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The level of satisfaction of individuals within a community sharing a common pool resource is essential to strengthening collective actions. In the case of irrigation water, which is becoming a critical resource due to its declining availability in many regions worldwide, the satisfaction level in Water User Associations (WUAs) is not guaranteed and also varies across individuals within these organizations. This study analyzed the satisfaction of users in WUAs and identified organization- and user-level characteristics associated with it. Using a sample of 393 users of 20 WUAs from the Mediterranean portion of Chile, we performed confirmatory factor analysis, correlational analyses, and multilevel regressions. A composite indicator of user satisfaction showed significant correlations with the positive evaluation of the WUA staff performance, the effectiveness of monitoring and enforcement, and the confidence that other users do not withdraw more water than they are allocated. We also compared users' satisfaction levels from WUAs facing higher and lower water scarcity problems and found that user satisfaction is significantly higher in the latter case. The results of the multilevel econometric models show that in WUAs under higher water scarcity, user satisfaction is affected by several structural characteristics (water withdrawal mechanism and location along the canal) and users' human and social capital variables (experience, education, and participation in organizations); in contrast, in WUAs with a low level of scarcity, few covariates were significant while unobserved characteristics became more relevant (34 % of total variance explanation). Our study contributes to the existing literature on user satisfaction in community resource management, which could be useful to promote effective and cohesive governance structures as, ultimately, users determine cooperation rates and willingness to participate in WUA actions. • We measure irrigators' satisfaction (IS) from 20 Water User Associations (WUAs). • IS mainly correlates with the perceived performance of different WUA staff members. • Individuals belonging to WUAs with higher water scarcity show lower IS. • Farm, irrigator, and WUA characteristics explain IS in WUAs with higher scarcity. • Unobserved heterogeneity at the WUA level plays a significant role in IS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of sustainable agricultural systems is a challenge in the context of policies and incentives aimed to the conservation of natural resources, especially in rainfed areas. This study examines demographic and productive variables that influence the adoption of soil conservation technologies (terraces and infiltration trenches) in 90 small scale farmers in the rainfed area of Central Chile, at the municipalities of Pencahue and Curepto. A Probit regression model was used which associates the adoption of technologies with the variables such as: age of farmer, family size, farm size, form of land tenure; presence of: tree plantations, greenhouses, composting and animals on the farm; participation in training activities and marketing expertise of the producer. The estimated Probit model has a high predictive power, reaching up to 92,2% of the correctly classified observations. The econometrics results show that the participation in training activities, the farm size, the presence of forest plantations and use of compost influence significantly and positively on the adoption of soil conservation technologies. The analysis not only reveals a positive impact of training on the adoption of high investment conservation practices but also on the incidence of the simple technologies such as use of compost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing demand for the consumption of organic foods at worldwide level presents sales increasing by over five thousand million dollars per year. Demands extended to development countries like it is the Chilean case, which exports 90% of its production getting an internal market with low development for this type of products. The research tries to identify the constructs to characterize the potential consumers of organic foods. A survey was applied to 422 consumers to carry out the research in the Maule Region, central Chile (C. I. = 95.5%; e = 3.0%). The Information was analyzed through multivariante technic denominated factor analysis of principal components. The main results of the research reveal the existence of four dimensions or constructs, corresponding to: (1) benefits of the organic agriculture; (2) healthy feeding; (3) lifestyles; (4) attribute of organic foods. These four factors influence in the attitude and purchase intention for the consumers toward the organic foods. In addition being key elements when formulating market strategies for organic products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]