Children growing up in Maya and other Indigenous communities across southern Mexico face some of the country's highest rates of poverty and educational inequality. This project equips public school teachers with evidence-based Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) tools to strengthen children's well-being, mental health, and learning, so every child gets the start they deserve.
The future depends on education, and education depends on teachers. Yet many educators serving Indigenous communities in southern Mexico have never received training to support children's mental health and social-emotional development. Without this support, generations of Indigenous children will continue to fall behind.
Building on 13 years of experience, this project brings Educating for Wellbeing to Maya and Tseltal communities in southern Mexico. Teachers start by strengthening their own well-being, then learn practical SEL strategies culturally adapted to each community's language, values, and traditions. Delivered through in-person and online sessions, the program ensures that when teachers are well, children feel safer, learn better, and develop the skills that change their life trajectories.
What starts with one teacher can transform an entire community. Once educators complete Educating for Wellbeing, selected leaders enter our Systemic Leadership Training, learning to guide and support their peers. This creates a self-sustaining cycle: trained leaders expand the program from within, school by school, reaching more Indigenous children over time without depending on outside resources.
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