On 21st October 2010 Norman Myden from Chinook Rotary Club emailed me to see what we could get going re a water project - I told him he'd come to the right place, & we immediately set to work... In December we applied to the Alberta's Govt Community Initiatives Program (CIP) for funding which we hoped to match with Rotary Club & District & the Foundation to achieve a large grant of US$65,300.....
Well, I am very happy to announce that a year later on Oct 25th we received a very happy email from Ashley at The Rotary Foundation informing us our application had been successful & we are to receive the funding!!
District 5360 (located in Canada and includes all of the Rotary clubs in Alberta from Ponoka south and also clubs in the south-west region of Saskatchewan) is providing US$10,000, Chinook RC is providing $10,000 + Alberta Govt $20,000, SMA Midday is providing US$200 (& lots of blood, sweat & tears!) & this is all being matched by The Rotary Foundation with US$25,100.
For a grand total of US$65,300 & a planned cistern count of 108 cisterns in 4 communities decided by the Consejo (citizen's council) of 18 communities.
We are working through the small details now, opening bank accounts, transferring $$ & are expecting to be able to begin the project early December!!
The communities will be
Guerrero
La Tinaja
Cruz del Palmar
& 3 Esquinas (near Palencia)
Showing posts with label Palencia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Palencia. Show all posts
Monday, October 31, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
4th Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
Record of Event - Inauguration
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 11th Feb 2011 12midday start (left SMA at 9am), event finished 3.10 (back in SMA5pm)
Who: Chela, Benigno, Saul – Cedesa, Laura (& my son Abe), Doris, Maureen – Rotary, 33 adults (incl 4 man) many kids!
Purpose:
Take visiting Rotarians to attend the inauguration & view some of the completed cisterns.
The trip there:
We first visited the current project in Vivienda Urbana & took some photos of the completed cistern, as this is the final day of the pilot. Collected Saul & drove to pick up Humberto, he must have misunderstood our intentions as he was in San Miguel for the day. We continued & drove to Cedesa.
We collected Benigno & Chela at Cedesa & headed for Palencia…
We arrived late at 12midday.
The people were ready in the salon waiting for us.
The welcome & program began immediately.
There were many speeches including the history of the working relationship between Cedesa & this community, ie more than 20 years working together to resolve issues of necessity as determined by the community.
Chela spoke a little about the project, & asked me to speak, I spoke & one of the men spoke English so interpreted for me (whew!). I congratulated them on their achievements, both past & present, & spoke of the pride Rotary (including our absent Tallahassee friends) have in their accomplishments.
Chela held a mini workshop with the kids, the theme was natural resources, she asked them to all run outside & in 2 minutes return with an example of a natural resource. They stampeded out the door & we thought they might just keep running, but back they came with hands full of leaves, branches, dirt, a can of water, flowers from the cactus, rocks…
She separated them into like resources & then engaged the kids in Q&A about natural resources, whether each object was, or how it was, & the need for conservation etc.
The kids were very animated & one in particular showed not only interest but lots of knowledge on the topic. They all enjoyed it!
Next the kids rushed off into the corner with their mums & returned dressed ready to do a dance for us… Mexican line dancing, best describes it, very cute with kids so young, some keen others reluctant but all participating…
Back they ran to the corner & came back this time (boys & girls) dressed in masks with walking sticks, as old men… they did an hilarious dance bent over, mimicking old men, going round in circles, with a dog joining in! & it ended with them all bunching together & falling over! We laughed so hard we had tears, & Maureen said she felt well mimicked…
Again they retreated to the far corner & this time the mothers came out dressed up, one large mum came dressed as a baby with a big babies bottle filled with brown liquid, it took us a while to work out what was going on, but basically it was a pantomime about the history of the water, going from germy water to well water, then discovering it had fluoride & arsenic & ending up at cisterns… interspersed with songs about germs & water etc… Very funny, & we had never seen adults performing before so extra special planning had gone into this!
A few more speeches & heart felt teary thank you’s directed at the visiting Rotarians & Cedesa…
Then they asked if there was a possibility of a 2nd phase in Palencia as there are many more families who need water… I said for them to get their list of names together & present them to us & we’ll see… I mentioned the project needs to be for a minimum of 20 cisterns.
Food came next, a special treat, plates of carnitas, nopal, red rice, & tortillas, washed down with pineapple flavoured water…
We were so full we were reluctant to follow the next part of the program, we headed to the primary school, it was a very hot day & super dusty, people offered to carry the bags of Doris & Maureen. Next we went to 4 other cisterns & ended up back at the salon, in the shade for a Q&A session.
The overwhelming feeling was one of gratitude for the assistance we had given them to solve their own issue. The possibility of a 2nd phase was raised again & I said there was no way we could promise anything but to submit the request & we would take it from there.
Cedesa will be visiting on following Tuesday to do a diagnostics /needs analysis, to determine what they wish to work on next, traspatios (back yard production), health workshops etc.
We climbed back in the Van & headed home… Dropping Chela & Benigno at Cedesa, Saul at the turnoff & the Rotarians back home…
Gracias a todos!!
Then end of a successful project, thank you to all concerned!!
Photos can be seen on the blog www.02h2o.blogspot.com under the label Palencia.
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 11th Feb 2011 12midday start (left SMA at 9am), event finished 3.10 (back in SMA5pm)
Who: Chela, Benigno, Saul – Cedesa, Laura (& my son Abe), Doris, Maureen – Rotary, 33 adults (incl 4 man) many kids!
Purpose:
Take visiting Rotarians to attend the inauguration & view some of the completed cisterns.
The trip there:
We first visited the current project in Vivienda Urbana & took some photos of the completed cistern, as this is the final day of the pilot. Collected Saul & drove to pick up Humberto, he must have misunderstood our intentions as he was in San Miguel for the day. We continued & drove to Cedesa.
We collected Benigno & Chela at Cedesa & headed for Palencia…
We arrived late at 12midday.
The people were ready in the salon waiting for us.
The welcome & program began immediately.
There were many speeches including the history of the working relationship between Cedesa & this community, ie more than 20 years working together to resolve issues of necessity as determined by the community.
Chela spoke a little about the project, & asked me to speak, I spoke & one of the men spoke English so interpreted for me (whew!). I congratulated them on their achievements, both past & present, & spoke of the pride Rotary (including our absent Tallahassee friends) have in their accomplishments.
Chela held a mini workshop with the kids, the theme was natural resources, she asked them to all run outside & in 2 minutes return with an example of a natural resource. They stampeded out the door & we thought they might just keep running, but back they came with hands full of leaves, branches, dirt, a can of water, flowers from the cactus, rocks…
She separated them into like resources & then engaged the kids in Q&A about natural resources, whether each object was, or how it was, & the need for conservation etc.
The kids were very animated & one in particular showed not only interest but lots of knowledge on the topic. They all enjoyed it!
Next the kids rushed off into the corner with their mums & returned dressed ready to do a dance for us… Mexican line dancing, best describes it, very cute with kids so young, some keen others reluctant but all participating…
Back they ran to the corner & came back this time (boys & girls) dressed in masks with walking sticks, as old men… they did an hilarious dance bent over, mimicking old men, going round in circles, with a dog joining in! & it ended with them all bunching together & falling over! We laughed so hard we had tears, & Maureen said she felt well mimicked…
Again they retreated to the far corner & this time the mothers came out dressed up, one large mum came dressed as a baby with a big babies bottle filled with brown liquid, it took us a while to work out what was going on, but basically it was a pantomime about the history of the water, going from germy water to well water, then discovering it had fluoride & arsenic & ending up at cisterns… interspersed with songs about germs & water etc… Very funny, & we had never seen adults performing before so extra special planning had gone into this!
A few more speeches & heart felt teary thank you’s directed at the visiting Rotarians & Cedesa…
Then they asked if there was a possibility of a 2nd phase in Palencia as there are many more families who need water… I said for them to get their list of names together & present them to us & we’ll see… I mentioned the project needs to be for a minimum of 20 cisterns.
Food came next, a special treat, plates of carnitas, nopal, red rice, & tortillas, washed down with pineapple flavoured water…
We were so full we were reluctant to follow the next part of the program, we headed to the primary school, it was a very hot day & super dusty, people offered to carry the bags of Doris & Maureen. Next we went to 4 other cisterns & ended up back at the salon, in the shade for a Q&A session.
The overwhelming feeling was one of gratitude for the assistance we had given them to solve their own issue. The possibility of a 2nd phase was raised again & I said there was no way we could promise anything but to submit the request & we would take it from there.
Cedesa will be visiting on following Tuesday to do a diagnostics /needs analysis, to determine what they wish to work on next, traspatios (back yard production), health workshops etc.
We climbed back in the Van & headed home… Dropping Chela & Benigno at Cedesa, Saul at the turnoff & the Rotarians back home…
Gracias a todos!!
Then end of a successful project, thank you to all concerned!!
Photos can be seen on the blog www.02h2o.blogspot.com under the label Palencia.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
3rd Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
3rd Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 3rd Feb 2011 12.20 start (left SMA at 10am), meeting finished 2.40 (back in SMA5pm)
Who: Chela, Benigno – Cedesa, Laura – Rotary, 18 adults (incl 1 man) + 5 kids
Purpose:
The cisterns are all constructed, the project is essentially finished, the final inauguration requires planning.
Background.
Rotary met with this community in January 2010, after Chela had alerted us to the fact this community has the highest levels of Fluoride & arsenic than any in SMA. They had heard of the projects in SMA & petitioned us for assistance. See report 1, & 2 for more information.
Some brief facts about the community were raised in the previous meeting, included again here for ease of reference
• Approx 80 families /500 people
• Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years
• Palencia is approx 1 hr from Cedesa in Dolores Hidalgo
• The community well was drilled 18 years ago, they have been drinking contaminated water for 18years
• There are smaller family wells that fill up when it rains, but they do not last the dry season
• There was a cacique (self appointed boss) when cedesa began work here, he is still apart from the community
• They have worked on many community projects together, including fighting for land rights, building a community centre (with funding for materials from local govt.), obtaining electricity
Item 1 – introductions all round:
A co-ordinator & record taker were nominated & unanimously elected
Agenda points were called for
• Inauguration of the cisterns project
• Closure of the water project
• Planning of continuing work with Cedesa & the Palencia community
• Diagnostics of Community needs
• Information re Campesino Climate workshop at Cedesa
• Other points
Item 2 – role called & introductions made
All attending the meeting introduced themselves, including me & Rotary.
Item 3 – general opening discussion
Chela mentioned that her & I had been talking on the way in the car about the situation with the rural communities, that they were in dire need & were barely subsisting.
She had mentioned the reasons for this were, her mum’s generation were not taught to read, & historically there was a lack of nutrition, water, education, as a result of generations of this situation, people were not motivated to change & not aware of the possibilities for change. They were not united, families are separate, & communities are not encouraged to work together. This has allowed for the situation to stay the same.
Other parts of the world, for example Brazil, “have vision, imagination & curiosity”…
Here – what future do we currently have? We need to improve our thoughts about the future & what we would like to change.
Item 4 - Report from the Climate Workshop at Cedesa
A couple from Palencia had attended the workshop on climate at Cedesa & gave a very thorough report of what they learnt there, the themes, the focus, suggested solutions to issues as well as summary important points…
It was very detailed & well reported & took around 45mins.
Some of the topics raised were:
• Seed heritage
• Genetic modification of seed & implications
• The need to save a %age of seed from each crop for the next crop
• Conservation of water, land & seed.
• 22% of Mexicans are campesinos.
• Monsanto, & compulsory seed purchase, as seeds do not replicate
• Chemical fertilizers & their negative effects on flora & fauna (incl humans)
• Maintaining a tradition of healthy food (beans, nopal, etc)
• Natural fertilizers
• Land ownership, maintain productivity by retaining larger parcels, foreign ownership
• Deforestation
• Abuse of the rivers by extraction
• Campesinos are not poor, but rich in that they have the capability to grow food to sustain themselves
• Campesinos are not 2nd class citizens they have great riches in their land & potential
• If you have food & not money you can survive, but if you have money & there is no food you can not.
• Involve youth,
• Catch water
• Defend the integrity of the seed
• Maintain your property, selling for $$ is very short sighted
• Television is a huge waste of time, should be used responsibly, can be educative but also disruptive.
• Important to teach the kids so the ‘learning” is not lost
• Video games are time wasters
• People have bad priorities, have $$ for tv, phone etc, but not to buy tools or seed or trees to make the land more productive
Chela talked a little on the topic of youth & they are the future, “you need to consider well, the future you are creating for them”.
Chela asked the audience to sum up the topics Juan & Estella had raised re the Workshop.
What were the solutions:
• Conserve our native seed
• Avoid selling your land
• Even without water you can grow nopal & maguey
• Produce food
• Teach our children
Item 5 – planning for the closure/inauguration of the project 11th Feb 2011
Necessity – clean/safe water because we have contaminated water.
Objective – what do you want to do for the closure?
Reach more people in the community with the information re the purpose of the project, so the people can see the results of the project, one of the women undertook to make sure her whole family is aware of the issues & solution.
Maybe do a workshop to involve the kids in the theme.
One cistern was constructed at the Community Salon, one at the school & 19 individual family cisterns were constructed.
A small committee was formed to create the program & invite the kids & teachers.
Program
Juan & Estella to be co-ordinators of the event
11am welcome & a few words
11.15 a panel of 3 to describe the development of the community (history)
12midday, workshop with the kids on the subject of water
12.45 reflection
1pm cultural events
2pm lunch
3pm walk to see some of the cisterns constructed
4pm closure, doubts & questions, discussion, farewell
Item 6- Diagnostico (needs analysis)
A needs analysis will be carried out by the community with assistance by Benigno…
They will do this on Tuesday 15th Feb. ie what needs do the community have & what would they like to continue working on?
On the way back to Cedesa I questioned Benigno about the process of the project, he said it had run very smoothly, this community are used to working co-operatively in groups & there were no issues there… The only issue was delivery of materials as it is a long way from Dolores Hidalgo.
The cisterns were completed without an issue. 19 family cisterns & 2 community use cisterns.
A very good result!!
Meeting finished at 2.40pm.
We drove back to cedesa to drop off Chela & Benigno & arrived back in SMA around 5pm
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 3rd Feb 2011 12.20 start (left SMA at 10am), meeting finished 2.40 (back in SMA5pm)
Who: Chela, Benigno – Cedesa, Laura – Rotary, 18 adults (incl 1 man) + 5 kids
Purpose:
The cisterns are all constructed, the project is essentially finished, the final inauguration requires planning.
Background.
Rotary met with this community in January 2010, after Chela had alerted us to the fact this community has the highest levels of Fluoride & arsenic than any in SMA. They had heard of the projects in SMA & petitioned us for assistance. See report 1, & 2 for more information.
Some brief facts about the community were raised in the previous meeting, included again here for ease of reference
• Approx 80 families /500 people
• Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years
• Palencia is approx 1 hr from Cedesa in Dolores Hidalgo
• The community well was drilled 18 years ago, they have been drinking contaminated water for 18years
• There are smaller family wells that fill up when it rains, but they do not last the dry season
• There was a cacique (self appointed boss) when cedesa began work here, he is still apart from the community
• They have worked on many community projects together, including fighting for land rights, building a community centre (with funding for materials from local govt.), obtaining electricity
Item 1 – introductions all round:
A co-ordinator & record taker were nominated & unanimously elected
Agenda points were called for
• Inauguration of the cisterns project
• Closure of the water project
• Planning of continuing work with Cedesa & the Palencia community
• Diagnostics of Community needs
• Information re Campesino Climate workshop at Cedesa
• Other points
Item 2 – role called & introductions made
All attending the meeting introduced themselves, including me & Rotary.
Item 3 – general opening discussion
Chela mentioned that her & I had been talking on the way in the car about the situation with the rural communities, that they were in dire need & were barely subsisting.
She had mentioned the reasons for this were, her mum’s generation were not taught to read, & historically there was a lack of nutrition, water, education, as a result of generations of this situation, people were not motivated to change & not aware of the possibilities for change. They were not united, families are separate, & communities are not encouraged to work together. This has allowed for the situation to stay the same.
Other parts of the world, for example Brazil, “have vision, imagination & curiosity”…
Here – what future do we currently have? We need to improve our thoughts about the future & what we would like to change.
Item 4 - Report from the Climate Workshop at Cedesa
A couple from Palencia had attended the workshop on climate at Cedesa & gave a very thorough report of what they learnt there, the themes, the focus, suggested solutions to issues as well as summary important points…
It was very detailed & well reported & took around 45mins.
Some of the topics raised were:
• Seed heritage
• Genetic modification of seed & implications
• The need to save a %age of seed from each crop for the next crop
• Conservation of water, land & seed.
• 22% of Mexicans are campesinos.
• Monsanto, & compulsory seed purchase, as seeds do not replicate
• Chemical fertilizers & their negative effects on flora & fauna (incl humans)
• Maintaining a tradition of healthy food (beans, nopal, etc)
• Natural fertilizers
• Land ownership, maintain productivity by retaining larger parcels, foreign ownership
• Deforestation
• Abuse of the rivers by extraction
• Campesinos are not poor, but rich in that they have the capability to grow food to sustain themselves
• Campesinos are not 2nd class citizens they have great riches in their land & potential
• If you have food & not money you can survive, but if you have money & there is no food you can not.
• Involve youth,
• Catch water
• Defend the integrity of the seed
• Maintain your property, selling for $$ is very short sighted
• Television is a huge waste of time, should be used responsibly, can be educative but also disruptive.
• Important to teach the kids so the ‘learning” is not lost
• Video games are time wasters
• People have bad priorities, have $$ for tv, phone etc, but not to buy tools or seed or trees to make the land more productive
Chela talked a little on the topic of youth & they are the future, “you need to consider well, the future you are creating for them”.
Chela asked the audience to sum up the topics Juan & Estella had raised re the Workshop.
What were the solutions:
• Conserve our native seed
• Avoid selling your land
• Even without water you can grow nopal & maguey
• Produce food
• Teach our children
Item 5 – planning for the closure/inauguration of the project 11th Feb 2011
Necessity – clean/safe water because we have contaminated water.
Objective – what do you want to do for the closure?
Reach more people in the community with the information re the purpose of the project, so the people can see the results of the project, one of the women undertook to make sure her whole family is aware of the issues & solution.
Maybe do a workshop to involve the kids in the theme.
One cistern was constructed at the Community Salon, one at the school & 19 individual family cisterns were constructed.
A small committee was formed to create the program & invite the kids & teachers.
Program
Juan & Estella to be co-ordinators of the event
11am welcome & a few words
11.15 a panel of 3 to describe the development of the community (history)
12midday, workshop with the kids on the subject of water
12.45 reflection
1pm cultural events
2pm lunch
3pm walk to see some of the cisterns constructed
4pm closure, doubts & questions, discussion, farewell
Item 6- Diagnostico (needs analysis)
A needs analysis will be carried out by the community with assistance by Benigno…
They will do this on Tuesday 15th Feb. ie what needs do the community have & what would they like to continue working on?
On the way back to Cedesa I questioned Benigno about the process of the project, he said it had run very smoothly, this community are used to working co-operatively in groups & there were no issues there… The only issue was delivery of materials as it is a long way from Dolores Hidalgo.
The cisterns were completed without an issue. 19 family cisterns & 2 community use cisterns.
A very good result!!
Meeting finished at 2.40pm.
We drove back to cedesa to drop off Chela & Benigno & arrived back in SMA around 5pm
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Water Project Stats to date Jan 2009 - Jan 2011
Here's an update of where we're at, we essentially began the first water project in Nov 2008, the first funding came through in March 2009, so am counting it from 1st Jan 2009 to now...
We now have 330 Families asking for help with drinking water in this region.
They are in 18 different communities that we are now engaged with, from the initial project in Los Torres. All of these communities have come to us, they have seen the results proven & want to be part of the solution.
Following are the statistics:
Water Projects completed from 1st Jan 2009 - Jan 2011
Los torres 52 $21,700 + 12,200 + smcf 1 $2468 smcf 2 2235,
Montecillo de Nieto 30 $16700
Vivienda de Arriba 17
Cruz del Palmar 28 combined $24700
Capaderillo 40 $21850
Palencia 21 $7k (+ balance of excess from other projects)
Total 188 cisterns
More than 1500 people have safe drinking water now & for generations to come!!!
funding
Rotary$81,800
SMCF$4,703
Eco Verde$21,850
Skymed $500
total funding = USD $108,853
A BIG THANK YOU to all the hardworking men & women belonging to the Rotary Clubs & Districts who have been part of this solution:
Tallahassee RC
Trail BC RC
Sechelt BC RC
Tyron RC
Ann Arbor RC
Paso Robles RC
West U RC TX
Richmond RC TX
San Miguel Midday RC Mexico
Districts 4160, 6940, 7670
Current upcoming water projects
Capaderillo II approx $14k (Rotary funding secured)
to commence end of January.
Pipeline projects
Global Grant for $33,500 (Baton Rouge Capitol City RC & District(s)
Pending approval from TRF.
Quantified Need:
Current applications in hand from Families in need 309 from 18 different communities.(excluding the upcoming project of 21 cisterns)
Interested in helping fund the simple solution to this need, please email me... Lauramex@gmail.com
We now have 330 Families asking for help with drinking water in this region.
They are in 18 different communities that we are now engaged with, from the initial project in Los Torres. All of these communities have come to us, they have seen the results proven & want to be part of the solution.
Following are the statistics:
Water Projects completed from 1st Jan 2009 - Jan 2011
Los torres 52 $21,700 + 12,200 + smcf 1 $2468 smcf 2 2235,
Montecillo de Nieto 30 $16700
Vivienda de Arriba 17
Cruz del Palmar 28 combined $24700
Capaderillo 40 $21850
Palencia 21 $7k (+ balance of excess from other projects)
Total 188 cisterns
More than 1500 people have safe drinking water now & for generations to come!!!
funding
Rotary$81,800
SMCF$4,703
Eco Verde$21,850
Skymed $500
total funding = USD $108,853
A BIG THANK YOU to all the hardworking men & women belonging to the Rotary Clubs & Districts who have been part of this solution:
Tallahassee RC
Trail BC RC
Sechelt BC RC
Tyron RC
Ann Arbor RC
Paso Robles RC
West U RC TX
Richmond RC TX
San Miguel Midday RC Mexico
Districts 4160, 6940, 7670
Current upcoming water projects
Capaderillo II approx $14k (Rotary funding secured)
to commence end of January.
Pipeline projects
Global Grant for $33,500 (Baton Rouge Capitol City RC & District(s)
Pending approval from TRF.
Quantified Need:
Current applications in hand from Families in need 309 from 18 different communities.(excluding the upcoming project of 21 cisterns)
Interested in helping fund the simple solution to this need, please email me... Lauramex@gmail.com
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
2nd Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
2nd Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 27.10.10 12.30 meeting began (left SMA at 10am)
Who: Bill & Monse Webb, & Dr Larry Kubiak from Tallahassee Rotary, Laura from San Miguel Midday Rotary, Chela & Saul – Cedesa & 19 women, 6 kids from the Palencia Community
Purpose:
Since we last met in January this year, & the announcement of Future Vision & it’s ramifications, Bill Webb has been working very hard to secure funding for this project, the $$ are finally arranged, $7k from Tallahassee (Direct Grant), $7k approved to be spent on this project (excess funds from the 4 SMA water projects completed this year), + $200 from San Miguel Midday Rotary, will fund the project of 21 cisterns (1 pilot & 20 individual family cisterns).
This meeting was for the Tallahassee partners to meet the community, for Laura to know better this community & for the community to receive the news re the $$ & begin planning the logistics of the project.
Background.
Chela, Elena & Laura met with this community in January, after Chela had alerted us to the fact this community has the highest levels of Fluoride & arsenic than any in SMA. They had heard of the projects in SMA & petitioned us for assistance. See report 1, for more information.
Some brief facts about the community were raised in the previous meeting, included again here for ease of reference
• Approx 80 families /500 people
• Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years
• Palencia is approx 1 hr from Cedesa in Dolores Hidalgo
• The community well was drilled 18 years ago, they have been drinking contaminated water for 18years
• There are smaller family wells that fill up when it rains, but they do not last the dry season
• There was a cacique (self appointed boss) when cedesa began work here, he is still apart from the community
• They have worked on many community projects together, including fighting for land rights, building a community centre (with funding for materials from local govt.), obtaining electricity
Item 1 – introductions all round:
Bill, Monse, Laura & Larry introduced themselves. Chela is well known, she also took time to describe a little about what/who Rotary is & does.
Chela – has been working with this community for more than 20 years, less frequent visits lately as she is concentrating in the San Miguel region where they also have fluoride issues.
Saul introduced himself & gave a little summary of how he came to be working with Cedesa (through assemblies at Los Torres) & has recently completed a 40 cistern project funded by the municipality , in Capaderillo (his wife’s community).
Chela mentioned Saul is one of the promoters at Cedesa, learning the work, & he has a good heart & knows the issues, which is essential to be a good promoter.
20 years ago they were fighting to get water, now they are striving to find an alternative, since the water they have is contaminated, ironic!
The women introduced themselves, some of them took it upon themselves to thank us for being here, for travelling so far & for helping them to get the materials they need for this project.
Chela described the water situation in the region, the aquifer in general.
They chose a co-ordinator for the day – Victoria.
The women were asked to describe the history, how they began to become organized.
History
In another community “Mulata” they heard of a person who was working to provide water there, so they went to see her, that was Chela.
They didn’t have enough water, only shallow wells & those wells dried up when the agri business people drilled very deep wells nearby. They had to ask the agribusiness – deep well owners for water.
After a struggle, they received their own community well, unfortunately this water is highly contaminated with naturally occurring fluoride & arsenic. So now they have badly damaged teeth (& probably bones), & many are buying water in 20 litre containers (garafones).
At the time they began to drink the well water they noticed more illiness.
One woman described aches & pain in her feet, she went to the doctor, & then stopped drinking the well water, the pain went away.
They tested the water during the water diploma course held at Cedesa in 2008. At that time they discovered the extremely high levels, sometimes as high as 8mg/l (1.5 is max safe level).
Dr Kubiak asked if they had sought govt. assistance with this issue –
The response was that the govt. have been denying this issue.
A professor at UNAM discovered this issue & alerted the communities, this study was denied & called false. It has been very contentious, with a lot of negative attention, & accusations of corruption.
These questions were asked
What is your number 1 priority? – Water
What is your number 2 priority? – food production
Where are the men in your community? Many are in the USA, of the 19 women attending 7 of their husbands were in the US.
If you have no men here to help, who will build these cisterns? ..it’s heavy work - There was a resounding response, “we will build them, we can mix cement, & do heavy work, we built the maize grinder, we helped build this salon, we will work together, if we have to we could contribute to pay for masons to help us.
One woman said her husband was aware of the project & has said he will return from the US to help, another agreed re her husband too would help, once they had the materials & were ready to begin.
Another woman responded “we learnt about cisterns in a workshop at Cedesa approx. 8 years ago, we build 5 then”
They have asked for financial assistance for materials for cisterns & dry toilets from the Dolores Hidalgo municipality, but have had no response.
Bill responded
Congratulations on taking responsibility for your own lives, the health & future of your kids, & not relying on the govt for help. We are honoured to be your partner (along with Cedesa & SMA Midday Rotary) in your water project. Today I want to announce that Tallahassee RC has made available the $$ to the SMA club to assist you to do your project.
He went on to talk more about the situation in the USA (Chela had asked during our drive, for Bill to inform the community about the hardships of working in the USA, that it is not the land of milk & honey they all dream it is)… “In this period of our history in the USA, the economic situation is very difficult, many people have no work & hope for their families. It’s very difficult in the areas of agriculture, construction, hotels & service industry, it’s very hard & your husbands are there. I think you know these things, the economic experts are predicting things are going to stay difficult for many years, in the USA people are saying we have to help ourselves & for people coming from other countries this is difficult since priority is given to people from the US.
It’s our honour to be with you today & know you are working hard to provide for yourselves.
There was discussion about discrimination in the US, & from the US perspective how it is difficult to provide services for immigrants as well as a large population, there are all sorts of complexities, obligations,etc.
Chela joined the discussion by saying “there is no work in the USA, but there is no work here either, so what can we do? We have our hands , we can produce food for ourselves & reduce the amount of money we need to live, we can become self sufficient. How to convince people to do this is the issue.
One woman said “we have to tell our families not to sell our land but to retain it to remain more productive”.
Chela “USA is finished for us, it is no longer a viable alternative, the $$ our husbands send is not worth it now.”
One woman talked of a family she had heard about, where the grandparents in Mexico had had to send money to the US to support their Mexican family there…
Bill – “we have said many things about the difficulties of finding work in the USA, I want you to also know we have a lot of respect for the people who come & work so hard in the USA.”
Planning of the project
21 Cisterns – 1 pilot to be constructed at the Salon (community meeting space), & 20 individual family cisterns.
They had pre decided to build the pilot at the salon, apparently the children pass there on their way home from school & currently take water from the tap (which is fluoride contaminated) they want them to drink the rain water instead.
Benigno will come to Palencia to do the training, they have created their work groups already, as follows
The names in bold, are the co-ordinators
Group1. Margarita, Estela, Raquel, Olga, Goya
Group2. Victoria, Jesus, Carmela B, Luca + 1 other
Group 3 Lucia, Dolores, Martina, Belen, Constancia
Group4. Luz, Maira, Lidia, Carmela S, Leticia (not sure who is co-ord)
There were only 19 names as they thought the 20 included the pilot, but it is 20 + pilot so they will find an extra family.
They asked “when can we start?” I responded – when do you want to & they all said “now!”
Larry spoke
“when I look around & see the kids here today, I am reminded I became a grandparent 3 mths ago, I am honoured that our club can help provide resources for you to have safe water for your kids & babies.”
Chela spoke about a woman who took a bucket of honey she had produced with her bees, to town to barter & how she was able to receive much more for a bucket of honey than she would have with a few $$. She reiterated money was less important than produce.
Fruit of your own work/hands gives you a better quality of life.
She reminded them that if they have the opportunity to buy even 1 hectare of land they should take it, they can produce a lot with 1 hectare & wild areas.
Doubts & questions time
I asked if now was a good time to begin the project, ie if they were busy harvesting or …
They all agreed they would work in the fields in the morning & work on the cisterns in the afternoons.
One woman asked about the necessity of water in the cisterns to prevent cracking (very good question), they will need to put water in from an external source, but then remove it before the good rain water comes, to keep the cistern water pure.
Saul described the process he used to complete the 40 cisterns, said that it was a little complicated to have materials arriving for different groups at different times, he suggested they all do the work at the same time, & receive the wire first, finish that stage, before receiving the cement, & completing the next stage.
They will plan with Benigno.
There was discussion about which days suit them better for Benigno to come.
They suggested Thursdays, as that’s the day the community meets to plant trees & do community tasks.
Chela will organize with Benigno.
They explained that their Salon was widely used, for meetings, fiestas etc.
The first Tuesday of every month they have a community meeting, often this big building is full. They share their problems, talk about issues but also make rules, they make sure everyone can attend, attendance is compulsory – 1 rep. per family, they talk about issues, administer resources, inform people.
We asked who is the leader – they responded “all of them!” there in no one person in charge, a true democracy, everyone is responsible”
They also create mini commissions to achieve specific things. Even when Cedesa is not present they continue to have meetings & organize themselves. They are not just doing projects, but have a process in place to take care of ongoing issues.
Chela officially thanked Tallahassee RC on behalf of Cedesa for the wonderful assistance they have made possible for these projects.
Another woman spoke & was very emotional, she said she did not have the words to describe her heartfelt thanks, & that she truly hoped they would visit again.
Bill & Monse said they would come back when the cisterns are finished.
The Next assembly is to be arranged with Benigno (to be advised)
There are no cell phones in the community, contact is made through the phone kiosk provided by telmex.
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 27.10.10 12.30 meeting began (left SMA at 10am)
Who: Bill & Monse Webb, & Dr Larry Kubiak from Tallahassee Rotary, Laura from San Miguel Midday Rotary, Chela & Saul – Cedesa & 19 women, 6 kids from the Palencia Community
Purpose:
Since we last met in January this year, & the announcement of Future Vision & it’s ramifications, Bill Webb has been working very hard to secure funding for this project, the $$ are finally arranged, $7k from Tallahassee (Direct Grant), $7k approved to be spent on this project (excess funds from the 4 SMA water projects completed this year), + $200 from San Miguel Midday Rotary, will fund the project of 21 cisterns (1 pilot & 20 individual family cisterns).
This meeting was for the Tallahassee partners to meet the community, for Laura to know better this community & for the community to receive the news re the $$ & begin planning the logistics of the project.
Background.
Chela, Elena & Laura met with this community in January, after Chela had alerted us to the fact this community has the highest levels of Fluoride & arsenic than any in SMA. They had heard of the projects in SMA & petitioned us for assistance. See report 1, for more information.
Some brief facts about the community were raised in the previous meeting, included again here for ease of reference
• Approx 80 families /500 people
• Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years
• Palencia is approx 1 hr from Cedesa in Dolores Hidalgo
• The community well was drilled 18 years ago, they have been drinking contaminated water for 18years
• There are smaller family wells that fill up when it rains, but they do not last the dry season
• There was a cacique (self appointed boss) when cedesa began work here, he is still apart from the community
• They have worked on many community projects together, including fighting for land rights, building a community centre (with funding for materials from local govt.), obtaining electricity
Item 1 – introductions all round:
Bill, Monse, Laura & Larry introduced themselves. Chela is well known, she also took time to describe a little about what/who Rotary is & does.
Chela – has been working with this community for more than 20 years, less frequent visits lately as she is concentrating in the San Miguel region where they also have fluoride issues.
Saul introduced himself & gave a little summary of how he came to be working with Cedesa (through assemblies at Los Torres) & has recently completed a 40 cistern project funded by the municipality , in Capaderillo (his wife’s community).
Chela mentioned Saul is one of the promoters at Cedesa, learning the work, & he has a good heart & knows the issues, which is essential to be a good promoter.
20 years ago they were fighting to get water, now they are striving to find an alternative, since the water they have is contaminated, ironic!
The women introduced themselves, some of them took it upon themselves to thank us for being here, for travelling so far & for helping them to get the materials they need for this project.
Chela described the water situation in the region, the aquifer in general.
They chose a co-ordinator for the day – Victoria.
The women were asked to describe the history, how they began to become organized.
History
In another community “Mulata” they heard of a person who was working to provide water there, so they went to see her, that was Chela.
They didn’t have enough water, only shallow wells & those wells dried up when the agri business people drilled very deep wells nearby. They had to ask the agribusiness – deep well owners for water.
After a struggle, they received their own community well, unfortunately this water is highly contaminated with naturally occurring fluoride & arsenic. So now they have badly damaged teeth (& probably bones), & many are buying water in 20 litre containers (garafones).
At the time they began to drink the well water they noticed more illiness.
One woman described aches & pain in her feet, she went to the doctor, & then stopped drinking the well water, the pain went away.
They tested the water during the water diploma course held at Cedesa in 2008. At that time they discovered the extremely high levels, sometimes as high as 8mg/l (1.5 is max safe level).
Dr Kubiak asked if they had sought govt. assistance with this issue –
The response was that the govt. have been denying this issue.
A professor at UNAM discovered this issue & alerted the communities, this study was denied & called false. It has been very contentious, with a lot of negative attention, & accusations of corruption.
These questions were asked
What is your number 1 priority? – Water
What is your number 2 priority? – food production
Where are the men in your community? Many are in the USA, of the 19 women attending 7 of their husbands were in the US.
If you have no men here to help, who will build these cisterns? ..it’s heavy work - There was a resounding response, “we will build them, we can mix cement, & do heavy work, we built the maize grinder, we helped build this salon, we will work together, if we have to we could contribute to pay for masons to help us.
One woman said her husband was aware of the project & has said he will return from the US to help, another agreed re her husband too would help, once they had the materials & were ready to begin.
Another woman responded “we learnt about cisterns in a workshop at Cedesa approx. 8 years ago, we build 5 then”
They have asked for financial assistance for materials for cisterns & dry toilets from the Dolores Hidalgo municipality, but have had no response.
Bill responded
Congratulations on taking responsibility for your own lives, the health & future of your kids, & not relying on the govt for help. We are honoured to be your partner (along with Cedesa & SMA Midday Rotary) in your water project. Today I want to announce that Tallahassee RC has made available the $$ to the SMA club to assist you to do your project.
He went on to talk more about the situation in the USA (Chela had asked during our drive, for Bill to inform the community about the hardships of working in the USA, that it is not the land of milk & honey they all dream it is)… “In this period of our history in the USA, the economic situation is very difficult, many people have no work & hope for their families. It’s very difficult in the areas of agriculture, construction, hotels & service industry, it’s very hard & your husbands are there. I think you know these things, the economic experts are predicting things are going to stay difficult for many years, in the USA people are saying we have to help ourselves & for people coming from other countries this is difficult since priority is given to people from the US.
It’s our honour to be with you today & know you are working hard to provide for yourselves.
There was discussion about discrimination in the US, & from the US perspective how it is difficult to provide services for immigrants as well as a large population, there are all sorts of complexities, obligations,etc.
Chela joined the discussion by saying “there is no work in the USA, but there is no work here either, so what can we do? We have our hands , we can produce food for ourselves & reduce the amount of money we need to live, we can become self sufficient. How to convince people to do this is the issue.
One woman said “we have to tell our families not to sell our land but to retain it to remain more productive”.
Chela “USA is finished for us, it is no longer a viable alternative, the $$ our husbands send is not worth it now.”
One woman talked of a family she had heard about, where the grandparents in Mexico had had to send money to the US to support their Mexican family there…
Bill – “we have said many things about the difficulties of finding work in the USA, I want you to also know we have a lot of respect for the people who come & work so hard in the USA.”
Planning of the project
21 Cisterns – 1 pilot to be constructed at the Salon (community meeting space), & 20 individual family cisterns.
They had pre decided to build the pilot at the salon, apparently the children pass there on their way home from school & currently take water from the tap (which is fluoride contaminated) they want them to drink the rain water instead.
Benigno will come to Palencia to do the training, they have created their work groups already, as follows
The names in bold, are the co-ordinators
Group1. Margarita, Estela, Raquel, Olga, Goya
Group2. Victoria, Jesus, Carmela B, Luca + 1 other
Group 3 Lucia, Dolores, Martina, Belen, Constancia
Group4. Luz, Maira, Lidia, Carmela S, Leticia (not sure who is co-ord)
There were only 19 names as they thought the 20 included the pilot, but it is 20 + pilot so they will find an extra family.
They asked “when can we start?” I responded – when do you want to & they all said “now!”
Larry spoke
“when I look around & see the kids here today, I am reminded I became a grandparent 3 mths ago, I am honoured that our club can help provide resources for you to have safe water for your kids & babies.”
Chela spoke about a woman who took a bucket of honey she had produced with her bees, to town to barter & how she was able to receive much more for a bucket of honey than she would have with a few $$. She reiterated money was less important than produce.
Fruit of your own work/hands gives you a better quality of life.
She reminded them that if they have the opportunity to buy even 1 hectare of land they should take it, they can produce a lot with 1 hectare & wild areas.
Doubts & questions time
I asked if now was a good time to begin the project, ie if they were busy harvesting or …
They all agreed they would work in the fields in the morning & work on the cisterns in the afternoons.
One woman asked about the necessity of water in the cisterns to prevent cracking (very good question), they will need to put water in from an external source, but then remove it before the good rain water comes, to keep the cistern water pure.
Saul described the process he used to complete the 40 cisterns, said that it was a little complicated to have materials arriving for different groups at different times, he suggested they all do the work at the same time, & receive the wire first, finish that stage, before receiving the cement, & completing the next stage.
They will plan with Benigno.
There was discussion about which days suit them better for Benigno to come.
They suggested Thursdays, as that’s the day the community meets to plant trees & do community tasks.
Chela will organize with Benigno.
They explained that their Salon was widely used, for meetings, fiestas etc.
The first Tuesday of every month they have a community meeting, often this big building is full. They share their problems, talk about issues but also make rules, they make sure everyone can attend, attendance is compulsory – 1 rep. per family, they talk about issues, administer resources, inform people.
We asked who is the leader – they responded “all of them!” there in no one person in charge, a true democracy, everyone is responsible”
They also create mini commissions to achieve specific things. Even when Cedesa is not present they continue to have meetings & organize themselves. They are not just doing projects, but have a process in place to take care of ongoing issues.
Chela officially thanked Tallahassee RC on behalf of Cedesa for the wonderful assistance they have made possible for these projects.
Another woman spoke & was very emotional, she said she did not have the words to describe her heartfelt thanks, & that she truly hoped they would visit again.
Bill & Monse said they would come back when the cisterns are finished.
The Next assembly is to be arranged with Benigno (to be advised)
There are no cell phones in the community, contact is made through the phone kiosk provided by telmex.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
1st Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
Record of Event pg 1 of 3
1st Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 14.1.10 12 midday meeting began (left SMA at 10am)
Who: Elena & Laura from San Miguel Midday Rotary, Georgina Sautto (President Elect for San Miguel Rotary), Chela – Cedesa & 13 women, 1 man & 4 kids from the Palencia Community
Purpose:
Look at possibility of a joint project with SMA rotary, to assist the community to solve Palencia’s contaminated water issue.
Background.
Chela & Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years. When they began here there were no services (electricity, water) no registered land ownership, & no solidarity. The community was run by Machismo & Caciques (self appointed bosses/oppressive men).
Little by little this community has come together to achieve many things (as detailed below), the current issue they are struggling to solve, is their contaminated water. They share a govt. drilled well with 3 other communities, unfortunately the water from this well has been tested to contain extremely high levels of both fluoride & arsenic. More than 5mg/l of Fluoride for example. (maximum safe level by World Health Org. is 1.5mg/l)
Chela has previously bought us a petition for help from the community with the signatures of more than 20 families on it.
The issue is, although this community has a higher need, ie higher level of contamination, than any of the communities in SMA municipality, it is outside our Municipality, & the community service committee of SMA Midday RC, have previously discussed, we should first work to resolve water issues in our own municipality before going outside our region.
This is a dilemma, there is an obvious high need here, Elena (as District Chair) has spoken with SMA RC & is trying to enlist interest from clubs within this neighbouring municipality to come together in the hope we can co-operatively solve this.
Today´s visit is to gather information & a preliminary needs analysis.
Item 1 – introductions
Everyone introduced themselves this was the common introduction “ I work in the community & participate in community projects”
Some brief facts about the community were raised
• Approx 80 families /500 people
• Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years
• Palencia is approx 1 hr from Cedesa in Dolores Hidalgo
• The community well was drilled 18 years ago,
* they have been drinking contaminated water for 18years
• There are smaller family wells that fill up when it rains, but they do not last the dry season
• There was a cacique (self appointed boss) when cedesa began work here, he is still apart from the community
• They have worked on many community projects together, including fighting for land rights, building a community centre (with funding for materials from local govt.), obtaining electricity
We explained a little about the joint project in Los Torres & what the community now has there.
pg 2 of 3
Item 2 History described
The members of the community articulated the following:
The community has been working for 22 years to improve their community for their children. With collaboration & resources we can help transform conditions, with the work of your hands & minds you can achieve change.
We do not encourage dependence, but encourage people to take their future into their own hands, assume responsibility for yourselves as subjects, not objects & work co-operatively to achieve improvements like backyard gardens & resolve issues.
Elena & Georgina were invited to speak, & reiterated the beauty of working on things together, & that it takes planting the seed first, then tending that plant for it to bear fruit, good things take time, & they were commended on their achievements, like the construction of the Salon de Asamblea we were currently meeting in.
Chela explained the relationship Rotary Midday & Cedesa have built while working together in the last year in Los Torres.
Item 3 – appoint co-ordinator & secretary & raise agenda for today´s meeting.
The community had done this many times before & quickly voted for Victoria & Lola.
The agenda was written up
a. how the community had changed over 22 years.
b. Organization of the community
c. Projects in common
d. Future projects
The members of the community were invited to speak of how their community had changed over the last 22 years. Each & every member was very keen to speak, & in turn articulately described the struggles, & challenges they had faced & how they had overcome adversity.
As an aside - in other communities we have been working in, the participants are often reluctant to speak, in this case it was the opposite, each wanted to speak, & had a lot to say, they were very happy, & proud to share their history.
a. how the community had changed over 22 years.
22 yrs ago they had no services or land rights & were dominated by a cacique (self appointed community bully) & machismo. They originally had to meet under the trees on the edge of the community. They were very afraid to participate. They are very proud to list their achievements,
• They now have electricity
• They demanded their freedom from Caciques
• Individual land ownership (a result of protests in 1992)
• Raised enough money to build two community “salons” meeting places.
• They now have their own school
• Each generation carries on the learning & meetings & work & many of the women here today were little kids when Chela first began work here.
• 20% of the men are in the United States (ie 1 in 5 are single mums)
• It was very hard to talk to the women originally, for them to understand the future was in their own hands.
• They fought for equal respect & equal rights for the women
•
b. Organization of the community
• The community well is approx 200 mtrs deep & reducing at a rate of 5 mtrs per year
• Organization has been carried out by assembly
• Issues are raised at the assembly for resolution
• They organize into groups & mini commissions to achieve results
• Every 2 months they meet with 3 other communities who have joint water services, re main of pumps, payments for electricity.
• There are approx 230 families in the 4 communities
pg 3 of 3
C Projects in common
They have many projects in progress – Bees, Health, Backyard production, parcel production.
D. Future projects
The Community are working on a resolution to the issue of no safe drinking water in their community. They would like each family to have their own cistern to be responsible for their own collection, & conservation of water. They have currently made a “solicitude” request for assistance to the local Govt. in San Diego de la Union, but have had no response so far.
The community is also asking if there is any help Rotary could provide.
They are already organized so would only need funding for materials & training & are fully prepared to carry out the rest themselves.
They are also working on Dry toilets as they would like to prevent more contamination of the water table.
We explained the Rotary funding process, & timeframe, it is a long timeframe for response.
Georgina & Elena undertook to bring it to their clubs as a potential joint project.
San Miguel Midday RC has already stated they would prefer to continue to work inside the municipality of San Miguel, which is why we have bought Georgina from the other San Miguel club to see if it is something her club would be prepared to work with other clubs to solve.
There is a list of 21 families that has been presented as a petition to SMA midday RC as a request for assistance.
The money needed to fund the materials for the construction of 21 cisterns (with just 4 days training & 4 days follow up/trouble shooting, is approx US$11,000.
Conclusion
This community has done the hard yards & is organized, now they just need financial assistance with materials only. & a simple solution can be put in place to resolve the drinking water for these people for ever (as long as it continues to rain annually).
We need to work to find a solution for this community, Elena is working at a District Level, & Laura is seeking other possibilities.
The meeting finished at 2.30.
There is no date for a next meeting as the respective clubs need to work with their committees on this.
1st Event of the SMA Midday Rotary Water Project Palencia
Where: Community House in Palencia – 1hr north of Dolores Hidalgo,
When: 14.1.10 12 midday meeting began (left SMA at 10am)
Who: Elena & Laura from San Miguel Midday Rotary, Georgina Sautto (President Elect for San Miguel Rotary), Chela – Cedesa & 13 women, 1 man & 4 kids from the Palencia Community
Purpose:
Look at possibility of a joint project with SMA rotary, to assist the community to solve Palencia’s contaminated water issue.
Background.
Chela & Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years. When they began here there were no services (electricity, water) no registered land ownership, & no solidarity. The community was run by Machismo & Caciques (self appointed bosses/oppressive men).
Little by little this community has come together to achieve many things (as detailed below), the current issue they are struggling to solve, is their contaminated water. They share a govt. drilled well with 3 other communities, unfortunately the water from this well has been tested to contain extremely high levels of both fluoride & arsenic. More than 5mg/l of Fluoride for example. (maximum safe level by World Health Org. is 1.5mg/l)
Chela has previously bought us a petition for help from the community with the signatures of more than 20 families on it.
The issue is, although this community has a higher need, ie higher level of contamination, than any of the communities in SMA municipality, it is outside our Municipality, & the community service committee of SMA Midday RC, have previously discussed, we should first work to resolve water issues in our own municipality before going outside our region.
This is a dilemma, there is an obvious high need here, Elena (as District Chair) has spoken with SMA RC & is trying to enlist interest from clubs within this neighbouring municipality to come together in the hope we can co-operatively solve this.
Today´s visit is to gather information & a preliminary needs analysis.
Item 1 – introductions
Everyone introduced themselves this was the common introduction “ I work in the community & participate in community projects”
Some brief facts about the community were raised
• Approx 80 families /500 people
• Cedesa have been working with this community for 22 years
• Palencia is approx 1 hr from Cedesa in Dolores Hidalgo
• The community well was drilled 18 years ago,
* they have been drinking contaminated water for 18years
• There are smaller family wells that fill up when it rains, but they do not last the dry season
• There was a cacique (self appointed boss) when cedesa began work here, he is still apart from the community
• They have worked on many community projects together, including fighting for land rights, building a community centre (with funding for materials from local govt.), obtaining electricity
We explained a little about the joint project in Los Torres & what the community now has there.
pg 2 of 3
Item 2 History described
The members of the community articulated the following:
The community has been working for 22 years to improve their community for their children. With collaboration & resources we can help transform conditions, with the work of your hands & minds you can achieve change.
We do not encourage dependence, but encourage people to take their future into their own hands, assume responsibility for yourselves as subjects, not objects & work co-operatively to achieve improvements like backyard gardens & resolve issues.
Elena & Georgina were invited to speak, & reiterated the beauty of working on things together, & that it takes planting the seed first, then tending that plant for it to bear fruit, good things take time, & they were commended on their achievements, like the construction of the Salon de Asamblea we were currently meeting in.
Chela explained the relationship Rotary Midday & Cedesa have built while working together in the last year in Los Torres.
Item 3 – appoint co-ordinator & secretary & raise agenda for today´s meeting.
The community had done this many times before & quickly voted for Victoria & Lola.
The agenda was written up
a. how the community had changed over 22 years.
b. Organization of the community
c. Projects in common
d. Future projects
The members of the community were invited to speak of how their community had changed over the last 22 years. Each & every member was very keen to speak, & in turn articulately described the struggles, & challenges they had faced & how they had overcome adversity.
As an aside - in other communities we have been working in, the participants are often reluctant to speak, in this case it was the opposite, each wanted to speak, & had a lot to say, they were very happy, & proud to share their history.
a. how the community had changed over 22 years.
22 yrs ago they had no services or land rights & were dominated by a cacique (self appointed community bully) & machismo. They originally had to meet under the trees on the edge of the community. They were very afraid to participate. They are very proud to list their achievements,
• They now have electricity
• They demanded their freedom from Caciques
• Individual land ownership (a result of protests in 1992)
• Raised enough money to build two community “salons” meeting places.
• They now have their own school
• Each generation carries on the learning & meetings & work & many of the women here today were little kids when Chela first began work here.
• 20% of the men are in the United States (ie 1 in 5 are single mums)
• It was very hard to talk to the women originally, for them to understand the future was in their own hands.
• They fought for equal respect & equal rights for the women
•
b. Organization of the community
• The community well is approx 200 mtrs deep & reducing at a rate of 5 mtrs per year
• Organization has been carried out by assembly
• Issues are raised at the assembly for resolution
• They organize into groups & mini commissions to achieve results
• Every 2 months they meet with 3 other communities who have joint water services, re main of pumps, payments for electricity.
• There are approx 230 families in the 4 communities
pg 3 of 3
C Projects in common
They have many projects in progress – Bees, Health, Backyard production, parcel production.
D. Future projects
The Community are working on a resolution to the issue of no safe drinking water in their community. They would like each family to have their own cistern to be responsible for their own collection, & conservation of water. They have currently made a “solicitude” request for assistance to the local Govt. in San Diego de la Union, but have had no response so far.
The community is also asking if there is any help Rotary could provide.
They are already organized so would only need funding for materials & training & are fully prepared to carry out the rest themselves.
They are also working on Dry toilets as they would like to prevent more contamination of the water table.
We explained the Rotary funding process, & timeframe, it is a long timeframe for response.
Georgina & Elena undertook to bring it to their clubs as a potential joint project.
San Miguel Midday RC has already stated they would prefer to continue to work inside the municipality of San Miguel, which is why we have bought Georgina from the other San Miguel club to see if it is something her club would be prepared to work with other clubs to solve.
There is a list of 21 families that has been presented as a petition to SMA midday RC as a request for assistance.
The money needed to fund the materials for the construction of 21 cisterns (with just 4 days training & 4 days follow up/trouble shooting, is approx US$11,000.
Conclusion
This community has done the hard yards & is organized, now they just need financial assistance with materials only. & a simple solution can be put in place to resolve the drinking water for these people for ever (as long as it continues to rain annually).
We need to work to find a solution for this community, Elena is working at a District Level, & Laura is seeking other possibilities.
The meeting finished at 2.30.
There is no date for a next meeting as the respective clubs need to work with their committees on this.
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