Central America Program
Central America Program Introduction
TWP’s Central America Program (CAP) supports Indigenous and marginalized communities in the preservation of their lands, natural resources and cultural lifeways. We work with local organizations to create the conditions for families to prosper in ways that regenerate and heal the land in Central America.
Program Purpose
Central America has developed in a manner that has left large percentages of the region’s population in debilitating poverty, dependent on dwindling natural resources, weak institutions, and disproportionately high exposure to climate disaster.
We work with small, local nonprofit organizations in rural and urban environments that serve the most vulnerable of these populations with ecotechnologies, capacity building, local economic development, and human centered conservation approaches.
While the challenges we work on, and their solutions, are long-term, we try to enact change at the household level, in ways that tangibly improve standards of living for people living closest to the effects of climate change.
Our Philosophy
We believe that natural resources are best protected when local people derive economic benefit from actively participating in their care and management. We respect, honor and support the self-determination of any community to realize their goals and vision of the future in the face of climate change.
Our Approach
Empower Indigenous and local communities, as well as grassroots environmental organizations, to lead in community development and natural resource conservation.
Create long-lasting solutions that reduce migration and forced separation of Central American families by generating local economic opportunities and helping rural communities adapt to climate change.
Promote human-centered conservation via locally-developed solutions designed to improve human livelihoods and protect the environment in the short-, medium- and long-term.
Where Are We Most Effective
TWP is most effective as a convener of expertise and resources for the benefit of Indigenous and local communities and organizations. We help our partners raise funds, refine ideas, plan and test project activities, and engage with other local stakeholders, funders, and consultants. We support capacity building and skills development via regular partner meetings focused on project planning and management, pursuit of funding opportunities, in-field project implementation, monitoring & evaluation, data collection, and report writing.
We also organize cross-border exchanges, where local partners and community leaders can meet to share learned experiences, resources and challenges from their work.
Current Partners:
• Arboles y Agua para el Pueblo - AAP (El Salvador)
• Utz Che’ (Guatemala)
• Comité Ecológico Aldea de Suyapa - COEAS (Honduras)
• Asociación Hondureña para el Desarrollo - AHDESA (Honduras)
Within two weeks of having legally created a new 12,600 acre national Wildlife Refuge Suyapa - Luís Hernán Valladares Baca “Mero” on the edge of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, it was set ablaze. Today, some 5% of the 59,000 acre La Tigra National Park, in Tegucigalpa is on fire, and the capital is shrouded in smoke.