Investments in rural land for agriculture, timber, and other natural resource purposes occur frequently and globally. Fundamental principles of liberty and property found in the United States of America’s (“US”) le...Investments in rural land for agriculture, timber, and other natural resource purposes occur frequently and globally. Fundamental principles of liberty and property found in the United States of America’s (“US”) legal system, from its origins to recent US Supreme Court decisions, continue to positively benefit holders of real estate in the Southern US, through a deep-rooted public policy of supporting private property rights and rural economic development. This stable rule of law enhances the long-term adaptability and sustainability of timberland as an asset class. This article is a commentary. It combines legal research methodology with the observations and conclusions of the authors. Its purpose is to demonstrate that the existence of alienable, documentable ownership, and related property rights create inherent stability and security. These principles form the basis of a culture that is defined by the rule of law and is “open for business.” This business mindset is particularly prevalent in the Southern US.展开更多
In recent years,experiments on land trusts(xin tuo)have been made in the rural areas of China.To better understand such practice,this research identifies four case studies based on their operational structures and div...In recent years,experiments on land trusts(xin tuo)have been made in the rural areas of China.To better understand such practice,this research identifies four case studies based on their operational structures and divides them into government-led models and market-led models.The government-led models include the Yiyang Model in Hunan Province,and the Longgang Model in Hubei Province.The market-led models include the Suzhou Model in Anhui Province,and the Golden Field Series Model in Jiangsu Province.This paper compares their profit-sharing mechanisms with specific attention given to the incentives for the villagers.Findings suggest that the villagers’profits are limited in both models.The government-led models concern less about profits but more on reusing the desolated agricultural land.The market-led models are profit-driven therefore tend to exclude the villagers from the profit-sharing process.展开更多
Based on rural household survey data from Taibus Banner, in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, this study separately categorizes agricul- tural land use intensity into labor intensity, capital intensity, the...Based on rural household survey data from Taibus Banner, in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, this study separately categorizes agricul- tural land use intensity into labor intensity, capital intensity, the intensity of labor-saving inputs, and the intensity of yield-increasing inputs, and then analyzes their determinants at the household level. The findings reveal that within the study area： （1） labor intensity is higher and capital intensity is lower than in the major grain-producing and economically developed areas of eastern and central China; （2） the most widely planted crops are those with the lowest labor intensity （oats） and capital intensity （benne）; （3） there are marked differences in agricultural land use intensity among households; a major factor affecting land use decision-making is the reduced need for labor intensity for those households with high opportunity costs, such as those with income earned from non-farming activities which alleviates financial constraints and allows for increased capital intensity. As a result, these households invest more in labor-saving inputs; （4） households with a larger number of workers will allocate adequate time to manage their land and thus they will not necessarily invest more in labor-saving inputs. Those households with more land to manage tend to adopt an extensive cultivation strategy. Total income has a positive impact on capital intensity and a negative impact on labor intensity. House- holds that derive a higher proportion of their total income through farming are more reliant upon agriculture, which necessitates significant labor and yield-increasing inputs. Finally, the authors contend that policy makers should clearly recognize the impacts of non-farming employment on agricultural land use intensity. In order to ensure long- term food security and sustainable agricultural develop-ment in China, income streams from both farming and non- farming employment should be balanced.展开更多
Across the African continent efforts to intensify agriculture have been limited to specific commodities,locations or particular production schemes.The causes for the widespread failure to overcome low land and labor p...Across the African continent efforts to intensify agriculture have been limited to specific commodities,locations or particular production schemes.The causes for the widespread failure to overcome low land and labor productivity while maintaining ecosystem services have often be analyzed but remain poorly understood.A socialecological system approach may help to better understand the complex nature of ecological disadvantages,postcolonial structures,limited connect between producers and consumer markets,low off-farm livelihood opportunities,partial underpopulation and lacking experience with the concept of sustainable production as a major impediment for sustainable intensification of the agricultural sector.Nevertheless,recent success stories in agro-pastoral systems as well as urban vegetable and animal production and associated value chains in West Africa,and in intensive mixed-cropping systems of the Great Lakes Region show the potential of stakeholder-driven agricultural intensification.Proper interpretation of these cases may provide lessons for a more widespread eco-intensification of smallholder agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa.展开更多
文摘Investments in rural land for agriculture, timber, and other natural resource purposes occur frequently and globally. Fundamental principles of liberty and property found in the United States of America’s (“US”) legal system, from its origins to recent US Supreme Court decisions, continue to positively benefit holders of real estate in the Southern US, through a deep-rooted public policy of supporting private property rights and rural economic development. This stable rule of law enhances the long-term adaptability and sustainability of timberland as an asset class. This article is a commentary. It combines legal research methodology with the observations and conclusions of the authors. Its purpose is to demonstrate that the existence of alienable, documentable ownership, and related property rights create inherent stability and security. These principles form the basis of a culture that is defined by the rule of law and is “open for business.” This business mindset is particularly prevalent in the Southern US.
文摘In recent years,experiments on land trusts(xin tuo)have been made in the rural areas of China.To better understand such practice,this research identifies four case studies based on their operational structures and divides them into government-led models and market-led models.The government-led models include the Yiyang Model in Hunan Province,and the Longgang Model in Hubei Province.The market-led models include the Suzhou Model in Anhui Province,and the Golden Field Series Model in Jiangsu Province.This paper compares their profit-sharing mechanisms with specific attention given to the incentives for the villagers.Findings suggest that the villagers’profits are limited in both models.The government-led models concern less about profits but more on reusing the desolated agricultural land.The market-led models are profit-driven therefore tend to exclude the villagers from the profit-sharing process.
文摘Based on rural household survey data from Taibus Banner, in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, this study separately categorizes agricul- tural land use intensity into labor intensity, capital intensity, the intensity of labor-saving inputs, and the intensity of yield-increasing inputs, and then analyzes their determinants at the household level. The findings reveal that within the study area： （1） labor intensity is higher and capital intensity is lower than in the major grain-producing and economically developed areas of eastern and central China; （2） the most widely planted crops are those with the lowest labor intensity （oats） and capital intensity （benne）; （3） there are marked differences in agricultural land use intensity among households; a major factor affecting land use decision-making is the reduced need for labor intensity for those households with high opportunity costs, such as those with income earned from non-farming activities which alleviates financial constraints and allows for increased capital intensity. As a result, these households invest more in labor-saving inputs; （4） households with a larger number of workers will allocate adequate time to manage their land and thus they will not necessarily invest more in labor-saving inputs. Those households with more land to manage tend to adopt an extensive cultivation strategy. Total income has a positive impact on capital intensity and a negative impact on labor intensity. House- holds that derive a higher proportion of their total income through farming are more reliant upon agriculture, which necessitates significant labor and yield-increasing inputs. Finally, the authors contend that policy makers should clearly recognize the impacts of non-farming employment on agricultural land use intensity. In order to ensure long- term food security and sustainable agricultural develop-ment in China, income streams from both farming and non- farming employment should be balanced.
基金the UrbanFood^(Plus)project(FKZ:031A242A)funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research(BMBF)and the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation(BMZ)under the GlobE initiative“Research for the Global Food Supply”the Indo-German Research Unit FOR2432/1&2“Social-ecological Systems in the Indian Rural-Urban Interface:Functions,Scales,and Dynamics of Transitions”jointly funded by the German Research Foundation(DFG)and the Department of Biotechnology(DBT),Government of India(BU1308/13-1&2,SCHL587/6-1&2)。
文摘Across the African continent efforts to intensify agriculture have been limited to specific commodities,locations or particular production schemes.The causes for the widespread failure to overcome low land and labor productivity while maintaining ecosystem services have often be analyzed but remain poorly understood.A socialecological system approach may help to better understand the complex nature of ecological disadvantages,postcolonial structures,limited connect between producers and consumer markets,low off-farm livelihood opportunities,partial underpopulation and lacking experience with the concept of sustainable production as a major impediment for sustainable intensification of the agricultural sector.Nevertheless,recent success stories in agro-pastoral systems as well as urban vegetable and animal production and associated value chains in West Africa,and in intensive mixed-cropping systems of the Great Lakes Region show the potential of stakeholder-driven agricultural intensification.Proper interpretation of these cases may provide lessons for a more widespread eco-intensification of smallholder agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa.
