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Regulatory Policy Economics

Mercatus Center research seeks to understand the consequences – both intended and unintended – of regulatory policy and its impact on society and to improve the state of knowledge to which regulatory policy refers, thereby fostering solutions that promote a freer, more prosperous, and civil society.  Through careful and independent analyses employing contemporary economic and legal scholarship Mercatus scholars assess proposed and existing regulations from the perspective of the public interest.

 

Recent Publications

Community-Based Natural Resource Management and Poverty Alleviation in Namibia: A Case Study Karol Boudreaux March 18, 2007 Through community-based natural resource management (CBNRM), Namibians who form conservancies now have legal rights to manage wildlife and benefit from tourism. With these secure rights, and with help from NGOs and the government, something extraordinary is happening: wildlife numbers, which were decimated by war and poaching, are rising.

Sport Hunting Has Its Gains, Too Karol Boudreaux March 17, 2007 Kenyans are debating whether the Government should lift its 30-year ban on trophy hunting. While the talk continues, Kenya's elephant population continues to drop.  In countries such as Namibia and South Africa, however, they are increasing. Our research in Namibia has found that under the right circumstances, as elephant populations rebound, so do the fortunes of the people.