title: A warm and dry place to live: Energy efficiency and rental accommodation

authors: Barton, Barry

abstract: In residential tenancies, it is usual for the landlord to be responsible for the fabric of the building and the main appliances, and for the tenant to be responsible for paying for electricity, gas and other fuel. It is also the tenant who is affected by the building’s heating and ventilation performance – whether it can be kept warm and dry without undue expense. A landlord has no financial incentive to invest in extra insulation or better appliances, because the benefits will be reaped by the tenant in lower energy bills and higher levels of comfort, and because the improvements do not have a direct influence on the rent that the landlord can charge. The result is that energy efficiency investments tend not to get made. In policy terms, the interests of the landlord and tenant are not aligned; the incentives are split. It is a classic example of a principal-agent gap, and as the “landlord-tenant problem” is one of the market failures that affects efficiency in markets for energy and energy products.1 The energy use affected by the principal-agent problem in the United States residential sector for refrigerators, space heating, water heating and lighting has been estimated as 31.4 per cent of the total sectoral energy use;2 so the issue is a substantial one. The problem of energy efficiency in rental accommodation is therefore the subject of this article.

text: A warm and dry place to live: Energy efficiency and rental accommodation In residential tenancies, it is usual for the landlord to be responsible for the fabric of the building and the main appliances, and for the tenant to be responsible for paying for electricity, gas and other fuel. It is also the tenant who is affected by the building’s heating and ventilation performance – whether it can be kept warm and dry without undue expense. A landlord has no financial incentive to invest in extra insulation or better appliances, because the benefits will be reaped by the tenant in lower energy bills and higher levels of comfort, and because the improvements do not have a direct influence on the rent that the landlord can charge. The result is that energy efficiency investments tend not to get made. In policy terms, the interests of the landlord and tenant are not aligned; the incentives are split. It is a classic example of a principal-agent gap, and as the “landlord-tenant problem” is one of the market failures that affects efficiency in markets for energy and energy products.1 The energy use affected by the principal-agent problem in the United States residential sector for refrigerators, space heating, water heating and lighting has been estimated as 31.4 per cent of the total sectoral energy use;2 so the issue is a substantial one. The problem of energy efficiency in rental accommodation is therefore the subject of this article.

year: 2013

title: The evolution of productivity performance on China's dairy farms in the new millennium

authors: Ma, Hengyun

subjects: China

abstract: China's dairy farm structure has experienced fundamental changes across farm types. As the number of backyard farms has dramatically declined, the share of dairy cows from backyard farms has decreased by 22.4% from 2003 to 2008. However, the herd numbers of larger dairy farms have increased. In particular, the share of dairy cows has risen by 18.8% on small farms, by 22.2% on medium farms, and by 80.8% on large farms over the same period. Total factor productivity was decomposed into technical efficiency and technological change on China's dairy farms using the stochastic production frontier framework. The estimated results indicate that patterns of productivity growth appear to have shifted in the 2000s compared with the 1990s, from generally driven by technological change to exclusively driven by technological change on backyard and small farms and uniquely driven by the improvement of technical efficiency on large farms. Tests of the econometric assumption indicate that the variations in total factor productivity growth patterns across farm types and regions are likely caused by the feed input biases and cropping production practice.

text: The evolution of productivity performance on China's dairy farms in the new millennium China's dairy farm structure has experienced fundamental changes across farm types. As the number of backyard farms has dramatically declined, the share of dairy cows from backyard farms has decreased by 22.4% from 2003 to 2008. However, the herd numbers of larger dairy farms have increased. In particular, the share of dairy cows has risen by 18.8% on small farms, by 22.2% on medium farms, and by 80.8% on large farms over the same period. Total factor productivity was decomposed into technical efficiency and technological change on China's dairy farms using the stochastic production frontier framework. The estimated results indicate that patterns of productivity growth appear to have shifted in the 2000s compared with the 1990s, from generally driven by technological change to exclusively driven by technological change on backyard and small farms and uniquely driven by the improvement of technical efficiency on large farms. Tests of the econometric assumption indicate that the variations in total factor productivity growth patterns across farm types and regions are likely caused by the feed input biases and cropping production practice.

year: 2012

title: A collaborative approach to improving youth mental health.

authors: Goodwin, Debbie Waireka Tuhi

subjects: Maori

abstract: Nga Taiohi Whai Marama / Youth Connex was developed collaboratively by three organisations: Health Waikato Mental Health, Te Runanga o Kirikiriroa, and Linkage. These organisations had a vision of creating greater integration and improved pathways between youth and mental health services, as well as providing a service explicitly based on youth-friendly principles. The key aims of Whai Marama Youth Connex are to improve youth’s access to services and contribute to the development of a youth service-provider network. To fulfil this we aim to provide a range of services, integrated pathways and capacity building on several levels, the client level, the provider level and the funder level. Debbie Goodwin (Tuhoe) was employed as the Manager of the service and has a key role in developing the organisation, planning and shaping its services, and employing and managing its’ staff. She will give an overview of how the service is developing in partnership and biculturally, how youth-friendly principles are enacted, and what some of the key issues have been in its early stages.

text: A collaborative approach to improving youth mental health. Nga Taiohi Whai Marama / Youth Connex was developed collaboratively by three organisations: Health Waikato Mental Health, Te Runanga o Kirikiriroa, and Linkage. These organisations had a vision of creating greater integration and improved pathways between youth and mental health services, as well as providing a service explicitly based on youth-friendly principles. The key aims of Whai Marama Youth Connex are to improve youth’s access to services and contribute to the development of a youth service-provider network. To fulfil this we aim to provide a range of services, integrated pathways and capacity building on several levels, the client level, the provider level and the funder level. Debbie Goodwin (Tuhoe) was employed as the Manager of the service and has a key role in developing the organisation, planning and shaping its services, and employing and managing its’ staff. She will give an overview of how the service is developing in partnership and biculturally, how youth-friendly principles are enacted, and what some of the key issues have been in its early stages.

year: 2003