Agricultural and Resource Economics Commons^™

The Role Of Safety First Risk Preferences In Grain Marketing: A Laboratory Economic Experiment Using A Grain Marketing Simulation Game, Stamatina Kotsakou

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In this study, the Marketing in a New Era (MINE) grain marketing simulation game is used to carry out a context-rich economic experiment to evaluate the role of risk preferences in grain marketing decisions. The model of risk preferences that we consider is an improved Safety First decision rule model proposed by Levy and Levy (2009). We experimentally test if Safety First decision rule describes individuals’ post-harvest marketing decisions. In our experiment, we incorporate real-world features which are usually omitted in marketing studies such as: multiple storage decisions, storage cost, actual price series and multiple contract frequency. MINE plays a …

Exploring The Empirical Relationship Between Civic Agriculture And Community Resilience, Beth Joanna Person-Michener

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Smaller-scale, qualitative and mixed method studies indicate that civic agriculture generates positive, local-level social change, specifically by increasing social, human and economic capital. These social benefits are also identified as some of the crucial components needed for community resilience to disasters. However, literature directly linking civic agriculture to community resilience is sparse and there is little if any research explicitly examining a relationship between civic agriculture and community resilience. This study lends national scope and an empirical examination of evidence for a positive relationship between civic agriculture and community resilience along the applicable domains of social, human and economic capital …

Simulating The Impact Of A Co2-Equivalent Meat Tax On Grain And Livestock Markets, Regan Gilmore, Azzeddine Azzam

UCARE: Research Products

Research Question

What are the potential effects of imposing a carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent tax on meat consumption, including beef, pork, and poultry, on U.S. livestock and grain markets and greenhouse gas emissions?

This is the second half of a research project introduced in the poster entitled "Using an Equilibrium Displacement Model to Simulate the Impact of an Environmental Meat Tax on Grain and Livestock Markets," online at https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ucareresearch/125/

Benefits Of Reduced Meat Consumption In The U.S.: Cost-Benefit Analysis Of An Increase In Plant-Based Diets, Rebecca Zahora

Senior Honors Projects

How sustainable is our food system? An investigation of diet choices and their environmental impacts

Food is often thought of as a commodity, when fundamentally it is our nourishment and foundation of life. In the United States, it appears as if we have a functional food system, but in reality what we have is an unsustainable system of industrialized agriculture perpetuated by a disproportionate allocation of resources. Current consumer behavior within our food system is detrimental to future environmental and human well being, ultimately exacerbating the timing and magnitude of global climate change.

With negative impacts of climate change looming …

An Economic Analysis Of A Total Allowable Catch-Individual Transferable Quota System In A Developing Country Heterogeneous Fishery: An Application To The Digha Fishery In West Bengal, India, Nadeeka Weerasekara

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This thesis contributes to the literature of economics of small-scale fishery communities and fishery management in developing nations. In the first section we review literature on state of the fishery resource and the livelihoods in the globe and performance of fishery management systems in developing and developed countries. Second section discusses the results of an empirical study on the economics of subsistence fishers in Digha-Shankarpur in Eastern India. Results of the empirical study shows by-catch by the trawlers leads to the depletion of target fish stock of the subsistence fishers. Underutilization of the capacity by the subsistence fishers due to …

Spatial And Temporal Intricacies Of Natural Resource Use: Studies In Water, Forests, And Hydrocarbons, Dadhi Adhikari

Economics ETDs

This dissertation examines spatial and temporal impacts of natural resource use. The second chapter integrates hydrological and economic systems to examine the impact of drought on these two systems and explores the spatial impact of policies aimed to mitigate the drought impact. The systems dynamics model developed for this chapter simultaneously considers the physical hydrology in the Middle Rio Grande water basin in New Mexico, the engineered water management system, and a behavioral model of residential water demand for three cities: Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, and Santa Fe, New Mexico. The simulation results showed that droughts that occur in later periods, …

The Impact Weather Has On Nyc Citi Bike Share Company Activity, Mark Martinez

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

This paper seeks to figure out the effect weather has on individuals’ behavior. A more focused approach to determining this effect is seeing how different weather conditions ranging from the temperature, the precipitation, the amount of inches of snowfall and the wind speed effect the ridership of Citi Bikes throughout all four seasons. The approach of this research paper is using data from the National Climatic Data Center that focuses in on the weather found in Manhattan, New York and correlates each of the weather conditions to the total number of trips per day that is provided by the Citi …

The Demographic Drivers Of California’S Environmental Voting, Lukas Yasuda

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

This study examines the demographics of California’s 53 congressional districts and the relationship with the voting patterns on three environmentally focused propositions in the 2008 and 2010 elections. Previous literature on the topic is mixed as some studies suggest that select attributes are found among environmental voting centers, yet other research describes the relationship as more complex than simple characteristics. Previous literature on the topic is mixed, with some studies suggesting that select attributes are found among environmental vote support hubs, whereas alternative research suggests the problem is more complex than simple characteristics. I collected data on income, education, age, …

Nudging Neighbors: Analyzing Peer Effects Of The Lakesmart Program In The Belgrade Lakes, George A. Voigt

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

Peer effects are an increasingly studied field in economics, and can have large impacts at a local level. In this research we seek to identify whether there is an impact of early adopters on their neighbors to become adopters. The scope for this study is the LakeSmart program that operate in Maine. Specifically we are focusing on the Belgrade lakes, and analyzing data from 2005 to present in addition with a survey of demographic characteristics conducted in 2011. Results suggest that the impact of a neighbor on the likelihood of a household to be LakeSmart certified is statistically significant and …

Water Restrictions And Water Use: An Analysis Of Water Restriction Effects In Norfolk County, Rebecca L. Robinson, Ashley Conley

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

This paper aims to determine what effect water restrictions in Norfolk County, Massachusetts have on residential water usage. Using data from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, this paper analyzes subsequent municipal water usage within and across towns after water restrictions, both mandatory and voluntary, are implemented. Accounting for town fixed effects, the results indicate that for some towns, water restrictions do in fact have a significant impact on decreasing water usage.

The Effects From Public Transportation On Property Values: A Closer Look At Scituate, Hanover, And Norwell, Massachusetts, Alexandra Taylor Perticone, Christine S. Coveney

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

Prior studies have expressed the value of location in real estate, but more recent studies have explored the influence that public transportation has had on housing prices. Access to public transportation is understood to increase the value of homes. Easier access to public transportation allows for shorter and more convenient commutes into or within cities. However, other studies have found that proximity to public transportation can also have adverse effects on property values. This paper investigates whether the implementation of the Greenbush Commuter line in Massachusetts in October 2007 increased the housing prices in Scituate, Ma--the furthest town from the …

Invited Introduction To Jerec, Matthew Kahn

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

No abstract provided.

Welcome By The Editor, Nathan W. Chan

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

No abstract provided.

Measurement Of Commodity Price Risk: An Overview Of Brazilian Agricultural Markets, Daniel Henrique Dario Capitani, Fabio Mattos

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

This study explores different procedures to estimate price risk in commodity markets. Focusing on Brazilian agricultural markets, the paper proposes to assess both dispersion and downside risk measures using five different approaches (volatility, coefficient of variation, lower partial moments, value at risk and conditional value at risk). Results suggest that some commodities have large price variability but small downside risk, while other commodities show small price variability and large downside risk. Thus, there is no single answer to the question of which commodity exhibits more price risk, but rather distinct answers depending on how risk is perceived by different individuals. …

Agriculture And Energy Price Transference: The Impact Of Crude Oil On Us Wheat Markets, Rob Humphrey

Boise State Graduate Student Projects

Markets with petroleum products as primary inputs face unique price pressures. I provide a thorough analysis of U.S. wheat prices to investigate connections between international petroleum markets and commodity prices in the US. This research is critical for farmers, policymakers, and scholars interested in the relationship between crude oil inputs and commodity outputs. The research thus offers novel information for a large proportion of US territory under agricultural cultivation. Moreover, this research has implications for agricultural production and policy formulation around the world. The results of the investigation demonstrate support for high short-term volatility in wheat prices based on oil …

Barriers To Empowerment: How Can Gender Equality Training Reduce The Barriers That Women Farmers Face In Nicaragua?, Krista Pelletier

Capstone Collection

Women farmers worldwide face difficulties, unrelated to men, in their control over and access to resources and participation within farming systems. In Nicaragua, women are legally allowed to own land and participate in cooperatives, however, due to social, political, and economic factors they face barriers in their equitable access to resources and participation. Feminist political ecology theorizes that gender plays a key role and determines access to knowledge and resources, additionally, gender motivates people to social and political activism differently, which in effect shapes human-environment interactions. Can women, women’s groups, and NGO’s find ways to reduce the barriers women face …

China’S Agrarian Transition: Peasants, Property, And Politics, By René Trappel, Qian Forrest Zhang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Rene Trappel’s book is an ambitious attempt to address some of the key issues in thecomplex process of agrarian transition unfolding in China today. Trappel favors the“commodification of farmland” – the transfer of the land rights of small-scale farmers,especially to large-scale agribusiness producers – as a necessary condition for agrariantransition. He selects this as the dependent variable for his investigation and equates thiswith ‘agrarian transition’. He collected information from four counties (one each in Sichuanand Shandong and two in Guizhou) through three field trips between 2008 and 2010.

Nutritional And Behavioral Repercussions Of Food Insecurity And The Impact Of Nutrition Education, Kelly Burgess

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Food insecurity occurs when an individual does not have consistent access to fresh, nutritious food in safe, socially acceptable, and affordable ways. This is a significant challenge facing Kentuckians, with one in six adults and one in four children experiencing some degree of food insecurity. The present study examines the effectiveness of customized nutrition education in improving 1) nutrition-related behaviors associated with food insecurity and 2) management of household food supply in food-insecure individuals with and without children. Participants were recruited through HOTEL INC, and one was from a household without children and one with children. A pre-assessment survey evaluated …

Economic Evaluation Of Coastal Land Loss In Louisiana, Stephen R. Barnes, Craig Bond, Nicholas Burger, Kate Anania, Aaron Strong, Sarah Weilant, Stephanie Virgets

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

Louisiana has lost approximately 1,880 square miles of land over the past eighty years. Projections suggest that in a future without action, the next fifty years could result in the loss of 1,750 additional square miles of land area. As land loss continues, a large portion of the natural and man-made capital stocks of coastal Louisiana will be at greater risk of damage, either from land loss or from the associated increase in storm damage. We estimate the replacement cost of capital stock directly at risk from land loss ranges from approximately $2.1 billion to $3.5 billion with economic activity …

The Market Transfer Effect In The Hawaiian Longline Fishery: Why Correlation Does Not Imply Causation, Jason D. Scorse, Shaun Richards, Philip King

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

A lot of discussion and controversy has surrounded whether the “market transfer” effect in the Hawaii longline swordfish fishery occurred during the swordfish closure of 2001-2004, because of its potential impacts on sea turtle mortality. The primary academic work in support of the market transfer effect during the closure is a paper by Rausser et al. (2009): “Unintended Consequences: The Spillover Effects of Common Property Regulations.” In this paper, the authors claim to find evidence in support of the market transfer hypothesis.To our knowledge, no analysis has yet been undertaken to assess whether this analysis is sound, and yet it …

Geometry-Based Mass Grading Of Mango Fruits Using Image Processing, M. A. Momin, Md Towfiqur Rahman, M. S. Sultana, C. Igathinathane, A. T. M. Ziauddin, T. E. Grift

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Mango (Mangifera indica) is an important, and popular fruit in Bangladesh. However, the post-harvest processing of it is still mostly performed manually, a situation far from satisfactory, in terms of accuracy and throughput. To automate the grading of mangos (geometry and shape), we developed an image acquisition and processing system to extract projected area, perimeter, and roundness features. In this system, images were acquired using a XGA format color camera of 8-bit gray levels using fluorescent lighting. An image processing algorithm based on region based global thresholding color binarization, combined with median filter and morphological analysis was developed …

A Good Kiwi Isn't Acidic: How Ocean Acidification Is Affecting The New Zealand Economy, Lily G. Hurley

Student Theses 2015-Present

In a country that houses a mere 4 million people, it is no wonder that agriculture has become the main facet of New Zealand’s economy. However, while the sheep and produce have flourished from land protection laws, marine life has struggled in recent years due to an increase in oceanic carbon levels. In an area of the Pacific that is so rich in coral reefs, Great White breeding areas, and a plethora of fish species, any upset of the natural preexisting chemical balance has a tangible impact. New Zealand is dealing with a crisis with huge economic and ecological ramifications. …

Attracting Beneficial Insects To Your Farm: A Comparison Of Habitat Modification Strategies, Kelly Rourke

Master's Projects and Capstones

Thoughtful planning to enhance diversity in agricultural landscapes can present a multitude of ecological, cultural and economic benefits. Land managers have many options when considering which habitat modification techniques they can implement on their agri-environment schemes. This comparative analysis of 47 peer reviewed journal articles assesses which landscape enhancements are most effective in attracting beneficial insects, namely pollinators and natural enemies to pests. Through biological control, natural invertebrate predators inhibit vegetative pests that can be detrimental to croplands. The promotion of natural enemies can decrease the need for chemical use and maintenance on farms. Pollinators contribute tremendous benefits to crop …

Agricultural Technology Adoption And Adaptation Under Climate Change: Microevidence From Niger, Berenger Djoumessi Tiague

Master's Theses

Many regions of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are experiencing fast increases in human population pressure and urbanization. By 2050, feeding a planet of 9 billion people will require an estimated 50 percent increase in agricultural production. Farmers in in the Sahel are exposed to a highly variable weather over time, and to their limited adaptive capacity, therefore often use livestock as income generator, export earnings, and as insurance against weather risk. There is an increasing demand for livestock products, which increase pressure on crop residues use on the land. In this study, I use panel socio-economic data combined with village rainfall …

Financial Sector Development And Agricultural Productivity, John J. Onoja

Master's Theses

Global concern is rising about the performance of the agricultural sector in view of its integral role in poverty alleviation, economic development and meeting an ever-increasing nutritional demand. At the epicenter of the concern is declining productivity due to poor financial inclusion of the sector leading to low investment and returns to agriculture. A cursory examination of the existing literature on the subject reveals quite varied dimensions to the analysis of agriculture productivity-financial development nexus. Focusing on the role of financial sector development as a catalyst to agricultural productivity, we employ panel data and advances fixed-effects econometrics approach to empirically …

Food For Thought: Analyzing The Impacts Of Livestock Factory Farming In The United States, Mallory Russo

Student Theses 2015-Present

The practice of large scale factory farming in the United States has raised moral and ethical questions since its establishment in the mid twentieth century. Though a relatively modern development in the field of agribusiness, factory farming has already accounted for drastic damage to both public and environmental health. Factory farming requires the unsustainable use of resources, gives off toxic waste, and poses a serious threat to public health. This paper aims the further analyze those damages, as well as investigate the lack of transparency and political corruption carried out by factory farm industry leaders. Major factory farming companies have …

The Anthropocene, Overview, Scott W. Schwartz

Open Educational Resources

This presentation offers an overview of the developing concept of The Anthropocene -- a term coined to describe our current geological epoch, in which human impact on the planet will leave a permanent trace.

Indonesia's One Map Policy: A Critical Look At The Social Implications Of A 'Mess', Kaitlyn Justine Bretz

Senior Theses

In December 2010, a cabinet meeting between the Indonesian President and REDD+

agency led to the realization that spatial data does not match between government agencies. The

comparison of two forestry maps catalyzed the publication of Presidential Decree No. 4/2011,

better known as the One Map Policy. This policy is aimed at standardizing and unifying spatial

data across the Indonesian archipelago, creating a base map for all agencies to use, and making

spatial data free and readily accessible for Indonesian citizens. The One Map Policy is a direct

move to centralize national power and give the state more control over …

Consumer Gasoline Prices In 2014: What Caused The Decline?, Travis A. Spillum

All College Thesis Program, 2016-2019

Though a large body of literature analyzes commodity markets in general as well as the crude oil market, little work looks at the determinants of gasoline price shocks and which variables contributed to specific historical shocks. Using a structural vector autoregression (SVAR) model, one can determine how gasoline prices typically respond to shocks in price determinants, how much each variable, on average, contributes to the variation in gasoline, and which variables influenced gasoline prices during particular shocks. This paper proposes a simple SVAR model of the gasoline market and uses the model to determine what caused gasoline prices to decline …

The Passage Of The 2016 Ballot Question #3 In Massachusetts And Its Implications, Hannah Silverfine

Sustainability and Social Justice

In the 2016 Massachusetts primary election, ballot question #3, “Massachusetts Minimum Size Requirements for Farm Animal Containment”, aimed to improve welfare standards for cows raised for veal, female sows confined to gestation crates, and chickens caged for eggs. This study seeks to analyze the complex relationship between local and national food systems, and articulate the multi-level implications of Question 3. Research examines the rationale behind voting, campaign narratives, and campaign financing in Massachusetts, and ultimately compares the implications of Question 3 with those of California’s 2008 Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act. The lenses of animal geographies and the political …