NEW RELEASES
Research Program on Invasive Species
ERS recently released a report,
Program
of Research on the Economics of Invasive Species
Management: Fiscal 2003-2005 Activities. The
report provides an overview of ERS’s initiative
to improve the economic understanding of policy
and decisionmaking related to invasive species problems,
policies, and programs. The report summarizes the
26 extramural research projects funded through PREISM’s
competitive awards process, as well as ERS research
on soybean rust and other invasive species issues
over the past 3 years. The report also describes
ERS’s active outreach strategy for dissemination
of PREISM research findings to key stakeholders.
Craig Osteen,
and Donna
Roberts
Corbis
New ERS Briefing Room on Farm Household Well-being
To understand farm household well-being,
one must shift from the traditional focus on farm
sector income to the total income received by the
household. Today, farm business income is shared
with contractors, landlords, and other investors,
and farming is only one of several economic activities—including
off-farm employment, nonfarm businesses, and other
investment activities—in which farm households
participate. For a more complete understanding of
farm household well-being, it is important to consider
farm household wealth, as well as total household
income. A new briefing room on the ERS website,
“Farm
Household Economics and Well-being”, synthesizes
the latest information from various data sources
on farm household labor and demographic characteristics;
farm household income; farm household assets, debt,
and net worth; and composite measures of farm household
well-being. Ashok
Mishra
Hispanics in Rural America
Rural Hispanics At A Glance
(EIB-8),
the latest in a series of ERS reports on
conditions and trends in rural areas, is based primarily
on data from the 2000 Census and provides recent
demographic and socioeconomic indicators for Hispanics
living in nonmetropolitan (nonmetro) areas. After
nearly doubling in population from 1.4 million in
1980 to 2.7 million in 2000, Hispanics in rural
and small-town America now represent the most rapidly
growing segment of the population in nonmetro counties.
This growth has helped to stem decades of small-town
population decline and to revitalize many rural
communities. This six-page brochure incorporates
short analyses with colorful charts and maps on
key indicators of the rural Hispanic population
to inform and assist public officials, community
organizations, rural development specialists, and
others in their efforts to enhance the economic
opportunities and quality of life for this rapidly
growing population. William
Kandel
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