A Fellow’s Field Note from Huerto Tlatelolco

On December 4th, I visited Huerto Tlatelolco, an urban garden located just north of Mexico City’s historic center. This site sits within the Tlatelolco housing complex, a landmark of modern urban design in Mexico that was heavily impacted by the 1985 earthquake.

In 2012, the collective Cultiva Ciudad transformed one of the post-earthquake demolition areas into this thriving urban garden. Today, it functions thanks to volunteers and neighbors, focusing on education, participatory food production, and intersectoral collaboration.

The Urban Garden is located just steps from the busy Paseo de la Reforma, I was welcomed by Guiomar, a sociologist and researcher at the Huerto. We discussed their philosophy while she and her colleague, Fernanda, worked on the compost pile.

I asked if they had ever heard of or used biochar. Guiomar admitted she hadn’t. However, her philosophy on agriculture aligned perfectly with the principles of regenerative soil health. She explained that while they strictly avoid pesticides and agrochemicals, they refuse to label their produce “organic.” To her, the term “organic” in Mexico often implies an elitist status that excludes lower-income communities. “The idea of exclusion goes against what we are trying to do here,” she told me. Their goal is to reconnect the community with natural cycles, not to create a luxury product.

The Opportunity: Biochar for Urban Regeneration

During the tour, I learned a fascinating detail about the ground beneath our feet. The garden isn’t built on natural topsoil; it sits on construction rubble and fill. The team has had to painstakingly manufacture their own soil using compost (made with bacteria and food waste from a partner restaurant) just to provide structure and nutrients for the crops.

This realization sparked a shift in my own observations. Originally, I planned to tour the city looking for existing biochar projects. But seeing this “manufactured soil” on top of construction rubble made me realize this is the perfect test case for biochar application.

A New Objective

Biochar is uniquely potentially suited for remediating poor urban soils and retaining moisture in soils. Instead of just observing, I have decided to participate as a volunteer at Huerto Tlatelolco.

My goal has shifted from observation to one as an active participation:

1. Introduction: Introduce the team to biochar as a tool for soil structure—not as a magic bullet, but as a companion to their existing composting efforts.
2. Experimentation: Use the available resources—the compost microorganisms and the garden’s water retention needs—to see if we can improve the productivity of this reclaimed land.
3. Connection: Act as a bridge between my work at the International Biochar Initiative and these young urban farmers.

This visit was just the beginning. I look forward to sharing updates on how we might integrate biochar into this urban ecosystem, turning historical rubble into a model for sustainable food security.