The relationship between nature and culture is conceived as a dialogue, not as a dichotomy. Sociocultural and ecological systems are linked, in which language encodes the foundations of collective knowledge in a way that is often untranslatable but inextricably links its speakers to their landscape and each other. We describe the social practices and ethnotaxonomic knowledge of traditional people living in the semi-arid south of Mendoza, Argentina (locally called puesteros) in order to understand their adaptations and resilience strategies and clarify the fundamental link between past and present traditional land use practices and cultural identity. We detail the dynamics that link inhabitants and the biophysical environment, partly because this community is threatened with exile by a large hydroelectric project. If it is built, it would significantly alter the biocultural ecosystem and reduce the cultural heritage of the puesteros. This case study combines participant observation and 12 in-depth interviews. The results show knowledge of 39 plant speciesused as construction, firewood, medicine, and toxins. The community shows a close attachment to this place, past and present, in terms of identity, cultural practices, and local knowledge of biodiversity and geographic features. Given the interaction between puesteros and the landscape, we refer to the place and interactions as an ecocultural keystone landscape. This deserves particular consideration in the face of large construction projects.

自然与文化之间的关系被认为是一种对话，而不是一种二分法。社会文化和生态系统是相互关联的，其中语言以一种通常无法翻译的方式对集体知识的基础进行编码，但将其说话者与他们的风景以及彼此之间密不可分。我们描述了生活在阿根廷门多萨南部半干旱地区（当地称为puesteros) 以了解他们的适应和复原策略，并阐明过去和现在传统土地使用实践与文化认同之间的基本联系。我们详细介绍了将居民与生物物理环境联系起来的动态，部分原因是该社区受到大型水电项目的流放威胁。如果建成，将显着改变生物文化生态系统并减少puesteros 的文化遗产. 本案例研究结合了参与观察和 12 次深度访谈。结果显示了39种植物的知识，这些植物被用作建筑，薪柴，药物和毒素。该社区在身份、文化习俗以及当地对生物多样性和地理特征的了解方面表现出对这个地方的过去和现在的密切依恋。鉴于puesteros与景观之间的相互作用，我们将场所和相互作用称为生态文化基石景观。面对大型建设项目，这一点值得特别考虑。