Canadian small settlements and the uptake of agricultural land, 1966–1976

The total area of built-up land in Canada is estimated, for the first time, and divided into two categories: the extent of all large urban areas, and the extent of all small urban areas. The agricultural quality of land urbanized between 1966 and 1976 is also estimated. Contrary to expectations, this area is small compared with the entire stock of land with agricultural capability. Small settlements, however, are expanding rapidly and have relatively generous space standards. The aggregate effect of this rural urbanization on Canadian agricultural production is not currently monitored, and a redirection of policy and analytical attention towards the small settlements is suggested.     

An alternative approach to immigration policy: Rationing by skill

Current U.S. immigration policy places a heavy emphasis on kinship ties with a U.S. citizen or resident alien in rationing immigration visas. An alternative policy is to focus on the skills of visa applicants. Immigrants with higher levels of schooling and with skills that are more readily transferable to the U.S. labor market are more productive, as measured by their earnings. A larger proportion of skilled workers in a cohort of immigrants tends to narrow the differences in earnings among skill groups in the native-born population. This reduces income inequality and reduces the use of income transfers by the low-skilled native-born population. More highly-skilled immigrants also make less use of income-contingent transfers. A point-system would be necessary to combine the multidimensional aspects of skill. The adoption of skill-based rationing with a point system in Canada led to an increase in the skill level of the immigrants.     

Fertility and land availability in rural Brazil

Differences between the marital fertility of the agricultural frontier and that of the more settled rural areas of southern Brazil are analyzed in this paper. Fertility rates derived from 1970 census data appear to decrease as the degree of settlement increases, suggesting an experience parallel to the decline in U.S. rural fertility in the late nineteenth century, which Easterlin and others have attributed to increased scarcity of land for starting new farm households. Multivariate analysis of the Brazilian data shows parallels between the two situations but also reveals that the importance of literacy, child survival, and access to land is relatively greater than that of the availability of land for explaining fertility differentials in Brazil.     

ZPG goals

1. Zero Population Growth (ZPG) believes that the present population of the U.S. exceeds the optimum level for the continued well-being of its citizens. ZPG therefore advocates the achievement, by voluntary means, of an end to U.S. population growth by 1990, and a reduction in U.S. population size thereafter. Among the conditions necessary to achieve this goal, ZPG stresses: freedom of access for every person to all means of voluntary birth control; a major research effort to develop safer and more effective means of birth control; complete equality of opportunity for all women and men; and removal of all legal and societal pronatalist pressures. The population size should stabilize at a substantially reduced level which will maximize diversity, freedom of choice, and the quality of life for all. 2. ZPG believes that land is a resource too important to human survival to be subjected to misuse. Ecological land use planning is essential in determining the appropriate patterns of distribution of people on the land, and of migration between states and regions. Thoughtful land use planning at all levels of government is necessary to assure the long-range stewardship of the land and well-being of mankind. 3. ZPG believes that human activities are causing the rapid depletion of the world's available stock of mineral resources. Simultaneously those activities are resulting in increased pollution of land, air, and water resources. ZPG therefore recommends 1) reduction in the rate of growth and eventual stabilization of U.S. consumption of nonrenewable resources; and 2) rapid stabilization of total national energy consumption at least until environmentally sound sources are developed. ZPG recognizes that none of its goals can be justified unless concurrently with their achievement adequate levels of income, health care, and educational opportunity are assured to all persons.     

A Quantitative Investigation of the Population-Land Inequality-Land Clearance Nexus

This paper provides a quantitative investigation of the population-land inequality-land clearance nexus. Drawing on the literature on farmer optimization behaviour, the study formalizes and empirically tests a model of population-induced agricultural land clearance. The model makes several assumptions about this process: (a) The rate at which agricultural land is brought into production due to rising population pressures accelerates with the level of inequality in access to land, (b) Egalitarian systems have a greater capacity to absorb rising numbers of people per unit of land area and, thus, will have lower rates of agricultural land clearance than higher ones and (c) Irrespective of its degree of egalitarianism, the capacity of any system to hold people in one place will eventually break down once a critical population threshold is reached. Due to their lower population absorptive capacity, this level will be reached sooner under unequal systems of land distribution. Thus, the model also hypothesizes that the stimulatory impact of population growth on the demand for new land will exhibit a non-linear threshold pattern. For the farmer, the decision to clear a new plot of land will reflect these population-inequality interactions: Earnings from farming in settled areas will tend to fall as population densities and inequality in access to land increase. Time series results confirm that rural population growth is a significant factor driving agricultural land clearance in many of the 59 developing countries of our sample. Results also suggest that this rate of clearance is largest in countries with highly inegalitarian patterns of distribution. In contrast, cross-sectional regression results do not suggest any direct role for land inequality in population-agricultural land use outcomes. Contrary to the models assumption that this relationship should follow a non-linear threshold pattern, cross-sectional results also find no evidence that the absorptive capacity of highly densely populated land systems has been reached on average. However, they do provide support for an indirect linear relationship: Population induced agricultural land clearance is significantly magnified as inequality in access to land increases. Drawing on the empirics of the growth-inequality literature, the study suggests that this magnifying role may be linked to inequalitys impact on the assets of the poor. That is, by undermining the capacity of the rural poor to make productive investments in the land base, inequality in land distribution mediates population pressures in a way that affects both the quality and quantity of assets available to the poor to raise incomes, invest in skills accumulation, and spur demand in the rural economy as a whole.     

National approaches to developing social indicators

The basis for selecting social indicators in ten national publications released to date are primarily measures of welfare and measures reflecting public policy and social concerns. The orientation of the volumes from the U.S., France, Canada, Norway, Philippines, Malaysia, Great Britain are discussed. The selection of time series that reflect social processes is proposed and an orientation presented around the concepts of the vital processes, socialization and participation, mobility and stratification, maintaining security, and control and coordination by which social order is attained. A bibliography identifies the national reports known to the author.     

Socio-Economic Inequalities in Happiness in China and U.S.

Our paper studies the determinants of happiness in China and U.S. and provides a better understanding of the issue of inequalities in happiness beyond income inequality. Based on the two waves of nation-wide survey data on happiness collected by World Values Survey in 1995 and 2007, Probit and ordinary least square methods are used to estimate effects of various factors on happiness. Our findings show that socio-economic inequalities increase inequalities in happiness in China. The poor are the least happy even though the income effect flats out at the high end. Individuals with below high school education attainment are less happy than those with more education. Agricultural workers are the most unhappy and are becoming even more unhappy over time. However, in U.S., there is no systematic difference in happiness across income and education groups and between agricultural and non-agricultural workers. In both countries health is a major factor contributing to happiness. Our study implies that adequate provision of national health care services should be an effective way to improve social welfare. Besides, since the probability of being happy for agricultural workers is still considerably less after controlling for income in China, policies to improve their welfare should not be limited to enhancing current income.     

Return migration from Canada to Britain

Abstract Statistics of migrants returning from Canada to Britain and re-registering for national insurance purposes are compared with labour force immigrants entering Canada between 1956 and 1965. Short and long-term indices are calculated which suggest that return migration has been increasing since 1960. A sample survey carried out in 1962-63 distinguishes three types of returning migrant: (a) quasi-migrants who originally planned to return to Britain; (b) permanent repatriates who originally intended to settle in Canada but now expect to remain in Britain; (c) transilient migrants who exhibit a high propensity to move backwards and forwards between two or more countries without becoming permanently rooted in anyone. The demographic, economic and social characteristics of the three types are described. A further comparison is made between migrants who plan to settle in Britain, those who intend to come back again to Canada, and those who are uncertain of their future plans or who intend to move on to a third country.     

The Effects of Childhood SNAP Use and Neighborhood Conditions on Adult Body Mass Index

The disproportionate number of individuals who are obese or overweight in the low-income U.S. population has raised interest in the influence of neighborhood conditions and public assistance programs on weight and health. Generally, neighborhood effects and program participation effects have been explored in separate studies. We unite these two areas of inquiry, using the 1968-2005 Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) to examine the long-term effects of childhood Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation, neighborhood conditions, and the interaction of these two, on adult body mass index (BMI). Using sibling fixed-effects models to account for selection bias, we find that relative to children in other low-income families, children in SNAP-recipient households have higher average adult BMI values. However, the effects of childhood SNAP usage are sensitive to both residential neighborhood and age at receipt. For those growing up in advantaged neighborhoods, projected adult BMI is higher for children in SNAP-recipient households than for children in low-income, nonrecipient households. In contrast, for those growing up in less-advantaged areas, adult BMI differences between children in SNAP-recipient and those in low-income, nonrecipient households are small. SNAP usage during preschool years (0 to 4) has no impact on adult BMI scores. However, at later childhood ages, the time elapsed receiving SNAP income increases adult BMI values relative to a condition of low-income nonreceipt.     

Reporting on The State of Canada's Environment

The 750 page report,The State of Canada's Environment, is the collaborative effort of more than 100 experts from universities, private industry, environmental groups, and government. In 27 chapters the report addresses four fundamental questions about Canada's environment: what are the key environmental conditions and trends in Canada; what are the links between human activities and environmental changes; what are the environmental, economic, and health implications of these changes; and what are Canadians doing to address the concerns identified? Topics examined include: environmental components (air, fresh and marine water, land, and wildlife), human activities that affect the environment (e.g. forestry, agriculture, fisheries, urbanization), as well as six regional case studies and major environmental issues such as toxic chemicals, ozone depletion and acid rain. The report also indicates areas where Canadians have made progress toward sustainable development and identifies areas where work remains to be done. Actions that are being taken to strengthen state of the environment reporting in Canada, including the development of indicators, are also briefly discussed.     

Economic opportunity in mexico and return migration from the United States

I analyze the influence of the economic characteristics of origin area on trip duration for Mexican migrants in the United States. I argue that migrants from economically dynamic areas in Mexico with favorable opportunities for employment and small capital investment have a larger incentive to stay in the United States longer and to withstand the psychic costs of separation from family and friends than do migrants from economically stagnant areas in Mexico, where the productive uses of savings are severely limited. In line with this argument we should expect investment opportunities in migrants’ origin areas to be associated positively with migrants’ trip duration in the United States. To test this hypothesis I use individual- and household-level data on U.S migration experience collected in 13 Mexican communities. Evidence from parametric hazards models supports the idea that economic characteristics of origin areas influence the motivations and strategies of Mexican migrants in the United States.     

A rejoinder

In his thoughtful paper, Westoff has clearly shown that even if the ‘correct’ procedure is followed, it does not alter the finidngs of the Princeton studies. This is puzzling since his findings are so at odds with those reported by Duncan & Blau (footnote 21) for a National Sample of the U.S. population in the mid 1960s. The latter reported that the fertility of mobile couples was ‘intermediate’, between that prevailing in their place of origin, and in their place of destination, which is, of course, consistent with what we have noted for the Aberdeen sample. Thus, it would seem that one cannot easily dismiss the Aberdeen case as being different on the grounds that the social class system is more structured in Britain than in the U.S. The discrepancy in the findings is yet to be resolved.     

The United Kingdom's international migration in the inter-war period: Theoretical considerations and empirical testing

At the theoretical level, the paper has two aims: to develop a three-country migration model and to incorporate British emigration schemes of the 1920s into it. The model is tested on data of U.K. emigration to Canada, the U.S.A. and Australia from 1920 to 1936.     

嵌入与融合:民族地区失地农民可持续生计问题的调查与思考

土地乃民生之本,民族地区由于城市化发展、生态环境建设需要以及自然灾害等原因,面临着大量农业用地转为非农利用问题,成为影响民族地区社会稳定和经济发展的"难症";本研究以民族地区失地农民的可持续生计问题作为研究对象,运用多学科的理论和方法,着重分析了民族地区失地农民生存现状、可持续生计存在问题及对当地经济社会发展和民族关系的影响等,全面而系统地对失地农民生计路径进行具有建设意义和实践意义的探索。     

The United Kingdom's international migration in the inter-war period: Theoretical considerations and empirical testing

Summary At the theoretical level, the paper has two aims: to develop a three-country migration model and to incorporate British emigration schemes of the 1920s into it. The model is tested on data of U.K. emigration to Canada, the U.S.A. and Australia from 1920 to 1936.     

Preliminary discussion on the current over-population in agriculture in China]

The population devoted to agriculture constitutes more than 80% of China's total population. This high percentage is not very common in today's world. In the last 30 years, the population devoted to agriculture has increased by 81.9%, but the area of arable land has decreased in the same period of time. This situation has created problems, such as a surplus of agricultural labor, an imbalance between the agricultural population growth and agricultural means of production, a serious contradiction between the agricultural population growth and mechanization of agriculture, an imbalance between the agricultural population growth and means of livelihood, and the current low standard of living for populations engaged in agricultural work. In order to solve the problems of overpopulation, various measures must be taken in different places. The economic structure of agriculture is to be reasonably arranged, and various operations in agriculture are to be carried out. In addition to the production of main agricultural crops, forestry, animal husbandry, the fishing industry, and family supplementary income are to be developed in order to provide more job opportunities. Communes and production teams should emphasize labor intensive plans for more profit with less investment. Agriculture should focus on intensive farming in order to increase productivity. Arable land can be expanded with reclamation projects, and water and soil conservation is necessary. The surplus agricultural population should be utilized for productive activities.     

Relating briefly the natural resources and the population problems of China]

Problems in population, manifested primarily as either "over" or "under" population, are ultimately related to the development of natural resources. Land is the most basic of natural resources. China's land mass is largely mountainous, with 56% of its more than 2000 counties, 1/3 of its population, 40% of its cultivated land and a majority of its forests, situated in mountainous regions. The quality and the distribution of the various kinds of land are complex and uneven. Although China is rich in forests, grazing, and arable land compared to the rest of the world, its 1 billion population makes the land a limited resource. The limitations of the land are also seen in soil erosion, soil that is increasingly turning into sand, and deforestation. Water resources are not considered scarce, yet compared to the rest of the world, it is limited. Its distribution is very uneven, with more water in the east and west, and less in the north and south. In the southwest mountainous border regions, for instance, water is abundant, but the population and arable land there is such that the demand for water is low. Moreover, droughts and heavy precipitation make the annual water supply unpredicatable. The demand for water becomes increasingly greater as agricultural production develops further, the population increases and as the cities continue to expand. living matter as a resource includes all the animal and plant life that is necessary for livelihood, but only forests and grasslands are discussed here. China's forests, if their use is not abused, can serve as a continuous supply for manufactured products. But its distribution is uneven and sparse. Population control will be ineffective if the forests are not replenished and developed. Grasslands are the primary source for animal products. The natural grasslands, found mainly in the north and west, are not as productive as that of other nations due to the nature of China's topography, the vagaries of climate, and deterioration. Energy, the source for fuel, includes such natural resources as coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydraulic, and solar power. China is among the world's richest in energy resources, yet the supply is sometimes insufficient when spread among 1 billion people.     

A comparison of patterns of urban deprivation between Canadian and U.S. cities

Recent research has indicated the existence of aggregate level differences between Canadian and U.S. cities. However, little attention has been given to possible socio-spatial differences between cities in the two nations. This paper attempts to address part of this issue by comparing a sample of paired Canadian and U.S. cities with respect to, (1) deprivation concentration levels within their inner cities, (2) the nature of areas of multiple deprivation, and (3) the proportion of their worst areas of multiple deprivation located within their inner cities. The study found that deprived groups were disproportionately represented in the inner-city areas of both nations. However, areas of multiple deprivation in U.S. cities contained more deprived groups than Canadian cities. Finally, the inner-city areas of both nations contained high proportions of their worst areas of multiple deprivation. In short, the extent of multiple deprivation is less in Canadian cities, but cities in both countries share an inner-city problem.     

The seasonality of births in Canada: A comparison with the northern United States

This paper presents evidence that there are substantial differences in the seasonal birth patterns of Canada and the northern United States. The seasonal birth pattern in Canada is characterized by a birth peak in April–May, and a trough in December–January. The birth pattern in the northern U.S. is characterized by a trough in April–May, and a peak in August–September. The influence of climate on the birth patterns is explored in an attempt to explain the discrepancies. In both Canada and the United States, there is an inverse relationship between temperature and conceptions during the summer months. The study concludes that variation in temperature alone cannot explain the discrepancy between the birth patterns of southern Canada and the northern United States.