Can Multifunctional Landscapes Become Effective Conservation Strategies? Challenges and Opportunities From a Mexican Case Study

Abstract

Protected Areas (PA) are the main strategy for nature conservation. However, PA are not always efficient for ecological conservation and social wellbeing. A possible alternative for conservation in human-dominated landscapes are Multifunctional Landscapes (ML), which allow the coexistence of multiple objectives, such as nature conservation and resource use. Using the activity system framework, we analyzed whether the ML concept was an operative alternative to PA within an area of interest for conservation in Veracruz, Mexico. Activity systems refer to the set of productive strategies that result from the mobilization of resources and which, within particular environmental governance contexts, shape the landscape. To understand the challenges and opportunities of our case study, we: (1) delimited the landscape according to local conservation interests; and (2) analyzed the role of stakeholders in shaping this landscape. The delimited landscape included areas considered wildlife reservoirs and water provisioning zones. Our results suggested that the existence of local conservation areas (private and communal), combined with shaded-coffee agroforestry practices, made this region an example of ML. Although local conservation initiatives are perceived as more legitimate than top-down approaches, agreements amongst stakeholders are essential to strengthen environmental governance. In specific socio-ecological contexts, ML can be effective strategies for conservation through agroecosystems that maintain a high-quality landscape matrix, allowing nature preservation and delivering economic benefits.

What Hampers Implementation of Integrated Landscape Approaches in Rural Landscapes?

“…One case reported on a failing attempt to establishing a protected area and difficulties with achieving common agreements and objectives between stakeholders in the area. Some stakeholders focused on conserving the area, but most stakeholders did not have conservation of the landscape as a main goal [50]. Consensus building between stakeholders was thus challenging and power inequalities posed difficulties [49].…”

“…In the planning and visioning process, a lack of landscape institutions in place posed problems to negotiation [43,50,57]. As Ros-Cuéllar et al [50] and Chia and Sufo [58] reported, a lack of multi-sectoral platforms hindered information sharing among stakeholders, and this hampered the development of collaborative strategies for adaptive management. Moreover, sectorial planning traditions [47,59] and governance complexity presented challenges [52].…”

“…Problems related to establishing good governance were also identified. Similar to the planning and envisioning process, a lack of (coordinating) institutions, such as landscape level councils in place posed a problem for negotiation and decision-making [50,57]. Another problem identified for this category was that the government did not formally recognize existing landscape level councils and platforms, which resulted in lower decision-making power for these multistakeholder platforms [43,61].…”

Agricultural intensification increases farmers' income but reduces food self‐sufficiency and bee diversity: Evidence from southeast Mexico

“…One is that less than 13% of the Earth's surface is protected in natural reserves (Groom et al, 2006), so that many species have to survive in managed landscapes (Winfree et al, 2007). Conserving biodiversity in agricultural landscapes is therefore an increasing priority, especially considering the important ecosystem services it provides (e.g., Clough et al, 2011; Mastrangelo & Gavin, 2012; Ros‐Cuéllar et al, 2019; Tscharntke et al 2005). Some managed areas can support more species than was previously thought (Winfree et al, 2007).…”

Religious and cultural uses of plants promoting agroecological transitions in rural settlements in Brazil.

“…Several interactions are established between social and ecological processes in landscapes occupied by agriculture, and there are many challenges, considering food production in a fair and equitable way, food security, conservation of agrobiodiversity and the obtaining of social and cultural benefits. A possible alternative is to build landscapes that allow multiple objectives to coexist, such as nature conservation and the use of resources (Ros-Cuéllar, Porter-Bolland & Bonilla-Moheno, 2019), increasing ecological functionality while bringing benefits to human well-being (Bowman et al, 2017). This new perspective involves dialoguing with local communities, promoting social participation and valorization of local and traditional knowledge, besides the development of agroecological practices (Oliveira & Morais, 2019).…”