Nezahualcoyotl of Texcoco

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Mexico is one of the most ecologically diverse countries today. However, Mexico is also one of the most rapidly deforesting nations in the world as well. Some historians argue that the colonial Spanish conquest was responsible for the environmental degradation of Mesoamerica, but others will note that many indigenous communities were on the verge of a catastrophe due to lack of environmental conservation. Indeed, fifteen percent of the forests in the valley of Mexico had been eliminated by the time of Spanish contact. However, there were exceptions to this seemingly lack of ecological concern, one of them being the poet king of Texcoco, Nezahualcoyotl. 

Born to a Nahua King of Acolhua and a Mexica princess in 1402, Nezahualcoyotl (Hungry Coyote), did not spend his first eighteen years of life in royal fashion. His state was at constant war with rival neighbors, and at sixteen, Nezahualcoyotl watched the murder of his father from within a tree trunk. After finally making his way back to Texcoco as the ruler, Nezahualcoyotl achieved historical milestones that not only qualified him as revolutionary, but also established him as leader of the Golden Age of Texcoco. His numerous works of poetry set the stage for style, quantity, and quality. He took great interest in the cultural arts, having space for music and dance in his palaces. He also promoted intellectual growth; he had the largest "library" in Mesoamerica, collecting as many written codices as possible (which unfortunately burned at Spanish hands). One thing that Nezahualcoyotl is accredited for that still demands attention today is the temple he had built that did not allow the sacrifice of life, human or otherwise.

Among his many accomplishments, one that is perhaps most relevant to a current issue in Mexico, was that he was the first pre-Hispanic ruler to legally enforce the preservation of forests in the Valley of Mexico. As Lane Simonian tells is in Defending the Land of the Jaguar; A History of conservation in Mexico, the philosopher-king was “concerned by the growing scarcity of trees [and] restricted the areas where people could cut wood” (Simonian, 25). Although most indigenous peoples in Mexico had more than just a necessary relation to the natural habitats they acquired, actual preservation of the land was uncommon. Timber was in constant demand; for building, for tribute, for burning to cook and create limestone plaster and cement, and slash and burn agriculture was the primary technique of farming. Depletion of fresh water sources was also a matter of contention. A way around slash and burn was to create chinampas in the lake system. Chinampas were artificial islands that were made by using mud, organic material, and lake sediment that proved to be fertile and succesful. Nezahualcoyotl, brought relief to water issues by building a dyke that reduced salinity levels in the water used for the chinampas. This water system helped prevent the pressures farming placed on the surrounding woodlands. Valuing the beauty of nature, Nezahualcoyotl also designed one of the most elaborate botanical/zoological gardens in the Mexica Empire. Texcotzingo had an extensive collection of flora and fauna, several baths/pools, medicinal plants, and even areas to grow maize, beans, and squash with an impressive aqueduct system.

Today the Valley of Mexico is known as Mexico City. What was once the home of an especially diverse ecosystem is now one of the largest urban centers in the world. Land pollution and water shortages are chronic issues. As Mexicans continue to use the land, they are also now increasing their efforts to conserve their environment. Erosion and deforestation in pre-Conquest times may have eventually lead to a demographic collapse, but there were the few exceptional leaders, namely Nezahualcoyotl of Texcoco, who recognized the forthcoming ecological consequences, and took action to protect their native lands, becoming the first Mesoamerican environmental activists.