Huerto Tlatelolco (Cultiva Ciudad)
Mexico City, Mexico · Operator: Cultiva Ciudad (NGO founded by Gabriela Vargas)
Overview
A 1,650 m² urban farm on an earthquake-cleared site in Mexico City's Tlatelolco district. Growing by agroecological principles, with an edible forest and seed bank at its heart, it delivers food education as a model of agrarian urbanism.
Citizen participation
On the site of the Torre Oaxaca housing tower, damaged in the 1985 earthquake and later demolished, the NGO Cultiva Ciudad has run an urban farm since 2012. With an edible forest of 45 tree varieties, a seed bank and bio-intensive beds, it hosts school visits from preschool to postgraduate level and public courses that reconnect residents with soil and food.
Operating model
Run by an NGO, combining educational programs and tours, sales of produce and seedlings, and grants and donations; purchases support building a healthier, fairer and more local food system.
Impact
Going beyond food production, it has become a tool for healing a housing estate still marked by the earthquake, reconnecting residents with the land and spreading interest in agrodiversity and healthier cities.
Crops
- vegetables
- herbs
- fruit-trees
- edible flowers
- heirloom seeds
- aromatic herbs
- edible sprouts
- fruit trees
- flowers
Scale
1,650 m² — About 1,650 m² on the site of the Torre Oaxaca housing tower in Tlatelolco, damaged in the 1985 earthquake and later demolished
In the media(3)
Sources(1)
This entry is compiled from the public sources, official sites and research below.
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