The awareness regarding environmental issues is increasing and as a result a large number of products are eco-labeled. This enables the consumers to make enlightened environmental decisions when purchasing products. Eco-labeling is no longer for products only, but also for services like hotels. It?s difficult to determine what it actually means to eco-label a hotel and what kind of benefits it includes.

This Mag. thesis discusses how a gender perspective could be implemented in themanagement of cultural heritage focusing on the built environments in Sweden.The thesis further argues for the need of a gender perspective on the conservationof cultural heritage.The two main approaches, additive through the perspective of the women?s part inhistory and integrated gender perspective, are thoroughly presented in the thesis.In the additive gender approach built objects that represent women?s experiencesand lives are added to a history that traditionally represents men and theirexperiences. The integrated gender perspective includes a gender in all activitiesas an instrument in a historic analysis. The gender perspective illustrates therelation between the sexes.

This study treats cultural policy, it´s view of the value of literature, and how this view varies within different fields of cultural policy. The aim of the essay is to find different competing approaches through an investigation of texts from three different fields within cultural policy. The fields investigated are: The publishing subsidy of the National Council for Cultural Affairs, which values above all quality literature. En bok för alla, concentrates on spreading quality literature to new groups in society. Centrum för lättläst, which values that the contents of a text are successfully delivered to, and understood by, the reader.

The purpose of this study was to find out what thoughts some preschool teachers had about gender andgender work. The aim was also to investigate whether preschool educational orientation had any impacton how teachers thought about gender and gender work.The scientific method for the study was qualitative research interviews. The interviews were conductedindividually with four preschool teachers from two different preschools. The first preschool was agender-oriented school and the other was a non-gender-oriented school.The results of the study show preschool teachers have good knowledge of gender and gender work andwhat they mean in preschool, and this is regardless of the pedagogical approach the preschool they?reworking for has.

Projektet har haft som syfte att i samarbete med Örsjö Belysning AB ta fram en vägghängd armatur för hotell som ska ha funktion som ljus till att läsa vid sängen. Lampan har haft krav på hållbar utveckling. Lampan har en energieffektiv ljuskälla, vald med hänsyn till sitt syfte, och ingående material har valts med stark miljöhänsyn. Form och funktion har varit viktiga begrepp och har parallellt följts åt i projektet. Produkten har konstruerats för en okomplicerad isärtagning så att delarna enkelt kan sorteras och återvinnas vid armaturens avslutade användning..

The purpose of this study was to analyse the concept of empowerment and its meaning in the political document "En Förnyad Folkhälsopolitik" from the present Swedish government, containing guidelines and politics in the area of public health. The underlying question was if it could be considered as representative for some kind of general "empowerment approach" since the concept is central to the very definition of social work by the International Federation of Social Workers IFSW and International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW).By comparing its definition and consequences in the document with a historical review of different contexts of empowerment the conclusion was made that such a common approach doesn´t exist at all. The meaning of empowerment in the central document showed some similarities with the "northamerican" version of the concept represented by the social scientist Charles Murray, which is just one of the political meanings of empowerment. Alternative ways of understanding the concept was also presented such as being a tool of a constant conflict between central political principles or as a fashionable but not important word. Another alternative was to consider it a means of power through witch different political discourses tries to dominate the world..

The purpose of this study has been to get a deeper insight into how students reason about the textbook and teaching that goes beyond its content. This in order for the teacher to be able to consider and respond to these important attitudes already at the planning stages of such teaching situations. This approach will aid to help students overcome the distrust of things that are not in the textbook.The study shows that students have an attitude of overconfidence to the textbook's reliability. It is considered to be controlled in its content as well as being a reference on the extent of the knowledge content.The general approach to teaching that deviates from textbook structure is that it is welcomed as an interesting feature. However, a questioning attitude soon appears about whether the element will be included in any requirements for knowledge or tests.The following important conclusions can be drawn after this study was carried out:Very clearly communicate the purpose of all education that deviate from the textbook.Inform students about the textbook's deficiencies and the need for supplementing.Accept and respond to students' focus in that grades are the main driving force for the acquisition of knowledge in high school..

The goal of this paper is to provide a model for a sustainable electricity system to an island, in the Pacific Ocean near the equator.The method which has been used is to model supply and demand of electricity in the computer program Stella, through the creation of a dynamic system that balances them against each other. The result from the model will then be used to calculate the electricity price per kWh for the island.The result of the work is that electricity from solar energy is comparable with electricity produced from oil, if the oil pays for all its external costs, and the potential for pumped hydro storage plants is located. It also requires that consumers of electricity can be their own producers to avoid the expenditure of tax and reducing the cost of distribution. But since oil is a finite resource and has had a rising cost in recent years, while solar energy has had a declining cost, perhaps this will be a more competitive solution in the future.

The aim of this study was to explore transsexuals? identity formation and experiences related to cross-sex hormone treatment, as well as to become absorbed in the narrative approach. To be able to participate in transsexuals? identity formation, life stories were well suited as a theoretical approach. Life stories can be seen as socially situated actions according to Mishler, where individuals? identity formation can be seen as both identity performances and identity claims.

Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) within the European Union are currently facing many challenges one being access to financing due to high risk and probability of default, another being cross-border taxation issues with double taxation and information asymmetry. Since the aim within the EU is to be the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world with sustainable economic growth and social cohesion it is essential that the EU operates as a single market. Despite this need, harmonization continues to be far from achieved in the area of direct taxation which also affects the integration and growth opportunities for SMEs. In the Agenda for Entrepreneurship, the Home State Taxation regime, which is based on formula apportionment, has been proposed by the Commission as one option in order to mutually recognize the different Member States? taxation systems to facilitate cross-border activities and reduce ?red-tape?.

Kalmar Municipality has in 2008-2010 made an effort to educate managers on gender, with the goal of mainstreaming gender into public activities so that all citizens should feel safe in that treatment and services are designed and resources are distributed equally to both sexes living conditions and needs. The overall aim of this study was to examine whether the training effort has paid off, and how gender mainstreaming has been implemented in the different activities. We have used a qualitative approach, which we examined through interviews managers' approach to gender equality.Gender was generally described as an important issue of all respondents, and all were working to mainstream gender into their activities and workplaces. The results show that the operational and management needed clearer directives and strategies in their efforts to promote gender equality. Education was necessary because personal definition of gender may differ from the control contents of the documents.

The fast developments in information and data technology during the recent years have accentuated the need for the business manager to interpret and act on information from the surrounding environment. Today we know little about what information is really used in the unique decision-making. Further, little is known about how information should be designed to fit people with a more intuitive approach to interpreting information. This study is therefore about the difference between peoples approach to interpreting information and how information should be designed to fit those with a more intuitive approach to interpreting information. The application is made to dairy farms in Sweden. The literature review describes the strategic leadership, the decision-making process and the intuitive and the analytic thinking.

The concept of sustainable development has been pervasive in recent years and many organizations choose to implement sustainability and adapt their activities accordingly. The purpose of this study have been to explore how a collaboration on the use of waste materials may look to analyze what influences cooperation. A case study has been carried out examining a Swedish state regional project aimed at creating partnerships between actors and utilizing textile waste with the help of design. The study was conducted using qualitative methods and the collection of data has been done through interviews and by examining documents. The results show that there are seven key factors that affect cooperation: expectations, commitment, internal communication, a strong non-profit actor, individual treatment, personal networks and the diversity of actors.

The purpose of this study was to find out what thoughts some preschool teachers had about gender andgender work. The aim was also to investigate whether preschool educational orientation had any impacton how teachers thought about gender and gender work.The scientific method for the study was qualitative research interviews. The interviews were conductedindividually with four preschool teachers from two different preschools. The first preschool was agender-oriented school and the other was a non-gender-oriented school.The results of the study show preschool teachers have good knowledge of gender and gender work andwhat they mean in preschool, and this is regardless of the pedagogical approach the preschool they?reworking for has.

Denna uppsats utgör en explorativ fallstudie om certifieringssystemet BREEAM Communities och dess möjlighet att fungera som ett verktyg för svenska kommuner i plan- och exploateringsprocesser.Sedan ett par år tillbaka pågår de första projekten i Sverige där BREEAM Communities används. Företagen Diligentia och PEAB var först ut att använda verktyget vid utvecklingen av sina stadsdelar Masthusen och Varvsstaden i Västra Hamnen i Malmö.Uppsatsen utgörs i första hand av en kvalitativ intervjustudie med anställda vid Diligentia, PEAB och Malmö Stad, vilken genomfördes våren 2012. Studien kompletterades med två intervjuer med anställda vid Norrköpings kommun, detta eftersom Norrköpings kommun vid tidpunkten för intervjuerna, övervägde en användning av certifieringssystemet vid utvecklingen av stadsdelen Saltängen. Intervjustudien tar utgångspunkt i intervjupersonernas erfarenheter och tankar kring BREEAM Communities? inverkan på arbetsprocessen och vilka hållbarhetsaspekter som hanteras inom de två projekten i Västra Hamnen.