DHD professor aids Mexican town in transforming itself

In March, Fabricio Balcazar, researcher and professor of disability and human development, spent four days in the community of Juanacatlan in Jalisco, Mexico, to begin a process that will help local leaders promote social and economic development, with a larger goal of making emigration a personal choice, rather than a necessity, for residents.

During his visit, Balcazar and local collaborators—including government representatives, businessespeople, youth, seniors, women, clergy and farmers—began to assemble a survey that will gauge the community’s needs and expectations for economic and social improvement. Now nearly finalized, the survey will be distributed in mid-May.

Once data are collected, Balcazar will train community leaders to host town hall meetings, where residents will be invited to join action groups addressing identified needs. The process is transformative for this community because, for the first time, residents will tell the government, not vice versa, what type and amount of help they require to address their own identified needs. The Jalisco government has pledged to provide resources and technical assistance as needed.

AHS’ involvement in the project stems from Balcazar’s professional association with a Chicago-based club of emigrants from Juanacatlan. The club organized in order to ensure they can support their hometown, where they already fund a church, a care facility for seniors and people with disabilities, and an institution for delinquent or adjudicated youth.