The Rios Fund, Guatemala
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Where we work: Seacacar, Rio Sauce Valley, Guatemala
Click here for the Google Maps location.
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Seacacar is a Q'eqchi Mayan village and lies along the translucent green waters of the Rio Sauce, beneath the steep jungle slopes of the Sierra Santa Cruz and at the entrance to the overhanging walls of the Boquerón Cañon. A bird's eye view takes in Lago Izabal, 40 miles long and Guatemala's largest lake.
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Although Seacacar is only a few miles from a paved highway, geography seals the village into a bygone century. There is no electricity and the only access is via a rough dirt road carved into the steep mountainsides. The rugged terrain isolates the village, but it also acts to protect some of the last remaining rainforest on Guatemala's Caribbean slope. Cattle ranching, plantation crops and slash / burn agriculture are Guatemala's leading causes of deforestation. All become difficult or impossible on steep mountain slopes or canyon walls.
The area presents remarkable potential as a eco-tourism destination. Tourism can be a funding source that empowers the local people with life changing opportunities that end extreme poverty and incentives to protect their natural environment.
Founder: Paul Heesaker
Paul Heesaker first saw Guatemala's Rio Sauce Valley as owner of Area Verde Expeditions and while on an exploratory kayaking expedition in November 1995. Following a career in public education, Paul returned to Guatemala in October 2011 to begin work on a documentary film that highlighted Guatemala's endangered wild rivers. The resulting film, "Rios Guatemala, The Preservation of Wild Rivers," was a selection of the Colorado Environmental Film Festival and the Breckenridge Festival of Film. Paul's also produced the film "A Trail to Seacacar," a selection of the Colorado Environmental film festival and the Peoples Choice Award winner in the Compassion Film Festival. Paul and his wife Catherine, a school psychologist, are full time residents of Silverthorne, Colorado.
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The Rios Fund Operational Structure​
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One important aspect of the long term vision is that ecotourism will become at least one economic alternative to slash and burn agriculture. Profits generated through tourism go directly to the local people and will become a sustainable funding source for education and all other project efforts. While donations will help establish and maintain project initiatives, the local Mayan people will not depend on them. We value creating opportunity, not dependency.
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Donations are sent to the Guatemalan Tomorrow Fund, Inc. (GTF) is a non-profit, non-denominational organization located in the United States that raises funds and provides logistical support for Ak’ Tenamit. All designated donations made to GTF are directly distributed to Ak’ Tenamit and are tax-deductible. Ak' Tenamit is a vocational boarding school for indigenous youth. Students who graduate from our intermediate school have the option to continue their studies at Ak' Tenamit.
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The Q'eqchi Mayan people of Seacacar Abajo implement and oversee all project initiatives. Initiatives are presented to a local Board of Directors. This group is elected by Seacacar's citizens. All project efforts must have the approval of the Board before moving forward. Per written agreement, the community must use profits generated via tourism to help fund educational expenses.
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Education for Change
· 75% of indigenous Guatemalans live in poverty
· Many indigenous children are child laborers by age 10
· On average, indigenous girls drop out after 1st grade and boys after 3rd.
· Only 5% of indigenous girls finish high school
· Source: UN Development Program
In March 2014, we opened the first intermediate school (grades 7 - 9) in Seacacar, a riverside village at the entrance to the spectacular Seacacar Cañón Natural Reserve and the Boquerón Cañon. The educational format is based upon the philosophy of the vocational boarding school at Ak' Tenamit, located about 70 miles away and along the Rio Dulce. Ak Tenamit's curriculum is adopted to the needs, interests and culture of students learning in a rural context.
We complement classroom learning with practical work experience. This includes reforestation, sustainable agriculture and tourism. When students complete the 9th grade, they continue their education at Ak' Tenamit and choose a career path in rural community development or sustainable tourism.
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Education Donations
We need your help to provide a quality education to students who otherwise have no opportunity to escape a life of extreme poverty. Boys will often look for employment on distant plantations and work in near slave level conditions. They will also continue to slash and burn the rainforest to plant corn and beans. A cycle of extreme poverty and environmental destruction continues for yet another generation.
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Mayan women are oppressed and overwhelmingly excluded from accessing educational opportunities. Many Mayan girls drop out of school in primary school and only 10% finish the 6th grade. Girls who leave school early marry young, have large families, and face a lifetime collecting firewood and breathing indoor smoke from open fires.
Your donation changes lives, protects the environment and funds the following:
- Classroom teachers
- Books, computers and other school supplies
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Donations are available via our Affiliate organization, the Florida based and non-profit Guatemala Tomorrow Fund. The GTF raises funds and provides logistical support for Ak' Tenamit, our affiliate secondary boarding high school. Our students have the option to continue their studies at Ak' Tenamit after graduating 9th grade.
Please call 561 747 9700 if you have any further questions or need assistance with your donation. Thank you!