We can improve each childs life through improving the quality of their education.

The Education for Conservation program is unique in the country.  Created by AALA over fifteen years ago, it focuses on contextualized ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION for the department of Sololá. Since its establishment, the program has sought to strengthen technical skills in teachers, in order to adequately apply the “Education for Conservation” material, in planned and orderly fashion, for the purpose of instilling good practices in students and the educational community, thus achieving sustainable management of natural resources and environmental management capacity in the department of Sololá.

The EFC program is an initiative focused on professional training of teachers and on teaching students in 4th, 5th, and 6th grade elementary level, high school and diversified level in private and public schools.  It was born under the motto:  “If I am taught, I will learn; if I learn, I will know; if I know, I will value; if I value, I will conserve.” Since 2011, the program was recognized by the Bi-ministerial group made up of the MINEDUC-MARN, according to Decree, of December 12, 2011, No. ESP/CCNN/DIGECUR-004-2011.  Through the years, the program was oriented toward Verification, Monitoring, and Strengthening of skills in the use and application of “Education for Conservation” Reference Material, training and constant accompaniment for teachers, as well as practical enforcement of environmental concepts, as a way to support the process of improvement of Educational Quality. For this purpose, the EFC methodology was defined, encompassing three phases aimed at technical teaching skills in play-and-teach methods.

Know more about our education work and access our PDF workbooks of Educando Para Conservar (EPC)

Educando para Conservar 2018 – Reference Manual

Jugando y Educando para Conservar – Seventh to Tenth Grade

Jugando y Educando para Conservar – First to Seventh Grade

Practical enforcement of environmental concepts is an indispensable factor in the formation of students and, for that purpose, the modality of the Green School contest was put into practice, thus resulting in schools which implemented adoption of good environmental practices.

Throughout the years, AALA has sought excellence in knowledge.  Therefore, Education for Conservation Reference Material has undergone three updates, the last one being in 2018. The Reference Material is composed of seven thematic modules, one Glossary, and environmental messages that inspire thought. In addition to the Reference Material, AALA has developed  a series of support material which has been approved by the Guatemalan Ministry of Education and Sololá’s Departmental Education Office.  It is noteworthy that the program has been certified with Educational Quality Accreditation by the Ministry’s DIGEACE office, in addition to being incorporated into an Interinstitutional Cooperation Agreement between AALA and MINEDUC which supports all activities pertinent to the program’s development.

Given the circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic in the year 2020, initial planning and focus of the EFC Methodology were adapted to the extraordinary situation of suspended classes in all educational centers. AALA’s response was immediate in being “present and not absent” during the crisis.

In order to stimulate and motivate students to continue learning, we developed the hybrid methodology.

For a third year in a row,  Amigos del Lago organized the contest “Recognizing the Greenest Schools in the Lake Atitlan Basin for its application of best environmental practices”, the annual contest with the participation of 120 schools.

Our objective is to generate a change in attitude to benefit the environment by means of participation and commitment coming from the educational centers and spreading to entire communities, manifesting in better hygiene, esthetics and general quality of life, through better environmental practices.