Steven Schilizzi

Assessing the performance of conservation auctions: an experimental study

This work uses controlled laboratory experiments to investigate the budgetary and the economic performance of competitive tenders for allocating conservation contracts to landholders. Experiments have been replicated in two different countries to check for robustness of results. We find that auctions outperform the more traditional fixed-price programs only in the one-shot setting. With repetition, the auctions quickly lose their edge. The budget-constrained auction performs similarly to the target-constrained in the one-shot setting but appears more robust to repetition. Our results suggest that previous estimates of conservation auction performance are too optimistic, and we propose a method for improving such estimates. (JEL Q24)

Are Auctions More Efficient Than Fixed Price Schemes When Bidders Learn

Auctions are increasingly being considered as a mechanism for allocating conservation contracts to private landowners. This interest is based on the widely held belief that competitive bidding helps minimize information rents. This study constructs an agent-based model to evaluate the long-term performance of conservation auctions under settings where bidders are allowed to learn from previous outcomes. The results clearly indicate that the efficiency benefits of one-shot auctions are quickly eroded under dynamic settings. Furthermore, the auction mechanism is not found to be superior to fixed payment schemes except when the latter involve the use of high prices.

Determinants of rural household food security: a comparative analysis of African and Asian studies

This paper reviews the determinants of rural household food security in Africa and Asia where more than 88% of the worlds undernourished people live. A conceptual model is proposed on the basis of the three widely known components of food security: food availability, accessibility and utilisation. This model is used to select a total of 40 peer-reviewed studies carried out over the last decade (20 each from Africa and Asia). A meta-analysis technique is then used to identify which determinants of food security have been highlighted and how well the causality is demonstrated. Food availability is the most studied component in both regions, followed by food accessibility, while food utilisation is the most neglected component in these studies.

Effects of climatic and price uncertainty on the value of legume crops in a Mediterranean-type environment

Abstract This study investigates the impact of price and yield uncertainty on the value of new legumes and their place in a Mediterranean region of Western Australia. It uses the stochastic bioeconomic farming system Model of an Uncertain Dryland Agricultural System (MUDAS) to integrate climatic, agronomic and economic information. A robust finding is that chick peas in rotation with wheat on some clayey loam soil classes are a profitable addition to optimal farm plans, increasing the certainty equivalence of profit on a typical farm by 7%. By contrast, modelling results for field peas and faba beans suggest they are likely to form a minor role in the farming system, being occasionally selected under certain price and weather-year conditions. Modelling results highlight a farmers attitude to risk and the proportion of the farm area with suitable soils as important determinants of the role and value of the new legumes in the farming system. These findings, if supported by further investigations, have important implications for breeding and agronomic research. ©

Conservation Tenders: Linking Theory and Experiments for Policy Assessment

Auction theory has mostly focussed on target-constrained auctions and is less well developed for budget-constrained tenders, which are the norm in environmental policy. This study assesses a theoretical model developed for budget-constrained tenders in its capacity to predict tendering performance under information deficiencies typical of field applications. If complemented by laboratory experiments, the model is able to make the correct policy recommendation when comparing the tender to an equivalent fixed-price scheme, even with poor predictive accuracy. This holds even if the policymaker has only limited information on the model’s key input variables.

The impacts of greenhouse gas abatement policies on the predominantly grazing systems of south-western Australia

Three policy options for greenhouse gas abatement in the predominantly grazing systems of Western Australia are analysed. The two taxation policies (a tax on total emissions, and a tax on methane emissions only) are only effective at extreme tax rates (

Learning in a “Basket of Crabs”: An Agent-Based Computational Model of Repeated Conservation Auctions

85/t CO2 equivalents)where farming systems are no longer economically viable. The third policy option, emission restrictions, allows farms to remain profitable at approximately four times greater abatement levels than the taxation policies, and is found to be the most effective and efficient policy option studied. However, it is concluded that the introduction of any farm-level policy for greenhouse gas abatement would be politically unpopular and, in the absence of swift and innovative technological change, would cause the current farming systems to fail and be replaced by alternative land-uses.

Computer games and fun in farming systems education?: A case study

Auctions are increasingly being considered as a mechanism for allocating conservation contracts to private landowners. This interest is based on the widely held belief that competitive bidding helps minimize information rents. This study constructs an agent-based model to evaluate the long term performance of conservation auctions under settings where bidders are allowed to learn from previous outcomes. The results clearly indicate that the efficiency benefits of one-shot auctions are quickly eroded under dynamic settings. Furthermore, the auction mechanism is not found to be superior to fixed payment schemes except when the latter involve the use of high prices.

The dynamics of phase farming in dryland salinity abatement

Abstract An interactive group‐based farm simulation game used in Australia for farming‐systems education is described. The computer‐aided game is the main feature of a facilitated one‐day workshop. The game and the workshop are designed to feature fun and learning for farming systems. Responses of game players are collated to reveal their perceptions and experiences of the game. Player feedback indicates that they find the game challenging, entertaining and effective in conveying a range of farming systems issues. The Australian experience shows that it is possible to design a game package that harnesses the beneficial elements of fun, group activity, facilitation, computer simulation and peer competition; with the outcome of stimulating and facilitating peoples learning about fanning systems.

Greenhouse Gas and Groundwater Recharge Abatement Benefits of Tree Crops in South-Western Australian Farming Systems

In Australia, soil salinisation has become a major concern. One way to deal with the problem is for farmers to plant trees or regenerate native bush. However, doing so raises several questions which involve optimal switching times, when switching involves a cost in the form of up-front investments. Optimality conditions are derived for the three-stage problem, and applied to dryland salinity control in Western Australia. Optimal management practices are found to be very sensitive to farmers’ discount rates and to the speed at which the watertable rises or falls.