The three components of this dissertation are designed to explore the relationship between development and conservation at different scales. The first component of the study was a meta-analysis based on a global sample of conservation and development projects in which my colleagues and I find support for the prediction that market integration, access to local resources, and participation in project design and implementation are associated with multiple ecological, economic and social indicators of success.

The second component of the study was conducted in the Kingdom of Bhutan and was designed to test alternative hypotheses for how development affects environmental values and resource use behaviors. While development may threaten the Buddhist-based cultural and political foundations for conservation success in Bhutan, it could provide economic security and market access that can facilitate the growth of environmental support and minimize pressure on local resources. I found that, across rural and urban communities, measures of wealth and market integration are better indicators of pro-environmental values and environmental behaviors than religiosity. However, I also found that development can exacerbate the negative environmental impacts of market-oriented, suggesting that the relationship between development and conservation may depend on the nature of individual behaviors. Additionally, though Buddhist values and social norms are largely unimportant among individuals, they may be crucial for motivating environmental support as Bhutan's development continues.

With the third component, I explored the coevolutionary dynamics between individual behaviors and common pool resource management institutions in the same rural communities in Bhutan. I found that neither social nor economic factors were paramount in explaining cooperative behaviors and I discuss how the evolution of community institutions both depends on and influences the knowledge and behaviors of individual collectors.

Overall, I suggest that the Bhutanese government's explicit emphasis on protecting their environmental and cultural heritage may provide an example of truly sustainable development. The degree to which traditional norms and values continue to be reinforced and merge with contemporary environmental awareness may a crucial factor in determining the continued success of this approach, particularly as the Bhutanese transition to a more democratic form of governance.