Protected Natural Areas in Indigenous Lands: The Lacandon Community of Mexico

This paper researchs six Protected Natural Areas (PNAs) located in Indigenous lands in Mexico´s Lacandon rainforest. Based on information on land use changes and census data for the period 1990-2015, the paper assesses how environmental public policy has shaped the rainforest as a priority region for conservation in Mexico. The paper then examines the extent to which the indigenous population has utilised the local natural resources, and highlights the problems in the operation of protected areas. The PNAs under study, located within the lands of the Indigenous Community called Comunidad Zona Lacandona (Lacandon Community), have different categories: three are Biosphere Reserves (Montes Azules, Lacan-Tún, Nahá-Metzabok), two are Natural Monuments (Yaxchilán, Bonampak), and one is a Protected Area for Flora and Fauna (Chan-Kin.)