Optimizing protected area entry fees across stakeholders: the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Michoacan, Mexico

Tourists, protected area managers, gateway communities, and national or international interested parties may have different objectives for protected areas management in developing countries. When values and incentives are at cross-purposes, difficulties in management may persist, but policy alternatives may be available. This research hopes to better understand the incentives facing different groups of stakeholders in the ecological-economic management of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Michoacan, Mexico. The quasi-private management of this protected area by ‘ejidatarios’ provides an additional feature of interest. Travel cost, contingent behavior and export base analyses are used to establish alternative optimal entrance price strategies at the Reserve. Potential policy alternatives from the perspective of each stakeholder group are explored. Significant changes in management strategy, optimal entry fee and economic benefit appear to be possible by recognizing different scales and orientations of relevant stakeholders.