Curbing deforestation in developing countries may be a cost-effective way to reduce carbon emissions and address climate change. IPA worked with researchers to evaluate the effectiveness of a payments for ecosystem services (PES) program, in which Ugandan landowners were paid not to cut forest trees on their property. Results showed that even with relatively low participation rates, the PES program appears to have been a cost-effective way of reducing deforestation. During the study period, landowners who were offered contracts to conserve forest cleared 4 percent of forested land, compared to 9 percent in villages where the program was not offered.The program was financially neutral for most participants, as there were no increases or decreases in expenditures or borrowing.

Farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa, especially those in the Sahel region, face a wide range of risks to their welfare and livelihoods, such as drought, price fluctuations, and family illness. This study in Burkina Faso and Senegal evaluated the impact of weather insurance and three savings devices on a variety of investment and welfare outcomes, and tested if demand for the products differed among men and women. Farmers who purchased insurance realized higher average yields and were better able to manage food insecurity and shocks than those who used the savings devices offered. Female farmers were less likely to invest in the insurance, however, suggesting that gender differences in demand for financial products may disadvantage women.

Demand for nontraditional cookstoves in Bangladesh is very low. To explore households’ preferences, researchers designed two sets of overlapping experiments, providing respondents opportunities to purchase nontraditional cookstoves. Results showed women exhibited a stronger preference than men for improved stoves, particularly health-saving chimney stoves. However, when a small price was charged, women became less likely than men to order a stove, suggesting they may lack authority to make purchases despite their preferences. The experiments also showed that receiving external information from opinion leaders mattered more when the costs and benefits of technology were not readily apparent. Finally, reducing cookstove prices by 50 percent had a limited, non-significant effect on chimney stove orders, but significantly increased orders and purchases of efficiency stoves. This suggests households were less willing to trade off smoke emissions and health than cook's time and fuel costs.