A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
What do we talk about when we talk about milpa? A conceptual approach to the significance, topics of research and impact of the mayan milpa system
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0947-9372
Abstract The Maya milpa is an ancient agrarian system extended along Mesoamerica, widely known for the slash and burn practices and the polyculture of maize, beans and squashes. Although the Maya milpa has more than three centuries of history, there are several challenges that must be tackled in order to promote the preservation of the system. The aim of this paper is to settle a new starting point in Maya milpa research through a synthesis around the analysis Maya milpa concept, its main lines of research, and its environmental, social, and economic effects in the Yucatan Peninsula. Our research methodology consisted of two different phases: a) the review and analysis of secondary information (169 documents) by means of automated-curation of information (text mining methods) and manual inspection, and b) the design, application, and analysis of 12 interviews using Yucatan Maya milpa researchers as informants. Based on the results we propose some basic elements to consider for an integrative definition of the Maya milpa, we highlight the information gaps described by researchers and checked by wordclouds, and we reveal the most positive and negative impacts of the Maya milpa in terms of environmental, socio-cultural, and economic aspects.
Highlights The most frequent milpa definition in literature has emphasis on agricultural and technical aspects of milpa crop. We detected an evolution of the milpa concept through time, in the last decade 57% of them were integrative definitions. We propose three basic elements to consider for an integrative definition of the Maya milpa. Four topics concentrated the milpa research: food production, natural resources, agrodiversity and productive management. We evidence some gaps in milpa research: governance, human rights and health, legal aspects and governmental transfers. It is important to re-value the mayan milpa system recognizing the different values associated to their impacts.
What do we talk about when we talk about milpa? A conceptual approach to the significance, topics of research and impact of the mayan milpa system
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0947-9372
Abstract The Maya milpa is an ancient agrarian system extended along Mesoamerica, widely known for the slash and burn practices and the polyculture of maize, beans and squashes. Although the Maya milpa has more than three centuries of history, there are several challenges that must be tackled in order to promote the preservation of the system. The aim of this paper is to settle a new starting point in Maya milpa research through a synthesis around the analysis Maya milpa concept, its main lines of research, and its environmental, social, and economic effects in the Yucatan Peninsula. Our research methodology consisted of two different phases: a) the review and analysis of secondary information (169 documents) by means of automated-curation of information (text mining methods) and manual inspection, and b) the design, application, and analysis of 12 interviews using Yucatan Maya milpa researchers as informants. Based on the results we propose some basic elements to consider for an integrative definition of the Maya milpa, we highlight the information gaps described by researchers and checked by wordclouds, and we reveal the most positive and negative impacts of the Maya milpa in terms of environmental, socio-cultural, and economic aspects.
Highlights The most frequent milpa definition in literature has emphasis on agricultural and technical aspects of milpa crop. We detected an evolution of the milpa concept through time, in the last decade 57% of them were integrative definitions. We propose three basic elements to consider for an integrative definition of the Maya milpa. Four topics concentrated the milpa research: food production, natural resources, agrodiversity and productive management. We evidence some gaps in milpa research: governance, human rights and health, legal aspects and governmental transfers. It is important to re-value the mayan milpa system recognizing the different values associated to their impacts.
What do we talk about when we talk about milpa? A conceptual approach to the significance, topics of research and impact of the mayan milpa system
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0947-9372
Abstract The Maya milpa is an ancient agrarian system extended along Mesoamerica, widely known for the slash and burn practices and the polyculture of maize, beans and squashes. Although the Maya milpa has more than three centuries of history, there are several challenges that must be tackled in order to promote the preservation of the system. The aim of this paper is to settle a new starting point in Maya milpa research through a synthesis around the analysis Maya milpa concept, its main lines of research, and its environmental, social, and economic effects in the Yucatan Peninsula. Our research methodology consisted of two different phases: a) the review and analysis of secondary information (169 documents) by means of automated-curation of information (text mining methods) and manual inspection, and b) the design, application, and analysis of 12 interviews using Yucatan Maya milpa researchers as informants. Based on the results we propose some basic elements to consider for an integrative definition of the Maya milpa, we highlight the information gaps described by researchers and checked by wordclouds, and we reveal the most positive and negative impacts of the Maya milpa in terms of environmental, socio-cultural, and economic aspects.
Highlights The most frequent milpa definition in literature has emphasis on agricultural and technical aspects of milpa crop. We detected an evolution of the milpa concept through time, in the last decade 57% of them were integrative definitions. We propose three basic elements to consider for an integrative definition of the Maya milpa. Four topics concentrated the milpa research: food production, natural resources, agrodiversity and productive management. We evidence some gaps in milpa research: governance, human rights and health, legal aspects and governmental transfers. It is important to re-value the mayan milpa system recognizing the different values associated to their impacts.
What do we talk about when we talk about milpa? A conceptual approach to the significance, topics of research and impact of the mayan milpa system
Rodríguez-Robayo, Karla Juliana (author) / Méndez-López, María Elena (author) / Molina-Villegas, Alejandro (author) / Juárez, Lilián (author)
Journal of Rural Studies ; 77 ; 47-54
2020-04-14
8 pages
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
English
The Environmental-Economic Performance of a Poblano Family Milpa System: An Emergy Evaluation
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