Abstract

Understanding how poverty persists and how this affects environmental reliance has policy implications for poverty reduction and environmental conservation. Employing a panel data-set from rural Nepal, we shed light on this issue, using a combination of parametric and nonparametric models. Results show that, as a population, households will converge at a single equilibrium point in the long-term, hence indicating the absence of a poverty trap. The exact asset level of this single equilibrium point, which indicates the absence of a poverty trap, varies between groups of households (for example, based on location, marital status). Based on the convergence point of the entire study population, two groups of households are identified: one situated above the convergence point and another situated below the point. Total environmental income, that is, all income from forest and non-forest environments, is very important to households below the convergence point. Although total environmental income is not a major contributor to asset accumulation, its non-forest component is a significant and positive contributor. We attribute the importance to their looser restriction to access, than for forest resources. Hence, securing greater access to forests without affecting the conservation priorities will help improve the contribution of forest resources to poverty reduction.

摘要

了解贫困如何持续存在以及这如何影响环境依赖对减贫和环境保护具有政策意义。使用来自尼泊尔农村的面板数据集，我们使用参数和非参数模型的组合来阐明这个问题。结果表明，作为一个人口，家庭在长期内将收敛于一个单一的均衡点，因此表明不存在贫困陷阱。该单一均衡点的确切资产水平（表明不存在贫困陷阱）因家庭群体而异（例如，基于位置、婚姻状况）。根据整个研究人口的汇合点，确定了两组住户：一组位于汇合点之上，另一组位于汇合点之下。环境总收入，即 所有来自森林和非森林环境的收入，对于汇合点以下的家庭来说都非常重要。虽然环境总收入不是资产积累的主要贡献者，但其非森林部分是一个重要的积极贡献者。我们将重要性归因于它们对获取的限制比对森林资源的限制更宽松。因此，在不影响保护优先事项的情况下获得更多的森林资源将有助于提高森林资源对减贫的贡献。而不是森林资源。因此，在不影响保护优先事项的情况下获得更多的森林资源将有助于提高森林资源对减贫的贡献。而不是森林资源。因此，在不影响保护优先事项的情况下获得更多的森林资源将有助于提高森林资源对减贫的贡献。