Mexico's Disappeared Practicum - Incite at Columbia University

The Mexico’s Disappeared Practicum offers students a unique opportunity to study the phenomenon of forced disappearance while gaining hands-on experience in conducting social science research.

Students are trained in methods such as interviews, digital ethnography, archival analysis, and GIS mapping. Working collaboratively, they produce original empirical findings aimed at understanding patterns and contexts of disappearance in Mexico.

The original design of the Practicum's work was done in coordination with Mexico's Comisión Nacional de Búsqueda de Personas Desaparecidas (CNB), and for its initial years was carried out in close collaboration with Zacatecas state's Comisión Local de Búsqueda de Personas Desaparecidas (CLBZ). The CNB has a legal mandate to produce “context analysis of disappearances," and for two years the Practicum collaborated in that effort. Beginning in 2024, the Practicum no longer has ties to the CNB and is a research space covering disappearance throughout Mexico.

In 2022, the inaugural cohort focused on Zacatecas, one of the states most severely affected by disappearance. Their research examined environmental, criminological, and political-economic factors shaping the crisis. Students produced reports that contributed directly to the identification of disappearance patterns.

Building on prior findings, the 2023 cohort deepened research into the political economy and criminology of disappearance, while launching new investigations into the “Zone of Silence” and the role of social media.

During the 2024 Practicum, students conducted research to deepen understanding of the broader phenomenon of disappearance. Building on prior findings, they analyzed the connections between drug retail, forced recruitment, pop culture, social media, migration, and disappearance.

During the 2025–2026 academic year, the Practicum will continue to produce socially impactful research by:

• Deepening research on disappearance among migrant communities in Mexico
• Expanding analysis of how organized crime groups use social media platforms
• Launching a new line of research on prisons, rehab centers, and safety houses