Pii: S0305-750x(02)00024-4

— This paper provides a household-level framework to understand the occurrence of secondary forests. We focus on the role of household life cycles as determinants of secondary vegetation on small farms in tropical Latin America. Following a review of socioeconomic research on secondary growth and a theoretical discussion of life cycle dynamics and land use, we pursue an empirical analysis of the determinants of fallows and abandoned plots among farm lots in Uruar a, a colony in the Brazilian Amazon. The findings indicate strong effects of life cycle factors, and bear implications for policies aiming to foster agricultural production alongside forest conservation. 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.