Conversations with Eco-Innovators: Giving to Get—Economic Incentives & Conservation

On March 25, the event "Conversations with Eco-Innovators" was moderated by Michael Livermore, Policy Integrity's executive director, and Eduard Niesten, Conservation International's senior director of Conservation Stewards Program. They discussed offering development investments in return for conservation services in Cambodia. They discussed building sustainable financial and governance relationships between communities, governments, and the donor community which can produce lasting solutions.

Around Cambodia's Central Cardamom Protected Forest, biodiversity is threatened by shifting agriculture, hunting, and trading of wildlife. A key strategy has emerged to address these threats: enlisting the help of local communities to protect natural resources by ensuring that they see concrete benefits from conservation.

Over the past few decades, it has become clear that local communities are fundamental to the success of conservation efforts. By facilitating their productive participation in ways that generate tangible economic benefits, we can make these communities central to the next generation of conservation strategies.

Category:

Education