Past Workshops:
- 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, May 16, 2018: CBEAR’s Spring Lunch Seminar Series – Behavioral Science in Agri-Environmental Program Designs
Dr. Kent Messer, co-Director of CBEAR, will present on Agri-Environmental Economic Field Experiments: Challenges, Benefits and Lessons Learned. Join in person or online via Zoom. - April 27-28, 2018: Appalachian Experimental and Environmental Economics Workshop
The Department of Economics and the Center for Economic Research & Policy Analysis at Appalachian State University will hold the 2018 Appalachian Experimental and Environmental Economics Workshop on April 27-28, 2018 at the BRAHM in Blowing Rock NC. This workshop is part of a regular series of workshops hosted by Appalachian State that brings together junior and senior scholars that use experimental methods (lab, field and survey) to study issues related to environmental and natural resource policy.
This event is sponsored, in part, by CBEAR. - 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, April 25, 2018: CBEAR’s Spring Lunch Seminar Series – Behavioral Science in Agri-Environmental Program Designs
Dr. Leah Palm-Forster, CBEAR Fellow, will present on Behavioral Insights for Agri-Environmental Program and Policy Design: A literature review. Join in person or online via Zoom.Economic Research Service building - April 21, 2018: Special Symposium in Memory of Gregory L. Poe
In honor of Gregory Poe, a co-PI of the 2014 CBEAR grant and a dedicated professor of applied economics and management at Cornell University, a special symposium will be held on Saturday, April 21 at 401 Warren Hall, Cornell University. - 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, April 25, 2018: CBEAR’s Spring Lunch Seminar Series – Behavioral Science in Agri-Environmental Program Designs
Dr. Paul Ferraro, co-Director of CBEAR, will present on Methodological advances in measuring the effectiveness of behavioral nudges on participation in agri-environmental programs. Join in person or online via Zoom. - 12:00 pm – 1:15 pm, November 20, 2017: Inaugural Environmental and Natural Resources Research Seminar
Are resource conserving technologies a win-win? Behavioral scientists versus engineers and environmental scientistsThe Climate Change and Sustainable Development (CSD) Sector is pleased to invite you to the inaugural session of the Sustainability Research Seminar Series. The topic will be resource-conserving technologies such as energy- and water-efficient appliances, fuel-efficient vehicles, and precision agriculture. Although advocates claim such technologies are cost-effective ways to simultaneously achieve economic development and environmental objectives, their impacts are theoretically ambiguous and empirically unsupported. The speaker, Paul Ferraro, a leading environmental economist working in Latin America, will summarize results from a field experiment on the adoption of water saving technologies in a drought-prone area of Central America. Results indicate that estimated impacts of adoption are about one-third the engineering predictions. Dr. Ferraro will explore the reasons for these findings and briefly summarize results from two other field experiments related to climate change adaptation and water conservation in Central America.Climate Change and Sustainable Development Sector - October 14-15, 2017: Conference on Behavioral & Experimental Agri-Environmental Research: Methodological Advancements & Applications to Policy (CBEAR-MAAP)
The Center for Behavioral and Experimental Agri-environmental Research (CBEAR) will host a conference on Behavioral and Experimental Economics Methods and Applications to Agri-environmental Policy on October 14-15, 2017, in Shepherdstown, WV, which is located approximately 1 hr. from Dulles Airport.This conference will showcase experimental and behavioral economics research that addresses agri-environmental management and policy challenges. In addition to encouraging discussion and debate about theoretical and methodological advances, the conference aims to show how experimental and behavioral research can enhance the design and implementation of agri-environmental programs and policies.Conference papers will be considered for publication in a special issue of Environmental and Resource Economics (ERE) under an expedited review process subject to the journal’s high standards for quality. As additional details and information becomes available, it will be posted at: www.centerbear.org/conference/
March 20, 2017: AAEA Water Resources & Policy: Exploring the Risks, Benefits and Opportunities for Conservation Workshop
The purpose of this workshop is to inform congressional staff, agency staff and other research analysts about research on water quantity, water quality, and related policy being conducted by agricultural economists and engage in an interactive dialogue on research needs and priorities for future research useful for policy development. The intended beneficiaries of this exchange are various stakeholders affected by Farm Policy, researchers, and policy-makers. The workshop will bring together representatives from academia, research organizations, government agencies, and congressional staff for presentations on and discussions about the current state of science, current knowledge gaps, and policy constraints. To encourage the participation of those outside academia, one member on the organizing committee is from a government agency.For more information and the agenda, visit the page on the AAEA Website. Registration is also available online. Registration closes on March 10, 2017.- February 23-24, 2017: CBEAR Display at the USDA Ag Outlook Forum
Visit the CBEAR Table, just outside the Exhibitor’s Hall, at the USDA Ag Outlook Forum for a demonstration of an economic experiment that can be used to inform USDA and its partners on ways to design programs to achieve their objectives and do so cost-effectively. Contact Maddi Valinski (mvalinski@centerbear.org) for more details. - May 17, 2016: CBEAR Spring Workshop
Join the Center for Behavioral & Experimental Agri-Environmental Research (CBEAR) for all or part of the day looking at the application of randomized controlled trials, systematic program reviews and President Obama’s September Executive Order on the use of behavioral insights to improve the performance of and satisfaction with federal programs. The morning will be filled with speakers and the presentation of the CBEAR Prize for Agri-Environmental Innovation to Jason Weller, Chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. After lunch, CBEAR leaders will collaborate with workshop attendees in an in-depth, hands-on workshop about conducting randomized controlled trials in USDA programs, and how to commission and use systematic reviews of the evidence base to guide program design and implementation. The emphasis will be on helping you develop evidence-based solutions to the challenges facing your programs.For a review of the day and downloadable files, please visit: http://centerbear.org/evidence-based-agri-environmental-programs-workshop/
- January 20, 2016: Lunch & Learn – The Pull of Social Comparisons
People look to what others are doing as a guide for their own behavior. When designing programs, incorporating information about the behavior of peers can influence participant behavior. Including social comparisons where behavior that is encouraged can serve as a popular and cost-effective way to boost the impacts of a program. Evidence in a number of government programs has shown that social comparisons can be used effectively and randomized controlled trials can be designed to test the impact of social comparisons on program impact.
- November 9, 2015: Lunch & Learn – The Power of Defaults
Humans are prone to inertia, and tend to stick to the status quo, which can have profound effects. When we design policies and programs, we need to consider how the default options we select can influence participant decisions. Changing defaults can be a simple and inexpensive way to increase program participation, and changing defaults has been shown to have dramatic results in a number of applications.
- October 28, 2015: Using Insights from Behavioral Sciences to Improve Agri-environmental Programs
Insights from the behavioral sciences are revolutionizing the way in which government programs are delivered, and this revolution is arriving for agri-environmental programs. Join us for an introductory workshop featuring leading experts in applications of the behavioral sciences to government programs. No knowledge of economics or behavioral economics required. You’ll learn how to tweak your programs to enhance impacts and improve cost-effectiveness, without additional funds or new legislation. The workshop is free and sponsored by the Center for Behavioral and Experimental Agri-Environmental Research (CBEAR). CBEAR is dedicated to working with the USDA to create effective evidence-based agri-environmental programs. For more information, please visit www.centerbear.org/workshop. For a review of the day and downloadable files, please visit: http://centerbear.org/behavioral-insights-workshop/
- July 29, 2015: AAEA & WEAE Joint Annual Post-Conference Workshop
“This post-conference workshop will be valuable to both new and experienced researchers in the emerging area of behavioral and experimental economics. This workshop brings together world-renowned experts to engage in lively presentations and discussions of how behavioral and experimental economics can explain the impact of economic behavior on food choice and landowner participation in agri-environmental programs. Additionally, the workshop will include a lunch format that will foster future high quality empirical research in these areas by providing constructive feedback to the research plans and experimental designs of graduate students and young professionals. During this lunch session, a team of experienced behavioral economists will be available to provide feedback about individual research designs to small groups of interested researchers.The workshop is presented by Carola Grebitus, Arizona State University, and Christiane Schroeter, California Polytechnic State University- San Luis Obispo (co-organizers); Brenna Ellison, University of Illinois; Jayson Lusk, Oklahoma State University; Bidisha Mandal, Washington State University; and Kent Messer, CBEAR – University of Delaware (organizing committee); and will host presentations by Michele Belot, University of Edinburgh; Paul Ferraro, Johns Hopkins University; Andrew Hanks, The Ohio State University; David Just, Cornell University; and Collin Payne, New Mexico State University.”
- June 27-28, 2015: NAREA & CAES Joint Annual Pre-Meeting Workshop
The Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association (NAREA) is hosting the 2015 Workshop on Water Quality Economics. The 2015 workshop will be held at the Viking Hotel in Newport, Rhode Island immediately prior the NAREA Annual Meeting. The workshop will take place on June 27-28, before the NAREA Annual Meeting on June 28-30. Immediately following the Workshop, during the afternoon on Sunday June 28, we will organize a boat tour of Narragansett Bay to learn about water quality issues in the Bay, details to be released later. The Workshop may be attended either alone or in combination with the NAREA Annual Meeting. The Workshop is supported from a variety of sources including the USDA-supported Center for Behavioral and Experimental Agri-Environmental Policy Research (CBEAR).
NAREA Workshop Call for Papers
- June 3, 2015: AERE Annual Pre-Conference Workshop
“An all-day pre-conference workshop on “Field Experiments: Design, Methods and Applications” will be held on June 3rd, 2015. The workshop co-leaders are Professors Meredith Fowlie and Mushfiq Mobarak.” This conference will have a series of modules addressing randomized control trials (RCTs); experimental research design alternatives; spillovers, general equilibrium effects, and multi-level research designs; heterogeneous treatment effects, external validity concerns, and Hawthorne effects; and potential research partners, institutional support, funding opportunities.
- January 14, 2015: Delaware Ag Week Agriculture Best Manangement Practice Financing Workshop
“How Much is that BMP to You?” – An Interactive Financing Game lead by Dr. Kent Messer and the Center for Experimental & Applied Economics at the University of Delaware. This workshop is part of Delaware’s 10th Annual Ag Week, organized by University of Delaware Cooperative Extension, Delaware State University Cooperative Extension and the Delaware Department of Agriculture.
