Gender,ethnicity, and economic status in plant management: Uncultivated edible plants among the Nahuas and Popolucas of Veracruz,Mexico |
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Authors: | Veronica Vazquez-Garcia |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Rural Development, Colegio de Postgraduados en Ciencias Agrícolas, Texcoco, Edomex, Mexico;(2) Desarrollo Rural, Carretera Federal México-Texcoco Km. 36.5, Montecillo, Edomex, 56230, Mexico |
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Abstract: | Uncultivated plants are an important part of agricultural systems and play a key role in the survival of rural marginalized
groups such as women, children, and the poor. Drawing on the gender, environment, and development literature and on the notion
of women’s social location, this paper examines the ways in which gender, ethnicity, and economic status determine women’s
roles in uncultivated plant management in Ixhuapan and Ocozotepec, two indigenous communities of Veracruz, Mexico. The first
is inhabited by Nahua and the second by Popoluca peoples. Information was gathered through group and individual interviews
and a food frequency survey. Results show that the gender ideology prevailing in each community, resulting from distinct ethnic
affiliations and economic contexts, shapes women’s plant management. In Ixhuapan, Nahua women are used to leaving their community
to generate income, while in Ocozotepec men are considered the main breadwinners and are the mediators between Popoluca households
and the larger society. Nahua women gather quelites at the cornfields more often than their men, and more often than their female counterparts in Ocozotepec. They also manage
and sell plants from their homegardens at higher percentages than Popoluca women. However, women in both communities use intensely
the plants of their homegardens and play a key role in biodiversity conservation and cultural permanence.
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Keywords: | Uncultivated plants Gender Ethnicity Economic status Mexico |
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