The focus of the course is to build theoretical foundations of economic issues related to forest ecosystems and to develop an understanding of their applications to real life situations of forest conservation. The different economic concepts related to forest ecosystems are taught in a three-step process – theory, practice, and application. First, some basic concepts of economics, such as consumer choice, firm behavior, and competitive markets are introduced. The second part of the course is organized in five units – one unit each on welfare theory, rent theory, cost-benefit analysis, forest rotation, and international trade of forest products.