The cloud forests of western Honduras' Celaque National Park nurtured an idyllic childhood for Yaredi Alvardo: a cool climate, plentiful vegetation, crystalline rivers and friendly people. But that tranquil upbringing was shattered after his father died and his mother was forced to leave her family and find work in the city. Alvarado stopped seeing the beauty in nature all around him. Instead, he noticed the abject poverty of his community and the severe lack of opportunities for his own future .
Alvarado decided to try and flee north to start a new life. After a failed attempt to migrate to the United States, he came back home to Honduras where he discovered a youth conservation corps program near his home community that opened his eyes to the natural landscape once again. This time as a profession.
In November 2021, 89 young Hondurans graduated from Jóvenes para la Conservación, (JPC) joining a rapidly growing roster of alumni that now includes Alvarado. Known as YCC Honduras in English, the program equips youth with technical skills for the conservation workforce and is modeled closely after the celebrated Youth Conservation Corps program in the United States.
Like YCC in the United States, participants of YCC Honduras gain technical skills to manage forests, protect watersheds, and conserve nature. They learn to build trails, apply first aid, construct fire lines, manage nurseries, and gain a wide set of practical experiences as part of their training.
In addition, the program teaches interpersonal skills like leadership and teamwork to help young people reach their goals regardless of what career they choose. Instructors mentor participants and encourage self-reflection that supports personal growth.
The USDA Forest Service helped to start YCC Honduras in 2017 to teach natural resource management skills and provide opportunities for at-risk youth. The success of the program to make a positive impact on the lives of young Hondurans has drawn more partners from the public and private sector. Those partnerships have created more opportunities for graduates, including university scholarships, national park training programs, and more courses for the program’s curriculum. Graduates receive national accreditation from the Instituto Nacional de Formación Profesional and join a network of alumni who have become conservation leaders in their communities. YCC Honduras is supported through funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Yaredy Alvarado said that before the program, the lack of opportunities and poverty experienced around him made him depressed and pushed him to try and migrate. In fact, 60% of Hondurans lives on less than $2 per day. The program helped Alvarado find a new perspective and hope to stay in Honduras and make a difference.
“I discovered that I can be an agent of change in my community. I entered the program as a young man full of frustrations, but with a lot of expectations. I left as a leader, with knowledge, skills and a positive attitude to improve my community,” said Alvarado, who graduated from the program in 2019.
After graduating, Mr. Alvarado became an entrepreneur. He credits the entrepreneurship module that he took while enrolled in YCC Honduras for giving him the skills and confidence to do so.
“I learned how to make a business plan and now that plan has become a reality. I started out with $290 USD and bought 200 hens after graduating from the YCC Program. I partnered with my brother to convert this enterprise into a successful family business,” said Mr. Alvarado.
María Benítez, another recent graduate, says she found a sense of confidence and inner strength that she didn’t know she had before enrolling in the program .
“The YCC Honduras program was undoubtedly the best adventure of my life. It helped me test my limits and break my fears. It also brought out my strengths,” said Benítez.
Ms. Benítez recounts the frustration of many of her peers: they graduate from high school expecting to easily find jobs and educational opportunities but find none. She credits the program with giving her the resilience and confidence to keep looking.
The unemployment rate in Honduras is daunting. In 2020 more than ten percent of the population who were actively looking for a job could not find one. For youth ages 15 to 24, the 2020 unemployment rate was even higher, at nearly 18% nationwide. In rural parts of western Honduras, the youth unemployment rate is as high as 40%, leaving young people with few opportunities for employment.
“If there are no opportunities, we look for them and if there are no jobs, we make them,” said Benítez.
The class of 2020-21 is optimistic. The graduates that came before them have found jobs with Honduran parks. They are pursuing conservation degrees or are starting businesses, often with other alumni. An alumni network of 85 members has formed an NGO to apply for funding and employ graduates in environmental consulting and other project work.
The YCC Honduras program can’t change the difficult political and social realities that are pervasive in Honduras, but it can help provide the tools – confidence, education, teamwork, and hope – to future generations of Honduran leaders. Ms. Benítez and Mr. Alvarado are two examples of graduates that are creating their own opportunities and driving positive change.
