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Economic values have dominated water policy discourse over the last four decades. Very little has been written on social, cultural, and ecological values and their roles in enhancing water security. The primary objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive analysis of diverse water values with a case study of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, India. To achieve this, a review of the existing scholarship on water values was conducted to develop a set of water values. Field surveys and interviews were conducted to comprehend the water values held by various stakeholders in Delhi. This paper is an attempt to show that viewing water security through the lens of diverse water values (social, cultural, economic and ecological) provides a better understanding of water policies, and enhanced comprehension could potentially result in better policies to promote water security. In the case of Delhi, we additionally found that the claimed predominance of water values such as efficiency, equity, equality, religiosity, and purity does not mean that these values are also actualized in water practices. Another major finding is that all four sets of values are integrated with one another, and policies underpinned by the identified values would be relatively better than policies solely based on economic values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of economic values in public administration is becoming more evident which is consequently resulting in implementation of the so-called managerial style within the framework of higher education system. This style has certain benefits as well as drawbacks. In the first part of the paper the author, therefore, presents key reasons of the popularisation of economic values, along with their influence on the efficiency of performance of the entire higher education system. Considering the fact that modernisation of Croatian public administration relies on the implementation of the so-called ―3E‖ values, it is important to determine key effects of such implementation on the reform of public administration. Furthermore, the central part of the paper refers mainly to emphasising the necessity to reform the entire public administration sphere, as well as the necessity to implement both traditional and managerial values, which would adequately have a specific goal that the private sector, or better said, the values and techniques from the private sector be enforced in the public sector as well. These efforts are precisely what makes the public sector closer to the private one while trying to eliminate the differences between the two. In addition, some of the key changes in the system of higher education are mentioned in this part of the paper. The final part of the paper offers insight in ways that subjects in this particular system contribute to maintaining the primary goal, which is to adjust to European standards within the framework of higher education system. Also, this part of the paper presents conclusions on which the further growth and development of this particularly important part of public administration should be based. Being aware of the condition of the current Croatian public administration, it is becoming crucial that this complex area be researched and that the results of empirical research conducted so far be used for promoting readiness of higher education system to follow trends that are acceptable and applicable worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper firstly puts forward to employ investor attention obtained from Google trends to explain and forecast carbon futures return in the European Union-Emission Trading Scheme (EU-ETS). Our empirical results show that investor attention is a granger cause to changes in carbon return. Furthermore, investor attention generates both linear and non-linear effects on carbon return. The results demonstrate that investor attention shows excellent explanatory power on carbon return. Moreover, we conduct several out-of-sample forecasts to explore the predictive power of investor attention. The results indicate that incorporating investor attention indeed improve the accuracy of out-of-sample forecasts both in short and long horizons and can generate significant economic values. All results demonstrate that investor attention is a non-negligible pricing factor in carbon market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are diverse distributed Renewable Energy (RE) trading business models (BM) which enable consumer-prosumer/generator energy trading; however, their efficiency and effectiveness in creating a stable RE market with enhanced economic values are not properly investigated. This paper intends to investigate the impact of diverse distributed RE trading paradigms on creating a stable RE market with enhanced economic values for multiple stakeholders. A comprehensive literature review is carried out to identify different distributed RE trading BMs and the "business model canvas" is used to analyze their characteristics. The findings identified that the ICT-based peer-to-peer (P2P) distributed RE trading has more technical, economic, and social benefits in comparison to other BMs. With the use of ICT applications such as blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT) and smart distribution applications, P2P distributed RE trading provides a unique service environment consisting of preference-based trading, distributed market control, automated trading, and customer involvement in price determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The seventh wave of world values survey is being conducted around the world with the aim of exploring the attitudes and beliefs towards gender, family, education, health, security and social tolerance based on the values of Socio, Economic, Political, Ethical, happiness and wellbeing. The first release of 2017-2020 has been released in Nov-2020. This paper uses the survey data and empirically analyzes and explores the gender variance on the parameter of Economic Values variables s namely, income equality, private ownership and Government responsibility. The main purpose of the study is to explore and analyze whether any difference of opinion exists between male and female on the economic values variables. The total respondents of the survey are around 1,25,270 (N) who represent fifty countriesacross the world from an age group of eighteen pluswhere the WVS survey was conducted from 2017 to 2020. The primary data collected from the survey was empirically analyzed using SPSS by running the Independent Sample? T? Test to find the variance between the male and female groups. Also using Microsoft Excel the means of the groups were compared country wise. The study concludes that there is a significant variance exists between the genders on the Economic Values parameters and also country wise the variance is different. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic values have dominated water policy discourse over the last four decades. Very little has been written on social, cultural, and ecological values and their roles in enhancing water security. The primary objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive analysis of diverse water values with a case study of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, India. To achieve this, a review of the existing scholarship on water values was conducted to develop a set of water values. Field surveys and interviews were conducted to comprehend the water values held by various stakeholders in Delhi. This paper is an attempt to show that viewing water security through the lens of diverse water values (social, cultural, economic and ecological) provides a better understanding of water policies, and enhanced comprehension could potentially result in better policies to promote water security. In the case of Delhi, we additionally found that the claimed predominance of water values such as efficiency, equity, equality, religiosity, and purity does not mean that these values are also actualized in water practices. Another major finding is that all four sets of values are integrated with one another, and policies underpinned by the identified values would be relatively better than policies solely based on economic values.

The search for hypothetical optimal solutions of landscape composition is a major issue in landscape planning and it can be outlined in a two-dimensional decision space involving economic value and landscape diversity, the latter being considered as a potential safeguard to the provision of services and externalities not accounted in the economic value. In this paper, we use decision models with different utility valuations combined with weighted entropies respectively incorporating rarity factors associated to Gini-Simpson and Shannon measures. A small example of this framework is provided and discussed for landscape compositional scenarios in the region of Nisa, Portugal. The optimal solutions relative to the different cases considered are assessed in the two-dimensional decision space using a benchmark indicator. The results indicate that the likely best combination is achieved by the solution using Shannon weighted entropy and a square root utility function, corresponding to a risk-averse behavior associated to the precautionary principle linked to safeguarding landscape diversity, anchoring for ecosystem services provision and other externalities. Further developments are suggested, mainly those relative to the hypothesis that the decision models here outlined could be used to revisit the stability-complexity debate in the field of ecological studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change and human activities are affecting the ecological health of rivers and the economic value of its ecosystem services. Taking water quantity as the intermediate variable, we proposed a quantitative calculation method for the impact of climate change and human activities on the economic value produced by the ecosystem service functions of rivers. The framework mainly consists of three steps: firstly, we quantitatively determined the changes in the amount of water coming from rivers due to climate change and human activities; secondly, combining the theory of resource and environmental economics to calculate the economic value generated by ecological service functions of rivers; finally, we quantitatively identified and analyzed the impact of climate change and human activities on the economic value produced by the ecosystem service functions of rivers. Taking Baoji section of Weihe River (BSWR) as an example, we quantitatively analyzed and calculated the impact of climate change and human activities on the economic value produced by ecosystem service functions of rivers. The main conclusions of this paper are as follows: in recent 52 years, the economic value produced by the ecosystem service functions of rivers decreased by 3.57 billion yuan due to the climate change and human activities; the total economic value has been reduced by an average of 68 million yuan per year. This useful work can not only reveal the impact of climate change and human activities on the economic value of ecosystem services of rivers but also can provide an important basis for the reasonable management model of water resource of ecosystem of rivers watershed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper calculates the economic value of coastal zones as nutrient filters by using the replacement cost method, which implies that the value is calculated as the savings in costs from reaching politically determined future nutrient target. It is shown that the magnitude of this value depends on the cost of other abatement measures besides nutrient filters of coastal zones, the stringency and timing of the nutrient target, discount rate, and spatial and temporal dispersions of cleaning impacts. The application to the Baltic Sea indicates that the value can amount to approximately 600 billions of SEK (1 Euro = 9.01 SEK, June 3, 2012), which corresponds to 1.9 % of the Baltic Sea region's total gross domestic product. The largest gains are obtained by Poland because this country faces the largest financial burdens of meeting targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Magdalena-Cauca basin, which covers 24% of the Colombian continental territory and is inhabited by about 80% of the Colombian population, expresses the greatest ecosystem loss and serious socio-environmental problems. This basin occupies an area of approx. 27 million hectares. The literature about the economic valuation of ecosystem services (ES) and the spatial information on natural resources in the Magdalena-Cauca basin was revised through several information sources to document the earliest approximation to the state, spatial distribution, and economic value of the remnant natural capital at the scale of biomes, specific ecosystems, and political-administrative units, through the application of the benefit transfer method for 2020. Our assessment estimated a natural capital loss of 1.5 trillion Int.$2020/year (more than 100% of Colombian GDP in 2020) and a remnant natural capital worth 469 billion Int.$2020/year (more than 100% of Colombia's GDP in 2020) for 15 ecosystem services. This research establishes that a potential expansion in livestock production systems will generate an additional loss of natural capital between 175 and 450 billion Int.$2020/year. Lastly, the policy and management challenges concerning this remnant natural capital in the Magdalena-Cauca basin are pointed out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Absolute decoupling of GDP growth from resource use implies that economic output can be increased without simultaneously increasing input. The essential meaning of this proposition is that the economic values that represent the GDP can be realized by increasing resource efficiency. Given that the GDP is first and foremost a measure of economic activity rather than welfare the possibility of absolute decoupling is theoretically limited. This paper demonstrates theoretically and empirically that economic values at the macroeconomic level are fundamentally determined by the use of production factors, primarily labor and physical capital. Technical innovations or efficiency gains increasing utility without raising the costs of production do not add to the GDP unless they stimulate investments in physical capital. Hence the neoclassical notion of productivity is only found to be relevant as a microeconomic concept. In practice, GDP growth is mostly explained by capital accumulation and a key question is whether or not capital accumulation can be decoupled from the use of materials and energy. This will determine the possibility of decoupling of GDP growth from resource use and environmental impact. Alternative measures of progress focusing on welfare rather than economic activity are more likely to achieve absolute decoupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research takes women's invisible work or hidden work into consideration and tries to analyze its economic value. Present research conducted in the Gujrat district of Punjab Pakistan. A triangulation method used to collect data from 286 female respondents was selected through the purposive sampling technique for this study. The economic value is analyzed by using the third person method. The results showed that women perform unpaid household tasks for seven hours a day. The economic value of that work is Rs 539 in a day. A woman performs a lot of household chores that are supposed to be her responsibility. She is making an effort to provide a peaceful and comfortable environment to make her home worth living. The present study suggested a convention on women workers and should develop a national policy to recognize the unpaid work of women and should adopt appropriate legislation and provide safety nets for them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Short‐term electricity prices are key economic input to model the optimal operation of grid‐connected microgrids. In competitive electricity markets, these prices are not known in advance, and need to be forecasted. Price forecasts, however, have uncertainty, and thus, their errors will impact economic gains. Three main approaches have been employed in the literature to mitigate the uncertainties associated with price forecasts, i.e. rolling horizon optimisation techniques, interval optimisation and scenario‐based methods. In this study, we investigate the economic values of using these approaches, as well as the combination of them, in the operation of microgrids. This is to inform microgrid operators on how to determine which approach should be adopted under different circumstances. Therefore, we first implement point, interval and scenario forecasting models for electricity market prices. The generated forecasts are then fed into a deterministic, robust and stochastic optimisation models for operation scheduling of a typical microgrid. The changes in total energy costs of the microgrid are then evaluated. The simulation results show that while the performance of different methods depends on the volatility of market prices, the model with point price forecasts and a rolling horizon operation scheduling either outperforms other methods or does equally well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study investigates the integration of natural economic values into territorial community development, focusing on the context of national parks. The purpose of the research is to examine how the preservation of natural economic values contributes to sustainable development while maintaining conservation goals. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology involves a combination of case studies, and economic valuation techniques to analyse the economic impact of national parks on local economies. The analysis was based on the official data of Statista published in 2010-2023, constituting a list of scientific publications. In the work on the assessment and valuation of the economic values of national parks, the authors used potential research methods that can also be used to study the integration of natural economic values with the development of territorial communities and the protection of national parks. Combining multiple methods provided a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of the complex interactions between economic development and conservation in territorial community development. Findings: Findings reveal that the integration of natural economic values, such as ecotourism and sustainable resource use, enhances economic growth, job creation, and community wellbeing. Research limitations/implications: The implications of this study underscore the importance of stakeholder engagement and adaptive management for effective integration. Practical implications suggest the need for policy coordination, capacity building, and innovative incentive mechanisms to foster harmonious coexistence between economic development and conservation in national parks. Originality/value: The value of the article is in the analysis of economical values of national nature parks in the world. The presented study is a new concept for the interpretation territorial communities’ development on the basis of estimation of national park’s economical values, this might be a new direction in modern environmental policy. These results could be especially interesting for researchers whose studies are interdisciplinary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Integrated Coastal Zone Management / Revista de Gestão Costeira Integrada is the property of Associacao Portuguesa dos Recursos Hidricos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Development of economic and social values is regarded as a key factor in urban development and urban regeneration. With its history of urban renewal and regeneration since the 1970s, Rotterdam provides an example to assess the profound changes from a socialized mode of housing provision and urban renewal towards more market-oriented strategies. In this light, new forms of gentrification are becoming a regular strategy in former urban renewal areas, mainly dominated by social housing. The paper examines the development of economic and social values in areas of Rotterdam that have been transformed through the vast urban renewal and subsequent regeneration programs. Mostly these programs are area-based approaches that got priority in more European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review paper provides an overview of the role of breeding objectives in livestock industries. The analyst developing a breeding objective must use the many and varied tools available in an appropriate theoretical context to quantify the benefits of alternative trait changes. The development in tools for deriving economic values has been from simple profit equations to detailed bio-economic models simulating the whole production system or industry. The importance of including the perspective of the stakeholders is also stressed. Stakeholder perspectives can be considered by using stated preference methods such as choice experiments. Also desired gain index or selection indices can be used in combination with profit equations or bio-economic models to adjust for undesirable genetic changes in breeding objective traits. This review shows that defining appropriate breeding objectives to account for the perspectives of different key stakeholders requires a multi-disciplinary approach. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper examines the natural resource damages litigation that arose from the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill. The authors compare the outcomes of the federal trial with some evidence, now more than 20 years later, on the long-term impacts of the spill on marine resources and the use of these resources by coastal communities. Because commercial fishermen and Alaska natives were the two main plaintiff groups, this case provides an interesting side-by-side comparison of a market and a nonmarket sector that both utilize the same raw resource base – the fisheries of Prince William Sound and the Gulf of Alaska. The analysis here examines the valuation methodologies from the standpoint of economic theory, regulatory guidelines, the court's numerous decisions concerning what was admissible into evidence, and the respective outcomes – a jury decision and a settlement just prior to trial. The case may have some relevance for other circumpolar arctic or subarctic regions, such as the North Sea and Arctic Alaska, where expanding oil extraction and development could potentially impact viable commercial fisheries and coastal communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the present review was (i) to survey different approaches for choosing the complex of traits for which economic values (EVs) are calculated, (ii) to call attention to the proper definition of traits and (iii) to discuss the manner and extent to which relationships among traits have been considered in the calculation of EVs. For this purpose, papers dealing with the estimation of EVs of traits in livestock were reviewed. The most important reasons for incompatibility of EVs for similar traits estimated in different countries and by different authors were found to be inconsistencies in trait definitions and in assumptions being made about relationships among traits. An important problem identified was how to choose the most appropriate criterion to characterise production or functional ability for a particular class of animals. Accordingly, the review covered the following three topics: (i) which trait(s) would best characterise the growth ability of an animal; (ii) how to define traits expressed repeatedly in subsequent reproductive cycles of breeding females and (iii) how to deal with traits that differ in average value between sexes or among animal groups. Various approaches that have been used to solve these problems were discussed. Furthermore, the manner in which diverse authors chose one or more traits from a group of alternatives for describing a specific biological potential were reviewed and commented on. The consequences of including or excluding relationships among economically important traits when estimating the EV for a specific trait were also examined. An important conclusion of the review is that, for a better comparability and interpretability of estimated EVs in the literature, it is desirable that clear and unique definitions of the traits, complete information on assumptions used in analytical models and details on inter-relationships between traits are documented. Furthermore, the method and the model used for the genetic evaluation of specific traits in a certain breeding organisation are important for the exact definition of traits, for which the economic values will be calculated, and for the inclusion or exclusion of relationships among traits in the calculation of the EVs in livestock breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In genetic improvement programs, candidates for breeders are ranked by the profitability of their offspring, expressed as a weighted sum of the genetic gain from selection. In this paper, we estimate the economic values of a genetic improvement program for Australian farmed saltwater crocodiles. A bioeconomic profit function for a representative breeding pair is used to determine the optimal slaughter age following genetic improvement in each selection objective. The results indicate that estimated farm profitability increases by nearly $A111 for a 1-week reduction in juvenile slaughter age, $A78 for a 1 per cent increase in the proportion of first-grade skins produced, and $A33 for an increase in the number of viable hatchlings per clutch. The implications of the analysis for the Australian crocodile industry and the limitations of the research are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study provides valuable insight into the trawl fishery operating in southern Albanian waters via an integrated approach based on high-frequency onboard monitoring trawl vessels and on-site interviews with local fishers. Multivariate analyses of the composition of species landings or economic revenue revealed groups that, depending on the group, were distinguished by improved fisheries landings and economic efficiency. The majority of the catch consisted of a variety of demersal and small- and medium-sized pelagic species, confirming the Adriatic Sea's multispecies nature. Target species identified in terms of catches and revenue imply a systematic tactic over a long period of time, and incidental catches are equally important in terms of overall group similarity. The identification of target species groups may be useful in assessing the current sampling stratification schemes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mate selection by selection index prediction of total merit in expected progeny is proposed as a rational basis for making recommendations in the choice of a bull to which a cow may be mated. Growth in USA of service programs recommending bulls to particular cows has motivated the need to rationalize mate selection processes. This paper illustrates that mate selection on the basis of highest index value for expected progeny among potential mates can justify special mate selection programs, when a nonlinear relationship exists between at least one trait in the index and merit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Daena: International Journal of Good Conscience is the property of Spenta University Mexico and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Associated with the continuing increase of construction activities such as infrastructure projects, commercial buildings, and housing programs, China has been experiencing a rapid increase of construction and demolition (C&D) waste. Till now, the generation and flows of China’s C&D waste has not been well understood. This paper aims to provide an explicit analysis of this based on a weight-per-construction-area method. Our results show that approximately 2.36 billion tonnes of C&D waste were generated in China annually during the period of 2003–2013, of which demolition waste and construction waste contributed to 97% and 3%, respectively, in 2013. East China contributed over half of the total C&D waste in China due to their rapid economic development and expansion of cities, followed by Middle China (21%) and South China (11%). Potential economic values from the recycling of C&D waste were found to vary from 201 billion (the worst scenario, i.e., the current practice of C&D waste management) to 401 billion US dollars in 2013 (the most optimistic scenario, i.e., C&D waste is assumed to be well recycled); and the landfill space demands were estimated to range from 7504 million m 3 (the worst scenario) to 706 million m 3 (the most optimistic scenario) accordingly. Consequently, increasing the recycling rate and reducing landfill rate of C&D waste could not only improve the potential recycling economic values, but also dramatically reduce land use and potential environmental impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Daena: International Journal of Good Conscience is the property of Spenta University Mexico and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

It is generally acknowledged that willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates for environmental goods exhibit some degree of spatial variation. In a policy context, spatial variation in threatened and endangered species values is important to understand, as the benefit stream from policies affecting threatened and endangered species may vary locally, regionally, or among certain population segments. In this paper we present WTP estimates for eight different threatened and endangered marine species estimated from a stated preference choice experiment. WTP is estimated at two different spatial scales: (a) a random sample of over 5000 U.S. households and (b) geographically embedded samples (relative to the U.S. household sample) of nine U.S. Census regions. We conduct region-to-region and region-to-nation statistical comparisons to determine whether species values differ among regions and between each region and the entire U.S. Our results show limited spatial variation between national values and values estimated from regionally embedded samples, and differences are only found for three of the eight species. More variation exists between regions, and for all species there is a significant difference in at least one region-to-region comparison. Given that policy analyses involving threatened and endangered marine species can often be regional in scope (e.g., ecosystem management) or may disparately affect different regions, our results should be of high interest to the marine management community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing degree of attention is being given to the ecosystem services which insect pollinators supply, and the economic value of these services. Recent research suggests that a range of factors are contributing to a global decline in pollination services, which are often used as a “headline” ecosystem service in terms of communicating the concept of ecosystem services, and how this ties peoples׳ well-being to the condition of ecosystems and the biodiversity found therein. Our paper offers a conceptual framework for measuring the economic value of changes in insect pollinator populations, and then reviews what evidence exists on the empirical magnitude of these values (both market and non-market). This allows us to highlight where the largest gaps in knowledge are, where the greatest conceptual and empirical challenges remain, and where research is most needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the economic values of taungya Agroforestry (AF) adoption and its impact on poverty profile in Ogun state, Nigeria. The multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 160 farmers from two Agricultural Development Programme Zones for the contingent valuation survey aspect while the simple random sampling was applied to select 100 respondents each that were adopters and non-adopters of taungya AF for the poverty profile aspect. The data generated from the survey were analyzed by descriptive statistics, binary logit regression model and the Foster, Greer and Thobecke (FGT) Index poverty measures. The economic value of taungya AF was N1.32billion for the Agricultural Development Programme Zones and N 3.81billion for the whole State. The economic values for taungya AF are sufficiently enormous to promote the adoption of the practice. These values were significantly (p< .01) influenced by household size (negatively) and contact with extension agents (positively); at (p< .05) by bid (negatively) and cost sharing of taungya AF establishment with the international community (positively); and at (p< .10) by income (positively). The farmers in practice experienced lower incidence, depth and severity of poverty. As educational awareness of these benefits and financial empowerment helped to enhance the adoption, these instruments of policy should be used to help enhance sustainable development in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to identify relationships between economic value orientations, beliefs, and behaviors of agents, on the one hand, and differences between levels of economic development, on the other. Empirical analysis is based on a sample of Portuguese municipalities and corresponding parishes, organized in groups according to an urban-versus-rural typology and to levels of development as measured by GDP per capita. Different value orientations, beliefs, and behaviors were identified. Four clusters were considered: "stabilization", "economic nationalism", "entrepreneurship," and "consumerism". These clusters are related to the spatial dimensions considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breeding programs for livestock require economic weights for traits that reflect the most profitable animal in a given production system. Economic weights are commonly based on average conditions. In pasture based livestock production systems the cost of feed is an important profit driver, but availability of feed from pasture can vary greatly within and between years. Additionally, the price of supplementary feed during periods of feed shortage and the prices for meat and wool vary between years. Varying prices and pasture growth can change the optimal management of the flock affecting profitability. This paper investigates how variation in commodity prices and pasture growth affect the economic values of traits in the breeding objective. We modelled a sheep farm with a self-replacing Merino flock bred for wool and meat in a Mediterranean environment. We optimised management decisions across 5 years using dynamic recursive analysis to maximise profit when commodity prices and pasture growth varied annually. Actual pasture growth and wool, meat, and grain prices from 2005 to 2009 were used. Management could adapt to varying pasture growth and commodity prices by changing sheep numbers, age structure of the flock and amount of grain fed to sheep. The economic value of seven traits in the breeding objective were compared for a scenario with average pasture growth and commodity prices over years and a scenario with varying pasture growth and commodity prices over years. Variation in pasture growth and commodity prices decreased average profit and increased the economic value of all breeding goal traits compared to the average scenario. The order of importance of traits stayed the same between varying and average scenarios but the relative importance of traits changed. The economic values that increased the most were for traits that had increased profit with the smallest impact on energy requirements such as yearling live weight, longevity and fibre diameter. Our results showed that it is important to account for variation in feed availability and commodity prices when determining the expected profit and economic values for traits. The results also suggest that whereas variation in pasture growth and commodity prices between years makes the farming operations less profitable, these changing conditions increase the genetic variation in profitability of sheep. Therefore, genetic improvement has more value relative to scenarios where pasture feed supply and prices are constant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] This paper studies the transmission of pro-social values from parents to children through a public goods game experiment. [•] We cannot reject the null that the correlation between the degree of cooperation of a child and that of his or her parent is zero. [•] That is, there is lack of evidence in our data that prosocial values are transmitted from parents to children. [•] This finding is robust to the inclusion of demographic and socio-economic controls. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Our research is based on the assumption that cost–benefit analysis facilitates efficient and effective decision-making in spatially explicit land-use planning where there are competing land uses. Land-use planning can be improved if the value of the spatial relationships between land uses can be computed sufficiently easily. In this paper, we developed an economically sound way to incorporate the spatial dimensions (size and connectedness) of ecological networks within cost–benefit analysis. The methodology computes the value of ecological networks by accounting for the essential spatial characteristics (size and configuration) of areas of natural land. This methodology can be generalised to other land uses, which we illustrate using a hypothetical case study that contains all the relevant elements. The optimal configuration of different land uses, which accounts for the value of the ecosystem network, will generate a land-use plan with the highest net benefit. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper presents the actions taken in an ongoing research project to reveal tourists' preferences and attitudes towards recreation activities taken in the Romanian national and natural parks. The focus was on establishing the area of research and on creating the survey instrument to collect data in the field, needed to estimate the welfare measures associated to the parks. The area of research was determined based on the estimated number of visitors and the presence of visitor centres or information points. Thus, 10 parks were selected as research area. The design of the questionnaire receives a special attention because the non-market valuation techniques require the use of specific valuation question formats that need to be carefully formulated. The questionnaire incorporates valuation formats specific to different non-market valuation methods, in a way that respondents would be comfortable to provide accurate information. Collected data are organized in four main groups by the nature of their use and the non-market valuation methods to be utilized to determine the welfare measures. The organized and logical manner of constructing the steps provides a strong database that allows a reliable and effective analysis of data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to propose the use of a conceptual management framework for including economic values as decision factors into the management plans of national and natural parks in Romania. Tourists, local habitants, park staff and other stakeholders play an important role in the whole process, their input offering valuable information for successfully accomplishing the process. The framework was developed such that it maybe applied to any protected area category. The proposed conceptual management framework is part of an ongoing research project, conducted at national level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Breeding objectives for meat sheep in Ireland have been defined and used in the development of selection sub-indices to provide commercial producers with an economic comparison of animals for specific performance trait groups. Using trait-by-trait bio-economic models and a range of methodologies, economic weights (in € per lamb born per genetic standard deviation in the trait) have been calculated for maternal and terminal sire performance traits as follows: production traits; −€1.41 for days to slaughter, €0.35 for carcase conformation class, −€0.52 for carcase fat class, lambing traits; −€0.69 for lambing difficulty for single-bearing ewes, −€0.37 for lambing difficulty for multiple-bearing ewes, €1.15 for lamb survival, maternal traits; €0.83 for number of lambs born, −€1.49 for ewe mature weight, health traits; −€0.09 for lamb foot rot, and −€0.82 for ewe foot rot. Results indicate the significant value of improving the ability of lambs to survive to weaning, without increasing number of lambs born. The highly negative economic weight for both days to slaughter and mature size represents a powerful unfavourable relationship between the two traits. Economic values for lambing difficulty and foot rot represent the significant costs these traits have in the Irish sheep production system. In the early stages of the development of the genetic improvement program for sheep in Ireland the breeding objective defined in this paper provides directed emphasis for trait recording, selection strategies, and mating systems. In addition the economic weights provide indications as to how much genetic improvement in a specific trait would be worth paying for. The proposed formulation of the total economic index as sub-indices provides the ability for commercial farmers to adjust breeding emphasis towards specific market outcomes or address key production aspects in their particular farming system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The author analyses the economic values created by the increasing use of broadband in the USA. The paper also shows the proper calculation for dial-up and broadband revenues and illustrated that there is more economic values created in broadband than it is shown in the standard government statistics. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A model for the wetland part of KNP is presented and analyzed. Two-dimensional parameter scans suggest that this minimal model possesses dynamical complexities. Per capita availability of water to “bad” biomass (W 1) is one of the most vital parameters. One can ensure good health of the park by restricting the par capita availability of water to low values. Getting the “bad” biomass removed by granting permits to villagers should go hand in hand with water management and conservation activities. The model presented in this paper may be helpful in designing the timing and nature of human interventions in the form of implementation of well worked out policies in future. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper examines the use and non-use values of coral reefs as applied to the Tubbataha Reefs UNESCO World Heritage Site. Results from various studies indicate that economic benefits/values from conservation far exceed the costs of conservation. Mechanisms on how such economic values have been and can be captured are discussed. It is noted that non-use values could provide huge capturable economic values. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Information systems require strategic planning in order to adapt their functionality and quality to the needs of health care organizations. Next to effectivity, cost efficiency in supplying and operating information systems is a particular objective. Hospital information systems with their technical infrastructure, their application systems and the hereby supported business functions can be described with the help of the meta model 3LGM2 and the 3LGM2 tool. The meta model and the 3LGM2 tool are extended by a generic approach to show supply and operation cost for all components of the information system and for the cost calculation between these components. This leads to the fact that all executives in hospitals are enabled to get the cost transparent which were caused by the support of the functions by the information system. The effects of planned extensions and modification of the information system can be analyzed in term of cost. In a prototypical modelling, the information system of a hospital of regular standards has been evaluated in nearly all its components and cost. An evaluation could show that information managers and executives are now delivered relevant cost information for planning, operating and control of information systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problem of the progressive dysfunctionalization of social and economic systems is the starting point for intellectual exercise undertaken in the article. The origins and course of the 2008 global financial crisis show that the notion that the capacity to self-stabilize (to keep disequilibria under control) in the case of every complex dynamic system deteriorates over time is the pivotal issue. However, social systems interact with one another in numerous ways, for instance by communicating which is one of the most important interactions. We call the space of intersystem communication a "modality." That term, explained in this article, describes mechanisms in which deliberation helps stabilize social systems by changing the rules of the game, through the efforts of social agents acting as observers of various social systems of which they are part. We argue that the communication space is visibly deteriorating, by being captured by a particular set of economic ideas. We see this as a threat because "variety is the spice of life," and robustness of the economy depends on existence of a diverse portfolio of ideas, together with actors being ready and institutionally encouraged to defend them. We suggest some solutions that may bring more vigor to modality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the effect of incorporating risk in the derivation of economic values for livestock trait improvement. Two ways of obtaining economic values were contrasted, without consideration of risk (traditional economic values) and with incorporation of variance of profit and risk attitudes of livestock producers (risk-rated economic values). Traditional economic values were derived using a profit model, whereas risk-rated economic values were derived using a risk-rated profit model. A simplified example was considered for selection for the feedlot phase of beef production. One output trait (average daily gain) and one input trait (daily dry matter intake) and one management variable were considered. Risk was defined as the variance of profit and producer’s risk attitude. Traditional economic values and risk-rated economic values differed in both absolute and relative terms. When relative economic values were considered, differences between traditional economic values and risk-rated economic values increased with risk premium. Differences were greater without optimisation of management than with optimisation, although in the example used there was limited impact on expected responses to selection in the component traits. Including risk preferences in breeding goals affects the cost–benefit analysis of breeding programs and might affect directions for selection. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

How to balance natural river base flow with water loss from agricultural activities such as irrigation has become an important global challenge in areas of water shortage. Using a Bayesian network model, we constructed a decision-making framework for river ecological base flow in the water shortage areas. This framework can be divided into three components: (1) calculation of economic losses caused when priority is given to protect river ecological base flow, (2) construction of a decision-making Bayesian network, and (3) determination of an optimum ecological base flow of rivers based on an acceptable probability of acceptable economic losses the decision-makers selected. We used the Baoji section of the Weihe River as a typical water shortage area case study. The results show that the optimum ecological base flows in the Baoji section of Weihe River in wet, normal, and dry years were 32.35%, 20.59%, and 14.71% of natural inflow in rivers, respectively. From an economic benefit perspective, the beneficiaries should provide more financial support to protect the ecological base flow of rivers. Our approach could be used in other water shortage areas where decisions need to be made between protection of river ecological base flows of rivers and agricultural use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taxonomic bias is a well-known shortcoming of species occurrence databases. Understanding the causes of taxonomic bias facilitates future biological surveys and addresses current knowledge gaps. Here, we investigate the main drivers of taxonomic bias in occurrence data of angiosperm species in China. We used a database including 5,936,768 records for 28,968 angiosperm species derived from herbarium specimens and literature sources. Generalized additive models (GAMs) were applied to investigate explanatory powers of 17 variables on the variation in record numbers of species. Five explanatory variables were selected for a multi-predictor GAM that explained 69% of the variation in record numbers: plant height, range size, elevational range, numbers of scientific publications and web pages. Range size was the most important predictor in the model and positively correlated with number of records. Morphological and phenological traits and social-economic factors including economic values and conservation status had weak explanatory powers on record numbers of plant species, which differs from the findings in animals, suggesting that causes of taxonomic bias in occurrence databases may vary between taxonomic groups. Our results suggest that future floristic surveys in China should more focus on range-restricted and socially or scientifically less "interesting" species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To forecast the volatility of Chinese stock market, we use information from 28 international markets rather than relying on the Chinese market alone. A common factor, which we call the international volatility index, is constructed by the first principal component of all the 28 cross‐national stock market volatilities. We then add the international volatility index into the prevailing heterogeneous autoregressive model of realized volatility (HAR‐RV). The in‐sample estimation results show that the impact of this common index on future Chinese market volatility is statistically significant and positive. More importantly, the out‐of‐sample forecasting results suggest that our proposed model outperforms competing models including the HAR‐RV, kitchen sink model, and combination approaches. The results are similar when we use a wide range of robustness checks. Furthermore, the international volatility index also yields the highest economic value from an asset allocation perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biodiversity loss and climate change are often considered as intertwined issues. However, they do not receive equal attention. Even in the context of nature‐based climate solutions, which consider ecosystems to be crucial to mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change, the potential role of biodiversity has received little attention. Here this essay emphasizes biodiversity as the cause—not only the consequence—to help society and nature face challenges associated with the changing climate. Reconsidering and emphasizing the linkages between these twin environmental crises is urgently needed to make collective efforts for the environment truly effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was conducted in Iraq during the period from 2017-2019 to investigate the effect of selection intensity on the estimation of correlated and direct genetic response depending on milk production in Holstein Friesian cows. 90 Holstein - Frisian cows with the same age were used and selection program was done with three selection intensity rates; 90, 80 and 70%. Economical response was calculated. 3 criterions were dependent. Total milk yield (TMY), lactation period (LP) and economic value (EV) to determine the genetic response. Results showed the phenotypic total milk production (PVTMP) were 2273.36, 2413.65 and 1558.59 kg in case of selection 90, 80 and 70% from herd respectively, the PVLP increased from 181.04 day (in origin herd) to 198.25 day in 70% of selection while the economic value increased from 1058641.56 ID to 1279293.65 ID when depending criterion TMY. When depending the criterion LP, the PVTMP raised from 2117.28 kg in origin herd to reach 2477.91 kg in 70% of selection rate, the PVLP increased from 181.04 day (in origin herd) to 202.82 day in 70% of selection while the economic value increased from 1058641.56 ID to 1238956.35 ID when depending criterion TMY. According the EV criterion. The mean of PVTMP increased from 2117.28 kg in the origin herd to 2558.59 kg in 70% 0f selection rate and the PVLP increased from 181.04 day to 198.25 day while the economic value increased from 1058641.67 ID to 1279293.65 ID in the same direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study estimates the economic contribution of grazing management practices in pastoral systems by specifically undertaking an economic analysis of pastoralists' preferences for grazing management practices and the economic value pastoralists place on them. The study applied the discrete choice experiment technique using a D-optimal design, a multi-attribute preference elicitation method to evaluate the economic value of grazing management options practiced in pastoral areas of Kenya. The results show that pastoral communities derive positive utility in connected systems that enable reciprocal access to resources in both wet and dry seasons. Pastoralism adapts to spatial–temporal variability of pasture and water through herd mobility; hence the positive utility derived from practices that contribute to the availability of adequate water and pasture across the seasons. These findings provide empirical evidence on the social and economic net benefits of rangeland management practices that should be enhanced to promote sustainable management of rangeland resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Universities are accused of being left‐wing bastions, unwelcoming to conservative and right‐wing professors. However, we know little about the political orientation of professors in comparison to other professionals, which would be the right comparison group if we want to know whether universities are potentially hostile environments to conservatives. Examining culturally and economically oriented political orientations in Europe, it is demonstrated that professors are more liberal and left‐leaning than other professionals. However, there is no greater homogeneity of political orientations among the professoriate relative to other specific professions, suggesting that there is a diversity of opinions which is similar to what professionals would find in other occupations. One exception concerns attitudes towards immigration, on which professors have more liberal orientations and comparatively low residual variance around that more liberal mean. Importantly, the difference between professors and other professionals is not so clear within graduates from the social sciences, but emerges more clearly among graduates with a medical, STEM, economics or law degree. An important political cleavage exists between professionals and managers, a group of similar social standing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]