In the centuries spanning the pre-Columbian period to the early 20th century, Mexico was the setting for many technological changes. The environment also went through several changes as a result of colonial powers occupying the southern half of the North American continent.

            In the time before European influence, Mexico was home to many different lifestyles and strategies for self sustenance. A population of hunter gatherers called the plains of northern Mexico home. According to the description of a Spanish explorer named Cabeza de Vaca, the indigenous people lived in smaller family groups and traveled to harvest wild cactus that grew in abundance.

            In other parts of what would one day be called Mexico, forest dwelling indigenous groups were able to take advantage of the higher levels of rainfall. Despite the reputation of tropical forests being overwhelmingly fertile and lush, the soil often results in disappointing yields when used for cultivating crops. In an effort to solve this problem, the indigenous population developed a technique contemporarily known as “shifting cultivation”. This method of farming in thick, tropical forests involved allowing the plots of land used for crops to be reclaimed by the forest after harvest. Another name for this technique is called “slash and burn”.

            What might be considered the most innovative example of pre-colonial agriculture is the chinampas of Tenochtitlan. Chinampas are platforms of soil deposited in Lake Texcoco with the purpose of cultivating crops. The fertility of these plots was maintained by the deposits of the lake they were constructed on.

            The technological and ecological landscape changed dramatically after Latin America was colonized by European powers. The importation of European livestock had a significant impact on the ecosystem of Latin America. Diseases carried by these animals and by colonials damaged the population of indigenous people.

            The ungulate eruption phenomenon also had an impact on the local biosphere. With large herbivores reproducing and grazing indiscriminately, indigenous food supply was put at risk. Plant diversity was also damaged, with some species vanishing from areas altogether.

            Railroads were an important invention as well. Installing rail in a region meant connecting that region to the global market. Local industries could now more easily take advantage of global demand for their goods. Likewise, it became far less difficult to acquire the products from places across the wider world.

Chasteen, John Charles. “Encounter.” Essay. In Born in Blood and Fire, 18–20. New York, NY: WW Norton Co, 2016.

Wolfe, Mikael. “Watering the Revolution.” Essay. In Watering the Revolution: An Environmental and Technological History of Agrarian Reform in Mexico, 23–51. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2017.