Emissions trading in Europe: Effective tool or flight of fancy?

Conclusion  The NAPs must be compatible with the climate goals and emissions reduction targets. Within the first period there will be no concrete sanction mechanism if countries fail to achieve their target, as is planned for later periods. A stringent allocation of allowances would prevent too high a burden on private households and the transport sector. In addition, it would also increase the incentive for other flexible mechanisms such as Clean Development Mechanisms (CDM) and (later on) Joint Implementation (Jl). Conversely, some important aspects of the trading system, such as the treatment of newcomers or how to react to the dynamics of the market, are not regulated at the European level. This provides a large scope for strategic action and creates uncertainties. In Germany as well as in many other countries, negotiations between politicians and industrial lobbyists has led to a less effective emissions trading system. It is questionable whether there will be significant emission trading at all. The climate goal cannot be reached if industries get the emissions allowances that they need to continue business as usual. In the future, it would be desirable to harmonise the specific rules of the initial allocation plan among all European countries in order to avoid strategic behaviour and a weakening of the entire trading system.     

An examination of preferences and evaluations of visitors based on environmental attitudes: Biscayne Bay national park

This study links visitor preferences to environmental attitudes in an effort to assist national park managers reconcile the public demand for both protection of the natural environment and its utilisation. Support was found for the hypothesis that visitors with ecocentric views will prefer that national park resources be allocated to protect and preserve the environment while those with anthropocentric inclinations will favour transforming the environment. The results suggest that park resource managers may need to consider alternative management practices for the two groups as well as monitor changes in environmental attitudes that will impact preferences for park management practices.     

Green Deal for Europe: More Climate Protection and Fewer Fossil Fuel Wars

Intereconomics - A Green Deal for Europe can set standards for ambitious climate protection, for an investment programme in future markets and for strengthening the European economy and European...     

Narrow Framing and Retirement Savings Decisions

Theoretical studies suggest narrow framing underlies individuals' saving decisions. When narrow framing is applied to retirement savings decisions, narrow framers tend to make decisions about present consumption without considering future consumption, i.e., saving for consumption in retirement. Time preference for the present and narrow framers' preference to maintain the status quo lead to a decision that is less likely to increase savings for retirement. This study provides empirical evidence that narrow framing bias affects retirement savings decisions. Using a two‐part model, the probit estimation indicates narrow framers anticipated being less willing to increase retirement savings contributions compared to broad framers, and the OLS regression estimates that narrow framers anticipated contributing less than broad framers. Here, narrow framers anticipated being less willing to increase retirement savings (62.6% vs. 71.9%) and contributing less ($70.90 vs. $88.40) than broad framers, thus providing empirical evidence regarding the effects of behavioral biases on financial decisions.     

Factors affecting farmers’ acceptance of conservation measures—A case study from north-eastern Germany

Intensive forms of agriculture have been proven to cause severe environmental effects, such as soil erosion by water and wind, or the pollution of ground and surface water with nutrients and pesticides contributing to the deterioration of natural habitats and the loss in biodiversity. In order to avoid or mitigate these detrimental environmental effects, a number of conservation measures can be undertaken by farmers. However, the adoption of these measures is highly dependent on the assumed benefits and risks attached as well as the personal perception and attitude of the individual farmer.This paper presents the outcome of a survey conducted in north-eastern Germany aimed at analysing farmers’ acceptance of different conservation measures. Eleven farmers, managing more than 80% (about 13,000 ha) of the agricultural land in the chosen case study region were interviewed. Respondents were asked about their personal experiences with different environmental measures and requested to assess these measures, e.g., regarding costs, time and labour demands, attached risks, or effectiveness. They also ranked these factors in terms of importance for decision making on adoption or rejection of a new measure. The findings show that, despite of the general assumption that farmers’ decisions are mostly driven by economic rationality, costs were not the most important factor. Other factors, like associated risks, effectiveness, or time and effort necessary to implement a certain measure were equally or even more important depending on the specific situation.     

Why Do Banks Go Abroad?—Evidence from German Data

This paper provides empirical evidence on the determinants of foreign activities of German banks. We use regionally disaggregated panel data for the years 1981–98 and distinguish foreign direct investment from total foreign assets of domestic banks, of their foreign branches and of their subsidiaries. Foreign activities are found to be positively related to demand conditions on the local market, foreign activities of German firms, and the presence of financial centers. This supports the hypothesis that German banks follow their customers abroad. Exchange rate volatility has some negative impact. EU membership and the abolition of capital controls seem to have exerted a greater influence on foreign assets than on FDI of German banks, thus weakly supporting the hypothesis that the two are substitutes.     

Regional origins of employment volatility: evidence from German states

Greater openness for trade can have positive welfare effects in terms of higher growth. But increased openness may also increase uncertainty through a higher volatility of employment. We use regional data from Germany to test whether openness for trade has an impact on volatility. We find a downward trend in the unconditional volatility of employment, paralleling patterns for output volatility. The conditional volatility of employment, measuring idiosyncratic developments across states, in contrast, has remained fairly unchanged. In contrast to evidence for the US, we do not find a significant link between employment volatility and trade openness.     

Equestrian tourism: animal agency observed

There is limited scholarship engaging with equestrian tourism even though this segment of the tourism industry has recently undergone phenomenal growth in both supply and demand. This article will focus on the core element of equestrian tourism, travel on horseback, and will explore the role of equine animal agency in the co-creation of tourism experiences and tourism places. Employing qualitative methods, it will demonstrate how horses assert themselves as subjective agents and active players in the communities that tour groups form, assuming a variety of roles that effect their riders' self-actualization and psychological enrichment. At the same time, they assume an active role in determining their own fate by contributing to a climate of animal ethics specific to equestrian tourism. A predominantly female clientele looks to their equine partners for companionship and inspiration and reciprocates by demanding high standards of animal welfare and horsemanship. On the supply side, equestrian ground operators have established themselves as lifestyle entrepreneurs who place their own and their guests' passion for horses and lifestyle values ahead of business savvy and economic efficiency.     

MIXED‐FREQUENCY STRUCTURAL MODELS: IDENTIFICATION,ESTIMATION, AND POLICY ANALYSIS

The mismatch between the timescale of DSGE (dynamic stochastic general equilibrium) models and the data used in their estimation translates into identification problems, estimation bias, and distortions in policy analysis. We propose an estimation strategy based on mixed‐frequency data to alleviate these shortcomings. The virtues of our approach are explored for two monetary policy models. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.