[FOUND] Technologies for Locating our Disappeared
Since the ‘War on Drugs’ was declared in 2006, over 120,000 people are reported as disappeared in Mexico. The consequences for their families are immeasurable.
FOUND leverages science and technology to support searching mothers in locating their disappeared loved ones. We use tools like drones, hyperspectral and multispectral cameras, LiDAR, seismic noise sensors, and conductivity meters to detect clandestine graves. Recent efforts also focus on using satellite data to detect clandestine crematoriums based on ash signatures. Early findings are promising.
The Role of Searching Mothers Collectives
Madres buscadoras (searching mothers) draw on deep knowledge to identify potential clandestine graves—sites where their disappeared loved ones might be buried. In open areas, they look for natural indicators—such as off-season greenery or unusually blooming flowers—that suggest bodies may be enriching the soil. Using a T-shaped metal stake, they pierce the ground and smell it for decomposition.
In abandoned houses, the same tool—called a vidente (seer)—is used to tap cement floors and listen for hollow sounds that may indicate graves.
About the FOUND Project
Launched in 2023, FOUND (Interpretar la Naturaleza para Encontrar a Quienes nos Faltan) combines the grassroots knowledge of searching mothers with cutting-edge technological tools. Based in Jalisco—the Mexican state with the highest number of recorded disappearances (over 16,000)—FOUND operates experimental sites that use pig carcasses as proxies for human remains. These sites enable researchers to study decomposition patterns, analyse environmental indicators, and test detection technologies.
As a result of this work, the Jalisco Search Commission now incorporates drones, multispectral cameras, and laser scanners into its official search operations, with further technologies scheduled for acquisition in 2026. FOUND has also established international collaborations with forensic teams in Colombia, Uruguay, and the United Kingdom.
We test methods that integrate:
- Forensic Entomology, Botany, Territorial Analysis, Soil Science
- Multispectral & Hyperspectral Imaging
- Airborne LiDAR & Laser Technology
- Seismic Noise Interferometry (TIRSA)
- Electrical Resistivity Tomography, Conductivimetry
- Satellite Spectral Analysis
.jpeg?raw=true)
FOUND is supported by the FCDO Frontier Tech Hub.
The Book
The book Interpreting Nature to Locate Those We Are Missing (Interpretar la Naturaleza para Encontrar a Quienes nos Faltan) outlines scientific approaches to locating clandestine graves. An English edition is forthcoming.
Partners
This project is made possible thanks to:
- Searching Mothers Collectives
- CentroGeo
- Jalisco Search Commission
- UNAM Institute of Geophysics
- UNAM Faculty of Engineering
- Four Centres of the University of Guadalajara
- UPZMG
- University of the West of England
- University of Oxford
- Frontier Tech Hub
- British Association for Forensic Anthropology
- Colombia’s Unit for the Search of Disappeared Persons
FOUND: Interpretar la Naturaleza para Encontrar a Quienes nos Faltan
