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Effects of Changes in Traditional Agroecosystems on Vernacular Dwellings: the Occupants’ Perspective

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Abstract

Dwellings have an important role in human adaptation to their environment; it is therefore crucial to understand how people deal with variations in building materials. We studied the impact of transforming traditional agroecosystems on the perishable materials used to build vernacular dwellings in a Maya community in central Yucatan, Mexico. Occupants and builders identified traditional agroecosystems as the main source of traditional materials. Our informants cited fragmentation of landholdings and land use intensification of traditional agroecosystems as the main reasons for the decreasing availability of traditional materials, which, together with their perishable nature have led to their replacement by industrially produced materials, predominantly by households with limited involvement in agricultural activities.

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Acknowledgements

We thank O. Ascensio and R. Saide-Albornoz for comments and suggestions on a previous version of this paper. We also thank R. Fraga and C. Solís for help during field work. We greatly appreciate the enthusiastic participation of all the informants. B. Delfosse revised the English.

Funding

Cinvestav provided partial funds for field work (funds to J. Fraga), J.J. Cruz-Cortés received a Conacyt scholarship.

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  1. Departamento de Ecología Humana, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (Cinvestav), Km 6, Antigua Carretera a Progreso, 97310, Mérida, Mexico

    J. Julián Cruz-Cortés, Julia E. Fraga & Miguel A. Munguía-Rosas

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  1. J. Julián Cruz-Cortés
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Correspondence to Miguel A. Munguía-Rosas.

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Data set: Index of agricultural dependence and index of substitution of traditional materials.

Interviews (audio files) and photos of the dwellings are available at: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/8s6s0ye1enq1via/AADUePG63evI7GjSUliZ9DP0a?dl=0 (all rights belong to the authors).

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Cruz-Cortés, J.J., Fraga, J.E. & Munguía-Rosas, M.A. Effects of Changes in Traditional Agroecosystems on Vernacular Dwellings: the Occupants’ Perspective. Hum Ecol 47, 553–563 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-019-00087-7

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