Adaptation of Domestic Units in a Regional Urban System: The Case of the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, Mexico

Abstract

In this work we studied part of the regional urban system in the central valleys of Oaxaca. We sought to understand the relations between the domestic units that exist in the regional system, as well as how they articulate with the national and international systems. We also wanted to know how changes in the global system affect the organization of domestic units. We found that the domestic unit in Oaxaca is recovering from the economic crisis of the 1980's. In relation to income, the domestic urban unit in these valleys had to intensify the strategies it used tu survive during the crisis. The units in the main towns of the districts studied -Tlacolula, Ocotlán and Etla- used migration as the principal strategy.