Living in harmony with Mother Earth

The Maya have a special relationship with Mother Earth and Mother Nature. We defend her because she is our mother, and it is because of her that the dream of the Maya is to remain connected to the land and to our origins and life. Our connection with Mother Nature and the traditional knowledge, history, and ceremonies that are born from this relationship allow us to conserve and protect our lands, territories, and natural sacred elements. Currently some of the largest tracts of these natural goods are found within our ancestral lands because we have protected them through the care of the earth. Our stewardship of the earth has placed us at great risk against multinational and domestic companies encroaching on our ancestral lands as they look to implement large-scale extraction and infrastructure development projects.

Shareholder Advocacy Leadership Training Center

The Mayan League as a grantee of First Peoples Worldwide, is working to create a space with the Maya and other indigenous peoples to come together and discuss the threats affecting our lands, territories and goods of the earth.   Through the Shareholder Advocacy Leadership Training Center, our goal is to facilitate the development of a Regional Hub to exchange information and experiences, provide technical assistance, and strengthen existing networks.  We will assist our leaders and elders to better understand the companies in our territories and the role of market based pressures and shareholders so our leader can effectively create and lead advocacy strategies.  This advocacy aims to support traditional authorities, elders, and spiritual leaders from Mexico and Guatemala who are defending the rights of our peoples and the rights of the earth while facing intimidation, criminalization, and assassination for their leadership. Our solutions are grounded in our right of self-determination and self-government and our right to participate and make decisions over our lands, territories, natural sacred elements and environment.