María Alejandra Holguín Zapata

Regional Coordinator for the Amazon (On Behalf of Red TICCA Colombia)

Based in Colombia. María Alejandra Holguín Zapata is an Indigenous woman of the Emberá Chamí people, from the Resguardo Indígena de Origen Colonial Cañamomo Lomaprieta , located in the municipality of Riosucio, Caldas, Colombia. She is a psychologist with a diploma in Comprehensive Autism Spectrum Care and is committed to promoting and strengthening Indigenous mental health in her territory. Her work focuses on bringing together traditional self-care and healing knowledge and practices with psychological approaches, from an intercultural perspective that recognizes and values the identity, culture, and ancestral knowledge of Indigenous Peoples.

She has been involved in her reserve’s Observatory on Gender-Based Violence and has supported processes led by the Legal Commission and carried out through the community’s own justice system (Justicia Propia), contributing to community well-being and strengthening their own support and care mechanisms. She also volunteered with the United Nations, focusing on mental health care in Bolivia, an experience that broadened her perspective on the challenges and opportunities involved in promoting psychosocial well-being in different contexts.