Team:UNAM-Genomics Mexico/HumanPractices/LawProposal

OVERVIEW

This page contains the information about “Hydrobium etli goes Cuatzo”. This project was born thanks to the fact that this year our team is an association between the UNAM Genomics undergraduates as well as fellow students, also at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, from the Latin American Studies Undergraduate Programme.

As we raised our ideas for what would become our 2011 iGem project, Hydrobium etli, it was quite clear that an interest to develop a project with the ability to improve our immediate surroundings was present. Namely, a situation in our country that could take advantage of Synthetic Biology.

Hydrobium etli goes Cuatzo represents the effort of building an interdisciplinary iGem project, because it aims to take the Synthetic Biology project “Hydrobium etli” and place it under the context of Mexico's current rural situation.

This area of the project vouches for the incorporation of new Synthetic Biology proposals, such as Hydrobium etli, as potential solutions to the necessities in the indigenous communities of our country. The posibility to supply environmentally-friendly energy to this localities, together with the energetic diversification it would imply, are the two objectives chosen to explore.

Among the results of this intiative you will find a written paper containing the analysis of the current mexican legal framework on GMOs, as well as the panorama on energetic matters of our country. Through this paper, it is concluded that the rural situation of our country could take advantage of a project like Hydrobium etli.

Another fundamental section of Hydrobium etli goes Cuatzo is the diffusion of the Hydrobium etli project, which is where it takes its name from. Cuatzoquitengo or “Cuatzo” is an indigenous community that belongs to the mixteco linguistic group of the country. It is located in the Malinaltepec municipality of the Guerrero State, right in the middle of la Sierra (the mountain system). Cuatzo was the place elected to the field work part of the project.

The two goals of this field work were, first, to take the information of the Hydrobium etli project to the people of this community. And second, to collect their opinion on the posibility of carrying it out. Electric energy is a public fundamental service nowdays but in Mexico we have many communities like Cuatzo where sumministrating this service is a challenge for the government, Hydrobium etli goes Cuatzo is thus, a quite relevant approach to a social issue present accross our whole country.