From the 1st to the 5th of June, one young representative from each of the winning projects, plus the 5 International Climate Champions from last year Mara Abigail Güerica, from Durango; Javier Ramírez from Veracruz; Israel González from Sonora; Angel Miguel Flores from Tabasco y Adrian Mariano from Mexico City, as well as two international guest champions, Stephen Marshall from the United Kingdom and Pedro Lemus from Brazil. They will be meeting in Mexico City to attend a series of activities and workshops before attending the award ceremony which will take place on Friday 5th June in Xcaret Quintana Roo, to mark World Environment Day.

On their first day, the youngsters visted Xochimilco. Situated in the south of Mexico City , Xochimilco was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 thanks to the uniqueness of the area: canals which are intertwined with a farming system, known as chinampas (floating gardens). Xochimilco is a náhuatl word that means “ the place of the flowering seeds.

The International Climate Champions were taken on a guided tour through the Xochimilco canals to visit the Salamander Aquarium. Here, these animals, which are close to extinction, are raised and studied. The Mexican word for salamander is ajolote , which comes from the náhuatl word axolotl , which means acuatic monster. The main function of this centre is to reintegrate the salamanders back into their natural habitat as well as carrying out research about the reptiles. This is due to unusual and unique characteristics of the salamander, such as the fact that when they lose an organ, they can regenerate it as well as being able to breathe in three different ways; through the mouth, the gills o their skin.

The Champions commented that it was the first time that they had encountered this kind of animal that only exists in this area.

The Champions also visited an agricultural area where a variety of vegetables, such as rocket and lettuce are cultivated. Here they learned that this area, an enclave of Mexico City , produces natural resources without pesticides. The quality of the produce has meant that some important chefs have become regular customers.

Finally, the Champions visited the Island of the Dolls. This is a floating garden, where there are a huge number of folls hanging from trees and bushes. The person who started this collection says that they did it because a ghost of a young girl who had drowned there was appearing to frighten people, so they started to put dolls there in order to calm her spirt. To date there are more than 1000 dolls there. This floating garden also has a dedicated area to the disposal of human waste, which is processed through a dry system. It is controlled at more than 70 degrees C, which kills all kinds of bacteria, and is then turned into compost, which is used to plant both ornamental plants and vegetables.