Guatemala SIE Immersion

Empowering Women & Girls In an Uncertain & Rapidly Changing World

March 13-22, 2026

Themes & Highlights

Itinerary

Pricing

Learn More About Us

Registration & Contact

About SIE Immersions

Guatemala, known as the “Land of Eternal Spring,” invites us to explore

and engage with its cultural and natural abundance, from its vibrant,

welcoming communities and rich Mayan heritage to its exceptional biodiversity and stunning landscapes. The primordial volcanoes, ancient Mayan ruins,

and enduring cultural traditions provide a sharp contrast with the rapid pace and disruptive nature of change we’re experiencing in today’s world.

How might we utilize the abiding sense of community, shared values,

and tradition as steadfast cornerstones in service to effectively navigating

the quickly evolving complexities of the 21st Century? Our host communities—many of them indigenous—offer important lessons into leadership, resilience, balance, environmental stewardship, and how we can adapt and thrive in an uncertain and rapidly changing world. Program participants will examine

these insights and the innovative, impactful work of our local partner,

Wakami, through the lens of social innovation & entrepreneurship

and the SIE CoLab’s transformational systems change model.

This SIE Immersion is a unique 10-day learning experience that brings diverse changemakers together within the “living classrooms” of our host communities to explore

the unlimited possibilities of human potential, with a focus on women & girls.

Participants will gain new insights into how to think about complex problems and effectively integrate and apply the principles of social innovation & entrepreneurship (SIE) to address the urgent adaptive challenges we face in an uncertain and rapidly changing world.

Learn More

About the Key Benefits of SIE Immersions and Who Should Participate

Key Themes & Highlights

The role of culture and gender norms in the process of empowering women & girls; ownership, access to capital, and growing businesses for marginalized women; developing women’s and girls' leadership capacity, women-led artisan communities, and women’s roles in cultural connection/continuity and regenerative relationships with the land; women & girls’ health & well-being.

Talks with remarkable local leaders and adaptive changemakers; mentoring and empowering the next generation of adaptive changemakers.

The spirit of cooperation and collaboration rooted in Guatemalan community values; leveraging the traditional role of storytelling as a tool for leadership and systems change.

The respectful integration of indigenous knowledge into contemporary economic systems; indigenous mentoring practices and intergenerational teaching; the role of Mayan cosmology and rituals as tools for community empowerment.

Exploring Wakami’s unique, holistic community development & empowerment model; learning how to approach complex, adaptive challenges through the SIE CoLab’s transformational systems change framework and practice model.

Engage with Guatemala’s welcoming communities, vibrant culture, culinary delicacies, and stunning landscapes; experience a once-in-a-lifetime learning adventure.

Overview of Itinerary
(subject to change)

DAY 1:

Airport pickup; welcome dinner (Antigua)

DAY 2:

Tour of Wakami’s Demonstrative Regenerative Agriculture Farm and discussion of how it relates to Wakami’s work with communities; participate in Wakami’s signature “Dream Workshop” (Chimaltenango)

DAY 3:

Tour of Wakami Embassy (its flagship store) and its projects; interactive classroom on Wakami’s and SIE CoLab’s respective frameworks and models, including their application at the individual, organizational, and community levels; visit to a Wakami woman producer’s house to see her dream in action and participate in a story exchange; social innovation & entrepreneurship curriculum & reflection (Antigua and Milpas Altas)

DAY 4:

Participate in a Purpose + Design Workshop with a team of Wakami staff and women producers; tour of local coffee farm; social innovation & entrepreneurship curriculum & reflection (Antigua)

DAY 5:

Tour of a Wakami Model House (“From Income to Wellbeing”); engage in an onsite activity such as painting, gardening, or building; social innovation & entrepreneurship curriculum & reflection (Antigua)

DAY 6:

Participate in Nutrition Workshop (“From Garden to Table”) with a Wakami nutritionist and local cook; travel to Lake Atitlán (Antigua & Lake Atitlán)

DAY 7:

Short talk, activity, and cultural tour of San Juan guided by local artist and community leader; visits to textile, cacao, and/or honey cooperatives as well as local art studios; discussion of Wakami’s Access to Markets Methodology; free time to explore and shop (Lake Atitlán)

DAY 8:

Visit to Girls’ Acceleration Program; discussion and activity with girls and mentors; social innovation & entrepreneurship curriculum & reflection (Lake Atitlán)

DAY 9:

Travel to Antigua; participate in Wakami’s Creative Workshop led by Wakami’s design team, with a focus on “From Purpose to Impact” and telling the story; discussion of how everything ties together through the lenses of Wakami’s and SIE CoLab’s frameworks and models; social innovation & entrepreneurship curriculum & reflection; Final Dinner with special reflection (Antigua)

DAY 10:

Free time; head to airport (or next destination)

Key themes

Itinerary

Pricing

$4,750 for double occupancy room [+$300 for single occupancy]

Early Bird Discount!

$250 off for those who register and pay by September 15, 2025

Included in Program Fee:

9 nights in local hotels
9 (all) breakfasts, 7 lunches, and 6 dinners
Materials and refreshments throughout the experience
Program workshops, tours, and community day trips
Welcome kit

All ground transportation (including security) will be provided throughout the program for approved activities/excursions
Pickup/drop off at the Guatemala City airport for participants arriving within approved window. scheduled group airport pickup and drop-off
SIE curriculum and reflection packet
24/7 support

Not included in program fee:

International airfare
Laundry and personal items
Optional activities outside of the program itinerary
Sim cards and international phone calls
Passport and visa costs
Travel insurance (including trip cancellation, lost baggage, medical, repatriation, etc.)
Health insurance
Meals not listed on program itinerary
Additional gratuities for local guides and drivers (optional)
Personal travel/activity/spending money

about sie and wakami

About SIE CoLab

We're a diverse, intergenerational team of adaptive changemakers that has come together to help individuals, organizations, and communities address the urgent, complex challenges of our times by reimagining and redesigning our systems in service to a world in balance that works for everyone.

Learn more: siecolab.org/about-us

About Wakami

We are an organization partnering with women artisans from rural communities in Guatemala who struggle to generate sustainable sources of income for their families. Their dreams are big, but opportunities are scarce. That is why it is our mission to empower women to make their dreams become a reality, and to transform cycles of poverty into cycles of prosperity. By supporting skill training, income opportunities, and various social programs, our artisans can establish strong micro businesses and thriving homes.

Learn more: wakamiglobal.com