وحید ماجد

Wetland mangrove forests, are one of the unique ecosystems that provide a wide range of functions and ecosystem services such as food production, water purification and cleansing as well as providing the habitat and nursery grounds for birds and the other aquatic organisms. Despite the numerous and unique values, these ecosystems are now subject to a diversity of pollutions and threats caused by human activities, have become sensitive ecosystems with severely in need of protection. To achieve this goal- the WTA of local communities living in the areas adjacent to these forests was evaluated based on data derived from questionnaire surveys. The CVM questionnaires with dichotomous choice format were carefully designed with WTA measure and local people were asked about their preferences for reduction of access to Hara forests under hypothetical scenarios in which they would receive monetary compensation for lessening or forgoing forest utilization. The results of binary logit model for CVM survey data showed that 99 percent of respondents willing to accept a reduction in their forest utilization and participate in the protection programs. The mean WTA estimated 2110274 Rial/household/day (63308220 Rial/month).

New urban needs and urban development have left governments with a shortage of financial resources to provide urban services, creating a gap between supply and demand for infrastructure. This issue has become important in the field of financing urban projects from the perspective of the public sector and especially municipalities. Public Private Partnership (PPP) is one of the infrastructure supply models that governments have focused on in recent decades. Given that these types of models have significant complexities in different stages of the project and the relationships that govern it are long-term, it is important to know the factors affecting it and related institutions. In this study, by examining the channels affecting PPP as well as econometric analysis by panel method, the factors affecting public-private participation in selected countries have been investigated. The results of the research econometric model show the positive impact of government debt, market size, macroeconomic stability, and a strong legal system on the rate of public-private partnership projects.

The financing of Iran's economy is bank-based and more than 80% of the financial needs of the economy are provided by the money market and banking system. This illustrates the importance of the banking system in the growth and development of the Iranian economy. Therefore, the resilient banking system can lead to greater economic resistance. This study investigates the resilience of the banking system in the Iranian economy by focusing on the consumer behavior of the facilities. Since the focus of the study is on consumer behavior (credit risk), among the Camel indices, the capital adequacy ratio and the ratio of non-current facilities to total facilities, the 10-year time series data (2007-2009) for the 10 selected banks Their extracted financial statements have been used. The study of resilience without shock or stress makes no sense. Therefore, the resilience of the banking system against shocks of GDP growth (supply shock), inflation rate (demand shock) and exchange rate shock (external shock) has been studied. So far, no research has been conducted on the relationship between resilience of the banking system and consumer behavior of facilities with this volume of comprehensive information (more than 85% of the country's banking system). The findings show that the banking system in the Iranian economy is not resistant to the shock of these variables and the negative effect of these shocks will be stable over time on the bank health indicators.

Having the portfolio of accessible assets is one of the main strategies and one of the central goals of the banks and financial institutions. Risk and return are two determinants of assets selection. The Banks such as all of the oder financial institutions are looking to select the portfolio of assets with the least risk and maximum return over time and under different economic conditions. This study try to find the evidence in order to banks are changing their portfolio in different economic condition and how their optimal portfolio is and how much they are affected by economic conditions. In fact, the main question is whether the banks are stuck in the asset and do not react in different economic conditions or have the necessary flexibility. For this purpose, the data of Tejarat Bank's is useng from the bank's balance sheet during the period 2001-2018. The research findings show that Tejarat Bank's asset portfolio has reacted to economic conditions in the period under review. During the low economic growth growh, the bank's asset portfolio hnstead during economic low growh had less risk and higher returns.

Althoughthe progress of science and technology promoted industrial productivity and competitiveness, as well as the standard and quality of life has widely improved, but these factors are the root causes of present instability and they have caused new problems that need complex specialized sciences and technologies that are more expensive.

The research method of this paper is based on the content analysis paradigm and system analysis method. Given the limitations of the traditional economic model, new approaches to environmental economics and innovation have been analyzed and the challenges of achieving sustainable development and its components have been addressed.

Humanity's future depends on whether it can develop an economic and social system with the "throughput" of matter and energy that respects ecological limits, and this is the ultimate challenge for the learning economy. Based on the obtained analytical results, choice framework of policy instruments, the characteristics of each and the timing of the use of these policy instruments to promote of sustainable development is presented.

This study showed that although we are rapidly reaching the threshold of operational growth and at that point, there is no capacity for more net harvesting from nature, growth is still possible by focusing on the principles and capacities of of environmental economics.

The present study aimed at the feasibility of sustainable rural development through the development of creative industries. The statistical population is Villages of Isfahan Economic Development and Employment Development Plan in the 6th Five-Year Development Plan. 122 villages were surveyed in the first year of the program, which, with the help of capacity-measuring, 50 villages, among them the potential of handicraft production, were selected as sample size. Using SWOT analysis and field studies, the feasibility of some weaknesses, strengths, threats and opportunities associated with the development of creative industries with regard to rural capital is examined. Of the 50 villages that have the potential for handicrafts, 7 villages do not manage to develop sustainable rural development through handicrafts. A village with a long-term sustainable development index is zero. It is suggested that each village, which has more points among the rest of the city's villages, is a place for a central workshop for production, supply of materials, quality control, training and supervision of handicrafts

Homogeneity of groups in studies those use cross section and multi-level data is important. Most studies in economics especially panel data analysis need some kinds of homogeneity to ensure validity of results. This paper represents the methods known as clustering and homogenization of groups in cross section studies based on enviro-economics components. For this, a sample of 92 countries which produce the most greenhouse gases including CO2, clustered based on 18 criteria. Those criteria reduced to five primary components using factor analysis. Clustering of countries done by HCPC (Hierarchical Clustering on Principal Component) method. All 92 countries were clustered in 7 different groups. For each group properties of countries indicates the homogeneity of each cluster. In cross section analysis with many sections, especially analysis based on panel data, clustering, increases assurance of expected homogeneity and validity of result.

Examination of the environmental pollution and the factors influencing it by considering the specific characteristics of each country for acheivment to growth and sustainable development and reduse of emission is very important. this study, investigate the effect of productivity and institutional quality on the quality of the environment by using the panel data analysis for 16 developing countries including IRAN during the period of 1998-2016. The results of the estimations indicate that there is a third degree relationship between per capita income and environmental degradation. The results also reveal that in developing countries, the effect of productivity growth and institutional quality (political rights and civil liberties) on environmental quality are negative, as with productivity increase due to rebound effect of it and also with increase of political rights and civil liberties as a result of ignoring of environment by stakeholders and exploitation of resources in these countries, pollutant emissions will increase.

Stated preference methods are a set of methods for economic valuation of environmental goods and services which elicit individual preferences for goods and services using hypothetical market behaviour situations. They include the contingent valuation (CVM) and choice experiment (CE) methods which share a common theoretical basis in explaining the behaviour of choice. Based on neoclassical economic theory, WTP/ WTA estimates derived by the CVM and CE should be the same. However, several recent studies have shown that they differ. The goal of this article is to compare the ability of the CVM and the CE to elicit WTA for the conservation and environmental status improvement of the Hara forests. To achieve this goal, the WTA of local communities living in the areas adjacent to these forests was evaluated based on data derived from questionnaire surveys. The CE and CVM questionnaires with a dichotomous choice format were carefully designed with WTA measurement and local people were asked about their preferences for reduced access to the Hara forests under hypothetical scenarios in which they would receive monetary compensation for reducing or forgoing forest utilization. The collected data were analyzed using conditional logit and binary logit models. The results showed that, when people are faced with different format hypothetical questions they present different behaviours. The results of the conditional logit model showed that more than half (57.75%) of local respondents tend to receive compensation for increases in environmental risk associated with conservation programmes. They prefer recreational opportunities to other two attributes (Hara cutting and fishing) with a compensation of 233940 IRR day-1. The results of the binary logit model for CVM survey data showed that 99 percent of respondents were willing to accept a reduction in their forest utilization and participate in the protection programmes. The mean WTA was estimated at 331,411 IRR/household/day (9,942,330 IRR/month). Then the welfare values estimated by the two methods were compared. The findings from this comparison showed that the welfare value estimated through the CVM (331,411 IRR/household/day) is much smaller and approximately one-sixth that obtained by corresponding CE (1,959,000 IRR/Day). The results also suggest that the CE method has a greater capacity to explain the choices made by consumers. This is because, in the CVM, only a single attribute – price - is used to describe the interested good and the choice of individuals is affected only by the amounts bid and socioeconomic variables; while in CE, the multiple attributes are used for describing the good and environmental change alternatives which results in the choices of people affected by interaction with the socioeconomic characteristics of respondents. Meanwhile, the CE method is effective for estimating welfare changes at different levels of environmental change; the CVM method, in contrast, estimates the value of a change in a single level, which is also a high level of protection. Due to the divergence of the results, it is impossible to say which method is more credible. It can only be acknowledged that the CE method can help decision makers and policymakers to prioritize different aspects of decision-making by gaining useful information about the final WTA of community members for the various attributes that improve on the project or the proposed design.

Citrus production has a great importance and position in Iran. The growth and sustainability of the agriculture sector is impossible without appropriate and effective risk identification and management. In this study, the main risks of citrus gardens were identified based on the Delphi method through questionnaires completed by 16 experts. Then, using the TOPSIS technique, the risks involved in the horticultural industry of Mazandaran Province were prioritized during 2010-2016 and the most important risk of Mazandaran gardens was selected based on the Shannon unweighted entropy matrix. The results showed that the most important horticultural risks were related to the risks of pests and diseases, price, damage, and production, respectively. In addition, the lowest risks were related to technical, labor and credit risks, respectively. Therefore, the results indicated the significant influence of the risks of pests and diseases, price and loss in horticulture. Among the risks of pests and diseases, mealy bugs, red mites and aphids with 76, 73 and 70 percent, respectively, were of the highest risk and risks arising from financing, purchasing the product and the damage caused by drip irrigation and emitters were of the lowest risk. The risk exposure represented that risk management should be considered in these fields. In this regard, it is essential to make major reforms in risk management areas involved in orchards. Thus, the planners and policymakers must consider this issue.

This study aims to estimate the economic benefit of the environmental improvements in the Hara forests of Qeshm using choice experiment method. Improvement in the environmental status were defined within the framework of three related attributes and the respondents were asked about their willingness to pay for conserving and improving the mangrove forests in this area. The obtained data were analyzed using conditional logit model. Results showed that about 78 percent of respondents are willing to pay for environmental improvement alternatives. The attribute of bird species number in the Hara forests provides the highest probability for the visitors to pay for an improvement level (89790 IRR per household per trip). Additionally, females, older and married respondents as well as those with higher educational level are more likely to participate in environmental conservation programs. Our valuation results can help to increase public awareness about the multiple values of mangrove forests and contribute to better-informed public decisions. It also allows policy-makers to prioritize conservation programs and projects with limited and tight budgets.

This study aims to quantify the economic opportunity cost of conservation to coastal communities adjacent to mangrove forests in the southern coasts of Iran (Qeshm Island). The main commercial use of the Hara forests in this area is restricted to fishing, tourist boating trips, and limited leaves cutting. We applied a choice modeling (CM) approach to measure the value of a reduction of access under hypothetical scenarios in which local users would receive monetary compensation for lessening or forgoing mangrove forest utilization. Data were collected from the rural households living in the villages adjacent to mangrove forests and then analyzed by using conditional logit model. The results showed that the existence of a willingness to accept compensation for increases in environmental risk is associated with conservation program. Local communities are willing to accept a lower compensation when the aim of protection is to lessen the Hara cutting and fishing amount relative to recreational opportunities banning. The estimated mean WTA was 235000 IRR/hsld/day. The results also showed that there is a heterogeneity in the individual’s preferences, which attributed to factors including income, age, family size, job and experience of participation in the environmental projects.

Based on Kaya equation, this paper evaluates the effects of macroeconomic variables on the environment quality in MENA region. The process of economic growth and development in developing countries, including the Islamic Republic of Iran and other the Middle East and North Africa countries, have created increasing pressure on the environment. The costs of environmental degradation in the MENA region is about %5 of gross domestic production and in the Islamic Republic of Iran is over of %7 (Croitoru, Lelia et al, 2010). In the other hand, Environment damages and emissions have faced sustainable growth and development with doubt. Given the importance of the environment and energy resources in sustainable development, we try to identify impacts of the factors such as population, gross domestic production, energy intensity and carbon intensity on carbon dioxide emission as an important indicator to measure performance consistent with environment quality and sustainable development, because of all the greenhouse gases, the share of carbon dioxide emission in global warming is %94.7 (Nordhaus, 1990).

According to the above, on basis of Kaya relationship and by using the data from (1990-2011), we assessed the contribution of macro factors, the kaya identity has been widely discussed in analyses of energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (ONeill et al., 2000). In the first step, the share of each macroeconomic variables was investigated by using the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index, Which is considered one of the most widely used decomposition techniques in the short term. To long-term analysis, After determining the input values related to MENA region, The panel data method was used that indicate the presence of co-integration in the model, Co-integration concept is reminiscent of a long-run equilibrium relationship between economic systems move over time towards it (Noferesti, 1999). The models such as fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) or dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) is more effective

in the case of co-integration panel data estimation (Chen et al., 1999). So FMOLS co-integrated model was applied on the variables and the results of parameter estimation was achieved in the long run.

Background checks in developed countries and areas shows that gross domestic production and demographic variances have increased the carbon dioxide emissions in these countries, whereas this change is largely offset by the decrease in energy intensity and substitution of renewable energies, in the long- run term. Parameter estimation results in this research suggest a significant long-term impact on GDP, population and the carbon intensity on carbon dioxide emission. In the region, Results of the Logarithmic Mean Divisia method in the short term show that the demographic factor has the greatest impact on emissions and gross domestic production, energy intensity and carbon intensity are. At five-year intervals and on average, demographic, gross domestic production and energy intensity have been increasing emissions and carbon intensity has been the reverse impact. Coefficients of panel models show that in the long term population growth in the MENA region has the greatest impact on carbon emissions, Energy intensity is the next .

According to the results of short-term and long-term, compared with developed countries, energy intensity index can play a key role in enhancing the quality of the environment in MENA countries. hence, the region needs attention from policy-makers to improve energy intensity index.

Zarinehroud River in Basin of the Urmia Lake is one the major lake's water provider that recently its water controlled to use in agriculture, industrial and domestic sectors. Development projects on the river basin didnt consider sustainability and consequently caused environmental changes like species extinction, direct habitat destruction and reducing environmental quality in the region. These also accelerate lake drying. Due the important functions of Zarinehroud, in this article using choice experiment technique we tried to estimate individual's willingness to pay to improve environmental attributes of the river. Result shows that people are willing to pay for environmental services. They choose diversity of species in first rank and willing to pay 6200 Iranian Rials in average to improve this attribute. Environmental amenities improvement with 6040 Rials, Environmental perspectives improvement with 4310 Rials, Improving recreational potentials with 2770 Rials and saving resource's water for other environmental uses with 2400 Rials were ranked in respect after diversity of species.

Life insurance though worldwide development especially among developed countries, plays an important role in the economic development. Despite its important role in the economy, life insurance is not sufficiently known by the Iranian families and has a little role in the country’s economy.Various factors affecting Iranian life insurance development have been examined in this paper. The current research is based on the field study method and it’s statistical Population consists of the whole country. For this reason, a sample has been chosen randomly among various available clusters. Based on the collected data and using Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA), the results indicated that believing whether an individual get a severe illness at age 65 or not, will be the most effective factor regarding the life insurance demand. Each individual’s age is considered as the second effective factor. Other effective factors are devising, policy price, considering religious issues and beliefs, membership in pension fund, and spouse ecmployment, respectively.

Iran has suffered ever-increasing domestic energy consumption, mostly because of its long-standing price control policy. To decelerate this trend, Iran began a reform on its energy subsidy system in December 2010. This paper examines the inflationary impact of the energy subsidy reform on different Iranian non-energy sectors and urban and rural households by making an updated input–output price model and deriving the energy price elasticities (the percentage change in price of non-energy sectors in response to a one percent change in price of energy carriers). The results show that full reform (increasing the domestic energy prices immediately to average regional market prices) would increase consumption prices by 54.1% that impresses the expenditures of urban households more. In addition, the manufacture of non-metallic mineral products, basic metal industries, and transport, storage and communication sectors would experience the largest increase in production prices. Finally, electricity, natural gas and gasoline have the largest impact on production prices.

Lakes produce many goods and services that are valuable، bit more of them doesn''t trade in market. Special characteristic of those services and goods and lack of information is the most reason that services and goods could not be traded and so their values couldn’t be elicit. Some methodologies developed to elicit the non-market values of ecosystems. To fill the information gap and showing the values of a lake''s ecosystem، this study uses Contingent valuation method to elicit the existence value of Chitgar artificial Lake (the beigest artificial lakes in Iran) by measuring Willingness to Pay (WTP) and explore the factors that affect people’s WTP. The WTP was derived from a face-to-face survey of 400 observations In Tehran. Logit model used to estimate and results shows mean WTP is RLs 11،831 annually per household.

Although agricultural activities have economic benefits such as increased production and national income، create jobs and provide food for the community but it also influenced the environment and human health because of the negative side affects. These effects called externalities in production in economics literature and are generally there is no market for theme. These externalities could seen in، water resources، soil، air and human health sectors. This paper uses published information to analysis the externalities of agriculture sector in Iran. In this regard، the amount of chemical fertilizers and pesticides used in this sector and comparison between Iran and some selected countries will be discussed. The results indicate that for one dollar of value added in Iran''s agriculture sector; consumption of fertilizer، nitrates، pesticides is more than industrialized countries. Beside these، over using of water in Iran''s agricultural sector leads this sector externality to be high. Therefore، the regulatory policies and standards as well as the use of economic instruments such as taxes and tariffs and other motivational factors are required to reduce externalities and facilitate achieving sustainability in the sector and other sectors of the economy.

Development projects in natural water resources like rivers and lakes, specially transferring water to use in agriculture, domestic and industrial sector without considering environmental values, causes irrecoverable and irreversible damage to ecosystem and future options. If we consider the future generation and species rights, those damages and costs can be very much than we take in. The above problem has shown its results in the development projects in Urmia Lake basin in north-western Iran. In our case study, water of Zarinerood is transferred to use in domestic and agriculture sector that made a lot of irrecoverable damage to the ecosystem. In this paper, we develop an optimal control model for allocating a natural water resource by considering irreversibility. The model shows that allocating of basin’s water for different uses is not an optimal policy. Indeed, it intensifies the environmental irreversibility in that ecosystem.

In the past decades, a range of discussions has been formed on coalition theory in economics and international sciences. The focus of this discussion is that in the absence of a superior power, and while some players want to expand their authorities, is it possible to cooperate or not. These theories agree on the principle that if such condition be a sequential game, cooperation will be permanent only if the players are patient enough. In the real world, there are many partnerships between groups that don’t have a same patience, i.e. the discount factor isn’t equal for each of the members. OPEC is an example of those groups which composed of members with different discount factor. This paper investigates the future of OPEC members and their different discount factors. So, cooperative theory is used to analyze the behavior of OPEC members using panel data techniques. Results show that a fixed effects model is appropriate to explain OPEC member’s behavior. According to the model, the amount of marketed crude oil by members has positive relationship with stocks and sales in the previous period and also there is a negative relationship between the amount of marketed oil and square of proven reserves per capita. The results show that bargaining and negotiation between some members to achieve agreement rapidly and also relents or blackmails guarantees OPEC Survival.

The main objective of this paper is to introduce core planning as a form of applied planning for urban managers. It also aims to emphasize that urban development planners should choose a series of core programs within framework of a systematic strategic thinking for every aspect of sustainable urban development in order to realize this kind of development. Sustainable development consists of economic efficiency, social equality, ecological sustainability and a new form of governance which will encourage social participation of all stakeholders in the society in the decision-making process. Planning is a sort of innovation in management system which is meant for informed regulation of economic relations in order to avoid arbitrary management of the urban affairs. It also aims to realize those goals which will help humans to achieve an optimal level of material or spiritual welfare. Since comprehensive development planning has been practically unsuccessful, because all problems cannot be solved in a given period of time, instead of focusing on comprehensive development planning, core planning is strongly advised. Core planning is the main axis of development and is based on guiding nuclei as well as executive programs. This form of planning is advised for the achievement of sustainable urban development. In view of the development outlook envisaged for Tehran and the need for a more comprehensive and strategic approach based on core planning, key nuclei in various areas of sustainable urban development should be defined first and relevant executive programs should be drawn up. In other words, this paper underlines the need for choosing core programs according to both “subject” (like a special program for the empowerment of the poor in Tehran) and “location” (such as selecting Milad Tower as a tourism nucleus and turning it into an urban brand and a national symbol so that jobs and revenue can be created by introducing it at international level through selling its tourist products such as logos…) to achieve the proposed outlook of urban development for Tehran.

Life insurance as an investment and assurance tool provides a great source of investment financing in different economies. Despite life insurance development in advanced countries and in many developing economies, it could not get its appropriate share in Iranian family’s basket. This paper investigates factors that affect life insurance demand in Iran. So, random sampling used to get required information in three provinces of Iran (Tehran, East Azerbayjan and Mazandaran). Factors are divided into two main groups: Socioeconomics and psychological. Required data were gathered using questionnaire. Results show that life insurance demand has negative relationship with individual expected health condition, premium, expected inflation, degree of risk aversion and income. Bequest, economic optimism, age, employment of partner and reading has positive relation with life insurance demand. Based on the sample, result show that life insurance demand is not affected by advertisements but is affected by others recommendations.

One of the main concerns of managers and city planning, urban development is sustainable. Given the strong growth of urbanization, the demand for goods and services in cities has increased considerably. In this regard the needs of its citizens require adequate financial resources are. The results suggest that the major portion of its revenues by municipalities, are not consistent with the concepts of sustainability and desirability. This can be institutionalized in long-term reliance on unstable revenues to municipalities, which then makes it impossible to achieve sustainable urban development. Maintain the quality of urban environment and infrastructure development in the long term planning needs to move toward reliance on stable revenues.

Energy decisions have intensive impacts on national economies. Any energy decision needs information about energy demand and energy supply trends and their projections. It also needs information about technological changes in supply, transformation and consumption sectors. All of that information is needed in comprehensive energy planning. Energy Planning can be defined as a process of developing long-range policies to improve energy decisions through demand and supply balancing respect to environment and help guide the future of a local, national, regional or even the global energy system. Rapid progress made in the field of electronic data processing has led to a boom of computerized tools in the field of energy planning as much as in any other areas of systematic analysis. To this main emphasis is on the balancing production, transformation and distribution of energy commodities respect to environmental considerations. As statistics indicate, Iran has a considerable share of world's energy resources but in one hand energy consumption in Iran is more than world's standards and the other hand, low energy efficiency shows necessity of energy planning in national and local level. So this paper takes the description of energy planning issues and their methodologies. To this energy planning models and tools and their development are introduced briefly.