Migrant Life on the Guatemalan, Mexican Border: The cycle of physical, emotional, and economic hardships due to migration and the subsequent effects on the well-being of families

We are an inter-professional team of eight Public Health and Development Practice graduate students with a passion for social justice and a commitment to physical, emotional, and economic health. With the guidance of faculty members from the University of Arizona Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, we have developed a service-learning practicum in Western Guatemala and Southern Mexico during March 14^th to 23^rd, 2014 with a focus on border health, migration, sustainable development, and cultural enrichment. The purpose of this trip is to form lasting collaborative partnerships with various nongovernmental organizations, governmental agencies, and educational institutions throughout the region on both sides of the border, in order to understand the complexities of health disparities and the relationship between migration, health, and economic development. During the trip, we will receive tours of these facilities, conduct interviews with staff and migrants, participate in homestay visits with local migrant farmers, present educational health programs at migrant shelters, and provide services as requested. Our team will also be participating in individual, digital and group reflections throughout the trip. Through these reflections, our team will try to understand why so many people from Central and South America embark on this treacherous journey, leaving behind their homes, friends and families, in the hopes of a better life in “El Norte”. We will present our qualitative experiences on the root causes of migration and emigration in Latin America and the impact of migration patterns on health outcomes in the border region.