Far distant, far distant: Orwell, my father & Catalonia

Reflections on the current situation in Catalonia with reference to George Orwell's Homage to Catalonia and James Maley's experiences with the International Brigades in 1937, dramatized in the play, From the Calton to Catalonia, by John & Willy Maley

Carles Puigdemont gambled and failed. The consequences will live on

This is an accepted manuscript of an article published in The Guardian on 06/11/2017, available online: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/nov/06/catalonia-carles-puigdemont-belgium The accepted version of the publication may differ from the final published version.By heading to Belgium, the president of Catalonia missed his chance to stand up to Madrid – and to show himself as a leader sticking to his principle

Environmental sustainability in the mining sector: evidence from Catalan companies

This paper examines the adoption of environmental practices in small and medium sized companies inthe surface mining industry in Catalonia (Spain). To fulfill this aim, a survey of 41 items concernint environmental management systems and environmentally sustainable practices has been conducted. Results show that companies have committed themselves to environmental and sustainable issues. The majority of companies claim to understand the effects of their activities on the environment and they care for responsible access and management of natural resources. Restoration plans and the annual waste declaration are mandatory in Catalonia, and rational resources exploitation practices have been adopted by a high percentage of mines. Finally, some examples of good environmentally sustainable practices are introduced.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft

Descriptive and spatial epidemiology of bovine cysticercosis in North-Eastern Spain (Catalonia).

From March 2005 to December 2007, 284 animals from 67 cattle farms (24 dairy and 43 beef) affected by bovine cysticercosis were detected in the region of Catalonia (North-Eastern Spain). Dairy farms were almost twice more likely to be affected than beef farms (OR=1.79, 95% CI=1.08-2.96, p<0.05), and infected premises have a statistically significant (p<0.05) larger number of animals when compared to uninfected farms in Catalonia. The geographical distribution of the infected farms was evaluated and two statistically significant clusters were identified. The most likely cluster was located in the western part of the study region, with 8 out of 10 farms infected. Epidemiological investigations revealed that the 8 farms belonged to the same company. The secondary cluster was located in Eastern Catalonia with 12 infected farms out of 167 cattle farms. No epidemiological links were found among the 12 infected premises. A questionnaire, based on the EFSA risk assessment, was used to assess the most likely route of introduction into each affected farm. Water supply for animals was the route with the highest score in 41.8% of the cases

A choice experiment method to assess vegetables producers’ preferences for crop insurance

Agricultural producers face many risks in their economic activity due to weather conditions, plant or animal diseases, price volatility, policy changes and so on. One of the management tools to deal with some of these risks is the crop insurance system. In Catalonia (North-East of Spain) farmers’ participation in crop insurance for vegetables is low. Only 5 percent of the vegetables area is insured, when in Spain, as a whole, this percentage is around 20 percent. Different reasons have been suggested to explain this low participation ratio such as low risk perception, risk diversification, insurance cost or crop damage assessment rules, among others. However, no systematic research has been undertaken to assess farmers’ preferences for crop insurance in Catalonia. Through a survey of 93 vegetables farmers in the main productive areas in Catalonia, we conducted choice experiments to assess main farmers’ preferences for crop insurance. Each insurance policy was defined by 4 attributes: insurance cost; risks covered; minimum production damage level; and crop damage assessment rule. Results identify that insurance cost and crop damage assessment rules are among the most important factors to explain farmers’ behaviour toward crop insurance. These results allow us to suggest some recommendations specifically addressed to re-orientate the existing crop insurance policy in the vegetables sector in Catalonia.crop insurance, vegetables, choice experiments, Catalonia., Agricultural and Food Policy, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Unveiling vertical state downscaling: identity and/or the economy?

State rescaling may take a variety of shapes although scant research has been carried out into the mechanisms and economic incentives that underpin rescaling processes. Recent literature in economics, economic sociology and political economy has identified at least two broad rescaling mechanisms, namely the development of regional identity - operating at the cultural level and proxing preference heterogeneity-, and the heterogeneity in levels of economic development, which influence the extent of regional redistribution. This paper empirically examines the mechanisms of vertical state rescaling by drawing upon empirical evidence from Catalonia and the Basque Country, to explore the evolution of sub-state identity and the rise of inter-territorial fiscal grievances - weakening intraregional economic solidarity. Findings corroborate the idea that the combination of widening sub-national identity raises the costs of managing heterogeneous spatial identities and strengthens support for vertical state downscaling. Similarly, ending regional fiscal solidarity it is found to increase the average income of Catalonia by 37% and even 17% in the Basque Country. However, the effect of regional identity exceeds that of regional redistribution in explaining state rescaling support in the magnitude of one to seven. These findings speak to the debate on the formation of Europe, in that they reveal limits to regional redistribution and highlight the importance of a common spatial identity

Political Homophily in Independence Movements: Analysing and Classifying Social Media Users by National Identity

Social media and data mining are increasingly being used to analyse political and societal issues. Here we undertake the classification of social media users as supporting or opposing ongoing independence movements in their territories. Independence movements occur in territories whose citizens have conflicting national identities; users with opposing national identities will then support or oppose the sense of being part of an independent nation that differs from the officially recognised country. We describe a methodology that relies on users' self-reported location to build large-scale datasets for three territories -- Catalonia, the Basque Country and Scotland. An analysis of these datasets shows that homophily plays an important role in determining who people connect with, as users predominantly choose to follow and interact with others from the same national identity. We show that a classifier relying on users' follow networks can achieve accurate, language-independent classification performances ranging from 85% to 97% for the three territories.Comment: Accepted for publication in IEEE Intelligent System

The grape phylloxera plague as a natural experiment: the upkeep of vineyards in Catalonia (Spain), 1858-1935

We present a comparative analysis of the impact and outcome in Catalonia of the wine rush and crash unleashed by the spread of the Grape Phylloxera plague in Europe (1865-1890). In order to explain why many rural districts in the provinces of Barcelona and Tarragona were able to resume winegrowing after the plague, while most in the provinces of Girona and Lleida were not, a statistical model is used to check the economic resilience of the Catalan districts to the external ecological and economic shock. The model combines the population densities as a proxy of the opportunity cost in labour allocation, the demand pull of commercial growth measured by the time-distances to the city of Barcelona, and the agroclimatic land's suitability for growing vines, as measured by the Hugling and Winkler indices or the mean slopes of land. After comparing the vineyard allocation in every district in 1860, 1889 and 1920, these variables are used to explain the differing capacities to endure the Phylloxera plague in Catalonia

The Catalan Premium: Language and Employment in Catalonia

In this paper I measure the contribution of knowing Catalan to finding a job in Catalonia. In the early eighties a drastic language policy change (normalització) promoted the learning and use of Catalan in Catalonia and managed to reverse the falling trend of its relative use versus Castilian (Spanish). Using census data for 1991 and 1996, I estimate a significant positive Catalan premium: the probability of being employed increases between 3 and 5 percentage points if individuals know how to read and speak Catalan; it increases between 2 and 6 percentage points for writing Catalan.Language, Immigration, Skill Premium