The Communal University Center of Santa María Yaviche (UNIXHIDZA), affiliated with the Autonomous Communal University of Oaxaca (UACO), is a unique educational institution dedicated to fostering collaborative learning processes aimed at strengthening and consolidating community autonomy. Located in Santa María Yaviche, a community in Villa Alta, Oaxaca, UNIXHIDZA’s mission focuses on supporting the paths toward selfdetermination chosen by the local communities. It emphasizes the revaluation of birajnibi—a term referring to individuals who understand and embody the knowledge and practices of their people. The center’s approach promotes the development of life projects within the community context, empowering students to engage with the processes of social change and autonomy.
The vision of UNIXHIDZA is to be a learning community that reinforces zuarhu dxhia’a ke derharu (the well-being of everything) through practical, situated, and collective education. The goal is to cultivate the birajnibi, who can understand and inspire social change in community contexts by generating knowledge creatively, curiously, and inquisitively (wilaj’ladxhi).
UNIXHIDZA offers specific academic programs that align with this vision, including a Bachelor’s in communal engineering and a Bachelor’s in communal musical culture, both designed to reinforce organizational capacity and promote sustainable, autonomous development within Oaxacan communities. The center seeks to integrate educational practices with local communal life, ensuring a continuous exchange of knowledge and fostering a collective, autonomous future.
