Alexandra Peralta Sanchez

Dr Alexandra Peralta Sanchez

Senior Lecturer

School of Economics and Public Policy

Faculty of Arts, Business, Law and Economics

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

Alexandra is a Senior Lecturer in Agricultural and Food Economics with The Centre for Global Food and Resources (CGFAR) at the University of Adelaide. Her research focuses on evaluating the adoption of agricultural innovations on income and household welfare-related outcomes. She uses econometric methods, lab-in-field experiments, farmer decision-making models, and qualitative methods. Alexandra’s work includes collaboration with agricultural scientists, anthropologists, and geographers. Her current research projects study the economic and social impacts of mobile finance on men and women in farming households in Cambodia and Laos, and the impacts of the national seed system on food production and food security in Timor-Leste. She conducted work on the evaluation of the adoption of improved seed varieties and postharvest practices in Angola, Haiti, Nicaragua, Uganda, and Vanuatu, and dairy farming practices in Indonesia. Alexandra researched farmers’ decisions on whether to grow trees or crops in the highlands of western Kenya. She has presented her work in Australia, Brazil, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, and the United States. Alexandra has extensive experience with the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). She has worked as a Research Associate at the Department of Community Sustainability at Michigan State University and consulted for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). Alexandra has experience with the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the International Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF). Alexandra is a Fulbright alumna.

  • Appointments
    Date Position Institution name
    2024 - ongoing Postgraduate Coordinator/HDR Convenor School of Economics and Public Policy, University of Adelaide
    2021 - ongoing Senior Lecturer in Agricultural and Food Economics Centre for Global Food and Resources, University of Adelaide
    2021 - 2022 Postgraduate Coordinator Centre for Global Food and Resources, University of Adelaide
    2015 - 2021 Lecturer in Agricultural and Food Economics Centre for Global Food and Resources, University of Adelaide
    2014 - 2015 Lecturer Centre for Global Food and Resources, University of Adelaide
    2014 - 2014 Consultant Inter-American Development Bank
    2014 - 2014 Research Associate Department of Community Sustainibility, Michigan State University
    2007 - 2014 Research Assistant Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics, Michigan State University
    2005 - 2007 Assistant Coordinator Challange Program for Water and Food, International Centre for Tropical Agriculture

  • Awards and Achievements
    Date Type Title Institution Name Country Amount
    2024 Teaching Award University of Adelaide Commendation for the Enhancement of and Innovation in Student Learning (with Craig Johns and Adam Loch) University of Adelaide Australia -
    2024 Research Award Faculty of Art, Business, Law and Economics Commendation for Grant Excellence University of Adelaide Australia -
    2024 Teaching Award School of Economics and Public Policy Team Teaching Excellence Award (with Craig Johns and Adam Loch) University of Adelaide Australia -
    2024 Research Award School of Economics and Public Policy Excellence in Research Engagement & Impact Award University of Adelaide Australia -
    2019 Teaching Award Executive Dean Award 21st Century Learning and Teaching University of Adelaide Australia -
    2019 Award 2018 Heading North Travel Award Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society Australia -
    2016 Research Award Executive Dean's Commendation for Excellence in Research University of Adelaide Australia -
    2009 Scholarship Charles Stewart Mott Doctoral Fellowships Michigan State University United States USD34,000
    2007 Scholarship Fulbright grant for graduate studies The Fulbright Commission United States -

  • Language Competencies
    Language Competency
    English Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review
    Spanish; Castilian Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review

  • Education
    Date Institution name Country Title
    2014 Michigan State University United States PhD in Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics
    2012 Michigan State University United States MSc Agricultural Economics
    2012 Michigan State University United States Graduate Specialisation in Ecological Food and Farming Systems
    2002 Universidad del Valle Colombia Economist (equivalent to a first class honours degree)

  • Research Interests
    Agricultural Economics Agricultural Economics & Policy Applied Economics Development Studies Economic Development Policy Gender Studies Social Impact Assessment Agri-food, water and environment systems

  • Journals
    Year Citation
    2024 Peralta Sanchez, M. A., Johns, C., & Loch, A. (2024). Expanding beyond case studies in postgraduate agribusiness teaching to enhance experiential benefits and student/teacher outcomes. Applied Economics Teaching Resources.
    2024 Loch, A., Scholz, G., Adamson, D., Sexton, S., & Peralta Sanchez, A. (2024). Validating costly protected area restoration after (increasing) disasters. Journal of Environmental Management, 370, 122305-1-122305-11.
    DOI
    2024 Akzar, R., Peralta Sanchez, M. A., & Umberger, W. (2024). Understanding dis-adoption of technologies by smallholder dairy farmers in Indonesia. International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, 27(3), 478-508.
    DOI
    2023 Akzar, R., Peralta, A., & Umberger, W. (2023). Adoption of dairy feed technology bundles improves smallholder dairy farmers' milk production. Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economies, 19 pages.
    DOI Scopus1
    2023 Azkar, R., Umberger, W., & Peralta, A. (2023). Understanding heterogeneity in technology adoption among Indonesian smallholder dairy farmers. Agribusiness: an international journal, 39(2), 347-370.
    DOI Scopus9 WoS2
    2022 Peralta, A. (2022). The role of men and women in agriculture and agricultural decisions in Vanuatu. Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, 9(1), 59-80.
    DOI Scopus7
    2022 Peralta, A., Shupp, R., & Arslan, C. (2022). The Grower-Trader Relationship: Experiments with Coffee Value Chain Actors in Uganda. Oxford Development Studies, 50(3), 193-208.
    DOI
    2022 Genova, C., Umberger, W., Newman, S., & Peralta, A. (2022). Understanding food choice factors of rural households from northwest Vietnam. Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economies, 13(5), 1-22.
    DOI Scopus1 WoS1
    2022 Genova, C., Umberger, W., Peralta Sanchez, M. A., Newman, S., & Zeng, D. (2022). The Indirect Impact of Smallholder Vegetable Production on Children's Nutrition Outcomes in Rural Vietnam. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 6, 1-21.
    DOI Scopus1
    2021 Qanti, S., Peralta, A., & Zeng, D. (2021). Social norms and perceptions drive women’s participation in agricultural decisions in West Java, Indonesia. Agriculture and Human Values, 39(2), 645-662.
    DOI Scopus8 WoS1
    2021 Maligalig, R. L., Demont, M., Umberger, W. J., & Peralta, A. (2021). Understanding Filipino rice farmer preference heterogeneity for varietal trait improvements: A latent class analysis. Journal of Agricultural Economics, 72(1), 134-157.
    DOI Scopus17 WoS9 Europe PMC3
    2019 Maligalig, R., Demond, M., Umberger, W., & Peralta, A. (2019). Off-farm employment increases women's empowerment: Evidence from rice farms in the Philippines. Journal of Rural Studies, 71, 62-72.
    DOI Scopus28 WoS18 Europe PMC7
    2018 Peralta, A., Swinton, S., & Jin, S. (2018). The secret to getting ahead is getting started: Early impacts of a rural development project. Sustainability (Switzerland), 10(8), 20 pages.
    DOI Scopus1
    2017 Peralta, A., & Shupp, R. (2017). Trust, Trust Attitudes and Group Membership. Journal of International Development, 29(6), 681-699.
    DOI Scopus2 WoS2
    2016 Peralta, A., & Swinton, Scott M. (2016). Food vs. wood: dynamic choices for Kenyan smallholders. Sustainable Agriculture Research, 5(1), 97-108.
    DOI
    2009 Johnson, N., Garcia, J., Rubiano, J., Quintero, M., Estrada, R., Mwangi, E., . . . Granados, S. (2009). Water and poverty in two Colombian watersheds. Water Alternatives, 2(1), 34-52.
    Scopus18
    2006 Peralta, A., James Garcia., & Nancy Johnson. (2006). Dinámica y definición de pobreza en los Andes colombianos: enfoques participativos versus enfoques objetivos. Desarrollo y Sociedad, 58, 209-243.

  • Conference Papers
    Year Citation
    2024 Peralta Sanchez, M. A. (2024). Mobile Money and Rural Financial Markets in Developing Countries: Opportunities, Challenges, and Unexplored Pathways. In 68th Annual Conference Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    2024 Akzar, R., Peralta Sanchez, M. A., & Tang, W. (2024). Impacts of digital financial services in agriculture: A systematic literature review. In 68th Annual Conference Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    2024 Maligalig, R., Peralta Sanchez, M. A., & Loch, A. (2024). Timor-Leste’s National Seed System: Overview of its Structure, Challenges, and Opportunities. In 68th Annual Conference Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    2023 Qanti, S., Peralta Sanchez, M. A., & Zeng, D. (2023). Unfolding the spousal differences in response to intrahousehold decision-making participation questions: Evidence from West Java, Indonesia. In Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society 67th Annual Conference. Christchucrch, New Zealand.
    2023 Qanti, S., Peralta Sanchez, M. A., & Zeng, D. (2023). Women Decision Making and Dairy Technology Adoption: Positive correlation between women's participation in dairy farming activities and decisions with the adoption of improved cattle nutrition practices in West Java, Indonesia. In Australasian Agriculture and Resource Economics Society 67th Annual Conference.
    2020 Akzar, R., Umberger, W., & Peralta, A. (2020). The synergistic effects of multiple dairy feed technologies on Indonesian smallholder dairy farmers. In Australasian Agricultural and Resources Economics Society 64th Annual Conference. Perth.
    2020 Peralta, A. (2020). Men learn from men, but women do not learn from women: Information networks effects among cocoa growers in Vanuatu.. In Australasian Agricultural and Resources Economics Society 64th Annual Conference.. Perth, WA.
    2020 Peralta, A. (2020). Are cash crops men's and food crops women's? Evidence from Vanuatu. In Australasian Agricultural and Resources Economics Society 64th Annual Conference..
    2019 Akzar, R., Umberger, W., & Peralta, A. (2019). Adoption of multiple dairy farming technologies by Indonesian smallholder dairy farmers: A latent class analysis approach. In The 63rd AARES Annual Conference. Melbourne, Australia.
    2019 Peralta, A., & Shupp, R. (2019). Do Coffee Growers Trust their Trader? Experimental Evidence from Uganda. In 63rd Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society Conference. Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
    2019 Peralta, A. (2019). The role of male and female social networks on knowledge of recommended cocoa practices in Vanuatu. In Seeds of Change Conference. Canberra, ACT, Australia.
    2016 Peralta, A., & Swinton, S. (2016). Peralta, A. and Swinton, S. (2016). Neighbour Effects on Adoption of Conservation Agriculture in Nicaragua.. In 60th Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society. Canberra.
    2016 Genova, C., Umberger, W., Newman, S., & Peralta, A. (2016). Food choices of the Môngs in the northwest uplands of Vietnam. In Presentation at the XXIII Agri-food Research Network (AFRN) conference (pp. 22 pages). Adelaide. SA..
    2015 Peralta, A., Jin, S., Arraiz, I., & Calero, C. (2015). Short-term Impact Evaluation of a Value Chain Development Project in Haiti. In Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics (AARES) Conference. Roturua, New Zealand.
    2015 Arraiz, I., Calero, C., Jin, S., & Peralta, A. (2015). Planting the seeds: The impact of training on mando producers in Haiti. In International Association of Agricultural Economists Conference.
    2014 Peralta, A., & Shupp, Robert. (2014). Trust, trust attitudes and group participation in rural development activities. In Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    2013 Peralta, A., & Swinton, Scott M. (2013). Impact Assessment with Opt-in Treatments: Evidence from a rural development project in Nicaragua. In Agricultural and Applied Economics Association Annual Meetings. Washington, D.C. United States of America.
    2012 Peralta, A., Swinton, Scott M., & Maredia, Mywish. (2012). Accounting for selection bias in impact analysis of a rural development program: An application using propensity score matching.. In International Association of Agricultural Economists. Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil.

  • Conference Items
    Year Citation
    2024 Akzar, R., Peralta Sanchez, M. A., & Loch, A. (2024). Assessing Financial Inclusion of Digital Financial Services among Cambodian Farmers. Poster session presented at the meeting of 68th Annual Conference Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    2018 Peralta, A., Umberger, W., & Christian, G. (2018). Spousal agreement and women participation in decision making in rural Vietnam. Poster session presented at the meeting of Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA) 2018 Annual Meeting, August 5-7, 2018, Washington, D.C..
    2018 Peralta, A., Umberger, W., & Azkar, R. (2018). Spousal agreement, women participation in decisions, and technology adoption in Indonesia.. Poster session presented at the meeting of 2018 AARES Conference.
    2018 Maligalig, R. L., Umberger, W., Demont, M., & Peralta, A. (2018). Farmer preferences for rice varietal trait improvements in Nueva Ecija, Philippines: A latent class cluster approach. Poster session presented at the meeting of International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE) Triennial Conference. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
    2018 Maligalig, R. L., Demont, M., Umberger, W., & Peralta, A. (2018). Using Experiments to Understand Gender Influence on Intrahousehold Decision Making for Investment in Rice Varietal Trait Improvements. Poster session presented at the meeting of 2018 International Rice Congress. Singapore.
    2018 Genova, C., Umberger., Newman., Peralta., & Zeng. (2018). The impact of smallholder vegetable production on child nutrition in rural Vietnam. Poster session presented at the meeting of 2018 Annual Australasian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society (AARES) Conference. Adelaide Convention Centre, Adelaide, SA.
    2018 Akzar, R., Peralta, A., Umberger, W., & Hetherington, J. (2018). Simultaneous Decisions of Indonesian Smallholder Dairy Farmers Adoption of Multiple on Farm-level Innovations. Poster session presented at the meeting of The 62th AARES Annual Conference. Adelaide Australia.
    2017 Genova, C., Umberger, W., Newman, S., & Peralta, A. (2017). Linking smallholder vegetable production to children’s diets: evidence from rural Vietnam. Poster session presented at the meeting of Presentation at the 2017 AARES Annual Conference. Brisbane, Qld..
    2017 Maligalig, R. L., Demont, M., Umberger, W. J., & Peralta, A. (2017). Intrahousehold decision making on rice varietal trait improvements: Using experiments to estimate gender influence. Poster session presented at the meeting of 2017 Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) Annual Meeting. Chicago, Illinois.
    2017 Genova, C., Umberger., Newman., & Peralta. (2017). To Market, to market: Does smallholder vegetable production lead to increased children's dietary diversity and improved diet quality? Empirical evidence from Northwest Vietnam. Poster session presented at the meeting of 62nd Agricultural and Applied Economics Association Annual Meeting. Chicago, Illinois.

  • Working Paper
    Year Citation
    2015 Arraiz, Irani., Calero, Carla., Jin, Songqing., & Peralta, A. (2015). Planting the Seeds: The Impact of Training on Mango Producers in Haiti. Inter-American Development Bank.
  Grants as Projec Leader $ to UoA Years Donor Category
1 Evaluating service provision approaches and value-chain interventions to support milk cooperatives to grow the smallholder dairy sector of Indonesia (IndoDairy 2) (total 3.8M) $762,964 2024-2029 ACIAR Cat1
2 Impact Assessment of ACIAR supported Seeds of Life Program (SoL) $524,829 2022-2025 ACIAR Cat1
3 Building the evidence base on the impacts of mobile financial services for women and men in farming households in Laos and Cambodia (DiFF) (total 2.8M) $623,977 2022-2026 ACIAR Cat1
4 Impact Assessment Seeds of Change Project in Timor Leste $119,743 2021-2022 ACIAR Cat2
5 Myanmar Young Water Professionals YWP Evaluation $29,596 2019 AWP-DFAT Cat3
6 Impact assessment of cocoa interventions in Vanuatu $88,600 2016-2018 ACIAR Cat1
    $2,149,709      
  Other Grants Held        
7 Aligning genetic resources, production and post-harvest systems to market opportunities for Pacific Island and Australian cocoa.  $192,686 2017-2021 ACIAR Cat1
8 Improving milk supply, competitiveness and livelihoods in smallholder dairy chains in Indonesia $2,052,306 2016-2021 ACIAR Cat1
9 Developing value chain innovation platforms to improve food security in east and southern Africa (VIP4FS) $629,215 2015-2019 ACIAR Cat1
    $2,874,207      
  Internal grants        
10 Investigator Applying a Gender Lens to the South Australia Budget (with the Fay Gale Centre for Research on Gender). Project leader $9,800 2023 ABLE Internal
11

Feminist Mentoring Collective for the Contemporary University (with the Fay Gale Centre for Research on Gender).Co-CI

 $9,258 2022 ABLE Internal

All figures in Australian Dollars.

ABLE: Faculty of Arts, Business, Law and Economics 

ACIAR: Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research

AWP: Australian Water Partnership

DFAT: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Average of 6.6/7 for an effective university teacher (student evaluations 2021-2023)

Course Coordinator

AGRIBUS7054 Global Food and Agricultural Policy Analysis 2015-present

AGRIBUS7053 Globalisation and Agriculture in Emerging Economies 2016-present

AGRIBUS7055 Global Food and Agricultural markets 2014-2015

Online Courses

GFABx Understanding Agribusiness, Value Chains, and Consumers in Global Food Systems 2018-present - Faculty of the Professions University of Adelaide. 21st Century Learning and Teaching Award Excellence in Learning and Teaching in 2019.

  • Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
    Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
    2024 Principal Supervisor Opportunities to improve women’s empowerment through adopting sustainable agricultural practices (SAPs) in Vietnam. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Hang Thi Bui
    2023 Principal Supervisor Evaluating Extension Approaches for Smallhoder Dairy Value Chains in West Java, Indonesia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Vyta Hanifah
    2022 Co-Supervisor Transforming to sustainable food consumption: an empirical study in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Thi Xuan Dieu Phan
    2022 Principal Supervisor Climate Smart Agricultural Technologies, Commercialization, and Nutrition in Rural Africa Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Tadiwos Zewdie Tiruneh

  • Past Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
    Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
    2019 - 2023 Principal Supervisor Women’s Participation in Intrahousehold Decision-making: A Case in Rural Smallholder Farm Households in West Java Indonesia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Sara Ratna Qanti
    2017 - 2021 Co-Supervisor Adoption of Multiple Dairy Farming Technologies – Issues and Opportunities for Smallholder Dairy Farmers in West Java, Indonesia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Rida Akzar
    2015 - 2018 Co-Supervisor Eliciting Farmer Preferences for Rice Varietal Trait Improvements Using an Experimental Methodology Based on Investment Games Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Rio Lawas Maligalig
    2015 - 2019 Co-Supervisor The Effect of Smallholder Vegetable Production on Children's Dietary Quality and Nutritional Outcomes: Evidence from Vietnam Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Christian ll Genova
  • Position: Senior Lecturer
  • Phone: 83131783
  • Email: alexandra.peralta@adelaide.edu.au
  • Campus: North Terrace
  • Building: Nexus 10, floor 6
  • Org Unit: Centre for Global Food and Resources
Connect With Me
External Profiles