The Tiger and the Turbine

Anthropologists have long recognized the central roleof social systems in enhancing environmentalsustainability but few have attempted to accuratelyassess the conditions under which traditional socialinstitutions can equitably and effectively manageaccess to natural resources for the purposes of theiruse and conservation. This book examines the connections betweeninstitutional and economic incentives and resourceuse and management decisions among the Nasoindigenous people in Bocas del Toro Panama. Itincorporates insights from development anthropologycommon property systems and political ecology todevelop a multi-sited approach that uses multipleresearch methods. This analysis of the Naso case will be especiallyuseful to development planners regulators and otherstakeholders interested in the design andimplementation of more equitable solutions toproblems with the distribution of the social andenvironmental costs and benefits associated withlarge infrastructure projects.