Tropentag, September 10 - 12, 2025, Bonn "Reconciling land system changes with planetary health"

Performance of coordinate-based incentives for biodiversity conservation: application of framed field experiments in Tanzania

¹University of Bonn, Fac. of Agricultural, Nutritional and Engineering Sciences, Germany
²University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF)
³University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF), Germany

Abstract

Land use change and habitat fragmentation remain one of the leading drivers of biodiversity loss, particularly in tropical regions where conservation and farming interests often compete. The restoration of ecological connectivity across fragmented habitats can be challenging, especially in areas with private land ownership. While Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) has commonly been used to promote conservation among farmers, inequalities in land and perceptions of unfairness in distribution can undermine collective action of landowners. In this study, we used a framed field experiment involving 320 Tanzanian farmers from 10 villages across two ecological corridors. We aimed to compare the effectiveness of two coordination-based incentive schemes: threshold bonus (payment per area conserved plus an additional bonus dependent on the level of connectivity reached) and threshold payment (any payment depends on the level of connectivity reached) under symmetric and asymmetric land distribution. We explored how perceived relative deprivation, specifically anger, influences farmers’ conservation decisions. The experimental game was presented and explained to the farmers using posters. Farmers were then allowed to openly discuss their strategies in groups without time limitations. Data were collected through post-experimental surveys administered individually. Our results show that while both coordination-based incentives significantly increased conservation effectiveness, other factors such as intrinsic motivation, emotional reaction linked to land inequality, and farmers’ expectations, particularly whether they believed their neighbours would retire land, also had an effect. Our findings suggest that PES designs should account for the underlying social and psychological factors influencing landowners’ participation. When properly addressed, these factors can substantially enhance the effectiveness of conservation programmes in fragmented landscapes.

Keywords: Conservation behaviour, ecological connectivity, framed field experiment, land inequality, payments for ecosystem service, relative deprivation, threshold bonus, threshold Payment

Contact Address: Arnaud Kentsa Kenfack, University of Bonn, Fac. of Agricultural, Nutritional and Engineering Sciences, Katzenburgweg 7–9, 53119 Bonn, Germany, e-mail: kentarnaudgmail.com