Our energy (in) security

Energy issues have long been at the heart of human security concerns. At one level, we humans have always needed food energy and heat energy to survive and thrive. Yet, with the industrial revolution and our discoveries of the tremendous utility of fossils fuels like coal and oil, the security concerns related to human energy demands have expanded dramatically as our demand for energy accelerated rapidly. My proposed Discovery Dialogue essay begins by noting the eternal human need for energy supplies of various kinds. It then focuses attention on the contemporary links between energy and security at three levels of political scale: global, national and local

DISCUSSION: PROTECTION OF AGRICULTURAL LAND: AN INSTITUTIONALIST PERSPECTIVE

Land Economics/Use,

Global poverty & global politics

In recent years, many policymakers and scholars supportive of globalization – but opposed to many things done in the name of globalization – have begun to draw lessons from policymaking, statistical analysis and the lives of everyday citizens about what can be done to meet the challenge of global poverty. This proposed discovery dialogue essay will attempt to outline some of their conclusions, and explain how they arrived at these lessons

ISSUES IN AGRICULTURAL LAND MARKETS: AN EMPIRICAL PERSPECTIVE

Land Economics/Use,

PROJECTED CASH FLOWS AND PROFITABILITY FOR REPRESENTATIVE LOUISIANA FARMS, 2001.

Changes in commodity prices and input costs along with adjustments in capital structure significantly affect farm cash flow requirements and whole farm profitability. These changes coupled with crop yield and price variability increase the need for farm business cash flow and profitability planning on a whole farm basis. Planning for profits is expected to affect both the short and long run success of the business and cash flow planning is expected to allow the manager to establish farm business cash needs for a specified period of time (production period) so that cash commitments are met as they come due. Furthermore, agricultural lenders have become increasingly concerned with loan repayment capacity and are placing relatively more emphasis on cash flow analysis in the loan evaluation process. In general, farm managers who develop cash flow and profitability projections should find it easier to justify and to secure adequate financing for their businesses. The purpose of this report is to supplement the series of annual cost projections for enterprises by providing profitability and cash flow projections for several whole farm situations throughout the state. Whole farm projections of returns and expenses are expected to provide information regarding the relative profitability of individual farming situations throughout the state. Estimates from cash flow projections provide information concerning the timing of cash flows and the distribution of cash flows for individual farm situations and comparison of estimates for these situations provide an indication of the relative cash flow positions of farms across the state. These projections are expected to be of value to farmers, agricultural credit agencies, extension personnel, researchers, and other professionals with an interest in the agricultural production industry. This report is organized into three general parts. Data sources and procedures used in the study are presented in the first section. In the second section, projected income and cash flow statements for representative farms in major crop producing areas of the state are presented and discussed. The final section summarizes the financial projections for representative farms considered in the study.Farm Management,

ESTIMATING THE DIFFERENTIAL CHANGE IN LAND USE ASSOCIATED WITH RESERVOIR CONSTRUCTION

Land Economics/Use,

PROJECTED CASH FLOWS AND PROFITABILITY FOR REPRESENTATIVE LOUISIANA FARMS, 1997

The purpose of this report is to supplement the series of annual cost projections for enterprises by providing profitability and cash flow projections for several whole farm situations throughout the state. Whole farm projections of returns and expenses are expected to provide information regarding the relative profitability of individual farming situations throughout the state. Estimates from cash flow projections provide information concerning the timing of cash flows and the distribution of cash flows for individual farm situations and comparison of estimates for these situations provide an indication of the relative cash flow positions of farms across the state. These projections are expected to be of value to farmers, agricultural credit agencies, extension personnel, researchers, and other professionals with an interest in the agricultural production industry.Agricultural Finance, Farm Management,

THE FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE PROGRAM - AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF REGIONAL DIFFERENCES IN ACREAGE RESPONSE AND PARTICIPATION

The extent to which crop insurance programs have resulted in additional land being brought into production has been a topic of considerable debate. We extend a multi-equation structural model of crop acreage response, insurance participation, CRP enrollment, and input usage developed in Goodwin and Vandeveer (2000) to wheat and barley production in the "Northern Great Plains" region. We also update earlier results for corn and soybean production in the "Heartland" region. Our results confirm earlier findings that increased participation in insurance programs provoke a statistically significant acreage response. This response is, however, relatively modest. We find that cross-the-board decreases of 50% in insurance premiums significantly increase participation but result in acreage increases of about 0.5% for barley and 3.7% for wheat. In the modern period (1997-1998),expanded insurance participation brought about by premium rate reductions has almost no effect on acreage. Our results for the recent period show a shifting in coverage toward revenue insurance.Crop Production/Industries, Risk and Uncertainty,