Three researchers from The University of Queensland's School of Economics have been honoured by the European Review of Agricultural Economics – winning the Outstanding Journal Article Award for 2011.
Dr Céline Nauges, Professor Chris O’Donnell and Professor John Quiggin received the award for their article ‘Uncertainty and technical efficiency in Finnish agriculture: a state-contingent approach’.
The research paper draws on earlier work by Professor O’Donnell and Professor Quiggin on the econometric estimation of models of production under uncertainty, with this research being one of the first empirical applications of a realistic state-contingent model.
“This award is recognition that our work is making a contribution to the agricultural economics literature and to the understanding and modelling of farmers' behaviour facing uncertainty," said lead author Dr Nauges.
“The next step is to apply this framework to data on Australian farmers, who face significant uncertainty, especially in relation to climate variability," she said.
Professor Quiggin said the award was a great honour for the team.
"The state-contingent approach has been well-developed in theory but high-quality econometric work like that of Dr Nauges is needed if it is to be applied in practice," he said.
“The state-contingent approach used in this research paper is more flexible and realistic than ‘fixed-output-proportions’ models, which have until recently been standard."
The research was supported by an ARC Future Fellowship Award, which was awarded to Dr Nauges in 2010, to develop economic policies to enhance the efficient and sustainable use of water resources in a context of high uncertainty about the future climate.
"We are all delighted that the EAAE has recognised our work and it will encourage us to continue our research in this field," Professor O'Donnell said.
Although the prize does not include any financial reward, it represents the recognition both of the high-quality work supported by Dr Nauges’ Future Fellowship and of the value of the state-contingent approach.
The three researchers will be formally honoured at the EAAE Congress in Slovenia in 2014.
To view the winning article, please click here.
Media: Marnie-Anne Snow, phone 07 3365 4959
