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.

Conservation Strategy Fund is accepting applications for our International Economic Tools for Conservation Course! Now in it's 17th year, our flagship course will be offered August 10-21, 2015 at Stanford University.

Lone fishing boat, Jamaica Jamaica’s Goat Islands are the center of what has often been portrayed as a classic development-versus-environment conflict.

An international study shows there may be better, cheaper and less environmentally damaging alternative sites for the proposed transshipment port and logistics hub. Kingston, Jamaica: The Conservation Strategy Fund (CSF), today announced the findings of a cost-effectiveness assessment of four potential sites for the proposed transshipment port that China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) is proposing to build. CSF’s recommendations were presented to a group of senior decision-makers at a meeting at the Courtleigh Hotel today.

I remember noticing on a trip to Brazil in 2001 that compact-flourescent lightbulbs were colonizing the country's light sockets with startling speed. It hadn't been raining and the drought was idling hydroelectric dams that accounted for more than 90% of electricity. The resulting blackouts, referred to as "apagões," changed people's behavior. Consumers slashed their energy consumption and solved the crisis. The rains eventually came and the outages faded into memory.

During the two-week training, instructors from CSF, Oregon State University, the University of Brasilia, and Cambridge Resources International led an intensive schedule of lectures, exercises, and games to give participants insight into the economic drivers of environmental problems and the economic and policy tools that can lead to effective solutions. Topics included Microeconomics, Natural Resource Economics, Environmental Policy and Valuation, and Cost-Benefit Analysis. Each participant came away with a clear understanding of how these topics relate to their work in conservation, policy, and analysis.

Participants of the 2014 Forum

John Reid, CSF President, and Mariano Castro, Deputy Minister of Environmental Management. Photo courtesy of MINAM; http://www.minam.gob.pe Lima, Peru -- This morning, CSF President John Reid signed an agreement with Peru's Ministry of Environment (MINAM) to continue work on environmental compensation in Amazonian ecosystems. At least two case studies will be conducted.