This dissertation explores the sustainability of the pugkêenga system of household cooperation as practiced by Mossi rural producers on the Central Plateau of Burkina Faso. Consistent with the sustainable livelihoods framework, this dissertation systematically compares the assets of two different types of domestic organization found among Mossi domestic groups today: extended and nuclear households. Similar studies in contemporary West Africa and other parts of the world suggest that globalization and modernization make extended forms of household organization unsustainable and impractical in the face of changing ecologies and the penetration of capitalist modes of production. This study challenges such assertions and contends that the material and moral configurations of extended households actually enhances their sustainability in the face of environmental and social change. The Sahel region, in which the fieldwork took place, has undergone a period of prolonged desiccation. The Central Plateau is also one of the most densely populated areas within the Sahel. These factors contribute to the high rate of migration for which the Mossi and Central Plateau are well-known. This research investigates these dynamics with ethnographic fieldwork, statistical analyses, and agent based modeling. The results of these analyses demonstrate that the pugkêenga system of household cooperation enhances the household livelihood sustainability under increased climate variability, population pressure, and migration.