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Since the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine has regained its traditional position as one of the most important breadbaskets of the world. More than 55% of Ukraine’s land area is “farmable” and it has some of the most productive soils in the world. According to the USDA, Ukraine produces about 4% of global corn and wheat supplies, 7% of barley, and 31% of sunflower oil.

It is not just the size of Ukrainian crop production that is worrisome for global food supplies, but the fact that so much of it is exported. Ukraine is now the 5th largest exporter of wheat in the world, supplying 10% of global wheat exports. Ukrainian farmers have fallen in love with corn, and now contribute nearly 15% of global exports. Agricultural products are Ukraine’s largest export and were valued at nearly $70 billion in 2021.

Read the full article from Time Magazine written by Scott Irwin, April 14, 2022

Amy Ando, professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics (ACE) at University of Illinois, will join the Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources (BANR) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine this month. Ando's research covers the creative application of economics to environmental and natural resource challenges such as promoting environmental quality in agricultural systems and improving outcomes from species and habitat conservation.

As part of the 20-person Board, Ando will help oversee research studies on agriculture, forestry, fisheries, wildlife, and the use of land, water, and other natural resources. Such work can address problems that come up when the demand for food and resources impacts the environment. The Board maintains an awareness across these research fields and connects it to the related work in public policy, new research, technology, human resource needs, economic and social trends.

Two years after COVID-19 emerged, researchers have provided three cost-effective actions to help decision-makers prevent future pandemics by stopping “spillover” of diseases from animals into humans: better surveillance of pathogens, better management of wildlife trade and hunting, and reduced deforestation. 

The annual costs of these “primary pandemic prevention” actions (~$20 billion) are less than 5% of the lowest estimated value of lives lost from emerging infectious diseases every year, less than 10% of the economic costs, and provide substantial co-benefits. 

The research by 20 experts, published in Science Advances, was led by Dr. Aaron Bernstein, director of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. 

“If COVID-19 taught us anything, it is that testing, treatments, and vaccines can prevent deaths but they do not stop the spread of viruses across the globe and may never prevent the emergence of new pathogens. As we look to the future, we absolutely cannot rely on post-spillover strategies alone to protect us,” said Dr. Bernstein of Harvard Chan C-CHANGE.

Bikeshare systems have come a long way since they were first introduced in the Netherlands in the 1960s. They are popular in cities around the world, but how do bike systems affect existing public transportation? That’s the topic of a new paper from the University of Illinois, published in Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice.

The researchers study the impact of bikeshare bikes in U of I’s hometown, the midsize metropolitan area of Champaign-Urbana in Central Illinois. The town houses 500 VeoRide bikeshare bikes on campus and in the wider communities, 400 of which are electric. All are dockless, meaning they can be picked up and parked anywhere.

Since VeoRide launched in 2018, Champaign-Urbana has seen an increase in bikeshare riding, while bus ridership in the United States has declined since 2014.

Food insecurity in low-income countries is on the rise as climate variation and economic shocks, including the COVID-19 pandemic, take their toll. Accurately predicting when and where hunger crises occur is critical to effective humanitarian aid response. A new study from the University of Illinois explores how machine learning can help improve forecasting when used appropriately. 

Current food insecurity predictions mostly rely on a system in which groups of experts gather together and assess food insecurity within countries. While the process includes some data to guide assessment, it remains mostly a qualitative evaluation based on local knowledge.