MEXICO

The livelihoods of the Nahua people of the Sierra de Zongolica in the State of Veracruz grow from the milpa agroforestry system. Milpa is centered on corn, the dietary staple, but it also produces a rich assortment of seasonal vegetables and fruits, and medicinal, ornamental and dye plants, among others. In recent decades, however, the milpa system has been undermined by government programs, modernized agriculture techniques, and the removal of trade barriers which have flooded the market with cheap imported foods. This has undermined the economic viability of small-scale agriculture, promoted wide scale out-migration from rural areas, and conversion of biodiverse managed landscapes to environmentally destructive land-uses such as plantations, pastures and urban development. In addition to the erosion of traditional ecological knowledge and biodiversity loss, the increased availability of cheap, imported, industrialized foodstuffs with low nutritional value has also contributed to increased rates of diabetes, especially among children.

Knowledge-Sharing Across Generations

We work closely with women, the primary custodians of Mexico’s rich yet endangered agrobiodiversity, and directly with Nahua families and their community organizations to help document and revitalize their traditional food systems, prioritizing children and younger adults. We collaborate with school teachers to identify ways to revitalize traditional knowledge and incorporate it into the formal educational system, including programs that emphasize experiential, hands-on and peer-to-peer learning. These activities work to build bridges and enable communication and sharing of knowledge between older and younger members of the community, and include walks with elders in milpa and coffee plots, cooking and discussion sessions with elders, workshops and presentations, and exchanges between schools. 

A series of recipe videos were produced in Veracruz in 2022 as part of an on-going program highlighting the links between food, culture and place, and threats to species and forests integral to important local foods.

Click here to watch the overview video presenting the series, and the collection of recipe videos featuring dishes from The Philippines, Ecuador, Cameroon, Mexico and Indonesia.

Community Action Research

People and Plants members Citlalli López and Patricia Gerez work closely with students to advise and support community action research. Current projects include: documenting the traditional knowledge of elders on medicinal, ornamental and condiment plant species (including use, preparation, harvesting place and time, plant part used); studying the leaves used to wrap “tamales” (maize filling wrapped with different leaves); the use, harvesting, and preparation of different varieties of native corn for tamales and “atoles” (beverage made from corn), including regional variations in preferences for flavor or qualities, and uses of varieties for different celebrations. We also continue to study the important and complex role of traditional social structures in Nahua traditional foodways, including trueque - exchange - which maintains bonds of solidarity between families and communities, and provides a safety net.

Nahua Seasonal Calendars 

Belinda Contreras and Fortunata Panzo explored the rich interaction of cultural and biological diversity in Zongolica through the Nagua seasonal calendar and annual cycle, called Xiwitl in Náhuatl. Xiwitl consists of three seasons - Tonalko, Xopantla and Tlasesexkan. The seasonal calendar activity explored the history and origin of the people of the Sierra, their social and cultural values, and biocultural knowledge about agroecological systems such as milpa. 30 workshops were held with teachers and primary school students in the Sierra de Zongolica, as a way of supporting traditional knowledge and food systems.

In 2024, People and Plants partners held workshops with campesinos, weavers and charcoal producers, as well as with students, teachers and supervisors to develop calendars for reflection on the challenges of local food systems in the Sierra de Zongolica. Learn more.

Traditional mezcal production

People and Plants, through the Traditional Foodways and Voices for BioJustice programs, has produced a series of videos documenting the environmental, social, and political dimensions of Mezcal production and commercialization in Mexico. To watch a short overview video that explores these issues, and a series of interviews with community members, producers, researchers, and others, please click here.

The Team 

Citlalli López, Fortunata Panzo Panzo, Belinda Contreras Jaimes, Arcelia Apale Palacios, Carolina Elizondo, Yuricel Gálvez Hernández. We also partner with farmers, teachers and cooks from the communities of Duraznotla, Tequila, Tehuipango, Zongolica, Atlahuilco, Tlaquilpa and Atlahuilapa.

The Video Team

Gabriela Álvarez Anaya, Daniel Sedas, Citlalli López and Myles David Jewell. 

Partners

The Charles Engelhard Foundation