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This paper reviews Paul Krugman's fundamental contributions to new trade theory (NTT) and new economic geography (NEG) on the occasion of his 2008 Nobel Prize. We appraise the impact his work had on the field of regional science broadly defined, and we quantify its influence on papers published in Papers in Regional Science ( PIRS) between 1991 and 2009 (vols. 70–87 and papers in press). We then discuss in more detail a few contributions published in PIRS that extend his original analysis in various directions. Finally, we briefly speculate on where NEG is headed to and which are the research directions that should be explored more thoroughly in the future. Resumen Con ocasión de su Premio Nobel de 2008, este artículo revisa las contribuciones fundamentales de Paul Krugman a la nueva teoría del comercio (NTT, por sus siglas en inglés) y a la Nueva Geografía Económica (NEG, por sus siglas en inglés). Valoramos el impacto que ha tenido su trabajo en el campo de la Ciencia Regional en su más amplia definición, y cuantificamos su influencia sobre artículos publicados en Papers in Regional Science (PiRS) entre 1991 y 2009 (vols. 70-87 y artículos en prensa). A continuación discutimos en más detalle unas pocas contribuciones publicadas en PiRS que amplían su análisis original en varias direcciones. Finalmente, especulamos brevemente sobre adónde se dirige la NEG y cuales son las avenidas de investigación que deberían ser exploradas en mayor profundidad en el futuro. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human milk (HM) is a highly evolutionary selected, complex biofluid, which provides tailored nutrition, immune system support and developmental cues that are unique to each maternal–infant dyad. In the absence of maternal milk, the World Health Organisation recommends vulnerable infants should be fed with screened donor HM (DHM) from a HM bank (HMB) ideally embedded in local or regional lactation support services. However, demand for HM products has arisen from an increasing awareness of the developmental and health impacts of the early introduction of formula and a lack of prioritisation into government‐funded and nonprofit milk banking and innovation. This survey of global nonprofit milk bank leaders aimed to outline the trends, commonalities and differences between nonprofit and for‐profit HM banking, examine strategies regarding the marketing and placement of products to hospital and public customers and outline the key social, ethical and human rights concerns. The survey captured information from 59 milk bank leaders in 30 countries from every populated continent. In total, five companies are currently trading HM products with several early‐stage private milk companies (PMCs). Products tended to be more expensive from PMC than HMB, milk providers were financially remunerated and lactation support for milk providers and recipients was not a core function of PMCs. Current regulatory frameworks for HM vary widely, with the majority of countries lacking any framework, and most others placing HM within food legislation, which does not include the support and care of milk donors and recipient prioritisation. Regulation as a Medical Product of Human Origin was only in place to prevent the sale of HM in four countries; export and import of HM was banned in two countries. This paper discusses the safety and ethical concerns raised by the commodification of HM and the opportunities policymakers have globally and country‐level to limit the potential for exploitation and the undermining of breastfeeding. Key messages: The number and scope of human milk (HM) profit‐making companies is increasing globallyCurrent regulatory frameworks for HM vary widelyProducts offered by private milk companies (PMCs) are generally more expensive than from HM banksSome PMCs are adopting marketing practices traditionally associated with breast milk substitute companies.The health benefits of HM‐based fortifiers compared to bovine milk‐based fortifiers are unclear and may be marginal [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author-pays model (open access publishing funded through author charges) is dependent on authors having access to financial support at the time their research papers are accepted. We conducted an author survey to determine the availability of external funding for publication charges at different points in the research process. Of the 377/524 (72%) who responded, 62% (233/377) received external funding to support their study, but with notable differences between journals. Only 25% (95/377) could withdraw funds from a grant at the time of paper acceptance. The grant was closed at this time for almost half (105/233.45%) of those who were externally funded. Non-externally funded research was largely supported through departmental resources (56%, 80/144) or carrying out research in own time (63%, 91/144). To conclude, a large proportion of published research is not externally funded, and many funded researchers do not have access to financial support at the time their paper is accepted for publication. INSET: Box 1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The White Paper on Chinese population policy, entitled "Family Planning in China," was issued by the Chinese Information Office of the State Council on August 23, 1995. The population problem is an important question that touches upon the survival and development of the Chinese nation, the success or failure of China's modernization drive as well as the coordinated and sustained development between the population on one hand and the economy, society, resources and environment on the other. It is a natural choice that the Chinese government has made to implement family planning, control population growth and improve the life quality of the population a basic state policy on the basis of a wish to make the state strong and powerful, the nation prosperous and the people happy. In the 1960s, the country's population entered its second peak birth period. From 1962 to 1972, the annual number of births in China averaged 26.69 million, totaling 300 million. In the practice of carrying out family planning programme, whilst persistently proceeding from its reality and taking into full account and observing principles and regulations concerning population and family planning formulated by international institutions and organizations, the Chinese government has gradually set up guiding principles, policies, measures and methods that reflect the basic interests and various rights and interests of the people and has continuously improved these as the actual situations change, so as to better safeguard the right to subsistence and development of the Chinese region.

Produced through pyrolysis, biochars are used as a soil amendment. Differences in feedstock and processing result in differentiated products which impact their values in different soil conditions. Despite the enormous potential, biochars have not been widely used. This paper overviews the benefits and potential demand for biochar and features of supply chain, and identifies opportunities for viable introduction of biochars. The value of biochars should be evaluated as a part of the pyrolysis system that coproduces biochars and biofuels. Biochars can improve agricultural productivity and soil functioning and contribute to climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration. Furthermore, it can provide extra benefit by contributing to fire prevention. The cost of biochar system depends on the costs of feedstock acquisition, transportation, and processing. Biochar is most likely to be adopted in locations with marginal land and high‐value crop, and near low‐cost feedstock sources. The adoption of biochar can be enhanced by compensation for carbon sequestration, further investment in research, and learning of producers to enhance efficiency of the supply chain. Biochar is a charcoal that has been used to improve soil quality. It is obtained through heating organic materials such as crop and forest residues without oxygen. Diverse types of biochar can be coproduced with biofuels. The paper reviews the benefits and potential demand of biochar, and features of the supply chain that would be used to produce and market it. Biochar can improve agricultural productivity and mitigate climate change. Current adoption is low but will be improved with compensation for carbon sequestration, placing processing facilities closer to the biomass sources, and investment in research to reduce cost of production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents an excerpt from the second volume of the book "Collected Economic Papers."

In the summer of 1861, the United States embarked on its first widespread use of paper money: the Demand Notes of 1861. Although their convertibility into gold ended at the end of that year, they remained acceptable for tariff payment at a par with gold coin while they were gradually replaced with paper money that did not share this provision, the Greenbacks. We present daily observations of exchange rates between the Notes, Greenbacks, and gold for the extended period during which they simultaneously circulated. These exchange rates substantiate our revisionist notion that the Notes were replaced because the tariff provision prevented them from generating sufficient seigniorage for wartime needs. ( JEL E42, N12, N22) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the impact of studies published in "Papers in Regional Science" on regional science. According to the author, the impact factor increased to 1.265 for 2008 which reflects that articles in the journal were being used in science. The author also talked about the special issue of the journal, which includes reports about economic systems, land use and economic geography.

This paper analyses the relationship between community attributes and the subway home-price capitalization effect, asking whether the magnitude of the subway proximity premium is affected by neighbourhood economic status and location. Using longitudinal data from Beijing, the paper estimates that decreasing a community's distance to a subway station by 10 per cent increases the housing price per square metre by 0.2 per cent ~ 0.9 per cent. The paper also shows that, subway capitalization effect is around 0.1 per cent ~ 0.2 per cent lower for communities that have higher quality and charge a 1 Yuan higher property management fee. Moreover, the analysis also reveals that the subway capitalization will decrease by around 0.08 per cent as a community's distance to the central business district (CBD) increases by 1 km. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hemp has emerged as a novel crop and ingredient for sustainable products. If innovative hemp‐based products are to succeed in the market, the surge of interest in production must be accompanied by information generation across the supply chain. At present, there is little knowledge on consumer behavior toward hemp and hemp‐based products, and even less on how this behavior has changed since hemp's reintroduction to the production landscape of the United States in 2014. This study compares representative survey data of Vermont residents in 2019 and 2020 on their support for hemp production, and awareness and use of hemp‐based products. Although the influence of demographic variables did not significantly change over time, our findings reveal structural change, with more respondents aware of and using hemp‐based products in 2020 compared to 2019. These findings point to hemp's growing presence and acceptance in the marketplace, where consumers are more informed about or have greater access to hemp products. Despite the state's focus on cannabidiol production, Vermonters appear to be aware of and are purchasing a variety of hemp goods, such as clothing and paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policy Points:In Singapore, long‐term services and supports (LTSS) are financed through a mix of public and private sources comprising tiered means‐tested public subsidies and government grants to care providers, charitable donations, voluntary long‐term care insurance, and other private resources.Singapore's high take‐up rate of voluntary long‐term care insurance is explained by plans offering partial coverage, medical underwriting, early automatic enrollment, direct debit of insurance premiums, and defined cash benefits.Singapore's experience in long‐term care financing is relevant to the US debate, as it provides policy ideas that may be transferable to the American context.We recommend maximizing the population's total contribution to voluntary long‐term care insurance by striking the right balance between coverage adequacy and take‐up rate while targeting subsidies to low‐income individuals. Context: Financing long‐term services and supports (LTSS) for the elderly is a pressing issue in the United States with reforms of long‐term care insurance (LTCI) presently being explored. Singapore, with 65% of residents aged 40 to 83 covered by basic LTCI, including 22% with supplementary LTCI plans, has the highest voluntary LTCI rate in the world. This article contributes to the discourse by presenting the case of LTSS financing in Singapore. Methods: We first reviewed Singapore's LTSS policies through a comprehensive search of academic papers, governmental reports, parliamentary debate transcripts, print media, and official websites of LTSS providers. We then estimated the LTSS financing mix, conducted an in‐depth analysis of the main policies, and illustrated the financial protection they procure for the elderly using realistic hypothetical scenarios. Findings: The main principles governing Singapore's LTSS policies are shared responsibility for long‐term care financing, targeted assistance for the poor, centralized governance and administration, separation from other income and housing policies, and limited intergenerational cross‐subsidizing. We estimate the financing mix to consist of out‐of‐pocket spending (40%), government spending (42%), long‐term care insurance (9%), and charitable donations (9%). Assuming a monthly LTSS bill of US$1,545 to US$2,575, between 11% and 19% of LTSS expense is offset by LTCI for severely disabled individuals with basic coverage. Overall, 63% of care recipients are eligible for public subsidies that amount to 20% to 80% of their expenses. Conclusions: The high take‐up of voluntary LTCI in Singapore is explained by the high prevalence of plans offering partial coverage, medical underwriting, early automatic enrollment, direct debit of insurance premiums, and defined cash benefits. We recommend setting the coverage of voluntary long‐term care insurance plans at levels that maximize the population's total contribution by striking the right balance between coverage adequacy and take‐up rate while targeting subsidies to low‐income individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policy Points: Historically, reforms that have increased the duration of job‐protected paid parental leave have improved women's economic outcomes. By targeting the period around childbirth, access to paid parental leave also appears to reduce rates of infant mortality, with breastfeeding representing one potential mechanism. The provision of more generous paid leave entitlements in countries that offer unpaid or short durations of paid leave could help families strike a balance between the competing demands of earning income and attending to personal and family well‐being. Context: Policies legislating paid leave from work for new parents, and to attend to individual and family illness, are common across Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) countries. However, there exists no comprehensive review of their potential impacts on economic, social, and health outcomes. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of the peer‐reviewed literature on paid leave and socioeconomic and health outcomes. We reviewed 5,538 abstracts and selected 85 published papers on the impact of parental leave policies, 22 papers on the impact of medical leave policies, and 2 papers that evaluated both types of policies. We synthesized the main findings through a narrative description; a meta‐analysis was precluded by heterogeneity in policy attributes, policy changes, outcomes, and study designs. Findings: We were able to draw several conclusions about the impact of parental leave policies. First, extensions in the duration of paid parental leave to between 6 and 12 months were accompanied by attendant increases in leave‐taking and longer durations of leave. Second, there was little evidence that extending the duration of paid leave had negative employment or economic consequences. Third, unpaid leave does not appear to confer the same benefits as paid leave. Fourth, from a population health perspective, increases in paid parental leave were consistently associated with better infant and child health, particularly in terms of lower mortality rates. Fifth, paid paternal leave policies of adequate length and generosity have induced fathers to take additional time off from work following the birth of a child. How medical leave policies for personal or family illness influence health has not been widely studied. Conclusions: There is substantial quasi‐experimental evidence to support expansions in the duration of job‐protected paid parental leave as an instrument for supporting women's labor force participation, safeguarding women's incomes and earnings, and improving child survival. This has implications, in particular, for countries that offer shorter durations of job‐protected paid leave or lack a national paid leave entitlement altogether. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the effect of politics on water prices in Austria. When public utilities are under political control, price setting may be affected by political incentives. Besides theories like the political budget cycle, more current research stresses the role of spatial interactions between jurisdictions (yardstick competition). The paper tests for both local political determinants and yardstick competition using a spatial lag model. The results suggest that water prices are lower when political competition is strong and before elections. At the same time the magnitude of the political budget cycle appears to depend upon neighbouring jurisdictions, thus confirming yardstick competition as an indirect determinant of water prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is the effect of an increase in the stock of human capital due to skilled immigration on the innovative performance of recipient economies? Combining firm-level micro-data with area-level labour force information, this paper investigates the impact of skilled international migration inflows on firms' product and process innovation in British local labour market areas. The paper supports the evidence in favour of a causal link between immigration and innovation. Results also show that the nature of the innovative process and the typology of innovative activities performed by local firms play a key role in the relation between immigration and innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Neighbourhood effects and the economies of housing consumption are, independently, thoroughly researched topics in the urban economics literature. Little has been said, however, about the effects of housing consumption restrictions on the dispersal of neighbourhood effects to different economic groups. At a time of rising public concern about economic inequality, properly understanding the link between housing market restrictions and neighbourhood effects across the income spectrum is of increasing importance. This paper proposes a model to better assess how labour productivity as influenced by neighbourhood effects changes with restrictions in housing consumption. The results of the model show that except in the case where no labour complementarity exists between the high and low‐skilled population segments, housing restrictions excluding the poor from the better‐off neighbourhoods will lead to welfare losses for both populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper analyses the role of the employers' education on the spread of temporary contracts. Taking advantage of a unique firm‐level dataset, we test whether the share of fixed term workforce in a firm is affected by the employer's level of education. Furthermore, we test whether knowledge spillovers arising from the agglomeration of university graduate employers affect the incidence of temporary employment in the firms located in the area. In both cases we find a negative effect. Interestingly, only small firms are influenced by the spillovers. The possible problems of endogeneity of the agglomeration variable are coped with an IV approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: ‘Community of common destiny’, a new concept in China's diplomacy, has been increasingly used by the Chinese government, especially President Xi Jinping, on international occasions. Given the paucity of academic research on the concept, this paper aims to fill the gap and examine three aspects: meaning, motives and implications. Building upon the author's long observation of China's foreign policy, the paper argues that this concept of ‘community of common destiny’ is vague in meaning and loosely used by China. While initially proposed by China to mend ties with neighbouring states in the context of escalating territorial disputes, the concept constitutes part of China's long‐term strategy to maintain a peaceful ‘period of strategic opportunity’ in the first two to three decades of the 21st century to further develop itself. However, the ambiguity of the concept poses a main challenge for China to promote the acceptance of this concept by the developing world, let alone developed countries. This process demands more transparency, commitment and concrete actions from China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis of the impact assessment of social programs allows to identify whether they fulfil the established objectives and evidencing the weaknesses to be strengthened in future actions, and modify or propose new intervention strategies. In Peru, the substantial economic progress since the 90s decade promoted dramatical investments in the social sector, especially on children well-being, as around 30% of the total Peru population are children under the age of 15, being the age group most affected by poverty in the country. This review was aimed to present an overview of the current situation of social programs in Peru in terms of food (and nutritional) security ( FS), emphasizing on the institutional framework and the impact of the social programs implemented by the Government, as well as some social programs implemented by nongovernmental organizations. To this end, information available on the world wide web, including peer-reviewed papers on databases (mainly Sci ELO and Li LACs for their relevance for the Latin American region) regarding FS in Peru from 1989 onwards, and information published by the Peruvian official organisms directly involved in FS, was used. Studies addressing at least four of the seven points of the food and nutritional security in Peru analyzed in this paper (access, availability, consumption, biological use, stability, current situation, and institutionality) were considered. It was concluded that investment and resources should be used to improve social programs strategies designed according to the reality of each focused area, as in Peru, the achievements show an enormous potential for replicability of the interventions. Children must be prioritized through child-sensitive programs, instead of considering them just as indicators and investments for the future-especially in rural areas whipped by the past internal conflicts-in order to contribute to the sustainable development of the country and assuring FS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing upon township-level data on high-tech firms of Nanjing, China, this paper adopts a spatial econometric approach to examining the existence of spatial dependence and heterogeneity in the location processes of high-tech firms. The results show that some locational determinants of neighbouring townships exert significant impacts on the attractiveness of a certain township for high-tech firms. Besides, the marginal effects of some locational determinants are found to vary across space. In general, these results point to the need to account for both inter-territorial spillovers and cross-spatial variance in the investigation of factors that influence high-tech firm location. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the evolution of topics in economics and their geographical specialization by analyzing 13,233 papers from seven top journals between 1985 and 2012 and their forward citations. The share of U.S. publications declines from 75% to 64% with a corresponding increase of the European share from 12% to 24%. We use topic modeling and document the evolution of the discipline over 27 years. We estimate, with a quasi‐structural model, the citation lag distribution for 18 different topics and three large geographical areas. The modal citation lag is about 6.7 years in the entire sample and 4.8 years for citations from the top 100 journals. We quantify (1) the home bias effect in citations, (2) how it fades away over time, (3) the long lasting impact of U.S. publications vis‐à‐vis other geographical areas, and (4) the higher speed of diffusion and faster obsolescence in the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electric vehicle (EV) charging will bring new challenges to the coordination of grid and EV load. To facilitate largescale EV applications, optimal scheduling of EVs has become essential. However, the power grid has no power to force EV users to charge or give up charging. The actual type and mode of user's charging, may deviate from the expectations of grid. When the number of deviation's EV is sufficient, the power grid schedule will not achieve the expected results. In this context, a multi-objective scheduling method considering user's charging selection is proposed to determine the optimal EV charging. The novel contributions of this paper lie in the exploitation of the user's preferences and their criterion of charging selection in form of functions based on concepts from economics. Three types of charging preferences for EV users including radical, conservative and balanced are used to influence the charging cost of EVs and load variance of grid. Finally, the ideal scheduling and actual scheduling are used to simulate various scenarios. The extensive results show that by introducing a method considering the influence of EV user's selection, the efficacy of the proposed scheduling can be further improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research has shown that the presence of peers can increase individual output both in the lab and the field. This paper tests for negative side effects of such peer settings. We investigate whether peer settings are particularly prone to cheating even if they do not provide additional monetary benefits of cheating. Participants in our real‐effort experiment had the opportunity to cheat when declaring their output levels. Although cheating did not have different monetary consequences when working alone than when working in the presence of a peer, we find that cheating is a more severe problem in peer settings.(JEL J20, J30, M50) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first baby has successfully been born by uterus transplantation (UTx) in the United States and the procedure is swiftly becoming a viable clinical option for patients with uterine factor infertility (UFI). This raises a practical ethical question: should health insurers finance UTx and what issues should they consider in coming to this decision? The article lays forth some of the factors that shape the decision over whether to finance UTx in the United States, including what procedures must be covered, whether UTx is more like organ transplantation or infertility treatment (which are treated differently in the United States), and the benefits and alternatives of the procedure. Then, the article explores arguments around why UTx should be financed, or at least considered along with other important medical needs. The paper argues that UTx ought to be considered along with other competing claims for healthcare services. In countries that generously cover other infertility services, it may logically follow that medical services that enable gestation should be insured when the healthcare system covers services to conceive. In the United States, however, many groups have long suffered inadequate access to medical care, in the context of infertility and more broadly. U.S. healthcare may need to be made more widely equitable, before covering UTx is seen as financially or politically possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uterus transplants provide another treatment for infertility. Some might think that we should embrace such transplants as one more way to assist people to have children. However, in this paper I argue that uterus transplants are not something that we ought to fund, nor something that we should make easy to access. First, I argue that any justification of providing uterus transplants must be based on the value of the experience of gestation, rather than on claims of meeting medical need or promoting normal functioning. Second, I demonstrate that such a justification has limited prospects of success. The value of experiencing gestation is unlikely to be sufficient to justify state funding of uterus transplants and, further, we have reason to refrain from enabling such transplants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses whether regions benefit from their neighbours' transport facilities. We focus on ports and estimate a gravity model of trade that includes port facilities indicators as explanatory variables. The model is estimated by using exports from 19 Spanish regions to 45 countries from 2000 onwards. To test for the existence of regional spillovers, we construct a weight matrix that takes into account the relative importance of the neighbouring ports, as well as the quality of port infrastructure in destination countries. The findings suggest that regional spillovers play a larger role than port facilities themselves in the growth of Spanish exports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does the life cycle of economic papers differ across fields of economic research? By constructing and analyzing a large dataset that combines information on 9,672 articles published in the top five economic journals from 1970 to 2000 with detailed yearly citation data obtained from Google Scholar, we find that published articles do have a life cycle that differs across fields of economic research (which we divide into the categories of applied, applied theory, econometric methods, and theory). Applied and applied theory papers are the clear winners in terms of citation counts. For the first years after their publication, they receive higher numbers of citations per year than papers in other fields of research do. They also reach a higher peak number of citations per year and apparently sustain those peak levels for longer, in addition to being cited over longer periods of time (i.e., they have a longer lifespan). Citation patterns are much less favorable for theoretical papers, which are the object of fewer citations per annum in the first years following publication, have lower peak numbers and a shorter lifespan. Econometric method papers are a special case; the pattern for most of these papers is similar to the pattern for theory papers, but the most successful papers (as measured by the number of citations) on econometric methods are also the most successful papers in the entire discipline of economics. ( JEL A14) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines news media coverage of hydraulic fracturing in Canada over a five-year period in five newspapers. Hydraulic fracturing, or 'fracking,' has reenergized the North American oil and gas market. This technology has increased economic growth, but it also comes with unknown and uncertain environmental and public health risks. Regulation of the fracking industry varies globally. In Canada there are three provinces that engage in large volume fracking and four provinces that have placed a moratorium on fracking. This paper demonstrates that the Canadian fracking story is about five frames: water pollution, economic benefits, uncertain risks, moratoriums, and energy independence. There is a difference between coverage in the two national newspapers as well as a difference in national and provincial coverage. In Nova Scotia, where fracking is banned, the media focuses primarily on environmental issues and benefits to the local economy. In Saskatchewan, where fracking for oil is an essential part of the economy, the media focuses on economic benefits and downplays other frames. Overall, across the five papers, the media coverage is highly selective and focuses on particular stories about the economy or the environment, but not both. Quelle est la chronique de la fracturation hydraulique au Canada? Cet article fait état de la couverture médiatique liée à la fracturation hydraulique au Canada par cinq journaux sur une période de cinq ans. La fracturation hydraulique a revitalisé le marché nord-américain des hydrocarbures. Cette technologie favorise la croissance économique, mais comporte également des risques écologiques et sanitaires inconnus et incertains. La réglementation régissant l'industrie de la fracturation varie selon les pays. À l'échelle canadienne, trois provinces ont réalisé d'importantes opérations de fracturation et quatre provinces ont imposé un moratoire à la fracturation hydraulique. Cet article montre que le cadrage médiatique de la fracturation hydraulique repose sur cinq thématiques : la pollution hydrique, les retombées économiques, l'incertitude liée aux risques, les moratoires et la souveraineté énergétique. Le cadrage médiatique varie entre les deux journaux nationaux ainsi qu'entre les médias nationaux et provinciaux. En Nouvelle-Écosse, où la fracturation est interdite, les médias mettent l'accent sur les questions environnementales et les retombées pour l'économie locale. En Saskatchewan, où la fracturation pour extraire du pétrole joue un rôle économique primordial, les médias se concentrent sur les retombées économiques et minorent l'importance des autres thématiques. Dans l'ensemble, les cinq journaux appliquent un filtre sélectif dans le traitement du sujet et publient des reportages spécifiques portant sur l'économie ou sur l'environnement, mais pas les deux. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Korea, local governments are primarily responsible for providing water supply services to citizens. Since 2004, 15 local governments have contracted this service to the Korean Water Resources Corporation ( K- Water). This paper examines the effects of the two different institutional arrangements - direct public delivery versus contracting out to K- Water - on cost savings and productivity. To do so, it employs a hybrid cost function approach and uses the panel data covering the nine years from 2000 to 2008 in local governments. Empirical findings show mixed evidence on the effects of the two institutional arrangements on cost savings and productivity gains. Water supply costs are significantly lower under contracting out than under direct public delivery. However, there are no significant differences in productivity gains between the two institutional arrangements. Local water supply systems need to further reduce the average water supply costs through increasing their size and magnitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to provide basic stylized facts about the spatial patterns of location and co-location of clusters of creative industries in Europe. The research proposes a novel methodology for detailing the spatial delimitation of clusters, based on a geo-statistical algorithm and firm-based micro-data. The procedure is applied to a continuous space of 16 European countries and 15 creative industries in 2009. The investigation reveals that creative firms are highly clustered, and that clusters are concentrated in a 'creative belt' stretching from the South of England to the South-east of Germany. These clusters are predominantly metropolitan, heterogeneous, cross borders, and may co-locate to form assemblages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The airline industry has a strong interest in developing sustainable aviation fuels, in order to reduce their exposure to increasing oil prices and cost liability for greenhouse gas emissions. The feasibility and cost of producing sustainable biomass-based jet fuels at a sufficient scale to materially address these issues is an enormous challenge. This paper builds directly on the biophysical study by H.T. Murphy, D.A. O'Connell, R.J. Raison, A.C. Warden, T.H. Booth, A. Herr, A.L. Braid, D.F. Crawford, J.A. Hayward, T. Javonovic, J.G. McIvor, M.H. O'Connor, M.L. Poole, D. Prestwidge, N. Raisbeck-Brown & L. Rye, In review, which examined a 25 year scale-up strategy to produce 5% of projected jet fuel demand in Australia in 2020 (470 mL) in the Fitzroy region of Queensland, Australia. The strategy was based on the use of a mixed ligno-cellulosic biomass feedstock and assumed, for the sake of exploring and quantifying the scenario, a simplified two-step conversion process - conversion of biomass to crude bio-oil within the region, and upgrade to jet fuel at a central Brisbane facility. This paper provides details on the costs of production in this scenario, focusing on two different strategies for biomass utilization, and two types of novel small-medium scale conversion technologies. The cost analyses have taken into account technology learning curves, different economies of scale and key cost sensitivities. The cost of biomass-based jet fuels is estimated to be between 0.70 and 1.90 $ L−1 when the efficiency of conversion of biomass to biocrude and subsequently to aviation fuel is varied by ±10% of published values, with an average value of 1.10 $ L−1. This is within the range of the projected 2035 conventional jet fuel price of 1.50 $ L−1. Therefore, biomass-based jet fuel has the potential to contribute to supply of Australia's jet fuel needs in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper extends the seminal Blanchard and Katz regional labour market model to include interaction effects using a dynamic spatial panel data approach. Three key contributions of this extended model are: ( i) the unrealistic assumption that regions are independent of one another no longer has to be made, ( ii) the magnitude and significance of so-called spillover effects can be empirically assessed, and ( iii) both the temporal and spatial propagation of labour demand shocks can be investigated. Using annual data from 1986-2010 for 112 regions across eight EU countries, both the non-spatial and spatial models are estimated. It is found that the majority of the spillover effects are highly significant. Consistent with economic theory, the impact of a region-specific demand shock is largest in the region where the shock instigates. The shock also propagates to other regions, especially impacting the first and second-order neighbours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, ranching landscapes in the region of Calgary, Alberta have experienced intensifying land‐use pressures related to urban growth and development. At the same time, Alberta's land‐use policies have introduced voluntary, market‐based incentives to encourage the conservation and stewardship of private land. Given this new emphasis, this study aims to better understand different perspectives of ranching landscapes among residents and landowners in two rural municipalities surrounding Calgary. Drawing on cultural landscapes and political ecology literatures, this paper identifies four broad categories of ranching landscape values that participants felt were important to maintain: lifestyle and community values; ecological values; production values; and economic values and property rights. Participants’ diverse place meanings suggest a need to expand the ways in which landscapes are understood and assessed within local contexts, as a strategy for promoting private land stewardship and for resolving tensions in land‐use planning processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper summarizes the land‐use impacts and land requirements of utility‐scale photovoltaic (U‐PV) systems in the Canadian province of Ontario. The empirical research is based on an analysis of approximately 95 projects representing over 1000 MW of U‐PV systems province‐wide. Findings from this empirical assessment are combined with information about future technological advances in order to develop a modelling framework that can forecast land requirements of U‐PV systems within evolving market and technology contexts. Specifically, the model is used to estimate the land requirements of U‐PV systems in a hypothetical future in which U‐PV systems supply all mid‐day electricity needs in Ontario, including added demands from a completely electrified light‐duty vehicle fleet. Under this scenario, on an installed capacity basis and assuming that 20% of mid‐day electricity demand is met with rooftop PV, an area equivalent to 0.5% to 8.5% of Ontario's agricultural land would be required, depending on panel efficiencies and system packing factors. These land requirements are manageable, particularly as more land‐efficient technologies are deployed and as regulations are designed to mitigate the land‐use impacts of U‐PV systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landscape composition is consequential to ecological functions, and in agricultural regions a simple descriptor of composition is whether the growing habit of vegetation is annual or perennial. Annual vegetation includes most of the crop species grown in central North America (e.g., corn, soybeans, cereal grains, canola), and perennial vegetation includes hay and forage crops (e.g., alfalfa) and most non‐crop land covers (e.g., woodlands, grasslands, wetlands). Recent data show that in farmlands perennial cover is converting to annual cover. Using new remotely sensed annual crop layer spatial data for an intensively farmed region (1,700 km2) of the Lake Huron watershed in Southern Ontario, Canada, this paper describes changes in farmland composition and which transitions are occurring, with suggestions for why the changes are occurring. Perennial cover has rapidly been converted to annual cover in the past five years, with working‐lands perennial cover types identified as the most vulnerable to conversion. Other land cover types are relatively static. Implications for agricultural land conservation and stewardship require attention to this rapid change for conservation of soil, water, and biodiversity in the Great Lakes basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To examine: (1) what elements of patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs) are typically provided to low-income populations, (2) whether PCMHs improve health behaviors, experiences, and outcomes for low-income groups.Data Sources/study Setting: Existing literature on PCMH utilization among health care organizations serving low-income populations.Study Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis.Data Collection/extraction Methods: We obtained papers through existing systematic and literature reviews and via PubMed, Web of Science, and the TRIP databases, which examined PCMHs serving low-income populations. A total of 434 studies were reviewed. Thirty-three articles met eligibility criteria.Principal Findings: Patient-centered medical home interventions usually were composed of five of the six recommended components. Overall positive effect of PCMH interventions was d = 0.247 (range -0.965 to 1.42). PCMH patients had better clinical outcomes (d = 0.395), higher adherence (0.392), and lower utilization of emergency rooms (d = -0.248), but there were apparent limitations in study quality.Conclusions: Evidence shows that the PCMH model can increase health outcomes among low-income populations. However, limitations to quality include no assessment for confounding variables. Implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Under the government of President Joko Widodo, Indonesia's state‐owned enterprises (SOEs) have become the driver of the national development strategy. The current administration is actively using SOEs to conduct development projects based on the belief that SOEs are able to fix market failures and support the fiscally constrained government. In order to strengthen the role of SOEs, the Indonesian government is pursuing a medium‐term plan of creating sector‐based holding companies. The government expects that these state‐owned holding companies (SOHCs) will enable SOEs to expand investment and benefit from synergies. However, considering political hurdles in implementing this policy, the process of establishing SOHCs is expected to advance gradually. The government also continues to face challenges clarifying and communicating the rationale behind creating SOHCs. This paper examines the current political economic context of SOE ownership reorganisation in Indonesia and diverse views on the expected consequences of forming SOHCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Effective altruists aim to do the most good that they can do with the resources available to them, without causing themselves or their dependents significant harm thereby. The argument presented in this paper demonstrates that there are no morally relevant dissimilarities between living kidney donation and living kidney selling for effective altruistic reasons. Thus, since the former is allowed, the latter ought to be allowed as well. And, there are important moral differences between living kidney selling for effective altruistic reasons and other reasons for kidney vending (e.g., for personal financial gain), such that standard objections against markets in human kidneys do not attach to those markets designed around principles of effective altruism. The reasonable conclusion to draw from this is that eligible effective altruist kidney donors ought to be allowed to sell (one of) their kidneys to others in need, if they so desire. Because of this, law and policy ought to be changed to allow for this exceptional case: current laws that ban kidney selling for everyone, irrespective of their reason for selling, are unjustified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Realistic planning for a nutrition intervention is a critical component of implementation, yet effective approaches have been poorly documented. Under the auspices of 'The Micronutrient Powders Consultation: Lessons Learned for Operational Guidance,' 3 working groups were formed to summarize experiences and lessons across countries regarding micronutrient powders (MNP) interventions for young children. This paper focuses on programmatic experiences in the planning stages of an MNP intervention, encompassing assessment, enabling environment and adaptation, as well as considerations for supply. Methods included a review of published and grey literature, key informant interviews, and deliberations throughout the consultation process. We found that assessments helped justify adopting an MNP intervention, but these assessments were often limited by their narrow scope and inadequate data. Establishing coordinating bodies and integrating MNP into existing policies and programmes have helped foster an enabling environment and support programme stability. Formative research and pilots have been used to adapt MNP interventions to specific contexts, but they have been insufficient to inform scale-up. In terms of supply, most countries have opted to procure MNP through international suppliers, but this still requires understanding and navigating the local regulatory environment at the earliest stages of an intervention. Overall, these findings indicate that although some key planning and supply activities are generally undertaken, improvements are needed to plan for effective scale-up. Much still needs to be learned on MNP planning, and we propose a set of research questions that require further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An effective delivery strategy coupled with relevant social and behaviour change communication (SBCC) have been identified as central to the implementation of micronutrient powders (MNP) interventions, but there has been limited documentation of what works. Under the auspices of 'The Micronutrient Powders Consultation: Lessons Learned for Operational Guidance,' three working groups were formed to summarize experiences and lessons across countries regarding MNP interventions for young children. This paper focuses on programmatic experiences related to MNP delivery (models, platforms, and channels), SBCC, and training. Methods included a review of published and grey literature, interviews with key informants, and deliberations throughout the consultation process. We found that most countries distributed MNP free of charge via the health sector, although distribution through other platforms and using subsidized fee for product or mixed payment models have also been used. Community-based distribution channels have generally shown higher coverage and when part of an infant and young child feeding approach, may provide additional benefit given their complementarity. SBCC for MNP has worked best when focused on meeting the MNP behavioural objectives (appropriate use, intake adherence, and related infant and young child feeding behaviours). Programmers have learned that reincorporating SBCC and training throughout the intervention life cycle has allowed for much needed adaptations. Diverse experiences delivering MNP exist, and although no one-size-fits-all approach emerged, well-established delivery platforms, community involvement, and SBCC-centred designs tended to have more success. Much still needs to be learned on MNP delivery, and we propose a set of implementation research questions that require further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The labor force in Japan is projected to fall from 64 million in 2014 to 20 million in 2100, signaling unprecedented tax/transfer adjustments to achieve fiscal sustainability. In this paper, we develop a quantitative overlapping generations model to measure the impact of guest worker programs in Japan. Against a baseline general equilibrium transition in which the consumption tax adjusts to achieve fiscal sustainability, we compute alternative transitions with guest worker programs. Depending on the size and skill distribution of guest workers, these programs may mitigate Japan's fiscal imbalance problem with a relatively manageable increase in the consumption tax. ( JEL E2, E6, H5, J11, J15) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As global climate changes and the world population increases, agriculture faces an enormous challenge to increase food production in an equitable and sustainable manner. Principles and concepts derived directly from plant ecological research can help meet this challenge., This series of 10 mini-reviews considers some of the key ways that plant ecologists can help inform and contribute to meeting this challenge., The papers are grouped into three main themes of plant ecology, namely plant community diversity and structure, plant population dynamics and plant interactions, and plant-soil (below-ground) interactions., Synthesis. We identify a number of important knowledge gaps in areas where plant ecological research can contribute towards improving yield, nutrition, ecosystem services and environmental resilience of agricultural systems. However, the adoption of plant ecological principles in sustainable agriculture will require practical approaches to their implementation along with improved understanding of social and economic barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper empirically examines the impact of competition in the television (TV) industry on the number of movie theaters, their attendance, and their box office revenues. Studies of firm entry usually focus on the impact of regulation on economic outcomes within an industry, thereby neglecting its impact on neighboring industries. Using changes in regulation in the Spanish local TV station industry, we estimate the impact of TV entry on the movie theater industry between 1993 and 2005. Our findings show that local TV entry decreased the number of theaters and screens in a province, as well as movie attendance and box office revenues. ( JEL L11, L43, L82) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Summer Olympics bring hundreds of thousands of visitors and generate upward of $10 billion in spending for the host city. This large influx of tourism dollars is only part of the overall impact of hosting the Olympic Games. In order to host the visitors and sporting events, cities must make sizable investments in infrastructure such as airports, arenas, and highways. Additionally, the publicity and international exposure of a host city may benefit international trade and capital flows. Proponents argue that this investment will pay off through increased economic growth, but research confirming these claims is lacking. This paper examines whether hosting an Olympiad improves a city's long-term growth. In order to control for the self-selection of cities that host Olympic Games, this paper matches Olympic host cities with cities that were finalists for the Olympic Games, but were not selected by the International Olympic Committee. A difference-in-difference estimator examines post-Olympic impacts for host cities between 1950 and 2005. Regression results provide no long-term impacts of hosting an Olympics on two measures of population, real Gross Domestic Product per capita and trade openness. ( JEL O18, R11) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To describe the litigation experience in a state with strict tort reform of a large public university health system that has committed to transparency with patients and families in resolving medical errors.Data Sources/study Setting: Secondary data collected from The University of Texas System, which self-insures approximately 6,000 physicians at six health campuses across the state. We obtained internal case management data for all medical malpractice claims closed during 1 year before and 6 recent years following the enactment of state tort reform legislation.Study Design: We retrospectively reviewed information about malpractice claimants, malpractice claims, and the process and outcome of dispute resolution.Data Collection/extraction Methods: We accessed an internal case management database, supplemented by both electronic and paper records compiled by the university's Office of General Counsel.Principal Findings: Closed claims dropped from 244 in 2001-2002 to an annual mean of 96 in 2009-2015, closures following lawsuits from 136 in 2001-2002 to an annual mean of 28 in 2009-2015, and paid claims from 60 in 2001 to an annual mean of 20 in 2009-2015. Patterns of resolution suggest efforts by the university to provide some compensation to injured patients in cases that were no longer economically viable for plaintiffs' lawyers to litigate. The percentage of payments relating to cases in which lawsuits had been filed decreased from 82 percent in 2001-2002 to 47 percent in 2009-2012 and again to 29 percent in 2012-2015, although most paid claimants were represented by attorneys. Unrepresented patients received payment in 13 cases closed in 2009-2012 (22 percent of payments; mean amount $60,566) and in 24 cases closed in 2012-2015 (41 percent of payments; mean amount $109,410). Even after tort reform, however, claims that resulted in payment remained slow to resolve, which was worsened for claimants subject to Medicare secondary payer rules. Strict confidentiality became a more common condition of settlement, although restrictions were subsequently relaxed in order to further transparency and improve patient safety.Conclusions: Malpractice litigation risk diminished substantially for a public university health system in Texas following legal changes that reduced rights to sue and available damages. Health systems operating in a low-tort environment should work with policy makers, plaintiffs' attorneys, and patient groups to assist unrepresented patients, facilitate early mediation, limit nondisclosure obligations following settlement, and expedite the resolution of Medicare liens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To synthesise evidence on the implementation, costs and cost-effectiveness of demand generation interventions and their effectiveness in improving uptake of modern contraception methods.Methods: A Cochrane systematic review was conducted. Searches were performed in electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE) and the grey literature. Randomised controlled trials, cluster randomised trials and quasi-experimental studies, including controlled before-after studies (CBAs) and cost and cost-effectiveness studies that aimed to assess demand interventions (including community- and facility-based interventions, financial mechanisms and mass media campaigns) in low- and middle-income countries were considered. Meta-analyses and narrative synthesis were conducted.Results: In total, 20 papers meeting the inclusion criteria were included in this review. Of those, 13 were used for meta-analysis. Few data were available on implementation and on the influence of context on demand interventions. Involving family members during counselling, providing education activities and increasing exposure to those activities could enhance the success of demand interventions. Demand generation interventions were positively associated with increases in current use (pooled OR 1.57; 95% CI: 1.46-1.69, P < 0.01). Financial mechanism interventions (vouchers) appeared effective to increase use of modern contraceptive methods (pooled OR 2.16; 95% CI: 1.91-2.45, P < 0.01; I2 = 0%). Demand interventions improved knowledge (pooled OR 1.02; 95% CI 0.63-1.64, P = 0.93) and attitudes towards family planning and improved discussion with partners/husbands around modern contraceptive methods. However, given the limited number of studies included in each category of demand generation interventions, the dates of publication of the studies and their low quality, caution is advised in considering the results. Very limited evidence was available on costs; studies including data on costs were old and inconsistent.Conclusion: Demand generation interventions contribute to increases in modern contraceptive methods use. However, more studies with robust designs are needed to identify the most effective demand generation intervention to increase uptake of modern contraceptive methods. More evidence is also needed about implementation, costs and cost-effectiveness to inform decisions on sustainability and scaling-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior research has suggested that providing free and discounted access to the scientific literature to researchers in low-income countries increases article production and citation. Using traditional bibliometric indicators for institutions in sub-Saharan Africa, we analyze whether institutional access to TEEAL (a digital collection of journal articles in agriculture and allied subjects) increases: (i) article production; (ii) reference length; and (iii) number of citations to journals included in the TEEAL collection. Our analysis is based on nearly 20,000 articles - containing half a million references - published between 1988 and 2009 at 70 institutions in 11 African countries. We report that access to TEEAL does not appear to result in higher article production, although it does lead to longer reference lists (an additional 2.6 references per paper) and a greater frequency of citations to TEEAL journals (an additional 0.4 references per paper), compared to non-subscribing institutions. We discuss how traditional bibliometric indicators may not provide a full picture of the effectiveness of free and discounted literature programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to learn more about sectoral differences of knowledge networking in a regional development context, we apply the knowledge base concept, distinguishing the analytical (science based) and synthetic (engineering based) knowledge base. We aim at comparing knowledge networking with the help of network analyses in two knowledge bases in Germany: the analytical knowledge base with the help of the biotechnology industry in the Aachen Technology Region and the synthetic knowledge base with the help of the automotive industry in Southwest Saxony. The paper concludes that there are some main differences found in the characteristics of knowledge networking between the two different knowledge bases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to test the way in which geographical proximity and technological relatedness relate to an industry's innovative output. Two mechanisms are therefore tested, namely, urbanization economies and the regional exploitation of technological relatedness. A new dataset is applied, which includes German patent applications from within the period 1995 to 2006. Four industries are considered, two of which are science-based, whereas the remaining two are specialized supplier industries. While diversity is associated with high innovative output in the specialized supplier industries, the same does not hold for science-based industries. However, both kinds of industries seem to benefit from recombinant innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at explaining whether R&D subsidies, the engagement in collaboration networks and the location influence the patent activities of biotech firms in Germany! We demonstrate that R&D subsidies focusing on single firms do not increase patent intensity, while subsidies which are granted to joint R&D projects do so to a certain extent. The number of knowledge links firms have is not influencing performance, but the type of network partners has an effect. We found strong evidence that some but not too much cognitive distance between collaboration partners and being located in a cluster have a positive effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Entry into an industry often clusters in regions where the industry is already concentrated, which is suggestive of agglomeration economies. In science-based industries research activities may exert another attracting force on entrants. Empirically these proximity effects are confounded by other influences on where entrants originate and locate. The paper begins to disentangle the effects of agglomeration, public research, and the supply of capable entrants in the German laser industry. The findings indicate that the industry's geography was primarily shaped by the local availability of potential entrants and by urbanization, but not localization economies. The impact of public research increased over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]