Understanding the Interaction of Rural People with Ecosystems: A Case Study in a Tropical Dry Forest of Mexico |
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Authors: | Alicia Castillo Antonieta Magaña Anna Pujadas Lucía Martínez Carmen Godínez |
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Institution: | (1) Centro de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apartado Postal 27-3 Santa María de Guido, Morelia, Michoacán, 58090, MEXICO |
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Abstract: | The aim of this study was to help understand the interaction of rural people with tropical dry forests. It was based on social
research conducted in the Chamela-Cuixmala region, on the Pacific coast of Mexico. The analytical tools used in the study
included stakeholder identification, environmental history and social perceptions. The two main social groups in the study
were ejidatarios, who own most of the territory, and avecindados, who possess no land but have high population numbers. Through an interpretative methodological approach we documented the
vision and meaning that rural people give to their natural and social worlds. The agricultural development model promoted
by the Mexican government for decades was identified as the main driver of ecosystem transformation. Rural people, who arrived
recently in the region, were proud of the pasture-lands that were transformed from tropical forests. Conservation policies
implemented during the last two decades were viewed as impositions although people recognized the value of services provided
by ecosystems. This case study has helped to unravel the main dimensions of the human system and how it relates to structures
of signification. The social panorama unveiled can be used as an initial basis to promote further research on the social-ecological
system of the Chamela-Cuixmala region and to develop future participatory management schemes. |
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Keywords: | human systems social-ecological systems ecosystem management tropical deciduous forest LTER developing countries stakeholders environmental history social perceptions |
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