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Preserving heritage: Co-developing a fiber-extraction machine with indigenous artisans in Mexico
Client
Oaxin: Oaxacan Innovation Center
Location
Oaxaca, México
Date
July 2025
Service
Design Facilitation
Hardware Design and Fabrication
Innovation Program Strategy
Category
Community-centered Design
Appropriate Technology
Methods
Participatory Design
Field Research
Contextual Inquiry
Journey Mapping
Local Fabrication
User Testing
MIT D-Lab Creative Capacity Building (CCB) curriculum
IDDS
The International Development Design Summit is an event that brings together international participants and community residents to tackle local challenges through co-design processes. In 2025, the summit was held in Santa María Tlahuitoltepec - an indigenous community in Oaxaca, Mexico.
OUR CHALLENGE
The extraction and use of ixtle - the fiber from the maguey plant - is an ancestral craft practiced in the indigenous community of Santa María Tlahuitoltepec in Oaxaca, Mexico. As this process is time intensive and physically demanding, there are only two remaining artisans in the community who still perform it. These artisans hope to improve the process to both increase their income, and encourage younger generations to continue the tradition.
OUR ENGAGEMENT
PamLab was one of the organizing partners of the summit. Our founder, Pam, served as the Lead Co-Facilitator for the event. During this summit, she facilitated the design curriculum, and was also part of the team that addresed the ixtle challenge. The team conducted field research, and co-designed and fabricated a machine that significantly reduced the time and physical labor of this artisanal process.
