Conservation easements and land donations are pretty common here... people who own land volunteer to give it up, or some uses of it, for the good of the environment.
There's another approach, payments for environmental services (PES), which are controversial. Do we have to pay people to do the right thing?
Recent research involving Oregon State University indicates PES does provide some benefits to land and people and the communities they share. The research focused on Mexico. OSU's Jennifer Alix-Garcia visits with details.