"Tamaulipas' El Cielo reserve... Mexico... region in the Sierra Madre...
Its... landscape... orchids... the subject of study for expert... this region was declared a United Nations preserve in 1987... Rancho del Cielo, a research facility at the reserve run by the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College. Several times a year... students to El Cielo to study the diverse ecology and biology of the region. ... The main stewards for this nature preserve,... are the residents of El Cielos tiny villages... for many villagers, its becoming the way they make a living. ...Wildshare International... involved in preservation efforts at El Cielo. ... Programs introduced by U.S. and Mexico nonprofits and research groups are helping villagers feel empowered as the reserves protectors... In the past, you could see people taking bags of orchids... The villages are beginning to rely less on palm-leaf harvesting still their primary source of revenue and more on ecotourism... El Cielos villages are ejidos, or community-managed areas. Residents share duties from farming to running retail stores, and now tourism is part of the package... In the village of Alta Cima, [Johnson] Bridgwaters organization [WildShare International] and universities from Tamaulipas and Oklahoma are working with villagers to encourage conservation and boost tourism. WildShare International established a botanical garden at Alta Cima, and a local womens cooperative is cultivating rare plants there and helping with research. Also, the organization is establishing an orchid garden in the village to feature the regions rare flowers and get villagers further involved in El Cielos riches, Bridgwater said. ... Although the state of Tamaulipas has oversight of the biosphere reserve, its the villagers who enforce conservation rules in the biosphere zone... little evidence of state funds being used for protection... nonprofits and universities, along with residents, must [feel they must...] pick up the slack. ... Most of the other biosphere reserves in Mexico are federally managed and have large research grants, Bridgwater said. In El Cielo, theres really no outside money, he said. Biologist Jesus Garcia Morales, of the Programa de Areas Naturales Protegidas in Tamaulipas, said that it was difficult to specify the total amount of funds dedicated to El Cielo. The state provides some funds, and federal conservation programs also contribute, he said. ... [Lawrence] Lof of UT-Brownsville said... that even in developed countries, the government only can do so much. In the end, its up to the people to preserve their land, he said. The government can declare a reserve, but unless local people support it, it doesnt matter, Lof said." article url : http://www.themonitor.com/onset?id=1307&template=article.html ************** Regards, VB _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [email protected] http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
