Wajdi Belgacem

Risk management, climate
& economic analysis.

I apply advanced economic models and quantitative methods to risk assessment, policy evaluation, and market analysis.

View selected projects

Selected projects

Interactive dashboard · Public data

Agricultural Insurance
Explorer

Explore ten years of USDA insurance data across crops, forage, livestock, and dairy. Compare state-level insured exposure, premiums, indemnities, and loss ratios, with program filters, historical trends, and downloadable data.

United States 2016–2025

Open dashboard
USDA insurance dashboard showing a U.S. state map, insured liability, premiums, indemnities, and loss ratios. USDA insurance dashboard showing a U.S. state map, insured liability, premiums, indemnities, and loss ratios.
Compare insurance results across states and programs using published USDA data.

Interactive dashboard · Commodity risk

Commodity Price
& Cost Risk

Explore corn and soybean meal prices using public USDA data. Compare historical volatility and test how price changes affect a purchasing budget, with adjustable quantities, delivery costs, and downloadable scenarios.

Monthly market benchmarks 2000–2026

Open dashboard
Corn and soybean meal benchmark prices, historical volatility, and an interactive price comparison chart. Corn and soybean meal benchmark prices, historical volatility, and an interactive price comparison chart.
Public market data and transparent purchasing-cost scenarios.

Insurance evaluation · Geospatial analysis

Insurance Performance
& Risk Assessment

I combined satellite-derived forage estimates with rainfall-index records to evaluate insurance performance across 548 geographic grids in the Northern Great Plains. The analysis quantifies gaps between rainfall-based payment triggers and forage shortfalls, providing evidence for evaluating coverage intervals and program design.

Nebraska, North Dakota & South Dakota 1990–2024

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Map of historical rainfall–forage model fit across Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Higher R-squared values indicate a closer fit.
How closely rainfall tracks forage production. Historical model fit across the study region.

Climate risk · Panel econometrics

Climate Risk &
Conservation Adoption

Combining satellite data and panel econometrics to examine how drought and wetness relate to cover-crop adoption across 440 counties in nine states.

Midwest & Great Plains 2005–2018

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Figure S1: county maps comparing the percentage of cropland with established cover crops in 2005 and 2018 across nine U.S. states.
Cover-crop adoption in 2005 and 2018. Percentage of classified cropland with established cover crops.

Environmental assessment · Scenario analysis

Food Systems &
Environmental Footprints

Comparing European, Western, and Mediterranean dietary scenarios using food-consumption data and published life-cycle estimates of land use, water use, greenhouse-gas emissions, and eutrophication.

Published in Nutrients 2021

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Table 1: color-coded global-average environmental footprints of food products, comparing land use, water use, greenhouse-gas emissions, and eutrophication per kilogram of food.
Environmental footprints of food products. Colors compare lower and higher values within each indicator.

Areas of expertise

Agricultural Risk Management & Insurance

Assess agricultural risks and evaluate insurance program performance to identify coverage gaps and inform producer decisions.

Climate Risk & Adaptation

Evaluate the economic effects of weather extremes and producer adaptation through conservation practices and technology adoption.

Production Economics & Market Analysis

Analyze production efficiency and market conditions to support feasibility assessments and market positioning.

Selected publications

View all publications
Wajdi Belgacem

About

Applied Economics &
Quantitative Research

I am an applied economist with experience in econometric modeling, risk analysis, and program evaluation. My background spans research in agricultural and environmental economics.

I construct analytical datasets by combining government records with weather, satellite, and survey data.

Education

2021 – 2025

Ph.D. in Agricultural EconomicsUniversity of Nebraska–Lincoln · Risk Management and Production Economics

2018 – 2020

M.S. in Business EconomicsMediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania, Greece · Environmental Economics

2012 – 2016

B.S. in Business Administration, Major in FinanceTunis Business School, Tunisia · Minor in Accounting

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