The present paper is aimed at understanding how indigenous people in the highlands of Ecuador adapt to capitalist economic alternatives in order to complement their agrarian economies. Specifically this study examines the experience of the indigenous community Ponce-Quilotoa located next to the Volcanic Lake Quilotoa in the central highlands of Ecuador. This community is currently undertaking t...

and Warhanti Da for their excellent research assistance; and Denis Cogneau, Elise Huillery and the DIAL research team for sharing their data with us. Useful comments were received from members of the Working Group in African Political Economy and the Yale Program in Agrarian Studies.