Chicago Youth Boxing Club: H2O for Mexico
This project's parent organization is Chicago Youth Boxing Club (CYBC)
It operates in United States
It uses Boxing
Shortlisted for the Sport for the Environment Award
More about Chicago Youth Boxing Club: H2O for Mexico
Athletes are keenly aware of the value of adequate drinking water in achieving their physical goals. Immigrants from rural communities in Mexico know that water, or the lack thereof, plays a central role in determining the viability of their communities of origin. CYBC is an organization that serves both athletes and immigrants.
We are located in Chicago’s Little Village (La Villita) neighborhood—recognized as the Mexican capital of the Midwest. Ninety percent of our youth come from Mexican immigrant backgrounds, with their parents originating from primarily rural communities. Water plays an essential role not just in the daily lives our CYBC youth boxers, but may also have been a determining factor in the circumstances their families faced when making the difficult decision to immigrate. CYBC’s H2O for Mexico campaign accomplishes three goals:
1. To use the sport of boxing as a common ground to foster cooperation and understanding on water and development issues between Mexican-American youth and their counterparts in Mexico
2. To engage other youth leaders in metropolitan Chicago in awareness building activities focused on water scarcity and water as a peace-building tool,
3. To build inter-generational understanding between our program participants, their parents, and the broader community.