A bioeconomic model is used to explore the potential impacts of price policies on land use under shifting cultivation. The model is calibrated with household level and agroecological data from Yucatan, Mexico. Besides the direct effect of the liberalization of maize prices, the results indicate...

Tropical deforestation is generally characterized as conversion of forest land to alternative uses, notably agriculture. This would suggest the need for rational decision making concerning the optimal allocation of tropical forest land between competing uses. The following paper explores this...

Recent studies have suggested that tropical wetland systems may have a crucial economic role to play in development. The following paper provides an overview of these benefits, using the general framework of cost-benefit analysis as the methodological approach to assessing wetland values. An...

We analyzed the factors determining mangrove conversion by shrimp farmers in the coastal provinces of Thailand between 1979–1996. The profit-maximizing behavior of a shrimp farmer converting mangrove area under open access conditions is modeled. Aggregate mangrove clearing by all farmers in...

This paper both introduces the special issue on the economics of tropical deforestation and land use and conducts a synthesis crosscountry analysis of tropical agricultural land expansion. Agricultural development is the main factor determining land expansion, but institutional factors have an...