Eunice Villasenor Iribe

This study will determine how transformations in the social and ecological conditions of the northern Basin of Mexico impacted the resilience of terraced landscapes. Terraces serve a variety of functions including agricultural, structural, and ecological. Within the northern Basin of Mexico, terracing has been used extensively to manage the landscape in the face of significant demographic and ecological changes. To capture detailed information on the history of terrace use in the northern Basin, I have chosen sites that show evidence of episodic landscape use: Cerro Ahumada and the Tezontlalpan Sierra foothills surrounding Hacienda del Rincon de Guadalupe in Apaxco. I will collect data on land use trends, human organizational institutions, environmental conditions, and the labor activities attached to terraced landscapes using ethnoarchaeological methods. Identifying the local and regional conditions that promote the resilience of terraced landscapes to social, economic, and ecological stresses can help generate holistic anthropological models of agricultural land use that acknowledge how cycles of use, abandonment, and transformation of systems can shape the capabilities of future users. Data on the short and long term resilience of terrace use generated from this project can also inform modern landscape management strategies and improve the successful implementation of terraces today. This research is being completed as part of the larger Northern Basin of Mexico Historical Ecology Project directed by Dr. Christopher Morehart.