Empowering Maya Communities: the inspiring work of Claudia Martinez Filizola’s Tulum Foundation
With a vast trajectory and a life devoted to service, Claudia Martínez Filizola has dedicated herself to being an important agent of change for vulnerable areas and people in Mexico. In this sense, she has accumulated over a decade of experience in learning, vocation, and, primarily, being attentive and aware of the environment that surrounds us to promote the common good.
This April marks the first six years of “Los amigos de la esquina,” a non-profit organization that she founded in Tulum with Jaime Kohen and Francisco Rocha. Through this organization, necessary tools are provided to Mayan boys and girls for their comprehensive development.
“I have spent many years in the world of foundations, and it is a great satisfaction to work beyond professional success. It is a philosophy of life because my work is something that I am passionate about, it entertains me, and it motivates me every day.”
“I learned to live it as a whole. It is not just a job; it is a path of transformation, evolution, and consciousness. Everything that benefited me personally, such as yoga, meditation, or dance, is what we teach.”
“In addition, I have been working and specializing with children in vulnerable communities in various international foundations for ten years.”
“Some of them are Viva la Gente, Gamnol, in the centers of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, in the Sierra Tarahumara, among others.”
“I studied Organizational Psychology at Tecnológico de Monterrey and worked in the human resources department of Cemex. Later, I joined FEMSA, where I led a community project called CAPE, inspired by KIPP.”
“I was the director and leader of the project, which was a school for children in the downtown area of Monterrey. FEMSA works with several neighborhoods, and I was there for two and a half years,” shares Claudia Martínez Filizola.
Tulum, a New Challenge
Claudia Martínez Filizola moved to Tulum not only to change her horizon but also to participate and touch the hearts of the different communities of Mayan origin that inhabit the region. She works together with these communities through “Los amigos de la esquina,” a project that she founded with this noble objective.
“I came to Tulum because I wanted to live in the southeast of Mexico and learn more about the Mayan community.”
“It was like a calling for me to be close to that and the sea. When I arrived, I looked for ways to contribute, and that’s how we started working on the foundation.”
“We started from scratch, and it was a good way to meet the needs of the area. We got to know the right people, and we were able to establish ‘Los amigos de la esquina’.”
“The landowners intended to build a building to rent it through Airbnb, but when they met the children, they decided to donate it so we could build what are now our facilities.”
Learning Community
It’s been six years since the foundation was created, and Claudia Martínez Filizola has dedicated a great effort to it, being part of the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual development of thousands of children who have passed through that space of so much learning.
“It’s called that because we are located on a corner in the center of Tulum and the children told their parents that they were going to the corner with their friends.”
“It was a vacant lot and we were able to transform it into what it is today, a meeting point for children in the community with the help of everyone who lives around us.”
“We call it a learning community because it is based on the concept that we all learn from each other, meaning that children also have a lot to teach and many nationalities merge here.”
“It’s an alternative education method similar to systems that are different from traditional education; adults or collaborators learn from each other, and here comes an anthropological concept in which the Mayan community teaches the rest of the world how to live, and Mexicans do the same with foreigners, we are all a kind of bridge in which education passes from one place to another.”
Sixth Anniversary
Since its beginnings, “Los amigos de la esquina” has captivated the hearts of those who have had the opportunity to learn from it, to exchange experiences to leave valuable teachings for the rest of the community.
“In these six years, a lot of work has been done and we have achieved many things, but the biggest challenge was staying open during the pandemic.”
“We needed to be a beacon of hope and started distributing food baskets, we delivered two thousand of them and also built a community center, which is what the space was transformed into.”
“While the building was already there, there is a whole story behind it in which funds were raised, collaborated with Mom I’m Fine, who is a philanthropic influencer from Belgium, helped us raise the money through her followers on social media.”
There is a great team that, along with Claudia, is dedicated to giving social sustainability to the project.
It is through donations from people all over the world that it has been able to move forward, people who are recognized as “Guardians” thanks to the fact that, in one way or another, they look out for their fellow human beings.
“It is thanks to donations from people all over the world that it has been able to move forward, people who are recognized as ‘Guardians’ thanks to the fact that, in one way or another, they look out for their fellow human beings.”
In what ways can you participate?
Follow them on: @ladle.mx
You can volunteer if you visit Tulum, write to: info@ladlemx.org
Become an ambassador and share their story to learn more about Mayan cosmology
Share your abundance by becoming a guardian. Donate monthly through a direct credit card charge
Your children can be part of the summer course and spend time on the beach living a cultural exchange
Donations:
PAYPAL: donaciones@ladlemx.org
ELECTRONIC TRANSFER OR BANK DEPOSIT:
Los Amigos de la Esquina A.C. BBVA Bancomer account: 0111013807
CLABE: 012180001110138070
Photos: https://www.facebook.com/LADLE.mx
