Meet Xóchitl, the 8-year-old who won the “ICN Recognition for Women”

Xóchitl Guadalupe Cruz López

, 8, is the first girl in Mexico to receive the ICN Recognition for Women , awarded by the Nuclear Sciences Institute ( ICN ) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico ( UNAM ), for demonstrating outstanding skills on science diffusion .

Xóchitl is from Altos de Chiapas , Chiapas , southern Mexico, and she is currently attending third grade at Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez elementary school .

Her parents recall that she has been passionate about science from an early age , even though they live in a rural area and they do not have the means to send Xóchitl to extracurricular classes.

Jesús Iradier Santiago

, State Coordinator of UNAM's Adopt a Talent Program ( PAUTA ), assured that despite the obstacles, this is Xóchitl's fourth year participating in PAUTA , adding that she has won prizes at the different fairs organized by the program.

On Twitter, PAUTA wrote in Spanish: "Xóchitl Guadalupe Cruz López, from PAUTA Chiapas, wins first place in Expo Science 2017 with her project Baño Calientito (Warm Bath)."

There are many children and young people with a great capacity for both education and science in Mexico, yet that talent is frequently lost because children do not receive the adequate attention by the authorities or even their families, highlighted Jesús Santiago.

"I am very happy for the awards. I never imagined getting here. It's something I cannot describe," said the little girl, who thanked her parents and her brother for the help provided.

Among a couple of projects, Xóchitl built a solar water heater for her own house consisting of two glass doors, hoses connecting buckets and the water tank, and some bottles. Xóchitl's father helped her to connect the hoses and to install her invention on the roof of her house.

Xóchitl's mind does not stop and she is currently thinking about making a larger heater with solar panels , so she is looking for the support of universities or researchers.

"There are people who do not have the possibility of buying those heaters, so they cut trees instead to get firewood affecting the world as they contribute to global warming," she stated.

Xóchitl's father, Lucio Guadalupe , said that families should "support the little ones, who are the future," adding that the support provided to her daughter has been unconditional from the very beginning, which has made her and her whole family entirely happy.

Mexican girl creates solar powered heater for impoverished families

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