Suchergebnisse

This study was conducted to analyze the impacts of different trade and pricing policies on the grains and livestock sector in the Philippines. Four trade policy alternatives were evaluated: (a) base 1990 trade policies; (b) full trade liberalization in the grains and livestock sector: (c) a uniform 20 percent import tariff system for both grains and livestock commodities; and (d) price stabilization of rice and corn. Two price stabilization instruments, buffer-stock and variable import levy, two target prices, and two price band band widths were evaluated. The economic surplus measure of costs and benefits was used as the basis for economic efficiency comparisons among the different trade and pricing policies. The study simulated the operations of grains and livestock markets in the Philippines. Supply and risk response parameters were estimated with profit function approach using time-series data on prices, production, and input usage. Food demand elasticities were adopted from previous works in the Philippines. A separate set of demand functions were estimated for corn as livestock feed with the use of pseudo-data generated by varying the prices of the different feed ingredients in a process model of least-cost feed rations of hog and poultry. The ten-year period simulations were iterated 250 times, using world prices of wheat, rice, and corn drawn from their historical price distributions along the trend projected by the World Bank. Results of the study revealed that most economic gains can be attained by shifting to full trade liberalization of grains and livestock markets. With full trade liberalization, the economy gains by importing lower priced corn and producing higher-valued livestock products for domestic consumption and exports. The effect of a uniform 20 percent tariff is similar to that of full trade liberalization, but with lesser economic benefits. On the other hand, due to positive supply response to stabilized prices, there are small economic gains that could be achieved by the operation of a stabilization scheme for rice and corn over trade liberalization. These benefits, however, are offset by the heavy financial exposure required from the government. The variable import levy that defends rice and com prices at average expected world prices gives the best results among the different price-stabilization schemes. ; Ph. D.

AbstractSmall and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) face enormous pressure on the management of their resources. Lack of awareness and expertise are often major obstacles in achieving a better business strategy. Increasing customer pressure and the need to comply with regulations are also very strong drivers for the adoption of environmentally friendly procedures for the disposal of their wastes. The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyse the parameters that interact in the implementation of environmental management tools taking into account the characteristics of SMEs. Particular attention is given to the management of packaging waste. General conclusions and further research are also mentioned. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment

AbstractLocal governments play an important role in addressing the climate crisis. However, despite public support for climate action, local policy responses have been limited. We argue that (1) biased beliefs about voter preferences, (2) the time horizon for credit claiming, and (3) source credibility are barriers for legislators to learn and adopt new environmental policies. We test these arguments in a real policy‐learning context. Representatives from six Western countries received customized invitations to a webinar on climate solutions for local governments. We find that constituency opinion on climate issues made local office‐holders more responsive to public preferences. Invitations sent by a climate scientist and emphasizing shorter term policy effects increased interest in the webinar, but did not boost the likelihood of policy commitments. Only US officials responded negatively to climate scientists. The results reveal concrete steps to induce climate action and contribute to scholarship on policy learning.

OBJECTIVES To investigate the impact of Australia's plain tobacco packaging policy on two stated purposes of the legislation--increasing the impact of health warnings and decreasing the promotional appeal of packaging--among adult smokers. DESIGN Serial cross-sectional study with weekly telephone surveys (April 2006-May 2013). Interrupted time-series analyses using ARIMA modelling and linear regression models were used to investigate intervention effects. PARTICIPANTS 15,745 adult smokers (aged 18 years and above) in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Random selection of participants involved recruiting households using random digit dialling and selecting the nth oldest smoker for interview. INTERVENTION The introduction of the legislation on 1 October 2012. OUTCOMES Salience of tobacco pack health warnings, cognitive and emotional responses to warnings, avoidance of warnings, perceptions regarding one's cigarette pack. RESULTS Adjusting for background trends, seasonality, antismoking advertising activity and cigarette costliness, results from ARIMA modelling showed that, 2-3 months after the introduction of the new packs, there was a significant increase in the absolute proportion of smokers having strong cognitive (9.8% increase, p=0.005), emotional (8.6% increase, p=0.01) and avoidant (9.8% increase, p=0.0005) responses to on-pack health warnings. Similarly, there was a significant increase in the proportion of smokers strongly disagreeing that the look of their cigarette pack is attractive (57.5% increase, p<0.0001), says something good about them (54.5% increase, p<0.0001), influences the brand they buy (40.6% increase, p<0.0001), makes their pack stand out (55.6% increase, p<0.0001), is fashionable (44.7% increase, p<0.0001) and matches their style (48.1% increase, p<0.0001). Changes in these outcomes were maintained 6 months postintervention. CONCLUSIONS The introductory effects of the plain packaging legislation among adult smokers are consistent with the specific objectives of the legislation in regard to reducing promotional appeal and increasing effectiveness of health warnings. ; This study was internally funded by the Cancer Institute NSW.

OBJECTIVES To investigate the impact of Australia's plain tobacco packaging policy on two stated purposes of the legislation--increasing the impact of health warnings and decreasing the promotional appeal of packaging--among adult smokers. DESIGN Serial cross-sectional study with weekly telephone surveys (April 2006-May 2013). Interrupted time-series analyses using ARIMA modelling and linear regression models were used to investigate intervention effects. PARTICIPANTS 15,745 adult smokers (aged 18 years and above) in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Random selection of participants involved recruiting households using random digit dialling and selecting the nth oldest smoker for interview. INTERVENTION The introduction of the legislation on 1 October 2012. OUTCOMES Salience of tobacco pack health warnings, cognitive and emotional responses to warnings, avoidance of warnings, perceptions regarding one's cigarette pack. RESULTS Adjusting for background trends, seasonality, antismoking advertising activity and cigarette costliness, results from ARIMA modelling showed that, 2-3 months after the introduction of the new packs, there was a significant increase in the absolute proportion of smokers having strong cognitive (9.8% increase, p=0.005), emotional (8.6% increase, p=0.01) and avoidant (9.8% increase, p=0.0005) responses to on-pack health warnings. Similarly, there was a significant increase in the proportion of smokers strongly disagreeing that the look of their cigarette pack is attractive (57.5% increase, p<0.0001), says something good about them (54.5% increase, p<0.0001), influences the brand they buy (40.6% increase, p<0.0001), makes their pack stand out (55.6% increase, p<0.0001), is fashionable (44.7% increase, p<0.0001) and matches their style (48.1% increase, p<0.0001). Changes in these outcomes were maintained 6 months postintervention. CONCLUSIONS The introductory effects of the plain packaging legislation among adult smokers are consistent with the specific objectives of the legislation in regard to reducing promotional appeal and increasing effectiveness of health warnings. ; This study was internally funded by the Cancer Institute NSW.

This paper examines the global food security picture through 2020, using a model that incorporates 35 individual countries and regions and 17 commodities to estimate supply and demand for food. It concludes that if governments and the international community maintain current levels of commitment to agricultural growth through cost-effective investment in agricultural research, extension, irrigation and water development, human capital, and rural infrastructure, the world as a whole will not experience overwhelming pressure but food security in many developing countries, particularly in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, will improve little. The paper also presents a more pessimistic scenario brought about by cuts in investment in agriculture and a more hopeful scenario based on increased investment. ; PR ; IFPRI1; 2020 ; DGO

In Indonesia production of food crops grew an impressive 4.3 percent a year between 1978 and 1988, largely as a result of favorable government pricing, research, and investment policies toward rice and other crops. In recent years, however, the high costs of subsidies to the government and the increasing competition for scarce resources among commodities have caused Indonesian policymakers to take a fresh look at these policies in order to determine what is needed in a changing economic environment. What policies should the government pursue for rice and other major food crops? Should the government provide incentives or investments to promote rice as an export crop? What have been the effects of government policies on the international competitiveness of other commodities such as corn or cassava? Is there a continuing role for large input subsidies, or should these subsidies be eliminated? What investments are appropriate in the food crop sector? The report examines trends in the government policies and production of five major food crops (rice, corn, soybeans, sugar, and cassava) in Indonesia; analyzes the effects of government input-output pricing policies on domestic production incentives for these food crops; and assesses their relative comparative advantage under the three trade regimes of import substitution, interregional trade, and export promotion. ; PR ; IFPRI1

La gestión de los desechos Tecnológicos, es un problema emergente, así como una oportunidad económica, dados los volúmenes de residuos que se generan y el contenido de materiales valiosos que lo componen. La recolección, transporte, tratamiento, reciclaje y eliminación de residuos tecnológicos requiere de soluciones económica y ambientalmente sostenibles. Las soluciones a dichos retos, demandan de enfoques inter-displinarios que incluyen aspectos ambientales, tecnológicos económicos, sociales y legislativos. El paradigma de la economía circular plantea que los residuos al final del ciclo de vida útil de un producto pueden ser materias primas para unos nuevos productos. La programación de la logística de recolección de residuos tecnológicos corresponde al problema de enrutamiento de vehículos ( Vehicle Routing Problem , VRP) que presentan una extensa disponibilidad bibliográfica de los problemas de enrutamiento verde de vehículos (GVRP). Los problemas de enrutamiento de VRP en logística describen la complejidad en los casos del mundo real. Particularmente, el propósito de esta línea trabajo es mostrar como la aplicación de un algoritmo basado en inteligencia colectiva mejora la planificación de recolección de residuos tecnológicos para un caso de estudio local sobre con diferentes escenarios e instancias de recolección contenedores de residuos y vehículos con diferentes capacidades. ; Eje: Agentes y Sistemas Inteligentes. ; Red de Universidades con Carreras en Informática