— We present an innovative global-to-local modeling approach to analyze impacts of uncertain and complex futures on Vietnam’s economy via changes in land use patterns. Socio-economic changes are shown to have major implications for the Vietnamese landscape, including natural forest losses with negative consequences for biodiversity and greenhouse gas emissions, and losses of paddy rice and other agricultural lands in the Red River Delta and the Mekong River delta. Climate-related flood risks in these areas further threaten the population, economic assets, and food security.

This paper analyzes institutional design, organizational capacity, and interplay in markets for ecosystem services. It examines the development of a market-based mechanism to commercialize forest carbon in Mexico through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). This is compared with a State-run carbon forestry program aiming to provide emission rights to voluntary, retail-based, carbon markets.

Concern over the possible impacts of physical and economical displacement from protected areas is widespread and growing. Partly as a consequence of this there is now an increasing tendency to promote only voluntary displacement from protected areas. There are, however, good reasons to be cautious before welcoming this policy shift. In the first instance we should note that the extent of past evictions is far from clear, but that the demand for future displacement is likely to rise. Second, it is not always easy to distinguish voluntary from forced displacement.

This paper examines the main ways in which Payments for Environmental Services (PES) might affect poverty. PES may reduce poverty mainly by making payments to poor natural resource managers in upper watersheds. The extent of the impact depends on how many PES participants are in fact poor, on the poor’s ability to participate, and on the amounts paid. Although PES programs are not designed for poverty reduction, there can be important synergies when program design is well thought out and local conditions are favorable.

This paper critically examines some narratives of water scarcity in Kutch, western India. It argues that images of dwindling rainfall and increasing drought largely serve to legitimize the controversial Sardar Sarovar dam and manufacture dominant perceptions concerning scarcity. This manufacture has naturalized scarcity in the region and largely benefits powerful actors such as politicians, industrialists and large farmers. But the needs of the poor in water-limited areas are neglected.