Douglas Leonard
Graduate Student Research Funding | 2023–2024 Academic Year
The Political Economy of the Conservation of Tropical Rainforests
Brazilian deforestation generates large social costs and small private benefits. While 95% of deforestation is illegal, the government has decreased deforestation in particular places and times by enforcing environmental laws. Leonard hypothesizes that anti-deforestation policy depends on the political incentives of the national government. The federal government faces a tradeoff when enforcing anti-deforestation laws: political costs are greater in politically aligned municipalities, but policy is easier to implement because of informational advantages and decreased principle-agent problems. Leonard will estimate the effect of local political alignment with the federal government on environmental governance (enforcement of environmental laws) and outcomes (satellite deforestation data).
Douglas Leonard, Department of Political Science
Doug Leonard is a third year political science PhD student. His research focuses on how politics influences the way that societies manage natural resources and conserve ecosystems and how these policies shape natural outcomes. He is a graduate of Swarthmore College.
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