Evironmental perceptions, social class and demographic change in Mexico City: a comparative approach

Abstract

This paper describes the interrelationships between migration, environmental degradation and perceptions of the environment, by comparing the responses of middle-income and low-income, both native and in-migrant, households to the worsening environmental conditions in Mexico City. Migration to secondary centres by middle-class households is explained as a response to both increasing economic opportunities in intermediate towns and to negative perceptions of the capital city's environment. By contrast, low-income in-migrant households' concerns with land and home ownership eclipse any other environmental perceptions, while long-term resident low-income respondents tend to perceive migrants as the cause of negative environmental change.