A comment on “School choice: An experimental study” [J. Econ. Theory 127 (1) (2006) 202-231]

We show that one of the main results in Chen and Sönmez (2006, 2008) [6] and [7] does no longer hold when the number of recombinations is sufficiently increased to obtain reliable conclusions. No school choice mechanism is significantly superior in terms of efficiency.     

Land degradation in the Lao PDR: Discourses and policy

While there is an important body of research on environmental discourses and policy in Southeast Asia, the situation in the Lao PDR remains understudied. This paper builds on debates related to environmental change and knowledge production and examines the socio-political construction of the current mainstream discourse on land degradation in Laos. It highlights that, despite significant uncertainties as regard the extent and severity of the issue, land degradation in the uplands is represented by the Laotian authorities and many of their development partners as a major and imminent threat to the development of the country. The paper also examines the way this perspective is translated into policies specifically aimed at resolving the upland issue and proposes an alternative reading of this process where mainstream discourse and associated policy appear partly shaped by the subjectivities and political economic projects of Laos’ policy-makers. Finally, drawing on the case of Laos, the paper provides a critical reflection on conventional approaches to assessing socio-environmental issues and defining policy interventions.     

Alternative to beta coefficients in the context of diffusions

We develop an alternative to the beta coefficient of the CAPM theory. We show the link between this notion and the Wiener chaos expansion of the underlying processes. In the setting of Markov diffusions, we define the drift-neutral beta, which is the quantity of benchmark such that the resulting portfolio is immune to an infinitesimal change of drift on the Brownian motion driving the benchmark. Our approach yields a coefficient which in many practical cases depends on the initial values of both the portfolio and its benchmark. It can also be used to take into account extreme risks and not only the variance. We study several classical diffusion processes and give a full analysis in the case of Jacobi processes. Examples with credit indices show the efficiency of the method in hedging a portfolio.     

Implications of mandatory labeling of GM food in India: Evidence from the supply side

We assess the supply-side economic implications of introducing a strict mandatory labeling policy for genetically modified (GM) food in India as proposed in 2006. We apply our analysis to the case of cottonseed oil and soybean oil, two products that would be the first affected by such regulation. We find that GM food labeling would generate adjustment and implementation costs and consumer benefits would not always be visible and would highly depend on the degree of enforcement.     

The role of collective action in the marketing of underutilized plant species: Lessons from a case study on minor millets in South India

Underutilized plant species are generally defined by their unexploited economic potential, making them an appropriate focus for market development. This paper analyses the role of collective action in the process of market development for minor millets, an underutilized plant species, in the Kolli Hills of Tamil Nadu, India. Based on a series of focus group discussions, we analyze the role and involvement of self-help groups in the minor millet marketing chain recently set up by the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation. We then compare the role of collective action in this new market with the cases of marketing chains for cassava and organic pineapples, two cash crops with expanding production in the same area. Our analysis shows the critical role of collective action as a necessary but not sufficient condition for the successful commercialization of underutilized plant species for the benefit of the poor and the conservation of agro-biodiversity.     

Calculating load factors for the transatlantic airline market using supply and demand data – A note on the identification of gaps in the available airline statistics

This paper takes a critical view of the verification of load factors for the direct transatlantic airline market by combining supply and demand-data. The supply-related data originate from the Official Airline Guide, a well-known data source that contains information on scheduled flights. The demand-related data originate from the Marketing Information Data Transfer database, a data set containing information on actual airline bookings. Combining both data sets enables us to calculate the seat occupancy of direct flights between North-West Europe and the US for 2001. Based on the results, we assess the utility of the joint use of these data sources for aviation economic research, and identify various gaps in the available airline statistics.