mexican public intellectual, grassroots activist, and co-founder of the universidad de la tierra in oaxaca. a close collaborator of ivan illich and one of the principal theorists of post-development: the idea that development, as a concept and a project, has done more harm than good and should be abandoned rather than reformed.

his concept of radical hospitality, the commons as a space of genuine welcome, structured around care and reciprocity rather than transaction, extends conviviality into the social. a convivial tool is one that makes you more capable; a convivial community is one that makes everyone more capable without extracting from anyone.

his grassroots pedagogy, practised at unitierra in oaxaca, treats learning as a commons: no curriculum, no credential, no hierarchy of knowledge. people teach what they know, learn what they need, and the institution holds the space.

the geographic connection matters: he works from oaxaca, where i live. soft stack ecology and unitierra share ground.

universidad de la tierra oaxaca