Smith World Rainforest Village Preserve Initiative

Figure 1: Shows the areas within the department of Chiquimula, Guatemala where tree cover has been lost. Source: Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA, accessed through Global Forest Watch

Smith World Rainforest Village Preserve Initiative

Proposal to Assist The Coordinator of Associations and Communities for Holistic Ch'orti' Mayan Development

Founded by Natural Resource professional Evan Smith in 2023, the Smith World Rainforest Preservation Initiative SWRVPI) seeks to protect the 14.5 remaining square kilometers left of the world’s rainforests from human human actions. SWRVPI preserves rainforests by providing support to underrepresented groups who have local stakes in the rainforests they rely on for their livelihoods. We are a physical entity that employees hundreds of professionals who travel around Central America and beyond to complete its mission. SWRVPI uses a modern approach to preserve the traditional values of indigenous groups so that they may thrive in the 21^st century. We rely on activism as well as peaceful routes such as ecotourism and social media to make the world aware of the symbiotic relationship that is rainforest and indigenous culture. There are three primary ways in which SWRVPI supplies backups to villages and organizations in need: research, financial support, and education. SWRVPI employees a team of top-scientists who research the habitats in danger and provide data that is both credible and easy to comprehend. From endangered species lists to climate change projections, the biologists at SWRVPI are able to demonstrate why rainforests around the globe need to be saved. Financial support for groups in need, who are often marginalized indigenous villagers, comes solely from donations and fundraising events. We cannot save the rainforests without you! 

This is a proposal to address the issues that a particular indigenous people are currently facing in Southeastern Guatemala. The Maya Ch’orti’ people are rightful owners of land that is under threat by land developers and politicians. This land consists of precious rainforest habitat that is rapidly declining and in desperate need of preservation. The Coordinator of Associations and Communities for Holistic Ch'orti' Mayan Development (COMUNDICH), established by Ch'orti' activists, is fighting for the land but cannot win alone. SWRVPI will assist in the organization’s endeavors to maintain their land and continue practicing Ch'orti' Mayan traditions. 

Similar work is being performed by Cultural Survival Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to the advocacy of indigenous communities and their rights. Like SWRVPI, this entity supports the values of indigenous groups and supports them wherever possible; this usually occurs in the form of funding, research, and advocacy (Cultural Survival 2022). SWRVPI is working with Cultural Survival to provide funding for the services explained above. Cultural Survival’s Keepers of the Earth Fund provides grants to grassroots Indigenous-led organizations that are seeking to protect biodiversity. This important funding will assist both the community’s current efforts and SWRVPI scientists with essential rainforest research. 

The Maya Ch'orti' people are an indigenous people who live in the mountains of southeastern Guatemala. They have been living on the same land for over three hundred years. This area contains vital forest ecosystems and water sources, which, if not protected, could lead to environmental degradation and human suffering. Unfortunately, the Maya Ch'orti' are an indigenous group whose voices and rights are often ignored, which leaves them vulnerable to unscrupulous land developers and politicians who exploit their marginalized position to take their land, usually for sugar farming or for environmentally devastating palm oil plantations. The Coordinator of Associations and Communities for Holistic Ch'orti' Mayan Development (COMUNDICH) is a grassroots organization formed by Ch'orti' activists who have come together to fight against the injustices being perpetrated against their people. COMUNDICH's primary objectives are to assert their right to continue to own their 300-year-old land and attain a balanced standing with other people of Guatemala. They have had some success in their endeavors, but they have faced significant challenges along the way. The indigenous activists are routinely victims of threats of violence and slander campaigns by their adversaries. In spite of this, they remain firmly committed to protecting their land and the environment.

It’s shocking to see how easily corrupt authorities and landowners can exploit marginalized indigenous communities to sate their own greed. Learning more on this topic through this project is important because indigenous communities worldwide continue to face systemic marginalization and mistreatment, with their voices and rights often ignored. We should work towards a world where indigenous peoples are respected and empowered to protect their ancestral lands and the environment. COMUNDICH's fight to reclaim their land is a reminder of the importance of community-led efforts to combat environmental degradation and ensure environmental sustainability.

Similar work is being performed by Cultural Survival Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to the advocacy of indigenous communities and their rights, . Like SWRVPI, this entity supports the values of indigenous groups and supports them wherever possible; this usually occurs in the form of funding, research, and advocacy (Cultural Survival 2022). SWRVPI is working with Cultural Survival to provide funding for the services explained above. Cultural Survival’s Keepers of the Earth Fund provides grants to to grassroots Indigenous-led organizations that are seeking to protect biodiversity. This important funding will assist both the community’s current efforts and SWRVPI scientists with essential rainforest research. 

After evaluating the issues COMUNDICH currently faces regarding the risk of losing their rightful ownership of land, SWRVPI will assist in the organization’s endeavors to maintain their land and continue practicing Ch'orti' Mayan traditions. SWRVPI will assist COMUNDICH by raising awareness of the value of the preservation of the Maya Ch’orti’ people’s rainforest through science and education and by providing funding that will allow COMUNDICH to continue its efforts. The role of non-government organizations in indigenous groups’ battles around the globe is fundamental. Without advocacy, the wrongdoings of violators will remain in the shadows (Seider 2011). Networks formed from advocacy groups are able to amplify the voices of indigenous groups and create enough noise to attract legal attention that both grants rights to the groups and punishes those responsible for indigenous people injustices (Seider 2007). 

There are a variety of services that SWRVPI is able to offer to COMUNDICH to assist them in their battle to save both their land and culture. Financial aid will be provided with the aid of Cultural Survival and through a fundraiser that will be planned by SWRVPI’s public relations team. The PR team will also work endlessly as an advocate for COMUNDICH to raise awareness about both the injustices the Maya Ch’orti’ people are facing from their own government and land developers and the huge environmental impacts of rainforest deforestation for agriculture. Legal advice will also be provided throughout the entire process so that the organization’s arguments will be sound and powerful if and when they are brought up in the legal system. Because Maya Ch’orti’ villages often rely on traditional farming practices for both food (primarily corn and beans) and culture, SWRVPI can also provide education to establish sustainable farming practices that are also profitable (Portal de resultados del censo 2018). As ecotourism has a positive impact on real GDP per capita in Central America, COMUNDICH will be trained on how to use its rainforests and culture to attract sustainable tourism that both preserves the landscape and educates the world on its rich cultural history (Gunter et al. 2016). A huge value of both SWRVPI and COMUNDICH, rainforest reforestation will also be a priority and joint-effort between the organization.

In order to make this collaboration possible, a board of directors have been selected to represent stakeholders and guide the project. The first member selected was Eleaonor Perez, a native member of the rural Ch’orti’ community. Her story in fighting for her rights is especially important and needs to be told. Eleaonor’s husband, a CUMUNDICH leader, was killed the day the county government recognized the Ch’orti’ Mayan community of Corozal as an indigenous community with rights to the land. Eleaonor represents the hardship and strength of the Ch’orti’ Mayan and is a voice that must be heard. (Guardian News and Media 2021). The second member of the board is Rachel Seider, Senior Research Professor at the Center for Research and Graduate Studies In Social Anthropology in Mexico City. She has dedicated her career to indigenous rights and social movements. Rachel has published multiple books and journals, the most recent being The Handbook of Law and Society in Latin America. Lastly is Maria Mercedes Coroy, a Guatemalan actress of Kaqchikel Maya descent who is most known for her role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. As a little girl, Maria had to leave theater and school to help her mother sell fruits while living around constant gang violence. She now uses her platform to raise awareness of the underrepresented Maya people of Guatemala and hopes to inspire marginalized youths through OXFAM, the United Nations Population Fund, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (The Volcanic Force of Maria Mercedes 2021).