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Bimbo’s regenerative farmland use passes half a million hectares as it eyes 100% sustainable sourcing by 2050

By
MND Staff
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Bimbo plant
A leading global bread company uses a lot of farmland for its ingredients, and Mexico's Grupo Bimbo has the goal of converting all the land it uses for crops to regenerative agriculture to prevent degradation of the soil and other dangers to the environment. (Grupo Bimbo)

Grupo Bimbo, Mexico’s bread-based multinational food company, has reported that by the end of 2025 it had surpassed 500,000 hectares worldwide in its use of regenerative agriculture practice, accelerating the company’s path toward its goal of sourcing 100% of its key ingredients from sustainable fields by 2050.

The newly reported figure reveals a growth of nearly 73% over the 290,000 hectares reported in 2024. 

“The company’s strategy, under its global framework of regenerative agriculture, aims to improve soil health through practices that help manage water use more efficiently, improve biodiversity, help increase yield per hectare, and seek to reduce and capture greenhouse gas emissions,” Grupo Bimbo said in a statement. 

Grupo Bimbo said it assists farmers in the transition by providing knowledge and techniques for soil health. Furthermore, the initiative is being developed in collaboration with producers, suppliers, mills, research centers, and specialized organizations, focusing on strategic raw materials for food production, including wheat, corn, and sugar.

The program is part of Grupo Bimbo’s larger sustainability strategy called “For Nature,” which also includes actions related to reducing emissions, water conservation, decreasing packaging waste, and preventing food waste.

David Hernández, global purchasing director of Grupo Bimbo, said that the field is the starting point for the organization’s operations and that adopting these practices strengthens the resilience of the supply chain, in addition to ensuring the future availability of essential ingredients.

“Regenerative agriculture allows us to work closely with producers and contribute to the health of agricultural lands, while generating shared benefits for the communities with which we collaborate,” Hernández said.

The environmental strategy is also linked to the company’s program “Positive Nutrition,” which seeks to improve the nutritional profile of its products by developing a comprehensive approach that encompasses everything from the origin of the ingredients to the final product.

According to the company, 98% of its everyday consumer products already meet this standard globally.

The progress bucks the current trend of agricultural land increasingly deteriorating. The UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and other specialized reports have said that more than half of agricultural lands are already affected by some type of degradation.

 With reports from El Financiero

Ancient Campeche monument reveals region’s oldest Maya calendar date 

By
MND Staff
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Stela 46
Three views of a 3-meter-tall limestone block known as Stela 46 that features the carving of a Maya ruler, hieroglyphs and, significantly, a date that corresponds to the year 180 CE, making it it the earliest date recorded in the Maya Lowlands. (INAH)

A new study of an ancient monument using high-resolution 3D scanning technology reveals that the stela contains the oldest documented Long Count inscription in the Maya Lowlands, prompting a re-examination of Maya history.

By virtue of the new information, it is now understood that complex Maya writing and established dynastic lineages began much earlier than previously thought. 

map of EL Palmar regionin Campeche
A map from Mexico’s National Institute of Archaeology and History locates El Palmar, the site of the original discovery of the engraved limestone block that just recently revealed the earliest recorded Maya calendar date for the region, more than a hundred years earlier than a similar stela in Tikal, Guatemala. (INAH)

Stela 46 is a massive limestone block (nearly 3 meters tall) featuring the carving of a Maya ruler and hieroglyphs. The date on the monument — which translates to Aug. 31, 180, CE — makes it the earliest Long Count date recorded in the Maya Lowlands, predating the previous record holder (Stela 29 at Tikal, Guatemala) by 112 years.

The main face of the monolith features a sovereign adorned with a feathered headdress holding the head of what is likely a jaguar, a figure of profound symbolic significance that the ancient Maya associated with the underworld and various ritual contexts of power.

The 3D scans reveal that the king known as Ajaw K’al Ubaah came to power in A.D. 131. Forty-nine years later, he performed a royal ritual before the stela and had the events carved into its surface, including an inscription corresponding to the date 8.7.0.0.0 of the Long Count.

The Maya Long Count is an ancient, non-repeating calendar system used by the Maya to track absolute time and record historical events. Unlike the repeating cyclical calendar we use today, the Long Count uniquely identifies every single day by counting the total number of days that have passed since the mythical creation date which corresponds to Aug. 11, 3114 BCE.

Typically, Long Count inscriptions record dates without context, but Stela 46 links the calendar directly to royal succession and ritual, showing how Maya kings used time itself as an instrument of political authority.

As it is dated so early, the monument suggests that some cities in the Maya Lowlands already had power structures capable of promoting the construction of stelae and the production of complex hieroglyphic texts during the first centuries of our era. 

Stela 46 was discovered decades ago at the El Palmar archaeological site in the state of Campeche, a location that preserves numerous stelae and sculpted monuments that have allowed for the reconstruction of part of the region’s political history.  

The stela was moved to a storage facility in 1985 as protection against looters. Researchers knew of its early inscriptions, but the surface was too eroded to fully read using conventional methods.

It was only after researchers were able to use photogrammetry and high-resolution 3D scanning — devices that are accurate to a tenth of a millimeter, producing models that could be illuminated from multiple angles to reveal details that conventional photography missed. 

The inscriptions were then decoded and the findings published in the academic journal, Ancient Mesoamerica, on June 5.

After undergoing extensive conservation, Stela 46 has been on permanent display at Campeche’s Museo de Arquitectura Maya (in Baluarte de la Soledad) since January.

With reports from Historia National Geographic, La Brujula Verde and Ancient Mesoamerica

Opinion: The Mexico that World Cup headlines are missing

By
Charlotte Smith
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Mexican World Cup soccer fans gather at Mexico City's Angel of Independence
Fans gather at Mexico City's Angel of Independence on Thursday evening for a screening of Mexico's match against South Korea. (Galo Cañas / Cuartoscuro.com)

In the months leading up to the World Cup, much of the international conversation about Mexico focused on what might go wrong. Even now, with the tournament well underway, questions about security, governance and Mexico’s ability to host the event continue to surface in political rhetoric and media coverage.

The storyline has become familiar. And honestly? Exhausting.

U.S. television networks have aired images of cartel violence, armed security forces, and crime scenes while discussing the tournament. Travel advisories and news segments have warned fans about security concerns. Commentators have questioned whether visitors would feel safe attending matches, while politicians have pointed to organized crime as evidence that Mexico is still unprepared to host one of the world’s largest sporting events.

Just two weeks before kickoff, Fox News published an article warning that travel routes connected to the World Cup could carry risks related to crime and kidnapping, citing State Department advisories and emphasizing security concerns in parts of Mexico.

For anyone who follows coverage of Mexico from abroad, none of this is particularly surprising.

The country is often reduced to a familiar list of themes. Violence, cartels, corruption, crisis. What visitors, journalists and supporters have encountered during this World Cup, though, looks considerably different from the picture many were shown.

Mexico’s opening World Cup week delivered packed stadiums, crowded fan zones and thriving local businesses. Rather than exposing an inability to organize a major international event, the tournament has showcased a country capable of coordinating security, transportation, hospitality and logistics on a global scale.

The question isn’t whether Mexico has challenges. Every country does. But there’s a real difference between acknowledging a problem and allowing that problem to define an entire nation.

The question is whether the narrative surrounding Mexico matches the reality unfolding before millions of people during this World Cup.

And so far, the evidence suggests that it doesn’t.

According to the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Concanaco Servytur), Mexico City’s opening World Cup weekend generated approximately 1.2 billion pesos (nearly US $70 million) in economic activity. Hotels, restaurants, bars, cafes, transportation services and retailers all benefited from the influx of visitors.

Far from staying away, fans arrived in force. It turns out people vote with their feet, and millions of visitors have made their choice.

Mexico City got a US $70M boost from first World Cup weekend

Reuters reported that more than 50,000 people attended the official fan zone in the Zócalo during opening festivities, while matches and related events proceeded successfully despite several planned demonstrations elsewhere in the capital.

The atmosphere hasn’t been one of fear. It’s been one of celebration.

Even the organizational side of the tournament has been revealing.

Under the security strategy known as Plan Kukulkán, authorities deployed approximately 100,000 security personnel across host cities. When an unauthorized drone approached South Korea’s training camp in Guadalajara, Mexican military personnel detected and neutralized it without disrupting preparations.

That incident received little international attention, but unfortunately, problems that are prevented rarely become headlines.

And that brings us back to the larger conversation.

At the G7 summit this week, U.S. President Donald Trump declared that Mexico had “lost control” of the country and that “the cartels control Mexico.” Later in the week, Vice President JD Vance stated that the United States reserves the right to take military action against cartels inside Mexico if Washington deems it necessary, while also saying cooperation remains the preferred approach.

These comments weren’t made before the World Cup, when questions about Mexico’s readiness were still hypothetical. They were made during the tournament, while Mexico is actively hosting one of the largest sporting events on Earth.

And that raises a simple question. What exactly is the purpose of that message?

If cooperation is the preferred path, why lead with the suggestion of unilateral military action? What does it add to the conversation besides reinforcing the same image of Mexico as a country defined by instability?

Security concerns deserve serious discussion, of course, but there’s a difference between discussing a challenge and presenting an entire nation through its worst-case scenario.

Every time Mexico hosts a major event, attracts visitors, or demonstrates institutional competence, there seems to be a rush to explain why none of it counts. The conversation quickly returns to the same images and the same talking points.

No serious person argues that Mexico is free of problems, but it’s also a country of modern infrastructure, capable institutions, vibrant communities, and people who are welcoming the world.

The fight against transnational criminal organizations is serious and ongoing. But it’s not Mexico’s burden alone. Fentanyl trafficking, weapons smuggling, money laundering and organized crime networks operate across borders, and the United States is also part of the equation. Addressing those issues requires cooperation and serious policy, not narratives that reduce a nation of more than 130 million people to its worst headlines.

What the first week of the World Cup has demonstrated isn’t that Mexico has no challenges. It’s that many assumptions about Mexico’s inability to host this tournament were overstated.

Perhaps that’s the real story. Not that Mexico is perfect. But that it continues to be judged through a lens that often struggles to see anything else.

Mexico deserves to be judged by evidence rather than assumptions, and on the reality people are seeing, not the fears projected onto it.

Charlotte Smith is a writer and journalist based in Mexico. Her work focuses on travel, politics, and community. You can follow along with her travel stories at www.salsaandserendipity.com.

The fun and fantastical interior design of Mérida’s Chuch Estudio

By
Ana Paula De la Torre
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Various pieces of handmade furniture in whimsical shapes and bright colors
Chuch Estudio's pieces aim to inspire enjoyment of one's living spaces. (Chuch Estudio)

For its creator, Chuch Estudio is a “baby” of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The woman behind this rising star in the world of interior design, Mérida architect Aranza García, says she developed the firm in 2020 following personal reflections on the profound importance of the spaces we inhabit. The name “chuch” is a Mayan word meaning “tenderness” or “adorableness.”

 

A Mexican woman in a matching denim sleevless vest and pants posing in front of a paint bucket with dried flowers inside.
Aranza García’s Chuch Estudio is located in Mérida’s historic center. (Caras)

What the COVID-19 pandemic taught her

The pandemic highlighted how essential it is to be in harmony with our homes, and how every object in them plays a role in this regard. For these reasons, García says that the everyday items she designs tell a story and go beyond mere functionality.

García says she draws inspiration from Mexican traditions and biocultural diversity, the country’s vibrant colors and the variety of its materials and objects. Everyday items and food, such as children’s cereals or flowers she encounters on her daily walks, also inspire her.

“It is fun, playful, emotional, absurd, colorful and occasionally pretends to be serious,” according to its description for LAK Gallery.

However, Garcia also sees Chuch Estudio’s role as social: She tries to bring joy and tenderness to spaces and is committed to the environment. 

“Our social responsibility goes far beyond creating spaces that are merely aesthetically pleasing or functional. We must consider the impact of our designs on our surroundings; our decisions affect everyone, not just those who can afford our services,” García says.

For instance, Chuch Estudio recently participated in an auction to raise funds for community beach cleanups in areas affected by oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico. 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by CHUCH (@chuch_estudio)

Iconic pieces

With a variety of textures and materials, ranging from natural wood to glossy plastics and textured fabrics, the pieces from Chuch Estudio are extravagant and unexpected; they exude energy and humor.

For example, its design line includes a small stool in the shape of a butt, inspired by a previous wooden sculpture. After a daily walk through Mérida’s gorgeous ceiba trees, García created a series of beautiful lamps inspired by this species. However, her imagination knows no bounds, and she has also crafted pieces inspired by the gum brand Canel’s, which can be found in every Mexican candy shop.

Another of Chuch’s most iconic works is a magnificent wool rug, made using traditional foot-powered looms in Oaxaca. Its playful shapes resemble happy cells and were inspired by the shape of the children’s cereal, Froot Loops. 

The most famous, however, of García’s chairs is the Sol Chair, made of solid cedar with a silhouette inspired by a traditional Mexican biscuit. 

A wooden chair sculpted to look like a human behind and thighs.
García’s whimsical “butt chair.” (Chuch Estudio/Instagram)

Global presence 

Six years after its inception, Chuch Estudio has been featured in interior design publications such as Architectural Digest France, Elle Décor France and Dwell Magazine. It has also participated in international events like Milan Design Week and Zona MACO Design in Mexico City. Chuch’s designs can be found in the interior design stores of international luxury brands, including Tory Burch in Paris and the Rossana Orlandi Art Gallery in Italy. Chuch Estudio also has pieces featured in hotels in southeastern Mexico and the Caribbean.

The key to this studio’s originality lies in its authentic inspiration. García invites us all to open our eyes to our surroundings with curiosity, transforming shapes and colors that are normally blurred by everyday routine into objects that actually increase our quality of life. 

Ana Paula de la Torre is a Mexican journalist and collaborator for various outlets, including Milenio, Animal Político, Vice, Newsweek en Español, Televisa and Mexico News Daily.

Mexico’s packed fan fests prove you don’t need a stadium seat to celebrate

By
MND Staff
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fan crowd
Attendance at the official FIFA fan festivals in Mexico’s host cities surpassed 2 million the day after the World Cup’s first round ended, bringing an economic boon. The Mexico City chamber of commerce estimated more than 322.8 million pesos (about US $18.6 million) were generated at the Zócalo Fan Fest alone in its first week, driven by spending on food, drinks, souvenirs and other items. (Graciela López / Cuaroscuro.com)

Mexico’s vast public squares are rivaling — and at times surpassing — stadiums as the center of World Cup celebrations, with the Zócalo in Mexico City emerging as the most attended official Fan Festival site of the tournament.

After the first week of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Zócalo Fan Fest had drawn an average of about 82,400 people per day, totaling roughly 576,800 attendees, according to Canaco, Mexico’s national chamber of commerce.

The Guadalajara fan fest gave Tapatíos the chance to feel part of the action Thursday, as they did a week earlier at Plaza Liberación in the Historic Center during the World Cup opener on June 11, as though they were at Estadio Azteca some 350 miles away. (Gobierno de Guadalajara)

The daily figure has approached the renovated Estadio Azteca’s roughly 87,000-seat capacity — and in peak moments has exceeded it.

During Mexico’s 1-0 win over South Korea on Thursday night, authorities reported about 200,000 people packed into the Zócalo and surrounding Historic Center viewing areas, part of a broader turnout that night of more than 330,000 people at 18 World Cup fan events across the capital.

Streets including Paseo de la Reforma were closed as crowds spilled beyond designated fan zones, creating congestion and transit disruptions across central Mexico City, though authorities reported no confirmed injuries.

The viewing parties for the telecast from Guadalajara were “carried out in an orderly and safe manner and in a celebratory atmosphere among the fans,” the Mexico City government said.

FIFA issued a release this week saying its Fan Festival program surpassed 2 million visitors after the opening week of matches, with Mexico’s host cities leading the way.

According to FIFA, Mexico City had drawn more than 527,000 visitors, followed by Monterrey with 244,710 and Guadalajara with 218,424 — and those figures were from before the Mexico–South Korea match.

“The FIFA Fan Festival has been a key part of our offering to fans, and we are delighted at the reception it has received from visitors so far,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said of FIFA’s official sites in 13 host cities across Mexico, Canada and the United States — the most in tournament history.

The economic impact has been significant. The Mexico City branch of the National Chamber of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Canaco) estimated more than 322.8 million pesos (about US $18.6 million) were generated at the Zócalo Fan Fest alone in its first week, driven by spending on food, drinks, souvenirs and other items.

Vicente Gutiérrez Camposeco, president of Canaco, said the influx “strengthens economic activity and projects a positive image of our capital to millions of people worldwide.”

Thursday’s win assured Mexico of finishing atop Group A and advancing to a Round of 32 match at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 30, at Estadio Azteca — which FIFA has retitled Mexico City Stadium — against a yet‑to‑be‑determined third‑place team.

Before that, Mexico will conclude group-stage play at 7 p.m. Wednesday against Czechia at Estadio Azteca.

Because El Tri opened with a 2-0 triumph over South Africa and now sits at six points with the tiebreaker over South Korea, the result will not affect Mexico’s advancement.

However, it is essentially a must-win for Czechia after a 2-1 opening loss to South Korea and a 1-1 draw Thursday against South Africa. Czechia was 44th in the latest official FIFA world rankings compared to No. 11 for Mexico.

With reports from La Jornada, Soy Fútbol and MVS Noticias

International tourism to Mexico drops in May, stressing the airline industry

By
MND Staff
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airport
Market analysts say the decline in international passengers over April and May is reflected in lower stock prices for the three main airport operators in Mexico. (Rocker Sta / Unsplash)

For the second consecutive month, international tourism to Mexico slowed in May, with the decline in international air travel impacting the valuation of Mexican airlines.

The flow of international tourists to Mexico contracted in a month which air travel to and from abroad showed reductions of up to 10%.

AEROMEXICO
Aeroméxico has fallen 23.2% on Mexico’s BMV and is down 19.7% on the New York Stock Exchange.
(Kevin Ramos / Unsplash)

Hit especially hard in May were airport operators such as Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste (ASUR), which manages the Cancún terminal, and airlines such as Viva Aerobus, whose traffic plummeted 20.1%, 

A review conducted by the newspaper El Financiero found that the three airport groups listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) had an average drop of 7% in international passenger traffic through May. This represents the most pronounced drop since the COVID epidemic.

ASUR reported a 10% year-on-year decrease in international passenger traffic at its Mexican terminals, while Grupo Aeropuertuario del Pacífico (GAP) registered an 8.2% decline in the international segment and Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte (OMA) reported the most moderate year-on-year decrease in May: –2.8%.

GAP — which features leisure traffic in terminals like Los Cabos and business-oriented terminals like Guadalajara — experienced its most severe blow in Puerto Vallarta, where international passenger traffic plummeted 26.5% in May. El Financiero attributed the downturn to the violence recorded in February after the killing of drug kingpin Nemesio Oseguera.

Meanwhile, ASUR suffered from the deterioration of international traffic at the Cancún airport (–11.1%).

“International traffic is working against the three airport groups, and we have seen this reflected in the stock prices of these companies,” Alik García, deputy director of stock market analysis at VALMEX Casa de Bolsa.

García said issues also stem from the high price of jet fuel and problems related to Pratt & Whitney engines (e.g., severe supply-chain constraints, manufacturing defects and prolonged maintenance groundings).

These factors are compounded by a slowdown in U.S. demand, driven in part by President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration policies, El Financiero said.

As for airline stock market valuations, El Economista reported that Volaris has declined 2.3% (despite a recent 23.3% rally over the past six trading days). Aeroméxico has fallen 23.2% on the BMV and is down 19.7% on the New York Stock Exchange.

The newspaper said these valuations “reflect operational and financial performance, as well as energy price fluctuations related to the conflict between the U.S. and Iran.” 

On the other hand, Volaris experienced a 15% increase in passenger volume on international routes. 

With reports from El Financiero, El Economista and Mexico Business News

From El Tri to Merlin the duck, Sheinbaum leans into World Cup joy: Friday’s mañanera recapped

By
MND Staff
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President Sheinbaum looks out across the press pool at her morning press conference
After a major World Cup win, President Sheinbaum used the global spotlight to underscore the country’s strengths and encourage international tourism. (Juan Carlos Buenrostro / Presidencia)

Sheinbaum’s mañanera in 60 seconds

  • ⚽🇲🇽 El Tri advance to knockout stage: Sheinbaum opened her mañanera with applause for Mexico’s 1-0 victory over South Korea in Guadalajara on Thursday, which made El Tri the first team to qualify for the round of 32. She presented a video of post-match celebrations across the country, including massive crowds at the Angel of Independence on Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City.
  • 🌍🏟️ World Cup going smoothly in host cities: Sheinbaum said the tournament has been “very good, marvelous” across Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey, with no major problems, praising Mexican fans with a score of 10 out of 10 for their behavior.
  • 🌮✈️ Sheinbaum pitches Mexico to the world: Stepping into tourism ambassador mode, Sheinbaum invited international visitors to “come to live Mexico,” highlighting the country’s hospitality, culture and landscapes. She screened an ESPN México video featuring foreign fans at the Zócalo Fan Festival, one of whom declared that Mexico is “the best place in the world right now.”
  • 🦆 World Cup duck Merlin headed to the mañanera: Sheinbaum announced she will invite Karla Ivette Gómez and her viral two-year-old duck Merlin — who became a social media sensation after appearing in a Mexico jersey at post-match celebrations — to a future press conference, calling Merlin “a small symbol of our culture.”

Why today’s mañanera matters

Today’s mañanera began in exactly the same way as that held last Friday. President Claudia Sheinbaum applauded as she walked into the Treasury Hall of the National Palace, celebrating the second consecutive victory of the Mexican team in the 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup. With its 1-0 victory over South Korea in Guadalajara on Thursday night, the Mexican team, commonly known as El Tri, became the first team to qualify for the round of 32 knockout stage of the World Cup.

In addition to congratulating El Tri, Sheinbaum gave a positive assessment of the World Cup to date in Mexico, which has hosted five matches over the past week.

Despite concerns about insecurity — perhaps overplayed by some international media outlets — and fears that protests could disrupt the tournament, the World Cup in Mexico has not been plagued by any major problems, the president said.

Thus, to date, the World Cup in Mexico has served as a massive tourism advertisement, of sorts, for the country. On Friday morning, Sheinbaum stepped into the role of tourism ambassador, inviting potential international tourists to visit Mexico and experience the full Mexican experience.

Also of note at today’s mañanera was the president’s announcement that she will invite a very special guest to one of her future press conferences.

Sheinbaum congratulates El Tri 

“Happy? Content? We’re all very excited — pure happiness,” Sheinbaum said at the start of her presser.

“Congratulations to the national team for the game, for the goal, for the goalkeeper’s save [late in the match] and for the happiness they give to the people of Mexico. Many congratulations,” she said.

Sheinbaum subsequently presented a video showing post-match celebrations in different cities around the country, including Mexico City, where a huge crowd of revelers descended on Paseo de la Reforma and the Angel of Independence monument, which is located on the emblematic avenue.

“Many congratulations again to the [Mexican] team and to all Mexicans,” the president said after the video finished.

Sheinbaum: World Cup is going ‘very well’ in the 3 Mexican host cities 

Since the World Cup began in Mexico City with the opening match between Mexico and South Africa on June 11, the tournament has been going “very well” in the three Mexican host cities, Sheinbaum told reporters.

Mexico City and Guadalajara have now hosted two matches each, while one has been played in Monterrey and a second — Tunisia vs. Japan — will be played in the Nuevo León capital on Saturday night.

Sheinbaum said “there really hasn’t been any problem” in the three Mexican host cities since the tournament began.

President Sheinbaum shares a video of the Guadalajara World Cup Fan Festival at her June 19 morning press conference
The president praised fans’ behavior and celebrated Thursday night’s World Cup win in Guadalajara. (Juan Carlos Buenrostro / Presidencia)

She subsequently praised Mexican fans on their behavior, giving them a score of 10 out of 10.

The tournament has been “very good, marvelous,” Sheinbaum said before telling reporters that the government’s World Cup security team has been working “very well” every day.

Sheinbaum: ‘Come to live Mexico’ 

Sheinbaum said that the kind of happiness on display in Mexico after the victories of the Mexican World Cup team is unique, telling reporters that it is “not seen just anywhere.”

She said that “the happiness, hospitality and affection” of the Mexican people makes Mexico an attractive place to visit.

“And of course Mexico offers landscapes and culture — we’re a cultural power,” Sheinbaum said.

“… What’s happening in Mexico today is a message to the world,” she said.

“Come to live Mexico. It’s not just about visiting a place, come to experience who we Mexicans are,” Sheinbaum said.

She subsequently presented an ESPN México social media video titled “Extranjeros enamorados de México,” or “Foreigners in love with Mexico.”

@espnmx “ES LO MEJOR QUE HE VISTO EN MI VIDA” 🤩 Los extranjeros encantados con el ambiente mundialista en el Fan Festival de la Ciudad de México.🇲🇽 🙌 #Mexico #WorldCup #Tiktokdeportes #futbol #seleccionmexicana ♬ sonido original – ESPN México

From the FIFA Fan Festival in the Zócalo, Mexico City’s central square, one tourist from Ireland, who was wearing the Mexican team shirt, declared that Mexico is “the best place in the world right now.”

“The Mexicans know how to do it,” he added.

A tourist from Brazil said that the Mexican people are “very warm” and that “everything is wonderful.”

“The [World Cup] opening ceremony was good, the food is good, the place is good, the people are good, so we’re very happy,” he said.

Sheinbaum said that while the government is dedicating “very few resources” to tourism promotion, the work of Tourism Minister Josefina Rodríguez is “very effective” and Mexico is “making itself known all over the world.”

Sheinbaum says she will invite Merlin, the ‘World Cup duck,’ to the National Palace 

Sheinbaum told reporters that she would invite Karla Ivette Gómez and her famous “World Cup duck” to one of her future mañaneras.

“I’m going to invite her — her name is Karla, right? — so that she brings Merlin here to the mañanera,” she said.

Merlin, the “World Cup duck,” as Mexico News Daily reported this week, has become the tournament’s early breakout star.

Merlin, the World Cup Duck, may be the Mexican team’s biggest fan

“Dressed in a green Mexico jersey, socks and sneakers, the 2-year-old duck wandered through celebrating crowds in Mexico City after the home team’s 2-0 victory over South Africa — drawing wide grins, photos and millions of social media views,” MND wrote.

Merlin, Sheinbaum said, “is a small symbol of our culture, of who we are.”

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

Mexico excels at providing public hangout spaces — here’s why that’s a good idea

By
Louisa Rogers
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colorful plaza in Guanajuato
Mexico is a master of the "third place," which is to say convivial public spaces where people gather outside of home and work. (Guanajuatoexxtremo/Instagram)

On Sunday afternoons around 4 p.m., I leave my home in the center of Guanajuato and stroll over to a nearby park called Embajadoras. The market there closes early for Sunday comida, but families are still hanging out, kids are shrieking, old ladies are chatting and the vendors are doing a healthy trade. 

This park, with its inviting benches, trees and shrubbery, is a classic example of a “third place,” a term coined by the sociologist Ray Oldenburg in 1989 in his book “The Great Good Place,” referring to spaces outside of home and work where people can gather at an unhurried tempo — places like plazas, parks, markets, cafes, bars, hair salons and gyms. 

Parque Embajadoras in Guanajuato on a sunny afternoon, with trees shading the central fountain
Embajadoras in Guanajuato is a congenial and colorful park, perfect for either a community meeting place or just somewhere to hang out. (Facebook)

A place where all walks of society mingle

According to Oldenburg, these places offer neutral ground, where social status fades, and just hanging out and conversation are the whole point. 

My husband and I, in fact, made a major decision while chatting with an acquaintance in Guanajuato’s main plaza, known as the jardín, another third place. As we sat on a bench eating ice cream, our fellow Spanish student described his experience walking the 800-kilometer Camino de Santiago in Spain, which, back in 2001, was not as well known as it is today. We were so inspired that six months later, we became peregrinos (pilgrims), walking it ourselves.

Although a third place usually refers to a location, it can also be an event, such as the Guelaguetza Festival in Oaxaca and the International Cervantino Festival in Guanajuato, where I met my oldest local friend. In fact, every friendship I’ve made in Guanajuato has happened in a third place — at a plaza, a Spanish class or while hiking in the hills above town.

Third places are timeless. The earliest known one was the ancient agora in Greece — Athens’ civic and marketplace public square — in the sixth century B.C., followed soon after by the Roman forums, and later by Chinese teahouses in the eighth century. 

Mexico’s ‘third place’ culture

While third places continue to flourish in Latin America and Western Europe, the magazine The Week reports that they have been disappearing in the U.S. It’s no accident that loneliness and polarization are so rampant when it’s so hard to gather free of charge with friends and acquaintances in a relaxed environment.

On the other hand, third places are so common in Mexico that it’s odd when you visit a place without them. Most towns I’ve visited here are dotted with zócalos and squares of all sizes, plus benches, pedestrian streets, churches, markets and vendor stalls. 

Plaza de Patria in Aguascalientes, drone shot capturing people in the square
Mexico has no shortage of zócalos and squares, including the picturesque Plaza de la Patria in Aguascalientes. (Jordan Wischmann/Unsplash)

Mexico is consistently ranked among the top countries globally for friendliness, thanks to its third-place culture and exceptional social environment. In fact, Mexico has its own third-place nonprofit, Fundación Placemaking, whose mission is “to inspire people to collectively reimagine and reinvent public spaces at the heart of every community.”

Foreign residents help too: We bring additional third places to our adopted towns, such as English-language libraries and bookstores, educational centers like San Miguel’s Instituto Allende, at-home concerts, volunteer opportunities, intercambios, book clubs, workshops, conferences and yoga classes.

Why the decline of third places in the U.S. but not in Mexico?

In the U.S., the decline of third places began decades ago with the construction of wide suburban streets, but intensified dramatically in the last 15 years with the rise of social media and the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, in Mexico, where the same changes occurred, third places still thrive. What’s the difference?

Well, in Mexico, when people couldn’t meet indoors during the pandemic, rather than lock themselves away in their homes for weeks at a time, people turned to the country’s pedestrianized streets, its parks and open-air cafes, where safer interaction could take place. I remember meeting with a Spanish teacher, for example, at an outdoor cafe in 2021. We didn’t have to spend the equivalent of US $6 for a latte, and no waiter gave us the stink eye for lingering. Whether during COVID or during normal times, Mexico is a culture whose approach to time is flexible and fluid, one that welcomes loitering.

And while Mexicans obviously use their phones, data from the Pew Research Center and cross-cultural studies have found that Mexicans use them to facilitate in-person meetups, such as social gatherings, family events and dates — much more than people do in the U.S. It’s not always convenient to have all those in-person meetups happening at restaurants or other places that cost money.

Mexican street design encourages face-to-face interaction

Another reason Mexico excels in third places is that it has narrow urban setbacks, the required distance that a structure must be set back from the street. When buildings sit right up against the sidewalk, they create a “street room” — a sense of enclosure that feels safe and inviting to pedestrians.

Public square and cathedral in Comala, Colima
Mexico’s narrow urban setbacks create “street room,” while its public spaces offer benches and places to gather. (Chimi Dávila/Unsplash)

Also, rather than have zoning restrictions that keep housing and commercial services far apart from each other, Mexican neighborhoods often seamlessly integrate residential, commercial and social spaces with little stores and street-food vendors. My husband, for example, often picks up a gordita at Guanajuato’s Plaza Baratillo, an area with vendors, shops and rentals all close together. 

Squares and plazas make people of all socioeconomic backgrounds feel welcome, which is ironic, as class distinctions are generally more rigid in Mexico than in the U.S. 

Enchanting as third places can be, their charm reflects a deep democratic value, the very foundations of civic life — where ideas circulate, decisions are made and friendships form. Wherever you are in Mexico, as you sit on a bench spooning up your cut-up fruit, watching the shoe shiners and listening to mariachis, you can take heart that you are helping to strengthen the fabric of community life.

Louisa Rogers and her husband Barry Evans divide their lives between Guanajuato and Eureka, on California’s North Coast. Louisa writes articles and essays about expat life, Mexico, travel, physical and psychological health, retirement and spirituality. Her recent articles are available on her website, authory.com/LouisaRogers.

Mexico beats South Korea, becoming the first team to make the World Cup knockout round

By
MND Staff
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Luis Romo pushes the soccer ball though a tangle of four South Korean defenders, into the goal
Playing in their home stadium, Chivas defensive midfielder Luis Romo and goalie Raúl Rangel were the heroes of the match, with a goal early in the second half and stunning double-save. (Moisés Pablo / Cuartoscuro)

Luis Romo’s opportunistic goal and a wonder save by goalie Raúl Rangel were all Mexico needed to edge South Korea 1-0 on Thursday night, becoming the first team to advance to the knockout stage of the World Cup.

In front of a raucous crowd at Guadalajara Stadium, El Tri survived late pressure from the South Koreans thanks to Rangel, whose quick reflexes in minute 88 prompted the BBC to ask the question: “How did he keep this out?”

El Tri now has 6 points in Group A, South Korea sits in second with 3 points, while Czechia (also known as the Czech Republic) and South Africa look up from the bottom with 1 point each.

The gritty win ensures that Mexico’s route to the quarterfinals goes through Estadio Azteca (renamed Mexico City Stadium for the duration of the tournament).

Coach Javier Aguirre now knows his men will face an as-yet-to-be determined opponent on June 30 in southern Mexico City. The bracket indicates it will be the third-place finisher from Group C, E, F, H or I.

Should Mexico win that match, El Tri will move on to a Round of 16 clash on July 5. It could potentially face England, one of the pre-tournament favorites, setting the stage for an epic showdown in Estadio Azteca.

A star turn in their home stadium

Rangel and Romo — Thursday’s heroes — ply their trade with the Guadalajara Chivas and play their home games at Estadio Akron (dubbed Guadalajara Stadium for the World Cup).

Romo — a surprise starter in midfield — did not see action in Mexico’s opening match, a 2-0 victory over South Africa on June 11. However, he was a steady presence during his 71 minutes on the pitch on Thursday.

The 31-year-old Sinaloa native tied defender Edson Álvarez for most duels won with 7. In soccer parlance, a duel won means a player successfully maintained or gained possession of the ball, dribbled past an opponent or forced an error.

Romo’s star turn came just 5 minutes into the second half, when a cross into the middle of the goalie box was deflected high into the air. South Korean goalie Kim Seung-Gyu raced off his line to gather in the loose ball but a collision with a teammate jostled it loose. Romo was first to react, quickly volleying the ball into the vacated net.

For his part, Rangel — a 26-year-old from Zapotlán el Grande, just 130 kilometers south of Guadalajara — became Mexico’s starting goalie only after Aguirre’s preferred No. 1 injured his knee three months ago. But the Chivas netminder is proving to be up to the task.

Rangel’s miracle save in the dying moments of Thursday’s game will be remembered by El Tri fans forever.

Lax marking by the defense allowed South Korea’s Cho Gue-Sung a free header at the back post, but Rangel, gliding to his left, got his right hand down to deflect the ball, which a prone Cho immediately redirected toward the net. While lying on the ground, Rangel reached back and snatched the ball out of the air just above the goal line as Oh Hyeon-Gyu came flying into the melee, his right boot extended.

Minutes later, the referee blew his whistle, setting off celebrations across Mexico.

El Tri’s final group-stage contest — against Czechia on June 24 in Estadio Azteca — is now a formality, affording coach Aguirre the opportunity to tinker with his line-up, protect any players nursing bumps and bruises, and begin strategizing for the all-important Round of 32 match-up.

With reports from The Big Lead, MSN, ESPN and Goal.com

Sheinbaum sidesteps report on cartel slave labor, says government ‘is present’ in Sierra Tarahumara

By
MND Staff
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Two women in traditional Rarámuri dress watch as National Guard members patrol the town of Cerocahui in the mountainous region of Chihuahua known as the Sierra Tarahumara.
Two women in traditional Rarámuri dress watch as National Guard members patrol the town of Cerocahui in the mountainous region of Chihuahua known as the Sierra Tarahumara. (Graciela López Herrera / Cuartoscuro)

President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday said that the federal government is attending to people’s needs in the Sierra Tarahumara, after a reporter highlighted a recent media report about slavery in the mountainous region of the northern state of Chihuahua.

At Sheinbaum’s morning press conference, Reyna Haydee Ramírez, an independent reporter, raised the topic of “forced recruitment” in the Sierra Tarahumara before asking the president whether she had read the report “Esclavos en la Sierra Tarahumara: Sobrevivir a los campos de trabajo forzado del narco” (Slaves in the Sierra Tarahumara: Surviving drug cartels’ forced labor fields), published by investigative journalism outlet Quinto Elemento Lab in May.

The report, a six-part narrative investigation, details a system of modern slavery in the Sierra Tarahumara, where men recruited with fake offers for jobs in construction or on ranches ended up as forced laborers in narco-controlled poppy and marijuana fields, living in caves under armed guard.

In a social media post, Quinto Elemento Lab summarized the report this way:

“Modern slavery? They were offered jobs, but ended up as slaves in drug cultivation fields in the Sierra Tarahumara, in Chihuahua. Some of them managed to escape. Since 2015, there were reports, but it wasn’t until July 2019 that 21 men were rescued during a police operation. The story didn’t end there. Some time later, other men escaped from those same fields.”

According to the report, members of drug cartels, including the Sinaloa Cartel, used forced labor in poppy and marijuana fields at eight different locations in the Sierra Tarahumara, a region that includes more than a dozen municipalities, including Guadalupe y Calvo, Guachochi, Batopilas and Urique. Up to 300 men were tortured by drug cartel members, almost starved to death and forced to work without pay, according to the report. Information obtained by the report authors indicated that slave labor was used in drug cultivation in the Sierra Tarahumara until as recently as 2024.

Sheinbaum: The federal government has a ‘presence’ in the Sierra Tarahumara 

After Ramírez asserted that people in the Sierra Tarahumara are “still requesting support due to forced displacement,” Sheinbaum interrupted to say, “I’m going to talk about what we’ve done in the Sierra.”

“Firstly, all the welfare programs. They didn’t exist before,” she said, referring to programs introduced by the government of former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, including employment schemes such as the “Sowing Life” reforestation initiative and the “Youths Building the Future” apprenticeship program.

“Secondly, we’re making progress on artisanal roads,” Sheinbaum said, referring to paved roads built by members of the local communities where they are located.

“… We’re building artisanal roads for connectivity, we’re taking electricity [to Sierra Tarahumara communities], and we’re also working on different actions, among others health actions in that area,” she said.

Sheinbaum also said there is “a greater presence today” of the National Guard in parts of the Sierra Tarahumara with security problems, such as the municipality of Guadalupe y Calvo, located in the mountainous Golden Triangle region of northern Mexico, which is notorious for drug production.

“In Guachochi, … we’re going to build a nursing school,” she added. “… I committed to that because a lot of the time there aren’t nurses who want to go to that part of the Sierra.”

A map showing the pueblo tarahumara in chihuahua
The Sierra Tarahumara is the ancestral home of the Rarámuri (aka Tarahumara) people in the southwest corner of the state of Chihuahua. (INPI)

Sheinbaum assured Ramírez and other reporters that the federal government has a “presence” in the Sierra Tarahumara, even though the Quinto Elemento Lab depicts a different scenario — one more akin to abandonment by the state.

She also said that the government attends to reports of disappearances in the area. In addition, Sheinbaum said that the Chihuahua state government has a responsibility to not just focus on Chihuahua city and Ciudad Juárez — the two largest cities in the northern state — but on the Sierra Tarahumara as well.

Pushed as to why the Mexican state “allows” slavery almost two centuries after it was abolished in most of Mexico, Sheinbaum — who didn’t reveal whether she had read the Quinto Elemento Lab report — took umbrage with the reporter’s question.

“Let’s see, Reyna, we’re making progress. The way that you ask it, it’s as if the Mexican state hasn’t done anything. On Tuesday we presented a 46% reduction in homicides,” she said.

“… There are arrests in all the states, there is attention to the [root] causes [of crime],” Sheinbaum continued.

“… The state is present in many spheres of national life, including in the protection of communities,” she said.

With reports from Infobae

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