Preferences over the timing of forest resource use

The objective of this study is to evaluate preferences for time paths of outputs arising from alternative forest management practices. A discrete choice framework using logit and mixed logit models is used to evaluate stated choices by Public Advisory Committee members over attributes regarding inter-temporal forest management options. Results of the study indicate a relatively strong preference for physical sustainability, or even flow choices. However, respondents appear to be more accepting of uneven flows in recreation services than they are of uneven flows of timber harvests. Results also provide yet another illustration of a difference in implied rates of discount over the goods involved (i. e. timber versus recreation). The paper illustrates a mechanism for use in public involvement exercises that may identify inter-temporal preferences over forest management plans and strategies.     

Resilient and Inclusive Prosperity within Planetary Boundaries

The current model of economic growth generated unprecedented increases in human wealth and prosperity during the 19th and 2Oth centuries. The main mechanisms have been the rapid pace of technological and social innovation, human capital accumulation, and the conversion of resources and natural capital into more valuable forms of produced capital. However, there is evidence emerging that this model may be approaching environmental limits and planetary boundaries, and that the conversion of natural capital needs to slow down rapidly and then be reversed Some commentators have asserted that in order for this to occur, we will need to stop growing altogether and, instead, seek prosperity without growth. Others argue that environmental concerns are low-priority luxuries to be contemplated once global growth has properly returned to levels observed prior to the 2008 financial crisis. A third group argues that there is no trade-off and, instead,, promotes green growth： the （politically appealing） idea is that we can simultaneously grow and address our environmental problems. This paper provides a critical perspective on this debate and suggests that asubstantial researc＇h agenda is required to come to grips with these challenges. One place to start is with the relevant metrics： measures of per-capitawealth, and, eventually, quantitative measures of prosperity, alongside a dashboard of other sustainability indicators. A public andpoliticalfocus on wealth （a stock）, and its annual changes, could realistically complement the current focus on market-based gross output as measured by GDP （a flow）. This could have important policy implications, but deeper changes to governance and business models will be required.     

Accounting and the construction of the retired person

This paper seeks to describe the constitutive role played by accounting in the social safety net for the elderly, and its effects on the individual preparing for retirement. The paper documents the effects of accounting on life-long behaviours, through the objectivization of the individual as a worker, saver, and pensioner. It shows how accounting has, by capturing measures of individual earnings, by enlisting the individual in the preparation of tax returns, and by reflecting back to the individual various accumulations of lifetime savings, attempted to transform that individual not just into a saver who can continue to consume long after ceasing to produce, but into an investor whose interests are aligned with the financial markets. The focus of the paper is the Canadian retirement income system. Starting with an early attempt at retirement income protection, the 1908 government annuities program, the paper develops a genealogy of Canada’s present comprehensive retirement income system. By examining the succession and accumulation of retirement income programs introduced since 1908, the study shows how accounting has functioned as a dividing practice, separating citizens into categories wherein they can be subjected to particular programs. The paper suggests that the accounting technologies used in constructing the Canadian system have fallen short as tools for governing retirement and retirement savings, largely due to their inadequacy as technologies of the self. The paper is of particular relevance to accounting scholars because the aging population in many countries is putting tremendous pressure on retirement income programs. The paper helps us to understanding the role of accounting in shaping political policy on the aged and in preparing citizens for old age.     

Climate-resilient practices and welfare impacts on rice-cultivating households in Vietnam: Does joint adoption of multiple practices matter?

Farmers have a long history of adjusting their production practices in response to changing production conditions. Using a multinomial endogenous treatment effects model that accounts for observable and unobservable heterogeneity, this study investigates the adoption and welfare impacts of climate-resilient practices on Vietnamese rice-cultivating households. We found evidence of clear and positive welfare impacts from the adoption of canal irrigation (CI) and the joint adoption of agricultural conservation practices (CP) and CI as the main adaptation strategies to increase water stress. More importantly, although farmers with access to CI systems obtained the highest returns, the joint adoption of multiple practices still had substantially high adoption rates and significantly positive effects on rice yield, rice revenue and household income. Our findings indicate that farms' and farmers' characteristics, market information and climatic conditions are generally the main factors driving rice farmers' decisions to adopt climate-resilient technologies, both individually and jointly. Follow-up policy interventions should focus on improving CI systems and promoting the joint adoption of climate-resilient technologies to improve rice farmers' well-being and enhance their resilience capacity to cope with incoming climatic uncertainty.     

Corruption and corporate leverage in an emerging economy: The role of economic freedom

This study investigated the effects of corruption and economic freedom on corporate leverage. We also evaluated how economic freedom shapes the effect of corruption on corporate leverage. Using a sample of Vietnamese firms covering a nine-year period from 2010 to 2018, we find evidence that increased control of corruption has a significant positive impact on firm leverage, whereas the opposite is true for economic freedom. This effect is robust to alternative measures of control of corruption as well as advanced estimation methods, such as firm-fixed effects and quantile regressions. Our results also reveal that the positive impact of corruption controls on corporate leverage is more pronounced for firms with high economic freedom. Econometrically, our findings indicate that firms with better control over corruption prefer debt financing, as demonstrated by their higher leverage ratio.     

Developing a children's rights approach to fundraising with children in primary schools and the ethics of cultivating philanthropic citizenship

Fundraising literature predominantly focuses on adult donors, with limited literature addressing younger donors, particularly children, and virtually no discussion on the normative ethics which inform fundraising with children. Addressing this gap, this article examines the ethical dilemmas posed by the mainstreaming of charity fundraising in primary schools. Regardless of high levels of participation, research with primary school pupils shows that children's engagement in fundraising activities is often passive, with little decision making afforded to children. First, we question the ethics of passively engaging children in the fundraising relationship. Second, we question the role of fundraising more broadly in helping to cultivate children's philanthropic citizenship, suggesting that current fundraising mechanisms in schools are counter-intuitive to fostering long-term philanthropic engagement. We argue that by critically engaging children in the process of giving, children develop a deeper understanding of the cause areas that matter to them, which cultivates a longer-term commitment to philanthropy. This is potentially a different goal than that of many organisations involving schools in fundraising, where the focus is on incentivising transactional fundraising efforts aiming to raise as much money as possible and thus raises particular ethical challenges which must be considered. In this paper we draw on previous research and established frameworks for understanding philanthropic behaviour to explore the ethical challenges of fundraising with children in schools and present a pathway towards a more child-led, children's rights approach to fundraising in primary schools.