2002 World Congress of Environmental and Resource Economists

Many conservation areas have been designated within indigenous territories. This study examines whether education can potentially reduce households' agricultural-related forest clearance by increasing the returns to wage labor. It analyzes a unique survey of 649 indigenous households in protected areas in Bolivia's lowland forests. It finds that an additional year of education among household heads is associated with a reduction of 0.05 hectares or 4.3% of the annual mean household forest clearance, increased returns of 2.6% in wage labor and a 21%increase in days worked in wage labor. Thus, the 3-year average increase in education among the youngest cohorts is associated with potentially significant reduction in forest clearance in the study site. Expenditure shocks, however, are associated with a 39% increase in the mean annual household forest clearance. These associations, though insufficient at present to establish causality, provide some preliminary evidence for the potential role of education and mechanisms to cope with expenditure shocks in reducing households’ forest clearance.



	Paper Title:	The Role Of Education And Expenditure Shocks In Forest Clearance Empirical Evidence From Indigenous Households In Bolivia's Protected Areas
	Presenting Author:	Shanti Gamper Rabindran (University of North Carolina)
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	Abstract:	Many conservation areas have been designated within indigenous territories. This study examines whether education can potentially reduce households' agricultural-related forest clearance by increasing the returns to wage labor. It analyzes a unique survey of 649 indigenous households in protected areas in Bolivia's lowland forests. It finds that an additional year of education among household heads is associated with a reduction of 0.05 hectares or 4.3% of the annual mean household forest clearance, increased returns of 2.6% in wage labor and a 21%increase in days worked in wage labor. Thus, the 3-year average increase in education among the youngest cohorts is associated with potentially significant reduction in forest clearance in the study site. Expenditure shocks, however, are associated with a 39% increase in the mean annual household forest clearance. These associations, though insufficient at present to establish causality, provide some preliminary evidence for the potential role of education and mechanisms to cope with expenditure shocks in reducing households’ forest clearance.
	Link to paper:	Not available

	Session / Day / Time	1B / Monday / 8:00 - 10:00 am

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