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Women in Mexico Step up to Protect Ancient Aztec Farms and Save a Vanishing Ecosystem
Women in Mexico City’s Xochimilco and San Gregorio Atlapulco are reclaiming chinampas to combat pollution and urban threats, with four women among 16 farmers certified for sustainable practices.
- On May 8, 2025, women farmers in Xochimilco and San Gregorio Atlapulco are buying chinampas to cultivate sustainably and preserve an ecosystem threatened by urban development and pollution.
- Traditionally women didn't inherit chinampas, so farming has been male-dominated and newcomers faced palpable distrust from neighbors and local community.
- Jasmín Ordóñez returned in 2021 and, after saving for a year, bought a degraded chinampa in San Gregorio Atlapulco, cleared canals clogged with garbage, planted corn and leafy greens, and installed a biofilter.
- Working with Mexico's National Autonomous University since 2016, women seek the Etiqueta Chinampera sustainability label awarded to 16 farmers, including four women, to revive traditional farming.
- Chinampas help reduce flooding and store carbon, and losing them could raise Mexico City's average temperature by up to 2 degrees Celsius while endangering the axolotl.
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13 Articles
13 Articles
Women in Mexico step up to protect the island farms traditionally inherited by men
This story is a collaboration between The Associated Press and Mongabay. MEXICO CITY, Mexico — Jasmín Ordóñez looks out at the water as the wooden boat she is in crosses a narrow channel that connects a labyrinth of chinampas, island farms that were built by the Aztecs thousands of years ago. “Let’s close our eyes […]
“We are going to close our eyes and we are going to ask our mother’s permission for water to allow us to sail peacefully,” says Jasmín Ordonez, as the boat crosses a narrow canal. On both sides, the chinampas, the islands that the Aztecs built thousands of years ago, are erected as archaeological vestiges in what is now Mexico City.
Coverage Details
Total News Sources13
Leaning Left9Leaning Right0Center3Last UpdatedBias Distribution75% Left
Bias Distribution
- 75% of the sources lean Left
75% Left
L 75%
C 25%
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