Tenure, tourism and timber in Quintana Roo, Mexico: Land tenure changes in forest Ejidos after agrarian reforms

Abstract

We present and apply an analytical framework for understanding land tenure change in the wake of radical land policy modifications in Mexico's communal tenure system. We posit that the changes in land tenure vary as a result of a complex interplay of drivers external and internal to the land tenure unit. Using interview and socio-economic data, we apply this framework to six ejidos in Quintana Roo, Mexico in order to understand the extent to which these ejidos have shifted towards private individual property as promoted in the 1992 amendment of Article 27 of the Mexican Constitution. In our case study ejidos, we conclude that external factors, including community forestry, tourism, and urbanization, have synergized with factors internal to the ejido (including governance, existing resource base, ethnicity, livelihood strategies, migration, and attitudes about property), leading to different trajectories in land tenure arrangements.

When collective action and tenure allocations collide: Outcomes from community forests in Quintana Roo, Mexico and Petén, Guatemala

“…Recent research shows that land reform has been interpreted and redefined according to local objectives, resulting in hybrid land tenure arrangements and varying degrees of legitimacy for de jure control over forests (Barsimantov et al, 2010;Haenn, 2006;Nuitjen, 2003;Perramond, 2008;Wilshusen, 2009;Reddy, 2002, #314). In both Quintana Roo and Petén, the de facto tenure rules existing in high collective action cost communities were not what the state intended.…”

“…This certificate does not legally entitle the possessor to sell and transfer land, but is respected internally by ejido members and is used to transfer and sell land. This has occurred mostly where land prices are higher, including coastal areas, the peri-urban zone, and areas suitable for planting highvalue crops (Barsimantov et al, 2010;Barsimantov, 2009;Luers et al, 2006;Jones and Ward, 1998). In addition, while forested land may not be legally alienated, under the reform, membership rights can be; as such this is one mechanism used to transfer ownership and access benefits in forested ejidos.…”

“…Naranjal Poniente also has strong economic incentives for collective action in commonly held forest resources. Forestry and forest-related activities continues to be the main livelihood strategy among Naranjal Poniente's residents, providing annual royalties to ejido members of up to $2,000 USD per person in 2006 (Barsimantov et al, 2010). No sales of land or ejido rights have been reported to date and both residents and government officials report that forest resources have been maintained.…”

Empirical linkages between devolved tenure systems and forest conditions: Selected case studies and country experiences

“…Community forestry has also contributed to the enactment of strict regulations to combat illegal logging, control fires and halt degradation and deforestation processes at community level (DiGiano et al, 2013). Barsimantov (2010) highlighted that shared economic interests in timber and other forest resources, combined with strong governance and shared ethnicity, are key explanatory factors of community conservation. However, communities' increasing control of forest resources during the last three decades has not translated into a significant decrease in deforestation rates (Corbera et al, 2011).…”

Tourists as colonizers in Quintana Roo, Mexico

“…Maya‐derived principles of tenure and management for the forest and resources were thus replaced by European‐derived principles. The evolution of this process of rationalization of the forests and coasts of Quintana Roo in the context of the tourism developments is traced by Barsimantov et al (2010). They point to the modifications to Mexico's Agrarian Reform law that came into effect in 1994 enabling (and encouraging) ejido holders to parcelize their community lands and sell them on the market as individual lots.…”