Assessing mangrove products and services at the local level: the use of focus groups and individual interviews Michael D. Kaplowitz * Michigan State University, 311A Natural Resources, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA Received 17 July 2000; received in revised form 13 February 2001; accepted 18 May 2001 Abstract Information on the array of mangrove products and services used, understood, and perceived at the local level may help decision makers, stakeholders, and others make better resource management decisions. Qualitative research methods can reveal information on ecosystem products and services at the local level. In-depth interviews have been used to collect data on local use of mangrove wood and wood products. This paper reports on the use of both focus groups and individual interviews to learn from local bene®ciaries about the array of ecosystem products and services associated with a mangrove ecosystem and explores the relative importance of wood products to local mangrove ecosystem bene®ciaries. The analysis shows that focus groups and individual interviews reveal different information. Furthermore, the data show that the local resource bene®ciaries do not view wood products as the most important service of the mangrove ecosystem. # 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Qualitative methods; Focus groups; Interviews; Ecosystem services; Mexico 1. Introduction Kovacs 1999) recently reported on the utility of structured interviews for assessing mangrove use at the local level and found them to be an ef®cient and adequate means for collecting information on local use of mangroves in Teacapan-Agua Brava Lagoon, Mexico see Fig. 1). While some investigators have focused on the economic importance of mangrove trees and their associated products e.g. Kokwaro, 1985; Baconguis and Sinohin, 1994), others point out that the economic value of intact mangrove habi- tats ``vastly outweigh those of cutting the trees'' Bennet and Reynolds, 1993, p. 359). The results of Kovacs' study Kovacs, 1999) suggest that mangrove wood products are perceived by local bene®ciaries as the most important resource associated with their mangrove ecosystem. While Kovacs 1999) examined local ®shermen's uses and perceptions of mangrove wood products, the study did not address the broad range of ecosystem services that have been linked to mangrove ecosys- tems. Resource economists, conservationists, ecolo- gists, and others have identi®ed valuable consumptive and non-consumptive uses as well as biogeochemical functions associated with mangrove ecosystems e.g. Costanza et al., 1989; Aylward and Barbier, 1992; Ruitenbeek, 1992; Bennet and Reynolds, 1993; Barb- ier, 1994; Farber, 1996; Janssen and Padilla, 1996; Bann, 1997; Barbier et al., 1997). Information on the array of bene®ts ¯owing from mangrove ecosys- tems perceived at the local level may help decision makers, stakeholders, and others make better resource Landscape and Urban Planning 56 2001) 53±60 * Tel.: 1-517-355-101; fax: 1-517-353-8994. E-mail address: kaplowit@msu.edu M.D. Kaplowitz). 0169-2046/01/$20.00 # 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII:S0169-204601)00170-0