An analysis of migrant characteristics in forest-dwelling communities in northern Guatemala

Abstract

This study examines whether the establishment of community-managed forest concessions has driven migration into the Petén department in northern Guatemala. The Petén department is home to the Maya Biosphere Reserve, which is a 2-million-hectare tropical forest that contains forest concession areas managed by forest-dwelling communities living in and near the reserve. The forest concessions provide concession members with employment opportunities in forestry and tourism as well as the opportunity to profit from timber and non-timber forest product sales of products sustainably harvested from the concession. Members are then responsible for protecting the forest resources within their concession and abiding by Forest Stewardship Council regulations. We examine household characteristics of migrants from within the Petén as well as outside of the Petén department using a 2017 survey of forest-dwelling communities in and near the Maya Biosphere Reserve to determine whether concession members are more likely to have migrated into the reserve than non-concession member households. The results show that concession members are less likely to be migrants, which suggests that, although the concessions create opportunities in forestry and tourism sector, migration is not drive by the prospect of obtaining concession membership.