newsletter

Edition 4/2017, 20 December 2017

GFFA 2018: Expert panel on livestock production in Asia and Eastern Europe

CityCube Berlin, Germany. Photo: Daniela Schimming © IAMO

On 19 January 2018, an expert panel entitled “How Can Livestock Production Contribute to Global Food Security? Farms and Industries of the Future in Asia and Eastern Europe” will take place in the CityCube Berlin, Germany, during the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA). In order to meet the growing demands for animal food products, it is necessary to find a means to increase livestock production and trade without detriment to the environment or animal welfare. The panel will look at sustainable ways to continue the further expansion of animal production with the contribution of German expertise and a regional focus on Asia and Eastern Europe. The international dialogue between representatives from politics, academia, business and civil society will include discussions of the relevant prospects and challenges involved. The event is organised by IAMO in cooperation with the German Agribusiness Alliance, the German Asia-Pacific Business Association (OAV), the German Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations (OA), the Association of German Livestock (BRS) and the German-Sino Agricultural Center (DCZ). Registration is open until 12 January 2018.

Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) 
How Can Livestock Production Contribute to Global Food Security? Farms and Industries of the Future in Asia and Eastern Europe
19 Januar 2018 | CityCube Berlin, Germany
www.gffa-berlin.de/en

Contact:
Daniela Schimming
Tel.: +49 345 2928-330
schimming(at)iamo.de

IAMO Forum 2018: Call for abstracts open until 25 February 2018

Agricultural vehicle © thomaslenne / Fotolia.com

The IAMO Forum 2018 will deal with “Large-scale Agriculture – for Profit and Society?”. An international audience from academia, politics and business will come together at IAMO in Halle (Saale), Germany, from 27 to 29 June 2018. The conference is organized around three major topics. On the first conference day we will focus on the (re-)emergence of large scale agriculture and present insights into drivers and determinants. On the second day, the question will be discussed if large-scale agriculture can address stakeholder interests. And the last conference day will be dedicated to perspectives and challenges for large-scale agriculture. The conference’s geographical focus is particularly on the transition countries of Eastern Europe, the Former Soviet Union, and East Asia, as well as developed and emerging countries in Europe, the Americas, and Australia. The IAMO Forum 2018 is jointly organized by the Department Structural Development of Farms and Rural Areas of IAMO and the DLG e.V.

The deadline for submission of extended abstracts is 25 February 2018. Proposals for organized sessions are welcome until 28 January 2018. For more information on the conference and the call for submissions see here.

IAMO Forum 2018
Large-scale Agriculture – for Profit and Society?
27 – 29 June 2018 | IAMO, Halle (Saale), Germany
www.iamo.de/forum/2018
#iamoForum18

Contact:
Franziska Schaft
Tel.: +49 345 2928-229
forum2018(at)iamo.de

 

Insuring against climate risk in Central Asia

Wheat production in Kyrgyzstan. Photo: Lena Kuhn @ IAMO

Under the leadership of IAMO and funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), December 2017 saw the beginning of work on the cooperation project “Increasing Climate Resilience via Agricultural Insurance – Innovation Transfer for Sustainable Rural Development in Central Asia” (KlimALEZ). Planned for a three-year duration, the research project aims to strengthen the resilience of Central Asia’s agricultural sector by innovative insurance markets against climatic risks, in particular drought. In cooperation with the Hannover Rück, the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and local insurance companies the scientists will develop a demand-oriented, index-based agricultural insurance program for various countries, including Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. In addition, the researchers hope to draw valuable conclusions concerning the impact of modern agricultural insurance markets on food security, climate resilience and sustainability. Ultimately, the research results aim at supporting national governments and co-operating insurance companies in implementing a sustainable insurance program on national scale.

Contact:
Ihtiyor Bobojonov
Tel.: +49 345 2928-247
bobojonov(at)iamo.de

Lena Kuhn
Tel.: +49 345 2928-323
kuhn(at)iamo.de

 

Challenges to the plant-based bioeconomy

Dr. Lioudmila Chatalova. Photo: Markus Scholz © IAMO

Since December 2017, IAMO researcher Lioudmila Chatalova is head of the junior research group “Economics and Institutions of the Bioeconomy”. It is funded by ScienceCampus Halle – Plant-based Bioeconomy (WCH). The project seeks to illuminate some of the critical points in the transition towards more resource-efficient and sustainable economies by examining the role of innovation-driven advances and disruptions in this process. The work program includes conceptual and empirical analysis of current and emerging trends in production and management practices of plant-based industries. The interdisciplinary research project aims to rebalancing the technocratic and sustainability-oriented visions of the plant-based bioeconomy. The work of the junior research group on this project is scheduled to take place in the period December 2017 to November 2020.

Contact:
Lioudmila Chatalova 
Tel.: +49 345 2928-317
chatalova(at)iamo.de

 

Internationalisation of the Ukrainian research landscape

Maidan Nezalezhnosti in Kiev, Ukraine © ggaallaa / Fotolia.com

December 2017 saw the commencement of the “Pilot Project for the Sustainable Internationalization of Ukrainian Research Structures in the Context of the Globalization of the Ukrainian Food Sector” (UaFoodTrade) at IAMO. A research group comprising researchers from IAMO and the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) will investigate the further development and the stronger internationalisation of the research and education landscape in Ukraine, in particular in agricultural and food economies. In particular, they will be dealing with questions of embedding the Ukrainian food economy into regional and international markets. Capacity building actions such as summer schools, various seminars and workshops will also take place at the KSE. Within the project, the research group will be developed a concept that intended the establishing of a chair for “International Agricultural and Food Economy” at KSE as well as a research center from this chair. The project is to be funded for three years by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

Contact:
Oleksandr Perekhozhuk
Tel.: +49 345 2928-236
perekhozhuk(at)iamo.de

 

Establishment of a doctoral program in Uzbekistan

Students in the library © Rawpixel / Fotolia.com

From January 2018, IAMO researchers in collaboration with various European and Uzbek universities are set to develop structured doctoral studies in geoinformation sciences (DSinGIS) for Uzbekistan. The goal is to create a new curriculum for a doctoral programme intended to elevate Uzbek graduates to a higher academic level and improve the country’s capacity in education and research. The activities will include training programmes for teachers, the development of new modules for doctoral programmes, the establishment of an international network in the field of geospatial sciences, an e-learning platform and a glossary of geospatial terms in Uzbek. The project has a planned duration of four years and is funded by the EU H2020 ERASMUS+.

Contact:
Daniel Müller
Tel.: +49 345 2928-328
mueller(at)iamo.de

 

Equal employment of women in research

Promotion of women scientists © Sergey Nivens / Fotolia.com

The five year program “Promotion of Gender Equality for Female Scientists at IAMO” (FEM-Power) aims to increase the number of women in research. Equal employment is to be achieved across all levels of qualification (PhD students, post-docs, professors). Funds from the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Land of Saxony-Anhalt were used to create the position of equality and diversity coordinator, which was awarded to Fabian Baier on 1 October 2017. A preliminary evaluation will look at the current situation in IAMO. The results will then be used to develop appropriate measures for increasing the number of women employed in the institute, according to a cascade model. Human resource measures will furthermore be developed towards the creation of networks and the coordination of equality and gender policies.

Contact:
Fabian Baier
Tel.: +49 345 2928-435
baier(at)iamo.de

 

IAMO researcher provides advice on agricultural insurance

Farming in Mongolia © Rawpixel / Fotolia.com

In the process if ongoing reforms in agricultural insurance regulations, the German-Mongolian Cooperation Project Sustainable Agriculture (DMKNL) invited Ihtiyor Bobojonov from 11 to 15 October 2017 to join them as an international expert on the development of crop insurance in Mongolia. In a working group, the researcher described the insurance systems in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Russia and outlined the benefits of index-based insurance. Within his role as an advisor, Ihtiyor Bobojonov held expert discussions with representatives from the Mongolian Ministry of Finance, the Mongolian Ministry of Food, the Agriculture and Light Industry (MFALI), the Agricultural Reinsurance AG (AgRe) and the Institute of Hydrology and Meteorology. The researcher has investigated the current state of the insurance industry and the local situation in Mongolia. He has shared his experiences and knowledge from transition economies with insurance companies and farmers.

Contact:
Ihtiyor Bobojonov
Tel.: +49 345 2928-247
bobojonov(at)iamo.de

 

Integration of returning migrants in Kosovo

IAMO Policy Brief 33. Photo: Daniela Schimming © IAMO

In December 2017, Judith Möllers was joined by Diana Traikova, Thomas Herzfeld and Egzon Bajrami in publishing IAMO Policy Brief 33 on the subject “Involuntary Return Migration to Kosovo: Tackling Challenges for Successful Reintegration”. Kosovo currently faces the challenge of reintegrating thousands of migrants returning from Western Europe. In addition to low educational levels and qualifications of the returnees, their reintegration is hindered above all by the difficult labour market situation. Some 180 interviews have been conducted in the scope of an empirical study to better understand the socio-economic situation of these returnees. The subsequent findings are presented in the IAMO Policy Brief, with a discussion of the opportunities and risks of successful reintegration and recommendations for policy. The publication appears in German and English and can be downloaded free of charge on the IAMO website: www.iamo.de/en/publications/iamo-policy-briefs

Contact:
Judith Möllers
Tel.: +49 345 2928-245
moellers(at)iamo.de

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Visions and potentials in Ukrainian agriculture

Panel discussion at the Agritechnica. Photo: Franziska Schaft © IAMO

On 14 November 2017, a panel discussion was held at the Agritechnica in Hanover, Germany, with the title “Potentials in Ukrainian Agriculture – Visions for the Ukrainian Agribusiness”. German and Ukrainian representatives from politics, agricultural associations, agribusiness and academia  discussed the development prospects of the Ukrainian agricultural and food sector. In this context, the newly founded Ukrainian umbrella organisation “National Ukrainian Agrarian Forum”, which is made up of five large Ukrainian agricultural associations, presented its visions on how to the further exploit the development potentials of the Ukrainian agribusiness sector. According to IAMO Director Alfons Balmann, particular challenges for the sector include the availability of qualified personnel and the development of IT structures suitable for a knowledge-intensive agricultural sector. The event was hosted by the German-Ukrainian Agricultural Policy Dialogue (APD), in cooperation with the German Agribusiness Alliance of the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations (OA), the DLG e.V. and IAMO. A detailed report of the event is available here.

Contact:
Franziska Schaft
Tel.: +49 345 2928-229
schaft(at)iamo.de

 

Events

Post-doc workshop in Halle (Saale), Germany. Photo: Alexander Prishchepov

IAMO organised a workshop on “Sustainable Development in Agriculture and Food Industry” for government representatives and researchers in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on 15 December 2017. The event was commissioned by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). +++ From 29 November to 1 December 2017, IAMO conducted a post-doc workshop on the subject of “The Environmental Impacts of Livestock Products” in cooperation with the Leibniz Research Alliance “Food and Nutrition” and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). The workshop received financial support in the scope of the “Proteinparadoxa” co-operative project of the Leibniz Research Alliance. +++ From 23 to 24 November 2017, IAMO was involved as coorganiser in the conference “Sustainable Land and Water Management in Dryland Ecosystems in Central Asia“ in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. This took place in the scope of the AGRICHANGE project and received financial support from the Volkswagen Foundation. +++ In collaboration with the All-Russian Institute of Agricultural Issues and Informatics (VIAPI), IAMO held a workshop on the subject of “Agricultural Policies and Agriculture Support in Russia: Theory and Practice” at the Moscow State University, Russia, on 25 October 2017. This was initiated within the FEDAGRIPOL project and supported by the Leibniz Association via the “Leibniz Competition”.

 

Personalia

PD Dr. habil. Linde Götz. Photo: Markus Scholz © IAMO

IAMO researcher Linde Götz successfully defended her postdoctoral thesis “Trade Policy Interventions on Agricultural Markets in Countries of the Former Soviet Union and Balkans” on 16 October 2017. The habilitation process was concluded with the test lecture on 6 November 2017, with recognition granted to teach the subject of Agricultural economics. The procedure took place at Faculty of Natural Sciences III at the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg in Halle (Saale), Germany. +++ Katharina Loos recently began working at the institute library, with Fabian Baier taking up the position of equality coordinator and Eduard Bukin, Johanna Jauernig, Luise Liehn, Yanyun Ren, Juan Wei and Stanislav Yugay taking up research positions at IAMO.

 

Vacancy

Jobs © fotogestoeber / Fotolia.com

The IAMO is looking for a Post-doc (m/f) for the UaFoodTrade research project. Several PhD positions (m/f) are vacant at the institute for the FORLand, SURE-Farm, UaFoodTrade, KlimALEZ and Bioeconomy projects. In the scope of the SARICCA project stipends of up to two months are to be awarded to three researchers (m/f) from the Caucasus and Central Asia for research periods at the IAMO. In addition, the KlimALEZ and UaFoodTrade projects each require a project assistant (m/f) and LaScalA a study assistant (m/f). Further information regarding the job advertisements and closing date for applications can be found here.

IAMO is an active member of the Dual Career Network Central Germany. The network aims to help dual career couples integrate vocationally in Central Germany, ensuring inclusive and family-friendly staff development.

 

Publications

all publications

IAMO Annual 2017

Download English | Download German

IAMO Policy Brief

Möllers, J., Traikova, D., Herzfeld, T., Bajrami, E. (2017): Wenn Migration unfreiwillig endet: Wie kann die Integration von Rückkehrern im Kosovo gelingen?, Nr. 33, Halle (Saale). Download English | Download German

IAMO Discussion Paper

Bekenova, G. (2017): Карьерные ожидания студентов, магистрантов и докторантов в сельскохозяйственных университетах Казахстана, IAMO Discussion Paper No. 169, Halle (Saale). Download

IAMO Studies on the Agricultural and Food Sector

Matyukha, Andriy (2017) Business groups in agriculture. Impact of ownership structures on performance: The case of Russia’s agroholdings. Studies on the Agricultural and Food Sector in Transition Economies, Vol. 85, Halle (Saale): IAMO. Download

Further seleceted publications

Aarnoudse, E., Qu, W., Bluemling, B., Herzfeld, T. (2017): Groundwater Quota versus Tiered Groundwater Pricing: two Cases of Groundwater Management in Northwest China, International Journal of Water Resources Development, Vol. 33, No. 6, pp. 917-934. Download

Bilal, M., Barkmann, J., Jamali Jaghdani, T. (2017): To analyse the suitability of a set of soical and economic indicators that assesses the impact on SI enhancing advanced technological inputs by farming households in Punjab Pakistan, DARE Diskussionsbeiträge, Universität Göttingen No. 1708, Göttingen. Download

Bobojonov, I., Djanibekov, N., Voigt, P. (2017): Future perspectives on regional and international food security: Emerging players in the region: Uzbekistan, in: Gomez y Paloma, S., Mary, S., Langrell, S., Ciaian, P. (eds.): The Eurasian Wheat Belt and Food Security. Global and Regional Aspects, S. 195-213. Download

Brady, M., Hristov, J., Sahrbacher, C., Söderberg, T., Wilhelmsson, F. (2017): Is passive farming a problem for agriculture in the EU?, Journal of Agricultural Economics, Vol. 68, No. 3, pp. 632-650.
Bromley, J. E. (2017): German Reunification : Unfinished Business, Routledge Studies in Modern European History, Bd. 42, Routledge, London ; New York. Download

Buchenrieder, G., Mack, C., Balgah, R. A. (2017): Human security and the relocation of internally displaced environmental refugees in Cameroon, Refugee Survey Quarterly, Vol. 36, No. 3, pp. 20-47. Download

Cai, J., Hu, R., Huang, J., Wang, X. (2017): Innovations in genetically modified agricultural technologies in China's public sector: Sucesses and challenges, China Agricultural Economic Review, Vol. 9, No. 2, pp. 317-330. Download

Chaddad, F., Valentinov, V. (2017): Agency Costs and Organizational Architecture of Large Corporate Farms: Evidence from Brazil. International Food and Agribusiness Management Review 20 (2): 201-219. Download

Chatalova, L., Balmann, A. (2017): The hidden costs of renewables promotion: The case of crop-based biogas, Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 168, pp. 893–903. Download

Huang, J., Wang, X., Dang, H. (2017): Impacts of and attitudes toward GM technology in China: challenges, policy and research implications, China Agricultural Economic Review, Vol. 9, No. 3, pp. 334-339. Download

Huang, J., Peng, B., Wang, X. (2017): Scientists' attitudes toward agricultural GM technology development and GM food in China, China Agricultural Economic Review, Vol. 9, No. 3, pp. 369-384. Download

Klümper, F., Theesfeld, I. (2017): The Land–Water–Food Nexus: Expanding the Social–Ecological System Framework to Link Land and Water Governance, Resources, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 1-16. Download

Lefore, N., Weight, E., Mukhamedova, N. (2017): Improving Gender Equity in Irrigation: Application of a Tool to Promote Learning and Performance in Malawi and Uzbekistan, WLE Research for Development (R4D) Learning Series No. 6, Colombo. Download

Mukhamedova, N., Wegerich, K. (2017): The rising challenge of multiple water resource use at the urban fringes – evidence from Ferghana District of Uzbekistan, Central Asian Journal of Water Research, Vol. 3, No. 2, pp. 41-53. Download

Munteanu, C., Kuemmerle, T., Boltiziar, M., Lieskovsky, J., Mojses, M., Kaim, D., Konkoly-Gyuro, E., Mackovcin, P., Müller, D., Ostapowicz, K., Radeloff, V. (2017): Nineteenth-century land-use legacies affect contemporary land abandonment in the Carpathians, Regional Environmental Change, Vol. 17, No. 8, pp. 2209–2222. Download

Neumann, K., Hermans, F. (2017): What drives human migration in Sahelian countries? A meta-analysis, Population, Space and Place, Vol. 23, No. 1. Download

Nihanovic-Ribic, S., Tortia, E.C., Valentinov, V. (2017): Agricultural cooperatives: A struggle for identity. In Jonathan Michie, Joseph R. Blasi, Carlo Borzaga (Eds) The Oxford Handbook of Mutual, Cooperative, and Co-Owned Business. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 158-170. Download

Perekhozhuk, O., Glauben, T., Grings, M., Teuber, R. (2017): Approaches and Methods for Econometric Analysis of Market Power: Survey and Empirical Comparison, Journal of Economic Surveys, Vol. 31, No. 1, pp. 303-325. Download

Petrick, M., Oshakbayev, D., Taitukova, R., Djanibekov, N. (2017): The return of the regulator: Kazakhstan's cotton sector reforms since independence, Central Asian Survey, Vol. 2017, No. 4, pp. 430-452. Download

Qiao, F., Huang, J., Wang, X. (2017): Fifteen years of Bt cotton in China: Results from household surveys, World Development, Vol. 98, pp. 351-359. Download

Swinnen, J., Burkitbayeva, S., Schierhorn, F., Prishchepov, A., Müller, D. (2017): Production Potential in the "Bread Baskets" of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Global Food Security, Vol. 14, pp. 38-53. Download

Theesfeld, I., Dufhues, T., Buchenrieder, G. (2017): The effects of rules on local political decision-making processes: How can rules facilitate participation?, Policy Sciences, Vol. 50, No. 4, pp. 675–696. Download

Traikova, D. (2017): Post-Socialist Informality Rural Style: Impressions from Bulgaria, in: Polese, A., Williams, C., Horodnic, I., Bejakovic, P. (eds.): The Informal Economy in Global Perspective: Varieties of Governance, S. 141-155. Download

Traikova, D., Manolova, T., Möllers, J., Buchenrieder, G. (2017): Corruption perceptions and entrepreneurial intentions in a transitional context : the case of rural Bulgaria, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, Vol. 22, No. 3, pp. 1-21. Download

von Heyking, C.-A., Jamali Jaghdani, T. (2017): Expansion of photovoltaic technology (PV) as a solution for water energy nexus in rural areas of Iran; comparative case study between Germany and Iran, DARE Diskussionsbeiträge, Universität Göttingen No. 1709, Göttingen.

Wang, X., Huang, J., Rozelle, S. (2017): Off-farm employment and agricultural specialization in China, China Economic Review, Vol. 42, pp. 155-165. Download

Wang, X., Luo, R., Zhang, L., Rozelle, S. (2017): The education gap of China's migrant children and rural counterparts, Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 53, No. 11, pp. 1865-1881. Download

Yang, W., Luan, Y., Liu, X., Yu, X., Miao, L., Cui, X. (2017): A new global anthropogenic heat estimation based on high-resolution nighttime light data, Scientific Data, Vol. 4, pp. 1-11. Download

 

Season’s greetings

Design © Julia Eggestein / Buff! Meine Werbeagentur GmbH

At the end of the year we would like to warmly thank you for your interest in the IAMO newsletter. We wish you season’s greetings and a happy new year. The next issue of the newsletter will appear in March 2018. In the meantime, you can receive current reports on the website www.iamo.de/en as well as on Facebook and Twitter.

 

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Public Relations
Email: presse(at)iamo.de

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