I have been blessed with the opportunity to work with Highland Support Project for all of my life. My parents are the directors. I was an infant when I was taken on my first trip to Guatemala. My earliest memories are images of the post civil war military state. Of driving through central Quetzaltenango, seeing Humvees drive by carrying men with automatic rifles. I also have vivid memories of my experiences in the indigenous communities. I remember feeling scared as I sat in the back seat of a little pick-up truck. On a narrow mountainside road, where any divergence would be fatal. In the middle of a thunderstorm. With my parents outside, pushing the truck from behind to keep the momentum moving forward. This effort was to reach even the most marginalized communities. From that same night, I remember the loud thuds of raindrops on their thin tin roofs and the black soot that covered their huts with flies stuck in it. I would later learn that the soot comes from cooking over open-pit fires. Throughout my life, I learned about various aspects of development from my experiences with Highland Support Project (HSP). From stove-building I learned about grassroots development, from reforestation I learned about sustainability, from weaving circles I learned about behavioral health. All this time, I had a general feeling that genuine good was being done. Not just because the directors were my parents; but also due to the sincere gratitude that was expressed by families in the communities we worked in. However, it wasn’t until my junior year of college, when I had a class called Development Economics, that I truly appreciated the amazing work that HSP has pioneered. The class, for me, validated everything that HSP does. Although it is impossible to summarize sustainable development in three points, there are at least three critical topics that I learned, which HSP has been enacting for over 22 years. These key points include a focus on women’s empowerment, acknowledging multidimensional poverty, and a spotlight on human and social capital. We learned about a focus on women’s empowerment as if it were a new concept. Something brand new that came along with the New Millennium Development Goals. This left me dumbfounded, considering that HSP has been focusing on women’s empowerment since 1993. HSP’s first women’s empowerment program was to provide indigenous mothers with ventilated cookstoves. It is seemingly simplistic; however, the ripple effect is amazingly intricate. For example, through community surveys, we found that the leading cause of death for Indigenous women was a upper-respiratory infection. This is easily prevented with ventilated stoves. Furthermore, the ventilated stoves are fuel efficient. It elevates the cooking from the floor to provide better sanitation. Regarding sustained development, it allows women to spend less time cooking because cooking a meal over an open-pit fire takes hours (Just think about that time you tried to cook anything while camping). This enables women to engage in their communities. To establish PTA’s. To help their children go to school. To make lunches for the children who are at school, so they children can learn and retain information better. To have time for women’s circles, so they can share their experiences and relate with other women in the community; and, ultimately, to endeavor in different income ventures and become successful businesswomen. From the chain of events, you can see how investing in women results in a greater social rate of return than investing in men. This is because investments in women more directly benefit their children and women are empirically more likely to spend increased incomes on their families. From the beginning, HSP has invested their efforts in addressing multidimensional poverty. This simply means that poverty entails more than just having low income. To address multidimensional poverty, organizations must consider the health, educational and productive aspects of individuals. HSP’s acknowledgment of multidimensional poverty is exemplified by their growth of different, yet interrelated, projects. For example, the Mayan Arts Project was initiated to address the dissipation of Maya philosophy in rural schools-- the educational dimension. The Association of Maya Women was started to provide indigenous women with behavioral health programming-- the health and productivity dimensions. Very early on HSP recognized the negative impact self-esteem could have on a community. The “Qanil” project was started to address nutritional deficiencies in indigenous communities-- the health dimension. Over 22 years, HSP’s attention to the dimensions of poverty has led to drastic increases in capital available for the indigenous communities we support. Remember that capital can take many forms. Capital can be financial, human, social, and the list goes on. HSP has enabled indigenous women to build their human capital through all the projects and programming provided to them. At every step of the way, the women and their families are involved in the process. For example, before even receiving a stove, women are trained in community engagement, and there is an understanding that the stove is not charity. The women are not dependent upon the stove. A stove is a tool for their economic independence. Furthermore, our volunteers understand they are not giving anything away. Our volunteers engage in partnership with the families. Where the families receive the support for their projects, and volunteers leave with a completely changed perspective on poverty and development. The partnerships formed is what builds the social capital. My favorite example of the social capital being built is with the reforestation project. Initially, HSP would buy samplings from a big company in the city. Now, however, a woman who once received a stove now started her tree nursery. Thus, HSP can source the saplings for reforestation from the women who once received a stove. This example illustrates social capital and HSP’s continuing relationships with the communities HSP engages in. From my earliest memories of post-civil war Guatemala to what it has become now, much of the change can be attributed to non-governmental organizations such as Highland Support Project. I could never express enough how proud I am of HSP, after learning the academics behind development economics. I am so proud that before implementing projects, HSP went to the communities and asked them what they think their most pressing problems were. I am proud of the relationships that have been created. I am proud of the gratitude that has been expressed towards my family and every volunteer that has worked with us. Lastly, I am proud to assure that anyone who spends just a week with HSP in Guatemala will feel this pride too.
I donated to the Highland Support Project, of which I work, to support a midwifery program. I never expected to have my own life changed. Over the course of a year stories emerged about the struggles that traditional midwives had in being treated with dignity by hospital staff. It was powerful to witness the accompaniment of the Association of Highland Women to guide these women to identify their objectives and begin to analyze what to do when encountering an obstacle. That message of resilience has proven to be a good tool in my own life.
Too often we abandon a goal when we encounter an obstacle.
Review from #MyGivingStory
I was incredibly impressed by the thoughtful way the Highland Support Project connects volunteers to indigenous communities. I have travelled to other countries in Central America with organizations that claim to be partnering with the community, but only Highland Support Partners truly made me feel I was part of a partnership. The Highland Support Project truly made our time with the community a learning experience for both our team and community members. For example, we went on a tour of a market with local weavers so they could learn about their competition and we could learn about indigenous crafts. While stove building, we worked with the homeowners and got a chance to talk to them as well as the mason working with us. These experiences truly put the indigenous women at the center of the project to build their agency, while allowing my team to learn as well. I cannot fully describe how collaborative all of the Highland Support Project's activities felt, so I would recommend anyone interested in learning about and working with the Indigenous people of Guatemala contact the Highland Support Project and see for yourself!
On my most recent trip with Highland Support Project I traveled the the White Mountain Apache Reservation in Arizona. I engaged with with the Apache youth in group activities that focused on leadership skills and team building. The type of service I did on this trip was far from what I was expecting to do. As a large football player I was expecting to use my skills in the art of manual labor but instead HSP utilized the leadership skills I have gained through my time in competitive sports to help lead a day camp for the apache youth. I enjoyed the time I spent helping the youth to build leadership skills for themselves and seeing how they were able to use the skills the get through various team building activities.
This trip was truly eye opening for me because it showed me a different type of service that can be done on mission trips that are much more effective than traditional service. I found that rather than giving out things which can instill bad habits for the future, building relationships and teaching the youth useful skills while giving them the tools to better help themselves is actually a much better form of service and will help them gain a better and brighter future.
Amazing Organization, facilitates partnerships with the communities, helping the most isolated people in the highlands. How incredible are all the benefits for building a stove: Respiratory disease, children accidents can be avoided, also saves firewood, saves time in the food preparation, they receive talks about self-steam and leadership. behavioral health that contributes to the empowerment of the Mayan women.
HSP is a fantastic association- could not be farther from the pitfalls of voluntourism. We have a long-lasting relationship with HSP and have had successful trips in the past- this last trip was no exception. Thank you!
Had a great time on my first international mission trip. Would do it again in a heart beat. Great job HSP!
This is the most well-organized and put together nonprofit I have worked with! They are great and took care of everything, we're very flexible and I had a great time working with Lupe and Ben.
Amazing! This nonprofit's work with communities in Guatemala is intriguing and their emphasis on transformational development and helping communities be self-sufficient makes them even more admirable. I volunteer with the group and look forward to learning and helping each day!
I went on a trip with HSP to White Mountain Apache Reservation for a service learning trip with a group of students from Virginia Commonwealth University. The trip was one week planned to the hour with presentations, activities, and events. White Mountain is gorgeous, full of breath taking views and so much culture that America often misses. The time I spent in White Mountain truly opened my mind to a whole new perspective and I am so thankful to HSP for that gift. Their dedication to service is unparalleled. This is a non-profit that truly gives everything it can into their work.
HSP ambitiously strives to tackle societal, political, economic and systemic problems that most non-profits shy from. The team's organization, passion, and unyielding commitment to empower and equip indigenous communities is inspiring. Volunteering as an intern has been a eye-opening experience thus far and I look forward to what lies ahead!
The experience that HSP facilitates is a cultural interchange in which each person has the opportunity to connect, respect and value cultures. HSP offers a life-changing trip that helps communities to change.
HSP service has a trustworthy plataform that truly makes sure of the security of all the people that uses it. HSP is an organization that is always noticing the impact of the work their proyects have in the lives of their clients.
Highland Support Project is a bridge that helps people around the world to be in contact with the real face of the communities, allowing people to truly make a difference. HSP work in communities in Guatemala have changed a lot of lives, being proof that transformational development is not just a dream but a way in which people work for change and regain control of their own lives.
The Highland Support Project is one of few non-profit networks that doesn't focus on development from a Western perspective. Their methodology is one of "transformational development", meaning that communities lift themselves out of poverty by participating in their programming, and do so sustainably. I really think that HSP is doing that that almost no other organizations working in Guatemala are doing. Their methods may not be as flashy, but they help people from the ground up. Highly recommend participating in one of their amazing trips!
What makes HSP is different is that they don't implement band-aid solutions. Their mission and work focuses on the long-term solutions and more importantly, solutions that are sustainable. I know I've personally always felt like the charity/volunteer work I've done in other areas (donations, hosting fundraisers, volunteering at events, etc.) have not been enough. I think that they do help, but I know I could contribute even more to the causes I care about.
I admire and advocate for HSP because it is an organization that puts the people they serve at the heart of their projects. I've volunteered with them for about 7 months and I can see that they are committed to working with the Mayans for the long-run. Everyone here is outwardly passionate and driven in what they do and love the people that they work with and I'm happy to be a part of the work that they do!
I truly enjoyed my trip to Guatemala. I feel as if we have left an impact of who we are and what we stand for with the Myan Woman. The fact that they know others will struggle for their lively hood helps them know they are not alone. I felt like the support helped them more then the physical labor.
I worked with HSP to build stoves for the indigenous people. I had a great exposure to diversity and I was amazed to see how women are now taking initiatives to be educated despite having socio-economical barriers. They knew the ventilated stoves could change the future of their kids. The families were very welcoming and we all had a great experience in the highlands of Guatemala. Other students should take this opportunity to explore different cultures, which can open a new window for them.
As a volunteer for the Highland Project, I worked to build stoves for the women and families living in the highlands of Guatemala where I was immersed into the community and families of those we were building stoves for. The conditions in which the families lived greatly humbled me; I was most shocked that clean water and indoor plumbing was not a standard for the households in the Highlands. Yet, I was more surprised by the families positivity, hospitality and giving nature! I never felt as though I could convey my gratitude towards the women and families that our group worked for. I highly recommend working with the Highland Support Project to further forward their mission to create self-perpetuating social entrepreneurship by empowering individuals through teamwork to transform adversity into opportunity.
I had a great time in December 2013 traveling to Guatemala with Highland Support Project! I wish I had been able to spend more time building the stoves--one week was NOT long enough for everything I wanted to do! My group was relatively small, but we had a really good time. Everyone was so friendly and helpful. I appreciated the whole experience a lot.
