Luis Marcos, CMPI Co-Founder and CEO 

Luis Marcos belongs to the Q'anjob'al Maya Nation and serves as the Co-Founder and CEO of Comunidad Maya Pixan Ixim, Co-Founder of the Maya Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and Ambassador to the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska appointed by the Confederated Government of the Akateko, Chuj, and Qanjobal Maya Nation.
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Luis relocated to the United States in 1989 during the genocide committed against the Maya Nation by the State of Guatemala. Since then, Luis has been involved in community organizing, preserving Maya culture, and strategically advancing Maya self-determination and self-government. 

Luis' work and the work of the Q'anjob'al Maya Nation in Omaha and Q'ajob'al Maya Territory is to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) by following an evidence-based process called Native Nations Rebuilding (NNR). NNR is informed by more than 30 years of research by the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development (HPAIED) and the Native Nations Institute (NNI) of the University of Arizona on sustainable economic development.

Contact at: [email protected]

Gus Von Roenn, COO 

Gus is a permaculture leader teaching sustainable practices throughout Nebraska. He works to elevate projects that focus on issues related to healthy food accessibility, land stewardship, and entrepreneurship in low-income communities. His academic background is in anthropology, sociology, archaeology, and permaculture. 

​Gus is a former general contractor and certified permaculture designer integrating permaculture design consulting and landscaping into community efforts. As an advocate for those who seek assistance with self-sufficiency, he displays and educates on the limitless entrepreneurial opportunities that create abundance throughout entire communities.

Contact at: [email protected]

Saul Lopez, Interim CFO

Saul J Lopez is a Latino community leader in Nebraska with 20 years of experience leading community projects.  Saul worked as City Planner for the City of Omaha where he enhanced his experience in Program Development, City Planning and Program Operations. Saul is currently pursuing a PhD in Disaster Risk Reduction and Crisis Management with research interest in community resilience for indigenous groups.  Saul was born in southern Mexico and belongs to the Zapotec nation.

Contact at: [email protected] 

Lizandra Mateo Lorenzo (Maya Q'anjob'al), Executive Assistant

​Lizandra works in our Omaha, NE community center and home office. She provides critical day-to-day support for Maya Q'anjob'al community and leadership in Omaha Territory. ​

​Domingo Alvaro (Maya Q'anjob'al), Program Manager and DOJ Accredited Representative, Maya & Indigenous Human Rights Program

​Domingo Alvaro provides immigration counsel and representation with a specific focus on Indigenous populations, who often lack adequate and culturally competent representation within the broader immigration field.

Prior to joining CMPI, Domingo gained valuable experience in various immigration settings. He provided case management for families at migrant shelters and unaccompanied minors at ORR facilities. During his time with the ABA’s Immigration Justice Project, he provided legal orientations for unrepresented individuals detained by ICE at their detention facilities.
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Domingo was born in San Pedro Soloma, Guatemala. His family’s immigration experience profoundly shaped his career path. A fluent Q'anjob'al speaker, Domingo leverages his language abilities and cultural knowledge to advocate for the Q'anjob'al community members to uphold their due process rights. Domingo holds a BA in Economics from California State University Long Beach. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with loved ones, salsa dancing, and kickboxing.

​Cindy Toledo (Maya Q'anjob'al), Program Manager and DOJ Accredited Representative, Maya & Indigenous Human Rights Program

Cindy is a proud Maya Q’anjob’al woman living in the Chumash Tongva territories, known as Los Angeles, California. Cindy has a Bachelor's degree in Political Science with a specialization in International Relations and a minor in Latin American Studies from UCLA. Prior to joining CMPI, she worked as a legal assistant at immigration law firms. Currently, she is a member of the Technical Team for the National Council of Indigenous Peoples in the Diaspora (CONPID) and volunteers with various other Indigenous rights organizations across the nation. She has also represented Indigenous peoples at the United Nations Permanent Forum On Indigenous Issues. In addition to her work, Cindy is dedicated to preserving and promoting Maya Q'anjob'al linguistic traditions. She has been participating in cultural activities since she was very young and has been a culture bearer for the Maya Q’anjob’al Nation for over 20 years. Cindy's ultimate goal is to ensure that Maya customs and traditions are kept alive and never forgotten and to advance and safeguard the original peoples' and original nations' interests, especially those pertaining to the Maya Q’anjob’al nation.

​Lucero Gonzalez Alvarado (Maya Q'anjob'al), Program Manager, Maya & Indigenous Human Rights Program

​Lucero is also taking on additional responsibilities pertaining to the roles of Grants Coordinator and Hiring Liaison for CMPI. Lucero holds a Masters Degree in Human Rights Practice and is a social worker. Her six  years of experience in social work and cultural knowledge is critical to our family reunification project work with Maya and Indigenous families separated at the U.S. - Mexico border region. Prior to joining the CMPI Team as a full-time Program Manager, Lucero spent two years working on Human Rights Research with the United Nations, working with Skylight (https://skylight.is), and as a CMPI Human Rights Program partner. As a Maya Q’anjob’al woman, she is honored to be part of a lineage of strong, kind, empathetic, and resilient women who came before her. We are so grateful she chose to bring her talents to CMPI!

Sandra Alvaro (Maya Q'anjob'al), Program Manager, Maya & Indigenous Human Rights Program

In addition to her role as Program Manager, Sandra assumes the roles of both Communications and Grants Coordinator. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Criminology and Justice Studies from California State University San Marcos. Her career includes hands-on experience in Children and Family social services, and Behavioral Therapy for children and young adults with disabilities throughout San Diego County. Prior to joining CMPI, she provided case management services to underserved families enrolled in early childhood services. In her role, she effectively bridged language barriers by utilizing her language proficiency in Q’anjob’al to deliver essential services to numerous Q’anjob’al speaking families. While volunteering as a mentor for vulnerable children and young adults who are at-risk of negative social and health issues. Sandra has consistently advocated for underserved families, helping them thrive within their homes and communities. She aspires to forge pathways that empower and uplift the Maya community. 

Julio Salinas, Executive Assistant, Paralegal, Maya & Indigenous Human Rights Program

​Julio Salinas, originally from Bakersfield, California, moved to San Diego with his family at the age of three. His family, being of mixed status, faced numerous challenges in establishing themselves in the United States, particularly in regard to the difficulties that arise for children in the educational system. Julio's career began as a receptionist in a private law firm, where he soon gained invaluable knowledge of immigration law. During his seven-year tenure as a paralegal at the firm, he helped hundreds of families reunite. Seeking new challenges, Julio transitioned to the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), where he gained expertise in the court system and worked alongside immigration judges and personnel. Currently, Julio works as a paralegal, where he actively works with reunited families that were separated at the border. His unwavering commitment to supporting the immigrant community remains steadfast.

Jenny E. Fimbres-Gonzalez​, Community Support & Social Services Manager

Jenny has worked for over 18 years in the non-profit sector, with a bilingual proficiency in Spanish. Her primary focus has been on serving the undocumented community, where she has held various roles such as advocate, case manager, DOJ Accredited Representative, and supervisor. Additionally, Jenny has an extensive background of over 16 years working with survivors of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault.

Jenny's parents are from Mexico and she is originally from Oceanside, California. She moved to the Omaha, NE area at the age of 14. Jenny attended Kaplan University and Bellevue University. Married to an EL teacher at Ralston Public Schools, Jenny and her wife share their home with two fur-babies. She is extremely close to her family, and is the oldest of 7 and has 6 nieces and 2 nephews. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family, attending to her nieces/nephews activities and playing soccer. Jenny currently helps manage the Women's Futbol Club of Omaha and recently became a board member for the Nebraska State Soccer Association. One of her favorite quotes that guided her into the field of social services is- “Help others without any reason and give without the expectation of receiving anything in return." -unknown

Sergio Sosa, Regional Indigenous Food Business Program Manager 

Prior to CMPI, Sergio founded and served as the Executive Director of the Heartland Workers Center, a grassroots organization established in 2009. Sergio’s devotion to community, inclusion, and social justice is a lifelong passion stemming from the inequities he witnessed in his native Guatemala. He is a person of firm convictions committed to social change, believing that to represent a community, one must know it firsthand by building relationships at the grassroots level and learning from the people living the reality.

Candelaria Lorenzo, Maya Q’anjob’al, Maya Education Initiative Director

Candelaria Lorenzo is fluent in Q’anjob’al, Spanish, and English. Her journey includes working for the Omaha Public Schools as a health aide and paraprofessional. She holds a distinguished title as a Bilingual Intercultural Elementary Education Teacher (Q'anjob'al-Spanish) graduate. Beyond her academic achievements, she has served as a youth group leader in her hometown, Santa Eulalia (Jolom Konob') Huehuetenango, Guatemala. Her multilingual skills and commitment to education make her a standout force in bridging cultures and building community connections.​