes of municipal government. Access to both is critical in the development of citizenship rights in a multicultural society.     

政府采购电子化先进标准体系——基于系统权变理论的政府采购电子化先进模式的构建和标准体系框架研究

本文基于系统权变理论对政府采购电子化先进标准体系进行了研究，提出了基于系统权变理论的政府采购电子化先进模式和模型，并以此为基础进一步提出了政府采购电子化标准体系的研究模型，对政府采购电子化标准体系框架进行了探讨。     

信息时代下我国基础设施服务领域的政府购买探析

目前在高速发展的信息时代下，我国的基础设施建设也取得了飞速的发展。政府购买公共服务在我国的各个领域得到了普遍的运用，尤其是在基础设施服务领域方面。本文简要阐述了我国基础设施领域购买存在的问题，以及根据这些问题提出了笔者几点建议。     

Regulatory Frameworks for Place-based Planning

This paper examines the application of concepts of place, locality and constructions of place identities as frameworks for place-based regulatory planning instruments to control development across whole local government areas. New approaches to achieving single-level, place-integrated planning documents in NSW are summarised that move away from the traditional format of land use zones. This will require a more place-focused governance to act as a strategic relational arena in existing localities.     

Impact of experience on government policy toward acceptance of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in Korea

As the “low carbon, green growth” agenda, which emphasized sustainable development through equilibrium between economic growth and environmental preservation, is propagated rapidly in Korea. Despite this progress, it is not uncommon for new products made through advanced technologies, such as hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, to face public skepticism preventing market penetration. Therefore, the factors impacting customer acceptance of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have to be estimated. Furthermore, it is necessary to examine whether or not the policies related to these products can prevent public skepticism regarding them.     

Developing world class construction companies in Singapore

The construction industry in Singapore is under pressure to improve its performance and the quality of its products and services. The Government is looking to see Singapore develop into a knowledge-based economy, and construction cannot be left behind. A recently published report about re-inventing construction has called on the industry to become a world-class industry. This study examines the attitudes and views of contractors, operating in Singapore, on how and where developments should be focused to bring about such a transformation. The results show that local contractors are not overly enthusiastic about becoming worldclass. The study found also that contractors expect the development to be Government led, with policies and incentives to support such an effort. At the same time there is a feeling that current Government policies are not effective in enabling the industry to become world-class.     

中小企业创新发展中的政府职能探讨

以浙江省为例,探讨新时期在引导和扶持中小企业创新发展过程中的政府职能问题,包括营造人文环境支持企业引进人才,加快自主创新;政策措施解决金融瓶颈问题支持企业自主创新;强化指导和服务工作体系,促进产、学、研结合,发挥高科技引导作用。     

Do Economies of Scale Exist in Australian Local Government? A Review of the Research Evidence1

The 1990s witnessed a major era of structural reform in Australian local government. Amalgamation programmes in all six states resulted in a substantial decrease in the number of local authorities in Australia. The chief rationale underlying local government mergers lay apparently in the belief that larger municipalities would exhibit greater economic efficiencies. Despite its widespread acceptance amongst policy elites, this argument did not derive from a solid empirical base. This article seeks to evaluate available research evidence on the controversial question of economies of scale in Australian local government.     

Benchmarking, Benchaction, and Benchlearning: Rework Mitigation in Projects

The Australian government has issued several calls to improve the performance of the construction industry. A lack of available benchmark metrics has made it difficult, if not impossible, for organizations to identify areas to target for process improvement. A significant factor that has been found to contribute to poor organizational and project performance is rework. Using the results of a questionnaire survey, the paper presents and discusses a series of benchmark metrics for the causes and costs of rework for 161 construction projects. A generic framework for benchmarking rework at the interfaces of a project’s life cycle is proposed, and unstructured interviews are used to subject the proposed framework to validation by industry practitioners.     

走出"误区''——梧州市政中心广场的规划设计

该文针对市政广场在运用人，自然，文脉因素上存在的“误区”，提出规划设计思路和对策，并探讨梧州市政中心广场的以人为本，融入自然，渗透文脉气息的规划设计手法。