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Cuatro Ciénegas and The Tragedy of the Commons

In addition to its scenic beauty in which its multicolored water bodies stand out, surrounded by saline soils, mountains and vegetation characteristic of the Chihuahuan desert, its starry vault and sunsets that paint an indigo the sky, the Valley of Cuatro Cienegas houses mysteries of the origin of life and evolution, within its bacteria communities clinging to life in ecosystems with poor nutrients, in a network of wetlands in the desert.
However, despite the uniqueness that exists in this natural time machine, the valley currently faces imminent danger which should no longer be ignored.
The lack of water planning and the absence of an effective and current legal framework, as well as the environmental injustice, impunity and corruption that prevail at the site, are killing the Cuatro Cienegas Valley, in a clear example of the term “tragedy of the commons ”, coined by Garrett Hardin in Science journal in 1968.

  • Mauricio de la Maza Benignos
    Director
    Ad memoriam rei perpetuam
  • Alejandra Salinas
    Writer
  • Mauricio de la Maza
    Writer
  • De la Maza Consulting and Films
    Producer
  • Maraly Franco
    Key Cast
  • Mauricio De la Maza
    Videography
  • David Jaramillo
    Videography
  • Daniel Rodríguez Muñoz
    Music
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Cuatro Ciénegas y la "Tragedia de los comunes"
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    14 minutes 7 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 25, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    900 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Mexico
  • Country of Filming:
    Mexico
  • Language:
    Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.32:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Docs Without Borders Film Festival
    Rehoboth Beach, DE
    United States
    January 9, 2022
    Award winner
  • Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
    New York, N.Y.
    United States
    October 14, 2021
    Award winner
  • Neum Underwater Film Festival
    Neum
    Bosnia and Herzegovina
    August 27, 2021
    Quarter finalist
  • FIIN
    Vila Real
    Portugal
    November 15, 2021
    Official Selection
Distribution Information
  • De la Maza Consulting and Films
    Distributor
    Country: Mexico
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Mauricio de la Maza Benignos

Dr. Mauricio De la Maza Benignos has a PhD (summa cum laude) in Biological Sciences and Sustainable Development from the UANL, Mexico; he holds an MBA from Lancaster University in the UK, with an exchange program with Emlyon business school in France, where he specialized in Strategic Planning and Marketing; a degree in Agriculture Engineering, Agronomy and Animal Science from ITESM and a Law Degree with honorable mention of excellence from tecMilenio, Mexico. He is currently pursuing a Master's Degree in Cinematographic Art and Multimedia at Ilumina, Mexico. He is a member of the National System of Researchers. In 2020, he received the Conservation Award from the Arizona Game and Fish, for his professional career in favor of wetlands and wildlife in the transboundary region between the Mexico and the United States. That same year he produced, filmed and directed Ad memoriam rei perpetuam, which was officially selected for exhibition at the international film festival, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival (WCFF). In 2015, he was awarded the UANL research prize for the best research document in the area of the Natural Sciences during 2014; in 2014 he received the Dr. Jose Alvarez del Villar award from the Mexican Ichthyological Society; in 1994 the medal of "Best students of Mexico" by by the President of Mexico. He was the CEO of Pronatura Noreste from 2011 to 2021, and Director of the U.S. and Mexico Chihuahuan Desert Program for WWF. He has edited books in various academic fields, developed legal analysis and policy work on freshwater, the natural environment and sustainable development, as produced and directed a significant number of short films and one feature presentation. From 2015 to 2020 he was the first environmental member and Alternate President of the Rio Bravo Basin Council. Currently he owns "De la Maza Consulting and Films".

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Director Statement

It is extremely sad that neither the human right to a healthy environment nor the general principles of environmental law contained in international law has been a sufficient reason for the government to stop the deterioration of the Cuatro Ciénegas Valley.