Workers collecting palm oil fruit

In a world of vast natural ecosystems, endlessly diverse life forms and similarly numerous threats to nature, how can people make smart choices about what to try to conserve? It takes biological expertise, to be sure, but economics is also a necessary compass to guide our efforts.

A Stanford Social Innovation Review feature article by CSF economists this month explains how understanding markets can show where the most promising opportunities lie to conserve ecosystems and make development more friendly to nature. Aaron Bruner, Alfonso Malky and I point to market aspects such as open access, perverse subsidies and big external costs as "destructive inefficiencies" that are ripe for correction in ways that can protect the environment. We overlay these with the profitability of destructive activities and a strategic view of monopolistic markets to provide economically driven insights for prioritizing conservation action.

The full article is available here.