“Raices” Art Exhibit
“Raices,” or “Roots,” is a new public exhibit by Mexican artist Rivelino, designed to provoke reflection about the nation’s past. read more
About the Mayor
Mayor Ebrard and other members of a unique private-public partnership accept the 2009 Roy Family Award for Environmental Partnership at Harvard University for the Mexico City Metrobus project.
About Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard
Marcelo Ebrard was born in the Mexican capital in 1959, the son of an architect. He obtained a degree in international relations from the prestigious College of Mexico and then studied public policy at the Ecole Nationale d'Administration (ENA) in Paris, France. Upon returning to Mexico, he joined the city government in the Office of Planning and Budget. Ebrard first came to public attention for his disaster relief work during the September 1985 earthquake that struck Mexico City, working to rebuild homes and coordinate construction efforts across the worst-effected zones, with some neighborhoods rebuilt in just 10 months after the tragedy. A year later, he worked on the city's pioneering environmental stewardship program, the first government in the country to take the issue seriously.
In 1992, at 33, Ebrard was appointed Internal Affairs Secretary in the city government, the second most senior position in the administration. During his tenure, he established the internationally award-winning ‘One Tree, One Family' program and made improvements to the city's infrastructure. He also led cease-fire discussions with the EZLN (Zapatistas) during their 1994 insurrection against the federal government over the fate of the indigenous of Chiapas state.
In 1997, he was elected a federal deputy to the Mexican Congress on behalf of the now defunct Party of the Democratic Centre (PCD), having previously held membership in the Revolutionary Institutional Party (PRI). Ebrard resigned his membership of the PCD when Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) emerged as the candidate for the multi-party Alliance for Mexico City, which was elected to office in July 2000. Ebrard was appointed Public Security Secretary in 2002, later working with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani on a Zero Tolerance Policing Strategy for the capital, lowering the crime rate. He served as Social Inclusion Secretary in 2005, where he oversaw the Progress with Justice program which provided increased support for public housing and medical care for the elderly.
In July 2006, Ebrard was elected Mayor of Mexico City as the candidate for the PRD-led ‘Good of All' coalition. He received almost twice as many votes as the other candidates combined. The coalition won 14 of the 16 borough mayoral races and took the majority of seats in the city's legislative assembly.
Since assuming duties as head of Mexico City's government in December 2006, Ebrard has outlined his priorities as tackling crime in the city, addressing the problems of street children, decentralizing education policy from the administration to schools, securing a constitution for the city, and introducing energy-efficient vehicles for the city's bus and taxi fleets. He has developed a multi-year Climate Action Program for the city to reduce GHG emissions, better manage solid waste, and encourage more sustainable use of natural resources.
Mayor Ebrard's administration has also invested in infrastructure improvements in the city's historic center, made improvements to the city's sewer systems, created more public spaces, and began construction of a 12th Metro line. He is also addressing the difficult challenge of improving public security by restructuring the capital's police organizations and tackling corruption.
Voices from the city:
The Architect
Architect Elias Cattan finds that Mexico City motivates and inspires his designs. Cattan is hard at work building greener structures that use energy more efficiently in Mexico City. watch video
January 18 – February 14, 2012
Palacio de Bellas Artes and National Museum of Art
January 25 – January 28, 2012
Centro Banamex
Mexico International Furniture Fair
Hundreds of vendors from various countries exhibit their beautiful and unique furniture during this three-day display of craftsmanship. read more
February 09 – February 11, 2012
Teatro Julio Castillo
International Symposium of Contemporary Art Theory
Artists, architects, writers and visionaries of contemporary art exhibit their work. read more
February 10 – May 03, 2012
Traveling Film Festival “Ambulante”
This travelling documentary film festival serves as a forum for ground-breaking Mexican documentaries. read more
February 23 – March 01, 2012
The University Cultural Center
UNAM’s International Film Festival
The Festival introduces audiences to cinema as a social driving force. read more
Surprising Fact
Mexico City is the fourth-largest economy in Latin America — behind Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico itself.
Overheard
Visitors to Mexico City are often surprised by its breadth of architectural styles, from 16th century churches to oddly shaped skyscrapers of the past decade. The result: an eclectic collection of unusual buildings, including a few that architecture professor José Maria Nava of the Iberoamerican University called "vedette buildings"—movie-star structures that stand apart and aloof from their surroundings.
— Geri Smith, BusinessWeek