Whilst I have written about the issue of inequality and prejudice in Guatemala before now, I find that the more I learn about the country, the harder it is to avoid recognising the extent of this issue as an obstacle to its development. Despite existing gender-related legislation to encourage equality, this legislation is apparently being [...]
In November this year, the Maestros Cien Puntos Prize was awarded to ten Guatemalan teachers in recognition of their outstanding service to education in Guatemala in the Palacio Nacional de la Cultura. Previous winners attended the ceremony along with other education officials and sponsors of the scheme. The award assesses innovation in teaching and the [...]
Not so long ago, I wrote about the recently released HDI report and briefly touched upon some of the figures regarding education in Guatemala, which showed that only 15.6% of Guatemala’s female population are educated to at least secondary school level, compared to 21% of males. These figures have played on my mind ever since. [...]
A quote this week caught my eye. Angelo Campos, a Brazilian graffiti artist and T-Shirt designer, has said that “what is really needed in the long term is more education.” It might surprise you to read that Angelo is a largely uneducated resident of the favela in Rio de Janeiro. This quote came in response to [...]
Last Sunday, the people of Guatemala turned out in record numbers to elect Otto Perez Molina as the newest president of the country. As formerly noted in the RWI blog, the November 6 run-off election took place after initial elections in September. Both elections featured exceptionally high voter turn out, especially among women and youth. [...]
My first blog for Roots and Wings International will hopefully mark a long-term involvement with an organisation which promotes a cause close to my heart. Not only do I wish to share what I already know and encourage interaction with communities that rarely have an opportunity to have its voice heard, I also wish to [...]
The world population topped seven billion people this week. For most of us, seven billion is an unfathomable number – easier to think of as grains of sand on a beach than human lives sharing the same planet. Western culture, in all of its individualistic tendencies, often hinders us from thinking of humanity as one [...]
Although she seems like any normal college student, Estefany M. Cruz Perez is something of a celebrity in Guatemala. That’s because the Guatemala City native broke the national triple jump record last summer and will be representing Guatemala in the triple jump at the XVI Pan-American Games this Friday, October 27th. Cruz is no stranger [...]
A coworker once told me, “Every single problem we have in Central America—poverty, crime, corruption, violence, economic trouble—is a direct result of drug trafficking.” That seems overly simplified, but may be more truthful than a lot of people would like to think. Ending the drug problem would end probably 90 percent of the corruption right [...]
A charter city, as described here on their website, is a city-scale special reform zone. Countries can play one of three roles in chartering a city: the host is the country providing land, the source is what country the inhabitants come from, and the guarantor is the country that enforces the charter to make sure [...]
What is unfolding with the Belo Monte Dam project in Brazil is like Avatar on Earth. In fact, James Cameron and Sigourney Weaver have been actively involved in the fight to stop the dam from being built. Mr. Cameron produced a special feature to raise awareness about the damaging effects on one of the great [...]
A recent study conducted by Digital GT, found that Guatemala has an internet penetration rate of 14.8 percent putting them in third place for the Central American market behind Costa Rica and Panama. Third place in Central America is nothing to celebrate when considering the internet penetration in more developed countries. Percentage of internet users [...]
This week, members of the women’s organization Convergencia Civico Politica de Mujeres demanded equal representation of women in political positions and called on the political parties in Guatemala to include more women candidates in elections.In a press release, the group criticized the political parties for excluding women candidates in from viable elections and instead placing [...]
Today is May 1st. In many countries, the first of May is a called “International Workers’ Day,” May Day, or Labor Day; it is a day of celebration and recognition for the labor movement and parties all over the world, and has been around as a holiday for over one hundred and fifty years. Most [...]
“I don’t buy the whole altruism thing. I think at the heart of altruism is a selfish deed. You know, and that’s fine. . . I want to reach people. Can’t it come out of a place of personal curiosity? A desire to locate myself in the world and also have some utility?” —Tim Hetherington [...]
