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Mexico City Proposes Cabinets in Schools and Restaurants to Reduce Cell Phone Use
🇲🇽 Mexico /Culture & Society

Mexico City Proposes Cabinets in Schools and Restaurants to Reduce Cell Phone Use

From El Universal · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Mexico City plans to install cabinets in schools and restaurants to store mobile phones, aiming to reduce screen time.
  • Students would deposit phones in locked cabinets during school hours, and families could use them in restaurants.
  • The initiative, part of a national consultation on phone use in schools, also includes educational materials and a digital campaign.

Mexico City's government is proposing the installation of cabinets in schools and restaurants to encourage reduced mobile phone usage. This initiative aims to help students and families disconnect from screens and engage more directly with their surroundings and each other.

Announced by Head of Government Clara Brugada, the plan involves students storing their phones in locked cabinets provided at educational institutions. Similarly, these cabinets will be offered in restaurants, creating spaces where families can spend quality time without the distraction of mobile devices. The cabinets themselves are produced by individuals in correctional facilities under the brand "Hazme Valer."

Students will be able to store their mobile phones in these cabinets and thus reduce screen use in these spaces.

— Clara BrugadaAnnouncing the proposal to install phone cabinets.

This proposal emerges amidst a national consultation launched by the Secretariat of Public Education (SEP) regarding cellphone use in schools. Brugada's administration is introducing several measures to decrease the time children and adolescents spend looking at screens. Andrés Ponce Aceituno, undersecretary of the Penitentiary System of the Ministry of Citizen Security (SSC), presented two models of these cabinets, designed to hold 24 or 30 devices and equipped with locks.

Beyond the physical cabinets, the local administration's strategy includes a "decalogue" for children on device usage and a widespread digital communication campaign. The overarching goal is to foster healthier relationships with technology and promote more present, screen-free interactions.

The intention is that students or families leave their phones there, lock them, and focus on spending quality time free from screens.

— Andrés Ponce AceitunoDescribing the function of the proposed cabinets.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Universal in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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