QUERETARO – For our twelfth and final live Instagram broadcast before the summer break, when planning will get underway for new and fascinating content showcasing the world of Inter Campus, we chose to get in touch with Sister Adriana, an organisational representative belonging to a long-standing partner in the form of the Sisters of Saint Marcellina, and Karla Gutierrez, national technical coordinator of the Mexican project and an Inter Campus coach.
Sister Adriana reflected on the foundation and evolution of the project: “The congregation of the Sisters of Saint Marcellina arrived in Mexico in 1984, with our work in Queretaro beginning in 1989. In 2006, the Italian Sister Grazia Pizzarello, visiting for an educational exchange and who was in contact with the Moratti family, began to reflect on the possibility of integrating the social activities already in place and those that the Inter Campus project could bring to the table. In 2010, with the visit of Carlotta Moratti, the project was officially launched, and it is still going today.”
Meanwhile, Karla, who has always been passionate about football, met with Christian, the Inter Campus Mexico Project Manager, who told her about the Inter Campus mission. In 2011, she started coaching the girls, discovering, thanks to the methodological training methods of the Inter Campus, a new mission in life!
The key similarity between the Sisters’ approach and the Inter Campus spirit is the commitment to enhancing the life of the individual through the game. At Inter Campus, it’s not about competition. Instead, it’s about trying to integrate all the children who take part, and to make it enjoyable for them.
“Mexican children face various serious hardships and risks on a daily basis, which is why each local center is established in contexts with different needs, but always with the goal of offering a safe space, ‘protected’ from crime, drugs, and alcohol. At the same time, another highly relevant and important objective in a country like Mexico, which is often tied to macho stereotypes, is the respect for gender equality. This is addressed through training sessions for girls and an annual tournament for girls from all the centers, where their male peers are invited to cheer them on!”
Among her unforgettable experiences, Karla highlights an extraordinary team spirit between all the Italian and Mexican coaches, as well as the memorable trips to Chiapas for training sessions with 300 children!
Among the suggestions and advice offered by the interviewees: more comprehensive training for coaches that is not only technical and football-related but broader in scope to address the children’s needs and gaps; and extending the age range for the children and young people involved, perhaps by imagining an alliance with universities or finding a common path forward together…”
