SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT CASE STUDIES

These "executive summaries" of actual attempts to pursue some aspect of sustainable development were created by the students of an undergraduate senior seminar at Colby College. All are designed to be two pages or less and are fully referenced for those who wish to consult the original sources. The case studies can be accessed by clicking on the topic headings or by scrolling down through the subject areas.
Agriculture
Air Pollution
Aquaculture
Deforestation
Energy
Energy: Demand Side Management
Environmental Entrepreneurialism
Fisheries
Funding Mechanisms
Indigenous Knowledge
Information Strategies
Macro Management
Population Control
Solid Waste Management
Sustainable Cities
Sustainability Indicators
Trade and the Environment
Transportation
Water
Wildlife Management

Agriculture

Sustainable Agriculture and Pest Control (Indonesia)
Farming Systems Research and Extension (Zambia)
The Landcare System in Barangay Ned (Philippines)
Farmer Behavior and Environmental Benefits(France)
Controlling Worker Exposure to Pesticides (United States)

Air Pollution

Inefficient Automobile Regulation (Mexico)
Ownership Regimes and Pollution Control (China)
Costs and Benefits of Air Pollution Control (United States)
Peak Hour Road Congestion Pricing (Singapore)
Eco-Taxation and Carbon Dioxide Emissions (Sweden)
Zero Emission Vehicle Program (California, USA)
RECLAIM (Los Angeles, USA)
CAFE Standards and Carbon Dioxide Emissions (United States)
Phasing Lead Out of Gasoline (United States)
Sulfur Allowance Program (United States)

Aquaculture

CPR Problems in Shrimp Mariculture (Ecuador)
Pricing and Property Rights in Salmon Farming (Oregon, USA)

Deforestation

Encroachment and Indigenous Deforestation (Bolivia)
Sources of Deforestation (Philippines)
Land Tenure Systems and Land Conversion (Uganda)
Perverse Economic Incentives and Deforestation (Brazil)
Effects of Deforestation on Humans and the Environment (Costa Rica)
Property Rights and Penetration Roads (Ecuador)
Local and State Joint Forest Management (India)
History and Current Crisis of Deforestation (Madagascar)
History and Current Situation of Deforestation (Nepal)

Demand Side Management

Shared Savings Incentives in Regulated Utilities (New England, USA)
Utility Incentives and Consumer Energy Conservation (California, USA)
Utility Competition and Conservation Promotion (Wisconsin, USA)

Energy

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions (Japan)
Wind Power and Water Scarcity (Morocco)
Biopower (Washington, USA)
Institutional Structures for Lower Cost Solar Power (South Pacific Islands)
Biomass Systems and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions (Sweden)
Solar Energy Use and Peak-Load Management (Texas, USA)
Energy Tax Credits and Energy Conservation (Western USA)
Wind Power (Denmark)
Electricity Labeling (Sweden)
Cost-Effectiveness of Solar Cookers (Kenya)
Efficiency and Cost-Effectiveness of Solar "Power Towers" (California, USA)
Feed in Tariffs (Germany)
Solar Energy and Rural Water Use (Wyoming, USA)

Environmental Entrepreneurialism

Using Profits to Preserve Rainforests (Costa Rica and Ecuador)
How Do Firms Instigate and Maintain Sustainable Practices? (Europe and North America)

Fisheries

Role of ITQs in Fisheries Management (Australia)
Marine Park Management and TACs in Coral Harvest (Australia)
Informal Arrangements for Managing Fisheries (Maine, USA)
Success of ITQ's in Fisheries Management (Australia)
Co-Management in the Lobster Fishery (Maine, USA)
Individual Vessel Quotas (British Columbia, Canada)
Government Regulation and Politics (Chile)
Jointly Managing Straddling Stocks on the Patagonia Shelf (Falkland Islands)
ITQs in Fisheries (Iceland)
ITQs in Fisheries (New Zealand)
Sustainable Management of a Multispecies Fishery (Norway)
ITQs in the Wreckfish Fishery (South Atlantic)
State Failure to Regulate Shark Fishing (United States)

Funding Mechanisms

Micro Lending and Economic and Environmental Sustainability (Costa Rica)
Rural Credit and Sustainable Agriculture (Thailand)
The Dynamics of a Debt-Nature Swap (Belize)
Financing Environmental Protection with Gambling or Lotteries (Colorado, USA)

Indigenous Knowledge

Using Indigenous Knowledge in Sustainable Development (Canada)

Information Strategies

The Effectiveness of Eco-Labeling Denmark)

Macro Management

Structural Adjustment and the Environment (Tanzania)
Community-Based Property Rights (Mexico

Population Control

Income Generating Projects and Fertility Control (Bangladesh)
Child Mortality and Fertility (India)
Family Planning Programs (India)
Contraception Promotion and Fertility (Mexico)
Government Enforcement of Fertility (China)

Solid Waste Management

National Taxes and Waste Reduction (Denmark)
Plastic Bag Levy (Ireland)
The Green Dot System and Solid Waste Reduction (Germany)
Unit-Based Cost Pricing and Solid Waste Reduction (Maine, USA)
Deposit-Refund Systems(Maine, USA)
Waste Diversion Programs and Volume and Cost Reduction (New Jersey, USA)
Quantity Based Pricing and Recycling Incentives (New York, USA)
Solid Waste Facilities and Neighborhood Racial Composition (Texas, USA)
Economic Incentives for Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling (Washington, USA)

Sustainable Cities

Long-Term Sustainable Policies (California, USA)

Sustainability Indicators

Voluntary Agreements as Policy Tools (Netherlands)

Trade and the Environment

The NAFTA Agreement

Transportation

Bicycles as Sustainable and Viable Transportation (Japan)
Pricing Traffic Congestion (London,UK)
Forcing Low Emissions Technology (California, USA)
Peak-Load Pricing and Traffic Congestion (California, USA)

Water

Inefficient Water Management (Argentina)
California Water Markets (California, USA)
Drought Water Banks (California,USA)
The Public Trust Doctrine and Water Allocation (Colorado, USA)
Controlling Pollution through Disclosure Strategies (Indonesia)
Liberalization of Water Markets (Jakarta, Indonesia)
Paying for Forest Water Services (Costa Rica)
Water Pricing in Marin County (California)
Proposition 65's Effects on Lead in Drinking Water (California)
Dealing with Drought (Australia)

Wildlife Management

The CITES Ivory Trade Ban and African Elephants (Botswana)
CITES and the Bengal Tiger (India)
Deer Management Strategies (Wisconsin, USA)
Effects of Conservation on Local People (Botswana)
The Nez Perce and the Introduction of Gray Wolves (Idaho, USA)
Landowner Compensation and the Reintroduction of Wolves (Montana, USA)
Long-Line Fisheries Reform (Southern and Indian Oceans)
Endangered Species Act (USA)
The Wildlife Protection Law of 1988 (China)
CAMPFIRE: Local Participation in Wildlife Management (Zimbabwe)