After briefly defining ecotourism, factors affecting the demand for it, its relative growth and its value for nature conservation are discussed. There has been an upsurge in interest in ecotourism as a possible profitable means to ensure sustainable ecological development. However, investment in...

The gradualism of economic reforms in China and Vietnam (especially in China, which has led the way in this regard) has been commented on favourably by many analysts studying transitional economies. Early market reforms in China and Vietnam were constrained by political considerations and...

Analyzes the economics of alternative allocations of forested land for uses (dominant-use vs. multiple use) to ensure the survival of a viable population of a forest-dependent species, e.g. the orangutan. The alternatives are (1) setting aside a sufficient fully protected portion of the forest...

Indicates some of the different concepts of sustainable economic development and raises queries about how much present generations are concerned with future generations. A variety of conditions (ranging from very weak to very strong) have been suggested for achieving sustainable development....

Biodiversity is usually regarded as an asset or resource, the stock of which is partly natural and partly determined by humans. Humans both subtract from and add to this stock and consequently, the change in the stock is heterogeneous. This heterogeneity is not taken account of by some authors...

Different economic methods are being used to estimate the economic benefits generated by nature (wildlife) tourism. The most prominent of these are economic valuation analysis and economic impact analysis. These methods often provide divergent and conflicting estimates of the economic benefits...

After touching on the concerns of natural scientists about biodiversity loss, this article argues that it is a mistake to believe that there are only losses of biodiversity. The process of changes in the stock of biodiversity is more complex. Furthermore, it is pointed out that not all genetic...

Some wildlife species are agricultural pests (or otherwise a problem) but their populations are often valued by other than agriculturalists or by those not adversely affected by them directly. For non-farmers, the population levels of such wildlife are frequently pure public goods. This is one...

Ecosystems supply a wide variety of valued commodities, including ecological services. Valuing these commodities and determining the implications of their valuation for the optimal management of ecosystems is challenging. This paper considers the optimal spatial use of forest ecosystems given...