The leadership, talent, and impact of nineteen women were recognized under the mantra “Women on the Front Lines.”
Science, entrepreneurship, health, sports, art, and social leadership all have something in common this year: Tecnológico de Monterrey Education Group women who are making a difference in these fields.
Consequently, the 2026 Mujer Tec Awards recognized nineteen of them for their contributions and leadership.
This day marked years, nay lifetimes, of work by these women in their respective fields.
Established in 2013, these awards have honored 275 women, including students, alumni, faculty members, staff, physicians, and executives from Tec de Monterrey, TecSalud, and Tecmilenio: the institutions that make up the Education Group.
The 2026 Mujer Tec Awards ceremony
Tec students Valeria González and Jana Quiñones kicked off the ceremony to honor women who have made a difference and transformed communities with an excerpt from Respuesta a Sor Filotea de la Cruz (A Reply to Sister Filoteca de la Cruz) by Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz.
“We have nineteen winners, all with inspiring stories that perfectly reflect the vision of this initiative”.
“This year, our campaign is entitled ‘Women on the Front Lines’ and there is no better example than the stories that have brought us together today”, said Jessica González, the Tec’s Vice President of Inclusion, Integrity, and Compliance.
Jessica González was accompanied on the awards panel by David Garza, Executive President of the Tecnológico de Monterrey Education Group; Juan Pablo Murra, Rector of the Tec; Guillermo Torre, Rector of TecSalud; Bruno Zepeda, Rector of Tecmilenio; and Felisa González, Director of the Center for the Recognition of Human Dignity.
At the 14th edition of the Mujer Tec Awards, winners were given the Fearless Woman award to recognize their projects and achievements.
Master of ceremonies Sandra Canales introduced the various categories and winners, who delivered brief remarks expressing not only their gratitude but also their determination to continue making a positive impact on society.
One of the most emotive moments of the afternoon was the posthumous award presented to Blanca Idalia Brambila for her leadership in the circular economy, which generated measurable environmental impacts and left a legacy of sustainable innovation in Mexico.
Her family (Darío Brambila, Blanca Pérez, and Jesús del Bosque Garza) took the stage to accept the award and, in a moment of silence filled with both nostalgia and pride, they acknowledged the lasting impact Blanca had had not only on those who knew her but also on the environment.
“Her untimely passing left a huge void, but it also made a lasting impression on her community and on those who had the privilege of knowing her.
“She wanted to change the world, and did so by planting the seeds of the circular economy and sustainability. Thank you for recognizing her legacy”, said her father.
In the Inspiring Stories and Lumi Velázquez Pioneer categories, the achievements of two women who left a lasting legacy in the fields of health and education were recognized.
The first of these was Ana María Espinosa, who spent forty years working in the healthcare sector promoting compassionate care for patients and empowering other women to become leaders at TecSalud.
Martha Beatriz Casarini was also honored posthumously for the impact she had on the lives of her students, colleagues, and friends through her work in education.
Finally, Garza delivered a message in which he remarked that nearly three hundred women have been honored with a Mujer Tec Award.
“At this ceremony, we’ve laughed, we’ve cried, we’ve been surprised, and we’ve been inspired”, said the executive.
Nominations are now being accepted for the 15th annual Mujer Tec Awards.
This year’s campaign is entitled ‘Women on the Front Lines’, and there’s no better example than the stories that have brought us together today”. —Jessica González, Vice President of Inclusion, Integrity, and Compliance at the Tec
These are the winners of the 2026 MujerTec Awards
Below, we introduce each of the winners of a Mujer Tec Award and highlight the achievements that earned them this distinction.
-Art and Cultural Management
Sac Nicté Guevara Calderón
This professor from Prepa Tecmilenio in Durango was the first Mexican to receive the 2025 Norman Sims Prize, which is awarded by the International Association of Literary Journalism Studies for the best student research project.
Guevara is also the founder and editor-in-chief of the magazine La Desvelada, which promotes the training, publication, and leadership of women in culture and journalism. She has conducted research at the New York Public Library, the María Zambrano Library, and the Library of Philology at the Complutense University of Madrid.
Georgina González Mendívil
González is a PrepaTec Sinaloa professor and the author of three novels: Incurable (2012), Gorda (2019), and Caleidoscopio (2023). Her work explores issues concerning identity, the body, and the female experience from a gender perspective.
She is the founder of the Creative Writing Workshop on the Sinaloa campus, and last year she launched Voces Violetas, a workshop designed to help female students find their voice.
Wendy Juárez Melo
A graduate of the Hidalgo campus, her career has focused on social transformation through art, education, and public service.
Juárez is the founder of Corazón Contento, a social enterprise that promotes economic independence and women’s leadership in artisan communities.
She is also the winner of the 2024 ECO Challenge Latin America and has been named Entrepreneur of the Year by AMEXME and the Hidalgo Business Coordination Council.
-Entrepreneurship
Marla Paola Silvas Treviño
Silvas is a medical student and founder of Hakuna Limits, a social enterprise operating in Tanzania where 80% of leadership positions are held by local women. This project has been presented at international forums such as the APRU Global Health Conference in Malaysia and GLP Nepal.
She is the creator of the Malaika Model for the eradication of female genital mutilation, which was honored with Nuevo León’s 2025 Peak Impact Award and took first place at GSEA Monterrey 2025 for its sustainability and female leadership.
Claudia Medellín Ybinarriaga
A graduate of the Mexico City campus, Medellín is the co-founder of Audacia, a communications and public relations agency, through which she has successfully positioned more than two hundred technology companies.
She launched Mexico’s first digital marketing diploma program and has created platforms and content that amplify the voices of female founders, executives, and entrepreneurs.
-Health and Wellbeing
Cecilia Britton Robles
Britton is a pediatric cardiologist specializing in congenital heart disease and pediatric echocardiography at TecSalud’s Zambrano Hellion Hospital.
Under her leadership, the hospital logged zero complications and a zero-mortality rate among patients with congenital heart disease in 2023, according to an audit by Boston Children’s Hospital.
She played a key role in the hospital’s participation in the International Quality Improvement Collaborative, which established it as a national leader in pediatric cardiology.
-Citizenship with a Gender Perspective
Abril Torres Sánchez
A graduate of PrepaTec Metepec, Torres holds a bachelor’s degree in Hispanic language and literature and a master’s degree in gender studies.
She is a co-creator of the Inclusive Language in Educational Settings course and has led multidisciplinary projects focused on preventing gender-based violence and mainstreaming inclusion policies. In 2022, she set up the Tecmilenio Community Safety and Inclusion Office.
Larisa Lara Guerrero
A graduate of the State of Mexico campus, Lara specializes in migration, development, and global governance, and has over ten years of experience at the International Organization for Migration.
As the founder and director of the Global Diaspora Policy Alliance, she spearheaded the creation of the Working Group on Gender and Youth, which promotes women’s equal participation in decision-making and the development of inclusive policies.
-Environment
Karina Coronado Apodaca
A research professor on the Tec’s Guadalajara campus, she holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, a master’s degree in natural resources, and a Ph.D. in environmental engineering.
Coronado leads projects focused on water sustainability, waste recovery, and the circular economy.
She heads up the Circular Economy Pathways for Agro-Industrial Waste project, as well as the Cyanotoxin Prediction System, an AI-based system for predicting cyanotoxin risks developed by an interdisciplinary team composed entirely of women.
Blanca Brambila Pérez (+)
Brambilla graduated from the Monterrey campus with a bachelor’s degree in marketing. She led Heineken Mexico’s sustainability and social responsibility strategy, whose vision was later adopted by Heineken Global.
This strategy achieved the following environmental impacts: 3.8 million cubic meters of water saved annually, 1,300 hectares reforested, forty tons of CO₂ reduced, and twenty-five tons of plastic eliminated.
Her Heineken Green Challenge initiative, which comprised 3,231 projects, 9,905 entrepreneurs, and the participation of 1,141 universities, has left a lasting legacy in sustainable innovation.
This award was presented posthumously as Blanca Brambila passed away in 2024.
Rosanna Bonasia
A scientist specializing in environmental and hydraulic risks, Bonasia is a research professor at the Tec in the State of Mexico and the leader of the Water 360° group, which focuses on urban water resilience.
The author of more than thirty scientific publications, she has conducted applied research in advanced hydrodynamic modeling, including a 3D model of the Santa Catarina River for extreme events.
She headed up flood risk projects in Villahermosa, Monterrey, and Mexico City and developed the AI-based digital twin InfraRisk360.
-Technological Transformation
Biniza Vázquez Moreno
A student on the Tec’s Puebla campus, Vázquez has excelled in robotics and programming. She was the first captain, programmer, and driver of her FRC team and a national medalist at the Mexican Women’s Computer Science Olympiad.
At sixteen, she became the youngest participant in the 2024 International Air & Space Program, at which she co-created the winning project. Vázquez is a co-founder of Morfo Prosthetics, a startup that develops affordable bionic prosthetics selected for the Top 100 Global Prototypes for Humanity.
She is also a co-creator of a biological coating for lunar habitats that will be tested on the International Space Station in 2026, and the founder of Syntax Robotics, a STEM community focused on gender equity.
Paola Ricaurte Quijano
A research professor on the Tec’s Mexico City campus and a faculty associate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society (Harvard), she was named on the TIME100 AI list, which cemented her status as a global leader in AI with a feminist and human rights-based approach.
Ricaurte is a co-founder of Tierra Común, an international network focused on data decolonization, and the coordinator of the Feminist AI Research Network in Latin America and the Caribbean.
She serves as an expert on OECD–GPAI (the Implementation Group for the UNESCO Recommendation on AI Ethics) and Women for Ethical AI, and co-coordinated the report Towards Substantive Equality in Artificial Intelligence.
-Sport and Sports Management
Aixa Benitez Cruz
A student at Tecmilenio Cuernavaca, she has a background in martial arts, teaching, and volunteer work promoting sports culture as a tool for transformation.
Benitez is the founder of the Titanes Sports Center, which has promoted women’s participation in martial arts by creating a safe and supportive environment.
She participates in free self-defense programs for women and martial arts classes for girls and boys.
Karen Panecatl Urquiza
A graduate student at the Santa Fe campus, Panecatl is a Shaolin-style Kung Fu martial artist with over eighteen years of experience at the highest level.
Having been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, she rebuilt her training regimen through neuromuscular rehabilitation and a technical overhaul of her workout routine, ultimately making a comeback on the international stage.
As a member of the Mexican national team, she won a gold medal at the 2024 Zhengzhou International Martial Arts Festival; she has also won Pan American medals and a medal at the World Championships in Emeishan, China.
She is the founder of Ser Inmune, a project that documents real-life training, symptom management, and practical training strategies for people with a chronic condition.
-Sciences
Ana María Pinilla Torres
A chemist and researcher in nanomedicine, whose research focuses on selective nanosystems for gene therapy targeting HER2-positive breast cancer, she has adopted an interdisciplinary approach to provide more precise treatments.
Pinilla is a student mentor on the Monterrey campus, where she developed strategies for holistic wellbeing and life purpose. She won the Novus Tríada in 2025, which is an international project focused on resilience and a growth mindset among first-year students.
-Transformational Leadership
Vanessa Payán López
A graduate of the Mexico City campus, Payán is an executive with over twenty years’ experience leading strategic, cultural, and technological transformation initiatives.
From senior management positions at financial institutions, she has championed a integrated vision centered on efficiency, innovation, sustainability, wellbeing, and talent development.
She is the founder of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion group, which has pioneered policies on gender equity, accessibility, and holistic wellbeing, and she has also established strategic partnerships with UN Women, the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), and the World Economic Forum (WEF).
-Inspiring Stories
Ana María Espinosa Salas
Espinosa held the position of director of nursing at San José Hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrating effective leadership focused on the institution’s mission and vision, as well as on transforming nursing practice toward more humanized care.
She is a specialist in adult intensive care and holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing, a master’s degree in nursing science, a master’s degree in education, and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in education.
-Pionera Lumi Velázquez
Martha Beatriz Casarini Ratto (+)
Casarini was an educator, researcher, and university professor who specialized in education and curriculum design.
At Tec de Monterrey, she worked as a professor and coordinated the redesign of the core curriculum of the Master’s in Education with specializations.
This award was also presented posthumously as the professor passed away last December.
About the Mujer Tec Awards
The Mujer Tec Awards were established in 2013 and have become a platform for highlighting women’s talent, leadership, and contributions.
These awards serve as a platform to recognize the talent of women at the institution.
The winners received a medal called Mulier Amet (Latin for “Fearless Woman”) designed by C37 and inspired by Kristen Visbal’s sculpture “Fearless Girl”, which symbolizes women’s leadership.
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