Participatory soil survey: experience in working with a Mesoamerican indigenous community

In traditional rural societies that still represent the majority of small farmers worldwide, the use of conventional soil survey information frequently fails because it does not take into account or underestimates soil knowledge and experience of local people. Innovative approaches have been proposed to utilize the soil knowledge of rural communities through the participation of local farmers. This paper reports experience of participatory soil survey in the Purhépecha community of San Francisco Pichátaro in the volcanic highlands of central Mexico. Ethnographic and ethnopedologic techniques were applied to acquire soil and land data. Local soil knowledge was incorporated through plenary workshops designed to produce a participatory soil map based on a Purhépecha soil classification. This soil map reflects farmers’ soil–landscape understanding and correlates fairly well with a scientific soil map of the same area because in both approaches terrain plays a key role in the delineation of soil units. Participatory soil mapping promoted cooperation between local and external participants and formed the basis for an agreed land‐use plan.