Empowerment of Mayan Youth for Economic & Social Participation

Pop Noj Association works to contribute to the development of "New leaderships of Mayan women and men for living well", emphasizing leadership of adolescents and young people, from their ethnic and cultural identity.

Since 2005, Pop Noj has worked with young Mayans through training and accompanying processes for their organization and advocacy, promoting alliances and networking amongst youth organizations; as well as implementing communication initiatives by and from young people. Pop Noj works in compliance with a cultural and pertinent approach, using different methodologies that are also appropriate and friendly to youth. One emphasis has been the development of ludic methodologies and artistic expression.

Pop Noj has been a local partner participating in the program: More pportunities, more rights for youth in Guatemala and Nicaragua, financed by Kerk in Actie since 2016. The program is aimed to strengthening social leadership among indigenous youths in Guatemala and Nicaragua from a gender, rights-based and cultural pertinent approach. The program focuses in the following main lines of action:

-Economic empowerment;
- Lobby, advocacy and political participation; and
- Violence prevention.

With their previous project implemented in the 2016-2017, Pop Noj aimed to contribute to strengthening the social leadership of Mayan adolescents and young adults, specifically by:

-Creating conditions that foster living well in communities located in the provinces of Huehuetenango, Chimaltenango and Peten; and
- Promoting social, political and legal acknowledgement of the rights of indigenous adolescents and young adults.