Towards an improved understanding of farmers' behaviour: The integrative agent-centred (IAC) framework

An effective approach to research on farmers' behaviour is based on: i) an explicit and well-motivated behavioural theory; ii) an integrative approach; and iii) understanding feedback processes and dynamics. While current approaches may effectively tackle some of them, they often fail to combine them together.The paper presents the integrative agent-centred (IAC) framework, which aims at filling this gap. It functions in accordance with these three pillars and provides a conceptual structure to understand farmers' behaviour in agricultural systems.The IAC framework is agent-centred and supports the understanding of farmers' behavior consistently with the perspective of agricultural systems as complex social–ecological systems. It combines different behavioural drivers, bridges between micro and macro levels, and depicts a potentially varied model of human agency.The use of the framework in practice is illustrated through two studies on pesticide use among smallholders in Colombia.The examples show how the framework can be implemented to derive policy implications to foster a transition towards more sustainable agricultural practices.The paper finally suggests that the framework can support different research designs for the study of agents' behaviour in agricultural and social–ecological systems.     

体制改革视角下转变经济发展方式经典理论述评

中国既是一个发展中国家，又是一个转型国家。“体制改革”是中国这类传统的社会主义计划经济国家实现现代化进程中特有的制度创新，而“转变经济发展方式”也有其自身特定的经济背景和问题指向。从制度一经济发展方式的研究角度对新古典主义经典理论、马克思主义经济学派与制度经济学派、演化经济学、转轨经济学和发展经济学五个理论流派的主要见解进行评述，以期对解决转变经济发展方式过程中所遇到的实际问题有所启发。     

The River agreement in Italy. Resilient planning for the co-evolution of communities and landscapes

According to the “evolutionary” approach (Davoudi & Al., 2012), urban resilience implies that urban systems have capacity to react to several external disturbances - economic, social, environmental - regarding all components of urban governance and transforming itself in a new development model.River basins are considered an interesting space for experimental workshop on resilience, as a driver of territorial policy, for ordinary communities and landscapes, where the relationship between the sustainable use of territorial resources could led to new territorial strategies, as well as “promote managements synergies” at different levels of regional and local planning.River Agreements (RA) appear as an innovative governance method which can help in the drafting of potential plans and practices for the development of resilience in fluvial territories. It is a form of negotiated planning, that helps to involve social actors in order to: improve people’s knowledge of current territorial conditions and the effects of human activities; increase social awareness; include society in the identification and implementation of solutions; to encourage innovative changes in planning objectives and urban and architectural design, starting with the legal and planning framework of an Action Plan. Starting from the ‘80 s, RA were experimentally tested in Belgium and France and currently widespread also in Italy. In Piedmont Region (Italy), it is recognized as a successful territorial governance tool used to define shared strategies, measures, rules and projects. We will present the case study of the Sangone River Agreement as the first participate planning and design experience in Piedmont signed by local actors.     

Passing the food and agricultural R&D buck? The United States and China

The global geographical balance of food and agricultural R&D spending is shifting, characterized by a declining U.S. share and a rising middle-income-country share, propelled heavily by the rapid rise of spending in China. Based on our newly compiled data, we estimate that China now outspends the United States on both public and private food and agricultural research on a purchasing power parity basis. The public-private orientation of the research has also changed markedly, with the private sector now accounting for around two-thirds of the food and agricultural R&D spending total in both China and the United States. Our estimates indicate that China’s private sector tilts heavily towards post-farm R&D activities, whereas the U.S. private sector is split more evenly between on-farm and post-farm spending. While the intensity of Chinese investment in food and agricultural R&D (relative to agricultural GDP) is beginning to grow, it still lags well behind the food and agricultural R&D investment intensities of the United States and other higher-income Asian countries (e.g., Japan and South Korea). The development regularities we reveal in the longer-run trends are indicative of future R&D investment patterns with potentially profound long-run implications for the size, shape and accessibility of the global stocks of scientific knowledge that underpin food and agricultural sectors worldwide.     

技能退化、干中学与失业的持续性

现实经济中的失业往往表现出较强的持续性特征。通过建立一个包含技能退化与干中学机制的NK-DSGE模型，并基于这一模型分析了引起失业持续性的内在作用机制。研究结论表明：（1）负向技术冲击对于低技能劳动力具有更大的冲击效应；（2）技能退化与干中学通过影响劳动力队伍的技能构成进而改变了失业的持续性：技能退化的概率越大，失业的持续性越强；干中学即技能提升的概率越大，失业的持续性越小。因此，通过技能培训以及相关的就业服务机制改变技能退化机制的作用并积极发挥干中学机制的积极作用，将有利于缓解我国失业的持续性问题。     

Decomposition of tourism greenhouse gas emissions: Revealing the dynamics between tourism economic growth,technological efficiency,and carbon emissions

This study proposes an analytical framework for decomposing the national tourism carbon footprint and carbon efficiency to identify the dynamics between economic growth, technological efficiency, and environmental externality. Using the environmentally extended input–output model and decomposition methods, tourism carbon changes are decomposed into the economic factors of total consumption and purchasing patterns, and the production factors of industry input structure and technological improvement. This macro-level approach provides a basis for 1) assessing whether total tourism emissions increase in direct proportion to tourism consumption over time, 2) tracing the underlying determinants and their effects on tourism emissions expansion and eco-efficiency performance, and 3) comparing the carbon performance of the tourism industry against the national average. Based on the example of Taiwan, the results demonstrate that we are a long way from the goal of using the technological efficiencies of production to offset tourism-based carbon emissions.     

改革开放以来中国政府社会保障支出分析

改革开放以来,中国政府不断加大社会保障财政投入,取得了明显成效,为保障国民基本生活、维护社会稳定和促进经济发展发挥了重要作用。然而,我国社会保障财政投入与人民群众的社会保障需求还有较大的差距,不仅财政支出的总量不足,而且支出结构不合理,社会保障财政支出在调节收入分配方面的作用不理想。为此,本文提出了一些加强和完善社会保障财政支出的建议。     

Asian Currency Unit (ACU), deviation indicators and exchange rate coordination in East Asia: A panel-based convergence approach

Employing the panel convergence method of Phillips and Sul (2007) to the nominal deviation indicators of two recent unofficial constructions of an Asian Currency Unit (ACU) index, this paper examines the existence and extent of convergence in the movements of East Asian currencies against the ACU. Empirical results reveal that intra-East Asian exchange rate movements have not converged to form one, cohesive and unified bloc where currencies share homogenous movements, regardless of whether one examines the data on intra-East Asian exchange rate movements before or after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September 2008. Instead, a separate number of convergent clubs or blocs in the region have formed in recent years. Finally, and most importantly, we observe at the end of the period of our examination that economies in the region are, generally, converging at different speeds to two opposing poles of convergence, that is, groups of relatively depreciating currencies and, on the other, groups of relatively appreciating currencies.     

中国农村居民消费金融效应的地区差异研究

本文基于2002~2012年省级面板数据分析了中国农村居民内生的金融资产配置与消费的关系及其地区差异性。研究结果显示:在消费升级背景下,农村居民持有储蓄、投资、住房和保险对消费有促进作用,但是作用大小及显著性存在地区差异。其中,储蓄对东部农村居民消费的促进作用最大,而投资对中西部农村居民消费的促进作用最大。研究还发现,假如农村居民同时配置四种金融资产,配合消费升级的作用,能够更好地促进消费。这表明通过丰富农村金融消费产品,改善农村消费金融市场环境,满足农村居民内生金融需求,能刺激农村居民消费。     

24个大中城市人均住房面积及房价相对泡沫估算

国家统计局公布的“城市人均住宅建筑面积”反映的是有当地户籍并有住房的城市居民的人均住房面积,与城市人均实际住房面积的概念存在着较大的差别。对我国24个主要大中城市实际人均住房面积的估算结果明显小于统计年鉴公布的数据,而且不同城市之间存在较大的差距;利用估算结果进一步估计各城市的房价相对泡沫指数,结果表明一些城市相对于其他城市存在较高的房价泡沫。我国城市人均住房面积与发达国家相比还有明显差距,对住房的刚性需求仍然强劲,房地产业还将保持较快的增长速度;对已经出现较大房价泡沫的城市,应防止其局部风险向全局风险转化,而对于房价泡沫程度不高的城市,应支持居民的合理住房需求。