UNESCO Honors Mexican Volunteer Group AMVIAC for Aqueduct Heritage Project

The Mexican Association of International Volunteering (AMVIAC) received UNESCO’s international “Star of Discovery” award for its project to promote heritage education around the historic Acueducto of the former Hacienda El Hospital in Morelos. The initiative, titled “Social Appropriation of Hydraulic Cultural Heritage through International Voluntary Landscape of the Acueducto of El Hospital,” involved local community members, ejidatarios, national and international volunteers, the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), universities, specialists and authorities.

Director Nicolás Aguilar Osorio said the prize reflects collective effort, stating, “This achievement does not belong only to AMVIAC; it is the result of the work of many people and institutions that have believed in this dream for years.” The award was presented at UNESCO’s 48th World Heritage Committee session in Busan, South Korea, as part of the 2026 Global Challenge for World Heritage Education Innovative Cases.