AgriLife Extension welcomes new economist in Coastal Bend Region
Yuri Calil will provide agricultural economics expertise from Corpus Christi center
Yuri Calil, Ph.D., is the new Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service economist based at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Corpus Christi.
Calil, who will serve the agency’s District 11, Coastal Bend Region, from the center, is an assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics in Texas A&M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
“We are fortunate to have Dr. Calil join the AgriLife Extension staff in Corpus Christi supporting District 11 and its 18 counties along the Texas coast,” said AgriLife Extension district administrator Donnie Montemayor. “District 11 is a very productive and diverse agricultural region, and Yuri, as an agricultural economist, will support our agents and producers. In addition, his economics expertise will be valuable in helping producers make well-informed decisions related to their agricultural enterprises.”
About Yuri Calil
Since a young age, Calil has been involved in agricultural production. Along with working on his family farm, primarily a purebred beef cattle operation, he has been active in agricultural exhibitions, shows and auctions, as well as genetic improvement programs for dairy and beef cattle.
Calil earned his bachelor’s degree in agricultural economics with an emphasis on agribusiness management at the Federal University of Viçosa and a master’s degree in agricultural economics at the University of São Paulo, both in Brazil. He earned his doctoral degree in managerial economics and agribusiness with an emphasis on finance at Texas A&M University.
For the past two years, Calil has served as an assistant professor at the Federal University of Itajubá, Brazil, teaching and researching economic and financial engineering. He was also a visiting scholar at the University of Chicago, Manitoba, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
He has been involved in economic research projects for a number of high-profile institutions, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada, Fundação Getulio Vargas and the Inter-American Development Bank. He has also been an agribusiness consultant at Pricewaterhouse Coopers.
His training includes courses at the Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics, Babson College, and a MicroMasters from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Calil said his research will include assessment and evaluation of cattle characteristics for the purpose of obtaining better prices. He will also investigate the economic impact of crop and livestock integrated systems and whether they are economically sustainable. Other research will address trade agreements and their implications as well as the “financialization” of commodity markets in relation to the stock market.
“I joined AgriLife Extension because it provides a unique opportunity to bring the latest relevant research to improve Texans’ well-being,” Calil said. “I am passionate about developing research and programs that directly and positively impact farmers.
