‘Mother palm’ as common use lands are privatized: challenges for babassu conservation by quilombolas in the Mearim valley, Brazil

Abstract

The relationship between palm trees and communities is significant for the constitution of traditional territories and conservation of relevant ecosystems. The babassu palm, Attalea speciosa (Mart. ex Spreng.) has been called the “mother of the people” and has historically provided sustenance to quilombos in the common use lands where it occurs. But incessant privatization initiatives from the government and private endeavors threaten these socioeconomic and ecological processes within a land market that is not favorable to the quilombola tradition. This article analyzes the case of the Monte Alegre-Olho D’Água dos Grilos quilombo in the Mearim River Valley of Maranhão state, where collective lands are currently being illegally privatized. Quilombolas partnered with the authors in a research activity to inventory the trees in their territory; from the results of this inventory and information from oral memory about the vegetation we reflect on the conceptual motives for conserving babassu groves. The findings indicate that collective land tenure regularization is required but not sufficient to avoid the fragmentation of vegetation cover that hinders forest conservation. We conclude that land tenure rights (even though they are guaranteed by the constitution) will only be achieved if the government and society respect renewal of the tradition of common use by the quilombolas, as advocated by the revised ‘theory of managed commons’.

Keywords
Amazon; Attalea spp.; Traditional community; Forest inventory