Abstract

Successful conservation efforts require understanding predictors of private-land stewardship (PLS), its definitions, and what people feel they owe stewardship responsibility to. Various strands of research have touched on the concept, but there is little research focusing on how it is communicated and enacted among the lay public, especially among Latinos. We used a case study in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas to address this gap by identifying and assessing Latino views of PLS. Our results indicate positive relationships between self-identification as a land steward, male gender, and agricultural-land ownership. Respondents associated PLS with property maintenance (60%), natural-resource conservation (14%), and addressing pollution problems (21%). They viewed PLS as a responsibility owed to family rather than to a larger community.

Keywords

Conservation; Gender; Hispanic; Lower Rio Grande Valley; Mexico; Property Rights; Trans-boundary

Published in

Environmental Communication
2010, volume: 4, number: 4, pages: 406-421
Publisher: ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD

Authors' information