Launching inaugural “Young Professionals Corps”

PSYDEH is excited to welcome the first three members of our new “Young Professionals Corps” (YPC): Yarazet Moreno Borjas, Marlen Santos Blancas, and Luciano de Jesús Martínez. 

The YPC initiative is built out of the Mexican Secretaria de Trabajo y Prevención Social (STPS)’s new program called “Jovenes construyendo el futuro” (Program). Here, PSYDEH is certified as a “tutor” able to sponsor young professionals, ages 18-29, as full-time staff for 12-month terms. The Program pays each young professional a monthly award of $3,600 MXN. And PSYDEH is obligated to train them and cover daily work expenses.

“The YPC is another strategy for sustaining the impact we make in the areas in which we work”, states Damon Taylor, PSYDEH’s Senior Advisor. “If ready to work, hard, our multi-nation team will train these professionals to learn the skills and understanding they need to make a measurable sustained impact, with PSYDEH and after their term ends.”

Moreover, Mr. Taylor notes, “The YPC initiative evidences how the Mexican government funding landscape for organizations like PSYDEH is fast changing, for good and for ill, under the new administration of President Manual Lopez Obrador.” 

Instead of funding projects proposed by civil society organizations, the administration is looking to invest directly in the “pueblo” via Programs like this one.

As Mr. Taylor says, “While we are encouraging the administration to adjust its thinking on the need to invest directly in organizations like PSYDEH, we embrace what opportunities do exist. And we’re working with the STPS to expand its vision for how the program should be implemented, including their being more flexible on with whom we can work, and where.”