176
throughout the range. While the interviewed ranchers want to maintain ranching,
they are seeking for alternative sources of income either through research and conservation projects, the promotion of ecotourism, and/or the sustainable use and
production of other natural resources like oregano, salt, mesquite, creosote bush,
among others. All the elders perceived less rain since the early 1990s in the
RBM. More detailed descriptions from two persons stated that the overall precipitation pattern seems to be constant, i.e., highly variable, with a couple of good rain
years each 10 years. However, its distribution has changed notoriously since they
are now very localized and abrupt (monsoon like). In addition, all the elders remembered several drought years where everything died, once even the “nopales” did.
While there is certain disagreement, some people expressed that in the present the
grasses seem to be shorter not growing as tall, and there are more scrubs of creosote
bush in certain areas.
Conclusion
In the past, biosphere reserves promoted long-term ecological research and monitoring global change impacts; however, little attention has been given to the
monitoring of social variables such as population, land tenure, or land use that
directly affect other ecological processes and the conditions in and surrounding
biosphere reserves. Today it is widely known that it is important to invest in
maximizing the protection of the biological and cultural diversity of dryland SES
and in the promotion of local knowledge that provides an ample spectrum of
responses to global socio-environmental change (Chapin et al. 2009). In the
RBM, while advances have been made to determine the local perspectives on the
necessary natural resources, their economic and cultural value, the social systems in place to manage or control access to these resources, and the incentives
to use the land in a sustainable manner, more research is needed. Furthermore,
applied research is needed to continue to increase the incentives and opportunities for long-term monitoring of ecosystem goods and services and the effects
of management of the land and its resources on the functioning of dryland
SES. Through this case study, the team seeks to demonstrate how joint participatory and transdisciplinary research is crucial since each actor of a SES has its own
perception of the land and its resources, its own value system, and diverse opinions
about its future.
Acknowledgments The authors thank all dwellers of the Mapimi Biosphere Reserve, the technicians of CONANP, and collaborators of PRONATURA for generously sharing their knowledge
and experience. We thank Héctor Sergio Cortina Villar from ECOSUR for fruitful discussions and
José Alfredo Ramos Leal for valuable insights on geo-hydrological aspects of the reserve. EHS
gratefully acknowledges the financial support from CONACYT (projects CB 2015-251388B,
PDCPN-2017/5036). NMT thanks her Cátedra CONACYT ID Number 6133 as part of the
project 615.
N. Martínez-Tagüeña et al.
throughout the range. While the interviewed ranchers want to maintain ranching,
they are seeking for alternative sources of income either through research and conservation projects, the promotion of ecotourism, and/or the sustainable use and
production of other natural resources like oregano, salt, mesquite, creosote bush,
among others. All the elders perceived less rain since the early 1990s in the
RBM. More detailed descriptions from two persons stated that the overall precipitation pattern seems to be constant, i.e., highly variable, with a couple of good rain
years each 10 years. However, its distribution has changed notoriously since they
are now very localized and abrupt (monsoon like). In addition, all the elders remembered several drought years where everything died, once even the “nopales” did.
While there is certain disagreement, some people expressed that in the present the
grasses seem to be shorter not growing as tall, and there are more scrubs of creosote
bush in certain areas.
Conclusion
In the past, biosphere reserves promoted long-term ecological research and monitoring global change impacts; however, little attention has been given to the
monitoring of social variables such as population, land tenure, or land use that
directly affect other ecological processes and the conditions in and surrounding
biosphere reserves. Today it is widely known that it is important to invest in
maximizing the protection of the biological and cultural diversity of dryland SES
and in the promotion of local knowledge that provides an ample spectrum of
responses to global socio-environmental change (Chapin et al. 2009). In the
RBM, while advances have been made to determine the local perspectives on the
necessary natural resources, their economic and cultural value, the social systems in place to manage or control access to these resources, and the incentives
to use the land in a sustainable manner, more research is needed. Furthermore,
applied research is needed to continue to increase the incentives and opportunities for long-term monitoring of ecosystem goods and services and the effects
of management of the land and its resources on the functioning of dryland
SES. Through this case study, the team seeks to demonstrate how joint participatory and transdisciplinary research is crucial since each actor of a SES has its own
perception of the land and its resources, its own value system, and diverse opinions
about its future.
Acknowledgments The authors thank all dwellers of the Mapimi Biosphere Reserve, the technicians of CONANP, and collaborators of PRONATURA for generously sharing their knowledge
and experience. We thank Héctor Sergio Cortina Villar from ECOSUR for fruitful discussions and
José Alfredo Ramos Leal for valuable insights on geo-hydrological aspects of the reserve. EHS
gratefully acknowledges the financial support from CONACYT (projects CB 2015-251388B,
PDCPN-2017/5036). NMT thanks her Cátedra CONACYT ID Number 6133 as part of the
project 615.
N. Martínez-Tagüeña et al.