Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Dept. of Geography, 2008. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on July 22, 2009) Includes bibliographical references (p. 228-249). Also issued in print.

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Vast progress has been made in detecting rates of tropical deforestation, yet the relationship between visible patterns of forest change, multi-scalar human processes and the underlying drivers associated with them is poorly understood. Building on satellite imagery, a household livelihood survey and semi-structured interviews, this research scrutinised changes of forest cover from the mid-1990s to 2015 in a municipality located in southeastern Mexico and investigated the proximate causes and underlying drivers of change at the household and community levels. Emerging evidence indicated that, contrary to the persistent narrative of deforestation for the region, forest cover change is highly dynamic including periods of deforestation and forest recovery. Moreover, a close examination of 24 communities showed forest cover gained terrain, while the agricultural frontier retracted. Drawing on a comparison between the household survey and previous analyses, it could be inferred that forest resurgence was produced by the decrease in the farming area and the increase in the abandonment of farming activities by some communities. Associated with the adaptation of households was the development of formal and informal institutions at the community level in response to macro-global forces linked to the implementation of forest conservation strategies, environmental degradation, market liberalization and increased urbanization. Overall, this research adds not only to our understanding of the complexity of land-use and cover change in emerging globalized economies but also exemplifies the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of tropical forest systems, which challenges partial models of deforestation and policies designed to reduce it. The research may be focused on a narrow region of the globe, nevertheless, the insights and recommendation provided may be useful to further forest conservation schemes in other tropical regions.

Caption "Old steam engine at Isidenge, King Williams Town. Such are still used by sawyers in the area beacause they can be fired by sawdust and cut-offs from the sawn timber. Gordon Ranger standing beside. 1959."

Caption "EW 8. Grossly overgrazed Bantu veld near Middeldrift, K.W. Town. Oct 1962. Note remnants of a few trees Schotia, etc. All […] has been removed from what must have been a well-barked kloof. The grass on the influves overeaten. "

Caption "TW 5. Patch of dead coastal dune forest sand at Fuller’s Bay, East London. Sept. 1959. Surrounded by grassveld. Nearest forest in distance.”

Caption "TW 10. Tree ferns (left) with Aloe arborescens in back to left, and natural forest at back. Ferns and aloes side by side where forest ought to be! June 1961.”

Caption "TW 2. Receding forest in the Nqantos area, upper Kubusie with big trees left standing. The two in the middle are falcatus yellowwoods. 1959"

Caption "TW 1. Receding forest in the Nqantos area, Upper Kubusie with a stump of a once tall tree. It showed signs of charring from fire. 1959"

Caption "TW 2. Black Ironwood, left foreground left standing by receding forest at Nqantos area, Upper Kubusie, Stutterheim. 1959.”