Field Placement: The Population Council - Family, Gender and Development Program
Location: Guatemala City, Guatemala
Preceptor: Dr. Marta Julia Ruiz and Jeannette de Jimenez.
Student Name: Kristen M. Shellenberg
Year: 2004

I completed my field studies with the Population Council’s Family, Gender and Development Program in Guatemala City, Guatemala during the summer of 2004. While in Guatemala, I worked with Dr. Marta Julia Ruiz and Jeannette de Jimenez. I also worked with Jennifer Catino, the Regional Program Coordinator of the Population Council’s Family, Gender and Development Program. Ms Catino is based out of the Mexico City office but traveled to Guatemala twice during the course of my field studies.

I worked on a project called “Creating Opportunities for Mayan Adolescent Girls” which forms part of a global Population Council program titled “Transitions to Adulthood,” which is currently being implemented in 11 countries, covering every major region of the world. The project is focused on improving the sexual and reproductive health and wellbeing of indigenous adolescent women in rural Guatemala. The overall goal of the project is to delay age of first marriage and childbirth by providing young women (ages 10-14 and ages 15-20) with training, professional and networking opportunities, adult mentors, reproductive health information and services (including family planning), and safe spaces to share information and experiences.

In 2003, the Population Council fielded a qualitative study titled “Understanding the Lives of Indigenous Young People in Guatemala” regarding the available opportunities (education, vocational, health services) and desires of Mayan adolescents in Guatemala. Based on the study findings and information gathered from local NGOs, the Population Council designed an appropriate and feasible community-level intervention. The intervention involves local Mayan NGOs and Mayan girls from the surrounding communities where each NGO works. Each participating NGO recruits, interviews and selects 3-4 girls (15-20 years old) to participate in the project. These girls are then trained in 6 skill areas (leadership, professional skills, vocational skills, community work, reproductive health, and life skills) and are responsible for going back to their communities and working with girls age 10-14 in these same topic areas. In addition to the community level work, the 15-20 year female leaders will be participating in an internship program at the NGO who selected them.

Currently, the Population Council, in collaboration with 4 participating Mayan NGOs, is in the implementation phase of this project. The selection of candidates began in July, 2004 and the first training sessions began in September, 2004. The intervention phase of the project is scheduled to continue through August 2005.

All of my field studies activities were directly related to the above mentioned project, including the fielded qualitative study. I participated in the interviewing and selection of 15-20 year old indigenous women to participate in project. I edited the Qualitative Data Analysis Final Report, and wrote and prepared the summary document “Voices of Vulnerable and Underserved Adolescents in Guatemala – A Summary of the Qualitative Study: Understanding the Lives of Indigenous Young People in Guatemala.” I also updated interview guides in Spanish for an upcoming Adolescent Program Inventory that will be conducted by the Population Council. Finally, I assisted with the organization and execution of a national-level forum on adolescent programs in Guatemala titled “Utilizing Multisectoral Strategies to Better the Lives of Vulnerable Young People in Guatemala.”

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