Biological and Cultural Diversity in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico:

Strategies for Conservation among Indigenous Communities

Abstract

Oaxaca is the state in Mexico with the greatest level of biological and cultural diversity. The indigenous people of Oaxaca are all descendants, in whole or part, of the ancient Olmec culture also known as “Pueblo del Jaguar.” These indigenous peoples presently are trying to defend their ancestral territories and common natural resources from exploitation by governments and large commercial enterprises. Oaxaca is the fifth largest state in Mexico and encompasses 12 physiographic regions and 16 indigenous-ethnolinguistic groups. The high cultural diversity seen in Oaxaca is interrelated with the considerable biological and environmental diversity and it must be understood that the protection of the one is dependent on the protection of the other. Knowledge of the biodiversity of Oaxaca continues to be augmented, especially among the tetrapod vertebrates. The cultural diversity in Oaxaca, especially with respect to languages, is the most diverse in the entirety of Mexico. In various communities, ejidos, and with small landowners there exists a system of Community Conservation Areas (CCAs), which allows for the protection of various species not included within federal Natural Protected Areas (NPAs), as well as water bodies and forests within the state. These CCAs are part of a resistance movement against involvement in the formal NPA system. The indigenous peoples of Oaxaca are part of a global community of such people who are known to be responsible for protection of some 80% of the world’s remaining biodiversity. The Mexican government’s own efforts at conservation date back to the administration of President Lázaro Cárdenas del Río. Community Forest Management attempts by indigenous peoples around the world have been supported (or not) by federal governments. Low-impact ecotourism is being used by indigenous people in the Sierra Madre de Oaxaca as an additional means of conserving their land and for supporting sustainable lifestyles, while resisting the exploitative efforts by non-indigenous groups in society. The Corredor Interoceánico constitutes the most significant threat to the efforts of such indigenous groups, as well as other large-scale commercial activities undertaken by industrialists underwritten by their political allies in the federal government, calling into question why NPAs really exist and what people they are supposed to benefit. In light of this reality, we have made a number of recommendations for the alleviation of these problems for indigenous peoples to allow for the continuation of their efforts at preserving native biodiversity and their own cultural diversity.