Israel is a third-generation member of a cooperative that his grandparents founded in the Verapaces region of Guatemala. “I live with my wife and my two kids in our Q’equchi’ community of Cooperativa Chicoj, here in Cobán”, he says. From a young age, Israel understood firsthand the hard work required to cultivate the land while pursuing an education, a lesson instilled in him by his father. “One day my father told me, ‘look, son, you should work with me during the mornings, and in the afternoons, you go to school’. I took his advice.”
Through the cooperative, Israel has not only achieved higher education, which his parents never had the chance to pursue, but he has also secured a better quality of life for his family and his community. “Thanks to my cooperative, I am happy to say that I became an Agriculture Engineer. The cooperative has helped me to increase my income, build a new house for my family, get access to technical assistance to improve my crops-including cardamom, pepper, and turmeric, and get better prices for my harvests.”
His leadership and vision have led him to the presidency of FEDECOVERA, one of the most prestigious and well-known second-level cooperatives in Guatemala. But for Israel, leadership is about more than holding a position. “If you want to be a good leader, you need to lead by example. And if you want to inspire new generations of leaders, you have to take action for yourself”, he says. “That’s why I run half-marathons with 100-pound gears made of small plants to symbolize the responsibility leaders have to safeguard natural resources and our culture. I also participate in events with kids every year. It is funny, but I dress up as Santa Claus during Christmas to give gifts to our children.”
Israel recognizes the power of being a member of a cooperative, and how this has unlocked his sense of belonging and the responsibility with his community: "Without my cooperative, I don't know where I’d be. I might have been one of those migrants, stuck at the U.S. border, searching for a better future.”
Негізгі бет Cooperative Member Portrait - Héctor Israel Cú
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