Ecological Sustainability

Close-up of a San Miguel de Allende tranquil mountain stream cascading through rocks and lush greenery.

Ecological

Sustainability

A thriving environment sustains a thriving city.

SMCF invests in conservation projects, clean-water initiatives, and environmental education programs that protect San Miguel’s natural resources.

Our partners reforest hillsides, restore watersheds, and teach sustainable farming practices. Small, timely grants help these grassroots efforts fight climate change locally and preserve the beauty of San Miguel for future generations.

Partner Spotlight

Water security is one of the most urgent challenges facing rural communities surrounding San Miguel. In some areas, municipal water flows only a few hours each week. In others, groundwater contamination from arsenic and fluoride has rendered traditional wells unsafe for human consumption.

Tikkun Centro para la Ecología y Sustentabilidad Económica (CEESMA) works alongside local communities to restore ecological systems that make long-term water access possible.

Through grants awarded by SMCF in 2023 and 2024, Tikkun has restored rainwater reservoirs and launched large-scale reforestation efforts in the communities of San José de Gracia, where water access is limited to two days per week, and Los Torres, an ejido community facing severe groundwater toxicity.

Working in partnership with residents and regional collaborators including Caminos de Agua, community members constructed terraces, dams, and more than three kilometers of stone retention walls designed to capture rainfall, prevent erosion, and rebuild depleted landscapes. The project has already generated permanent local employment while supporting the planting of thousands of native trees to restore watershed health.

These efforts do more than conserve land. They rebuild ecological resilience, strengthen local economies, and help ensure that families can remain safely in the communities they call home.