The Second Welfare Theorem with public goods in general economies

In this paper we prove a general version of the Second Welfare Theorem for a non-convex and non-transitive economy, with public goods and other externalities in consumption. For this purpose we use the sub-gradient to the distance function (normal cone) to define the pricing rule in this general context.Non-convex separation, Second Welfare Theorem, public goods, externalities.

The Evidence Base for Environmental and Socioeconomic Impacts of “Sustainable” Certification

Initiatives certifying that farms and firms adhere to predefined environmental and social welfare production standards are increasingly popular. According to proponents, they create financial incentives for farms and firms to improve their environmental and socioeconomic performance. This paper reviews the evidence on whether sustainable certification of agricultural commodities and tourism operations actually has such benefits. It identifies empirical ex post farm-level studies of certification, classifies them on the basis of whether they use methods likely to generate credible results, summarizes their findings, and considers the implications for future research. We conclude that empirical evidence that sustainable certification has significant benefits is limited. We identify just 37 relevant studies, only 14 of which use methods likely to generate credible results. Of these 14 studies, only 6 find that certification has environmental or socioeconomic benefits. This evidence can be expanded by incorporating rigorous, independent evaluation into the design and implementation of projects promoting sustainable certification.sustainable, certification, eco-label, literature review

Indivisible Goods and Fiat Money

In spite of fiat money is useless in a standard Arrow-Debreu model, in this paper we will show that this does not hold true anymore when goods are indivisible. In our setting, although fiat money yields no utility, its price will always be positive and the set of equilibrium allocations changes with the distribution of fiat money. Its role lies in the fact that it could be used to facilitate exchange. Since a Walras equilibrium does not always exist when goods are indivisible, a new equilibrium concept - called rationing equilibrium - is introduced and its existence is proven under weak assumptions on the economy. A Walras equilibrium exists generically on the distribution of fiat moneycompetitive equilibrium, indivisible goods, fiat money.

The Evidence Base for Environmental and Socioeconomic Impacts of “Sustainable” Certification

Initiatives certifying that farms and firms adhere to predefined environmental and social welfare production standards are increasingly popular. According to proponents, they create financial incentives for farms and firms to improve their environmental and socioeconomic performance. This paper reviews the evidence on whether sustainable certification of agricultural commodities and tourism operations actually has such benefits. It identifies empirical ex post farm-level studies of certification, classifies them on the basis of whether they use methods likely to generate credible results, summarizes their findings, and considers the implications for future research. We conclude that empirical evidence that sustainable certification has significant benefits is limited. We identify just 37 relevant studies, only 14 of which use methods likely to generate credible results. Of these 14 studies, only 6 find that certification has environmental or socioeconomic benefits. This evidence can be expanded by incorporating rigorous, independent evaluation into the design and implementation of projects promoting sustainable certification.sustainable, certification, eco-label, literature review

Ethos, Cognição, Paisagem

Intrínsecas dificuldades emergem na reflexão sobre a cognição das paisagens: é possível reconhecer nas múltimodas disposições dos habitantes ou observantes as operações cognitivas que se dirigem ou reflectem a diversidade e multiplicidade de paisagens? Podemos colocar as dificuldades de outro modo: se tomarmos as paisagens como sujeitos particulares, se os seus mesmos habitantes ou observadores fazem desde logo parte delas, quais os modos de conhecer que são activados pelas paisagens? Se ao invés as considerarmos como objectos, que modos de verdade assistem ao seu conhecimento? Ponderadas as dificuldades, não prosseguimos a reflexão directamente, mas através da Arquitectura, num ensaio exploratório e limitado, preliminar a um estudo mais desenvolvido

Walrasian prices in a market with consumption rights

In this paper we consider an exchange economy where there is an external restriction for the consumption of goods. This restriction is defined by both a cap on consumption of certain commodities and the requirement of an amount of rights for the consumption of these commodities. The caps for consumption are imposed exogenously due to the negative effects that the consumption may produce. The consumption rights are distributed among the agents. This fact leads to the possibility of establishing licence or consumption rights markets. These consumption rights do not participate in agents' preferences, however the individual's budgetary constraint may be modified, leading to a reassignment of resources. The aim of this paper is to show the existence of a Walrasian equilibrium price system linking tradable rights prices with commodity prices.competitive equilibrium, quotas, consumption rights, cap-and-trade program.