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In the northern portion of the province of Esmeraldas, in Ecuador, a project begun by Conservation International is having an affect on the local economy and giving direct benefits to the local people. Timber harvesting began, after 1966, when the banana market declined (Hidalgo 264). The local population is poor, by all standards. Forty percent of children are malnourished, and six percent die as children. Disease is everywhere. Sanitation facilities, health care,and clean water, are lacking. The traditional pattern of living, was being usurped by exploitation of natural resources imposed from the outside their culture. Conservation International began the Tagua Initiative in 1990. Conservation International is using the existing agrarian organization, the Rio Santiago Cayapas Commune. The commune's primary purpose has been to protect the land (Hidalgo 265). The economic needs of the commune have not been met and, therefore, outside companies have been able to enter the area to plunder the resources of the region. The Tagua Initiative attemp
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