Over the years many families, churches, unions, community organizations, schools, classrooms, tribal groups, and individuals have all volunteered their energy, their creativity, and their resources to support the work of Schools for Chiapas.
The range of volunteer activity these wonderful people have invented is truly astounding. For example, one group of young lesbian business majors at major universities in the southeastern United States obtained sponsorships from several businesses for a fundraising bike ride from Tallahassee to Atlanta. A group of high school students in the San Francisco Bay sold tamales and candies to build a classroom in Chiapas. In south western Spain a collective of social activists raised five thousand euros by sponsoring dances and other social events. The Peace and Justice Caucus of the National Education Association has organized, educated and fundraised for years at their organization’s national convention. Several catholic orders make regular donations and redistribute the Schools for Chiapas newsletter within their communities. In Baja California an artists’ organization has created a project called “Our Meat” (meaning corn) which distributes GMO-free Zapatista corn while educating using buttons which are presented in public locations as “Corn Man”. Hundreds of families and communities are growing Zapatista corn and organizing creative planting, cultivating, harvesting, and eating educational activities. (Click here to order GMO-free corn.)
Individuals wishing to volunteer in Chiapas must first attend regularly scheduled Schools for Chiapas delegation. (Click here to read a list of upcoming delegations.) These delegations provide a structured and comprehensive overview of the Zapatista movement and to indigenous realities in Chiapas. We also urge those wishing to volunteer in Chiapas to begin with volunteer activities in their homes. Please note that there are very few teaching opportunities for individuals who do not speak one of the six Mayan languages of Chiapas; most teaching positions are filled by volunteers from the indigenous communities of Chiapas.
