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Points out that the trend in the USA and the UK to adopt business codes of ethics has been followed in recent years by Australian business organizations. Presents findings from two studies which involved the top 500 Australian enterprises. The first examined the likelihood of code adoption in relation to such variables as organization type, size, income and major activities. The second was concerned with the actual nature of the content to determine whether codes were designed to deal with ethical issues, corporate values and ethical decision skills rather than with management policies and legal issues; and whether a code was in fact a code of ethics as opposed to rules on business etiquette and behaviour.

Recent years have seen a movement toward using active learning to ground professional development in classroom practice. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

The present case study describes how a group of middle school mathematics teachers improved classroom instruction through the use of lesson study.

This case study suggests the success of the lesson study in supporting teachers’ active learning.

For the lesson study, teachers’ active learning is assessed across four dimensions.

This study aims to investigate the stationarity and convergence of CO₂ emissions series in MENA countries. The stationarity and unit root properties of per capita carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions series are explored by an increasing amount of studies, which use different methodologies. Examining the time series properties of energy and environmental series is crucial for both researchers and the policymakers, given the close link between energy, environment and the real economy. In fact, if energy exhibits the presence of a unit root, this suggests that this series does not revert to its equilibrium level after being hit by a shock.

The contribution of this work is twofold. First, to the author’s knowledge, a very little attention has been paid to the topics of stationarity and convergence of CO₂ emissions in the case of Middle East and North Africa (MENA) member states, especially in a panel context. Convergence analyses of CO₂ emissions for MENA countries can improve the knowledge of energy and environmental scenario of the area, giving some ideas for appropriate future policies. Second, this is the first study that jointly analyzed time series and panel data properties of emissions series for these countries.

The author finds that relative per capita CO₂ emissions in the 19 MENA countries are a mixture of I(0) and I(1) processes and there is a weak evidence to support the stationarity of CO₂ emissions. After having verified the presence of cross-sectional dependence in the series, the panel unit root tests in presence of cross-section dependence show strong evidence in favor of non-stationarity. In addition, after performing tests for ß-convergence, it is also found that per capita CO₂ emissions are converging on average in 11 out of 19 sample’s countries, while s-convergence analysis reveals that the variance of per capita CO₂ emissions decreased over time, which is an indication of convergence.

Important policy implications emerge from the empirical results. Sustainable environmental and energy policies rely heavily on the CO₂ series’ properties. In this regard, determining whether shocks to CO₂ emissions are permanent or transitory is important for setting feasible goals for sustainable environmental policies. Given that per capita CO₂ emissions are essentially associated with a quality of life, the issues of their reduction have been the leading agenda in energy and environmental management over the past two decades.

Subsequent to the First World War, the French Government regulated the Champagne industry, and locked the status of protected (and excluded) grapes into the new Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée system, forever altering the incentives and output of wine producers. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

As a result, some indigenous varietals have disappeared entirely from the region – and a handful remain only in the vineyards and bottles of a few bold entrepreneurs, constituting less than 1 percent of Champagne production.

The authors assess several traditional explanations (from taste and preferences to agricultural resilience)-and dismiss them as unconvincing. Instead, the authors adopt a public choice framework of regulatory capture to explain the puzzle of thwarted entrepreneurship and consumer choice.

This paper is original.

Because of the peculiar nature of food and agro‐processing industries, the industries cannot tolerate corrosion deposits in their production lines. Hence, there is the need to account for corrosion control before and during the production operations. This is more so in Nigeria where there is little or no proper accountability of corrosion cost in all production system.

The industries investigated were grouped into: meat and meat product, dairy and milk, beverages and brewery, confectionery and agro‐processing centres. Questionnaires and interview pro forma were used to collect information from ten major factories/outlets in each category. The study involved the use of life cycle costing to assess corrosion management alternatives and to determine the annualized value of each option.

Among the corrosion prevention methods identified in the industries, greasing gave the least cost contribution (15.9 percent) to the total cost of corrosion prevention followed by painting (17.97 percent) and cleaning (66.14 percent) in that order, while the contribution of each corrosion maintenance method to the total cost of corrosion maintenance was, respectively, 13.08, 7.23, 20.73 and 58.96 percent for annual maintenance, repair, rehabilitation and wages of workers.

This study reveals some of the control measures commonly adopted for minimizing corrosion damage in some selected food and agro‐processing industries in Nigeria. It also investigated the cost implication of each measure and how it affects the present value of processing machineries in each industry. The results of the study have created a state of awareness of corrosion problems to stakeholders, which would encourage preventive actions.

Staff development efforts by Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Library, Bauchi are discussed, with particular reference to the area of computer literacy courses. The purchase of a microcomputer (Turbowriter) and steps being taken to acquire CD‐ROM are reviewed as practical efforts towards computerisation in the University Library and suggestions are made for its success. Staff development and retention are advocated for effective computerisation of any library system.

The ongoing reforms in the Nigerian banking system have resulted to mega banks, driven by advanced competition. This has raised concerns about their social and environmental performance. The purpose of this paper is to agitate for the prioritization of corporate social responsibility (CSR) as the foremost condition for banking stability in the reforms.

This paper draws largely from the theory of CSR, and reviews pertinent policies and practices in the Nigerian banking system.

The paper identifies self‐induced vices, regulatory laxity, inauspicious macro‐economic environment, and endemic corruption in the economy as the major constraints to the discharge of CSR in the Nigerian banking system.

It may be necessary to restructure the Central Bank of Nigeria to clearly separate the roles of banks' supervision from fiscal policy management for a more effective economic, social and environmental viability of the banking system. Furthermore, the banking system should focus less exclusively on shareholders and financial measures of success to include all stakeholders' relationships in their mission to sustain competitive success in the future.

It is imperative that external regulation should be blended with conscious self‐regulations by the banking institutions for the reforms to effectively include the delivery of CSR. This should be anchored on effective corporate governance in the banking institutions in the system.

Discussions on the appropriate international regime to govern trade in biofuels are in their infancy. However, a large number of countries have set minimum blending targets for biofuels. Meeting these targets will require greater production and increased international trade in biofuels. Concerns exist as to whether unsustainable practices will be used to satisfy this growing demand. There is currently no multilateral agreement governing sustainable production and trade in biofuels. In the absence of an international framework, this paper will seek to demonstrate that concerned countries may unilaterally regulate imports of unsustainably produced biofuels in a way that is consistent with international trade rules. Unilateral regulation is to be understood as a stop gap until multilateral agreement can be reached on the interaction between trade in biofuels and issues of sustainability.

This study aims to contribute to the emerging discourse on elite financial crime, with particular attention devoted to the role played by the legislature in corrupt practices in Nigeria. Separations of power, watchdog role of legislature and ideologies have become a major influence in democratic system. Legislative power has developed as a means of providing oversight functions over the executives, thereby inhibiting fraudulent practices in governments.

The paper argues that the political institutional structures embedded with monopoly, discretion and little or no accountability facilitate financial corrupt practices within the legislature. The paper uses publicly available evidence to show that the legislators in developing countries are actively engaged in corrupt practices.

The evidence provided in this paper shows that separation of power and representative democracy had not brought about transparency and accountability in government activities in Nigeria. Legislature often trade-off their constitutional power and their claim of service to the public interest by engaging in financial criminal practices.

This paper does not set out to provide a comprehensive analysis of political corruption. Instead, it considers the “dark” side of legislative practice by examining the involvement of legislature in facilitating corrupt financial practices in Nigeria.

The inability of the regulators to effectively sanction legislators implicated in corrupt practices suggests that the current institutional and regulatory apparatus are not fully equipped in dealing with the financial criminal activities of legislators.

Despite the arrest and prosecution of some legislators, a number of cases are swept under the carpet. Therefore, this paper suggests that Nigeria need to reform its political system and institutions to promote transparency and accountability in government and to build trust in the legislative process.

This paper considers the “dark” side of legislative practice by examining the involvement of legislature in facilitating corrupt financial practices in Nigeria.

Wrap fee programs are an increasingly popular product offered by broker‐dealers and investment managers to their clients. Wrap fee programs present unique issues under both the Investment Company Act of 1940 (“Investment Company Act”) and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (“Advisers Act”), the two primary bodies of law that govern the product and those who offer and manage it. The regulations and rules under those Acts applicable to wrap fee programs and related interpretive statements made by the SEC staff, however, are wide ranging and have not been provided in a single format. This article attempts to present a comprehensive discussion on the regulation of wrap fee programs, as well as the many compliance issues associated with these programs. The article is delivered in two parts. Part I, presented in this issue, addresses the regulation of wrap fee programs under the Investment Company Act. Part I also begins a review of unique issues arising under the Advisers Act, including registration requirements for wrap fee sponsors and other persons who manage or offer the product to their clients, as well as required contents for wrap fee brochures and related disclosure issues. Part II, which will be presented in the next issue, will discuss additional Advisers Act issues such as suitability, fees and advertising. It also will briefly review issues arising under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”) and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”).