Milpa: Human Rights, Ecosystems and Development in the International Context: long version

For centuries indigenous peoples have been identified with subsistence economies, meaning that productive activities were mainly intended to satisfy local needs. Even when other pursuits such as production for the market, trading and migrant wage or contract labor was present, hunting, gathering and cultivation for subsistence would ensure the survival of local territorial units, be they families, clans or villages. Archaeological and ethnographic evidence shows that although many such communities survived on the margins, others were able to prosper and diversify, creating an economic and social surplus that enabled major civilizations to arise in historical times.