Semesters i with a Humanistic Outlook 2017

Context

In Mexico, 1 in 3 children and 7 out of every 10 adults are overweight. At the same time, they also suffer from micronutrient deficiency, chronic malnutrition (stunting) and psychosocial problems. At the Primary School where students participated, overweight and obesity prevailed and were above national average. Moreover, the school principal reported aggressiveness and bullying issues. The objective of this challenge was to design and implement a multidisciplinary program to reduce obesity and associated psychosocial problems in a vulnerable school population, in order to narrow the healthcare inequality gap.

Challenge(s)
Students were set the following challenge:

Analyze the school context that impacts nutrition and psychosocial statuses in order to design and implement multidisciplinary populational and individual intervention strategies (nutrition and psychology).

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The following images (PDF file) show some examples of the activities that students carried out in conjunction with the educational partner organization and the inhabitants of the different communities.

PDF file with images
 

Context

The Education Reform of the Mexican Ministry of Education (SEP) led to the New Educational Model for Compulsory Education (2016). Considering that traditional infrastructure does not respond to the needs of the new Educational Model, the objective of this Semester i was for Architecture and Industrial Design students to design two types of solutions for this issue:   

1. Two adaptations in existing schools, which responded to furniture, equipment and infrastructure needs, consistent with the new educational model.
2. Three generic models for new schools in the form of prototypes for different climate zones in Mexico.The education partner was the National Institute for School Physical Infrastructure (INIFED), who was very enthusiastic in the planning phase about collaborating on this challenge and receiving the results generated. 

It must be noted that the original plans for this Semester i underwent significant modifications along the way, since it was around the time of the earthquake of September 19, 2017, so the education partners withdrew and the projects were adapted to the circumstances. 
 

The first objective of adapting two existing schools was fulfilled as planned. The students worked with two public primary schools close to the campus (Escuela “Martín de la Cruz” and Escuela “Somalia”), to determine their current issues. 
The second objective was modified after September 19. The three regional generic prototypes became three specific projects for three different schools that were severely damaged by the earthquakes in towns in Oaxaca, Puebla and

Morelos, proposing a new school on the same sites.
The SEP Office of Curriculum Development, through its director, Elisa Bonilla Rius, became the principal advisor after the earthquake, to make the proposals realistic, while the Grupo BAL foundation provided support given its interest in sponsoring some of the innovative proposals for some of the damaged schools.
One of the courses revalidated was Social and Civic Responsibility, which despite being a transversal course, was the cornerstone of the Semester i. The instructor of these modules was in charge of ensuring that the investigation conducted in the existing schools at all times focused on the importance of the social aspect and considered “others”, while also offering advice on the type of methodological instruments to be implemented to gather information on the schools. The students were in contact with all the players in these schools: directors, administrative staff, teachers, students, parents, etc. In addition, Ms. Bonilla Rius constantly reviewed the activities to assure that they were aligned with the strategies of the New Educational Model. Advice was also given by external experts, such as the architect Rosan Bosch from Copenhagen, Carmelo di Bartolo, Industrial Designer and innovation expert from Milan, Steel Case, Civil Protection, etc., to define the proposals. 
 

Even though the earthquake was not part of the original program, it undoubtedly contributed significantly to making students aware of the damaged communities, particularly as the Tec Mexico City Campus experienced this tragedy firsthand. The students agreed to change the generic problems for real projects and their investigation rapidly focused on social needs. 
 

Challenge
 

To design educational environments addressing basic education needs with a social, forward-looking and challenging approach, towards 2030* 
*This challenge contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN Agenda: Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
 

Intervention outcomes

The main results achieved during this Semester i were the set of preliminary infrastructure plans and mockups and the equipment prototypes for the schools, which were submitted in digital format to the Ministry of Public Education, the schools “Martín de la Cruz” and “Somalia”, and the BAL Group Foundation. The latter took up the information contributed by the project derived from this Semester i, for the subsequent development of a school in Ecatepec, in the State of México.

One of the most important outcomes was that students became aware and mindful of the country’s education problems, in particular in public primary schools. This was the result of the hands-on experience obtained in the visits to the schools “Somalia” and  “Martín de la Cruz” and of what happened to the schools affected by the earthquake, which gave them greater insight into the need for their participation in the reconstruction of the affected schools and the transformation of the existing schools.
 

Challenge
This learning experience is designed to encompass three challenges, seeking to generate innovative solutions to the social, economic, environmental and health problems that affect diverse communities in marginalized regions of the State of Chiapas.
The challenges are as follows:

• 1.    Foster the economic and artistic activity of textile artisans in the Chiapas Highlands.
• 2.    Design sustainable tourist services in the El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve.
• 3.    Safe water system in rural communities.

The outcomes of the intervention were

The students put forward different original and creative solutions, employing innovative concepts and/or tools to meet the social needs detected. The solutions were validated by the students’ professors and presented to the education partner.

Context

The design of a tourism projected created jointly with the Los Lagos de Colores cooperative was presented. The project seeks to solve the divergence of the actors in the Tziscao, Chiapas, community in order to achieve local development. Its structure is based on the creation of a social fabric and a solidarity economy. The mechanisms proposed to activate the development of the community are comprised of an agro-ecotourism experience that questions the vertical relationships of conventional tourism. In addition, the proposed activities are aligned with the UN 2030 Agenda in aspects related to inclusion, decent work, innovation, economic growth, sustainability, generation of networks, production and responsible consumption.

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The following images (PDF file) show some examples of the activities that students carried out in conjunction with the educational partner organization and the inhabitants of the different communities.

  PDF file with images

Context

Cántaro Azul has entered into a collaboration agreement with the reserve known as “El Encuentro”, an ecotourism space located on the outskirts of the city of San Cristóbal de las Casas. The reserve has a payment model for basic services (admission, bathrooms, etc.) and a high-quality infrastructure for water and its theme as a protected natural space. The aim of this project is to disseminate knowledge and value of water among the region’s population through eco-projects and to work on reengineering Mesita Azul, addressing the social problem of a lack of access to drinking water within the urban and peri-urban communities located in the Chiapas Highlands. 
Reto(s)

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The following images (PDF file) show some examples of the activities that students carried out in conjunction with the educational partner organization and the inhabitants of the different communities.

   PDF files with images 

 Context

The state of Chiapas has diverse needs associated with the different sectors that require proposals to solve their main problems. Their design should take into consideration aspects such as environmental protection, finance and social issues. One place in particular is the Nuevo Paraíso Community in the municipality of La Concordia, Chiapas, three hours away from the capital Tuxtla Gutiérrez. The main activities in Nuevo Paraíso are the production and marketing of organic coffee, adventure ecotourism, coffee tasting, the production of coffee plants, and the operation of a small restaurant that serves local food. The education partner belonging to the Puerta a la Montaña (PAM) community participates as an active partner with decision-making power. Students participating in Semester i AD2016 focused their efforts, studies and investigation on the design of an alternative adventure tourism proposal that would form part of an initiative as a whole, with the support of participants from the community as a means of income, environmental protection and social participation. The design required the support of a variety of actors who structured a viable option that would be offered in the short term with its respective value proposal centered on the creation of a differentiated tourist experience in the El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve and its Core Zone.

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The following images (PDF file) show some examples of the activities that students carried out in conjunction with the educational partner organization and the inhabitants of the different communities.

  PDF file with images

Context

Pantelhó is located in the mountains in northern Chiapas. There are social obstacles in this community such as: alcoholism, violence in the public and private spheres, deficiencies in public healthcare and in education. As a result, the majority of its population has not completed their basic education. In addition, since most of the inhabitants speak Tzotzil and there is only one bilingual school, they face basic language obstacles. Therefore, this group of artisans has encountered numerous difficulties in trading their textile garments, because of the distance from Pantelhó to San Cristóbal, which is the center of textile sales, competition from other groups of artisans or the difficulty in communicating in Spanish.

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The following images (PDF file) show some examples of the activities that students carried out in conjunction with the educational partner organization and the inhabitants of the different communities.

  PDF file with images

Challenge

To generate a decent space for childbirth through citizen participation and endogenous development within the Cruzchén community, to generate midwife empowerment through the use of appropriate spaces, by means of sustainable architecture.

The outcomes of the intervention were:

A solution was proposed that will help to reduce social disparity by means of a social device. In other words, an adapted childbirth house with multidisciplinary spaces, so that the community can participate in workshops to raise awareness of their reproductive rights, thus generating citizen participation in the community. 

This center aims to generate endogenous development in the midwives and in the community by means of ongoing citizen participation and the generation of life and physical health capabilities.

Context

The Los Agaves subdivision is located to the south of the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area, in the Tlajomulco de Zúñiga municipality, Jalisco, and is the location of one of the schools sponsored by the Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico (GAP) Foundation. This foundation builds and runs schools with a high-performance educational model to benefit children who come from low-income families, and its mission is to transform education in Mexico. In addition, the Enseña Por México organization is a strategic partner of the Foundation and the school, tackling educational inequality topics. Together, these associations address one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, Quality Education, which is key to improving people’s quality of life. Both organizations, in conjunction with the school, act as education partners for this semester i with a humanistic outlook, designed for seventh-semester ISC (B.S. Computer Systems Engineering) students.

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The following images (PDF file) show some examples of the activities that students carried out in conjunction with the educational partner organization and the inhabitants of the different communities.

PDF file with images

SlowU

 A slowU initiative. Further details can be found here.

Context

Since 2012, Tzintzuntzan, State of Michoacán, was declared a Magical Town by the Federal Tourism Ministry. As part of this process, the community has to relaunch a development plan for alternative cultural, adventure and gastronomic experience tourism, in order to consolidate its position as a Magical City.

Challenge

Design a comprehensive internationalization strategy using standardized methodologies to make recommendations and define feasible courses of action orientated towards the positive promotion of overseas cities, and to drive relations and cooperation networks to foster human development and the international promotion of a real town (International Relations Unit, municipal government of Zapopan in Jalisco, Mexico).

The outcomes of the intervention were

The students used international methodologies that enabled them to make recommendations and define feasible courses of action orientated towards the positive global promotion of the city of Zapopan, and to drive its relations and cooperation networks to foster sustainable urban development strategies.

Challenge(s)

Students were set the following challenges:

• Analyze the social, political and financial reality of Tzintzuntzan, to formulate a diagnosis and evaluate and develop self-sustaining cultural, adventure and gastronomic experience tourism, producing revenues from the services and productive activities of the community’s inhabitants.
• Generate proposals for self-sustaining cultural, adventure and gastronomic experience tourism products.
• Design a promotional plan that includes an audiovisual production of the Tzintzuntzan Cultural Community Center and of the self-sustaining cultural, adventure and gastronomic experience tourism products, generating revenues from the services and productive activities of the community’s inhabitants.

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The following images (PDF file) show some examples of the activities that students carried out in conjunction with the educational partner organization and the inhabitants of the different communities.

Video
 (Coming soon)

 PDF file with images

Challenge

To drive the continuous enhancement and innovation of Mexican food banks through internal consultancy processes that enable advancement in the food bank maturity and development model and achieve certification.
 

Intervention outcomes

Proposal to help to transform bread waste from the food bank into new consumer products for the benefit of vulnerable communities served by this institution, applying a process optimization and /or product transformation methodology.
 

Results:

• Initial internal diagnosis in each bank. 
• Design of proposals for improvements. 
• Extensive reports and documents for certification purposes.

Challenge

To design, project and build a temporary structure (Estudio BOX) and furniture with the objective of providing spaces for children’s and teens’ academic remedial activities. 
 

Intervention outcomes

The students gave the community to temporary structure modules (Estudio Box), equipped with interactive games and the installation manual. The structures can be assembled, dismantled in public, function, flexible, sustainable and pleasant spaces.
 

Challenge

To propose and initiate an improvement plan that will contribute to the consolidation and impact of society through the VIVE Project (Come, be Inspired and Sell) of the Organization of American States (OAS).

Intervention outcomes

The students analyzed different cases to identify areas of opportunity. Their findings include topics related to engagement, entrepreneurship, management, among others, allowing them to develop proposals for the OAS and implement some of them.

Challenge

To conduct participatory research on the needs of a community near to one of the magical towns in the State of Querétaro, to integrate it into the tourism plan through their work.

The outcomes of the intervention were:

The students were able to identify the needs of Amealco, and the women’s skills and dreams with microenterprises in order to compete for financing for them, coordinated by the IQM (Querétaro Women’s Institute). 
The students provided training for the women in the generation of productive projects and identification of environmental needs. They also designed a handbook with recommendations for registering trademarks and the benefits of a marketing strategy.

Challenge

To create a narrative world exposed to diverse media and platforms (transmedia narrative) that would be useful to support a group/community in a vulnerable situation of inequality, specifically children. This problem focuses on the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Mexico 2012 - 2018 development plan, and the Querétaro development plan: the reduction of social inequalities.

The outcomes of the intervention were:

Through an ethnographic and documentary investigation of the issue students were able to identify the organization’s real needs. This formed the basis to create a narrative world full of characters, scenarios and plots with an inspiring subtext to promote reflection, empowerment, social integration, communication and the consolidation of the values fomented by the organizations Escuela Móvil, AMANEC and Suelo Fértil.

Context

The objective of this semester is for students to develop in-depth jewelry design skills, oriented towards the creation of contemporary pieces with a social focus, as well as to use the knowledge acquired for the design and development of luxury utilitarian objects made of silver. The activity was carried out in La Laguna, a leading region in the production of refined silver worldwide, and will be linked with Grupo Bal (Industrias Peñoles, as the producer, and Palacio de Hierro, as the commercial partner), as well as Fundación Jimulco, AC (with a humanistic outlook approach). Apart from creating designs, the students also detected business opportunities, and developed entrepreneurial skills for branding and marketing luxury products. The humanistic outlook was reflected in the co-authorship work that the students will carry out with artisans from the Jimulco community. This work was directly linked to students’ entrepreneurial spirit, guided by their creative and innovative capacity, and the skillful hands of the artisans

Challenge
Design and manufacture a piece of contemporary jewelry with an ecological vision and reflecting the identity of the region, which integrates students’ creativity of the students, using a solid methodology regarding design and market potential assessment

The outcomes of the intervention were:
The outcome of the activity was the design of a piece of contemporary artisan jewelry for the Jimulco region. The activity included advising the Jimulco community (through Fundación Jimulco, AC) on the design and creation of contemporary artisan jewelry with regionally sourced materials, and with a vision of respect for the environment. The goal is for the production of this type of jewelry to become an activity that generates an income to strengthen community development. The students worked hand in hand with artisans from the region, generating social and artistic ties in order to create design proposals together.
At the end of the semester, an auction was held to raise funds, while creating awareness of the need to respect nature and carry out social development actions.

Ties with Fundación Jimulco, A.C. produced the following outcomes:

• Development of a collection inspired by the ecological reserve.
• Social innovation to work with the women artisans from the region.
• Auction of the designed pieces to raise funds.

Challenge
Development of in vitro micropropagation protocols for endangered plant crop species, identification of their properties, bio-product proposals and their business models, within a legal, sustainable and ethically responsible framework.
The outcomes of the intervention were:

• Development of in vitro micropropagation protocols for endangered and/or critically endangered plant crop species, Chamaedorea Liebmanii, Chamaedorea alternans and Platymiscium trifoliolatum.
• Design of products for the transformation of biomaterials, Dialeb, Camedoricina and Fungi Folium.
• Generation of a business model within a legal framework.
• Project evaluation from an ethical perspective and with collaborative participation.

Context

This Semester i at the Campus Guadalajara consisted of making scheduled, periodic visits to the High Specialty Medical Unit (UMAE) of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), in the city of Guadalajara.

Challenge

The Semester i challenges were:

• Challenge 1: Identification of the healthcare problem and design of the solution.

• Challenge 2: Design, construction and validation of concept testing and prototype. 

• Challenge 3: Demonstration of the use of the prototype in a relevant setting.

The outcomes of the intervention were:

The students made periodic visits to validate their devices in a clinical setting.

During these visits, they witnessed proper patient care and complied with ethical and safety protocols. With the patient’s informed consent, they tested their prototypes to assess functionality. In addition, they participated as observers, gaining insight into a public clinical setting. 

Twelve functional medical device prototypes were delivered to evaluate patients with lumbar pain. Students also supplied a handbook and technical report for each device. Nevertheless, these prototypes are still preliminary projects, but, with more time and commitment, if possible, they could become a minimally viable product to validate their use, obtain data, confirm safety and reliability, and initiate a clinical preliminary study. 

Context
In this Semester i at Campus Puebla, students visited the Volkswagen (VW) de México plant. The objective was to transform a mechanical vehicle into an autonomous vehicle, in this case a forklift. The students’ task was to change the mechanical system so the vehicle would be self-driving, i.e., without an operator.

Challenge
Design and implementation of an autonomous vehicle that would have a significant impact on the company where it is introduced.

The outcomes of the intervention were:
Apart from reviewing the mechanical, electrical, logistics and mechatronics aspects of the challenge, the students also presented a proposal to the company to avoid mass layoffs of forklift operators, since they would no longer be necessary after automation. This proposal was supported by the ethical theory contributions that the students had investigated, and by the application of the proposals. However, it is up to the company whether or not to implement it. For this reason, at the end of each phase of Semester i, and in their final presentation, the students placed great emphasis on this topic and insisted on the application of the proposal.

The proposal recommends relocating operators to other departments of the plant, assessing their experience, seniority and knowledge as VW workers, who have always been trained by the company. This benefits the company itself and its workers, as an investment in them as employees. In addition, a proposal was made to train operators from that group who demonstrate mechanical, logistical and electronic skills, so that they can supervise the automated forklifts.

The direct beneficiary is the company, and everything related to it, since the creation of an autonomous vehicle could generate better quality jobs, that is to say, specialists will be needed to monitor the forklift commands and make any necessary adjustments. In this way, operators will no longer have to perform a work activity involving a routine mechanical procedure, remaining in the same position for hours, harsh weather conditions (either too cold or in extreme heat). Moreover, there is an important environmental benefit resulting from fuel efficiency, reduction of human error, etc.

Context
This experience took place at the Frigus-Bohn plant, located in Santa Catarina. The company explained that the problem consisted of difficulties in getting operators to work as a team. Furthermore, personnel rotation was high in this period, and the company needed to expedite and facilitate the integration of new operators.

Challenge
Improve the manufacturing process to increase quality, reduce times and improve safety.
Trigger integration and satisfaction and enhance the quality of the processes executed by the Frigus-Bohn workers.

The outcomes of the intervention were:
Apart from reviewing the mechanical, electrical, logistics and mechatronics aspects of the challenge, the students also presented a proposal to the company to avoid mass layoffs of forklift operators, since they would no longer be necessary after automation. This proposal was supported by the ethical theory contributions that the students had investigated, and by the application of the proposals. However, it is up to the company whether or not to implement it. For this reason, at the end of each phase of Semester i, and in their final presentation, the students placed great emphasis on this topic and insisted on the application of the proposal.

The proposal recommends relocating operators to other departments of the plant, assessing their experience, seniority and knowledge as VW workers, who have always been trained by the company. This benefits the company itself and its workers, as an investment in them as employees. In addition, a proposal was made to train operators from that group who demonstrate mechanical, logistical and electronic skills, so that they can supervise the automated forklifts.

The direct beneficiary is the company, and everything related to it, since the creation of an autonomous vehicle could generate better quality jobs, that is to say, specialists will be needed to monitor the forklift commands and make any necessary adjustments. In this way, operators will no longer have to perform a work activity involving a routine mechanical procedure, remaining in the same position for hours, harsh weather conditions (either too cold or in extreme heat). Moreover, there is an important environmental benefit resulting from fuel efficiency, reduction of human error, etc.