Economic growth cannot be sustained if the natural resources that fuel that growth are irresponsibly depleted. Conversely, protection of the environment and careful stewardship of natural resources will not be possible where poverty is pervasive. This is both the challenge and the opportunity of sustainable development. These broad descriptions and applications of holistic planning and sustainable development are useful, but more important is the application of these models as a means for actually motivating and involving community residents. Broad-based participation in any planning process is essential, particularly in planning activities that relate to developing countries, such as Mexico, where poverty is pervasive and where the forces of development typically are controlled by a limited number of people.
Real solutions can only grow out of the local communities themselves.
In a region where traditional means have failed in the past to balance economic development with environmental protection and little coordination exists across a maze of public and private jurisdictions, an opportunity exists for the residents of local communities to play a lead role in applying a holistic approach to resource conservation and economic development. At the conference, held in Hermosillo, Sonora, researchers, NGO representatives, and community members shared their knowledge about this region and discussed mechanisms for protecting it. The gathering included members of the Tohono O'odham, a Native American nation whose traditional homelands encompassed much of this area and were bisected by the Gadsden Purchase. The Hia-Ced O'odham are no different, in that the Pinacate area is of critical importance to their culture, history and identity. Because of the obvious need to build better international relationships and to increase local awareness about the uniqueness of the region, an effort was launched to hold another forum, this one modelled after Arizona's Town Hall.