The Effectiveness of Local Conservation Ballots

Dylan Hogan, Eyal G. Frank, Joséphine Gantois and Anouch Missirian

AEA Papers and Proceedings, 2025, vol. 115, 403-08

Abstract: Global action to slow biodiversity loss is critically needed but comes at substantial cost. In this article, we assess the effectiveness of local ballot measures for land-based conservation projects in the United States as a way to increase bird abundance, a key conservation indicator. Using a citizen science dataset of bird observations, we employ an abundance model to estimate relative abundance conditional on observer effort and exploit a sharp discontinuity in land-based conservation funding at the vote threshold to estimate plausibly causal effects. We find that an approved ballot measure has modest but significant impacts that accrue over ten years.

JEL-codes: D72 Q24 Q28 Q57 Q58 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20251073

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