Carbon and nitrogen content in Mexico City: evidence of the influence of urban social structure

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18537/est.v015.n030.a05

Keywords:

forest biomass, planning, sustainability, urban ecology, urbanization

Abstract

Globally, urban ecosystems are key to mitigating climate change. However, studies focus on developed countries, with few studies in Latin American cities. In this study, we modeled the carbon and nitrogen contents in vegetation and soil in Mexico City and evaluated how urban social inequality (social and economic development; form and structure; and functional typology of residential land uses) influences their contents. Our results indicate that lower social classes and high population densities have the lowest estimates of carbon and nitrogen. In contrast, middle and upper-middle social classes (property and construction prices) show the highest values of carbon and nitrogen. This knowledge is essential for understanding the impacts of urbanization and designing more sustainable urban planning strategies in the face of global environmental change.

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Author Biography

Diego Carmona, Autonomous University of Yucatán

He has a solid background in urban evolutionary ecology, making him a highly qualified candidate to oversee this project. He has led the frontier science project titled "The effect of urbanization on the ecology and evolution of plant-mediated interactions," and his article published in Science in 2021, focused on evolutionary adaptation driven by urban change, highlights his international influence. Currently, he coordinates the Thematic Section "Evolution and Ecology in Urban Systems" of the SCME, unique in its kind, and is part of the Global Urban Evolution project, which involves over 240 researchers in 160 cities. A member of the National System of Researchers (SNI) Level 1 and with more than 1,150 academic citations, his expertise and leadership make him the ideal advisor for this project.

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Published

2026-04-15

How to Cite

Jasso-Flores, R. I., Carmona, D., González, S., & Corona-Núñez, R. O. . (2026). Carbon and nitrogen content in Mexico City: evidence of the influence of urban social structure. Estoa. Journal of the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism, 15(30), e5974. https://doi.org/10.18537/est.v015.n030.a05

Funding data

  • Sistema Nacional de Investigadores
    Grant numbers Ciencia de Frontera (15004) “Ciudades en transición: dimensión espacial de la (des)vinculación ecológica, modos de vida urbanos y escenarios futuros”