Influences of various pricing points: an experimental study of plastic bags in Johannesburg, South Africa

Submitted by Michelle Blanc… on
EfD Authors:

Policymakers have little experience regarding designing the right levels of pricing for plastic bags. The ineffectiveness of charging for bags, in countries such as South Africa, makes it imperative that we map the demand curve. Getting the charge “right” depends on the size of the externality. Charging for bags is therefore an effective intervention to encourage consumers to carry their own bags to the stores. We employ a contingent behaviour (CB) dataset necessary to estimate the charge level that is likely to lead to a reduction in bag use over time.

Policy Design, Urban, Waste

Extreme weather events and pro-environmental behavior: evidence from a climate change vulnerable country

Submitted by Petra Hansson on

Experiencing an extreme weather event and its consequences might make the risks associated with climate change more tangible, easier to evaluate, and more salient. Consequently, those experiences might translate into the adoption of pro-environmental behaviours. Understanding this relationship is fundamental for the successful design of policies aimed toward promoting the adoption of climate change adaptation and mitigation measures.

Climate Change, Policy Design

Can digitalized tools help stimulate the domestic economy? Evidence from the effects of digital coupons on merchant operation

Submitted by Hang Yin on
EfD Authors:

By analyzing high-frequency data of mobile platform transactions in a large Chinese city, this paper explores the effects of digital coupons on catering and retailing businesses. The results show that digital coupons could generate positive and sustainable effects on the turnover and total sales of local catering and retailing businesses. These positive effects are found for catering and retailing businesses of all sizes, especially large merchants.

Policy Design

Soil Conservation Practices and Neighborhood Effects – How Sustained are the relationships?

Submitted by Petra Hansson on

Key findings

Soil conservation activities (i.e., mixed cropping) in the south-south and northwest regions of the country in 2015 are influenced by a high prevalence of neighbours’ activities in 2012. Similarly, low prevalence of soil conservation activities in the middle belt of the country is correlated with similarly low activity levels of farmers’ neighbours in the preceding period.

Farmers with high (low) legumes cultivation in 2015 were surrounded by other farmers with similarly high (low) cultivation in 2012.

Agriculture, Biodiversity, Conservation

Do Chilean imports lead prices in the EU mussel market?

Submitted by Cristóbal Vásquez on

The impact that added competition of imported mussels from Chile might have had on market prices is one of the main reasons given to explain the decrease in the economic performance of the mussel aquaculture sector in the European Union (EU) in the last two decades. This hypothesis has not yet been tested. In this article we test empirically for price leadership and market integration in the EU mussel market. We estimate a cointegrated vector autoregressive (CVAR) model for the French, Italian, and Spanish mussel import markets and test for price leadership.

Fisheries

The performance of shared fish stock fisheries under varying institutional and socioeconomic conditions: Evidence from the South Eastern Pacific Anchoveta Fishery

Submitted by Daniel Hernandez on

We apply the Fishery Performance Indicators (FPIs) methodology to the Southeast Pacific Anchoveta Fishery off southern Peru and northern Chile. Our basic model of analysis is a production function framework, where the performance outcomes are a result of the available inputs. We measured all FPI categories (outcomes and input metrics) and then grouped the metrics into different dimensions suitable for analysis. We obtained the value of each metric from different sources using expert evaluation and secondary information.

Fisheries

MPAs and Aspatial Policies in Artisanal Fisheries

Submitted by Daniel Hernandez on

Using a spatially explicit framework with low/middle-income country coastal characteristics, we explore whether aspatial policies augment the impact of marine protected areas(MPAs)and identify when MPAs create income burdens on communities. When MPAs are small and budget-constrained, they cannot resolve all of the marinescape’s open-access issues, but they can create win-win opportunities for ecological and economic goals at lower levels of enforcement.

Conservation, Fisheries

Training Manual on Climate Smart Agriculture Practices for Belize: Animal Management

Submitted by Daniel Hernandez on
EfD Authors:

The Training Manual on Climate Smart Agriculture Practices for Belize is intended to be used by technicians and teams working within the Extension Office of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, the Environment, Sustainable Development and Immigration (MAFFESDI) of Belize, as well as personnel from both Agriculture and Cooperative Departments. Additionally, the manual can be used by technicians linked to producer organizations or agriculture research and development centers. 

Agriculture, Climate Change, Land