The World’s Dilemma

The international community should think about how to deal with the DPRK In early August,a photo of former U .S.President Bill Clintons haking the hand of the leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea(DPRK),Kim Jong     

Anarchy in the UK

<正>Turmoil raises questions about the credibility of politicians and the police The unrest occurring in the UK in early August was unexpected. They were the first serious urban disturbances in the UK     

A Historic Visit

British Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Ivan Lewis' shuttle diplomacy is helping the West to better understand Tibet The first-ever visit by a British min- ister to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) this September raised little comment in the UK. Neither The Guardian, nor the BBC, both of which have extensive coverage of issues in China, mentioned the     

Developing Court‐Connected Parent Divorce Education Programs: Guidelines For Communities

This article answers a myriad of questions that program providers and communities might consider when developing a divorce education program for parents. Questions and answers are considered for the following areas: a) purpose and objectives; b) needs assessment; c) curriculum development; d) program support; e) personnel matters; f) money matters; g) program participants and participation; h) special needs; and i) evaluation. Communities that build consensus around these issues are more likely to develop successful programs.     

Public Finance,Governance, and Cash Transfers in Alleviating Poverty and Inequality in Chile

As the Chilean government seeks to reduce poverty and inequality through cash transfers to poor households, local governments are responsible for both identifying the poor and allocating transfers. Until recently, however, evaluating the effectiveness of local governments in enacting these policies has been restricted by data limitations. This paper builds on recent evidence that cash transfers have highly variable impacts on poverty and inequality at the county level. In particular, we explore how local public finance and the strength of the governing mandate influence the efficiency of cash transfers. With a richly specified model, we find that public spending on goods and services, the fraction of available subsidies claimed by the local government, and the share of county land that is zoned for industrial purposes are all correlated with considerable reductions in poverty and inequality. In addition, the strength of the governing mandate weakly influences the efficiency of transfers in reducing poverty, but not inequality. These results demonstrate that a better understanding of such institutions can lead to more efficient targeting for social programs.     

Diplomacy Still Matters

The departure from London of Madam Fu Ying, China's Ambassador to the UK for the past three years, to take up a new post in Beijing was a reminder of the often low-profile but key work that diplomats still do.