The Association of the Center for Mayan Ixil Education and Development works with youth and women in the rural town of Chajul and its surrounding villages. Chajul is an area deeply affected by more than thirty-six years of civil war and ongoing and entrenched poverty. Prior to its formation, many members of ACEFOMI worked within the town to meet the multiple psychosocial needs of women and children who survived the war and its effects.

With funds from the Martín-Baró Fund, ACEFOMI will extend their previous work to include youth and adult women in five rural communities: the villages of Ju’il, Tchacalte’, Vi’pech, Ixla’ and Visiquitchun. Thirty young girls and women in each community will participate in workshops on women’s and indigenous rights and on community mental health. The goals of the training are to create a group-based process for remembering the past, enhancing women’s self-esteem and, through participatory and popular education techniques, provide resources through which girls and women can organize their communities toward creating a more just future.