Annual Report 2011
Index Presentation 7 8
A shared task The Pause, a possibility of peace in the world
Human Development with Focusing Our new social development proposal 11 12 14 16
Diffusing Focusing: workshops, literacy-ers FECD’s new working areas New initiatives Human Development with Focusing in social development projects
Without violence, listening to ourselves with a pause 19 20 22
From the pause to non-violence, Chimborazo and Esmeraldas FECD seeks to eradicate gender violence in the Northern Border Region Reducing violence in the Chimborazo communities
Productivity and growth 27 30
Cocoa, felt development for producers in the Ecuadorian coastal region The high altitude coffee productive chain
Sustainable tourism 35 37
Ecological and community tourism, a sustainable alternative for the Amazon Region The Tourism Solidarity Network on the Banks of the Napo River - REST
International alliances with a human base 41
International alliances
43
Audit Report
Presentation
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Annual Report 2011
A shared task
FECD is a permanently expanding institution whose ongoing challenge is to create the new ideas and tools required to open up an innovative routes toward the construction of a more equitable society. Our work has been founded upon the efforts undertaken with human beings, personally, individually and en-masse. This can only be achieved by fine-tuning those tools that enable us to attend to each individual, just as they are, in a simple manner. This simple and straightforward approach has enabled us to reach out to many communities and families. This document compiles the experiences of a year full of learning and achievements, the ingredients that nourish our dreams and renovate us so we can continue to pursue the route we have mapped out over the last six years. We feel we have progressed in accordance with our institutional mission, based on institutional values that are lived at every moment.
Abelardo Pachano President of the Board of Governors of FECD
Joining us in this task have been the local and international individuals and institutions that share our values and goals, enabling us to spread our work beyond the borders of Ecuador - especially in the field of human development and organic farming. Not only have these alliances helped us to consolidate and strengthen ourselves, but have also served as a challenge to improve upon our achievements at every moment.
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The Pause, a possibility of peace in the world For FECD, year 2011 provided us with the space required to consolidate our vision of social development, with special emphasis on the human being. We have managed to validate our working methodology that seeks to provide individuals with spheres for learning, especially community leaders and institutions, with respect to the pause and attentive listening.
The basis of this simple yet complex process is the pause, a space in which each individual has the opportunity to find him or herself, to attend to that which is inside him or her. It is the route to authenticity, an option for peace for the world.
The results have encouraged and excited us. Our workshop participants have been able to find, within themselves, the wealth of possibilities they possess to create and relate to their surroundings, at a family, social, professional and environmental level, i.e. all those elements that their activities require them to relate to or become involved with. This base has helped us to build solid alliances and new lines of action, enabling us to anticipate growth, both locally and internationally. The FECD way of working, based on the individual efforts of their co-workers, has been endorsed and supported scientifically by the creators of Focusing, Eugene Gendlin and Mary Hendricks. Eugene and Mary, have contributed with their joint deliberations, and provided options for diffusion among the international community.
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William Hernรกndez Executive Director
Human Development with Focusing Our new social development proposal
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Annual Report 2011
Diffusing Focusing:
workshops, literacy-ers FECD has established a broad and ambitious diffusion program for Focusing in Ecuador, with an international scope. The methodology developed by us, which provides individuals with the space to contemplate their internal feelings that arise from the pause, has attracted the attention of various institutions, organizations and individuals who have either identified or intuited the accessible possibilities offered to improve various aspects of the human condition and organizational management: self-esteem, confidence, communication, authenticity, creativity, productivity, leadership, among others. Simple workshops, of two to three hours in which between twenty and forty people participate, provide access to the pause as a space for self-attention. These workshops involve straightforward exercises that enable each individual to experience their internal feelings, concealed behind intellectual processes or the consciousness. That is, the exercises provide the space in which the participants encounter the means to see their complete selves, complementing knowledge or intellect and thus accessing the accumulated wisdom expressed bodily. The whole process is undertaken within a context of respect for everything that arises there. The results of this discovery, in each individual who manages to listen to his or
herself, is reflected in the manifest changes of behavior, attitude – and even in thought – and in which the focus is on life, peace and respect for oneself, for others and for the environment in general. In this respect, FECD has concentrated its efforts on working with those leaders who have the opportunity to diffuse the process and on trainers-in-training who can transmit their own experiences to more numerous groups. While priority has been given to working with institutional partners, we have also responded to the interest of various public sector, civil society and private institutions. Growing demand has given rise to the need to generate a specific unit that can provide a consistent and timely response. In response, we have set up training processes for “literacy-ers of the pause”, “trainers-in-training” and “trainers” based on lived experiences and the diffusion of Focusing. The system includes processes designed to maintain coherence and quality of literacy-ers based on rigorous updating parameters and ongoing dissemination. This ensures that diffusion of the “pause” and “attentive listing” is locked into the scientific, philosophic and methodological base while providing ongoing updates on the evolution, concepts and new methods of diffusion and spaces for learning.
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FECD’s new
working areas
During 2011, FECD significantly expanded its sphere of action in working areas that strengthen, complement and consolidate our development approach, with the aim of improving the living conditions of the people, especially the most vulnerable. The changing context of international cooperation, in which priorities, strategies and resources are directed towards geographical, sector and thematic areas not always coinciding with our priorities, structure or specialization have obliged us to re-learn and continually generate new ways of fulfilling our role. Thus, the emphasis on human development, working with individuals in accordance with their particular circumstances and thereby generating spaces for self-knowledge and self-assessment,
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has enabled us to open up greater, simpler and complementary opportunities and lines of work. Our new lines of action include an alliance based on the human, environmental and social values held in common between FECD and the “Istituto per la Certificazione Etica e Ambientale” – ICEA of Italy. This alliance between not-for-profit organizations focuses on providing services and support to help grow the productive sectors of Ecuador as well as promoting environmentally sustainable forms of production. Characterized by its distinctive “human face” value, the alliance is committed to reinvest in social development actions. In another sphere, 2011 saw us take the first steps towards setting up an entity with a business outlook that enables the
Annual Report 2011
smallholders to place their products in Ecuadorian and international markets with the support of FECD.
the joint work undertaken with ICEA, the Focusing Institute in New York, FUNDESO, IFOAM, UNIMOS and Espezia.
These lines of action have been underpinned through the development of international relations, ratified through alliances with entities that share our development focus and values. In particular, we wish to acknowledge and thank
Within Ecuador, we have also reaffirmed old alliances while forming new ones. The work undertaken with our local partners is highlighted in the following pages.
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New Initiatives
The conclusion of the Productive Frontiers Project on December 2010, has given rise to new initiatives within the majority of the areas of intervention, looking to consolidate and extend the scope of the achieved results. FECD continues to support these areas through the training of Human Development leaders based on the pause and through actions that look to consolidate productive chains, with an environmental and organizational process focus. The Human Development work, begun in the sub-projects, has attracted interest and provided a link with other local players. ,Q WKH QRUWK RI WKH (VPHUDOGDV SURvince, the Unión de Asociaciones Artesanales “Eloy Alfaro” continues to consolidate the productive chain of fine aroma cocoa while strengthening links with international markets by trading quality organic cocoa, recovering the local “fine aroma” variety and, shortly, by undertaking direct exports. Furthermore, FECD is providing support in the zone to promote the “Cocoa Route” in an attempt to as-
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sociate local initiatives and the zone’s natural and cultural attractions with cocoa production. Connections have been created and maintained with highly influential local players such as CORPO Esmeraldas, enabling more organizations, communities and institutions within the province to benefit from Human Development processes. The effects, directly correlated to a decrease in
Annual Report 2011
violence and improvements in communications and productivity, were immediately perceived by the workshop participants.
associative marketing of fine aroma cocoa, while work in Human Development has boosted the results obtained in the zone’s development processes.
‡ With support from FIE, work continues with 1,400 families in SucumbĂos in activities involving the strengthening of cocoa, coffee and sugar cane chains. Increased productivity and improved marketing and processing conditions are reflected in the increased family income of the participants. Similarly, the provision of equipment and technical assistance has enabled sugar cane transformation processes to be improved while enhancing the quality of the sugar loaf offer.
‡ ,Q 2UHOODQD UHODWLRQVKLSV ZLWK ORFDO players have been strengthened in an effort to mobilize additional resources, consolidate Human Development processes and market community tourism. This task is being undertaken by the kichwas communities located along the banks of the Napo River. Work has also been undertaken on consolidating the productive cocoa chain.
‡ ,Q &KLPERUD]R SURYLQFH ZRUN KDV been undertaken in reducing gender violence through the use of nonviolent communication based on the pause. Support also continues to be provided for the production of Andean grains as an economic alternative. ‡ 7KH UHVXOWV DFKLHYHG LQ WKH /RV 5tRV province have enabled FECD’s support to be extended to sectors within the provinces of ManabĂ, Santo Domingo de los TsĂĄchilas and the Manga del Cura area, thereby consolidating the
‡ Using the same continuity approach in actions initiated in the Productive Frontiers project, currently being undertaken in the provinces of Napo, Carchi and Imbabura, FECD continues working together with its local partners and new actors, as well as with sector governments, in the consolidation of the productive cocoa chains and community tourism. Emphasis has also been placed on strengthening local capacity to deal with the reality of the border zones and the dissemination of Human Development with Focusing at community and institutional levels.
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Human Development with Focusing in social development projects The work undertaken during recent years using the Human Development methodology has underscored how this process complements and drives cooperation for development efforts at various levels. Vulnerable groups have been truly empowered, spurring their creativity to design solutions and fine-tune their awareness when dealing with issues of equity, while at the same time, providing for authentic, felt and peaceful communication. All FECD projects are based on incorporating and diffusing the “literacy of the pauseâ€? practice. During the year, we initiated strengthening processes for local instiWXWLRQV LQ (VPHUDOGDV /RV 5tRV 0DQDEt Santo Domingo, Chimborazo and SucumbĂos through low-investment, high-impact projects. These projects, based on Human Development with Focusing, seek to resolve the difficulties faced by individuals when searching for spaces that provide an accessible, simple and friendly means of practicing the pause. The technical teams being trained as “literacy-ersâ€? of the pause are actively involved
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in the economic-productive, environmental and social activities of the participating groups. By learning the pause and listening attentively, the participating groups acquire space for greater productivity while harmonizing their relationship with the environment and society. An important milestone in our “literacy of the pauseâ€? work has been the shared vision achieved between FECD´s partners and the local actors, and the roles for diffusion they have assumed. At the same time, we have strengthened our alliances with entities such as CEDERENA, CORPO Esmeraldas and FundaciĂłn Ascender, among others. The huge response triggered by these projects has enabled us to reach out to approximately 2,000 associations and community leaders, sector governments and companies through the learning of the pause and attentive listening. We are encouraged to believe that the replicas generated in individual spheres of action are evidence that the seeds sown have germinated in fertile soils.
Without violence, listening to ourselves with a pause
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Annual Report 2011
From the pause
to non-violence, Chimborazo and Esmeraldas One immediate result of the continued application of the pause, as a space for listening to oneself, is a reduction of all forms of violence: physical, verbal or implicit in certain behavior. Building on this practice, the work undertaken – especially in the rural communities of Chimborazo as well as in various organizations and communities in Esmeraldas – has generated tangible results in the behavior of both men and women, in their family, association, organization or labor space. Based on just one workshop of two to three hours, many people have discovered the means of establishing a pause, listening to their felt sense and responding positively, creatively and extensively to stimuli. Sixteen workshops have been held in Esmeraldas and thirty-six in Chimborazo, attended by more than 1,300 participants – principally leaders of local orgaQL]DWLRQV /LIH FKDQJLQJ DQG HQYLURQPHQW FKDQJLQJ testimonies, inevitably positive, are becoming evermore frequent. FECD undertook a survey in Chimborazo in which witnesses vouched for the changes generated. Growing interest has also been shown by leaders and local authorities in embarking upon the establishment of more non-violent territories in different zones throughout the country: Sucumbíos, Napo, Cañar, Bolívar, Carchi and Manabí, among others. Once this practice, now increasingly disseminated, becomes permanent and widespread, we will have achieved our dream of creating violence-free spaces characterized by production, prosperity and cordiality where the people can live, build and grow.
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FECD seeks to eradicate
gender violence in the Northern Border Region
7KH ´(FXDGRU &RORPELD )URQWLHU $ /LIH without Violence for Producer Women and Girls in the Rurual Zones of the Provinces of Esmeraldas and Sucumbíos” project concluded this year with promising results. The goal of this initiative was to promote the eradication of gender violence, a syndrome that has affected mestiza women and children, as well as indigenous and afro-descendants in the rural zones of Esmeraldas and Sucumbíos. The most notable accomplishments include the strengthening of women’s organizations in Esmeraldas and Sucumbíos. By disseminating women’s rights and mechanisms for application of the law on gender
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violence, affected women have begun to generate changes in the pattern of discriminatory violence. This change has been achieved by concentrating our efforts on training 68 local promoters in: 1. Self-esteem, identify, gender equality and rights; 2. Domestic violence and sexual offenses; and 3. Women’s economic rights. The promoters then provided instruction to 3,883 women, educating them on their rights and the mechanisms they can deploy to support victims of sexual offenses.
Annual Report 2011
The capacities of local governments, justice operators and service providers in charge of dealing with gender violence in Esmeraldas and Sucumbíos, have also been strengthened through project actions. A total of 83 justice operators (41 men and 42 women) have been trained in JHQGHU YLROHQFH DQG SXEOLF SROLFLHV /DZ DQG /DZ LQ WKH (VPHUDOGDV SURvince. Additional training has also been provided to 60 local authorities (35 men and 25 women) in gender, rights, democracy and public policy. In Sucumbíos, the technical team of the Sucumbíos Federation of Women established care facilities to attend to the victims of domestic violence within the province, while service quality has been improved through an ongoing planning and training process. Another notable project achievement was the drafting and approval of a municipal ordnance for the prevention and penalizing of gender violence in the Eloy Alfaro canton of Esmeraldas. A subsequent municipal ordnance issued by the Municipa-
lity of Sucumbíos approved the creation of the Department of Gender Equity with a remit to provide attention and prevent violence against women. A similar key initiative was the establishment of a base line for gender and domestic violence in Esmeraldas and Sucumbíos, previously non-existent, and that now serves as a source of information and a tool for planning and decisionmaking. Although the project execution period has expired, the implemented actions have enabled local leaders to continue with their work of eradicating gender violence in the Northern Border region. This project was financed principally by The UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women, carried out by FECD through the Centro Ecuatoriano de DesaUUROOR \ (VWXGLRV $OWHUQDWLYRV &('($/ LQ Esmeraldas and by the Sucumbíos Federation of Women (FMS) in Sucumbíos.
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Reducing violence
in the Chimborazo communities
A sound family economy takes into account the realities of both men and women and the satisfaction of their needs. Incorporating women as part of the economic space is not only a key factor in building such an economy but also leads to decreased poverty, gender violence and women’s economic exclusion indicators. During year 2011, work was undertaken with 15 communities in the cantons of Guamote and Colta, in the Chimborazo province, based on non-violent communication with Focusing. This innovative methodology, which focuses on intensification and growth, was undertaken with the leaders of the zone’s communities
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and organizations. FECD’s intervention has achieved noteworthy results among the 527 participating families in terms of communication, creating awareness of women’s rights, production and marketing the zone’s produce. Non-violent communication with Focusing Focusing provides for integrated communication between people through respectful listening and encountering our internal wisdom, all of which arise from the pause. This process, once incorporated into the daily life of the practitioner, increases selfesteem, productivity and creativity as well
Annual Report 2011
as extending options when faced with personal and organizational challenges. Participants attained non-violent communication with Focusing though development with the project, which hosted a number of experiential workshops of two to three hours that, in addition to stimulating discussions on women’s rights and equality between men and women, provided a space in which situations and experiences related to abuse of economic rights and domestic violence were shared and accompanied. Time was also devoted to dealing with the injustices and ill-treatment faced by women when marketing their agricultural or livestock products. These spaces served to introduce or strengthen application of the pause when dealing with personal and technical issues. Various results on gender violence In order to measure the project’s influence in changing attitudes, perspectives and actions with respect to gender violence, we carried out a survey of 80 individuals (81% women, 19% men). According to the results, 53% of those surveyed have, at some time, been the victim of domestic violence and 85% know someone who has suffered from such violence.
Of those consulted, 99% have heard of the pause, although only 50% of interviewees had participated in non-violent communication with Focusing workshops. This data evidences the work carried out by those men and women who have shared their experiences in their communities. Indeed, 96% of participants believe that the pause has helped reduce or eliminate violence and approximately 25% of those surveyed would recommend other people to use the pause to deal with situations of domestic violence. When questioned about the pause training, 99% responded that it helps them to make decisions for themselves by “providing a space to listen to themselves;� and 83% stated that the pause has helped “to reduce violence�. Furthermore, the survey participants have seen changes within their communities despite the fact that not everyone has participated in the workshops. 'XULQJ WKH SURMHFW FORVXUH HYHQW ´/Lteracy-ers of the Pause� official certificates were conferred to those community leaders who, upon their own initiative, have shared the pause in their surroundings after having assimilated and put it into practice in their daily activities.
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Food security and its environmental implications 15 women’s organizations and associations have incorporated organic agricultural practices geared towards improving crop productivity and recovering traditional varieties of Andean roots and tubers, such as mashua, melloco and oca, among others. 354 family orchards have been set up to improve family nutrition. Technical assistance and training sessions have been undertaken based on the zone’s particular needs, emphasizing
the importance of recovering and maintaining diversity through crop association and rotation. This approach ensured that organic farming founded on respect and equality, incorporating the principles of agro-ecology necessary for life, was valued. Personalized field visits were made to each family by the technical team, thereby enabling the message of non-violent communication to be reinforced: learning to listen to oneself and listening to mother earth or “allpa mama” and giving back what she gives us.
Testimonies Lorenza Guamán, member of the “Delia María” organization “For me, the pause has been very important. It makes you feel, it makes you think that we shouldn’t act violently. Instead, we should wait a little, with patience, tranquility and respond in a way that is good for the home and good for the community. As women, we must make the pause so that they [the men] learn from us and so put it into practice.”
Fabiola Alulema, project technician The pause, for me, has been a tool that shows me the way, a medicine that cures my loneliness, my sadness and my worries. Before, I couldn’t accept those problems that I had inside me. My problems were a weight that troubled me. For a long time I was sick with worry that my life was a failure but, thankfully, I found a route out of it: a route that FECD gave me by sharing its experiences of feeling, checking, accompanying and decision-making. For me, this was very important. Now I have decided to accept what I feel, be grateful for life and past events. I have managed to free myself from my anguish and my problems because I now know how to make decisions, I know how to check with my body and also how to feel what is inside me. The pause has generated a space for making decisions and to deal with my problems with the “I message” and to improve the conditions of my life. I am a woman on her own, keen to get ahead with my daughter and to share my experiences of the pause with my family and the people who are close to me. I didn’t know what my future was, but I now feel that I have found the path that guides me to my horizon: Focusing.”
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Productivity and growth
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Annual Report 2011
Cocoa, felt development for producers in the Ecuadorian coastal region
Esmeraldas The Unión de Asociaciones Artesanales “Eloy Alfaro”, comprising five community-based organizations in three cantons in the Esmeraldas province, has made considerable progress during the last year by incorporating the practices of the pause and listening. Such practices include improving internal communication within the group which, in turn, has provided for agreements and led to an enhanced infrastructure while strengthening the fine aroma cocoa marketing process. The pause.- This organization prioritizes the practice and diffusion of the pause, focusing on reducing violence and improving communication and productivity. This process also represents a tool on which technical support to small cocoa
producers is based on, in the canton of Río Verde and communities in the canton of Eloy Alfaro, resulting in improved produce quality and productivity. Similarly, work has been undertaken in other spheres such as health through itinerant medicine campaigns, access to microcredits and land legalization. Infrastructure.- As a means of recovering fine aroma cocoa, in competitive and associative terms, in the intervention zone, two nurseries have been built in Chontaduro. Incorporating the zone’s own high yield and quality seedlings, annual production capacity is approximately 45,000 plants. This pilot initiative applies a sustainable model that will enable the Unión Eloy Alfaro to recover its costs and
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maintain a provision for plants, as well as incorporate young people through internships and replicate the lessons learned in other zones. International markets.- As a strategy for accessing special international markets, such as the US, the European Community and Japan, the Unión Eloy Alfaro has taken the initiative of participating in an organic certification process for 252 of its producers. During the past year, overseas markets interested in product quality and their respective social and environmental significance have also been explored. The Cocoa Route.- In the San Vicente community, the project has provided technical support as well as sharing the learning with the pause technique. This community, coupled with the Women’s Association of Cevicangre, forms part of the initiative known as the Cocoa Route that currently receives support from the USAID “Productive Network” Program, from the Provincial Government of Esmeraldas and a contribution from FECD. The first phase of the project establishes a connection between the zone’s natural and cultural attractions and the production of fine aroma cocoa. A route has been mapped out that, undertaken in a
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small motorboat, runs from Río Verde to San Vicente, incorporating visits to cocoa farms as well as walks and horse rides, among other tourist activities. Visitors are also invited to sample the local dishes, such as “cevicangre”, the principal meal served by this women’s community initiative. The perspectives for strengthening the Unión Eloy Alfaro in terms of product quality and volume, accompanied by the felt commitment of the partners, are encouraging. Given its privileged location in the zone, the organization should - in the near future - be able to export its production directly through the port at Esmeraldas.
2,800 participating families
US$ 3,389,101 commercialized associatively (purchases from producers)
400,000 seedlings planted
Annual Report 2011
Los RĂos, ManabĂ and Santo Domingo de los TsĂĄchilas ,Q WKH SURYLQFHV RI /RV 5tRV 0DQDEt DQG Santo Domingo de los TsĂĄchilas, as well as in the undefined area around Manga del Cura, more than 2,600 small cocoa producers and their families have incorporated human development with Focusing into their daily activities. During the last year, the project has achieved some notable results with respect to strengthening productive, organizational and administrative capacities. Human Development has provided for the generation of positive attitudes among the participants and strengthened the development results planned. A literacy of the pause program has been set up and 31 community-based organizations are now incorporating this process into their development model. Environmentally sustainable production.- The project serves to strengthen production capacities while maintaining an environmental approach. The cultivation of cocoa in agroforestry has been encouraged with emphasis placed on the application of clean technology providing for increased productivity in plantations, thus reducing the use of agro-chemicals.
This requires training farmers in organic crop management, thereby increasing the production and quality of fine aroma cocoa. When combined with organic certification training, the result is a more sustainable market strategy. Community micro-credit systems.- By way of a contribution to improving the financial circumstances of the participating families, the project has promoted the establishment of community savings and credit systems, carried out by CEDERENA, the co-executor partner. Thirty-one systems have been set up with a portfolio of more than US$600,000, and a rate of 0.28% in payment delays. Forty-seven percent of the credits have been granted to women.
2,600 small cocoa producer participants
400,000 plants in the production process
US$600,000 active portfolio in community savings and credit systems
Market approach.- The organizations trade in association using a market approach.
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The high altitude
productive coffee chain
For more than ten years, FECD, together ZLWK SURGXFHUV IURP /RMD KDV VWULYHQ WR strengthen the high altitude coffee production chain as a means of improving the living conditions of the people and, at the same time, reducing the high rate of migration affecting this province. This work has been undertaken in stages, covering different zones in order to achieve a regional impact. Unlike previous projects, as from year 2010 this project has sought to incorporate the producers in the learning process of the “pause� in order that, based on Human Development with Focusing,
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individuals can create their felt and sustainable processes in the areas of production, education and organization, thereby clarifying their needs, dreams and possibilities at all levels of local development. By the end of 2011, with financing provided by FECD, the “Proyecto Regional para el Manejo del CafĂŠ - APECAMâ€?, executed by the Association of Small Producers of Special Coffees and Alternative Producers (APECAM) had implemented the actions of the project focusing on the cantons of Olmedo, Chaguarpamba, Catamayo, Paltas and Calvas Quilanga,
Annual Report 2011
together with EspĂndola and GonzanamĂĄ where previous work had been undertaken to strengthen the associative coffee commercialization processes. Work has concentrated on the recovery and renovation of coffee plantations. This has involved technifying the crops, a process that includes conversation practices and improving post-harvest processes with the inclusion of a market vision. Complementing these activities, links have been sought with the ILQDQFH V\VWHP LQ /RMD LQ DQ HQGHDYRU
to identify local organizations that can access resources that would provide for the strengthening of the associative coffee commercialization processes. In addition, the project has planned for the organic certification of 600 production units, thereby providing not only access to a better price for the producer but also raising awareness about environmental protection. In this way, FECD is thus able to contribute to the consolidation of the high altitude coffee productive chain; a resource
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rando que se trata de un recurso que permite conjugar la lucha contra la pobreza y el cuidado ambiental. Los ingresos familiares de los participantes se incrementaron por la mejora de precios por calidad lograda este año, lo cual incide directamente en una mejora sustancial en las condiciones de vida de las familias caficultoras. El resultado final del proyecto, previsto para finales de septiembre del 2012, busca alcanzar de manera sostenida, mejores condiciones socioeconómicas y humanas para 1.500 familias cafetaleras de los cantones mencionados anteriormente. Ello, mediante la consolidación de un sistema sostenible de comercialización asociativa de la cadena de café de altura.
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Sustainable Tourism
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Annual Report 2011
Ecological and community tourism, a sustainable alternative for the Amazon region
Among the Shuar people, many heads of household have migrated to nearby cities while natural resources in the vicinity are diminishing. Consequently, various settlements in Nantip, San Antonio, Atahualpa, Kunkuk and Juwa, located in the canton of Francisco de Orellana, in the province of Orellana, have turned to community and ecological tourism as a means of generating medium and long-term economic resources. This initiative encourages the people to remain on their land without having to undertake any inappropriate exploitation activities. The project began with an analysis of the tourist attractions and in which the potentialities of each community were defined. Using this study, the communities prioriti-
zed the competencies that their members needed to acquire and the tourism structure that, gradually, would have to be set up. The project carried out a practical training plan in which 20 community promoters were instructed in basic tourist topics, including gastronomy, client service, trekking, first-aid, among others. At the same time, the community promoters passed on their acquired knowledge to their families and other members of the community. In addition, awareness on the appropriate use of natural resources and applied ecological practices complemented the tourism training. Topics covered included solid waste management within the communities, the correct use of wild species
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for self-consumption and ecological techniques in the construction of basic tourism infrastructures. In the organizational context, the participating group of communities set up the Shuar Community Tourism Network – RETCONASH. This association has been established to head the tourism ventures and manage – within the framework of the priorities defined by the local competent authorities – the implementation of its community development plans, especially with regard to basic service infrastructure works.
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The project also accompanied the efforts to strengthen the Shuar Cultural Center whose head offices are located on the esplanade in the town of Francisco de Orellana. This center will assume significant importance in the marketing and coordination of the tourism services offered. Various basic tourism infrastructures, such as paths, places of rest and stalls for food sales, have already been built in the Shuar centers in order to attract, in the near future, visitors from other parts of Ecuador and the world.
Annual Report 2011
The Tourism Solidarity Network on the Banks of The Napo River – REST
/HG E\ 5(67 FRPPXQLW\ WRXULVP KDV become a reality in the canton of Aguarico. Through the project, a circuit of tourist attractions has been established in the buffer zone and within the “BiĂłsfera YasunĂâ€? reserve. The communities are now equipped to receive tourists and work at full capacity without neglecting their responsibility to comply with environmental management and quality standards. Canadian and UN cooperation units participating in the initiative have monitored
the progress achieved by each community in their respective components. Elements include a trekker’s route guide, presentation and quality of the zone’s traditional dishes, cultural specimens of the Kichwa people and lodging services. In year 2011, REST members participaWHG LQ WKH ILUVW 3DXVH DQG /LVWHQLQJ ZLWK Focusing workshops to ensure that the consolidation phase of the organization was founded on a solid base, ensuring that commitments are assimilated, the environment respected and its people
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trained as well as to being able to call upon the technical aspects demanded by tourism. Once again, REST teamed up with FECD and Solidaridad Internacional to work on the marketing component of the tourism offer to establish sound and sustainable links with local and international tourism markets. The result was the cooperation and financing agreement for the “Comercialización de turismo comunitario para el desarrollo económico alternativo y sustentable de las comunidades que conforman la Red Solidaria de Turismo de la Ribera del Rio Napo”
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project (Marketing community tourism for alternative and sustainable economic development of the communities comprising the Tourism Solidarity Network on the Banks of the Napo River), that will conclude in two years. The operating capacities of REST to provide tourism services are now installed. The challenge for the next two years is to strengthen an autonomous and efficient administrative structure to support and project the future growth of this initiative. Such implies attracting travelers, structuring tourist packages and implementing venture business management.
International alliances with a human base
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Annual Report 2011
International Alliances
True to a vision focused on the local domain in which it seeks to act as an actor unencumbered by borders, FECD encourages development entities to participate and become involved as part of its strategy. This vision has led FECD to form equitable and solid international alliances defined by principles and values. Through its permanent connections with Focusing international community leaders, represented in The Focusing Institute based in New York, FECD has become a visible actor within this community. Indeed, interest about the work undertaken by FECD is growing. This represents a space from which a foothold may be attained in both Ecuador and in the international community. /HYHUDJLQJ WKH VDPH +XPDQ 'HYHORSment base, FECD’s alliance with ICEA and its network of partner organizations has been strengthened. ICEA now plans to incorporate the element of respect for the human being and its environmental implications as a distinctive feature within its international management as part of a peace and life initiative.
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The acclaim for FECD’s management model has provided for its incorporation into relevant international spaces within the field of organic agriculture, such as IFOAM, an entity in which FECD is an accredited partner. FECD also has an alliance with FUNDESO, one of the most renowned Spanish NGOs. The relationship has been cul-
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tivated and built on shared elements: Human Development with Focusing and FECD’s capacity for response to the requirements of potential funders. The alliance with FUNDESO has enabled us to extend our relationships and incorSRUDWH DFWRUV IURP YDULRXV /DWLQ $PHULcan countries with whom joint proposals have been conceived within the multinational sphere.
Annual Report 2011
Audit Report
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BOARD OF THE FIDEICOMISO FECD Econ. Abelardo Pachano: President PRINCIPAL MEMBERS Ing. Raúl Baca Carbo Econ. César Robalino TRUST Napoleón Jarrín: General Manager of NTERFONDOS Administradora de Fondos y Fideicomisos S.A. FIDEICOMISO FECD PERSONNEL EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT William Hernández: Executive Director and Attorney-in-Fact Silvia Plonsky: Assistant to Executive Management PROJECT MANAGEMENT Patricio Galarza: Project Manager Ximena Torres: Assistant to Project Management Claudia Oemer: Project Officer Paulina Angulo: Project Officer Jorge Idrovo: Project Officer María Fernanda Illánez: Project Officer Diana Baquero: Project Officer FINANCIAL-ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT Juan Carlos Brito: Financial-Administrative Manager Beatriz Sosa: Accountant Wilson Chávez: IT Specialist Amable Aumala: Services Support Germán Tabango: Services Support
Disign: Quinta Dimensión / Photography: FECD Archives Complete or partial reproduction is permitted, provided the source is acknowledged. Copyright: Fideicomiso Ecuatoriano de Cooperación para el Desarrollo (FECD) Prolongación de la Av. Granda Centeno, Urb. El Alcázar, Pasaje 2, No. OE7-02 PBX: (593-2) 246 8441- 244 9660 - 243 7249. Fax: (593-2) 246 9765 Casilla: 17-21-1018 E-mail: splonsky@fecd.org.ec / Quito-Ecuador
Prolongaci贸n de la Av. Granda Centeno Urb. El Alc谩zar, Psj. 2, No. OE7-02 PBX: (593 2) 2 468 441 (593 2) 2 449 660 Fax: (593 2) 2 469 765 Casilla: 17-21-1018 Quito-Ecuador
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