Member Profile: Holly Wang

Dr. Holly Wang’s expertise in the world of agricultural economics is sought after on two continents. Wang, in addition to her work as a Professor at Purdue University, is a Guest Professor at the Center for Agricultural Development at Zhejiang University in her native country of China.

Wang has spent a good part of her scholarly career researching agricultural economic issues in China and has had several papers published on topics in that country, including this year with “Benefit or Damage? The Productivity Effects of the FDI in the Chinese Food Industry” and “The Market Power in the Chinese Wine Industry.” It’s work Wang says she continues to do as China’s large food market adapts with an increased demand in food quality.

“I’ve been conducting research on market demand and consumer preference with a focus on Chinese consumers’ preference for attributes like food safety, biotechnology, county of origin, and online fresh food,” Wang says. “On the other hand, the Chinese government aims to improve its agricultural production and rural income, so there is a demand from the government, the industry and the public in both China and the United States to research Chinese food production and consumption.”

Wang was part of starting the AAEA China Section in 2009, which at the time was the first section dedicated to a particular country or region. Wang was elected to the Board for a term for 2014 -2017 and served as an Executive Board liaison for the section later. She is also involved in the CWAE Section and served on it as Vice Chair.

“I’m fortunate to be able to work closely with some of our most productive colleagues in the profession,” Wang said. As for her time on the board, Wang is proud of the “many new activities and new business methods” that are now part of AAEA. “The one I feel most excited about is the communications emphasis.”

And Wang is an active participant in the communications strategy. She was recently interviewed by the China Global Television Network on how technology is helping China’s agricultural growth. It was the third time in as many years Wang has been interviewed on that global stage.

“The focus of the interview is often the latest Chinese policy,” Wang said, “and the call often comes the day before the live interview. Understanding the broader impact when reaching an audience of millions, a researcher needs to be willing to accept the stress of very short notices and handle the extra demand away from research.

Staying informed with new public attention on agricultural economics related issues, and relying on our economics training and logic reasoning are the two factors the media need.”

While no longer on the AAEA Executive Board, Wang is still playing an active role within AAEA. And, as a former Board member, she has some advice for students and young career professionals within the Association:

“AAEA takes special care of students and junior professionals through things like scholarships, travel grants, networking events and mentor programs. The best way to maximize the benefit from these opportunities is to get more involved, not only presenting at the annual meetings but also serving on a committee or a section at a position that fits your time budget.”

Get to know AAEA Members:

Holly Wang: “I have been bounded to agricultural economics in ways I can’t even explain.  Growing up in central Beijing with an undergraduate degree in business, I thought I entered the AgEc PhD program only because I received its RA after no funding hope from MBA programs.  Recently I found a big surprise in my mother’s condo-- my very first research paper from sophomore year, hand written on latticed paper in Chinese, “The relationship between staple food consumption and income for Beijing residents.” It was based on a simple regression analysis using a small sample in a neighborhood near campus where I did interviews!  Now I have a new story if you ask me why I chose agricultural economics. LOL.”

If you would like to be part of the Member Profiles, or would like to nominate a colleague, please contact Jay Saunders in the AAEA Business Office (jsaunders@aaea.org).

Member Profile: Matthew Rousu

Micro and Macro with “Mamma Mia?”

Learning the Laffer curve with “Les Miserables?”

Surely Adam Smith would have enjoyed a session on surplus singing along with “Miss Saigon.”

Welcome to the world of Broadway Economics, starring AAEA member Matthew Rousu, Interim Dean and Professor of Economics of the Sigmund Weis School of Business at Susquehanna University.

“I started working with some outstanding economists who showed how to make economics classes more innovative,” Rousu said. “Some of them even did it through songs. Others had websites illustrating how to teach using television shows.”

Rousu is now, as his website puts it, “teaching economics through musical theatre.” Why show tunes? Rousu became a fan of theatre in college, and married a music and theatre double major. That helps, but Rousu says it’s a classical learning tool.

“Musicals tell stories, and many of the stories contain economic lessons. While I, and most people who receive a Ph.D. probably don’t need a song to learn an economic concept, there is a significant amount of research that shows that some people learn much better if a concept is reinforced through music.”

Rousu says he uses more than just the songs you’ll hear on Broadway, in fact he says he’s had students tell him they heard a song on the radio and remembered the economic concept he tied to that song. While you don’t hear of a lot of students loading up their playlists with show tunes, Rousu says he’s had some converts.

“I have introduced many students to the musical ‘Hamilton’ and then they’ve become fans of the show!”

When he’s not thinking of ways to work “Phantom” or “Sunny Afternoon” into the syllabus, Rousu says his research is on a wide range of topics; although he says most projects have involved experimental auctions.

“My work has varied from using experimental auctions to assess the value consumers place on information, examining the impact of labeling policy, to examining the value for products. But I’ve also done work examining the effectiveness of alternative experimental auction designs.”

As for his time with AAEA, Rousu went to his first Annual Meeting in 2001 and says he finds the meetings “valuable.”

“Many of the ideas that eventually turned into papers came from attending sessions at the AAEA Annual Meeting, during discussions at the reunions or by just running into colleagues at the meetings and chatting about ideas.”

Rousu has advice for some of the younger members finding their way in the profession: “You can follow a non-traditional path and be successful. There is no one way to have a successful career and sometimes following a different path can be a lot more fun.”

Get to know AAEA Members:

Matthew Rousu: “From 2004-2011 I was a semi-professional poker player.  The “semi” part of that statement means poker was not my main job.  But the “professional” part means I treated poker as a profession. I took the game very seriously and earned some income over that stretch of time, mostly by playing on the Internet.  I also competed in the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas in six different years, with two cashes in eight events played.  When the U.S. government essentially shut down Internet poker in 2011, however, I stopped playing as seriously.  Now I get to a poker room a few times a year, but that’s about it.”

Member Profile: Norbert Wilson

Norbert Wilson is no stranger to the AAEA Annual Meeting.

Wilson got his first chance to share his research as an undergraduate at the University of Georgia. In 1992 he took part in the student paper competition.

As a graduate student at the University of California, Davis, Wilson again went to AAEA meetings as a way to present research and make connections with colleagues. His experience at the meetings continued as a professor; and this year, at the 2017 AAEA Annual Meeting in Chicago, Wilson will become a member of the AAEA Board of Directors. He was elected by fellow members earlier this year.

“It was not always easy.” Wilson said. “As an early career professional, attending the meetings was isolating. I am grateful for my major professor, former classmates, and colleagues in COSBAE who helped me find a place in the association. I am grateful for supportive colleagues who helped me to see the importance of being engaged.”

Wilson says through the years, he has been able to develop a network of colleagues who “encouraged me in subtle and direct ways.”

As a Board member and a long-standing AAEA member, Wilson is now in a position to give advice to the students and early career professionals just as his predecessors did for him. His message to those starting a career in this profession? “Keep at it.”

“The meetings can be daunting,” Wilson says. “Part of the job of an academic is sharing your ideas with others; some will like them and others will not. Thus, learn from rejections and negative comments. Most folks want to see you grow.”

The shift to AAEA Board Member isn’t the only professional change in Wilson’s life right now. Wilson recently left his position of professor at Auburn University to take on a position as Professor of Food Policy in the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.

Wilson says the shift from a small college town in the south to life in Boston has been “tough, but in a good way.” He talked about how it was difficult to leave a good place like Auburn but is excited to take on this new challenge.

“I am at a school of nutrition with colleagues and students of different backgrounds and research objectives,” Wilson says. “Thus, I am learning to communicate and collaborate in new ways. I am learning more about how other fields approach and discuss their work.”

At this year’s Annual Meeting, Wilson says you can find him at the COSBAE/CWAE luncheon, many of the Plenary Sessions, and at the reunions; but only for a little while because “they go a little too late for me!”

Wilson’s final piece of advice for young career professionals at this year’s meeting and beyond? “Learn to be a mentor and lend a hand to those coming behind you.”

Get to know AAEA Members:

Norbert Wilson: “I have a wife and daughter who are simply wonderful. They challenge me, keep me honest, and seek to make me a better person.”

 If you have an idea for a news release or a member profile, please contact Jay Saunders in the AAEA Business Office (jsaunders@aaea.org)

Member Profile: Anton Bekkerman

What do wine and weeds have in common?

Gophers falling from the sky and other things to keep an eye on.

You aren’t reading from the pages of a science fiction novel, these are headlines of recent articles at AgEcontMT.com – a website launched by AAEA member Anton Bekkerman and a team of colleagues at Montana State University.

Check out the website and you’ll find more than just stories on weeds and gophers; Bekkerman says the website was intended to focus on a broad range of agricultural economics issues impacting the northern Great Plains, a region Bekkerman says is not as widely or frequently addressed.

“We wanted to create a modern, sustainable and effective outreach and extension program that provided an opportunity to communicate highly current and relevant research and information to the stakeholders who are most likely to benefit from this information,” Bekkerman said.

This website is a first of its kind for the region, and Bekkerman says the website communicates information across a variety of mediums, including blog posts, podcasts, and presentations. The website covers a wide variety of topics and, because of that, Bekkerman says there isn’t one particular group coming to the site for information and analysis.

“Our key audience ranges from producers, to those within the food supply chain, to those in academia,” Bekkerman said. “Many of the discussions, such as government program analysis, trade policy discussions, and labor market dynamics have implications well outside the northern Great Plains region.”

“We have seen website visitors from every state in America and many other countries.”

Bekkerman is an associate professor of agricultural economics and Montana State whose teaching focus is courses on Managerial Economics and the Economics of Agricultural Marketing.

He has been an AAEA member since 2007. Bekkerman says he will be at the 2017 AAEA Annual Meeting in Chicago presenting “work that models factors affecting grain elevators’ pricing decisions for wheat of different quality." Bekkerman says his research was prompted by a presentation he saw during the 2016 Annual Meeting in Boston.

“The association provides great visibility, networking, and professional development opportunities that I would have otherwise not have had or not have,” Bekkerman said. “I took several opportunities to be in leadership positions for several AAEA sections and as a selected papers group leader early in my career, and that certainly helped make me more visible to more established colleagues in the profession.”

It’s an opportunity Bekkerman and the team at MSU is now sharing with others through AgEconMT.com – and giving agricultural economists another avenue to share their knowledge and insight.

“Often, really good research is only targeted to appear in an academic journal which may not be frequently accessed outside of academia,” Bekkerman said. “Similarly, extension professionals may develop informational content that is unlikely to ever appear in an academic journal. We want our project to reduce these barriers.”

Get to know AAEA Members:

Anton Bekkerman: “I'm originally from the Ukraine (immigrating to the United States in 1991), a country colloquially known as Europe's 'bread basket' because of its high capacity to produce agricultural products (especially wheat). And while not from an agricultural background, it's neat that my career has come full circle to working on not only topics in agriculture, but specifically to the economics of crop production and marketing.”

 If you have an idea for a news release or a member profile, please contact Jay Saunders in the AAEA Business Office (jsaunders@aaea.org)

Member Profiles: Simanti Banerjee, Leah Palm-Forster & Mykel Taylor

Three AAEA members. Three different universities. Three different AAEA sections. One new goal.

Simanti Banerjee from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Leah Palm-Forster from the University of Delaware, and Mykel Taylor from Kansas State University are teaming up on a new research project to analyze a critical agri-environmental policy challenge.

That project, “Enhancing enrollment of leased land in agri-environmental programs: an investigation of the Conservation Stewardship Program in Kansas”, recently received funding from USDA-ERS. The group will study how land ownership, lease agreements and conservation contract requirements influence participation in the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).

“This has a direct impact on the environment,” Palm-Forster said. “If you want to address problems like nutrient runoff and soil erosion we need to find ways to make these types of programs attractive to farmers.”

This project has also come together thanks to involvement in AAEA Sections. Banerjee is active in the Land, Water, and Environmental Economics (ENV) Section, Taylor will be presenting a paper at the 2017 AAEA Annual Meeting in Chicago in a session sponsored by the Extension Section, and Palm-Forster will become chair of the Committee on Women in Agricultural Economics (CWAE) in Chicago.

All three women say involvement in AAEA helped them come together and

come up with the idea for this research. In fact, the 2016 AAEA Annual Meeting in Boston was the first time these members were able to meet in person.

“This has helped our communication and work and will be beneficial for our current project as it progresses and future projects we hope to work on,” Banerjee said.

Taylor has advice for young professionals or students – get involved in what AAEA has to offer.

“I participated in the AAEA Mentoring Program a couple of years ago,” Taylor said, “and that was a really great experience that led me to have a lot more confidence in understanding the nuances of the profession. Specifically it gave me the confidence to approach people and strike up a conversation at places like the Annual Meeting.”

Get to know AAEA Members:

Leah Palm-Forster: “After my grandfathers passed away both my grandmothers rented their land to local famers. Observing this transition sparked my desire to understand how land rental affects management decisions and the environmental impacts of agricultural production. Our current research is providing me with an opportunity to start digging into this important question.”

Simanti Banerjee: “Living and working in Nebraska has been fascinating for me from an ag-econ standpoint since I am originally from urban India from a city of approximately 13 million people and growing up I never really had any exposure to agriculture.”

Mykel Taylor: “My husband and I are doing our best to repopulate the world with redheads. We have two girls with red hair, but we were unsuccessful with the third, Tim, who has brown hair.”

All three members were recently featured in an AAEA news release about their new research program. You can read all AAEA news releases by clicking on this link. If you have an idea for a news release or a member profile, please contact Jay Saunders in the AAEA Business Office (jsaunders@aaea.org).