User:Sraman195/sandbox

Mineral Industry of Peru

I plan to edit and expand upon the article titled "Mineral industry of Peru." My reasoning for doing so is the following:

While this article extensively discusses the economic impacts of the mineral industry in Peru, it only briefly mentions its environmental and social impacts. I will improve this article by expanding on the environmental issues already mentioned and introducing additional concerns. Furthermore, I will show how the environmental impacts of Peru’s mineral industry have given rise to social protest. I will provide details about the specific populations that have been most affected and describe the nature of their protests. These points are important to include in the article because they will provide insight into the interplay of industrial activity, the natural environment, and social unrest. Ultimately, they will contribute new viewpoints about the main topic and allow for a more well-balanced, neutral article.

Following the section about environmental impacts and social protest, I will add a new section that discusses government response to the social upheaval caused by corporate-community conflict. This is important to mention because it will reveal the nature of Peru’s institutional organization (extractive versus inclusive) in the context of its economic development.

Lastly, this article has very little information about the mineral industry’s contribution to national economic growth. I will expand on the information that had already been provided to ensure that all viewpoints about the mineral industry in Peru are equally represented in the article. Sraman195 (talk) 22:13, 29 September 2016 (UTC)

Hunger in the United States

I plan to expand upon the article titled "Hunger in the United States." My reasoning for doing so is the following:

Insubstantial discussion of political/economic causes of hunger/food insecurity:

The “Causes” section of this article begins with the lines “Hunger in the United States is caused by a complex combination of factors. There is not a single cause attributed to the hunger and there is much debate over who or what is responsible for the prevalence of hunger in the United States.” Thus, while this section acknowledges that the issue is multidimensional, it merely goes on to describe the correlation between hunger and poverty. I will improve this section by discussing the political and economic factors that influence food availability, access, and affordability, including the subsidization of certain crops and the construction of groceries in low-income neighborhoods. Adding this information will improve the article by providing a more comprehensive analysis of the causes of hunger and food insecurity.

Insubstantial discussion of environmental causes of hunger/food insecurity:

The “Causes” section of this article also fails to mention the environmental factors that contribute to hunger and food insecurity. I will further expand this section by discussing factors such as transportation infrastructure, which I will introduce directly after I describe the political factors that influence the construction of grocery stores. I believe this information is important to include because even if agricultural policies or the number of grocery stores in low-income neighborhoods remain unchanged, enhancing transportation infrastructure can greatly improve individuals’ access to healthy food options. Adding this information will once again provide a more comprehensive analysis of the causes of hunger/food insecurity.

Insubstantial discussion of indirect approaches to mitigating hunger/food insecurity:

The “Fighting hunger” section of the existing article only provides solutions that are directly targeted at hunger (e.g. SNAP, School Lunch Program, etc.). I will expand this section by providing more indirect solutions (modifying agricultural policies, modifying policies that regulate grocery store construction, improving transportation infrastructure, etc.). Offering a broader range of potential solutions will improve this section by making it more comprehensive/well-rounded.

Detailed Proposal

[A] 1. Causes

I will first add information about the political/economic causes of hunger/food insecurity. My additions will focus on agricultural policies that subsidize the production of certain crops such as corn and soybeans. I will make the claim that subsidization of these crops results in the food industry producing a surplus of highly-processed, packaged goods. Using simple economic principles of supply/demand, I will go on to show that a surplus of these food items results in them being sold at a disproportionately lower price than fresh produce (fruits and vegetables). This makes these food items more financially accessible to low-income populations, thereby confirming the link between hunger and poverty. I will also discuss the political and economic forces that result in a scarcity of grocery stores in low-income neighborhoods. Specifically, I will describe grocery stores’ goal of profit maximization and the aspects of low-income neighborhoods that hinder the long-term sustainability of businesses (employees require more training, insurance and security are costlier, etc.).

References:

Acemoglu, Daron, and James A. Robinson. Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. New York: Crown Publishers, 2012.

Burchi, Francesco, and Pasquale De Muro. "A Human Development and Capability Approach to Food Security: Conceptual Framework and Informational Basis." United Nations Development Programme (2012): n. pag. Web.

Fields, Scott. "The Fat of the Land: Do Agricultural Subsidies Foster Poor Health?" Environmental Health Perspectives 112.14 (2004): n. pag. Web.

Gundersen, Craig. "The Economics of Food Insecurity in the United States." Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy 33.3 (2011): 281-303. Web.

Nussbaum, Martha Craven. Creating Capabilities: The Human Development Approach. 2011.

Walker, Renee E., Christopher R. Keane, and Jessica G. Burke. "Disparities and Access to Healthy Food in the United States: A Review of Food Deserts Literature." Health & Place 16.5 (2010): 876-84. Web.

[B] 3.1. Public sector hunger relief I will add information that discusses indirect solutions to hunger/food insecurity, such as policy changes in the agricultural/food industry and investment in transportation infrastructure. For each of these solutions, I will discuss the advantages of implementing such changes as well as the practical limitations. For example, in regard to policy changes in the food industry, I will propose that reducing the subsidization of crops such as corn and soybeans and providing more subsidies for the production of fruits and vegetables can substantially increase the supply and decrease the cost of healthful food options, making them more accessible to low-income populations. After this, however, I will mention that such changes are limited by the fact that the agricultural industry is an oligopoly in which a few big corporations dominate/heavily influence the food supply. In regard to transportation, I will propose that improving infrastructure can greatly increase low-income individuals’ access to healthful food options. After this, however, I will make the claim that the efficacy of this solution is hindered by growing population sizes, the limited time of low-income populations (due to work, kids, and other obligations), and the fact that the issue of inequity between neighborhoods remains unaddressed. Offering additional solutions will make the article more comprehensive, and including the limitations of these solutions will ensure that my article remains neutral and well-balanced.

References:

Acemoglu, Daron, and James A. Robinson. Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. New York: Crown Publishers, 2012.

Burchi, Francesco, and Pasquale De Muro. "A Human Development and Capability Approach to Food Security: Conceptual Framework and Informational Basis." United Nations Development Programme (2012): n. pag. Web.

Collier, Paul. "The Politics of Hunger: How Illusion and Greed Fan the Food Crisis." Foreign Affairs 87.6 (2008): 67-79. Web.

Fairris, David, and Michael Reich. "The Impacts of Living Wage Policies: Introduction to the Special Issue*." Industrial Relations 44.1 (2005): 1-13. Web.

Fields, Scott. "The Fat of the Land: Do Agricultural Subsidies Foster Poor Health?" Environmental Health Perspectives 112.14 (2004): n. pag. Web.

Fitchen, Janet M. "Hunger, Malnutrition, and Poverty in the Contemporary United States: Some Observations on Their Social and Cultural Context." Food and Foodways 2.1 (1987): 309-33. Web.

Gundersen, Craig. "The Economics of Food Insecurity in the United States." Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy 33.3 (2011): 281-303. Web.

Nussbaum, Martha Craven. Creating Capabilities: The Human Development Approach. 2011.

Ratcliffe, C., S.-M. Mckernan, and S. Zhang. "How Much Does the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Reduce Food Insecurity?" American Journal of Agricultural Economics 93.4 (2011): 1082-098. Web.

Riches, Graham. First World Hunger: Food Security and Welfare Politics. New York, NY: St. Martin's, 1997. Print.

Walker, Renee E., Christopher R. Keane, and Jessica G. Burke. "Disparities and Access to Healthy Food in the United States: A Review of Food Deserts Literature." Health & Place 16.5 (2010): 876-84. Web.Sraman195 (talk) 19:29, 15 February 2017 (UTC)