The influence of cultural identity on the WTP to protect natural resources: Some empirical evidence

Abstract

This paper shows that cultural identity may have considerable influence on the WTP to protect natural resources. The Basque Country, the region with the highest ethnic homogeneity in Europe, serves as an example to illustrate how important this issue can be in the environmental valuation of natural resources. The rationale for this influence may be found in the deep roots of the Basque culture, a culture where amalurra (Mother Earth), i.e. the natural environment, has a central role, as studies from diverse disciplines such as anthropology, psychology and political science have shown. A simulated full distribution of the WTP to protect a Basque natural area using a random parameter logit model reveals that mean marginal WTP to protect its environmental attributes is approximately 43-50% higher if the respondent has children or if she is a climber and 28-33% higher if the cultural identity of the respondent is Basque.