Can Multifunctional Landscapes Become Effective Conservation Strategies? Challenges and Opportunities From a Mexican Case Study

Protected Areas (PA) are the main strategy for nature conservation. However, PA are not always efficient for ecological conservation and social wellbeing. A possible alternative for conservation in human-dominated landscapes are Multifunctional Landscapes (ML), which allow the coexistence of multiple objectives, such as nature conservation and resource use. Using the activity system framework, we analyzed whether the ML concept was an operative alternative to PA within an area of interest for conservation in Veracruz, Mexico. Activity systems refer to the set of productive strategies that result from the mobilization of resources and which, within particular environmental governance contexts, shape the landscape. To understand the challenges and opportunities of our case study, we: (1) delimited the landscape according to local conservation interests; and (2) analyzed the role of stakeholders in shaping this landscape. The delimited landscape included areas considered wildlife reservoirs and water provisioning zones. Our results suggested that the existence of local conservation areas (private and communal), combined with shaded-coffee agroforestry practices, made this region an example of ML. Although local conservation initiatives are perceived as more legitimate than top-down approaches, agreements amongst stakeholders are essential to strengthen environmental governance. In specific socio-ecological contexts, ML can be effective strategies for conservation through agroecosystems that maintain a high-quality landscape matrix, allowing nature preservation and delivering economic benefits

Conservation in Context: A Comparison of Conservation Perspectives in a Mexican Protected Area

The conservation of biodiversity in protected areas depends on the interests and agendas of stakeholders involved in the planning and enforcing of management actions. The challenge, therefore, has been to identify and include the perspectives of multiple participants important to local conservation. This paper describes the social context in which local conservation is conducted in a natural protected area in Yucatan, Mexico. In particular, it examines the agreement and expectations among local stakeholders on the main goals the reserve should achieve. Through participatory observation and semi-structured interviews, we analyzed the perceptions on conservation of the five groups relevant to the area management: 1) local people; 2) conservation government agency; 3) scientists; 4) non-governmental organization, and 5) a tourist agency. All actors agreed that the protected area should fulfill two main goals: i) to conserve biodiversity and, ii) to improve local welfare and development. In general, ecotourism is perceived as the best option for protecting the forest and promoting local development. Traditional agriculture, on the other hand, is perceived as the main conservation threat, but recognized as a crucial component of local wellbeing. We discuss these results in the context of the Yucatan Peninsula

Conservation in Context: A Comparison of Conservation Perspectives in a Mexican Protected Area

The conservation of biodiversity in protected areas depends on the interests and agendas of stakeholders involved in the planning and enforcing of management actions. The challenge, therefore, has been to identify and include the perspectives of multiple participants important to local conservation. This paper describes the social context in which local conservation is conducted in a natural protected area in Yucatan, Mexico. In particular, it examines the agreement and expectations among local stakeholders on the main goals the reserve should achieve. Through participatory observation and semi-structured interviews, we analyzed the perceptions on conservation of the five groups relevant to the area management: 1) local people; 2) conservation government agency; 3) scientists; 4) non-governmental organization, and 5) a tourist agency. All actors agreed that the protected area should fulfill two main goals: i) to conserve biodiversity and, ii) to improve local welfare and development. In general, ecotourism is perceived as the best option for protecting the forest and promoting local development. Traditional agriculture, on the other hand, is perceived as the main conservation threat, but recognized as a crucial component of local wellbeing. We discuss these results in the context of the Yucatan Peninsula

Can Multifunctional Landscapes Become Effective Conservation Strategies? Challenges and Opportunities From a Mexican Case Study

Protected Areas (PA) are the main strategy for nature conservation. However, PA are not always efficient for ecological conservation and social wellbeing. A possible alternative for conservation in human-dominated landscapes are Multifunctional Landscapes (ML), which allow the coexistence of multiple objectives, such as nature conservation and resource use. Using the activity system framework, we analyzed whether the ML concept was an operative alternative to PA within an area of interest for conservation in Veracruz, Mexico. Activity systems refer to the set of productive strategies that result from the mobilization of resources and which, within particular environmental governance contexts, shape the landscape. To understand the challenges and opportunities of our case study, we: (1) delimited the landscape according to local conservation interests; and (2) analyzed the role of stakeholders in shaping this landscape. The delimited landscape included areas considered wildlife reservoirs and water provisioning zones. Our results suggested that the existence of local conservation areas (private and communal), combined with shaded-coffee agroforestry practices, made this region an example of ML. Although local conservation initiatives are perceived as more legitimate than top-down approaches, agreements amongst stakeholders are essential to strengthen environmental governance. In specific socio-ecological contexts, ML can be effective strategies for conservation through agroecosystems that maintain a high-quality landscape matrix, allowing nature preservation and delivering economic benefits

Estableciendo la línea de base para la restauración del bosque de niebla en un paisaje periurbano

The greatest threat to the cloud forest around Xalapa, Veracruz, is the conversion to human settlements and urbanization, therefore ecological restoration of this forest in peri-urban areas represents a decisive action for recovery and reconnection of green areas and forest remnants. This article describes the initial ecological conditions or baseline of an ecological restoration project from an abandoned pasture in a peri-urban landscape. The baseline was established with information about 1) history of land use, 2) temporal and spatial variability of abiotic (climate) and biotic (vegetation structure and floristic composition) characteristics of the site, and 3) the ecosystem resilience as regeneration potential from soil seed banks and seed rain. The baseline results guided the active restoration (i.e., multi-species plantations), and passive restoration (i.e., suppression of disturbance) actions. Active and passive restoration areas will be part of public displays of the Francisco Javier Clavijero Botanical Garden to inform about the long and complex process to recover a peri-urban cloud forest.La mayor amenaza al bosque mesófilo de montaña en los alrededores de Xalapa, Veracruz, es la conversión a asentamientos humanos y urbanización, por lo que la restauración ecológica de este bosque en áreas periurbanas representa una acción decisiva para la recuperación y reconexión de áreas verdes y remanentes de bosque. En este artículo se describen las condiciones ecológicas iniciales que constituyen la línea de base para impulsar un proyecto de restauración ecológica de un bosque a partir de un potrero abandonado en un paisaje periurbano. La línea de base se estableció con información sobre 1) la historia de uso del suelo, 2) la variabilidad temporal y espacial de las características abióticas (microclima) y bióticas (estructura de la vegetación y composición florística) y 3) la resiliencia del ecosistema reflejada en el potencial de regeneración a partir del banco y lluvia de semillas. La línea de base condujo a implementar acciones de restauración activa (i.e., plantaciones multiespecíficas), y de restauración pasiva (i.e., supresión del disturbio); estos ensayos formarán parte de las exhibiciones permanentes del Jardín Botánico Francisco Javier Clavijero para informar sobre el prolongado y complejo proceso de recuperar un bosque periurbano

Reply to Skutsch et al.

Skutsch et al. criticized the results of our recently published article, which explores the relationship between land change 3 and land tenure in Mexico (Bonilla-Moheno et al., 2013). Below we take the opportunity to explain why their 15 interpretations of our analyses are misrepresented and 16 erroneous.Fil: Bonilla Moheno, Martha. Instituto de Ecologia; MéxicoFil: Redo, Daniel J.. Universidad de Puerto Rico; Puerto RicoFil: Clark, Matthew L.. Sonoma State University. Department of Geography and Global Studies. Center for Interdisciplinary Geospatial Analysis; Estados UnidosFil: Grau, Hector Ricardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tucumán; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto de Ecología Regional; Argentin

Agricultural policies and local sustainability: a normative coherence for development analysis of Mexico's pineapple sector

This article examines agriculture and sustainability in Mexico with specific focus on pineapple producing communities. Because this is an internationally healthy market and because Mexico has increased its pineapple production in recent years, it can be considered a representative case in which to study the impact of agricultural policies on local sustainable development. Moreover, during the last four decades, Veracruz has led Mexican states in pineapple production and extension, with three municipalities as the foremost producers, which has consequently, impacted their ecosystems. This article documents land cover, economic, and social transformations in these municipalities. First, it shows how extension of this crop has made pineapple the dominant land cover in the region. Second, the article illustrates how parallel markets exist between export-oriented large producers and smaller ones who sell locally. Third, the article documents the increase in social marginalisation in these communities even though increased pineapple production has generated more overall wealth. These trends are then explained through a normative coherence for development analysis of Mexico's agricultural programmes and their focus on increasing productivity

Vegetation change and land tenure in Mexico: A country-wide analysis

There is an ongoing debate on the effect different property regimes have on the use of natural resources and land conversion (i.e., deforestation or reforestation). Much of the discussion has been centered on the two main forms of tenure regime: common-pool system and private property. Case studies around the world have provided evidence on whether one is more effective at preventing deforestation than the other, but there is not a clear pattern. Part of the problem is that evidence comes from theoretical models or isolated case studies instead of comparative studies across large areas. This paper helps to fill this gap by analyzing the association between land cover change (2001-2010) and land tenure regimes including private and two types of common-pool systems (communal and ejido) in Mexico at the municipality level. The analyses were conducted for each of the four major biomes (i.e., moist forest, dry forest, coniferous forest, and desert) to control for differences in environmental factors. Municipalities dominated by communal land tenure had the largest increase in woody cover (classified as >80% cover) in the moist forest, dry forest, and coniferous forest biomes, and municipalities classified as private also had an increase in woody cover, particularly in the desert biome. In contrast, municipalities classified as ejidos (common-pool tenure system resulting from the land reform) lost woody cover mostly in moist forest and desert biomes, but gained woody cover in dry forest and coniferous forest biomes. In modeling analyses, environmental variables were the most important variables associated with woody cover change for private and most communal municipalities, while socioeconomic variables were the most important in ejido regimes. These results highlight the importance of land tenure on land cover change, and show that differences in woody cover change between types of common-pool systems can be larger than their differences with private land tenure. During the last 10. years, virtually all deforestation has occurred in areas dominated by ejidos; in contrast, communal and private regimes seem to ameliorate the deforestation process.Fil: Bonilla Moheno, Martha. Universidad de Puerto Rico; Puerto RicoFil: Redo, Daniel J.. Universidad de Puerto Rico; Puerto RicoFil: Aide, T. Mitchell. Universidad de Puerto Rico; Puerto RicoFil: Clark, Matthew L.. Sonoma State University. Department of Geography and Global Studies. Center for Interdisciplinary Geospatial Analysis; Estados UnidosFil: Grau, Hector Ricardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto de Ecología Regional; Argentin

Changes in the Socio-Ecological System of a Protected Area in the Yucatan Peninsula: A Case Study on Land-Use, Vegetation Cover, and Household Management Strategies

Protected areas (PA) are effective means for protecting biodiversity, but less is known about their effect on the social-ecological system (SES). Using a semi-experimental approach and a descriptive case study based evaluation, we analyzed the effect of a PA in the Yucatan Peninsula on land-cover and household resource management strategies in time and space (before and after the PA establishment; inside and outside its limits). To assess the changes of land-use practices in the areas surrounding the communities inside and outside the PA, and their change over time (from 2003 to 2015), we used remote sensing analysis and semi-structured interviews. Our results show that after the PA was established, the forest increased and agricultural plots decreased inside and to a lesser extent outside the PA. However, fires reduced the area of old-growth forest and increased young secondary forest, highlighting the system’s vulnerability to uncommon events. Resource management strategies were also affected: while inside the PA households tended toward specializing on tourism, outside the PA household strategies implied a diversification of productive activities. Overall, the establishment of the PA proved to be an effective tool to promote forest recovery and prevent deforestation in the regions surrounding the communities both inside and outside the PA

Changes in the Socio-Ecological System of a Protected Area in the Yucatan Peninsula: A Case Study on Land-Use, Vegetation Cover, and Household Management Strategies

Protected areas (PA) are effective means for protecting biodiversity, but less is known about their effect on the social-ecological system (SES). Using a semi-experimental approach and a descriptive case study based evaluation, we analyzed the effect of a PA in the Yucatan Peninsula on land-cover and household resource management strategies in time and space (before and after the PA establishment; inside and outside its limits). To assess the changes of land-use practices in the areas surrounding the communities inside and outside the PA, and their change over time (from 2003 to 2015), we used remote sensing analysis and semi-structured interviews. Our results show that after the PA was established, the forest increased and agricultural plots decreased inside and to a lesser extent outside the PA. However, fires reduced the area of old-growth forest and increased young secondary forest, highlighting the system’s vulnerability to uncommon events. Resource management strategies were also affected: while inside the PA households tended toward specializing on tourism, outside the PA household strategies implied a diversification of productive activities. Overall, the establishment of the PA proved to be an effective tool to promote forest recovery and prevent deforestation in the regions surrounding the communities both inside and outside the PA