Guatemala: Climate Leaders Fellowship Summit 2024

Arrive in Guatemala City where you are met and greeted warmly.
Early arrivals (flying from LAX) will jump right in with a tour of The Ocean Cleanup’s “Barricade 006” in the Rio Motagua, which has diverted nearly 10 million pounds of plastic waste from reaching the ocean. We’ll speak with leaders on the ground to learn about how their first prototype failed but led to the current design which has been far more effective.
Next, we’ll transfer by car to the colonial City of Antigua where you will transport 400 years back in time. Antigua is a UNESCO world heritage site and you will understand why as you are greeted by the beauty and greatness of the colonial buildings and surrounding volcanoes. As you acclimatize to Antigua, we will enjoy a glorious welcome dinner, all while gaining knowledge about how climate change has already and will continue to present challenges and opportunities for the country’s future. Those arriving to Guatemala City in the evening (from the East Coast of the US) will go straight to the hotel in Antigua and get to visit The Ocean Cleanup on the last day of the trip.

We’ll spend the next three nights in a comfortable hotel with 2 students per room and private bathrooms.

Enjoy breakfast at the Macadamia Nut Farm, and learn about the growing, processing, and all the benefits of macadamia nuts in this region. You will have the best pancakes in the entire country and learn how climate change has begun to threaten Guatemala’s agricultural sector. After breakfast, visit a family farm to learn about the coffee supply chain. You will understand where the money flows when you buy coffee from a big company and how farmers and the country are attempting to adapt to more extreme weather events caused by climate change. We will spend a half-day with a single-owner farm and then have lunch at the farmer’s house. In the afternoon, we will also learn about local culture and history by visiting some of the beautiful villages surrounding Antigua. We will enjoy dinner at El Cerro de San Cristobal, the place with the best views in the colonial city, and we’ll start the “CLF Project Showcase” where students will present and share reflections on the Fellowship project they previously implemented.

After breakfast at the hotel, we’ll continue with a few more CLF project presentations. Then, we will visit a social enterprise water filtration factory and meet the founder and CEO. We will learn about the impact of this efficient water filter, and how they have impacted almost over a million children in Guatemala by giving them access to clean water. We will walk through the factory and see the processing of these life changing water filters, and hear first hand about how the product was first designed, how it has evolved over time, and what skills and knowledge were needed to grow the organization’s operations. After lunch, we will meet civic leaders from Antigua who are working side by side with community leaders to tackle climate issues. In the evening, we’ll hear several more CLF project presentations, explore Antigua and say farewell to this lovely town.

After breakfast at the hotel, we drive to the Mayan town of Patzun, in the highlands of Guatemala, and get started on a big day of work. Four years ago, we partnered with the community to build homes for local families. So far, we have built 66 houses at zero cost for the families. All the families must do is be involved in the construction. Today, our students will join the construction, mixing concrete, laying down cinder blocks, etc.  We will explore the town and enjoy dinner at the hotel.

We’ll spend the night in a comfortable hotel with shared bedrooms and private baths.

We will eat a hearty breakfast at the hotel, finish all of our CLF project presentations by students, and then depart Patzun to head to Lake Atitlan. We’ll have lunch on the way and we will drive through the green mountains of the Guatemalan Highlands. Along the way we’ll stop at one of the most beautiful lakes in the world and enjoy the breathtaking panorama. After we check in to our hotel, and eat dinner in town, we’ll enjoy the sunset from the swimming pool!

We spend the next two nights in a comfortable hotel with shared bedrooms and private baths.

After breakfast at the hotel, we’ll explore some of the villages around the lake on a private boat ride. We will meet up with a partner organization working to replant native species near the lake to learn about how economic and environmental sustainability can be pursued in synchrony, and even get our hands dirty by helping with new plantings alongside local Mayan community members. We will make a visit to Santiago Atitlan and its famous markets. We will see the iconic church built on top of a Mayan pyramid. We will experience the beautiful weavings, check out their traditional everyday markets, and learn about their culture, traditions and what they do every day. You will savor a very traditional “pepian” lunch at a women-owned co-op in San Juan before taking time to explore San Juan La Laguna and its famous weaving and unique textiles made by the local women. Take a boat ride back to Hotel Atitlan in the afternoon!

Those with early flights (flying home through LAX) will depart the hotel early morning to get to the Guatemala City airport by 9am. The others will have our last breakfast at the hotel before driving to Chinautla to visit The Ocean Project’s “Interceptor Barricade” to see how it has helped divert nearly 10 million pounds of plastic waste from reaching the ocean. Afterwards, we’ll head to the Guatemala City airport for flights home. Shed a tear because you’re leaving Guatemala. Fly back home but come back soon!