Assessing the value of forest landscapes: a choice experiment approach

Landscape planning and design occupies a major role in forest policy in the UK. Since the 1980s, UK forests have been managed increasingly for multi-purpose objectives, a policy which has been underpinned by international agreements on sustainable forestry. Within this context, there is a need to understand public preferences for forest landscapes in designing policies that meet the needs of multi-purpose forestry. This paper is based on a study to investigate public willingness to pay (WTP) for regular visual and recreational access to a wide variety of generic forest landscapes. A total of thirty-three forest landscapes were investigated, each of which was defined as a combination of the configuration of the planting and the landscape factors. Computergenerated images of each of these landscapes were used to underpin a series of choice experiments conducted as part of a questionnaire survey of over 400 households across Great Britain. The results confirm the importance of landscape in contributing to the social and environmental benefits provided by forests, and suggests that current policies of woodland expansion may generate additional benefits, especially if more woodland is located close to urban populations. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of these results for forest policy across the UK. © AB Academic Publishers 2009

Consumer attitudes towards organic versus conventional food with specific quality attributes

This paper describes the findings from a consumer survey conducted as part of the EU-funded research project QualityLowInputFood (QLIF). The objective was to segment occasional organic consumers with regard to their preferences for organic, conventional and conventional-plus products, i.e., conventional products with a specific attribute that also applies to organic products. In other words, these conventional-plus products are placed between organic and conventional food products. In addition, we aimed at analysing differences between consumer segments regarding their price sensitivity and attitudes towards food. The survey used choice experiments to investigate occasional organic consumer preferences for the different types of products. In subsequent standardized face-to-face interviews we collected data on consumer attitudes towards food that could explain the observed preferences. The attitudes were summarized in attitude factors, using factor analysis. The responses from the interviews and choice experiments were analysed by latent class models. These econometric models were used to identify segments within a group of individuals for their preference structure and to relate membership in each segment to consumer characteristics. Two segments of occasional organic consumers were identified. Consumers in segment 1 strongly preferred organic products and were less price sensitive. Furthermore, consumers in this segment showed a significantly higher level of agreement with most of the investigated attitude factors than consumers in segment 2. The latter consisted of consumers who were significantly more price sensitive and preferred conventional-plus and conventional products rather than organic products. Communicating quality attributes represents a promising marketing tool of product differentiation and information for both organic and conventional food marketers. The price sensitivity of parts of occasional organic consumers suggests that the perceived price-performance ratio of organic products needs to be increased by targeted pricing and communication strategies integrating product-relevant information. If not, conventional-plus products, representing a cheaper alternative, might be preferred by parts of the occasional organic consumers

Assessing knowledge and willingness to use genetically modified crops in Uganda

Background: There has been a lot of debate on genetically modified (GM) crops both globally and locally in Uganda. Whereas some of the debates have been informed by scientific research, many are not. The level of acceptance and attitudes of people towards GM crops is a function of their knowledge. However, there is a paucity of studies on the knowledge and attitudes of Ugandans on GM crops. This study aimed to assess the level of knowledge of GM crops in Uganda. Methods: We carried out a mixed methods study in September 2021 in Bushenyi, Jinja and Wakiso districts. We conducted 18 focus group discussions (FGDs), 13 key informant interviews (KIIs) and 698 quantitative interviews. The quantitative interviews were conducted using structured questionnaires. The FGD and KI interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. The qualitative data were analyzed using framework analysis and the quantitative data were analyzed using modified Poisson regression to identify factors associated with the level of knowledge of GM crops in STATA 15. Results: Out of the 698 respondents interviewed, only 273 (39.1%) had ever heard of GM crops. About 204 (74.7%) of the 273 respondents reported having a moderate–high understanding of GM crops and 62.3% (170) of the respondents further reported that GM crops are harmful to their health and environment, despite some of their intrinsic benefits, such as high productivity, improved income and resilience to pests and diseases. In addition, Out of the 698 respondents interviewed, only 37.7% were wary of the possibility of the emergence of super pests due to the development of resistance to some GM crops. Conclusions: Most of the community members do not have adequate knowledge about GM crops, hence, there is need for sensitization and legislation on GM crops before their release to the public

Economic Valuation of Grazing Management Practices: Discrete Choice Modeling in Pastoral Systems of Kenya

This study estimates the economic contribution of grazing management practices in pastoral systems by specifically undertaking an economic analysis of pastoralists’ preferences for grazing management practices and the economic value pastoralists place on them. The study applied the discrete choice experiment technique using a D-optimal design, a multi-attribute preference elicitation method to evaluate the economic value of grazing management options practiced in pastoral areas of Kenya. The results show that pastoral communities derive positive utility in connected systems that enable reciprocal access to resources in both wet and dry seasons. Pastoralism adapts to spatial–temporal variability of pasture and water through herd mobility; hence the positive utility derived from practices that contribute to the availability of adequate water and pasture across the seasons. These findings provide empirical evidence on the social and economic net benefits of rangeland management practices that should be enhanced to promote sustainable management of rangeland resources

Human Remains from the Pleistocene-Holocene Transition of Southwest China Suggest a Complex Evolutionary History for East Asians

BACKGROUND: Later Pleistocene human evolution in East Asia remains poorly understood owing to a scarcity of well described, reliably classified and accurately dated fossils. Southwest China has been identified from genetic research as a hotspot of human diversity, containing ancient mtDNA and Y-DNA lineages, and has yielded a number of human remains thought to derive from Pleistocene deposits. We have prepared, reconstructed, described and dated a new partial skull from a consolidated sediment block collected in 1979 from the site of Longlin Cave (Guangxi Province). We also undertook new excavations at Maludong (Yunnan Province) to clarify the stratigraphy and dating of a large sample of mostly undescribed human remains from the site. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We undertook a detailed comparison of cranial, including a virtual endocast for the Maludong calotte, mandibular and dental remains from these two localities. Both samples probably derive from the same population, exhibiting an unusual mixture of modern human traits, characters probably plesiomorphic for later Homo, and some unusual features. We dated charcoal with AMS radiocarbon dating and speleothem with the Uranium-series technique and the results show both samples to be from the Pleistocene-Holocene transition: ∼14.3-11.5 ka. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our analysis suggests two plausible explanations for the morphology sampled at Longlin Cave and Maludong. First, it may represent a late-surviving archaic population, perhaps paralleling the situation seen in North Africa as indicated by remains from Dar-es-Soltane and Temara, and maybe also in southern China at Zhirendong. Alternatively, East Asia may have been colonised during multiple waves during the Pleistocene, with the Longlin-Maludong morphology possibly reflecting deep population substructure in Africa prior to modern humans dispersing into Eurasia

Using choice experiments to investigate preferences for cattle traits in Kenya.

"Choice Experiments in Developing Countries" is an invaluable one-stop presentation of the best-practice case studies implementing the choice experiment method in developing countries. It highlights the theoretical and practical issues that should be taken into consideration when applying this method in a developing country context. The expert contributors gather recent state-of-the-art choice experiment studies undertaken in several developing countries, in Africa, Asia, Latin American and the Caribbean. These focus on a variety of environmental and agricultural issues, underlining the versatility of this method in valuing a wide array of interventions (for example policies, public and private services, new technologies) and emphasizing the value of the method in informing efficient, effective and equitable policies for sustainable economic development. This work will be of great interest to academics and researchers of environmental economics, agricultural and resource economics, development, environmental management and planning, as well as national and international development agencies and NGOs. Civil servants and policymakers in developing countries will find the work and recommendations within this book engaging and inspirational