At the initiative of the Institut français d'Amérique latine, the French Embassy in Mexico, and as part of the AIA New Mexico 2026, academicians Anne Démians, Jacques Rougerie, and Francis Soler traveled to Mexico City as ambassadors of the Foundation to engage with architects and students from across Latin America.
They spoke at the Facultad de Arquitectura de la UNAM and the Universidad Anáhuac México, where they were warmly received by an audience of more than 2,000 students, academics, and professionals. An exhibition accompanied these events, showcasing both the work of the invited architects and the Foundation’s initiatives.
These conferences provided an opportunity to share a vision of forward-looking architecture, grounded in contemporary realities such as rising sea levels, the transformation of coastal living environments, and the relationship between humans and aquatic ecosystems.
These exchanges are part of the international outreach led by Laurent Petitgirard, Permanent Secretary of the Académie des beaux-arts, and its architecture section, which, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of cultural relations between France and Mexico, reaffirm their mission of transmission and international influence.
Also present at the congress, Junior Ambassadors Jose Carlo Bolaños Padilla (Costa Rica), Program Director, and Ryan Wong (Australia), Regional Coordinator for Oceania, presented the Foundation’s initiatives and the projects carried by a new generation across five continents.
Through this dialogue between generations and continents, a key idea emerges: architecture must no longer simply respond to global transformations, but anticipate and shape them.
These meetings led to meaningful exchanges with Mexican students, opening up new avenues for academic and international collaboration around contemporary architectural challenges.
The Foundation warmly thanks the French Embassy in Mexico, Delphine Borione, as well as Emmanuel Eveno, Delphine Jourdain, and the IFAL for the outstanding organization and the quality of their welcome.