Assessing the social benefits to stakeholders of place-based forest restoration organizations in Colorado

2015 Spring.Includes bibliographical references.Collaborative forestry organizations such as the Front Range Roundtable provide goods and services to their members which have not yet been valued using economic methodology. The primary good provided by the Front Range Roundtable is quarterly stakeholder meetings where proposed landscape restoration projects are discussed and members are able to reach consensus on appropriate monitoring and implementation without resorting to legal measures. Attendance at these meetings suggests that members derive benefits from attendance and have a positive willingness-to-pay for these goods. This study contributes to the natural resource and environmental economics literature by estimating values associated with the social capital that is developed at collaborative forestry meetings, and should serve to inform the policy debate regarding funding of place-based forestry collaboratives. Attendees at the April 11, 2014 quarterly meeting of the Front Range Roundtable were asked travel cost questions and a dichotomous choice willingness to pay question regarding membership dues for the Front Range Roundtable's quarterly meetings. Results from 50 paper and online surveys indicate that respondents would pay a minimum of $6.60 per quarter to travel to the FRR's quarterly meetings, and a maximum of$83 in membership dues to allow the FRR to continue to provide conflict mediation and resolution services. Generalizing these amounts to the sample yields an annual value of $1,241 for minimum WTP for travel expenses and an annual value of$16,609 for FRR's mediation and conflict resolution services

The development of a HAMstring InjuRy (HAMIR) index to mitigate injury risk through innovative imaging, biomechanics, and data analytics : Protocol for an observational cohort study

Background The etiology of hamstring strain injury (HSI) in American football is multi-factorial and understanding these risk factors is paramount to developing predictive models and guiding prevention and rehabilitation strategies. Many player-games are lost due to the lack of a clear understanding of risk factors and the absence of effective methods to minimize re-injury. This paper describes the protocol that will be followed to develop the HAMstring InjuRy (HAMIR) index risk prediction models for HSI and re-injury based on morphological, architectural, biomechanical and clinical factors in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I collegiate football players. Methods A 3-year, prospective study will be conducted involving collegiate football student-athletes at four institutions. Enrolled participants will complete preseason assessments of eccentric hamstring strength, on-field sprinting biomechanics and muscle–tendon volumes using magnetic-resonance imaging (MRI). Athletic trainers will monitor injuries and exposure for the duration of the study. Participants who sustain an HSI will undergo a clinical assessment at the time of injury along with MRI examinations. Following completion of structured rehabilitation and return to unrestricted sport participation, clinical assessments, MRI examinations and sprinting biomechanics will be repeated. Injury recurrence will be monitored through a 6-month follow-up period. HAMIR index prediction models for index HSI injury and re-injury will be constructed. Discussion The most appropriate strategies for reducing risk of HSI are likely multi-factorial and depend on risk factors unique to each athlete. This study will be the largest-of-its-kind (1200 player-years) to gather detailed information on index and recurrent HSI, and will be the first study to simultaneously investigate the effect of morphological, biomechanical and clinical variables on risk of HSI in collegiate football athletes. The quantitative HAMIR index will be formulated to identify an athlete’s propensity for HSI, and more importantly, identify targets for injury mitigation, thereby reducing the global burden of HSI in high-level American football players. Trial Registration The trial is prospectively registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05343052; April 22, 2022)