Socioeconomic factors influencing sustainable forest management stated preference and behavior in rural Nicaragua

Forest policy throughout Latin America is undergoing a decentralization process in which more of the responsibilities for managing forest resources are delegated to municipal governments, often with mixed success (Larson, 2003). Considered critical for household needs and as biodiversity reserves, forest fragments on private lands comprise one-quarter of the forest resources in developing countries (Scherr et al., 2004). Household level attitudes and behaviors are, therefore, now more important than ever to the sustainability of these forest areas. This research uses a case study from Santo Tomás, Chontales, Nicaragua to examine the household socioeconomic factors most influential on stated preferences for forest management. Age and rural, as opposed to urban, locations proved to be the most significant factors in this study.