By Natalie Taylor
Dave Stea, originally from Brooklyn, received a degree in Engineering from Carnegie Institute of Technology, then a PhD in Psychology at Stanford. In the 1960s he was one of the pioneers in the field of Environmental Psychology—how natural and built environments shape us as individuals. It is useful in designing hospitals, schools, prisons, and other public spaces. Research in this area brought Dave to various countries around the world, including Mexico. He became a professor at the Universidad Metropolitana in Mexico City where he often led seminars on Environmental Psychology for engineers and architects. Here he met his future wife, Sylvia, who was teaching Spanish while working on her degree in Philosophy. They married in 1991.
Dave and Sylvia knew they wanted to retire in Mexico, but had not yet found the perfect spot. They traveled to several cities but then decided to visit San Miguel de Allende and were both enchanted by the city. As a native Mexican, from Mexico City, Sylvia was already familiar with San Miguel, but this familiarity had come with baggage—she believed that the city was “way too expensive,” so she did not imagine it possible to come live here. Yet, like so many visitors, they began to investigate potential spaces to live. They were pleasantly surprised when they found a vacant lot in Los Frailes which was affordable, and bought it. A few years later they began building their home and even before it was finished, they moved here permanently in the late 1990s. The house was completed in 2006 to their satisfaction and it’s surrounded by lush gardens and the chirping of birds.
Both Dave and Sylvia have found a welcoming community here and are involved in many aspects of it. Dave works with the Center for Global Justice, a multi-cultural group that offers local community support toward a goal of social justice. Part of what the Center does, is providing lectures, forums, and seminars with the aim of making the world a more just and equitable place. Dave has done a number of lectures for the Center and for the Lifelong Learning Institute. He is also a part of a writers’ group that meets weekly. Sylvia continues being involved in her particular branch of psychology—Ecofemenism. This is a branch of Ethics that focuses on liberating women and nature.
They are both happy living in their home in Los Frailes and love the vibrant, intelligent, and varied people who live in San Miguel; they find no lack of intellectual stimulation in this environment. They are also appreciative of the fact that the majority of the expats here dedicate themselves to improving the community and helping others. It is, in some ways, the fulfillment of the principals of Environmental psychology; a place where the environment and the buildings come together to create a positive space for those who settle here.
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