PROYECTOS || PROJECTS
HOW
Women are at the center of everything that we do. They bear the brunt of suffering, disempowerment & marginalization from converging systems of oppressions. They are also the greatest catalysts for change. When women rise, they lift up everybody else around them with them.
Buena Semilla offers unique spaces for women & men to reclaim their voice, identity & self-authority - further potentiated by opportunities for improved livelihoods and the recovery of collective practices & ancestral knowledge.
Within these spaces and working across all dimensions of wellbeing, we address the intergenerational wounds of colonialism & oppression and together weave into being a sustainable, reproducible movement of hope, solidarity, growth and liberation.
WHY
Indigenous Maya peoples make up almost two-thirds of the population of Guatemala. Despite their majority, they face ongoing oppression, ethnic discrimination, political violence and displacement.
A recent 36-yr armed conflict ending in 1996 - in effect a genocide against the Maya - destroyed the social fabric of entire families & communities, and contributed to pervasive feelings of hopelessness & distress. Substance abuse, especially in the form of alcoholism, is common among men.
Women in Guatemala additionally experience one of the highest rates of gender-based violence in the world - a legacy of colonialism, deeply patriarchal structures, and violence against women as a weapon of war.
Intersecting discriminations and continuing violence in & outside the home significantly impact women, especially those of Mayan descent. Cumulative maternal adversity & distress contribute to more than half of Guatemala’s Indigenous children being stunted.
Axis of Impact
We exist to create & support community-led, community-based spaces where women & men, youth & elders, can genuinely and fully engage in processes of healing, growth & self-determination.
Individual & Collective Healing
Emotional, physical & spiritual wellbeing - Addressing harmful gender norms - Strengthening social cohesion & solidarity - Recovering Buen Vivir
Reconnecting with Mother Earth
Home & community agriculture projects - Tree planting - Recovering indigenous knowledge - Earth stewardship - Maya cosmovision
Supporting Solidarity Economies
Communal Banking - Local markets & exchanges - Strengthening agricultural & craftsmanship skills
Reclaiming Ancestral Knowledge
Listening to the elders - Reclaiming collective spaces - Recovery of traditional rituals & practices - Integration of Maya calendar & spirituality
Communal Growth & Mentorship
Leadership training & mentorship - Collective mentorship of youth in need - Practical skill building - Education opportunities
Women’s Circles
Four Maya Mam women of San Juan Ostuncalco - Miriam, Julia, Isabel & Teresa - are at the heart of Buena Semilla’s Women’s Circles. After collaborating for several years with Dr. Chomat to better understand the lived realities & needs of women living in their communities, they voiced their desire to support local women through Circles. They were instrumental in co-designing this space, and we have been holding Women’s Circles since 2014.
In the safe, equalizing space of the Circle, women learn the importance of lifting each other up in a context where they are often isolated and invisible, even to one another. They build webs of support, share difficulties & solutions and strengthen their self-esteem & agency. They more easily recognize and address gender-based violence and build better relations with partners & families. They learn skills that support their livelihoods. They experience increased wellbeing & less emotional distress.
Activities draw from a broad range of approaches, including popular education, liberation psychology, theater of the oppressed, participatory research, arts-based methodologies, learning-through-play, Indigenous practices, and vocational skills strengthening.
Dialogue Groups
In 2018 and by request, we expanded our work to also include men.
We started with a Gates-funded pilot to assess need, acceptability & feasibility of co-creating collective spaces with/for men, which we did in two distinct regions of Guatemala (Cuilco & Santiago Atitlán). It was highly successful and we are currently working on expanding this model as grassroots, community-based & community-led.
Supporting the participation & wellbeing of local men responds to a large unmet need, helps alleviate stresses that contribute to substance use (especially alcohol) & domestic violence, strengthens the social fabric and indirectly supports the wellbeing of women and children.
Through Dialogue Groups, local men - youth & elders - collectively reflect on the lived realities within their communities and co-design solutions to improve wellbeing. Together they engage in cyclical processes of reflection, conscientization, problem-solving and hope in action.
Priority areas that groups have chosen to address include changes in gender norms, improved communication with partners, reductions in domestic violence & substance abuse, and strengthened direction in life goals & priorities.
93% REPORT IMPROVED SELF-ESTEEM
“I used to be very sensitive. I thought that others with more studies or money were worth more. But I realized that no one is worth more than anyone else and that we are all equal. The Circles have helped me a lot to raise my self-esteem.”
- Participant
89% REPORT IMPROVED EMOTIONAL HEALTH
“I was depressed, feeling down, thinking that I could not move forward, but sharing my sorrows, my situation with the other women, now I trust I can move on.”
- Participant
86% REPORT IMPROVED ABILITY TO SOLVE DAILY PROBLEMS
“I realized that my problems are small compared to other womens’, and that they were fighting to overcome them while I was drowning in a glass of water. Now I don’t get so worried about little things. When problems present themselves, I now can solve them instead of making them bigger than they are. I have also found that I can now solve problems better because I don’t get so angry anymore.”
- Participant
90% REPORT IMPROVED SOCIAL SUPPORT
“The Circles have helped me handle my agitated nerves that came from being isolated at home all the time. Leaving the house, where no one supports you, where instead they scold you, and having a space to laugh and hear the stories and advise of other women, has helped me a lot.”
- Participant
86% REPORT IMPROVED RELATIONSHIP WITH FAMILY
“When you don’t know anything, you feel bad, ashamed, and when you learn a little, you feel happy. Even with the family you start talking and sharing. By participating in the Circle, I feel more comfortable participating at home too, and even start joking and telling stories.”
- Participant
89% REPORT IMPROVED RELATIONSHIP WITH CHILDREN
“I used to be angry all the time, and if my children didn’t obey me I would hit them, and then I would feel sad. I have understood that talking, listening, understanding how things are can help a lot. I hardly get angry anymore.”
- Circle Facilitator
