DESCAT

Problem:

Mexico suffers from inequality and poverty. Even that it’s economy is relatively rich (comparing with other Latin-American nations), the statistics regarding inequality are no less than dystopian. In 2022, we were approaching the 100 million smartphone users mark with a increasing tendency (Statista, 2022), according to the “Competitive Intelligence Unit” the average nominal cost increased from $2,656 in the second quarter of 2016 to $4,328 in the second quarter of 2021. The consequences of tech

Idea:

Solutions to poverty traps, normally require a systemic approach, which is difficult to consider when a groups of stakeholders in the problem have a focus on maximizing profits at all costs. DESCAT would act as a non-profit organization which focuses on maximizing the life of electronic devices, as a countermeasure to unethical practices like the “programed obsolescence”. The project has two parallel axes, a strategical litigation area, in which a legal team fights for consumer rights and better

Main Beneficiaries:

This program is targeted to rural areas or developing regions in Mexico, which would include states located in the South, such as Oaxaca, Chiapas and Guerrero, which are the ones that suffer from most of the consequences of national inequality and lack of governance or Rule of Law. Mostly rural areas close to the coast experience a lack of infrastructure and technological marginality, which can’t be spontaneously solved by the private sector because there are no capital insentives to invest in these “less-populated” areas. The people that live in these areas will be the ones that initially benefit from this, without ignoring the necessity of a scalable model that could be implemented in other contexts.

Stage:

Inspiration and ideation

SDG:

GOAL 10: Reduced Inequality

GOAL 13: Climate Action

University:

Universidad de las Américas Puebla (UDLAP)