Accountability Lab México is reimagining governance from the ground up by working hand-in-hand with communities, civil society, artists, and public servants to co-create systems that are more transparent, inclusive, and rooted in justice. Since our launch, we’ve focused on shifting narratives, strengthening civic participation, and supporting the everyday leaders who work with integrity to make public institutions more responsive.

Our approach is people-first and impact-driven. From spotlighting honest public servants through Integrity Icon, to advancing gender justice through music and storytelling with Voice2Rep, and facilitating collective problem-solving in underserved communities with our Civic Action Teams, we’re proving that accountability can be creative and transformative.

Based in Mexico City, we are part of Accountability Lab’s global translocal network, which shares tools, stories, and strategies while staying grounded in the specific social, political, and cultural realities of Mexico.

We believe accountability is not just a goal; it’s a daily practice. And we know it looks different in every context. That’s why we prioritize local leadership and participatory approaches that respond to communities’ lived experiences and evolving needs.

In Mexico, our work focuses on three core pillars:

• Building trust between citizens and institutions through positive storytelling and recognition;
• Creating inclusive platforms to amplify civic voices, particularly from structurally excluded communities;
• Strengthening integrity in public life by connecting unlikely networks and amplifying values-centered leadership.

Whether through music, data, public policy, or direct community engagement, our programs are designed to elevate new voices, co-create practical solutions, and shift power for a more just and accountable society.

Integrity Icon México

Since 2019, Integrity Icon México has celebrated honest and values-driven public servants who go above and beyond to serve their communities with integrity. What began as a pilot in Mexico City has since evolved into a national campaign, reaching across states and sectors with a message of possibility and the transformative power of ethical public service.

Through a nomination and deliberation process, short films, popular voting, and public recognition, the campaign shifts narratives around government, highlights role models, and strengthens the connection between citizens and public institutions.

Over the years, we’ve designed thematic editions to deepen relevance and engagement, including:

• 2019 – Mexico City, Regional Edition
• 2021  – Mexico City, COVID Edition
• 2021 – Women in Public Service & Sustainability
• 2022-2024 – Youth & Sustainability
• 2025 – Accountability

In 2024, the campaign culminated in a national Integrity Summit, where 10 finalist icons shared their journeys and sparked a broader dialogue on institutional integrity. Many of our Icons have since continued shaping public systems, mentoring peers, and collaborating across sectors.

Voice2Rep

Voice2Rep is an artivism platform that amplifies the stories and demands of marginalized communities through collective music creation and narrative justice. Originally launched in Liberia, the program arrived in Mexico in 2022 with a feminist lens and a focus on creative resilience, thanks to the leadership of our Voice2Rep Fellow, singer-songwriter and sociologist Leiden Gomis.

Volver al Corazón (2022–2024)
This first iteration brought together incarcerated women across five penitentiary centers in Mexico to create a collective album of testimonial songs. Over 18 sessions, participants explored themes of dignity, injustice, motherhood, and survival, turning their experiences into powerful musical stories.
The resulting album, Volver al Corazón, features nine songs that blend vulnerability and resistance, and has since resonated in civil society, legal defense circles, and international advocacy spaces.
One participant, Dolores de León, not only regained her freedom through a landmark gender-based defense but also became a vocal advocate. She nominated her public defender, Susana Montañez, for Integrity Icon, sparking a ripple of recognition, new networks, and cross-sector collaboration.

Atrapasueños – 2025 [in preparation]
We are now preparing the second iteration of Voice2Rep México: Atrapasueños, a participatory storytelling and songwriting process with people in contexts of mobility, including migrants in transit, returnees, asylum seekers, and displaced communities.
Through creative workshops, we aim to reclaim voice and visibility in a country that continues to be a transit, destination, and return corridor for hundreds of thousands of people. The project uses music not only as expression, but as a tool for healing, identity, and resistance in a landscape shaped by criminalization, exclusion, and disinformation.

Civic Action Teams (2024-2025)

Locally known as Laboratorio de Acción Cívica, our Civic Action Teams (CivActs) in Mexico are designed to foster citizen feedback, collective dialogue, and community-led action. In a context where many structurally excluded communities lack safe and accessible platforms to raise their voices, CivActs offers a pathway to identify needs, co-create solutions, and hold institutions accountable.

Our pilot program launched in Yuguelito, an informal settlement in the Iztapalapa district of Mexico City. Originally considered for a Voice2Rep intervention, the approach evolved as we listened to the community, prioritizing local leadership and responsiveness.

In Yuguelito, we’ve implemented all phases of the CivActs methodology:

• Listening – Through participatory workshops, residents identified urgent challenges such as water access, violence, and lack of public lighting.
• Data Collection – Eleven Community Frontline Agents (CFAs) carried out a community-wide survey, reaching over 12% of the population (255 responses).
• Interpretation & Dissemination – Working with local leaders and data designers, we translated survey results into visual materials. We held a General Assembly to validate priorities through community mapping and participatory voting.
• Action – Informed by the recommendations that stemmed from the findings, residents initiated new recreational activities, advanced negotiations with local authorities, and developed a participatory safety and security plan.

This process led to a community Participatory Budget proposal, focused on safe public spaces. Despite being rejected due to discriminatory and unclear criteria, the experience triggered new advocacy efforts to improve transparency and access to Mexico City’s participatory mechanisms.

CivActs México is now a living example of how community-centered design, when rooted in co-responsibility and collective decision-making, can strengthen civic engagement and local governance.

Accountability Incubator México (2021, Pilot)

The Accountability Incubator is one of Accountability Lab’s flagship programs globally, supporting young changemakers with bold ideas to shift norms, strengthen participation, and promote accountability in their communities.

In Mexico, the program was piloted in 2021 through a short-term digital format, with a small group of emerging leaders exploring topics such as open government, integrity in public education, and civic tech for transparency. While this iteration provided valuable insights, it also revealed the need for deeper contextualization, sustained mentorship, and greater alignment with local networks. 

The Incubator remains part of our long-term strategy and institutional memory, not as a fixed product, but as a flexible tool, and we are committed to evolving with intention.

Strengthening governance and accountability in Mexico

In 2022, Accountability Lab México signed a multi-year collaboration agreement with the Executive Secretariat of the National Anticorruption System (SESNA) to promote transparency and inclusion in Mexico’s participatory budgeting mechanisms. This agreement laid the foundation for our work to make public resource allocation more accessible, equitable, and responsive to citizen needs.

In 2025, we supported the community of Yuguelito, in Iztapalapa, to co-design and submit a participatory budgeting proposal focused on street safety and public infrastructure. Although the project was ultimately rejected on unclear grounds, the experience revealed systemic barriers to access for historically excluded communities.

As a result, and aligned with our original objectives under the collaboration agreement with SESNA, we are now preparing an advocacy campaign aimed at improving transparency within the participatory budgeting mechanism and strengthening the legal framework of Mexico City’s Citizen Participation Law, which governs the process.

Open Government Partnership – Nuevo León

Since 2022, Accountability Lab México has played a key role in developing Nuevo León Abierto, a multi-stakeholder coalition formed to join the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Local Program. The coalition brings together the state government of Nuevo León, the municipalities of Monterrey and San Pedro, and civil society actors committed to transparency, inclusion, and public innovation.

Our team co-led the creation of the Civil Society Nucleus (NOSC) and contributed to the design of the 2023–2025 Open Government Action Plan. Through public consultations and technical support, we’ve helped identify commitments that reflect local needs and align with global open government principles.

Nuevo León now serves as a leading example of how coordinated civic engagement can shape governance agendas from the local level. We continue to support the implementation of the action plan.