Maya-led, Community Driven

Natün Guatemala:
Elevating Indigenous Leadership and Strengthening Maya Communities

About Natün:


Natün Guatemala is a multidisciplinary, majority Maya-led organization passionate about elevating Indigenous leadership, rights, and capacity. We equip local change agents and catalyze existing local resources to facilitate the sustainable development of healthy, economically vibrant Maya communities. Together, our Maya staff and local community leaders implement community-led programs aimed at achieving significant long-term change.

At Natün, we prioritize Indigenous leadership by implementing programmatic strategies that preserve and elevate Maya ancestral knowledge, language, and practices. Over the next five years and beyond, Natün aspires to contribute to building the next generation of Maya leadership within the organization and the communities where we operate, driving systemic change toward a more equitable and inclusive Guatemala.

Natün complements and strengthens the public education systems around Lake Atitlán, driving traditionally excluded Maya students´ access to the education they deserve: education that focuses on cultural and bilingual relevancy and transforms the educational community into leaders with the tools to improve the quality of life of their communities.

Natün builds community public health systems targeting normalized, ignored and under-resourced nutrition and health issues, generating access to both food security and public and local nutritional and medical services that are culturally and linguistically relevant.

We believe that one of the most valuable things we can give parents is the opportunity for stable work– to earn a living wage and support their families with dignity. Our Economic Development programs advance the professional and economic growth of rural, Indigenous women and men, including many who are not Spanish speakers nor literate, promoting local knowledge and techniques and increasing opportunities for income-generation for families and communities, to drive economic independence within communities.

Sololá es uno de los departamentos guatemaltecos con las tasas más altas de desnutrición en el mundo, con más del 60% de niños con desnutrición crónica. Enfocados en fortalecer el bienestar de las familias indígenas de alto riesgo en la región, implementamos un programa holístico que incluye:

Apoyamos a las familias para que alcancen una mejor calidad de vida, ofreciendo oportunidades para desarrollar sus habilidades y convertirlas en una fuente de ingresos sostenible.A través de tres programas básicos, complementamos y fortalecemos los sistemas educativos locales para ofrecer acceso a oportunidades académicas para estudiantes de todas las edades.

Vision

Maya communities in the Lake Atitlán region of Guatemala are strong, vibrant and self-sufficient.

Mission

Advancing education, nutrition & health, and economic development, through culturally relevant, community-led initiatives that build on existing resources and knowledge.

Objectives

- Increased access to quality education
- Reduced rates of malnutrition
- Improved economic well-being

We are determined to fulfill our mission and do it in the right way. We live and breathe our values in every aspect of our work and with every individual we work with.

Natün School

Our Core Values

Cooperation

We work in collaboration with the  communities.

Integrity

We act ethically and honestly.

Transparency

We have open, justified, and reasonable processes.

Respect

We treat people with dignity, emphaty, and fairness.

Humility

We recognize our role as facilitators, valuing local expertise. 

Responsability

We manage our resources carefully and responsibly.

Reciprocity

We believe in having dignified and equitable relationships with the community we serve.