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The aim of this research theme is to promote the provision and maintenance of environmental services in ways that are equitable and beneficial for poor people, through market creation, compensation mechanisms, fiscal incentives and other market-based instruments.

This builds on previous and ongoing work on Markets for Environmental Services but broadens its scope. Pure private sector markets have an important role to play but their application will not be appropriate in all circumstances. There is a need to consider also other types of approach such as fiscal incentives which imply more public sector involvement.

Projects for this theme:

Markets for Environmental Services Case Studies
This research focuses on the financial, environmental and poverty impacts of initiatives to create markets and other compensation mechanisms for, primarily, forest environmental services (e.g. payments for watershed protection, biodiversity conservation, carbon storage).

ICMS Ecológico
The purpose of this project is to monitor the biodiversity and socio-economic impact of the ICMS Ecológico in Brazil.

Private Conservancies in Southern Africa

Equitable Auctions for Wildlife Conservation
This project aims to examine the experience with the use of auctions and tendering mechanisms to market wildlife products and services as compared with direct negotiations.

Capacity Building and Networking
We aim to build capacity in Southern institutions, and develop guidance by disseminating the lessons from the research on Markets for Environmental Services and by building an international network of interested informed agencies.

Socio-economic impacts and market opportunities associated with land use and hydrological change in tropical montane cloud forest areas in Arenal, Costa Rica
The socio-economic impacts of biophysical changes in tropical montane cloud forests are poorly understood in terms of the sequence and significance of the drivers of land use conversion. Water from the cloud forest of Arenal is used to feed into the largest hydroelectric project in Costa Rica and is later used by the largest irrigation project in Central America.

Sustainable Tourism in Cambodia
The purpose of this project is to secure community access to benefits generated through sustainable wildlife tourism in the Srepok Wilderness Area (SWA) in Cambodia, based on the long-term viability of key species.

Voluntary Carbon Offsets

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