The objective of our thesis was to conduct a pilot study to evaluate if an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for textiles in the EU could be a socioeconomically beneficial policy to complement the EU Waste Framework Directive’s amendment of separately collected textiles. The aim was to investigate if the policy could achieve increased circular design of textiles as well as if it could work as a management plan for the increased collection rates. The evaluation was made with a Cost-Benefit Analysis, using the French EPR-system for textiles as a base. It was further complemented with previously conducted research of EPR-systems for other waste streams in the EU, as well as by previously conducted investigations for other national implementations of producer responsibilities for textiles. In additional support, we used data for differences between the member states in the European Union and conducted an expert interview. The EPR was compared to a situation where the municipalities in the member states would instead be responsible for the separate collection of textiles. The result of our investigation illustrates how both alternatives generate a net-loss, the Municipal Responsibility with - €7,611,410,291 and the Extended Producer Responsibility with - €6,012,109,341 during the first year of implementation. The EPR alternative generates a lower net-loss during the first three years of implementation. The producer responsibility is however the less beneficial alternative four years after implementation, since the decreased opportunity cost of labour generated through the hiring of unemployed assumed under the producer responsibility is deducted. The producer responsibility does however generate benefits through clearly defined responsibility of the textiles placed on the European market and gives incentives for increased fibre-to-fibre recycling and for increased durability of textiles. The initiative therefore generates both higher quantifiable-and non-quantifiable, environmental benefits than the alternative. We conclude that an Extended Producer Responsibility should be further examined as a complement to the regulation of separate collection of textiles, to reach an increased circular textile industry.

Utah is historically an agricultural state with many resources adapted to livestock production. The beef and dairy industries in Utah account for 40 and 15 percent respectively of the total receipts received from agricultural marketings (7). Utah's resources are less adapted to poultry production compared to livestock production. Nevertheless, poultry production represents a significant portion of the total agricultural receipts. Production of livestock and poultry have expanded beyond the state's capacity to produce concentrate feed to benefit from economy of scale and to increase farm size through intensification. This feed deficit in Utah must be supplied from sources outside the state. It is estimated that Utah is dependent upon out-of-state sources for approximately 60 percent of the concentrate feed used. With a limited quantity of concentrate feed, livestock and poultry industries can be increased only by increasing the amount of feed procured from other areas. Since Utah is a deficit feed producing area, prices of feeds in Utah are based upon prices in surplus producing areas plus the cost of transferring feeds from these areas.

In the beginning of 1990s Sweden implemented several measures in order to maintain price stability. These measures have resulted in an environment in which inflation is lower and more stable. The same development could be seen in other OECD countries. At the same time a decrease in exchange rate pass-through was noticed in many countries. This has led researchers to believe that there may be a connection, between these two phenomena. This dissertation analyzes whether there has been any change in exchange rate pass-through for manufacturing products in Sweden between the high inflation period (1977-1993) and the low inflation period (1994-2006). The result shows that there is a difference in the exchange rate pass-through between the two periods. During the low inflation period the degree of pass-through was lower than during the high inflation period.

Theodore Is Dying is a feature length film written and directed by Ryan Ceri Pomeranz. It was undertaken as a partial fulfillment of the requirements to receive a Master of Fine Arts in Film and Digital Media from the Department of Film in the College of Arts and Humanities at the University of Central Florida. The film aims to explore both the immediate and the long-term effects of choices made by four people at specific moments of demarcation in their lives. Structurally, the film is presented in an episodic and non- linear style that attempts to examine each protagonist’s own set of conflicts, while simultaneously exposing how the choices they make affect one another. The film’s production presented many unique challenges to our producing team, cast and crew such as shooting on location in Scranton, Pennsylvania, over one thousand miles from home and figuring out where to allocate funds from our “ultra-low” budget. These challenges were met head on and often times acted as catalysts for rethinking the way that films at our budget level could be produced. As a result, the following account of the making of Theodore Is Dying, from development through distribution, aims to contribute these ideas to the larger conversation about the role of Ultra-Low Budget Filmmaking in the modern filmmaking landscape

In this study, we have delved deeply into the European food industry's response to the altered reality during the Covid-19 pandemic. Through qualitative interviews with six business leaders from different parts of the sector, combined with a comprehensive literature review, we have strived to enhance the understanding of the organizational changes and strategic solutions that the industry has employed to navigate the crisis. The challenges we observed included disruptions in the supplychain, stress among employees due to illness and work-related pressure, as well as shifting sales and market patterns. Despite these difficulties, the companies managed to adapt by restructuring their organizations and leadership styles, which mitigated the negative impact of the pandemic. Some of the most significant lessons included the importance of having a flexible and adaptable organizational structure, and the necessity to develop effective communication strategies and leadership methods during uncertain times. The results of our study also point out that there is a need to integrate social aspects into food production and distribution. This would increase companies' resilience and ability to maintain operations in an increasingly uncertain global context. We found that the pandemic has contributed to increasing the importance of local production and consumption, strengthening the role of digital technology in streamlining communication and workflows, and focusing more on companies' sustainability initiatives and responsibilities. To further utilize these insights, we propose future research focusing on tracking companies' adaptations over time, comparing different industries and regions, and examining how the implementation of changes is related to the achievement of sustainability goals. We also underscore that both quantitative and qualitative research methods should be used to gain adeeper understanding of the processes driven by crises like the pandemic. In summary, our study shows that, despite the challenges that the Covid-19 pandemic has brought, food producers in Europe have demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt and reshape their organizations and business models. The main lesson is that flexibility, communication, and rapid adaptation are crucial in handling crises and ensuring a sustainable and resilient food industry. This insight can assist policymakers and industry leaders in formulating more effective strategies and guidelines to promote a more sustainable and resilient organization.

<p dir="ltr">Strategic risks are characterized by exogenous market shocks which create a misalignment between a business’s current strategy, business resources, and capabilities. These risks come from a variety of sources including changes in government policies, unprecedented shifts in weather patterns, labor shortages, evolving consumer preferences, and geopolitical conflicts. Each source of risk presents unique threats to farming operations yet are similar in that they lack off-the-shelf risk management tools. Rather, producers must build operational resilience to accommodate for these risks, where resilience encompasses a farm’s ability to weather through, adapt to and recover from strategic risks.</p><p dir="ltr">This study uses survey data from 403 commercial producers within the United States to assess farm resilience to strategic risks. Prior to this research, there have been no estimates of resilience for U.S. agricultural producers. Our results are critical in bridging this gap by providing an assessment of resilience to strategic risk for commercial farms within the United States. Correlations, regression analysis, and cluster analysis are used to analyze how farm level characteristics relate to a producer’s resilience to strategic risk. Results suggest that resilience is positively related to management practices, producer sentiment, farm growth expectations, risk preference, and adoption of precision agriculture technologies. </p><p dir="ltr">Conclusions of this study detail an ongoing need for improvements to farm resilience to strategic risk and related educational resources. With projected increases in stressors to U.S. agricultural systems via population growth, weather uncertainties, pest prevalence, and unpredictable market shocks, improving farm resilience should be a primary focus for producers in the years ahead. By identifying key farm characteristics associated with resilience, we provide a path for producers to improve resilience and mitigate impacts of strategic risk.</p>

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This study is generally concerned with the assumption that the contemporary global flows of people, capital, and commodities, which accelerated dramatically in the age of globalization, have significant impacts on the land use patterns of global cities. With this assumption, the study further questions in the context of polycentric US metropolis, whether or not the distribution of transnational advanced producer service firms define a new form of centrality, in which the traditional central business districts and suburban centers differ from each other in terms of spatial clustering patterns and sectoral distributions of transnational advanced producer service firms. Spatial clustering patterns of advanced producer service firms are evaluated according to high-rise and high-density criteria. In ten selected cities, clusters of advanced producer service firms and high-rise office buildings are identified through the Nearest Neighbor Hierarchical Clustering Method in CrimeStat. To define the polycentric US metropolis, the research employs Lang et al's (2006) classification of metropolitan office space. The results show significant differences between former manufacturing belt cities and Sunbelt cities. / Ph. D.

The mango tree is one the important sources of income in the rural economy of Senegal. However, mango producers in Ziguinchor are facing fruit fly infestations leading to important losses in income. The aim of this study is to measure the impact of the losses encountered by mango farmers in Ziguinchor over three years 2012, 2013, and 2014 and conduct an econometric study to examine household characteristics associated with high level of losses. At the household level, the total yearly losses on average from fruit fly infestations represent 17.09 % of the average total household income in Ziguinchor (Casamance). The losses associated with variability of production are much smaller than losses from decreases of average yield. Furthermore, the results show that the number of hectares, level production, and use of Keitt varieties are three factors statistically significant, with a significant positive influence on losses from infestation. The use of fruit fly control technologies does not appear to significantly reduce losses. / Master of Science