ABSTRACT
Practitioners, researchers and policy-makers are undoubtedly aware of costs associated with ecological restoration and the challenges of limited budgets. They may not understand how for-profit entities in the private sector can be strong allies for achieving ecological restoration particularly at very large scales. This chapter provides a portrait of profit motivation as a positive influence in ecological restoration within managed and semi-natural ecosystems, based on practitioners’ experience in North America. The chapter begins with a rationale for why and how private economic gain can motivate and support ecological restoration. Case studies are provided as illustrative examples and a brief discussion of commonalities and distinctions among them is provided to highlight influences and constraints on profit motivations in ecological restoration.
