The Día del Arbol throughout the Porfiriato period in Michoacan 1891-1910

Abstract

This article analyzes the first policies of forest conservation in the state of Michoacan in 1891, materialized through the implementation of the “Día del Árbol”, an influence of American culture that the journal Periódico Oficial de Michoacán picked up from the American newsletters and diffused in the region. Under the government of the Porfirista Aristeo Mercado, this celebration was instituted in the State for nineteen years, initially in Morelia city and later on, across different municipalities. Afterwards the government of the Mexican Republic adopted this celebration to implement it in some inland areas of the country. These actions granted the governor of Michoacan recognition amidst diverse social sectors as a pioneer in fostering conservation and forest reproduction in Mexico. Nonetheless, a predicament of his campaign arouse from the fact that whereas the need for trees protection popularized, the government made sure to give the best forests to the wood industry.