Talita Kumi Students Cultivate Hope in Northern Guatemala

At the educational campus of Talita Kumi, located in San Pedro Carchá, Alta Verapaz in Guatemala, 350 boarding students carry out a practice that goes beyond the classroom: they cultivate vegetables, fruits, and greens for their own consumption.

This process not only ensures a varied and nutritious diet but also strengthens self-sufficiency and nurtures in each student a deep respect for nature. Through agricultural work, the young women acquire practical knowledge that they can replicate in their communities, promoting sustainable habits and healthier lifestyles.

As part of this integral learning, students engage in agroecological practices for the agronomic management of different crops and vegetables. In the particular case of tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum), they apply natural products for both nutrition and pest and disease control. In doing so, they aim to harvest more nutritious fruits, with higher levels of vitamins and antioxidants—benefiting consumer health and soil quality by avoiding synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. These practices also encourage soil biological activity and help reduce environmental pollution.

The gardens of Talita Kumi thus become spaces of integral learning, where sowing is done with dedication and harvesting with joy. Each crop represents an opportunity to value the earth as a source of life and to respond to the call to care for our Common Home.

With these actions, Talita Kumi reaffirms its commitment to forming women leaders who, through the simplicity of sowing, contribute to building a more just, caring, and sustainable future.