THE 2002 US FARM BILL AND INTERNATIONAL AGRI-FOOD TRADE: DUSTING OFF THE PREBISCH THESIS; SPECIAL REPORT

Recent developments in American agricultural and trade policy suggest that the US is backing away from its position as a staunch supporter of freer trade. In the long run, this action will weaken the competitive position of US agriculture and the other protected sectors of the US economy, as was the case when the US did this in the 1920's. It will also clearly harm US trading partners, such as Canada. We'll discuss the direct impacts of the Farm Bill on Canada in another, forthcoming special report. However, for our purposes in this report, the more immediate impact is to deter developing countries from pursuing freer trade as a means of increasing economic growth and improving standards of living. Support for freer trade from developing countries is essential if the current round of WTO is to achieve meaningful gains in trade liberalization. In turn, trade liberalization is absolutely required if low cost/resource rich countries such as the US and Canada are to have prosperous agri-food sectors. Current US policy initiatives give developing countries every incentive to retreat from liberalized trade to highly protectionist policies, just as outlined by Raoul Prebisch nearly 40 years ago. The impact of current US agricultural policy initiatives is to weaken the Doha agenda by forcing developing countries to unilaterally liberalize trade without any significant concessions from the US. This places developing countries in a very difficult position, and dramatically reduces the prospects for future gains through freer trade. In this special report, we outline the following issues that will impact the world agri-food trade context in the coming years: * International trade in primary commodities from the developing country perspective * The US Farm Bill and recent US trade policy initiatives * The agenda for the Doha Round of WTO * Impact of US policy initiatives on the success of WTOAgricultural and Food Policy,

THE 2002 US FARM BILL'S IMPLICATIONS FOR COMMODITY MARKETS AND CANADA'S AGRI-FOOD SECTOR

This report's intent is to analyze the 2002 US "Farm Bill" to determine whether it is production and trade distorting, and how it will affect commodity markets as well as how it will affect Canadian agri-food. The objectives are to: · To explain the producer subsidy programs and how payments under these programs will be calculated; · To explain other provisions in the Farm Bill that are of interest to the Canadian agriculture and agri-food industry; · To discuss the implications of the producer subsidy programs for US producers' decisions to grow the major commodities and pulses, and the likely implications of those decisions for market prices; · To discuss the implications of other Farm Bill provisions, including trade and conservation programs, and country of origin labeling; · To discuss the implications of the Farm Bill for the current round of WTO negotiations; and · To provide some initial thoughts on how governments and firms in Canada and other countries might respond to the Farm Bill. To accomplish the objectives, we provide a thorough description of the Act and its provisions. We apply it to a fictitious 1000 acre farm in the US Midwest to show its financial consequences. We also use production costs from certain regions of the US to determine the level of incentive built into the Act.Agricultural and Food Policy,

BENEFITS AND COSTS OF A VOLUNTARY WHEAT BOARD FOR THE PROVINCE OF ALBERTA

Agribusiness,

Belonging to the army: Camp followers and the military community during the American Revolution

The Continental Army was the cause and the core of a military community made up of both army personnel and camp followers, who together and separately affected the military mission. The dissertation focuses primarily on the civilian, as opposed to the military, members of the Continental Community. Fitting within the broad context of social history, it is also a part of the new military history.;Books and articles on armies have typically dealt with the military structure, the campaigns and battles, and the exploits of uniformed heroes or traitors. Those accounts provide merely the background here. In this dissertation, the military community is illuminated. It includes the prostitutes that most people immediately think of when they hear the term camp follower, but, as American soldiers were too infrequently and poorly paid to support a large retinue of such followers, they are only a very small part of this work. Actually, the spotlight shines on those persons specified in Article 23, Section XIII of the 1776 Articles of War: All sutlers and retainers to a camp, and all persons whatsoever serving with the armies of the United States, ... The dissertation examines the sutlers and other merchants who supplied the encampments, the family members, servants, and volunteers who fell under the heading of retainers to a camp, and the other civilians who served with the army in various capacities. It is this very broad definition of camp follower that makes the topic unique.;This dissertation shows that camp followers engaged in numerous tasks to support the army. Men entered the camps to sell goods and services (from soap and liquor to dancing lessons), or busied themselves in the Quartermaster and Commissary Departments. Women cooked, cleaned, sewed, nursed, and sometimes engaged in espionage. African-Americans served not only their individual masters, but the army as well in jobs as diverse as courier duty and ditch-digging

PRICE DISCOVERY MECHANISMS AND ALTERNATIVES FOR CANADIAN AGRICULTURE; Part I: A Review of Pricing Mechanisms in Agriculture

The purpose of this section is to review pricing mechanisms in agriculture and food. We started by constructing a taxonomy and system of classification for pricing mechanisms that is rooted in economic theory. This framework was applied to 26 pricing mechanisms observed from the following product categories: · Beef · Hogs · Grains and oilseeds · Dairy · Poultry and Eggs · Processed Food and HorticultureDemand and Price Analysis,

Evaluating the impact of policies recommending PrEP to subpopulations of men and transgender women who have sex with men based on demographic and behavioral risk factors.

IntroductionDeveloping guidelines to inform the use of antiretroviral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention in resource-limited settings must necessarily be informed by considering the resources and infrastructure needed for PrEP delivery. We describe an approach that identifies subpopulations of cisgender men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women (TGW) to prioritize for the rollout of PrEP in resource-limited settings.MethodsWe use data from the iPrEx study, a multi-national phase III study of PrEP for HIV prevention in MSM/TGW, to build statistical models that identify subpopulations at high risk of HIV acquisition without PrEP, and with high expected PrEP benefit. We then evaluate empirically the population impact of policies recommending PrEP to these subpopulations, and contrast these with existing policies.ResultsA policy recommending PrEP to a high risk subpopulation of MSM/TGW reporting condomless receptive anal intercourse over the last 3 months (estimated 3.3% 1-year HIV incidence) yields an estimated 1.95% absolute reduction in 1-year HIV incidence at the population level, and 3.83% reduction over 2 years. Importantly, such a policy requires rolling PrEP out to just 59.7% of MSM/TGW in the iPrEx population. We find that this policy is identical to that which prioritizes MSM/TGW with high expected PrEP benefit. It is estimated to achieve nearly the same reduction in HIV incidence as the PrEP guideline put forth by the US Centers for Disease Control, which relies on the measurement of more behavioral risk factors and which would recommend PrEP to a larger subset of the MSM/TGW population (86% vs. 60%).ConclusionsThese findings may be used to focus future mathematical modelling studies of PrEP in resource-limited settings on prioritizing PrEP for high-risk subpopulations of MSM/TGW. The statistical approach we took could be employed to develop PrEP policies for other at-risk populations and resource-limited settings

Effects of a Large Fishing Closure on Benthic Communitites in the Western Gulf of Maine: Recovery from the Effects of Gillnets and Otter Trawls

The recovery of benthic communities inside the western Gulf of Maine fishing closure area was evaluated by comparing invertebrate assemblages at sites inside and outside of the closure four to six years after the closure was established. The major restriction imposed by the closure was a year-round prohibition of bottom gillnets and otter trawls. A total of 163 seafloor sites (~half inside and half outside the closure) within a 515-km2 study area were sampled with some combination of Shipek grab, Wildco box corer, or underwater video. Bottom types ranged from mud (silt and clay) to boulders, and the effects of the closure on univariate measures (total density, biomass, taxonomic richness) of benthos varied widely among sediment types. For sites with predominantly mud sediments, there were mixed effects on inside and outside infauna and no effect on epifauna. For sites with mainly sand sediments, there were higher density, biomass, and taxonomic richness for infauna inside the closure, but no significant effects on epifauna. For sites dominated by gravel (which included boulders in some areas), there were no effects on infauna but strong effects on epifaunal density and taxonomic richness. For fishing gear, the data indicated that infauna recovered in sand from the impacts of otter trawls operated inside the closure but that they did not recover in mud, and that epifauna recovered on gravel bottoms from the impact of gillnets used inside the closure. The magnitudes of impact and recovery, however, cannot be inferred directly from our data because of a confounding factor of different fishing intensities outside the closure for a direct comparison of preclosure and postclosure data. The overall negative impact of trawls is likely underestimated by our data, whereas the negative impact of gillnets is likely overestimated

Prospectus, May 12, 1982

STUDENTS REAPPLY; News Digest; Business manager talks about plans for PC annex; President offers best to Parkland graduates; Editor, manager positions named; Scarcity of summer jobs, but situation not hopeless; Nervous about finals? Tips offered on studying; P.C. Happenings...: Tools presented to PC students, \u27College for Kids\u27 offers 20 classes, Parkland offers supplementary, Music groups to present programs; Security head enjoys PC people; Final Examinations -- Spring, 1982; Holly O\u27Donnell wins Intellectual Freedom Essay Contest: Restraint makes one appreciate freedom; How can teacher aide make a difference; Course helps improve communication skills; Don\u27t panic if IRS audits your tax bill; Mini skirts, shorts are \u27in\u27 fashion; \u27A Touch of Nature\u27: Lower photo essay wins Kennedy award; Pediatrician to talk on parenting topic; Place offers help for crisis victims; Weather perfect for Spring Out fun; Classifieds; Looking back on spring semester; Spring brings out fears as well as flowers; Hagar falls short of earlier work; Blaster\u27s first take a trip back into fifties rockabilly; Jim Carroll\u27s latest album: has he burned himself out?; Gun Club a winner of a group; Summer movies shaping up well; Editor reviews music happenings; Roadmaster draws crowd at Spring Outhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_1982/1018/thumbnail.jp

Husbandry and enclosure influences on penguin behavior and conservation breeding

Multi-zoo comparisons of animal welfare are rare, and yet vital for ensuring continued improvement of zoo enclosures and husbandry. Methods are not standardised for the development of zoo enclosures based on multiple indicators, and case study species are required. This study compares behavior and breeding success to various enclosure and husbandry parameters for the Humboldt penguin, Spheniscus humboldti, for the development of improved enclosure design. Behavioral sampling was completed at Flamingo Land over a period of eight months. Further data on behavior, enclosure design and breeding success were collected via questionnaires, visits to zoos, and literature review. Breeding success was primarily influenced by colony age and number of breeding pairs, suggesting an important social influence on reproduction. Across zoos, there was also significant variation in behavior. The proportion of time spent in water varied between zoos (2-23%) and was used as an indicator of physical activity and natural behavior. Regression models revealed that water-use was best predicted by total enclosure area per penguin, followed by land area, with some evidence for positive influence of pool surface area per penguin. Predominantly linear/curvilinear increases in our biological indicators with enclosure parameters suggest that optimal conditions for S. humboldti were not met among the selected zoos. We propose revised minimum conditions for S. humboldti enclosure design, which exceed those in the existing husbandry guidelines. We present a framework for the evaluation of zoo enclosures and suggest that a rigorous scientific protocol be established for the design of new enclosures, based on multivariate methods

Corporate power over human rights: an analytical framework

This paper presents an original framework designed to systemize understandings of corporate power over human rights. The framework disaggregates four sites of this power: corporations have direct power over individuals’ human rights, power over the materialities of human rights, power over institutions governing human rights, and power over knowledge around human rights. This disaggregation is derived primarily from the work of Barnett and Duvall, and focuses on effects of corporate activity, rather than the Weberian understanding of power as the ability to achieve desired outcomes. The framework captures a broad set of corporate acts based on their (potential) harm to human rights. It is argued that understanding business and human rights through the lens of power can help to advance a more comprehensive account of business impacts on human rights