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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Agriculture, Economics and Nature by University of Western Australia

4.7
stars
437 ratings

About the Course

Sound economic thinking is crucial for farmers because they depend on good economic decision making to survive. Governments depend on economic information to make good policy decisions on behalf of the community. This course will help you to contribute to better decision making by farmers, or by agencies servicing agriculture, and it will help you to understand why farmers respond to policies and economic opportunities in the ways they do. You can use this course to improve your skills and knowledge and to assess whether this is a subject that you'd like to study further. The course includes high-quality video lectures, interviews with experts, demonstrations of how to build economic models in spreadsheets, practice quizzes, and a range of recommended readings and optional readings. Assessment is by quizzes and a final exam. The key economic principles that we’ll learn about can help us understand changes that have occurred in agriculture, and support improved decision making about things like agricultural production methods, agricultural input levels, resource conservation, and the balance between agricultural production and its environmental impacts. There are literally thousands of agricultural economists around the world who work on these issues, so there is a wealth of knowledge to draw on for the course. Watch a brief video about our course here: https://youtu.be/Y8OGswUXx48...

Top reviews

QA

Jul 18, 2020

Very rich syllabus and highly interesting course. Thinking of applying for MSc. in Agric Economics, I never give it a thought until I took this course. Thanks to the University of Western AUSTRALIA.

RP

Jul 3, 2021

The whole course gave me economic insight of the agriculture. Also, prepared me to see the agriculture projects and products from the economic perspective's. I thoroughly enjoyed the sessions.

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1 - 25 of 150 Reviews for Agriculture, Economics and Nature

By Seema T

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Jun 26, 2020

This was a fantastic learning experience. Professor Pannell is a brilliant teacher, researcher, reasoner, economist! This course was interesting, relevant and useful - I highly recommend it.

By Naing M T

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Dec 22, 2017

Excellent course and presenter! I is very useful to revise important economic and environmental concepts and also to learn more agriculture. It is very useful for me.

Thanks Prof. David

By Roshan p

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Jul 4, 2021

The whole course gave me economic insight of the agriculture. Also, prepared me to see the agriculture projects and products from the economic perspective's. I thoroughly enjoyed the sessions.

By Soham A

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Aug 7, 2016

It's a beautiful course! Not only did I learn more (than I estimated) about economics and agriculture, there was also a nice balance between theory and practical applications. The recommended readings are relatable and reinforce the content of the videos. As a teacher, Dave is careful to present both sides of any issue (for example, he presents both gylphosate as the largest used herbicide, while maintaining that it is also very controversial). Pannell Discussions are a delight to read, since they deliver the intended content without sounding like research papers, which sometimes they may actually be based upon. It's wonderful to see such researchers having the patience to blog about such issues online! At a more subtle level, things like the location choices (farms for the agricultural weeks and buildings for institutional/policy weeks), altering background music - all made enriched my experience!

Ofcourse, I think I will still have to brush up my concepts from time to time (since an online course can not replace internalization of a subject through rigorous comprehension and examination), and ofcourse I have quite a lot more to "learn" in this area (who doesn't? :P).

But the course was a very informative, balanced and highly interesting introduction for me!

By Ajani c o

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Jul 6, 2020

I have a passion for agriculture and providing quality foods for the less privileged. With this course I have discovered that being a good farmer goes beyond planting your seeds into the soil, but ensuring you have a good economic and agricultural plan to sustain you in all market settings.

Thanks David Panell for your insightful lectures.

By Quam A

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Jul 19, 2020

Very rich syllabus and highly interesting course. Thinking of applying for MSc. in Agric Economics, I never give it a thought until I took this course. Thanks to the University of Western AUSTRALIA.

By Yusuf T

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Feb 6, 2019

As an agro-food value chain and private sector development consultant and pharma and agro-food industries operations executive, this course "Agriculture, Economics and Nature" presented by Prof. David Pannell has improved my experience and knowledge. Prof. David Pannell really well-prepared the course lessons. I highly recommend this course if you want to learn modern and sustainable management of agriculture, its economy and conservation of the nature and biodiversity with key challenges and pathways, take this course on Coursera. Thank you Prof. David Pannell, University of Western Australia and Coursera.

By Pallab B

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Sep 21, 2023

Dear Coursera I learned a lot from this course, which I didn't know before. Especially, I got a detailed idea about Agriculture, Economics and Nature. I hope, this education will help me a lot in my study as well my professional life. First of all, thanks to Coursera for comming up with such a course. And of course special thanks to Professor David Pannell, who presented and taught the course brilliantly with his effort and sincerity. Thanks again to everyone who are related with this course. Thanks Pallab Biswas

By K.A.T.K. K

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Jun 21, 2020

I was able to get a lot of information and a good knowledge about the agriculture economic.I appreciate the introduction as well as the floating of this course.I think this course pointed out me a way to reach my goals.This course must be a great resource if someone want to touch the agriculture economic with nature.

By Amos O

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Apr 4, 2020

A wonderful course indeed. Vital concepts in agricultural economics, environment and policy aptly explained. Recommended for anyone interested in getting a grasp of the subject.

By Ehab G

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Mar 8, 2019

This course is highly informative for a beginner. The materials provided are so useful. I enjoyed the whole learning experience as an outsider from another field of knowledge.

By Amboge S

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Feb 4, 2018

I learnt a lot that I think it will help me in my field. Thou they are all like revision but the approach to the teaching were interesting to me.

By Farjana A

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Mar 9, 2019

Appropriate course to know about agricultural ecomics and also about environmental concern related to agriculture....

By Alex A G

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Mar 16, 2019

Excellent introduction to agricultural economics.

By Peter D

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Feb 10, 2019

I enjoyed the class and it was very insightful.

By Sunidhi M

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Mar 24, 2019

Felt very mechanical. In-depth explanation would have been more interesting.

By Daniel T C

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Jun 15, 2023

An excellent course. I think the agricultural examples are very useful tools for illustrating a number of microeconomic principles. As the lectures pointed out, agriculture as we think of it now has been around for about 10,000 years. It is certainly critical for the survival of the world's population.

The lectures and accompanying notes were very useful. From a personal perspective, the course was time well-spent and I would highly recommend this course to all prospective students.

By Marie I A M

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Feb 8, 2024

This course provided a concise yet comprehensive overview of important topics in agriculture, offering valuable insights and enhancing my understanding of key concepts. I appreciated the clear presentation of information, which helped me grasp complex ideas more effectively. Overall, it has equipped me with a solid foundation and practical knowledge that I can apply in various aspects of my research. Highly recommended for anyone seeking a better understanding on the topics.

By David T

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Feb 6, 2017

An exceptional course. The breadth of material is wide, and yet there is a lot of detail and some quite specific instruction. The pace is good - each module covers just enough before moving on to the next topic, so it's engaging without being overwhelming. There's a good range of discussions, from economic theory, practical case studies and interviews with farmers. It builds on what I've learned elsewhere, so will be useful for real-world application.

By Debbie J

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Sep 21, 2018

Really enjoyed this course and learnt a lot of valuable information. Having recently entered the agricultural industry as a small scale cattle producer, it was good to get a better understanding of the economics of the industry and some of the considerations for ensuring the sustainability of the environment. Pitched at the right level with very relevant content. Will be looking to do further study, possible at a more formal level. Thank you.

By Francisco A

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Oct 27, 2022

Curso muito interessante, lecionado de uma maneira simplificada que dá uma visão geral da Agricultura numa abordagem Económica. Revela os principais componentes a ter em conta numa propriedade agrícola, os impactos que a exploração pode ter e políticas para os reduzir. Ao longo do curso são referidos alguns acontecimentos do passado que podem ajudar a prevenir, manter ou inovar no futuro.

By Galvano M

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Sep 3, 2022

Este curso e bastante interessante e ajuda a identificar aspectos que no quotidiano tem passado muito despercebido e que muita das vezes parecem nao ser inportantes. foi um momento de reviver varios conceitos , tecnicas e tecnologias.

muito interssante ainda viver as entrevistas com diferentes especialistas que inspiram a novos desafios da agricultura no mundo contemporaneo.

Muito obrigado

By Minh H

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Oct 12, 2023

This is a good course for learning about agri-environmental projects. Some points may be difficult to understand without a background in economics, but it addresses the role of economics in agricultural production and the benefits of sustainable development for both farmers and the community. The course also provides examples of good and bad agricultural policies and their consequences.

By J B

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Nov 23, 2017

Excellent course and presenter. I just think that you kind of need a special calculator to do the NPV calculations and the older alternative formula should have been discussed as well (especially considering the people in Africa who do not always have the best equipment available). Thanks Prof. David!! I enjoyed your insight.

By Selegmz S

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Jul 9, 2022

The course was in-depth training and practical tailored with worldwide farm and environmental issues. Its great to know the past, present and future of agriculture and environment with the contrasting economical addresses in most of the courese. happy with the course..i am sure it is beneficial even for banking students!