(1) Title: Joint Decision Making of Picking and Sending for the Maturity-Based Fruit Ecommerce 

Speaker: PhD. Ruan Junhu         Time: 14:40-15:20, May 26, 2017 

Venue: Meeting Room C304, The Building of Economics, Management and Landscape Architecture 

Abstract: Ecommerce has gradually become a direct channel of fresh fruits, from growers to customers. Under the small-batch ecommerce mode, growers need to make fruit picking and sending plans based on customers’ expected maturity and maturity change scenarios in delivery. To overcome facing key difficulties such as identifying change scenarios of fruit maturity in e-fulfillment and considering the fruit maturity into picking and sending plans, we apply the knowledge and ideas of scenario planning, postharvest physiology, decision science and disruption management to integrate scenario experiments with fruit physiological experiments, and propose the technique of measuring the fruit maturity change in e-fulfillment. Then, we focus on constructing a joint decision method for making fruit picking and sending plans as well as corresponding disruption management strategies. This project can help growers make picking and sending plans for maturity-based fruit ecommerce, providing new ideas for solving the "first mile” difficulty in the e-fulfillment of fresh agricultural products. The proposed project is expected to in theory promote the development of academic fields such as fruit transportation and storage, agricultural operations and disruption management, and in practice support fruit ecommerce growers to make proper picking and sending plans. 

(2) Title: Finnish forest policy and sustainable management 

Speaker: Prof. Liisa Toivonen         Time: 15:20-16:00, May 26, 2017 

Venue: Meeting Room C304, The Building of Economics, Management and Landscape Architecture 

Abstract: The lecture discusses the sustainable and multiple goal forest management principles and practices. The lecture will further discuss why and how Finland has developed forest sector which brings the best forest quality in the World. 

PS: Prof. Liisa Toivonen, is the Director General and one of the founders of Bio Academy Finland since 2015. Bio academy is a private academy providing academic and professional training, intensive courses, research and consultancy services in various sectors of forest bio economy and environmental issues. In addition, she holds a position of  Professor in Energy wood production at the University of Eastern Finland (School of Forest Sciences). 

(3) Title: The Influence of Relational Networks on Farmers’ Participation in Village Collective Action 

Speaker: Cai Qihua (A PhD Candidate)        Time: 16:00-16:40, May 26, 2017 

Venue: Meeting Room C304, The Building of Economics, Management and Landscape Architecture 

Abstract: Clarifying the logic of farmers’ participation in the village collective action, it has important theoretical and practical significance to enhancing the effect of rural public affairs governance. Based on farmers’ participation in the investment of small irrigation system and using a sample of 1440 household data in three provinces of Ningxia, Shaanxi, Henan in rural China, this paper applied Heckman sample selection model to analysis the effect of relational networks on farmers’ participation in village collective action. The results showed that, the choice of farmers’ participation in village collective action has a low level, but the degree of farmers’ participation in village collective action has a high level. Relational networks have significant positive influence on both willingness and degree of farmers’ participation in village collective action. In the segmentation dimensions, weak ties have significant positive influence on both willingness and degree of farmers’ participation in village collective action, and strong ties have significant positive influence on the willingness of farmers’ participation in village collective action, but have insignificant positive influence on the degree of farmers’ participation in village collective action. The marginal effect showed that, the marginal effect of relational networks is obvious, and in enhancing the willingness of farmers’ participation in village collective action, the marginal effect of strong ties is bigger than the marginal effect of weak ties, but in enhancing the degree of farmers’ participation in village collective action, the marginal effect of weak ties is much bigger than the marginal effect of strong ties. 

Welcome the related professional teachers or graduate students to take part in the forum. 

College of Economics and Management
May 24, 2017