Meet the Fellows!
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Documents and downloads for Fellows.Eva Patricia Chúc Choxom
Eva Patricia Chúc Choxom, 27, is a Project Coordinator for Asociación Concejo Pro-Desarrollo Comunitario (ACPDC) in Totonicapan, Guatemala where she is a rural education teacher and a member of the Board of Directors. As a youth trainer, she has lead trainings on civic duty, youth leadership, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and has trained the ACPDC Board of Directors on various SRH topics. She was a beneficiary of the 2004 GOJoven Team’s Leadership Action Plan and was trained by Puntos de Encuentro in Nicaragua on SRH and youth development. She also worked en the creation of a youth focused survey to analyze the SRH situation in Totonicapán. Eva hopes to fortify her leadership abilities in SRH and involve youth in knowing the importance of SRH. Ultimately, she aims to graduate as a social worker and work in various youth SRH projects.
Juan Gilberto Escobar Reyes
Juan Gilberto Escobar Reyes, 19, has worked with Proyecto Payaso in HIV prevention and education, as well as with an association of people with disabilities using popular education techniques. He has been active in community mobilization and development, as well as local policy advocacy. Gilberto recently joined the local organization of traditional midwives of Quetzaltenango, where he supports the midwifery school in designing its curriculum and disseminating the organization’s materials on topics such as menstruation and breastfeeding. He is currently writing a book about the history of Guatemala and plans to create a popularized version to make it accessible to low-literacy populations. He hopes that GOJoven will give him new SRH knowledge to share with local midwives and youth.
Erick Gabriel Chox López
Erick Gabriel Chox López, 27, is Coordinator of an HIV project at the Association for Youth and Cultural Development of Cantel, Quetzaltenango. Erick began his work in youth development over 10 years ago with the creation of a youth group. He participated in the Guatemalan Youth Assembly in 1997 and the National Association of Guatemalan Youth in 1998, and was subsequently selected by PAHO to represent Guatemala at a youth leadership forum in the U.S. From 2003-2005, Erick was Coordinator of the National Assembly of Guatemalan Youth, responsible for coordinating over 50 organizations working with youth. Erick is currently a university student, but he retains a vision of creating a sustainable network of organizations working to reduce HIV and enable youth participation in politics.
Eunice Meeilih Ramírez Cotóm
Eunice Meeilih Ramírez Cotóm, 25, is a Social Worker at the Quetzaltenango Municipal Women’s Office, where she focuses on the civic participation of young and adult women, and supports efforts to end violence against women and to undertake SRH outreach campaigns. Eunice is currently writing her Bachelor’s thesis on “Participatory Techniques and Popular Organization,” and plans to graduate in 2009; the first in her family with a college education. Her goal is to help rural women to gain a voice and participation in their local governmental Social Development Councils and her long-range goal is to actively participate in local politics and someday, become the mayor of her community.
Gloria Araceli Salanic Cornejo
Gloria Araceli Salanic Cornejo is a Maya-K’iché woman who works as a Volunteer Community Facilitator for Asociación Amigas, where she provides trainings on family planning, prevention of violence against women, personal relationships, and HIV/STIs in the rural villages surrounding Quetzaltenango. She recently obtained her teaching degree and began working as a Physical Education teacher. Gloria is the secretary of her Catholic youth group, where she provides talks on communication and attitudes about sexuality. She is an extroverted, visionary and extremely committed young woman who will turn 18 this year. Gloria’s long term plans are to study radiology at the university and, with her mother, open a clinic and pharmacy in her home town.
Carlos Rene Cotúc Calvac
Carlos Rene Cotúc Calvac, a 26 year old Maya- K’iché farmer, works as a volunteer radio host for numerous community radio stations in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. Currently, he is a radio announcer for one of 25 radio stations associated with the non-profit association Mujb´ab´l yol. This organization furthers education and capacity-building for children and adolescents, and advances local communication and democratization. Carlos has broadcast programs on health, children’s rights and worker’s rights, and has provided training on sexually transmitted infections and media in schools and local organizations. Carlos sees family planning as an important tool to reduce poverty and plans to share what he learns about SRH in GOJoven with many families and young people through his radio shows.
Wilson Rigoberto Norales
Wilson Rigoberto Norales, selected at age 23 is an experienced Garifuna sexual and reproductive health educator and human rights advocate from Livingston. He has facilitated trainings in human rights, discrimination, racism, HIV and democracy for both local organizations and the Guatemalan government. He is awaiting the results of a proposal he submitted to UNESCO that would create employment, education and health opportunities for youth in Izabal. Wilson has a high school diploma in computers and was a seminary student in Nicaragua in 2006. He plans to begin studying psychology at a local university early in 2009.
Abigail Ortiz Dubon
Abigail Ortiz Dubon was selected at age 18 when she was still in high school. The Ladina woman is a member of a local Mayan cultural association, where she has participated in workshops on leadership, conflict resolution, self-esteem, the environment and HIV/AIDS. She is very interested in environmental protection and the importance of sexual and reproductive health in maintaining the balance between human population and nature. Abigail hopes to strengthen her knowledge of sexual and reproductive health, particularly HIV/AIDS prevention, family planning and adolescent pregnancy prevention, in order to influence youth in her community to practice healthy sexual behaviors.
Elder Eduardo Ventura
Elder Eduardo Ventura, selected at age 19 is a Ladino high school teacher at his family’s private school in Rio Dulce. While the school does not have a sex education curriculum, Elder has researched sexuality and reproductive health on his own and shares this information with his students in the hope of reducing the high rates of adolescent pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, school desertion and single motherhood in the region. He is an intern at a local radio station in Rio Dulce, where he hopes to create a sex education radio program geared toward youth. Elder is completing a BA in Humanities at the University of San Carlos in nearby Morales.
Edgar Anival de Leon
Edgar Anival de Leon, who was selected at the age of 19, is a Q’eqch’i’ Mayan volunteer of the Grupo de Jovenes Jesus, which works to prevent teen pregnancy by encouraging abstinence and healthy sexual behavior. He participates in the leadership training activities of a Mayan cultural association and has volunteered with the HIV prevention and anti-discrimination projects of the local Red Cross. He is a passionate advocate for HIV/AIDS prevention, and is eager to study sexual and reproductive health and share this information with other youth in his rural community. He is completing his third year of high school and plans to pursue a BA in Pedagogy upon graduation.
GOJoven's Mission
GOJoven promotes and supports young leaders to act as catalysts for social change in Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health. Read more here
Leadership Action Plans
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