Gender, local governance and non timber forest products. The use and management of Satureja macrostema in Oaxaca's central valleys, Mexico

Abstract

This paper explores the gendered norms regulating access, use and management of poleo Satureja macrostema (Benth.) Briq., a multi-purpose Non Timber Forest Product used as ornament, food or medicine in western and central Mexico. Research was conducted in San Miguel Mixtepec, a Zapotec community of Oaxaca's Central Valleys. Drawing on the literature on governance, forests and gender rights, the paper aims at answering the following questions: who gets to make poleo access, use and management rules? How does gender ideology shape these rules? Whose knowledge (men's, women's, both) takes precedence in poleo decision-making? What is the relationship between these rules and governance efficiency? Results show that poleo harvesting practices are regulated by male-dominated institutions that do not grant rights to women. Female plant uses remain unaccounted for, in spite of the fact that they are more varied than men's.