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The use of non-timber forest products is associated with the conservation of eco-systems and the generation of income for forest inhabitants. However, this is not an automatic correlation. In the Lacandon Forest, the sale of camedor palm does generate income for local communities, but appears to have resulted in an over-exploitation of the resource. The government has attempted to regulate this activity through Wildlife Conservation Management Units (UMAs), but with limited environmental and social outcomes. We describe the harvesting and production of camedor palm in the Lacandon region and analyze the effectiveness of the UMAs, concluding that their limitations are the result of the instrument's emphasis on technical and normative aspects rather than on processes of negotiation and conciliation amongst stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental policy in Mexico is already part of the national security agenda. However, one of its key planning instruments, the OET (Ecological and Territorial Planning), is not having the expected impact. Indigenous peoples and territories should be considered as a strategic sector, should OET is to be implemented. However a closer look into the current state of affairs is necessary. Therefore, a socio-environmental analysis is performed on the Sonora biocultural complexes, from the political ecology and biocultural perspectives. This interdisciplinary analysis conjugates the epistemologies and methodologies of the social and ecological sciences. The socio-environ-mental analysis is organized using two major themes, contemporary territorialiry and indigenous community. We conclude that OET in its actual format is not operational, thus, several recommendations to increase its efficiency are presented. Lastly, we underline the importance of attention to biocultural complexes as a first step towards environmental justice, as well as its capacity to influence in favor of global environ-mental issues, such as climate change and water quality and availability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]