My research examines the impact of environmental conservation and sustainable development policies and programs on local governance of natural resources. Specifically, I examine how different protected area property-rights policies (and decision-making rights) impact individual and community land-use decisions.  I have examined the impacts of property-rights policies on indigenous land-management and the ability to control agricultural expansion in Central America.  More recently, I have begun to explore the nexus between livelihoods, protected area policies and ecosystem conservation in the Colombian Andes.