News Roundup - May 2012

Below is a collection of various news items of interest to AAEA members. Have something you would like included? Either mention it in the comments below, or e-mail Adam@aaea.org and we'll include it in a future News Roundup.

Power Generation and the Environment: Choices & Economic Trade-Offs
Call for Papers deadline: May 15
This symposium will focus on solutions to CO2 emissions from coal-generated electricity, the economic implications of alternative control options, and the costs of alternatives to coal-fired generation. We are seeking to convene scholars and experts in economics, engineering, policy, and science to evaluate the technological and economic viability of various solutions to CO2 emissions. Papers are being solicited from leading engineering and economic scholars, industry representatives, and public policy makers from around the world who are conducting high quality research to communicate their findings to a non-technical, yet sophisticated audience. Academic papers will be accepted based upon their representation of reputable data and rigorous analysis. The symposium will take place October 1-2, 2012 at Teton Village, Wyoming.

121^st EAAE Seminar, "Global Financial Crises and Food Commodity Speculation: Assessing the Impacts on Agro-Food Sector, Rural Economies and Food Security"
Call for Papers deadline: May 30
The 121^st EAAE 2012 seminar will be held in Antalya, Turkey, on October 4-5, 2012. This seminar aims at bringing together economists, agricultural economists, modelers, and policy analysts in order to explore the adverse effects experienced by the agro-food sector and rural economies during and after the recent financial crisis, measure and evaluate the depth of the damage in the affected economies, develop and discuss solutions to the problem, and derive relevant policy recommendations. The seminar does not exclusively focus on a particular scientific domain. Multiple theoretical and/or methodological contributions and particularly quantitative analyses are all welcome.

Special Issue of Economics Research International on Economics of Bioenergy
Call for Papers deadline: September 7
There has been world-wide support for the production and use of renewable energy sources, especially through major policy initiatives relating to climate change and bioenergy. A few examples of these policy supports include the United States’ Environmental Protection Agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) and the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) of 2009 (H.R. 2454), Brazil’s 2009 National Climate Change Policy, Canada’s 2006 Renewable Fuels Regulations, and the European Union’s Energy and Climate Change Package, adopted in 2009. The rationales behind these policies have been multifold, ranging from less reliance on imported fuels, reducing energy prices and improving the rural economy to mitigating climate change. Some have argued that bioenergy has not delivered on its promise of energy security and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, especially in the case of field crops utilized to produce biofuels, bioheat, and biopower. The economic and environmental consequences of this bioenergy expansion have not been fully understood, primarily because bioenergy markets are not well developed and still in flux. The main objective of this special issue is to better understand the emergence of bioenergy markets and explore the direct or indirect consequences of the expansion of this alternative energy source on the rural economy, energy and commodity markets, and associated environmental impacts at the country, regional or global level.