Traditional Knowledge & Cultural Summer Exchange Program: US-Mexico Indigenous Planning

Tribe: Puebla Indians of Mexico

Tribal Contact: n/a

Project Type: Community engagement

Location: Puebla, MX

UNM Contact:Michaela Shirley

UNM Faculty:Ted Jojola and Francisco Uviña

Students:

Project Summary:

The short-term program goal is to establish an exchange program between the University of New Mexico (UNM) and the Universidad Benemerita Autonoma de Puebla (BUAP).  This effort builds off demonstrated professional programs in higher education that prepare students with planning and design skills that are necessary for securing the future of healthy, sustainable and self-reliant indigenous communities.  It aims to promote networking and institutional partnership-building with two higher educational institutions who work closely and collaborate closely with indigenous communities in their respective regions.

The longer-term program goal is to address a gap in the higher education curriculum by establishing a degree program in indigenous Latin American planning by modelling experiences that inform and empower indigenous communities to build on local assets and cultural identity. A full curriculum in indigenous planning leading to a Graduate Degree Concentration in Indigenous Planning has already been established at the Community and Regional Planning Program, School of Architecture and Planning, UNM.  This is the only degree of its kind in the US and it is a model that BUAP desires for their university.