INTERNATIONAL NGOS AND LAND-USE CHANGE IN A SOUTHERN HIGHLAND REGION OF ECUADOR

Nongovernmental organizations are increasingly influencing resource ma nagement and land use in areas of small farm agriculture in Latin Amer ica. A field study of NGOs working in upper Canar, a region in the sou thern highlands of Ecuador, documents the changing human-environment r elations ire an indigenous area and the influence of NGOs in the chang e process. Case studies of PLAN International and CARE indicate that t he NGOs are helping marginalized producers shift land use away from tr aditional grains and tubers toward dairying and vegetables. Given curr ent needs and resource constraints, the new land uses represent effect ive adaptive strategies. However the NGO work is having notable conseq uences for land use intensity and labor utilization patterns.