 |
| Deforestation in Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains. (Photo by David Emmett) |
 |
| Tim Killeen inspecting timber beams confiscated by forest rangers and military police near the Central Cardamom Protected Forest in 2008. (Photo courtesy of Tim Killeen) |
June 11th, 2012
By Molly Bergen
TriplePundit.com
Later this month at Rio+20, world leaders will gather to discuss the future of our planet — a future that must account for the value of nature in order to achieve truly sustainable economic growth. In his new book, “The Cardamom Conundrum: Reconciling Development and Conservation in the Kingdom of Cambodia,” scientist Dr. Tim Killeen provides an insightful new look at sustainable development opportunities in this resource-rich but poverty-stricken country. He recently took time to discuss his research with me.
Q: What is the “Cardamom conundrum”?
A: The term “conundrum” describes a puzzle whose solution involves resolving a paradox. In Cambodia’s case, the paradox arises from two widely held and conflicting assumptions: that the pathway to a modern economy requires exploiting a country’s natural resources, versus the contrasting vision that the long-term prosperity of a nation depends on the conservation of those very same resources.
In the book, I attempt to show that the best economic options are also in line with priorities in the environmental and social dimensions. Development options that promote investment in a productive asset are good business, and applying that logic to the natural assets of a country or region also makes good business sense.
Q: Why is this region of Cambodia so important?
A: The Cardamom Mountains and surrounding regions — what I call the “Greater Cardamom Region” — makes up about one-third of Cambodia’s land area and has a combined population of more than a million people. The region’s watersheds extend to the Tonle Sap Lake in the north and the Gulf of Thailand in the south and provide freshwater resources of strategic importance to the country.
