Since becoming President in January 2006, I have been working with AFS executive director Tim Llo... more Since becoming President in January 2006, I have been working with AFS executive director Tim Lloyd and associate director Brent Björkman, with the Executive Board, and with other Society leaders to create and carry out a strategy for improving the standing of folklore in the academy, which I cited as my major goal if elected President of the Society. At the same time, the Board, staff, and I have undertaken a new process of long-range planning for our Society, of which our efforts in the academy are one essential element. In May 2006, I led a meeting of representatives from the fields of folklore, oral history, and ethnomusicology to discuss the changing places of our three fields in the academy. We selected these two other fields as partners because they share with our field a fundamental commitment to ethnography, and because the academic members of all three fields customarily find themselves in departments with the name of another field-English, anthropology, history, or music,...
This paper reveals the outcome of structured interviews conducted with 25 farm operators within t... more This paper reveals the outcome of structured interviews conducted with 25 farm operators within the Conservation Effects Assessment Project in the Goodwater Creek watershed of central Missouri. Understanding of the factors which led to decisions that were made concerning pesticide ...
With the UN Conference on Sustainable Development occurring in 2012, this essay asks whether or n... more With the UN Conference on Sustainable Development occurring in 2012, this essay asks whether or not changes towards sustainability can be documented over the past twenty years and, if not, to ask why not, and what might be necessary to better ensure that movement towards sustainability characterizes the next twenty years. Looking at the performance of the United States, it finds that measures of all major dimensions of sustainability-environment, social equity, and economic viability-reveal little progress towards sustainability. In trying to explain this lack of progress, our claim is that the "problem" of sustainability is not primarily technical or scientific, but rather it is political, and the real problem is that of power. In the US in recent years, anti-sustainability movements have captured national politics by removing sustainability from the national dialogue and from the agenda of public decision-making, and through the process of decentralization of decision-making to more local contexts where they may more easily control direct conflicts in decision. Why are Americans sanguine about issues of sustainability? The essay examines three core beliefs that dominate American perceptions: (1) problems associated with lack of sustainability can and will be managed by simple economic growth, (2) whatever scarcities and problems we face down the road will be cured by advances in science and technology, and (3) fairness is more important than equality. The concluding section calls for adoption of a "deep sustainability" paradigm versus the kind of "shallow sustainability" that characterizes the majority of policy and programs today labeled as sustainable. Borrowing the ecosophic concept of "deep ecology" from Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess, the guiding principle of a deep sustainability is one of equality, equality first of all among environmental, economic, and social objectives, and then social equity within each of these dimensions. Sustainability cannot be achieved under systems that have as their basic assumption the roles of winners and losers, rich and poor, haves and have-nots. If Rio+20 offers only solutions within the existing powerful paradigm of market-driven solutions, then the "green economy" will mean more commodification of food and water, land and biodiversity. It will mean that we have fallen further behind in our quest for sustainability.
To address systemic malnutrition, food insecurity, and a need to manage natural resources sustain... more To address systemic malnutrition, food insecurity, and a need to manage natural resources sustainably, within the context of an agricultural economy, the Ethiopian government has invested more than 15% of the national development budget in agriculture programs as part of the Agriculture Development Led Industrialization (ADLI) plan (MARD 2010; Berhanu and Poulton 2014). This paper explores one such program – row plating of Eragrostis tef (tef). Tef is an important staple crop, with critical nutrient content for child growth and development (Stallknecht et al. 1993). Despite the use of demonstration plots and input packages, adoption of tef row planting in the study region, South Wollo, is minimal. This paper uses a political ecology framework to provide historical context to this issue of non-adoption; as well as, a much needed critique of current innovation programs from the point of view of those most marginalized by modernization efforts. Using a mixed methods approach, this stud...
In recent history, significant decrease in water quality has been observed in different coastal a... more In recent history, significant decrease in water quality has been observed in different coastal areas of the world. This has been attributed to an increased contribution of Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, thus making NPS management vital. Chesapeake Bay (CB)(Figure 1) is the largest estuary in the US and has been adversely affected by nutrient enrichment. Sources of these nutrients have been attributed to both urbanization and agriculture. Xiamen Bay(XB)(Figure 2) is a typical bay in southeast China. Similarly, XB has deteriorated by the effects of NPS pollution. (Figure 4;Shows NPS pollution negative effects). The approaches discussed here are the roles of management, managing policies, mechanism, and tools(e.g. Best Management Practices (BMPs), and Geographical information system (GIS) modeling, Soil and Water Assessment Tool(SWAT),Total Maximum Daily Loads(TMDL)(Figure 3),etc. Results indicated that governance of NPS in the upstream regions of XB still remain a great challenge.Results also show that a lack of local participation remains to be a huge issue in XB. This study concludes that realizing the ultimate goal of achieving clean estuaries is still a big challenge, especially in XB. Further studies will be conducted, such as developing models to estimate the total pollution loads and determine appropriate BMPs prevalent in both watersheds.
Soil erosion by water is the most common cause of land degradation and traditionally coincides wi... more Soil erosion by water is the most common cause of land degradation and traditionally coincides with agricultural production. This paper presents the results of a sociological case study comparing the perceptions of soil erosion of stakeholder groups from southern Moravia, an intensive agricultural and erosion-prone region in the Czech Republic. The research documents and analyses perceptions of erosion, perceived causes, and attitudes towards possible corrective measures. Altogether, 216 stakeholders consisting of farmers and local leaders (mostly mayors and vice-mayors) took part in a questionnaire survey between the years of 2012-2015. The results show that the stakeholders as whole are in general aware of the seriousness of the problem and see irresponsible farmers, lack of organic fertilizers and climate change as the major causes. Overall most preferred erosion mitigation measures were the growing of appropriate crops and the splitting of large fields into smaller ones. The views of farmers and local leaders are compared and discussed within the framework of the changing roles of rural areas. A productivist paradigm and corresponding modulation of erosion is significantly more prevalent among farmers, although not the dominant viewpoint in this group. The socioeconomic context of soil erosion and recent trends in Czech soil conservation policies are discussed and it is argued that the local stakeholders are supportive of pro-environmental measures despite a lack of effort on the governmental and legislation level.
Journal of Environmental Economics and Policy, 2016
ABSTRACT The Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis advances an inverted U-shaped relations... more ABSTRACT The Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis advances an inverted U-shaped relationship between economic growth and environmental pollution. Scholars have estimated turning point incomes for various pollutants within and across countries. However, the majority of these studies were conducted for developed countries. Very few studies have focused on developing countries. In particular, the relationship between economic growth and air pollution in Africa remains largely unexplored. In this paper, we test whether the EKC hypothesis holds for carbon dioxide (CO2) and particulate matter (PM10) emissions in African and high income OECD countries. We find that the EKC hypothesis holds for both CO2 and PM10 for African and OECD countries. Further, our examination of the effect of institutional quality on air pollution reveals an insignificant effect for CO2 for both samples. However, democracy is positively and significantly correlated with PM10 emissions for African countries.
Food insecurity is on the rise in the U.S. While 11.1% of households were food insecure in 2007, ... more Food insecurity is on the rise in the U.S. While 11.1% of households were food insecure in 2007, just one year later, in 2008, that number jumped to 14.6% (Andrews and Nord, 2009). And the increase includes types of households that typically have less food vulnerability, including households with children. Many food insecure households seek assistance from food pantries. An estimated 4.1 million households accessed emergency food from a food pantry at least once in 2008, an increase from the previous year.
The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the ... more The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the University of Missouri (MU). Our efforts would not have been possible, however, without the support of individuals in public agencies who shared data on agency programs with us. Specifically, in Missouri, we received wonderful assistance in the retrieval of information from Karen Young and Christine Combs (
The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the ... more The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the University of Missouri (MU). Our efforts would not have been possible, however, without the support of individuals in public agencies who shared data on agency programs with us. Specifically, in Missouri, we received wonderful assistance in the retrieval of information from Karen Young and Christine Combs (
This study uses data from the Missouri Food Pantry Client Survey to assess whether food tradeoffs... more This study uses data from the Missouri Food Pantry Client Survey to assess whether food tradeoffs increased for food pantry clients between 2005 and 2010 in conjunction with the deteriorating economic conditions in the nation. Results indicate that a lower share of clients reported tradeoffs in 2010 as compared to 2005, and in a series of logistic regression models these differences persisted after controls for individual, household, and county characteristics. County unemployment rates are significant predictor of making a food tradeoff, although the effect was the same in both 2005 and 2010. A decomposition of the multivariate results reveals that given the composition of pantry clients in 2010, the percentage of households making tradeoffs in 2010 should have been even lower than reported. However, the returns to user characteristics changed such that any composition-based reductions in the probability of tradeoffs for 2010 were substantially offset.
Since becoming President in January 2006, I have been working with AFS executive director Tim Llo... more Since becoming President in January 2006, I have been working with AFS executive director Tim Lloyd and associate director Brent Björkman, with the Executive Board, and with other Society leaders to create and carry out a strategy for improving the standing of folklore in the academy, which I cited as my major goal if elected President of the Society. At the same time, the Board, staff, and I have undertaken a new process of long-range planning for our Society, of which our efforts in the academy are one essential element. In May 2006, I led a meeting of representatives from the fields of folklore, oral history, and ethnomusicology to discuss the changing places of our three fields in the academy. We selected these two other fields as partners because they share with our field a fundamental commitment to ethnography, and because the academic members of all three fields customarily find themselves in departments with the name of another field-English, anthropology, history, or music,...
This paper reveals the outcome of structured interviews conducted with 25 farm operators within t... more This paper reveals the outcome of structured interviews conducted with 25 farm operators within the Conservation Effects Assessment Project in the Goodwater Creek watershed of central Missouri. Understanding of the factors which led to decisions that were made concerning pesticide ...
With the UN Conference on Sustainable Development occurring in 2012, this essay asks whether or n... more With the UN Conference on Sustainable Development occurring in 2012, this essay asks whether or not changes towards sustainability can be documented over the past twenty years and, if not, to ask why not, and what might be necessary to better ensure that movement towards sustainability characterizes the next twenty years. Looking at the performance of the United States, it finds that measures of all major dimensions of sustainability-environment, social equity, and economic viability-reveal little progress towards sustainability. In trying to explain this lack of progress, our claim is that the "problem" of sustainability is not primarily technical or scientific, but rather it is political, and the real problem is that of power. In the US in recent years, anti-sustainability movements have captured national politics by removing sustainability from the national dialogue and from the agenda of public decision-making, and through the process of decentralization of decision-making to more local contexts where they may more easily control direct conflicts in decision. Why are Americans sanguine about issues of sustainability? The essay examines three core beliefs that dominate American perceptions: (1) problems associated with lack of sustainability can and will be managed by simple economic growth, (2) whatever scarcities and problems we face down the road will be cured by advances in science and technology, and (3) fairness is more important than equality. The concluding section calls for adoption of a "deep sustainability" paradigm versus the kind of "shallow sustainability" that characterizes the majority of policy and programs today labeled as sustainable. Borrowing the ecosophic concept of "deep ecology" from Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess, the guiding principle of a deep sustainability is one of equality, equality first of all among environmental, economic, and social objectives, and then social equity within each of these dimensions. Sustainability cannot be achieved under systems that have as their basic assumption the roles of winners and losers, rich and poor, haves and have-nots. If Rio+20 offers only solutions within the existing powerful paradigm of market-driven solutions, then the "green economy" will mean more commodification of food and water, land and biodiversity. It will mean that we have fallen further behind in our quest for sustainability.
To address systemic malnutrition, food insecurity, and a need to manage natural resources sustain... more To address systemic malnutrition, food insecurity, and a need to manage natural resources sustainably, within the context of an agricultural economy, the Ethiopian government has invested more than 15% of the national development budget in agriculture programs as part of the Agriculture Development Led Industrialization (ADLI) plan (MARD 2010; Berhanu and Poulton 2014). This paper explores one such program – row plating of Eragrostis tef (tef). Tef is an important staple crop, with critical nutrient content for child growth and development (Stallknecht et al. 1993). Despite the use of demonstration plots and input packages, adoption of tef row planting in the study region, South Wollo, is minimal. This paper uses a political ecology framework to provide historical context to this issue of non-adoption; as well as, a much needed critique of current innovation programs from the point of view of those most marginalized by modernization efforts. Using a mixed methods approach, this stud...
In recent history, significant decrease in water quality has been observed in different coastal a... more In recent history, significant decrease in water quality has been observed in different coastal areas of the world. This has been attributed to an increased contribution of Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, thus making NPS management vital. Chesapeake Bay (CB)(Figure 1) is the largest estuary in the US and has been adversely affected by nutrient enrichment. Sources of these nutrients have been attributed to both urbanization and agriculture. Xiamen Bay(XB)(Figure 2) is a typical bay in southeast China. Similarly, XB has deteriorated by the effects of NPS pollution. (Figure 4;Shows NPS pollution negative effects). The approaches discussed here are the roles of management, managing policies, mechanism, and tools(e.g. Best Management Practices (BMPs), and Geographical information system (GIS) modeling, Soil and Water Assessment Tool(SWAT),Total Maximum Daily Loads(TMDL)(Figure 3),etc. Results indicated that governance of NPS in the upstream regions of XB still remain a great challenge.Results also show that a lack of local participation remains to be a huge issue in XB. This study concludes that realizing the ultimate goal of achieving clean estuaries is still a big challenge, especially in XB. Further studies will be conducted, such as developing models to estimate the total pollution loads and determine appropriate BMPs prevalent in both watersheds.
Soil erosion by water is the most common cause of land degradation and traditionally coincides wi... more Soil erosion by water is the most common cause of land degradation and traditionally coincides with agricultural production. This paper presents the results of a sociological case study comparing the perceptions of soil erosion of stakeholder groups from southern Moravia, an intensive agricultural and erosion-prone region in the Czech Republic. The research documents and analyses perceptions of erosion, perceived causes, and attitudes towards possible corrective measures. Altogether, 216 stakeholders consisting of farmers and local leaders (mostly mayors and vice-mayors) took part in a questionnaire survey between the years of 2012-2015. The results show that the stakeholders as whole are in general aware of the seriousness of the problem and see irresponsible farmers, lack of organic fertilizers and climate change as the major causes. Overall most preferred erosion mitigation measures were the growing of appropriate crops and the splitting of large fields into smaller ones. The views of farmers and local leaders are compared and discussed within the framework of the changing roles of rural areas. A productivist paradigm and corresponding modulation of erosion is significantly more prevalent among farmers, although not the dominant viewpoint in this group. The socioeconomic context of soil erosion and recent trends in Czech soil conservation policies are discussed and it is argued that the local stakeholders are supportive of pro-environmental measures despite a lack of effort on the governmental and legislation level.
Journal of Environmental Economics and Policy, 2016
ABSTRACT The Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis advances an inverted U-shaped relations... more ABSTRACT The Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis advances an inverted U-shaped relationship between economic growth and environmental pollution. Scholars have estimated turning point incomes for various pollutants within and across countries. However, the majority of these studies were conducted for developed countries. Very few studies have focused on developing countries. In particular, the relationship between economic growth and air pollution in Africa remains largely unexplored. In this paper, we test whether the EKC hypothesis holds for carbon dioxide (CO2) and particulate matter (PM10) emissions in African and high income OECD countries. We find that the EKC hypothesis holds for both CO2 and PM10 for African and OECD countries. Further, our examination of the effect of institutional quality on air pollution reveals an insignificant effect for CO2 for both samples. However, democracy is positively and significantly correlated with PM10 emissions for African countries.
Food insecurity is on the rise in the U.S. While 11.1% of households were food insecure in 2007, ... more Food insecurity is on the rise in the U.S. While 11.1% of households were food insecure in 2007, just one year later, in 2008, that number jumped to 14.6% (Andrews and Nord, 2009). And the increase includes types of households that typically have less food vulnerability, including households with children. Many food insecure households seek assistance from food pantries. An estimated 4.1 million households accessed emergency food from a food pantry at least once in 2008, an increase from the previous year.
The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the ... more The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the University of Missouri (MU). Our efforts would not have been possible, however, without the support of individuals in public agencies who shared data on agency programs with us. Specifically, in Missouri, we received wonderful assistance in the retrieval of information from Karen Young and Christine Combs (
The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the ... more The Missouri Hunger Atlas is an outcome of a cooperative endeavor of faculty and students at the University of Missouri (MU). Our efforts would not have been possible, however, without the support of individuals in public agencies who shared data on agency programs with us. Specifically, in Missouri, we received wonderful assistance in the retrieval of information from Karen Young and Christine Combs (
This study uses data from the Missouri Food Pantry Client Survey to assess whether food tradeoffs... more This study uses data from the Missouri Food Pantry Client Survey to assess whether food tradeoffs increased for food pantry clients between 2005 and 2010 in conjunction with the deteriorating economic conditions in the nation. Results indicate that a lower share of clients reported tradeoffs in 2010 as compared to 2005, and in a series of logistic regression models these differences persisted after controls for individual, household, and county characteristics. County unemployment rates are significant predictor of making a food tradeoff, although the effect was the same in both 2005 and 2010. A decomposition of the multivariate results reveals that given the composition of pantry clients in 2010, the percentage of households making tradeoffs in 2010 should have been even lower than reported. However, the returns to user characteristics changed such that any composition-based reductions in the probability of tradeoffs for 2010 were substantially offset.
Soil erosion by water is the most common cause of land degradation and traditionally coincides wi... more Soil erosion by water is the most common cause of land degradation and traditionally coincides with agricultural production. This paper presents the results of a sociological case study comparing the perceptions of soil erosion of stakeholder groups from southern Moravia, an intensive agricultural and erosion-prone region in the Czech Republic. The research documents and analyses perceptions of erosion, perceived causes, and attitudes towards possible corrective measures. Altogether, 216 stakeholders consisting of farmers and local leaders (mostly mayors and vice-mayors) took part in a questionnaire survey between the years of 2012–2015. The results show that the stakeholders as whole are in general aware of the seriousness of the problem and see irresponsible farmers, lack of organic fertilizers and climate change as the major causes. Overall most preferred erosion mitigation measures were the growing of appropriate crops and the splitting of large fields into smaller ones. The views of farmers and local leaders are compared and discussed within the framework of the changing roles of rural areas. A productivist paradigm and corresponding modulation of erosion is significantly more prevalent among farmers, although not the dominant viewpoint in this group. The socio-economic context of soil erosion and recent trends in Czech soil conservation policies are discussed and it is argued that the local stakeholders are supportive of pro-environmental measures despite a lack of effort on the governmental and legislation level.
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Papers by Sandy Rikoon