Hi all –
It's been a while since I last put up a
post. I don't particularly have an excuse other than it seems only natural that
the more “transitioned” I feel in my new life in El Salvador, the less often
I'll feel compelled to take to my blog to babble about how shocking my new
surroundings are; things I found noteworthy four months ago have become
commonplace. That being said, I intend to average two posts a month for the
duration of my service, so this last month has been an aberration as far as the
frequency of my posting goes.
On Saturday I returned from my site after
concluding Pre-Service Training 2 (PST-2), three weeks of additional training
back in Nuevo Cuscatlan, where I spent my initial ten-week training period. It
was nice to reunite with my old host family—the Garcias—there, as well as the
other volunteers in my training group. Despite the diversity of our sites in
terms of the degree of community organization, proximity to services and
employment, and level of human development, we're all weathering similar
challenges of integration and inter-cultural navigation. During PST-2 I also
had the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving at the home of a nice American
embassy family.
The training we received in PST-2 was much
more project-oriented than the initial round, and having received it, I feel
much more targeted toward concrete goals in addition to the more abstract
notions of gaining confianza and achieving integration in my community.
My top two priorities for at least the next six months will be forming a
women's association in Toreras and improving the ADESCO (Asocación de
Desarrollo Comunal).
The women in Toreras seldom leave their homes and participate minimally in the ADESCO
(Toreras' only organization) and other activities promoting development in the
community. Many if not most rural communities in El Salvador have some form of
women's group, many of which function as income-generating cooperatives that
make and sell crafts or food items. Others serve more as community councils
that take on community problems, organize social events, and solicit trainings
and other forms of support from NGOs and government. Not only are these groups
able to realize concrete accomplishments, but they contribute to an overall
sense of empowerment among the women who participate (and probably even those
who don't), challenging the machista attitude that relegates women to
domestic duties and discourages them from participating actively in community
decision-making. If Toreras is to confront its most pressing development
challenges—employment opportunities, education levels, sanitation and potable water, a decent
road—it's going to need female leadership.
Assuming I'm able to successfully assemble
a women's association, I'm somewhat impartial as to the form the group ultimately takes. To me, the
most important thing is to provide a space for women to learn leadership skills
and to express their desires for and concerns regarding the community, thereby
building much-lacking self-esteem and showing their daughters (and sons, for
that matter) that women serve important functions outside the home. Such a
group could spur a culture of female leadership in heavily male-dominated
Toreras, which would benefit the community indefinitely and immeasurably.
Forming the group will be a slow process—and for at least the first few months,
I will very much be running the show—but hopefully by the time my two years are
up I'll have put together an organization with the necessary structure,
systems, and skills to sustain itself without the support of a PCV. I'm
anticipating plenty of challenges, but I've been heartened by some encouraging
conversations I've had in the last few days with women and men alike.
As for the ADESCO, it is lacking in pretty
much every attribute a representative organization should possess. The
executive board's communication with its constituency (the community) is
minimal, it lacks strategic thinking and leadership, its officers don't know
nor follow its by-laws, and enthusiasm for its purported mission is low.
Crisanto, my host father and the ADESCO president, badly wants greater
community buy-in and participation, yet seems at a loss for ways to encourage them. There's a lot of work to be done to return the ADESCO to an energetic and
well-regarded community organization (I learned from Chris, the first PCV to
serve here, that the ADESCO has clearly seen better days), but given the overall
good nature of its members, I think I should be able to give it a shot in the
arm while engendering habits that will help ensure its proper functioning
beyond the term of my service.
Ending on a light note, I gave my host mom
here a jar of strawberry jam as a gift upon my return from PST-2. Two day
later, she approached me with the empty jar and gleefully told me how much she
enjoyed the mermelada. Surprised by how quickly the jam disappeared, I
asked her what she ate it with. Bread?...Tortilla? She shot me a puzzled look.
I'm assuming she at least used a spoon...
