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An Integrated Assessment of Social-ecological Resilience in Me´Phaa Indigenous Communities in Southern Mexico

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Abstract

La Montaña, one of seven regions making up the state of Guerrero, Mexico, has high social-ecological vulnerability. Its extreme poverty and marginalization levels are among the country’s highest, superimposed in a context of severe ecosystem degradation. We evaluated the social-ecological resilience of two indigenous communities of this region engaged in agroecological projects by integrating the Resilience Assessment and MESMIS methodological proposals, using qualitative and quantitative indicators. The most critical aspects were the low quality of forest fragments, crop losses through hurricanes, lack of access to information, low socioeconomic infrastructure and lack of gender equity. On the other hand, formal and informal social organization is a major strength. Crop losses due to drought or pests are not significant, but a more critical situation is foreseen in the face of climate change. Local efforts drive the main strategies to maintain a minimum level of resilience but will not be sufficient if unaccompanied by structural changes.

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Data Availability

Original data are available from the authors upon request.

Notes

  1. “Well, they sent help, it took a week, and they sent us things useless for us, like disposable diapers and floor cleaners (laughs), we have dirt floors”.

  2. “Yes, there are female members, but they are not technicians or inspectors, because for that they have to go out and walk around other communities and the ladies cannot, they belong in their houses.”

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Acknowledgements

We thank the members of the Xuajin Me’Phaa and the inhabitants of the communities of La Montaña for their support, hospitality, facilities, and tireless work. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for their useful comments and suggestions. A.P. Galicia-Gallardo thanks the Postgraduate Program in Biological Sciences at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM).

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  1. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Antigua Carretera a Pátzcuaro No. 8701, Col. Ex-Hacienda de San José de La Huerta, C.P. 58190, Morelia Michoacán, México

    Ana Paola Galicia-Gallardo, Alicia Castillo & Carlos Ernesto González-Esquivel

  2. Centro Regional de Investigaciones Multidisciplinarias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. Universidad s/n, Circuito 2, C.P. 62210, Col. Chamilpa, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México

    Eliane Ceccon

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  1. Ana Paola Galicia-Gallardo
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Correspondence to Carlos Ernesto González-Esquivel.

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A.P. Galicia-Gallardo received a scholarship from the Mexican Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT) to carry out this study.

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Galicia-Gallardo, A.P., Ceccon, E., Castillo, A. et al. An Integrated Assessment of Social-ecological Resilience in Me´Phaa Indigenous Communities in Southern Mexico. Hum Ecol 51, 151–164 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-022-00382-w

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