The Green Deal standards are monitored by the Rainforest Alliance, a well-financed, worldwide organization based in New York. The certification, conferred on the basis of on-site inspections, is managed in Guatemala by the Asociación Alianza Verde. The names of companies holding the Green Deal certification are posted on the Internet. Buga Mama - Sustainable Tourism School Livingston, Guatemala
Ak’ Tenamit is an indigenous community development organization that promotes long-term solutions to poverty through education, health, income generation and cultural programs run by and for the Q’eqchi Maya supported by the Guatemalan Tomorrow Fund, a US based non-profit (501 C-3) that raises funds for Ak’ Tenamit.
Promoting Cultural Pride
At Ak' Tenamit, we don’t believe that improving conditions in indigenous communities and educating young people should draw them away from their culture. In fact, Ak’ Tenamit’s work in the Río Dulce region has resulted in a local cultural renaissance, with more young people learning traditional music, dance and religious ceremonies. Ak’ Tenamit bases all of its work in traditional Q’eqchi Maya culture, combining the use of medicinal plants with western medicine, participating in community ceremonies on important dates of the Maya calendar, and appealing to the balance between the sexes and between human beings and nature that are part of the Maya cosmovision.
Q’eqchi Maya culture plays an important role in the curriculum at the Fr. Tom Moran Education Center, which offers a bilingual – Spanish and Q’eqchi – education that is complemented by English classes, and employs a Maya priest full-time to provide students with training in their culture and religion, and lead traditional ceremonies. Students learn to play traditional marimba music and dance pre-Columbian folk dances, which they perform in full costume at campus celebrations and events around the country. The result is a new generation of indigenous youth who are well educated, computer literate, and trained in practical skills, but who are equally knowledgeable about and proud of their culture, which they are committed to preserving.
All proceeds from food and gifts purchased at Buga Mama are used to support the 500 students at Ak’ Tenamit to work toward a better life through education.
While boating past on the Rio Dulce in Livingston, Guatemala, don't forget to stop by and shop at our gift shop as well as enjoy our refreshing Lemonade. You won't be sorry that you stopped to help support these students.
