Tropical forest conservation : an economic assessment of the alternatives in Latin America

Drawing on research carried out in Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, and other places, this book assesses the viability of conservation strategies for preserving threatened habitats, from an economic perspective. The author demonstrates that it is rare for forest dwellers to derive much benefit from ecotourism, the extraction of timber and other commodities, or the collection of samples used in pharmaceutical research. The author contends that human capital formation and related productivity-enhancing investment is the only sure path to economic progress and habitat conservation.