This book provides the first comprehensive economic valuation of U.S. National Parks (including monuments, seashores, lakeshores, recreation areas, and historic sites) and National Park Service (NPS) programs. The book develops a comprehensive framework to calculate the economic value of protected areas, with particular application to the U.S. National Park Service. The framework covers many benefits provided by NPS units and programs, including on-site visitation, carbon sequestration, and intellectual property such as in education curricula and filming of movies/ TV shows, with case studies of each included. Examples are drawn from studies in Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Everglades National Park, and Chesapeake Bay. The editors conclude with a chapter on innovative approaches for sustainable funding of the NPS in its second century. The framework serves as a blueprint of methodologies for conservationists, government agencies, land trusts, economists, and others to value public lands, historical sites, and related programs, such as education. The methodologies are relevant to local and state parks, wildlife refuges, and protected areas in developed and developing countries as well as to national parks around the world. Containing a series of unique case studies, this book will be of great interest to professionals and students in environmental economics, land management, and nature conservation, as well as the more general reader interested in National Parks.

A detailed look at the best American companies to invest in America’s Finest Companies 2010 (now in its 19th annual edition) is a reliable guide to investing, containing every publicly traded company in the United States with at least ten consecutive years of higher dividends and/or earnings per share. With this detailed directory, Bill Staton—a successful financial advisor and money manager for almost four decades—shares his simple, time-tested way to make your money grow at an above-average rate with substantially reduced risk. The companies found here are well-run and profitable, and with long histories of rising annual dividends and/or earnings, they are sure to boost the bottom line of any portfolio. Offers essential insights into building a portfolio of American companies with rising annual dividends and/or earnings Contains new listings and delistings as well as a break down of companies by industry Filled with thoughtful editorial pieces such as "Dow 30,000 by 2018", "Trends Don't Go On Forever", and "Turning Chaos Into Tremendous Opportunity" America’s Finest Companies 2010 will help you rebuild your portfolio and keep it on sound financial footing for years to come. If you're looking to invest successfully, look no further than America’s Finest Companies 2010.

A team of America's most successful financial advisors offer their advice to private investors and financial professionals in this insightful guide. These advisors, who typically reserve their advice for elite and institutional investors, share their private wealth management and investing strategy secrets, including how they provide extraordinary advice and service, how they have built their businesses, which direction their businesses are taking for the future, and how they have set themselves apart from the vast majority of Wall Street professionals. Providing ideas and guidance for a variety of financial situations, this guide is an answer to securing prosperity for the future.

Discusses the principles of portfolio management and selecting an advisor, and evaluates the approach and performance record of ten firms

A detailed guide to investing in America's Finest Companies Bill Staton has helped thousands of investors increase their wealth with a commonsense approach to investing. It's simple, and it works: Invest in well-run, profitable companies with long histories of rising annual earnings and dividends. Now, in Double Your Money in America's Finest Companies, Staton shows readers how to achieve this goal. He reveals how to screen public companies, scrutinize their earnings history, and invest in those that consistently pay higher yearly cash dividends. Staton's longstanding method of investing allows readers to take charge of their financial future by following an approach that has proven itself time and again.

A simple guide to a smarter strategy for the individual investor A Wealth of Common Sense sheds a refreshing light on investing, and shows you how a simplicity-based framework can lead to better investment decisions. The financial market is a complex system, but that doesn't mean it requires a complex strategy; in fact, this false premise is the driving force behind many investors' market "mistakes." Information is important, but understanding and perspective are the keys to better decision-making. This book describes the proper way to view the markets and your portfolio, and show you the simple strategies that make investing more profitable, less confusing, and less time-consuming. Without the burden of short-term performance benchmarks, individual investors have the advantage of focusing on the long view, and the freedom to construct the kind of portfolio that will serve their investment goals best. This book proves how complex strategies essentially waste these advantages, and provides an alternative game plan for those ready to simplify. Complexity is often used as a mechanism for talking investors into unnecessary purchases, when all most need is a deeper understanding of conventional options. This book explains which issues you actually should pay attention to, and which ones are simply used for an illusion of intelligence and control. Keep up with—or beat—professional money managers Exploit stock market volatility to your utmost advantage Learn where advisors and consultants fit into smart strategy Build a portfolio that makes sense for your particular situation You don't have to outsmart the market if you can simply outperform it. Cut through the confusion and noise and focus on what actually matters. A Wealth of Common Sense clears the air, and gives you the insight you need to become a smarter, more successful investor.

A new, upbeat book from Michael Fair-one of CNBC's most popular financial commentators and experienced investor-brings to the forefront solutions to America's struggle to regain the respect and values on which our country was founded. Trust has eroded from government, banks, Wall Street, and big business. Restoring Our American Dream provides a blueprint for a future that reasserts America's leadership position in the increasingly complex world of intertwined global economies…and at home. Book jacket.

Concise, clear, and filled with valuable information on how to make the most of every investment, the 1998 edition of Staton's famous list is the perfect option for investors wishing to take a more active role in developing a personal portfolio or to free themselves from exorbitant fees.

In 1982, the Dow hovered below 1000. Then, the market rose and rapidly gained speed until it peaked above 11,000. Noted journalist and financial reporter Maggie Mahar has written the first book on the remarkable bull market that began in 1982 and ended just in the early 2000s. For almost two decades, a colorful cast of characters such as Abby Joseph Cohen, Mary Meeker, Henry Blodget, and Alan Greenspan came to dominate the market news. This inside look at that 17-year cycle of growth, built upon interviews and unparalleled access to the most important analysts, market observers, and fund managers who eagerly tell the tales of excesses, presents the period with a historical perspective and explains what really happened and why.