SAN JOSÉ POAQUIL, Guatemala — The last rays of daylight filter through the trees as Andres “Tata” López, 56, the local Maya mayor, greets his neighbors coming to source water in the communal forest of San José Poaquil, a municipality in the department of Chimaltenango, a two-hour drive west of Guatemala City. The forest, a critical source of water and a place considered sacred by the community, is managed by the Cofradía Ancestral Maya and the Indigenous mayor’s office, entities that promote ecosystem conservation and reforestation across generations. At its entrance is a small ceremonial altar used to make offerings to nature or burn corn on solemn occasions. Here, the community of San José Poaquil, whose members are all Indigenous Kaqchikel Maya, took part in an open mapping project that

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