Conservation Contracting in Heterogeneous Landscapes: an application to watershed protection with threshold constraints

A key issue in the design of land use policy is how to integrate information about spatially variable biophysical and economic conditions into a cost-effective conservation plan. Using common biophysical scoring methods, in combination with economic data and simple optimization methods, we illustrate how one can identify a set of priority land parcels for conservation investment. We also demonstrate a way in which conservation agencies can incorporate concerns about biophysical thresholds in the identification of their priority land parcels. We apply these methods using Geographic Information System data from a New York conservation easement acquisition initiative for water quality protection. Working Paper # 2002-01

Are We Getting What We Paid For? The Need for Randomized Environmental Policy Experiments in Georgia

In the field of environmental policy, the decision to choose one policy over another should be evidence-based. Randomized policy experiments are important tools for generating evidence on the effectiveness of policies. They are an important component of policy design in fields such as poverty assistance, criminal rehabilitation, public education, and public health. In contrast, the use of randomized experiments in the field of environmental policy is nonexistent. In this short paper, I argue that randomized experiments are needed to improve environmental policy in Georgia. They can take place in the context of planned pilot initiatives and thus require little additional money to implement. Because they can be incorporated into the implementation of a field initiative, policy experiments also mitigate concerns that research and program implementation are mutually exclusive. However, the difference between what one can learn from a pilot initiative that uses a randomized design and from one that does not is enormous. We illustrate how one can use a randomized policy experiment in the context of an existing water conservation initiative in Georgia. Working Paper Number 2005-002

Know Thyself: Incompetence and Overconfidence

Economic analyses of asymmetric information typically start with the assumption that individuals know more about their own characteristics than outside observers. This assumption implies that individuals can accurately assess their own competence in a given domain. However, individuals can only judge their competence if they are sufficiently competent. The relationship between competence and self-awareness explains a great deal of the overconfidence observed among economic agents. More specifically, overconfidence is inversely proportional to competence. Through a series of experiments and analyses of field data, the link between incompetence and overconfidence is confirmed and its implications for economic theory are explored.overconfidence, competence, asymmetric information, gender, economic experiment

Telegram from Ralph Lamberti, Deputy Borough President of Staten Island, to Geraldine Ferraro

Congratulatory telegram from Ralph J. Lamberti, Deputy Borough President of Staten Island, to Geraldine Ferraro. Includes standard response letter from Ferraro, and a data entry sheet.https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/vice_presidential_campaign_correspondence_1984_new_york/1266/thumbnail.jp

Can Encouraging Voluntary Development of Environmental Management Systems Augment Existing Regulations?

Encouraging firms to voluntarily develop environmental management systems (EMSs) has been described as a potential policy tool for achieving environmental objectives in Georgia. We survey current thinking on the subject and note several shortcomings in current methods used to evaluate what motivates private firms to adopt comprehensive EMSs. Using a unique dataset of environmental management practices of Japanese manufacturers, we find that consumer pressures, regulatory pressures, and market power are major factors that motivate firms to develop comprehensive EMSs. We also find that after controlling for self-selection bias in survey response, the effects of regulatory pressures become more significant and larger in magnitude. These results suggest that although encouraging development of EMSs has the potential to augment existing regulations, the regulatory tools are fundamental to the success of such voluntary approaches. Working Paper Number 2005-001

Letter from Sidney Frigand, Director of Public Affairs for the Port Authority of New York, to Geraldine Ferraro

Congratulatory letter from Sidney J. Frigand, Director of Public Affairs for the Port Authority of New York, to Geraldine Ferraro. Includes standard response letter from Ferraro, and a data entry sheet.https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/vice_presidential_campaign_correspondence_1984_new_york/1234/thumbnail.jp

Bias to CMB Lensing Reconstruction from Temperature Anisotropies due to Large-Scale Galaxy Motions

Gravitational lensing of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) is expected to be amongst the most powerful cosmological tools for ongoing and upcoming CMB experiments. In this work, we investigate a bias to CMB lensing reconstruction from temperature anisotropies due to the kinematic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (kSZ) effect, that is, the Doppler shift of CMB photons induced by Compton-scattering off moving electrons. The kSZ signal yields biases due to both its own intrinsic non-Gaussianity and its non-zero cross-correlation with the CMB lensing field (and other fields that trace the large-scale structure). This kSZ-induced bias affects both the CMB lensing auto-power spectrum and its cross-correlation with low-redshift tracers. Furthermore, it cannot be removed by multifrequency foreground separation techniques because the kSZ effect preserves the blackbody spectrum of the CMB. While statistically negligible for current datasets, we show that it will be important for upcoming surveys, and failure to account for it can lead to large biases in constraints on neutrino masses or the properties of dark energy. For a Stage 4 CMB experiment, the bias can be as large as $\approx$ 15% or 12% in cross-correlation with LSST galaxy lensing convergence or galaxy overdensity maps, respectively, when the maximum temperature multipole used in the reconstruction is $\ell_{\rm max} = 4000$, and about half of that when $\ell_{\rm max} = 3000$. Similarly, we find that the CMB lensing auto-power spectrum can be biased by up to several percent. These biases are many times larger than the expected statistical errors. Reducing $\ell_{\rm max}$ can significantly mitigate the bias at the cost of a decrease in the overall lensing reconstruction signal-to-noise. Polarization-only reconstruction may be the most robust mitigation strategy.Comment: Updated to match published version and fixed typo. Improved study of secondary contractions and end-to-end simulation

Investor Reactions to Information Disclosure: Can Providing Public Information About Firms' Pollution Improve Environmental Performance?

Information disclosure has been touted as a powerful tool to effect change in environmental quality. Nascent efforts to augment federal information disclosure have begun in Georgia. We conduct the first empirical analysis of investor reactions to a Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) outside of the United States. In contrast to the U.S. studies, we find no evidence of negative investor reactions to firms listed on Japan's PRTR. We identify several institutional reasons for these contradictory results. Our results suggest that PRTRs may not have the same effect in all locations and thus further empirical studies of the burgeoning number of PRTRs being implemented globally are warranted. Working Paper Number 2005-001

What Is the Experience of Using Mindfulness as Selfcare for Newly Qualified Counselling Psychologists: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Early career counselling psychologists often experience high stress associated with the start of their new career and the nature of the profession. Proactive self-care is therefore necessary to ensure personal well-being and effective client care. Mindfulness has recently been suggested as an effective approach to self-care. As existing evidence indicates, mindfulness practice leads to a vast array of benefits in mental health professionals. The present study explores the experience of newly qualified counselling psychologists who use mindfulness as a self-care strategy. It applies a qualitative methodological approach in order to explore in-depth lived experiences of these individuals. It aims to bring further insights to the under-researched area of early career therapists and their strategies for selfcare. Seven newly qualified counselling psychologists who had previously engaged in a contemporary mindfulness programme and subsequently decided to use it as a form of selfcare participated in the study. Semi-structured interviews were transcribed and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The analysis produced three master themes including ‘Journey of discovering mindfulness as a self-care approach’, ‘Developing selfmastery’, and ‘Enjoying meaningful personal and professional life’. Each master theme also contained several subthemes. The study findings suggest that application of mindfulness as self-care is a personally tailored embodied process that is continuously evolving. This progressive journey connects to experiences of positive adjustments within the self, as well as in personal and professional life contexts. The findings are discussed in relation to the existing literature and suggestions for future research and study limitations are offered. Implications for professional practice particularly relevant to the field of counselling psychology are also discussed

Telegram from Louis J. W. Jeng, President of the Chinese Culture University, to Geraldine Ferraro

Telegram from Louis J. W. Jeng, President of the Chinese Culture University, to Geraldine Ferraro. President Jeng offers congratulations on behalf of the university and thanks Ferraro for visiting China the previous year. Telegram has handwritten notes.https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/vice_presidential_campaign_correspondence_1984_international/1066/thumbnail.jp