After the energy of Mexico City, landing in San Cristóbal felt like an exhale. The air is thinner, the streets are quieter, and everything feels slower in the best possible way. I’ve been trying to match that pace; walking a little slower, watching a little closer, and listening a lot more.
And still, even in this calm, there’s so much to learn. This week has been about digging deeper into water systems, exploring the work of incredible local NGOs, and, honestly, about myself.
Beautiful San Cris!
Design Is Not Just Function—It’s Feeling
Last week, we met with Isla Urbana, a group that installs rainwater harvesting systems in underserved communities. This week, we spent time with Cántaro Azul, who focuses on safe drinking water solutions in rural Chiapas. Both organizations design technically smart devices, but even more importantly, they’re emotionally and culturally tuned in.
For Isla Urbana, that means designing systems that blend with the home, down to the color of the cisterns. For Cántaro Azul, it’s about co-creating systems. One of them is the Mesita Azul, a simple blue table that houses a UV purification device, but more importantly, invites daily use and trust.
These teams aren’t just asking how to filter water, they’re asking how people live with water.
Reverse-Engineering: From Curiosity to Craft
This week, we rolled up our sleeves and started reverse-engineering a home water filter, starting with disassembly and sketching, and soon diving into prototyping. Let me tell you, there’s something incredibly satisfying about cracking open a device, tracing each part, and slowly beginning to understand the logic (and messiness) behind its design.
In doing this, I learned:
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I love figuring out how things work—even when they don’t go back together perfectly.
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Precision matters, but patience matters more.
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Design doesn’t end when something is built. It evolves with feedback, with error, with use.
I’ve always been curious how Brita filters measure the amount of water that flows through them!
What These Systems Teach Us
There’s a quiet dignity to the water systems we’ve studied this week. They’re not flashy or high-tech. They’re practical, context-specific, and made with real people in mind. And that’s what makes them powerful.
This work has reframed my perspective on innovation. It’s not always about creating something new. Sometimes it’s about slowing down enough to see what people already do well, and then building with them, not for them.
Personal Takeaway: Design Is Personal
I entered this program thinking I’d improve my skills in engineering. And I am.
However, I didn’t expect to feel so connected to the underlying purpose behind engineering.
I’ve realized I don’t just want to build efficient systems; I want to build efficient systems. I want to develop kind systems. Ones that listen. Ones that earn trust. That’s what I’ve seen in the work of Isla Urbana and Cántaro Azul. That’s the kind of engineer I want to be.
And as we get deeper into our own designs, I’m keeping this question in the back of my mind: Does this solution make someone’s life not just safer, but easier, more beautiful, more joyful?
This BEAUTIFUL mural at Cantaro Azul! Reminded me that the work they are doing is amazing, beautiful, and full of joy!
Moment That Filled My Cup (Literally and Figuratively)
I’ll let the stunning waters of Tzimol speak for themselves!!! Such calm, clear, and refreshing water. LOVED LOVED LOVED this adventure 🙂
What’s Next?
Next week, we will keep prototyping and begin the water purification experiments we have been researching. I’m nervous. I’m excited. Mostly, I’m grateful to be learning in a way that feels so human.
Here’s to another week of learning through walking, building, and asking better questions.
Hasta pronto, San Cris. Let’s keep building.