Zona Reina: Madre Selva and Festival of Santa Ana

Created 18-Aug-19

Jose Cruz took Helen and me to a remote corner of northwestern Guatemala, La Reina. Hours on a dirt road. He is involved with a community development project with the villages here: MadreSelva, Mother Forest. MadreSelva helps the local communities plan, build, and maintain small-scale microgrids. Small generators generate electricity from local streams; this is distributed to homes, schools, and other buildings in the villages. Projects are small in scale; local communities organize to help plan, help build, then maintain the generators and distribution lines.

MadreSelva volunteers assist local villages with more than electricity. The projects build community, strengthen the role and status of women, and benefit the environment. Construction costs are underwritten by donations, many from Europe. Ongoing maintenance and operational costs are mostly borne by the local communities.

Helen asked a local resident what were the main benefits of the microgrid. Beyond the ability to have lights in the evening, a major benefit is the ability to charge cell phones -- letting people communicate instantaneously, rather than walking hours to the next village. Local schoolchildren can now learn on computers. The local birthing center has lights to assist delivery in the evening, and even an ultrasound machine for early diagnosis of possible problems with birth.

There are five galleries here:

1. MadreSelva Microgrid shows the system for generating and distributing electricity using microgrids. The communities are also establishing carp ponds near the generators, to add a valuable source of protein into the diet.

2. We attended a Regional Planning Meeting to establish a regional body representing the local councils/communities.

3. The festival of Santa Ana (Saint Anne). A three-day festival held in and around the Catholic church, with some Mayan influence. A major event in the region.

4. Some photos of the life of the local people.

5. Nature: butterflies, ants, flowers, and much more.

Boundaries between these categories are fuzzy. Some photos could have appeared in two or more of these galleries. I tossed a coin.