Mayan women promoting solar power

Organization: Túumben K'óoben, S.C. de R.L. de C.V.

To contribute to education and sustainable development through comprehensive programs that generate greater environmental awareness and encourage changes in habits, in order to reduce human impact on the environment and foster self-sufficiency, self-development, productivity and stewardship of natural resources, primarily in rural zones and impoverished sectors of the population.

Location: State of Quintana Roo, municipality of Felipe Carrillo Puerto.
Communities benefiting directly from the project: Sotuta, Yucatán and Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Quintana Roo, with the participation of the towns of X-Hazil, Dzulá, and Santa Rosa in Felipe Carrillo Puerto municipality. Organizations and communities from the rest of the Yucatán peninsula (estimated at around 15), as well as other regions such as Chiapas, Guatemala and Belize, participants in fairs and forums to be held as part of the project.
Country: Mexico
Other Organizations Involved: GEF-México Small Grants Program – The Global Environment Facility (GEF), under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); Instituto Tecnológico Superior de Felipe Carrillo Puerto; Barefoot College International.

Active

@ Túumben K’óoben

Background

Communities on the Yucatán peninsula are living through the effects of climate change and facing major challenges: erratic rainfall is modifying production cycles and endangering food systems due to intense droughts. Furthermore, it is necessary to create awareness of our consumption patterns and the enormous inequality in rural communities that do not have adequate access to power for their lights, or even completely lack an electrical supply.

Since 2019, the Túumben K’óoben cooperative has undertaken actions to use energy alternatives, with a focus on climate change resilience, while helping to reduce the impact of CO2 emissions, and offering solutions for adequate access to water and lighting in vulnerable households in Quintana Roo, Campeche and Yucatán.

Goals

To involve and empower approximately 150 women, 100 men and 50 youth, from among the Maya of the Yucatán peninsula, as well as persons who work with the Túumben K’óoben cooperative, to build technical capacity through fairs, solar power workshops, and a South-South forum; promoting alternative technologies, with a focus on resilience to climate change to help reduce the impact of CO₂ emissions; and implementing a pilot fair trade that will market 50 solar systems and enabling access to energy for lighting and four solar-powered irrigation pumping systems.

Main activities

Planning the Túumben K’íin (Mayan for “New Sun”) Ecotechnic Fair and Women’s Forum, with collective meetings among the co-organizers.
Inviting each participating organization to attend the fair (speakers and facilitators) and supporting participation at the meeting of women and “sun moms”.
Coordinating logistics at both the fair and the women’s forum, before, during and after both events.
Holding the Túumben K’íin Ecotechnic Fair and Women’s Forum, with the participating organizations.
Communicating the results and organizing information relating to the fair, the women’s forum and the training workshops.
Following up on the resolutions made.
Designing a trading and revolving stock plan.
Strengthening the cooperative’s knowledge on the installation of the solar system.
Acquiring the solar-powered systems.
Promoting the solar-powered systems and bringing them to market.
Analyzing results with a view toward sustainability.

Outcomes

Two Ecotechnic Fairs, organized and held in Felipe Carrillo Puerto in 2023 and 2024, in coordination with Instituto Tecnológico Superior de Felipe Carrillo Puerto.
In 2023, to hold the first Túumben K’íin South-South Women’s Forum on Solar Energy, in coordination with Barefoot College International and “sun moms” in Chiapas, Guatemala, Belize and Quintana Roo.
Four solar energy training workshops organized and held in communities and schools, in coordination with women delegates from the municipality of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, allied Small Grant Program organizations and Pre-Solar, training at least 80 women.
Implementation of the pilot initiative to market 50 solar-powered lighting systems and four solar-powered pumping systems, as part of the services offered in the region by the Túumben K’óoben cooperative. Pre-Solar will accompany the Túumben K’óoben women to strengthen their know-how concerning more complex systems.