Conference Agenda

Women have historically played a crucial role in forest development, yet persistent gender disparities limit their access to land and decision-making. In Mexico, while women constitute 50.5\% of the population in forested areas, only 26\% hold rights to agrarian nuclei property. Despite growing recognition of their effectiveness in resource management, their underrepresentation in land governance remains a challenge for sustainable development. This paper examines the impact of female participation in agrarian nuclei committees on deforestation rates in Mexico. Leveraging the 2016 Agrarian Law, which introduced gender quotas for candidate nominations, we employ a staggered event-study methodology to estimate the causal effect of increased female representation on forest conservation. Using data from agrarian nuclei with forest cover between 2012 and 2013, our findings reveal a significant 6\% reduction in annual deforestation rates, particularly in smaller agrarian nuclei. These results underscore the potential of gender-inclusive policies to enhance environmental sustainability. By contributing to the literature on gender quotas, forest governance, and sustainable land management, this study highlights the importance of strengthening women's role in decision-making processes to promote forest conservation.