For starters, consider the fact that the degree of market failure varies from region to region: the difference between the price of water and its true marginal cost must be higher in dry places than wet ones.

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"This is a major step forward, giving us the opportunity to make a big difference to the city and the region, " said Brighton and Hove City Council's Green Party leader Jason Kitcat.

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Last but not least, by improving the quality of their relationship with citizens, they can make a big difference to the attractiveness of their country, region or city as a place to live and work.

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If we work as a team with partners in the community, the region and global business community, we can make a real difference.

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For China, the deployment in the Gulf of Aden is as much about flying the flag and showing solidarity with a multinational effort as it is about making a real difference to the security of Chinese shipping in the region.

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This region where the vast majority of the workforce is in the SMB segment, the findings showed little difference in adoption rates between SMBs that expect to grow in the next three years (42 percent) and those solely focused on profitability (40 percent).

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Everyone is worried about potential civil strife and its effect on the region, but there is also an economic aspect: while losing trade with Syria might not make a difference to most neighbors, losing the trade route will.

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