Tijuana

The most violent city of the world

30,000+

children under the age of 18 work for drug cartels

7 of every 10

Mexicans are living in poverty or vulnerability

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Located on the Gold Coast of Baja California right at the border with the United States, Tijuana is one of the most dynamic and influential cities in Mexico. Yet, it also stands out for having one of the highest rates of violence in the world. For years, gangs have battled over a lucrative domestic drug market, with thousands of children and youths paying the price as its victims and perpetrators of violence. Their exposure to violence is a reality that cannot be eradicated without addressing the deeper drivers of vulnerability and fragility in their daily lives. Unemployment is clearly, as in so many places, a key factor, which, in turn, has its source in the paucity of opportunities – opportunities to work, to learn, or even to take part in life-changing initiatives.

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This is the gap that we seek to fill in Tijuana. Through the Youth Peacemaker Network, we provide young women and men there with resources that they can use to empower themselves as transformative insiders, as promoter of change with an endogenous understanding in their communities. These resources are diverse but mainly seek to provide knowledge and skills that will help them grow as leaders, educators, mediators, and entrepreneurs who can inspire change day after day. That can be through a literacy class for teenagers in prison or through a workshop on gender-based violence in a school or a small business that will offer locally relevant services while creating jobs for local youths. In the end, they will be the ones taking into their hands the future of their communities.

Tijuana is host to a Community Learning Center that we have established within the city to provide local residents with free Internet access, library services, and courses in Conflict Resolution Education, Information & Communications Technology, and Business & Entrepreneurship. The center is used to host dialogues and cultural events on a regular basis, making it a popular community hub. The Community Learning Center will also serve as our basis for incubating small businesses as part of mission to promote peace through entrepreneurship and sustainable development projects under our Business Bootcamp initiative.

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