How One University Is Aiming To Transform Mexico

Sponsored by Tecnológico de Monterrey

Every student, at one time or another, dreams of changing the world. Whether it’s a dream such as winning the battle against climate change, or maybe writing a beautiful novel, the thought of one day accomplishing something amazing can often be the only thing keeping you going through early morning lectures and late nights spent in the library.

Some universities will always be better suited for these dreamers than others. In northern Mexico, not far from the US border, researchers at Tecnológico de Monterrey are proving they have what it takes to dream big and change the future of their country.

Tecnológico de Monterrey has prided itself on the transformative research that occurs within its buildings for years, with the university receiving over 17,000 academic citations between 2012 and 2017. Now, that focus on research is being taken even further through the annual ‘Projects That Transform Mexico’ initiative.

Projects That Transform México is an initiative aiming to identify the research and innovation projects making a positive change for Mexico, either because they solve important problems in Mexican society or innovate aspects of Mexican life.

To participate in the initiative, a project must meet several criteria, including the participation of graduate students in the team, the existence of a robust experimental prototype and proof it will have a demonstrable impact in areas such as health, education, sustainable development, quality of life and economic development.

Videos on all of this year’s projects can be found here, or keep reading for more information on this year’s projects:

Plastic pollution is a really hot topic right now and researchers Hugo Mújica and Aurora Valdéz, from Tecnológico de Monterrey, think they have an answer. They’ve developed a system capable of turning the peel from different fruits like orange, grapefruit and mango into a film that can substitute the traditional synthetic polymer films and packages currently used on many products. They hope their project will reduce and control waste and reduce the damage done to the environment by plastics.