Why local is not enough! Constrains for adaptive governance in peri-urban areas. A case study in Mexico City

The current state of conceptual approaches to study peri-urban areas focusses foremost on land use changes and informal human settlements because of cities' urban expansion. The uncertainty and insecurity related to the expansion of the metropolis increases the complexity of the harmonization of institutional systems and the integration of local actors and communities to respond to urban planning processes. We address the calls for an examination of local community involvement in governance processes in Milpa Alta (MA), a peri-urban agricultural area in Mexico City (CDMX), a megacity with strong peri-urbanization trends. Livelihoods and adaptive capacities approaches were applied for analysis of the results of surveys, interviews, and participatory workshops. We report that in MA there is no integral adaptive capacity to deal with the effects of urban pressures, regional environmental deterioration, and local agricultural dynamics. There are close linkages between limited participation, low local organizational levels, and the social commitment of the population dedicated to agriculture and the existing distrust of government institutions. Sustainable management of peri-urban areas requires the creation of collaborative networks from which local institutional norms can emerge. Furthermore, peri-urban areas require the establishment of participatory systems for decision-making, including the recovery of community and local councils, to activate processes supportive of achieving peri-urban adaptive governance. We conclude that “local is not enough,” based on an adaptive governance approach, to understand the paradigms of decision-making processes and public and local interests in resource management for agriculture in this peri-urban case study.