Land use and forest fallowing dynamics in seasonally dry tropical forests of the southern Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

This paper examines the role of household characteristics and government policy in shaping land use and forest fallow management in a peasant community (ejido) in the southern Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Data gathered through in-depth household interviews (n = 44) and field visits (n = 464) were integrated into a retrospective panel data set for statistical analyses. Results underscore the role of household-level and structural factors in the process of land accumulation, land use and secondary forest dynamics, and point to the need for closer study of the impacts of Constitutional reform and agricultural support policies on the seasonally dry tropical forests of Mexico. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.