A village inside a Maya ruin looks after its own forest
Around 1,000 people in Uaxactún manage an 83,500-hectare forest in Guatemala's Maya Biosphere Reserve, living from xate palm, timber and other products while keeping deforestation low.
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The small thing
Villagers had harvested xate palm fronds since the 1960s for outside contractors. In 2013 their community organisation took over the harvest itself, setting rules such as taking one frond per plant.
The problem
The Maya Biosphere Reserve in northern Guatemala faces deforestation from cattle ranching, fires and other pressures. A 2015 study cited by Mongabay found annual forest loss of 5.5% in the reserve's buffer zone, compared with under 0.01% in certified community concessions.
Why the people of Uaxactún started
Uaxactún began over a century ago as a camp for chicle gatherers, and most residents depend on the forest for income (Mongabay). Under the reserve's community concession system, the village gained legal rights to manage and use the surrounding forest; OMYC's vice-president told Mongabay that residents had 'always been preserving it'.
What they did
Through OMYC, the community runs regulated xate harvesting – sold to florists in the United States – plus timber harvesting limited to the dry season under a 40-year rotation plan, with archaeological areas off limits. Women sort xate at the community warehouse, and Rainforest Alliance reports women being trained to harvest and process xate, ramón nut and allspice. Profits pay wages and then fund health care and education, including teachers' salaries (Mongabay).
WCS reports that more than 100,000 xate palms have been planted, and the community has its own firefighters. Ángela Fajardo, a board treasurer who has been part of the concession for over 20 years, played a key role in the 2022 renewal review, according to Rainforest Alliance.
What changed
According to Guatemala's state news agency AGN, CONAP renewed the Uaxactún concession in October 2022 for 25 years, covering 83,558 hectares, of which 9,314 are strictly protected. Rainforest Alliance reports near-zero deforestation across the reserve's community concessions; Uaxactún-specific deforestation figures were not found in these sources.
What they learned
Fajardo told Rainforest Alliance that women had to overcome machismo and persuade their husbands to let them take part, and urged other women: "Don't wait for someone to make space for you."
“Don't wait for someone to make space for you.”Uaxactún community and its Organización, Manejo y Conservación (OMYC), as quoted by Rainforest Alliance
Copy this idea
Practical guidance written by our editors from the sources below. Adapt it to your place, and check local rules and safety first.
- Problem addressed
- Forests lost when local people have no secure stake in them.
- What to do
- Community-managed harvesting of forest products under agreed rules and a management plan.
- Materials and resources
- A management plan, harvesting rules, storage and sorting space, links to buyers.
- Approximate cost
- Moderate
- Skills
- Forest inventory, bookkeeping, negotiation with authorities and buyers, fire prevention.
- Time
- Years; concession terms here run 25 years.
- People needed
- A whole community with an accountable organisation.
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Risks and limitations
- Over-harvesting, internal disputes, and conflict with illegal land-grabbers; legal rights vary by country.
- How to adapt it
- Smaller groups can start with sustainable harvesting rules for one product, or a community woodland or seed-gathering agreement.
- Lessons learned
- Secure tenure, fair sharing of income and inclusion of women strengthen both livelihoods and forest protection.
Why it matters
One village cannot protect the whole Maya forest. But Uaxactún shows that when communities hold secure rights to their forest and earn a living from it, they have strong reasons to keep it standing.
Policy connection
International commitments this kind of action contributes to. Listing a framework does not mean the person or group was working towards it.
- SDG 15.2: Halt deforestation, restore degraded forests and increase afforestation and reforestation.
- Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, Targets 2 and 3: Restore at least 30% of degraded ecosystems and conserve 30% of land and sea by 2030.
What didn't work
WCS names deforestation, fire and long-term financial and technical sustainability as ongoing challenges. Women initially faced resistance to taking part (Rainforest Alliance). The wider reserve faces threats from cattle ranching, oil and tourism projects (Mongabay).
Editor's note
In October 2022 Guatemala's protected-areas council CONAP extended the community's concession for a further 25 years.
Sources: how do we know?
Evidence level: Documented. Supported by reliable published sources such as UN agencies, award bodies and reputable journalism. Not yet independently re-verified by our editors. What the person says and what independent sources establish are attributed separately in the text.
- reputable journalism
Communities lead the way in rainforest conservation in Guatemala — Mongabay, June 2016Supports: Village history and population; concession granted 1999 (83,560 ha); xate history and 2013 takeover; one frond per plant; timber rules; profits to health and education; 2015 deforestation study; reserve-wide threats. - government
Otorgan prórroga a unidad de manejo Uaxactún — Agencia Guatemalteca de Noticias (AGN), October 2022Supports: 25-year extension signed by CONAP in October 2022; 83,558 ha with zoning; permitted products. - organisational
Women and forests: a winning team in Guatemala's Maya Biosphere Reserve — Marta Fiolhais, Rainforest Alliance, 16 November 2022Supports: Partner NGO's account: Ángela Fajardo's role and quote; women's training; near-zero deforestation across concessions. - organisational
Uaxactún — Wildlife Conservation Society GuatemalaSupports: Partner NGO's account: managed through OMYC since 2000; 100,000+ xate palms planted; challenges of fire, deforestation and sustainability.
