awanima apprenticeships2027 cacao immersion
Join us in February and March 2027 in Lanquín, Guatemala to learn how to care for cacao, from seed to block.
Weekly and monthly options available
𖠁 learn directly from cacao guardians
This offering brings together two worlds: people interested in connecting with more deeply with the origins of cacao and the Q’eqchi community who has stewarded it for generations.
In this immersion, you don’t just learn about cacao — you walk the land where it grows, meet the people who tend it, and get involved the entire transformation of cacao, from raw seeds to finished block.
This is an apprenticeship is designed help you gain an embodied understanding of cacao through lived experience. You will leave with a deepened respect for cacao and the people who work diligently to take care of this medicine.
From that place, you can share authentically with the world why and how we must care for cacao well.
The journey𖠁 an introduction to the q’eqchi world
In this immersion, students will learn directly from our Q’eqchi team members who devote their lives to caring for cacao.
We want participants to get to know the people and the lands behind the cacao they drink, and to know how much hard work, devotion, and wisdom is required to produce cacao with integrity.
You will be immersed into an original Maya community, with kind, humble people who have very different worldviews, lifestyles, and wisdom than the average Western person.
This is an incredible opportunity for intercultural collaboration and sensemaking, and for people to have a glimpse into the beautiful and complex lives of the people who tend to Guatemala’s mountainsides and make the medicine of cacao that we know and love.
What you’ll experience
Visiting family parcels & learning directly from farmers
Hands-on experience in fermentation, drying, toasting, and peeling cacao
Working alongside the women in production
Assisting in cacao purchasing days with farmers
Tending to cacao agroforestry systems and helping in the plant nursery
Collecting and processing fresh cacao juice
Participating in shared meals
Connecting with a like-minded community
Traditional Mayan fire ceremony
Time to rest, reflect, and integrate
Learning a bit of Q’eqchi!
Drinking a lot of cacao, at the origin
As an apprentice, you’ll receive:
Three-hour cacao tour & visit of family parcel
Daily learning and co-working with local team in fermentation, drying, peeling, production, and regenerative agriculture
Shared accommodations in one of our eco-cabins
A community of likeminded individuals who love cacao
Full immersion into wild nature, swimming in rivers, hiking in the mountains
Three healthy meals per day with daily cacao with breakfast
Why now?
Cacao is growing in popularity around the world, and we want to do our part to ensure it doesn’t become “just another product.” This is why we open our doors to share the process of the cacao production and open access to the lands and people where it grows, so they can build authentic relationships and share from a place of integrity.
The more people who know about the hard work behind a block of cacao, the more we can maintain its value, preserve good payment for people involved in the process, safeguard biodiversity, and prevent exploitation of another medicinal food from the Earth.
We hope those who are called to develop this intimate relationship with cacao join us to learn, experience, and advocate for the continuation of the ethical production and sharing of this important medicine.
