Unlike many in his community, Eliezer Rodriguez, 17, is completing his secondary education at the Francisco Morazan School in the village of El Zurzular in southern Honduras, without having to walk for four hours or cross a river.
The person responsible for this change in Eliezer’s life is Ms Katia Gomez, a young American who established the social enterprise Educate2Envision (E2E).
E2E is an educational programme that aims to train entrepreneurial leaders. Since 2010, it has changed the lives of around 100 students from the rural communities of Francisco Morazan and El Paraiso in the south of Honduras. Of the 5,000 people who inhabit these villages, the majority have never been able to complete secondary education.
“Our challenge is to change the mentality of these children, to show them that they can become professionals and help their community,” says Mr Alex Agurcia, E2E’s Chief Operating Officer.
These young people become community leaders and act as an example for children who aspire to build their future. They are shaped to become socially minded entrepreneurs, equipped with strategies to overcome their obstacles. E2E’s students learn to carry out community impact work – from health prevention campaigns to building electrical infrastructure. Many of them go on to become volunteers for E2E.
About 70% of graduates have collaborated to form a micro-enterprise that produces coffee under the Adelante Coffee brand, which is then placed in the US market by E2E. Most profits from the coffee sales go towards covering school fees for young people in the communities.
The students and families that benefit from this project are living proof that education can change lives. Through their own efforts, they are transforming their communities.
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Source: The Straits Times, 24 June 2017