Do you believe that every person has innate talents that deserve to flourish? We do. At the Atz'umak training center, Mayan instructors provide unique opportunities for local youth to cultivate those talents in a series of wide-ranging trainings on conservation, development, climate resilience, and leadership skills. With your support, 350 Mayan youth and young adults will benefit from these empowering opportunities that support sustainable livelihoods with equity, justice, and solidarity.
Alta Verapaz is home to biodiversity-rich rainforests and wetlands. However its natural resources are threatened by powerful outside interests. The Mayan communities in this remote region are survivors of Guatemala's civil war and live with the legacy of trauma, discrimination, and marginalization. Youth are extremely vulnerable where a lack of educational and economic opportunities leads to disempowerment. Youth migrate to urban centers leading to loss of ancestral lands and indigenous culture.
Atz'umak, meaning to flourish in Mayan, is a living laboratory and learning center for applied training and sharing of expertise in natural sciences and indigenous knowledge. For youth, it is a place to connect with their culture, to nature, and to develop critical skills so that they may flourish. Your support will build the leadership capacity of 350 youth to implement community-based sustainable development initiatives to care for their lands and nature and respond to global climate change.
ORCONDECO's youth programs have a profound ripple effect across the rainforest landscape. Empowered young emerging leaders have established community agreements for sustainable use of forests and wildlife. Instead of selling their lands to agribusiness and migrating, they remain stewards of the land that nourishes them in return. By providing education, opportunities, and tools to uncover their potential, youth are empowered to build a better future for the people and nature of Alta Verapaz.
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