Paper short abstract:

Kiní is a prehispanic indigenous Mayan town in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. It has been very little studied; however, locals are interested in documenting their history and biocultural heritage. We share the process of making a book of public environmental history along with the local people.

Paper long abstract:

Kiní is a prehispanic indigenous Mayan town of 1,500 inhabitants in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. It has been very little studied; there is, at most, a handful of academic works and references in History books. Kiní is not a main town; however, local people are interested in documenting their history and biocultural heritage, and they feel proud of it. The authors (one local agroecology student, the local chronicler of the town, and one outside university researcher) decided to organize a book about Kiní environmental history. The book’s topics have been designed according to locals’ demands, including the history of Kiní with hurricanes, past agricultural practices, the diversity of plants in Mayan gardens, and the history of the church, among others. The book has academic rigour, but the main target audience is the Kiní local people. We have looked for collaborations with other academics and university students and, above all, the involvement of local people in several workshops and research activities. We plan to record the book’s contents in audio format in order to give the product back to the population following their oral tradition. In this proposal, we want to share the process of making this book of public environmental history, our learnings and failures, as we think other small town inhabitants and researchers would be interested in writing their local environmental histories, helping to keep their biocultural heritage alive.

Co-authored with: Jonathan Cruz Tamayo (Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán) and Rafael Falla Pech (Chronicler of Kiní)