Hospitalito Atitlán (HA) is a small, private, non-profit hospital serving a population of 43,000 Tz’utujil Maya on the southern shore of beautiful Lake Atitlán. Local physicians, nursing, and administrative staff work closely in collaboration with volunteer medical personnel from around the world to provide a comprehensive scope of care, including the only 24/7 emergency and [...]
Monthly Archives: September 2009
Profile: Maya Pedal
Posted by Laura on September 14, 2009
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Maya Pedal is a non-governmental organization located in San Andrés Itzapa, Chimaltenango. They started in 1997, working with a group of Canadians from the organization PEDAL. Following a vision for sustainable development in Guatemala, they became constituted under local control as Asociación Maya Pedal in 2001. They recycle used bicycles to build pedal-powered machines, bicimáquinas, [...]
Profile: Pop Wuj Spanish School
Posted by Laura on September 14, 2009
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Asociación Centro de Estudios de Español Pop Wuj (pronounced “pope-woo”), set in Highland Guatemala, is a collectively owned and operated Spanish language school that has been serving an international crowd of students since our immersion program began in 1992. Through a unique mix of intensive language study and social service projects, students come to a [...]
Profile: Foundation Todos Juntos
Posted by Laura on September 14, 2009
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The mission of Foundation Todos Juntos is to support public health projects, provide scholarships for students, and assist educational institutions such as language schools for non-Guatemalans in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. The quality of life for families and communities improves when people are given access to education and healthcare. The Foundation therefore supports organizations [...]
Profile: Pop Wuj Clinic
Posted by Laura on September 14, 2009
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At the heart of the Pop Wuj Clinic, is a vision for quality, sustainable healthcare delivered to the most vulnerable residents of Quetzaltenango and several villages in the surrounding rural Highlands of Guatemala. The project, started in 2006 by an Emergency Medicine resident, is now a model for grassroots, collective efforts between a nationally recognized [...]
Article: GUATEMALA – Malnutrition Killing Children Again
Posted by Laura on September 12, 2009
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By Danilo Valladares The following excerpt is from a September 11, 2009 article published by The Inter Press Service News Agency. To view the article in its entirety, please click here. GUATEMALA CITY, Sep 11 (IPS) – The deaths of 25 children from severe malnutrition this year in Guatemala, mainly in the eastern province of [...]
Article: Spanish Charity to Distribute Food to Poor Families in Guatemala
Posted by Laura on September 12, 2009
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The following excerpt is from a September 12, 2009 article in The Latin American Herald Tribune. To read the article in its entirety, please click here. GUATEMALA CITY – The Spanish charity Gaudium Paidos will distribute this weekend two containers of food to poor families in the eastern Guatemalan village of Barranca Seca. The international [...]
Article: Hunger Situation Desperate In Guatemala
Posted by Laura on September 12, 2009
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The following is an excerpt from a statement released by UN World Food Program Executive Director Josette Sheeran on September 11, 2009. To read the statement in its entirety, please click here. ROME — The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) expresses its deep concern about the hunger situation in Guatemala, following the announcement by [...]
Profile: Pura Vida – Colorado
Posted by Laura on September 12, 2009
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Pura Vida is a 501(c)(3), nonprofit organization working to promote health and education in the Quiché department of Guatemala. They are currently focusing on rural villages in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. “Travel with a purpose” is a good way to describe what an international work trip is all about. The emphasis of these trips [...]
Article: Guatemala: Food Crisis Information Bulletin No. 1
Posted by Laura on September 11, 2009
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This bulletin is being issued for information only. The President of the Republic of Guatemala has declared a state of public calamity due to the high level of malnutrition caused by the loss of crops caused by irregular rain, dry and hot conditions as well as high food and fuel prices. According to the authorities, [...]
Article: Guatemalan Government Announces Plan to Alleviate Food Crisis
Posted by Laura on September 10, 2009
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The following excerpt is from a September 10, 2009 article published by The Latin American Herald Tribune. To read the article in its entirety, please click here. GUATEMALA CITY – The Guatemalan government announced a $40 million plan to alleviate the food crisis that is blamed for 17 deaths from malnutrition. Food Security Secretary Juan [...]
Article: Guatemala Declares Calamity as Food Crisis Grows
Posted by Laura on September 10, 2009
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The following excerpt is from an article published on September 9, 2009 by CNN.com. To view the entire article, please click here. (CNN) — Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom has declared a state of national calamity because so many citizens do not have food or proper nutrition. Speaking in a nationally televised address late Tuesday, Colom [...]
Profile: Safe Passage (Camino Seguro)
Posted by Laura on September 10, 2009
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Safe Passage – Hope, Education, Opportunity At Safe Passage (Camino Seguro), the mission is to create opportunities and foster dignity through the power of education. Safe Passage works with the poorest at-risk children of families living and working in the Guatemala City garbage dump. Within a safe and caring environment, they provide a comprehensive and [...]
Profile: Water for People
Posted by Laura on September 9, 2009
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Water For People assists people in developing countries by supporting the development of locally sustainable drinking water resources, sanitation facilities and health and hygiene education programs. Their vision is a world where all people have access to safe drinking water and sanitation; a world where no one suffers or dies from a water- or sanitation-related [...]
Profile: Water Charity
Posted by Laura on September 8, 2009
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Water Charity is a 501(c)(3) that implements practical solutions to provide safe water, effective sanitation, and meaningful health education to those in need. Although Water Charity is relatively new as an organization, they have been “doing water projects” for well over 40 years. In a short time, they have risen to be one of the [...]
Article: Water Series – La Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo
Posted by Laura on September 5, 2009
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A very interesting series on water accessibility in Guatemala was written by Rudy Girón, editor of the La Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo. His first post, from August 11, 2009 is reproduced here, with his permission. To read the series in its entirety, please click here. The series is in blog format, so it may make [...]
Profile: Timmy Foundation
Posted by Laura on September 5, 2009
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Founded in 1997 by Dr. Chuck Dietzen, Timmy Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based out of Indianapolis, Indiana that channels resources to sustainable health projects in developing countries. Partnering with established NGOs in Ecuador and Guatemala, the Timmy Foundation sends a group of volunteers every two-three months to perform medical relief in underserved [...]
Article: Hungry in Guatemala
Posted by Laura on September 3, 2009
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This excerpt is from an article published in the August 26, 2009 issue of The Atlantic. To view the article in its entirety, please click here. At the G8 meeting in Italy last month, the world’s richest countries agreed to devote $20 billion to food security and agricultural development. President Barack Obama declared that the [...]
Article: Malnutrition in Guatemala: A National Shame
Posted by Laura on September 3, 2009
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This is an excerpt from the August 27, 2009 edition of The Economist. The article can be viewed in its entirety by clicking here. It is hardly one of Latin America’s poorest countries, but according to Unicef almost half of Guatemala’s children are chronically malnourished—the sixth-worst performance in the world. In parts of rural Guatemala, where [...]
Profile: Concern America
Posted by Laura on September 3, 2009
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Concern America is an international development and refugee aid organization that provides long-term, community-based development and support to economically impoverished communities throughout the world. What distinguishes the work of Concern America is its belief that the transformation of impoverished communities comes from engaging local members in the solutions to their problems. Concern America does [...]
Profile: The Equilibrium Fund
Posted by Laura on September 2, 2009
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The Equilibrium Fund is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) public charity founded in 2001. Their mission is to alleviate poverty, malnutrition and deforestation by teaching rural and indigenous women about the nutrition, uses and processing of Maya Nut (Brosimum alicastrum). Maya Nut is a nutritious, delicious, versatile and easy to harvest rainforest tree which can provide free [...]
Profile: Volunteer Petèn
Posted by Laura on September 2, 2009
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Volunteer Petèn is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in San Andrès, Petèn (with a US office in Mohnton, Pennsylvania) whose mission is to aid development in Guatemala by training international volunteers to participate in, design, and implement sustainable projects. Their main projects focus on environmental education, general education, reforestation, forest management, medicinal plants, and working with [...]
Profile: Hospital de la Familia
Posted by Laura on September 1, 2009
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What started over 30 years ago as a small dispensing pharmacy in Nuevo Progreso is today a year-round medical facility offering general medical, minor surgery, pediatric, obstetrical and dental services. The hospital consists of wards that can accommodate 72 patients. During the past several years, the hospital has maintained a staff of over 60 full-time [...]
Article: Funding Crunch May Disrupt Nutrition Programme in Guatemala
Posted by Laura on September 1, 2009
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By Elizabeth Sagastume and Elio Rujano The following is an excerpt of an article published on August 6, 2009 by The World Food Programme. To view the article in its entirety, please click here. CHIQUIMULA PROVINCE – Once a month, Marta Garcia and her three children walk 45 minutes to the nearest health clinic from [...]
Profile: Asofamilia
Posted by Laura on September 1, 2009
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Asofamilia is a private, independent organization created to establish links between adoptive families worldwide, and their children’s birth families in Guatemala. Founded in February 2006, Asofamilia was created to respond to the desire of adoptive families to help create a brighter future for their children’s families. Most of these families are living in extreme [...]