Biocultural heritage, public policies and human rights: The case of the Sustainable Modernization of Traditional Agriculture Program in Mexico

Abstract

Mexico is a megadiverse and pluricultural country; these two characteristics are interrelated so narrowly that it is convenient analyzing them under de perception of the human rights. The Mexican countryside represents a big bridge between the conservation of biodiversity and the millennial culture that represents Mexican people. The so-called biocultural heritage (PatBio) refers to the interpenetration between indigenous peoples / peasants and the natural resources, ecosystems and territories where they have settled through the centuries. A public policy that neither recognizes this PatBio nor favors its conservation is violating the human rights of the Mexican population and, more specifically of the indigenous people to the rights of self-determination, free, prior and informed consent, cultural identity, territory and access to resources traditionally managed.