Journal of Environment & Development 22(1) 25–50 © The Author(s) 2012 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1070496512469193 jed.sagepub.com 469193JED 22 1 10.1177/1070496512469193Journal of Environment & DevelopmentSilva and Mosimane 1 University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA 2 University of Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia Corresponding Author: Julie A. Silva, Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, 1119 LeFrak Hall, College Park, MD, USA. Email: jasilva@umd.edu Conservation-Based Rural Development in Namibia: A Mixed-Methods Assessment of Economic Benefits Julie A. Silva 1 and Alfons W. Mosimane 2 Abstract Using a survey of communal conservancies in Namibia, we find that they provide some direct economic benefits to conservancy members, but that indirect benefits promoting development for all residents have not materialized. This partially explains why a high level of discontent with community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) as a development strategy remains, which would need to be addressed with policies that promote a more equitable distribution of benefits from CBNRM. Advocates of CBNRM draw on theories of comparative advantage and collective action to argue that communal conservation efforts enhance the viability of nature tourism as a rural development strategy. We employ a mixed-methods approach to test to what extent CBNRM generates direct and indirect economic benefits, and if these benefits induce participation in communal conservation. Keywords economic development, community-based conservation, nature tourism, social justice, mixed methods, Namibia Introduction Nature tourism has gained widespread popularity as a means for promoting rural eco- nomic development in remote areas of southern Africa. The strategies used to imple- ment nature tourism regularly involve community-based natural resource management Article