BECOME INVOLVED: HELP WITH OUR PROJECTS

***Healthy Families
***Club for Children and Adolescents
***Citizen Empowerment
***Ecologically Sound and Sustainable Micro-Enterprises


MAR DE JADE AND THE COMMUNITY
During the last 28 years, Mar de Jade, a responsible center for tourism in Chacala, Nayarit, Mexico has been actively involved in community development. We fund and staff a primary care clinic and an after-school children’s program that we established in Las Varas, Nayarit. In addition, we have been responsive to other community needs as they have arisen as in the case of our work with a human rights group and a sewing coop.

OUR MISSION is to work with impoverished families in our rural farming community in resolving their most basic problems: illness, lack of education, and unemployment.

THE COMMUNITY
In Nayarit, a significant portion of the rural farming population living in communities like Las Varas subsists in conditions of extreme poverty. Given the lack of social service agencies, people have no safety net on which to rely.

WHAT WE WILL DO
By expanding existing programs and by creating new ones, we will provide opportunities for youth and adults in the community to exit the cycle of poverty. We hope to strengthen the fabric of the community by addressing four basic aspects of daily life in a comprehensive way: health, education, citizen participation, and employment.

***Healthy Families:
For many years, the clinic has provided care for commonly occurring illnesses that are exacerbated by poverty and unhealthy habits. In an effort to reduce their incidence, we have adopted a new clinical goal: to focus on the prevention and management of specific problems through life style change, education, and group support

***Club for Children and Adolescents:
Because of economic problems and lack of family and societal support, many children drop out of school. As a result, there is a growing number of youth at risk of: early teen pregnancy, drug and alcohol use and abuse, drug trafficking and other illegal activities such as robbery and prostitution.

In our new club format, we plan to serve children from 6 to 18 years and to expand the program activities. In addition to offering a healthy meal to participants, we will provide academic support, art, computers, sports as well as a safe place to hangout. Through these and other activities, we will cultivate healthy values and encourage school attendance.

***Citizen Empowerment:
A large number of adults over 40 years old have completed, at best, a grammar school education. Consequently, they often lack the knowledge and leadership skills needed by citizens to bring community issues to the forefront of the political agenda.
The citizen empowerment program will assist adults by teaching literacy and computer skills, and by offering training in leadership and citizenship participation.

***Ecologically Sound and Sustainable Micro-Enterprises:
In response to the high level of unemployment and underemployment in this region, on our 16-acre farm, we are establishing eco-friendly micro-enterprises for training and employment.