IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/forpol/v131y2021ics1389934121001489.html

Understanding drivers of local forest transition in community forests in Mixteca Alta, Oaxaca, Mexico

Author

Listed:
  • Hernández-Aguilar, J.A.
  • Durán, E.
  • de Jong, W.
  • Velázquez, A.
  • Pérez-Verdín, G.

Abstract

The Mixteca Alta region in Oaxaca, Mexico is characterized by its severely degraded landscapes. In the last three decades, the region has experienced a remarkable local forest transition. This paper reveals the drivers that favored local forest transition in five communities of Mixteca Alta. Three questions were addressed: how much forest cover was gained during the last three decades? What were the drivers triggering local forest transition? And what lesson can be derived for public policies aiming to restore forests? A cartographic analysis assessed forest recovery between 1990 and 2018. Community workshops, interviews, participant observation, and the review of historical sources helped reveal core drivers. During the period studied, forest cover increased by 71% (2640 ha), with an annual change of 2.73%. The increases are the result of reforestation and natural regeneration. Drivers of local forest transition include outmigration and new forest policies, as well as endogenous drivers, such as communities' social capital, local institutional efforts, and socio-ecological awareness. The prevalence of endogenous drivers suggests a strong community-based local forest transition pathway. Forest policies that promote local forest restoration need to recognize local land use land cover trajectories and support those that encourage active and passive recovery pathways. Community-based local forest transition could be important for providing environmental benefits to local people, and it may also contribute to global environmental goals.

Suggested Citation

  • Hernández-Aguilar, J.A. & Durán, E. & de Jong, W. & Velázquez, A. & Pérez-Verdín, G., 2021. "Understanding drivers of local forest transition in community forests in Mixteca Alta, Oaxaca, Mexico," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:forpol:v:131:y:2021:i:c:s1389934121001489
    DOI: 10.1016/j.forpol.2021.102542
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1389934121001489
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.forpol.2021.102542?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Paula Meli & Karen D Holl & José María Rey Benayas & Holly P Jones & Peter C Jones & Daniel Montoya & David Moreno Mateos, 2017. "A global review of past land use, climate, and active vs. passive restoration effects on forest recovery," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(2), pages 1-17, February.
    2. Andersson, Krister, 2013. "Local Governance of Forests and the Role of External Organizations: Some Ties Matter More Than Others," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 226-237.
    3. Pazos-Almada, Barbara & Bray, David Barton, 2018. "Community-based land sparing: Territorial land-use zoning and forest management in the Sierra Norte of Oaxaca, Mexico," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 219-226.
    4. Alix-Garcia,Jennifer M. & Sims,Katharine R. Emans & Orozco Olvera,Victor Hugo & Costica,Laura Elena & Fernandez Medina.Jorge David & Romo-Monroy,Sofia & Pagiola,Stefano P., 2019. "Can Environmental Cash Transfers Reduce Deforestation and Improve Social Outcomes ? A Regression Discontinuity Analysis of Mexico?s National Program (2011-2014)," Policy Research Working Paper Series 8707, The World Bank.
    5. Dao Minh, Truong & Yanagisawa, Masayuki & Kono, Yasuyuki, 2017. "Forest transition in Vietnam: A case study of Northern mountain region," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 72-80.
    6. Lorenzen, Matthew & Orozco-Ramírez, Quetzalcóatl & Ramírez-Santiago, Rosario & Garza, Gustavo G., 2020. "Migration, socioeconomic transformation, and land-use change in Mexico’s Mixteca Alta: Lessons for forest transition theory," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    7. Bonilla-Moheno, Martha & Aide, T. Mitchell, 2020. "Beyond deforestation: Land cover transitions in Mexico," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    8. Sims, Katharine R.E. & Alix-Garcia, Jennifer M., 2017. "Parks versus PES: Evaluating direct and incentive-based land conservation in Mexico," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 8-28.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mintah, Frank & Pamela, Tabi Eckebil Paule & Oberlack, Christoph & Speranza, Chinwe Ifejika, 2024. "Why do forests persist and re-emerge amidst tropical deforestation pressures? Archetypes of governance and impact pathways," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    2. Alix-Garcia, Jennifer M. & Sims, Katharine R.E. & Phaneuf, Daniel J., 2019. "Using referenda to improve targeting and decrease costs of conditional cash transfers," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 179-194.
    3. Persson, Joel, 2024. "On the brink of transition? From pathways to methodological heuristics for improved causal analysis in forest transition research," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    4. Andersson, Krister P. & Smith, Steven M. & Alston, Lee J. & Duchelle, Amy E. & Mwangi, Esther & Larson, Anne M. & de Sassi, Claudio & Sills, Erin O. & Sunderlin, William D. & Wong, Grace Y., 2018. "Wealth and the distribution of benefits from tropical forests: Implications for REDD+," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 510-522.
    5. Du, Yimeng & Takeuchi, Kenji, 2019. "Can climate mitigation help the poor? Measuring impacts of the CDM in rural China," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 178-197.
    6. de Jong, Johan & Poorter, Lourens & de Jong, Wil & Bongers, Frans & Lohbeck, Madelon & Veenendaal, Elmar & Meave, Jorge A. & Jakovac, Catarina C. & Brancalion, Pedro H.S. & Amissah, Lucy & Martínez-Ra, 2025. "Dissecting forest transition: Contribution of mature forests, second-growth forests and tree plantations to tree cover dynamics in the tropics," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    7. Rocha, Samuel José Silva Soares da & Comini, Indira Bifano & Morais Júnior, Vicente Toledo Machado de & Schettini, Bruno Leão Said & Villanova, Paulo Henrique & Alves, Eliana Boaventura Bernardes Mour, 2020. "Ecological ICMS enables forest restoration in Brazil," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    8. Cauê Carrilho & Gabriela Demarchi & Amy Duchelle & Sven Wunder & Carla Morsello, 2022. "Permanence of avoided deforestation in a Transamazon REDD+ initiative (Pará, Brazil)," CEE-M Working Papers hal-03614704, CEE-M, Universtiy of Montpellier, CNRS, INRA, Montpellier SupAgro.
    9. Carrilho, Cauê D. & Demarchi, Gabriela & Duchelle, Amy E. & Wunder, Sven & Morsello, Carla, 2022. "Permanence of avoided deforestation in a Transamazon REDD+ project (Pará, Brazil)," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    10. Salla Eilola & Lalisa Duguma & Niina Käyhkö & Peter A. Minang, 2021. "Coalitions for Landscape Resilience: Institutional Dynamics behind Community-Based Rangeland Management System in North-Western Tanzania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-23, October.
    11. Shyamsundar, Priya & Ahlroth, Sofia & Kristjanson, Patricia & Onder, Stefanie, 2020. "Supporting pathways to prosperity in forest landscapes – A PRIME framework," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    12. Jocelyn Alejandra Cortez-Núñez & María Eugenia Gutiérrez-Castillo & Violeta Y. Mena-Cervantes & Ángel Refugio Terán-Cuevas & Luis Raúl Tovar-Gálvez & Juan Velasco, 2020. "A GIS Approach Land Suitability and Availability Analysis of Jatropha Curcas L. Growth in Mexico as a Potential Source for Biodiesel Production," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-23, November.
    13. Taingaun Sourn & Sophak Pok & Phanith Chou & Nareth Nut & Dyna Theng & Phanna Rath & Manuel R. Reyes & P.V. Vara Prasad, 2021. "Evaluation of Land Use and Land Cover Change and Its Drivers in Battambang Province, Cambodia from 1998 to 2018," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-22, October.
    14. Francisco B. Galarza & Joanna Kámiche Zegarra & Rosario Gómez, 2023. "Roads and Deforestation: Do Local Institutions Matter?," Working Papers 192, Peruvian Economic Association.
    15. Peng, Hui & Ying, Huanqin & Wang, Xuerui & Lu, Yaobin & Wang, Shouyang, 2025. "Gains or losses: Can grassland ecological compensation policy alleviate the decoupling of welfare from wealth?," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 538-555.
    16. Pedro Cisneros-Saguilán & Felipe Gallardo-López & Silvia López-Ortiz & Octavio Ruiz-Rosado & José G. Herrera-Haro & Rafael Ruiz-Hernández, 2024. "Perception of the Sustainable Cattle Ranching Concept Among Producers, Extension Specialists, and Chief Officers in Oaxaca, Mexico," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(21), pages 1-16, November.
    17. Figueroa, Daniela & Galeana-Pizaña, J. Mauricio & Núñez, Juan Manuel & Anzaldo Gómez, Carlos & Hernández-Castro, J. Roberto & Sánchez-Ramírez, María del Mar & Garduño, Andrea, 2021. "Assessing drivers and deterrents of deforestation in Mexico through a public policy tool. The adequacy of the index of economic pressure for deforestation," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    18. Arriagada, Rodrigo & Villaseñor, Adrián & Rubiano, Eliana & Cotacachi, David & Morrison, Judith, 2018. "Analysing the impacts of PES programmes beyond economic rationale: Perceptions of ecosystem services provision associated to the Mexican case," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 29(PA), pages 116-127.
    19. Lorenzen, Matthew & Orozco-Ramírez, Quetzalcóatl & Ramírez-Santiago, Rosario & Garza, Gustavo G., 2022. "Governing the commons in Mexico's Mixteca Alta: Linking Ostrom's design principles and comunalidad," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    20. Jurjonas, Matthew & Aldana, Lesly, 2020. "The Flyer’s dilemma and the Logger’s case for climate justice," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 20(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:forpol:v:131:y:2021:i:c:s1389934121001489. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/forpol .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.