Expo Oasis Ganadera
Muzqual, Coahuila, Mexico
Muzqual, Coahuila, Mexico
Building on Social Capital: An existing festival contributing to wildfire response and recovery.
Expo Oasis Ganadera is a cattle festival held in Muzquiz, Coahuila, Mexico. This five-day festival takes place during the last weekend in April and has been a tradition for the past forty years. The festival celebrates the cowboys and cattle ranchers in the community. Throughout the five days, attendees can enjoy games, food, crafts, products for purchase, and various children's activities. Additionally, the festival offers concerts, shows, and plays to entertain participants.
Key events and activities
The festival features several key events and activities that highlight the community's culture and traditions. On Thursday, there is a horseback ride that takes participants on a tour from the entrance of the city to the livestock association, located eight kilometers away. Decorative trailers are displayed on tour, and one community member is crowned as the queen. This day also includes a celebration of dance and a meal of grilled meat in honor of the cattle farmers.
Friday's activities include a “fat steer” contest, a food contest, and a traditional dinner. Saturday features a horseback race that tests the horses' endurance by having them run ten laps around a one-kilometer track. The festival concludes with a rodeo on Sunday and shows and concerts on Monday.
Challenges and disaster response
The area has faced significant challenges over the years, including a wildfire in 2011, a mining accident in 2021, and floods in 2022.
The 2011 fire was one of the longest lasting in Mexico, persisting for several months, spanning an area of over 500,000 hectares, and occurring only four kilometers from the festival area.
The festival had to be canceled due to the fires, but the event organizers used their resources to connect with volunteers, the fire brigade, the Red Cross, and all three levels of government. A collection center was opened on festival grounds, encouraging people to bring supplies such as first aid, food, water, fuel, and clothing. This experience led to the development of an emergency management plan for future events.
Social capital and community resilience
The festival’s collective effort and community dynamics played a crucial role in fire response and recovery efforts. The event organizers’ awareness of the issues faced within the community and their responsiveness to the needs of the community enabled the festival to contribute to resilience. The festival fosters social capital by bringing people together, creating strong networks of support, and enhancing the community's capacity to respond to and recover from disasters.
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash