[Review] Triumph of the City

[Review] Triumph of the City

One of those books that I read mostly in order to recommend it to others. I’m already part of the urbanist converted, and Glaeser is preaching to the choir. For those of you who are comfortably content in the suburbs, or wary of the chaotic hustle and bustle of...
[Grant] Mexican Institute for Competitiveness

[Grant] Mexican Institute for Competitiveness

This blog post is a summary of a $900,000 grant from Omidyar Network to the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness (IMCO) for general operating support over three years, with a special focus on the development of their Compara Tu Escuela platform. This information is...
[Review] Let the Great World Spin

[Review] Let the Great World Spin

The world spins by ever faster, a phenomenon not just of growing older — accumulating our own extensive, personal archive — but also a product of every generation leaving behind more for us to chew on, despite the same amount of time to chew. We mostly survive by...
[Review] Down and Delirious in Mexico City

[Review] Down and Delirious in Mexico City

A nini ethnography In 2009, the word did not yet exist in Mexico. Yet by August 2010, it was nearly impossible to watch the nightly news without suffering through yet another segment, interview, or monologue about the country’s nini Phenomenon. Nini, ni estudian...

[Review] The Lacuna

I had a personal stake in this one. When I hear the prevalent claims of false nostalgia that “modern writers can’t compete with the classics,” I often point to Barbara Kingsolver as an obvious illustration of literary prowess that far exceeds even...
Malls and Plazas

Malls and Plazas

For the past week I’ve been working on a long essay about public and private space in Mexico City. It was first inspired by Andres Lajous’ essay, “The Political Economy of the Metro” and by sections Daniel Hernandez’s book, Down and...

Cafe Complaints and Dissident Urban Planning

I’m just back from my favorite neighborhood cafe, where poets, artists, and whining leftists all come together for that special feeling of community. All along the back wall are stacks of La Jornada and posters supporting El Peje. At the bar sipping on...
Mapping My Megacity

Mapping My Megacity

Heat map based on time travel to major cities. To this day I stare out the window like a wide-eyed child, amazed by what seems to be equal parts chaos and order. I have practically memorized the 50-minute flight path from Guadalajara to Mexico City. Upon descent into...