Buenas Cosas opened November 2011 offering social development based on the proven principles of permaculture. Our first year we provided 6,820 kilometers of bicycle tours, 512 hours of English classes, planted 360 trees and 242 organic veggie gardens, raised 36 chickens and 5 goats, brought hundreds of participants from 28 different countries into Buenas Cosas’ Partner Communities, benefiting 1500 Guatemalan families and dozens of locally-owned small businesses.

During its first year, Buenas Cosas permaculture social development projects removed more than a ton of garbage from our Partner Communities, opened two Community Centers, provided the first nonprofit ecotours to Tikal, el Mirador and shared adventures around beautiful Lake Peten Itza with travelers and volunteers. With the support of our Advisory Board, Partner Communities and hundreds of travelers and volunteers, Buenas Cosas’ first year of permaculture-based social development was a success.

Today Buenas Cosas serves 20 Partner Communities and 5,000 families / 30,000 rural poor. Buenas Cosas’ sustainable social development projects are built from the the ground-up with a functional respect for local cultures, traditions and values. Our focus is ecotourism, voluntourism, Spanish lessons and the unique offerings in shopping with compassion. We love Peten, the largest state in Guatemala. We cherish its ancient rich Maya heritage, pyramids, ruins, temples, rivers, lakes, caves, plants, animals and of course the wonderful people of Peten (Peteneros) who live surrounded by the largest tropical rain forest in Central America – birthplace of the Maya.

Buenas Cosas is an association of Guatemalan women (the Directiva), a registered Guatemalan nonprofit and a pending 501c3 (EIN 98-1073519) — an association of family, friends and neighbors who serve community and nature. Every cent that enters Buenas Cosas goes directly to our permaculture projects to cultivate more Good Things = Buenas Cosas = sustainable social development. We live and love permaculture.