Paper short abstract:

Research shows that payment for environmental services (PES) schemes are increasingly common but often viewed as incompatible with indigenous worldviews. Using Costa Rica as a case study, this paper examines how indigenous groups leverage consultations to reimagine Indigenous PES in the country.

Paper long abstract:

Costa Rica is often lauded as a pioneer in market-based conservation initiatives. Many view the country's payment for environmental services program, known as Pago por Servicios Ambientales (PSA), as an exemplary model. Proponents credit it for reversing the nation’s deforestation rates over the past 25 years. Given this success, the PSA is a vital component of the country's national Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) strategy. However, at the same time, others criticize the application of PSA in indigenous territories, asserting that the program restricts forest use, disregards customary land tenure and governance structures, and contributes to conflict. This has led to a call to reconceptualize the state's PSA program. Drawing upon ongoing doctoral fieldwork, this paper examines how indigenous stakeholders have leveraged recent REDD+ consultations to advance their demands and reimagine the PSA as an Indigenous modality. In doing so, it seeks to understand how Indigenous PSA/REDD+ might operate in practice, illuminating lessons learned and the potential obstacles and challenges that remain.