A new Museum of Memory and Tolerance in Mexico City has been inaugurated by the country's president, Felipe Calderon, together with the museum's director, Sharon Zaga.

The site has been created from a desire by the Memoria y Tolerancia organisation to both teach tolerance to new generations of Mexican people and outline the lessons to be learnt from the Holocaust and other genocidal horror stories. The Ricardo Legorreta-designed, five-storey, 75,300sq ft (7,000sq m) museum - situated in Plaza Juarez in the city's historical centre - is divided into two sections.

'Memory' not only features exhibits on the Nazi Holocaust and how it was seen from Mexico but also covers conflicts both historic and recent in Darfur, Rwanda, Cambodia, Armenia and Srebrenica in the former Yugoslavia. Additionally, the 36-year civil war in Guatemala is shown, a conflict which saw the killing by government forces of thousands of Mayan Indian villagers.

Elsewhere, 'Tolerance' comprises 20 different halls presenting topics such as 'Stereotypes and prejudices', 'Discrimination, hate and violence', 'The power of the media', The richness of diversity' and 'Lessons for humanity'. One entire floor is dedicated to workshops for children, where - through the use of games, stories and dynamics - they are shown the value of tolerance, respect and diversity.

In addition to the permanent exhibition, the museum also has a library, media centre, areas for temporary exhibitions, an auditorium and a teaching centre.