Local Hope

Founded in 1992, Local Hope (also known locally as Xela AID, the “Agency for Integrated Development”) has worked for more than three decades alongside largely indigenous Mayan communities to break cycles of poverty through health, education, and self-reliance. Its Guatemala headquarters sit in San Martín Chiquito, about 30–40 minutes from Quetzaltenango (“Xela”), anchoring long-term, place-based partnerships in the central highlands of Guatemala.

Local Hope’s vision is straightforward yet ambitious: to empower families to become healthy, educated, and self-reliant—because children can only learn when barriers such as illness, hunger, unsafe water, or economic pressure to work are removed. Accordingly, Xela AID pursues integrated solutions: primary and mental health care, pure water/sanitation and hygiene, emergency assistance, and wrap-around services that keep children in school and propel youth into meaningful work.

From that holistic platform, Local Hope has built an ecosystem of programs now numbering in the dozens—spanning health services (including dental and senior care), scholarships and career pathways, micro-enterprise/artisan initiatives, environmental projects, and carefully structured volunteer experiences based from its campus and eco-guest house in San Martín Chiquito. The model emphasizes dignity, local leadership, and measurable outcomes while welcoming thoughtfully designed short-term volunteer service that supports (rather than supplants) community priorities.

Local Hope’s approach has earned national recognition for impact and stewardship: in September 2024, Charity Navigator awarded the organization its Four-Star “Give with Confidence” rating—reserved for only the top tier of U.S. nonprofits on impact, accountability, culture, and adaptability. It has received numerous large grants from Rotary International, and is recognized as one of Rotary’s most successful grantees. The public profile underscores Xela AID’s commitment to transparent, replicable development grounded in community partnership.

In sum, by maintaining a long-term presence in a single highlands region and systematically addressing barriers to learning and livelihood, Local Hope/Xela AID has established a pragmatic model of community-led development among indigenous Mayan populations—a model that others can study, adapt, and scale.

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