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The Cultural Roots of Deforestation in Africa

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Abstract

We study the relationship between culture and environmental conservation through the lens of deforestation. Focusing on Sub-Saharan Africa over the period 2001- 2021, we show that changes of national leaders affect deforestation in a way that depends on the environmental culture of their ethnic group’s. We use data on folklore to measure the importance of forests in group-specific culture. We find that deforestation and land-intensive activities increase in the ethnic homelands of leaders whose ethnic groups have no or little forest-related culture. These patterns are reversed when the leader’s group has a salient forest culture. Our results suggest that culture is an important lever for environmental conservation in Africa.

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  • Nicolas Berman & Mathieu Couttenier & Raphael Soubeyran, 2025. "The Cultural Roots of Deforestation in Africa," AMSE Working Papers 2537, Aix-Marseille School of Economics, France.
    • Handle: RePEc:aim:wpaimx:2537
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    1. Alberto Alesina & Paola Giuliano, 2015. "Culture and Institutions," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 53(4), pages 898-944, December.
    2. Juliano Assunção & Clarissa Gandour & Romero Rocha, 2023. "DETER-ing Deforestation in the Amazon: Environmental Monitoring and Law Enforcement," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 15(2), pages 125-156, April.
    3. Francesco Amodio & Giorgio Chiovelli & Sebastian Hohmann, 2024. "The Employment Effects of Ethnic Politics," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 16(2), pages 456-491, April.
    4. Angelsen, Arild, 1999. "Agricultural expansion and deforestation: modelling the impact of population, market forces and property rights," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1), pages 185-218, February.
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    JEL classification:

    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics
    • Q5 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics
    • D7 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination

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