This diploma thesis is a descriptive case study of permaculture oriented families and individuals in the Czech Republic, who are aiming for food self-sufficiency. The goal is to describe the lifestyle of self- supplying food producers, their strive for permacultural principles of sustainable development and the making of agricultural systems. Data were collected by observing and interviewing 8 households, analysing relevant literature and other data resources that were autonomously provided by informants. The main focus is on describing the economical and material background of households, their strategies and practices for achieving food self-sufficiency, and motivation and difficulties related to this matter. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

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In a development area of Trollbäcken, a suburb half an hour south of central Stockholm, I have created a sustainable housing project in the form of a byggemenskap/baugemeinschaften with a focus on sustainability. With the help of friends and family members and their wishes for a future home as basis for my programme, I investigated what sustainable housing could be with a special interest in the relationship between material and immaterial sustainability, between the buildings and the community that inhabits and maintains them, aiming to create a built environment that supports the sustainable lifestyles of the residents.

In Europe, 45% of vegetables and fruit have been lost before consumption. The main reason for the loss is suboptimal food, which is perfect based on safety and security but imperfect according to appearance or packaging. In this project, I want to find out new possibilities in urban development by suggesting a participative food supply chain.  It aims to inspire a paradigm of urban development and shift people’s attitudes towards suboptimal food. The participative supply chain includes food production, distribution, and retail/consumption. By participating in the food supply, residents and visitors can understand how the food system works, grow their food and help with food processing. With interaction and collaboration workers, they can value more about the food they consume and even change their eating patterns.

Recharge är en laddstation för elbilar med lokalproducerad el och en mötesplats för lokala och regionala aktörer att samlas, nätverka och utöva sina småskaliga verksamheter på. Projektet grundar sig i en undersökning av motorvägens roll på landsbygden. I undersökningen kartlades även småskaliga verksamheter inom matproduktion i området. Vidare diskuterar projektet tre huvudsakliga frågeställningar. Vilken är bilens roll i framtiden och hur en kan arkitektur som tar bilen i fokus ihop med ett hållbarhetsperspektiv se ut. Landsbygden har inte samma förutsättningar som staden för att bli fossilfria, därför utgår projektet från tesen att den rurala framtiden kommer bygga med bilen i fokus. De ytterligare frågeställningarna undersöker om det går att skapa en plats som integrerar motorvägen med landsbygden samt vilket resultat det blir om man kontrasterar de stora aktörerna Burger King och Cirkle K som ligger på platsen och byter ut deras globala näringskedja mot en småskalig, lokal och hållbar istället. / Recharge is a car charging station powered by locally produced electricity and a meeting place for local and regional users to gather, network and carry out their small-scale activities. The project is based in a survey of the motorway and its role in the countryside. The survey also mapped small businesses of food production in the area. The project discusses three main issues. What role does the car have in the future and what will a car and sustainability centred architecture look like. The countryside does not have the same opportunities for a car free future as the city does, therefore the project assumes that the future of the rural is going to be built with the car in focus. The other issues examines whether it is possible to create a place that integrates the motorway with the countryside and what result do you get if you contrast the large businesses Burger King and Cirkle K and swap their global chain of production with a small scale, local and sustainable one.

This dissertation consists of three chapters that estimate the elasticities regarding price and time in trade and household production. Chapters 1 and 2 estimate price elasticities. Chapter 1 estimates the one-factor-one-price elasticity of substitution (OOES)—or how the percentage change in the quantity of one good responds to the percentage change in the price (of itself or another good)—in an international trade context. Chapter 2 estimates the two-factor-one-price elasticity of substitution (TOES)—or the difference of percentage changes between two quantities with respect to the percentage change in the price of one good—in the context of household food production. Chapter 3 estimates the elasticity of export quantity and value with respect to delays in the time it takes to load or unload products at US ports. Chapter 1 estimates the price elasticities in agricultural trade. Armington elasticities, the elasticity of substitution between goods from different countries, are key parameters in agricultural trade policy evaluation and welfare calculation. We estimate Armington elasticities for a selected basket of 38 agricultural commodities in 5 categories by compiling a sample of 118 countries' production and trade flows. Following and extending Feenstra et al. (2018), we estimate both the micro-elasticity of substitution between foreign sources of imports and the macro-elasticity of substitution between home and imported products at the commodity level. The median of the micro- and macro-elasticities are 6.4 and 5.0, respectively. Meat products have the lowest micro- and macro-elasticities, with the micro-elasticities ranging from 4.2 (pork) to 5.0 (poultry) and the macro-elasticities ranging from 2.9 (pork) to 4.5 (beef). Crops products have the widest range of Armington elasticities, with micro-elasticities ranging from 2.5 (pigeon peas) to 90.3 (peanuts), and macro-elasticities ranging from 1.2 (pigeon peas) to 20.1 (peanuts). In line with the literature, we find that 75 percent of the agricultural commodities have numerically smaller macro-elasticities than micro-elasticities, even though only 6 of them (pork, poultry, corn, peanuts, apples, and peppers) are statistically smaller at the 5 percent level. We explore the robustness of our estimates by slicing the sample into separate periods and importing countries. Finally, we discuss the policy implications of our estimates on predicting trade due to tariff changes and understanding welfare gains from agricultural trade. Chapter 2 estimates the goods-time elasticity of substitution (EOS), the responsiveness of the difference between money and time in household production for change of opportunity cost of time (OCT). This chapter bridges the gap between literature that directly and indirectly estimates the goods-time EOS in household production. Inspired by the studies in environmental economics, we argue the opportunity cost of time in household production not only depends on wage but life-cycle dynamics and household demographics as well. We proceed with the estimation by two strategies: direct estimation of the household production, and the demand-supply approach borrowed from Feenstra's (1994) research on trade elasticities. Both strategies report the estimates are much larger than unit and closer to previous indirect estimates. We show our results are robust when applied to Aguiar and Hurst's (2007) sample, in which they employed the indirect estimation. The larger goods-time EOS indicates policies aiding households with money for groceries like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are more sufficient, since money for certain groceries can more easily substitute for time in making meals. Chapter 3 explores the elasticity of trade with respect to port congestion time. U.S. ports have struggled with significant supply chain congestion during the past two years. Anecdotal evidence shows the increasing port congestion brought substantial losses to U.S. exports, particularly agricultural shipments. However, previous studies are limited by the availability of explicit data on congestion times for unloading. This study first quantifies the association between port congestion days and U.S. agricultural exports, using monthly export data of top U.S. ports and their monthly average container and bulk shipments delays. We find one extra day delay of container shipments decreases U.S. agricultural monthly exports by 5 percent in quantity or 2 percent in value on average. That amounts to $63 million in monthly loss of export value on average, and Western U.S. ports are responsible for 69 percent of this total. The effect is most pronounced for the Western U.S. exports of bulk commodities, where congestion results in a 9 percent loss in quantity or 8 percent loss in value. For Eastern U.S., the most salient effect is on consumer commodities, with a loss of 3 percent in quantity and 3 percent in value. For the Gulf region, the largest effect is on bulk commodities, with a loss of 4 percent in quantity and 5 percent in value. The impacts of congestion on bulk shipments are both statistically and economically insignificant. However, we find some evidence that exporters substitute bulk cargoes with containers when bulk shipment delays at ports increase. The substitution of container shipments with bulk shipments, however, is unlikely. / Doctor of Philosophy / This dissertation explores price and time factors in trade and household production. All three chapters estimate the percentage change in a variable for the percentage change to some other variables (i.e., an elasticity). Chapter 1 estimates the elasticities in international agricultural trade. The core concept the first chapter relies on is the one-factor-one-price elasticity of substitution (OOES), or how the percentage change in the quantity of one good responds to the percentage change in the price (of itself or another good). Chapter 2 estimates the two-factor-one-price elasticity of substitution (TOES)—or the difference of percentage changes between two quantities with respect to the percentage change in the price of one good—in household food production context. The third chapter estimate the responsiveness of export quantity/value to time delays at port. The first chapter examines how the demand for agricultural product imports will respond to price change. The study quantifies the responsiveness at two levels—micro and macro—using the Armington model, in which the product from each country is considered as a "variety". The micro-level elasticities capture the import demand responsiveness for a country of variety, say, Australian beef, when beef import price from Australia changes; The macro-elasticities capture the import demand responsiveness when, say, beef import prices from all countries change. We estimate both elasticities for a basket of 38 commodities, to shed light on policies such as "trade war" and multilateral trade agreements. In the median, one percent increase in price from a country of variety decreases 6.4 percent of demand for it; one percent decrease of price from all countries increases import demand by 5.0 percent. The second chapter studies the substitutability between money and time in household production, or the goods-time elasticity of substitution (EOS), which captures the percentage change of money (for grocery purchases) relative to time (for food preparation and cleaning up, etc.) for the change of price of time. But what is the price of time in food production? Economists use the term opportunity cost of time (OCT), the highest value that household could spend their time on if not on food production. While most economists agree that OCT correlates with wage, this chapter argues the correlation differs by life cycle and household characteristics. What's more, OCT should also include non-wage factors like household characteristics. Maybe households with children in their middle age just value time with children more than the market wage. In this case, the value of time with children, instead of wage, could be their OCT in food production. Based on these arguments, the study estimates the goods-time EOS is much larger than in previous studies. The magnitude of goods-time EOS has strong policy implications for policies like the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides lower-income households money to buy groceries. If money and time are more substitutable, SNAP benefits will be more sufficient since money for certain groceries can more easily substitute for time in making meals. If goods-time EOS is small, however, SNAP benefits will be less sufficient, since the groceries are hardly substitutable for time in food production, and households still need to input a significant amount of time. The third chapter considers the time factor in international trade. It leverages the bottleneck of the international supply chain, port delays, in past years to study the elasticity of trade with respect to port congestion time. The study focuses on U.S. agricultural exports of bulk shipments and container shipments. We estimate that each day of container shipment delay is associated with 5 percent decrease in export quantity and 2 percent decrease in export value. Compared with the estimates of micro-elasticities in Chapter 1, one-day delay of container shipment is equivalent to imposing extra 0.8 percent of tariff on U.S. agricultural products in the median. The effect of bulk shipment delay is muted. Chapter 3, combined with Chapter 1, sheds light on the price of time in agricultural trade.

The first study investigates the factors that impact the duration of U.S. fresh fruit and vegetable imports. We employ both survival analysis (Kaplan Meier estimates and Cox proportional hazards model) as well as count data models. Our results indicate that SPS treatment requirements positively impact the duration of trade while new market access has the opposite effect. Other factors typically included in trade duration models (such as: GDP, transportation costs, tariff rates, etc.) were also investigated. We also employ a probit model to understand the factors impacting the probability that a country selects into exporting fresh fruits and vegetables to the United States. The second study estimates the goods-time elasticity of substitution for Food Stamp/SNAP participants versus non participants. We find that the elasticity of substitution for SNAP participants is not statistically different from zero. This indicates that SNAP participants have Leontief production function in household food production, implying that increasing the amount of SNAP benefits paid to participants will not lead to more food production if the time households dedicate to food preparation remains unchanged. This finding extends the analysis done by Baral, Davis and You (2011) and offers insights for policies related to the SNAP program. / Master of Science

Home gardening has historically been a subsistence or supplemental form of food procurement worldwide and promoted as a food security project in times of economic hardship. Qualitative research was used to investigate container gardening's potential to provide the impetus for further agricultural activities within low-income, low-food-access, rural Appalachian Virginia, thereby impacting community food security, food choices of individuals, and the local food system. Ethnography and phenomenology methodologies were used through the lens of community-engaged research, and the lived experiences of participants were recognized as valid representations of food insecurity. Semi-structured interviews with fourteen participating households revealed program involvement was deeply connected to previous food production experiences and fueled by existing interest in home gardening. Containers were valued as providing alternative modes to continue a meaningful practice, specifically mitigating challenges of limited mobility for the elderly. As rural areas are experiencing an outmigration of young people and struggling social services, container gardening could be utilized as a low-cost culturally appropriate mental- and nutritional-health service for the rural elderly. Similar initiatives should begin with appreciative inquiry into existing perceptions, values, assets, and potentials within a target community. Through preliminary investigation, needs and barriers can be acknowledged and community-identified solutions can be implemented through culturally sensitive program development. With the existing impetus for home gardening in the region, program expansion could potentially impact food security and the local food system. Overall, this case study serves to further endorse a public effort to support home food production in rural areas of the United States. / Master of Science

CAFOs raise tens of thousands of animals in confined cages and feedlots, feed them high calorie diets, and ship them to slaughter in record time. These factory farms (as they are sometimes called) devastate neighboring environments with the releases of toxic methane gas and animal waste. Progress in modernized agricultural production has enabled us to feed the growing population but unintended consequences for human health and neighboring communities are happening. This study examines environmental and human health impacts of CAFOs on Central Mississippi residents. Through analyses of existing studies and data and telephone surveys, the objectives will be met. Risk society theory is used to explain the increase of diseases and environmental risks associated with CAFOs in late modernity. The results do not indicate that neighboring residents of CAFOs in Central Mississippi are more likely to have ill health, a negative quality of life, or environmental degradation, overall.

Introdução: A produção de alimentos é o setor que exerce maior Pegada Hídrica (PH), definida como o volume de água doce usado durante a produção e o consumo de bens e serviços. Os padrões alimentares contemporâneos vêm sofrendo mudanças em função das transições demográfica, epidemiológica e nutricional. Além disso, a primeira década do século XXI no Brasil foi marcada por políticas de proteção social que culminaram em redução da pobreza e da desigualdade. É necessário compreender como essas transformações repercutiram na demanda de água necessária para sustentar os novos padrões alimentares da população brasileira. Objetivo: Analisar a evolução da associação entre os padrões alimentares (PA) brasileiros e a PH associada à produção dos alimentos adquiridos nos domicílios brasileiros entre os anos 2003 e 2009. Métodos: Estudo transversal com dados de aquisição domiciliar de alimentos, disponibilizados pela Pesquisa de Orçamentos Familiares nos anos de 2002-2003 e 2008-2009. Os alimentos adquiridos foram compatibilizados com dados de PH de produtos. A PH média per capita foi descrita segundo grupos de alimentos, macrorregião, área e quintos de renda per capita. Os PA foram estimados para os setores censitários por análise de componentes principais. As variações observadas entre os dois anos do inquérito foram testadas com o teste t de Student para médias independentes, com nível de significância de 5 por cento . Os efeitos dos padrões alimentares sobre a PH e seus componentes foram estimados por regressão linear multivariada. Resultados: A PH média associada à produção dos alimentos adquiridos nos domicílios brasileiros foi de 2.650 m³ por ano per capita (EP ± 37,3 m³ por ano per capita), em 2003 e 2.446 m³ por ano per capita (EP ± 37,3 m³ por ano per capita) em 2009. Cerca de 91,4 por cento desses valores corresponderam ao componente verde, 4,7 por cento ao azul e 3,9 por cento ao cinza. Todas as regiões apresentaram redução da PH per capita em 2009, mas revelaram-se significativas apenas nas regiões NE e SE. Observou-se tendência linear de aumento da PH conforme incremento da renda. Foram identificados 6 PA, diferenciados quanto ao tipo de fonte proteica, sendo o PA1 predominante em carnes vermelhas e processadas, o PA2 em leite e ovos, o PA3 em peixes e oleaginosas, o PA4 em cereais e leguminosas, o PA5 em peixes e produtos processados, e o PA6 em peixes, análogos proteicos à base de soja e outras fontes vegetais de proteínas. Os padrões PA1 e PA6 apresentaram tendência de aumento em 2009, mas o PA1 apresentou impacto três vezes superior à PH que o PA6. O PA6 foi apontado como um padrão mais sustentável, em consonância com as recomendações da literatura e dos guias alimentares contemporâneos. Conclusões: As transformações socioeconômicas na primeira década do século XXI refletiram em mudanças nos padrões alimentares da população, que impactaram a PH. Sugere-se a necessidade de intervenções que considerem tanto as variantes socioeconômicas, como o consumo alimentar adequado, saudável e sustentável. / Introduction: Food production is the sector that exerts the major Water Footprint (WF), defined as the volume of freshwater resources used for production and consumption of goods and services. Contemporary eating patterns have changed in face of demographic, epidemiological, and nutritional transitions. In addition, in Brazil, the first decade of XXI century was marked by social protection policies that culminated in poverty reduction and inequality attenuation. It is necessary to understand how these changes may have affected the water demand required to sustain the new dietary patterns of the population. Aim: To examine the association between Brazilian dietary patterns (DP) and the WF associated to the production of the food products purchased in Brazilian households between 2003 and 2009. Methods: Cross-sectional study with household food purchase data provided by the Household Budget Surveys for the years 2002-2003 and 2008-2009. The purchased foods were matched with WF data. The average per capita WF was described into food groups, macro-region, area and level of income. The DP were estimated for the censitary sectors by principal component analysis. The differences observed between the two surveys were tested with the t Student test for independent means, with a significance level of 0.05. The effects of dietary patterns on WF and components were estimated by multivariate linear regression. Results: The average water footprint, associated with the production of foods purchased in Brazilian households, was 2,650 m³ per year per capita (EP ± 37.3 m³ per year per capita) in 2003 and 2,446 m³ per year per capita (EP ± 37.3 m³ per year per capita) in 2009. Approximately 91.4 per cent of these values corresponded to the green component, 4.7 per cent to the blue component and 3.9 per cent to the gray component. All regions showed a reduction in WF in 2009, but this was significant only in the Northeast and Southeast regions. It was observed a positive linear trend between WF and income. Six DP were identified and characterized by the type of protein source: DP1 by red and processed meat, DP2 by milk and eggs, DP3 by fish and oilseeds, DP4 by cereals and legumes, DP5 by fish and processed foods and DP6 by fish, soy-based meat analogues and other vegetable sources of protein. The DP1 and DP6 patterns showed an upward trend in 2009, but the impact of PA1 on WF was three times higher than of PA6. The PA6 was suggested as a more sustainable pattern, in agreement with the literature and with the contemporary food guides recommendations. Conclusions: Socioeconomic changes in the first decade of this century reflected in modifications concerning the dietary patterns of the population, which affected the WF. Interventions that consider both the socioeconomic variants and healthy and sustainable food consumption are necessary.