Human capital, wealth, property rights, and the adoption of new farm technologies: The Tawahka Indians of Honduras

Interest in vanishing rain forests has led scholars to say that the adoption of new farm technologies such as improved plant varieties could increase yields, thus reducing deforestation. Results of past studies show that human capital (e.g., schooling, literacy), wealth, and security of land tenure help farmers adopt new farm technologies. These studies have focused on villages with tight links to the market and little land. Do results apply to more self-sufficient economies with ample land? Analysis of 101 households of Tawahka Indians in Honduras's rain forest suggests that education and knowledge of Spanish enhance adoption by facilitating the flow of information into the household and by making it easier for people to judge the quality of the technology. Wealth bore the expected positive correlation to adoption, but security of land tenure played a dual role: it encouraged the adoption of one technology (improved rice seeds) but it discouraged the adoption of the other technology (chemical herbicides). Policies to increase bilingual education may encourage adoption and benefit indigenous people and conservation.