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Tolls, Exchange Rates, And Borderplex Bridge Traffic, Marcycruz De Leon, Thomas M. Fullerton Jr., Brian W. Kelley

Departmental Papers (E & F)

Budget constraints are forcing many governments to consider implementing tolls as a means for financing bridge and road expenditures. Newly available time series data make it possible to analyze the impacts of toll variations and international business cycle fluctuations on cross-border bridge traffic between El Paso and Ciudad Juarez. Parameter estimation is carried out using a linear transfer function ARIMA methodology. Price elasticities of demand are similar to those reported for other regional economies, but out-of-sample forecasting results are mixed.

Integrating Quantitative Reasoning Initiatives With Writing Programs: A Strategy For Effective Program Development, Nathan Grawe, Carol Rutz

Economics Faculty Work

As an inherently interdisciplinary endeavor, quantitative reasoning (QR) risks falling through the cracks between the traditional “silos” of higher education. This article describes one strategy for developing a truly cross-campus QR initiative: leverage the existing structures of campus writing programs by placing QR in the context of argument. We first describe the integration of Carleton College’s Quantitative Inquiry, Reasoning, and Knowledge initiative with the Writing Program. Based on our experience, we argue that such an approach leads to four benefits: it reflects important aspects of QR often overlooked by other approaches; it defuses the commonly raised objection that QR is …

Coastal Empire Economic Monitor, 2nd Quarter, 2009, Armstrong Atlantic State University Center For Regional Analysis

Coastal Empire Economic Monitor

The Coastal Empire Economic Indicators are designed to provide continuously updating quarterly snapshots of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area economy. The coincident index measures the current economic heartbeat of the region. The leading index provides a short term forecast of the region’s economic activity in six to nine months.

Moral Reasoning In Economics, Jonathan B. Wight

Economics Faculty Publications

The Teagle discussion analyzes why economics teachers have become overly narrow in their pedagogical perspectives, thus pulling back from fully supporting the liberal arts agenda. In Chapter 1, Colander and McGoldrick (p. 6) observe that the generalist approach that excites students by asking "big think" questions across disciplinary boundaries fails to generate new knowledge, while the narrow "little think" questions that can be answered often fail to develop the critical thinking skills necessary for liberal education. As one example, the authors cite the decline of moral reasoning in economics, which was once center stage in Adam Smith's analysis of society. …

Do Adoption Subsidies Help At-Risk Children?, Kasey Buckles

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

Over half a million children in the United States are currently in foster care, many of whom are at risk for long-lasting emotional and health problems. Research suggests that adoption may be one of the more promising options for the placement of these children. The Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980, which provided federal funds for monthly adoption subsidies, was designed to promote adoptions of special-needs children and children in foster care.

Using data from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting Systems for 2000- 2006, I consider the effects of these adoption subsidies on children’s likelihood …

Chinese Women And Economic Human Rights, Lisa Fry

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Women’s human rights in China have an intriguing history and a challenging present. In ancient China, Confucianism espoused the virtues of silent women who stayed at home. During the Maoist period, on the other hand, gender equality was prioritized by the state, and women were equally appointed to leadership positions and agricultural collectives with men. After Mao’s death, the country transitioned to a social market economic system that resulted in a loss of state support for gender equity. Today, the rights of women in China are not clearly defined, protected, or promoted. China’s patriarchal traditions have reasserted themselves, obstructing women’s …

Considering The International Monetary Fund And World Bank: Lending Effectiveness In Sub-Saharan Africa, Daniela A. Wohlwend

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Sub-Saharan Africa is a place of unequivocal beauty, diversity and history; it is also the most impoverished and neglected area on the planet. With an objective look at what has gone wrong in the past five decades of International Monetary Fund and World Bank lending, along with strategic assessment and planning, sub-Saharan Africa does not have to remain the home to unimpeded, rampant poverty.

Human Rights Abuses Along The Dominican-Haitian Border, Calla Cloud

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A 122 mile-long border separates the Dominican Republic and Haiti on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola. Of the two countries, Haiti’s human rights abuses are much more somber than the emerging developments of the Dominican Republic. Haiti’s stagnant economic situation has contributed to perennial political instability and lack of infrastructure, having a particularly confounding affect on the rights and labor conditions of Haitian citizens. There are a myriad of reasons why Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Two of the most prominent include its violent political history and the gradual deterioration of its economy. In the context …

Are Private Government, Civil Society And Nonprofit Organizations The Same Thing?, Stuart Mendel

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

No abstract provided.

Socioeconomic Status, Child Health, And Future Outcomes: Lessons For Appalachia, Janet Currie

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

Appalachians are in poor health relative to other Americans. For example, the ageadjusted all cause mortality rate for Appalachian in 2006 was over 900 per 100,000 compared to a rate of 760 per 100,000 for those outside of Appalachia. This essay shows that health disparities start before birth—the incidence of low birth weight is 90 1,000 in rural Appalachia compared to 83 per 1,000 outside the U.S. These disparities continue through childhood and into adulthood. Moreover, although African Americans are generally in poorer health relative to white Americans, disparities between Appalachia and the rest of the U.S. are much greater …

National And State Economic Impact Of Netl, Randall Jackson, Amanda Krugh, Brian Lashier, Ronald Munson

National Energy Technology Laboratory

This report documents the development of state-level input-output models for Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Oregon and the augmentation of the national input-output model that was developed previously for the project Valuing Domestically Produced Natural Gas and Oil. The state IO models were developed to assess the economic impacts of expenditures, employment, and research and development awards at the NETL sites located in Pittsburgh, PA, Morgantown, WV, and Albany, OR. The national IO model was developed to assess the economic impacts of NETL site expenditures, awards, and employment at the national level.

Kentucky Annual Economic Report 2009, Kenneth R. Troske, John Garen, Devanathan Sudharshan, Roy A. Sigafus

Kentucky Annual Economic Report

No abstract provided.

Extreme Neo-Liberalism: An Introduction, Stefano Harney

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

During the Historical Materialism Conference (2009), Stefano Harney gave a talk within an ephemerasession on ‘Politics in the Business School’ which we organised in preparation for this special issue. Thispiece offers a full transcription of that talk and is prefaced here by some introductory remarks fromStefano. The question and answer session which followed the talk has also been made available online asan audio file. Special thanks are due to Demet Dimler for inviting ephemera to organise a session atHistorical Materialism, to Matteo Mandarini for chairing the session, to Tim Edkins for recording thesession and to Alison Shalaby for transcribing the …

Returns To Education In Rural America, Dilyara Jepbarova

Masters Theses

Rural areas are less developed than urban. It is well known that rural workers are more likely to suffer from the lower wages than their counterparts from metro areas. Policymakers wrestle with the issue of "brain drain" in rural areas and, therefore, a loss of tax income in rural counties. "Brain drain" happens when professionals leave rural counties for metropolitans to earn higher returns to education. This thesis will shed light on some sides of rural development connected with the returns to education.

The main goal of this research is to estimate and compare wages and returns to education in …

An Analysis Of The Dismal Theorem, William D. Nordhaus

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

In a series of papers, Martin Weitzman has proposed a Dismal Theorem. The general idea is that, under limited conditions concerning the structure of uncertainty and preferences, society has an indefinitely large expected loss from high-consequence, low-probability events. Under such conditions, standard economic analysis cannot be applied. The present study is intended to put the Dismal Theorem in context and examine the range of its applicability, with an application to catastrophic climate change. I conclude that Weitzman makes an important point about selection of distributions in the analysis of decision-making under uncertainty. However, the conditions necessary for the Dismal Theorem …

Las Vegas: The Perils Of Deception Fueled Growth, William J. Smith, Ahmad Safi

Public Policy and Leadership Faculty Research

There are two types of deception – the deception of others and self-deception. Las Vegas thrives on both. Many would be aware of the importance of the first type of deception for the health of the Las Vegas economy, as they would for Macau, Monte Carlo, etc. Without the symbol of wealth to achieve elite global tourism status, and the ‘moth to the flame’ illusion of the likelihood of visitors to get ‘lucky’ and win great wealth, there would be no Las Vegas as it is known today. There is no other major reason to come to the city. There …

Predicting Major League Talent Through The First-Year Player Draft, Kevin Slattery, '09

Honors Projects

The Major League Baseball first-year player draft is a relatively unexplored topic. Until two years ago it was not even televised, even though other major spoils drafts like basketball and football are major television events. I predict the probability of reaching the major leagues and the probability of a player "making it big" in the major leagues for a player drafted based on a series of variables, like draft position, whether a player is lefthanded, and the schooling the amateur has received. This should help a team determine which players are most risky, and which players are most likely to …

Public-Private Partnerships: Lessons Learned From A Partnership: Consolidated Contractors Company And The Morganti Group Inc. (Ccc/Morganti), Al-Balqa’ Applied University (Bau)/Al-Huson University College (Ahuc) And The Usaid Jordan Economic Development Program, Hussien Al-Wedyan, Terry S. Lane, David Lowther, Gwen El Sawi

Center for Social Policy Publications

This paper describes a Public-Private Partnership that brings together: Al-Balqa’ Applied University/Al-Huson University College (AHUC); Consolidated Contractors Company and the Morganti Group Inc. (CCC/MORGANTI); Al-Huson Career Development Center (CDC); and USAID Jordan Economic Development Program (SABEQ). The Partnership enhances CCC/MORGANTI with its corporate responsibility initiative in Jordan as well as addressing CCC/MORGANTI’s labor force needs from Jordan and in the MENA Region. The lessons learned from the process of developing this partnership may be applied to other potential and emerging partnerships in other sectors. The paper draws on principles and best Education and Training Public/Private Partnerships Improved Workforce Demand-Driven Skills …

Why It’S Harder (And Different) For Single Mothers: Gender, Motherhood, Labor Markets And Public Work Supports, Randy Albelda

Center for Social Policy Publications

This paper focuses on low-wage work and single mothers. I begin with a typical example of early 20th century research on low-wage workers as it helps provides both an historical explanation for women’s earnings and employment situation over much of the 20th century and important insights into new directions for research and advocacy. Following that, I tease apart the distinctions between having low wages and being low income, particularly as these apply to single mothers. I then detail the resource base for single mothers which entails the complex relationship between family structure and obligations, earnings and employment benefits, and public …

Podcast: Economic Expressions: A Conversation With The Economist Julie Nelson, Julie A. Nelson

Economics Faculty Publication Series

No abstract provided.

A Response To Bruni And Sugden, Julie A. Nelson

Economics Faculty Publication Series

An article by Luigino Bruni and Robert Sugden published in this journal argues that market relations contain elements of what they call ‘fraternity’. This Response demonstrates that my own views on interpersonal relations and markets – which originated in the feminist analysis of caring labour – are far closer to Bruni and Sugden's than they acknowledge in their article, and goes on to discuss additional important dimensions of sociality that they neglect.

Recession Grips The Bay State, Alan Clayton-Matthews

Public Policy and Public Affairs Faculty Publication Series

Economic activity in Massachusetts is on the decline. According to the current economic index, real gross state domestic product grew at only a 0.6 percent annual rate in the third quarter, and the leading index is predicting that the state’s economy will decline at a 1.5 percent annual rate over the six months november 2008 through april 2009. Massachusetts is in a recession.

Brokering Up: The Role Of Temporary Staffing In Overcoming Labor Market Barriers, Françoise Carré, Brandynn Holgate, Helen Levine, Mandira Kala

Center for Social Policy Publications

Alternative Staffing Organizations (ASOs) are social-purpose businesses created by community-based organizations and national nonprofits to “broker up” job seekers, starting with temporary assignments and forming bridges to better jobs. Funded by the C. S. Mott Foundation, the Alternative Staffing Demonstration examined four ASOs around the country for a three-year research project, with 18 months of close monitoring, exploring, and assessing the ASO model. The Center for Social Policy studied how ASOs structure the services they provide, handle day-to-day management issues, and sell their services. We found the ASO model was variously adapted to generate short-term employment, build work experience, provide …

An End In Itself And A Means To Good Ends: Why Income Equality Is Important, Arthur Macewan

Center for Social Policy Publications

In recent years “poverty reduction” has become the watchword in development agencies, in international lending institutions, and among development economists generally. The focus on poverty reduction reached a high point perhaps with the articulation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and with the extensive analytic work that has accompanied the MDGs. Yet, much of the discussion of poverty reduction and economic development in low and middle income countries has either ignored the issue of income distribution or has tended to view income distribution only in terms of its impact on economic growth.

Poverty and inequality, however, are intimately bound up …

Single Mothers And Other Low Earners: Policy Routes To Adequate Wages, Hilda Kahne, Zachary Mabel

Center for Social Policy Publications

This paper addresses the employment environment within which poor single mothers and other low-wage earners work, and identifies policies to foster economic advancement. Low-wage status, often resulting from minimal education and skills, is reinforced by irregular work schedules and more frequent unemployment periods. Despite recent rises in national productivity, low-wage advancement opportunities remain limited and inequality in family income distribution is growing. New policies are needed to extend low-earner career potential.

The paper highlights particularly effective experience of three approaches that enhance earnings of single mothers and other low-wage earners – workforce intermediaries that promote specific job advancement programs, community …

Sustainable Development And Exhaustible Resources: The Case Of Bauxite Mining In Vietnam, Hoa Hoang

Masters Culminating Experiences (1993-2011)

In 2007, the Vietnamese government declared an ambitious master plan to extract its bauxite resources, mainly concentrated in the Central Highlands. The impact of bauxite mining on the livelihoods of indigenous people and the macroeconomy have been debated by many scientists, economists, environmentalists, and journalists, both in Vietnam and among the Vietnamese who live overseas. From a holistic perspective to sustainable development, this paper analyzes the potential impacts of the Tan Rai and Nhan Co bauxite mining and alumina refining projects, the major part of the Vietnamese government’s master plan. At a macroeconomic level, the possible occurrence of the “resource …

Gaming In Massachusetts: Can Casinos Bring 'Good Jobs' To The Commonwealth?, Marlene Kim, Susan Moir, Anneta Argyres

Labor Resource Center Publications

This study examines the quality of jobs in the United States gaming industry and analyzes enabling legislation in five states that have legalized gaming. The authors find that the gaming industry -- particularly the unionized sector of the casino hotel industry -- provides good jobs with good wages and benefits for workers with less than a high school degree. The authors conlcude that workforce development efforts in Masschusetts must include strategies to address improving the quality of entry-level jobs.

Time Use Of Mothers In The United States: Recent Evidence From The American Time Use Survey, Rachel Connelly, Jean Kimmel

Employment Research Newsletter

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Nonprofits In Ced, Dana A. Thompson

Book Chapters

Nonprofit institutions play an integral role in community economic development (CED) in the United States. These entities initiate and implement most CED activities, and the CED movement would be significantly weakened without their existence. This chapter briefly explores the historical context of various nonprofit organizations in assisting low- and moderate-income communities across the United States, the ways in which modern-day nonprofit organizations are effecting change in their communities, and the challenges to their effectiveness.

The first section of this chapter discusses community development corporations (CDCs), neighborhood-based organizations that are the primary instruments used to drive and implement revitalization in low- …

Nepa And The Dynamics Of Public Participation In The Environmental Review Process: An Analysis Of The Northmet (Polymet) Mining Project Near Hoyt Lakes Minnesota, Amber Neumann

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Hypothesis: That comments collected from agency “experts” during the scoping phase of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process would be disproportionately represented as changes in subsequent drafts of NorthMet’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

Methods: Tabular analysis of data collected from the Minnesota DNR publication of Response to the Public Scoping Projects PolyMet Mining Inc.; NorthMet Project. 2005

Results: There is an excellent cross section of comment sources represented in changes to subsequent drafts of NorthMet’s EIS. A lot of overlap exists between various types of participants and their concerns, resulting in many of the successful comments stemming from …