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Contents & Foreword, Characterizing And ... - IRRI books

Contents & Foreword, Characterizing And ... - IRRI books

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Integration of biophysical andsocioeconomic constraintsin rainfed lowland rice farmcharacterization: techniques,issues, and ongoing <strong>IRRI</strong> researchC.M. Edmonds and S.P. KamThis chapter reviews research incorporating socioeconomic and biophysicalvariables into analysis to characterize rainfed rice environments. The use ofgeographic information systems (GIS) as a tool for integrating these two typesof data is highlighted. GIS starts as a useful tool for organizing and displayinggeo-referenced social and economic data. The increasing ease of use ofGIS software and improvements in geographic positioning systems and remote-sensingtechnology facilitate the generation of more accurate spatiallyreferenced data that can be integrated into analyses of agricultural practicesand outcomes. GIS software, combined with other software, provides analyticaltechniques for converting distinct types of biophysical and socioeconomicdata to a common scale amenable to analysis as an integrated database.These techniques are outlined. A final area of GIS application in socioeconomicanalysis involves linking GIS analysis with other modeling techniques.Econometric modeling and linear programming models using spatially referencedbiophysical and socioeconomic data are examples of this type of research.In the second part of the chapter, we review research that the InternationalRice Research Institute is carrying out in the Mekong River Delta ofVietnam in collaboration with the Institute of Agricultural Sciences in Ho ChiMinh City. The research applies geo-informational techniques and methodologies,and review of it enables consideration of the material covered inpart one. Here, we develop a spatial economic model of crop choice andland-use intensity to provide an analytical framework for empirical examination.Empirical estimates provide insight into the roles that biophysical andsocioeconomic constraints play in explaining changes in land use and productivity,and enable exploration of the interrelation between biophysical andsocioeconomic production constraints. Random effects probit estimates showwhich factors influence farm land use. This estimator uses the panel structureof the data, and provides robust estimates. Ordered probit and multinomiallogit estimates of cropping intensity and cropping pattern adopted werecarried out using single years of the survey to enable estimation of the effectof time invariant characteristics on these outcomes. Findings from theseestimates are reviewed and extensions and future applications of GIS econometricintegration are considered.Integration of biophysical and socioeconomic constraints . . . 441

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