Guest blogger Peter Moers is economist and the regional coordinator for the Social Trade Organization in Central America. He has worked in several countries in Central America, West Africa and in The Netherlands in small enterprise, cooperative, rural and local economic development. He believes that local production for local markets is an underexplored development strategy and that biofuels offer a unique opportunity to many rural areas to create strong, diversified and stable local economies.

By Peter Moers

Paris Hilton and biofuels may have more in common than you think.  After all, they have both experienced the ups and downs of fame lately. After having been presented for several years by the media as the ultimate solution for many energy and environmental problems, biofuels' star has fallen to the point of being the main culprit of food shortages, high food prices, deforestation and even pollution.

Of course, there is neither a simple solution nor a single culprit. In the meantime, the generalizations that lead to biofuels’ Paris Hilton moments – the ups and downs – lead to a negative image for many initiatives that DO contribute to positive social and environmental change.

This article explores the food-fuel relationship in the specific context of rural development project in Honduras, Gota Verde. The project uses small-scale biofuel production for local consumption as a strategy to create employment, stabilize income sources for small farmers, reduce their dependence on loan sharks, avoid soil erosion, protect water sources and increase food production.

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Thanks to Francisco Noguera for his contribution to this post. Please note that the following should not be seen as an exhaustive compilation of everything that has been written about the base of the pyramid. I encourage NextBillion readers to comment and make suggestions to enrich this compilation of literature and resources. 

As the leaves are starting to change, and the mornings are becoming a little more brisk, it is apparent that it is back to school season. In the spirit of this shift, I would like to offer up the following list of books, articles and cases that comprise what we here at NextBillion.net consider the essential pieces of base of the pyramid reading.

I often get questions from students and readers about simply where to start. There is so much out there, and although NextBillion has done a great job of posting reviews of works as they are published, this post is designed to give a high-level overview of the literature over time. Therefore, the following showcases some of the most pivotal pieces that have influenced and continue to expand the base of the pyramid idea.

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