Catarina Flaviana, 58, is one of our lovely and talented artisan partners from the cooperative Qato Q’ib in Chirijox, northwest of Lago Atitlán. We recently had the opportunity to sit down with her and talk about her life and work in the cooperative. Catarina has raised eight children and is a proud gandmother to three little boys. Her two oldest daughters are married and now living with their husbands’ families. When she was only 12 years old, Catarina started to learn how to backstrap weave. Her mother, who today still practices the art of backstrap weaving, taught her all of the elements of the weaving process; starting first with the
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This week, garden staff and volunteers worked together to make spearmint soap. Volunteer Alix shares a bit about the process: Spearmint soap is one out of a few organic soaps that Maya Traditions produces. This type of soap softens the skin and gives you a natural boost of energy. Best to use it for a morning wake up call! Maya Traditions’ staff member Oseas gave a brief demonstration on how to produce these bars of soap. Ingredients consist of coconut oil, spearmint picked from the garden, olive oil, and lemon grass to create a refreshing fragrance while
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The success of our work at Maya Traditions is made possible through the constant support of volunteers. Here, we introduce volunteer Bethany who is currently supporting our work in Guatemala: Bethany was born and raised in Portland, Oregon but came to Maya Traditions from Washington, D.C. to volunteer on our organic medicinal herb garden and with other special projects. Bethany spent several years working as a Capitol Hill aide on social justice and human rights policies. Through her involvement in her community in Washington D.C., Bethany developed a passion for sustainable, organic agriculture. She pursued this passion by taking several urban
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We are delighted to share with you our collaboration with Hana and her Fair Trade company GONGGI, our new partner from South Korea and the first from Asia! Hana visited Maya Traditions this week in Guatemala in order to get an in-depth understanding of our partnering communities, the weaving techniques, the impact of Maya Traditions, as well as life and culture in Guatemala. “I have enjoyed my stay in Panajachel very much. The work Maya Traditions’ women weavers make is very impressive. Through visiting two communities, I now have a good understanding of the impact the sales back in Korea will
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It’s hard to believe that just two months ago we were celebrating reaching our Indiegogo campaign goal! But even before the campaign closed, we started the work necessary to grow Maya Traditions. Thanks to your support and this hard work, we have already reached a number of exciting milestones that we are thrilled to share with you. Through your support, we have: Hired a full time designer, Averie Floyd, to better support our design partners and to develop a new line of Maya Traditions’ products. If you haven’t had the chance to meet or work with Averie yet, learn more
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The success of our work at Maya Traditions is made possible through the constant support of volunteers. Here, we introduce volunteer Alix who is currently supporting our work in Guatemala: Hi! My name is Alix and I’m currently volunteering in the Organic Medicinal Herb Garden for Maya Traditions Foundation. I’ve been here for two weeks and am looking forward to my last three. I’ve been enjoying every minute of this opportunity to work alongside very knowledgeable people. My main focus is to learn more about medicinal plants and sustainable practices, and I believe I’m in the right place for it!! I’m
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Edgar is one of our wonderful staff at Maya Traditions. In charge of the Organic Medicinal Plant Garden, Edgar is also responsible for coordinating and supervising volunteers. Here, volunteer Eli shares a bit about Edgar, with whom she works with on a daily basis: Edgar Tuy is 20 years old and began working for Maya Traditions in an official capacity one year ago. Edgar learned about Maya Traditions Foundation from Oseas, a friend and the groundskeeper at Maya Traditions. He began assisting Oseas with work in the garden and learning about the plants before he got hired last year. Edgar
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The success of our work at Maya Traditions is made possible through the constant support of volunteers. Here, we introduce volunteer Eli who is currently supporting our work in Guatemala: Hi Folks! My name is Eli and I am supporting Maya Traditions Foundation’s Community Health Program by volunteering in the Organic Medicinal Herb Garden for two months this summer. I started working on June 17th and am having a blast so far. I study Anthropology of Sustainable Food Systems at Bennington College and am interested in public health. This volunteer opportunity compliments my academic studies by providing me with opportunity to
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Maya Traditions Foundation partners with individual donors to support students–the children of our artisans–attend university. Due to the high cost of inscription and monthly fees of university, many indigenous families are unable to send their children on to university. We are working to increase our impact and the amount of university scholarships we are able to offer. Here, student Sucely Ermelinda Vásquez Perez, son of artisan Vicenta, shares with us a bit on his life and studies Dear friends, I send you my deepest appreciation for the willingness to support me in my studies. Education is a fundamental right for everyone, and I
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Maya Traditions partners with local university student to realize professional internships in their area of study. Here, one of our recent interns, Ana Buch Chavez, shares her experience woking with Maya Traditions, in the area of Community Health: Programs Coordinator Marisol with artisan Vicenta and her grandfather, and local intern Ana on the right My name is Ana Buch Chavez, and I am a student of Social Work. I thank Maya Traditions Foundation for giving me the space to realize my professional internship. As a student of Social Work, one of my responsibilities was the preparation of community
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