Annual Report 2013
“Each man completes others and is completed by others. A community is, therefore, a collective individual, that potentiates the possibilities and rights of its members�
-Spinoza
MESAGE FROM OUR DIRECTOR. It’s my honor and privilege to present our 2013 annual report. It’s poignant to witness this dream, 8 years in the making, and how it has as it has interwoven with the dreams of hundreds of Peruvian sharing the same desires for a more harmonious country, with equal opportunities for development and growth, regardless of one’s place of birth. Ruwasunchis’ involvement is centered on the urban-marginal community of Manchay. Manchay is composed of hundreds of informal settlements and slums; these areas share characteristics not unlike other underdeveloped communities situated throughout Lima and Peru. Impediments surface in various forms: malnourished children attending schools with substandard facilities, pitiful infrastructures, and under-qualified teachers; teenagers with great aspirations and capacities settling for informal jobs, or worse—a lack of available jobs leading to unemployment or sub-employment, thus furthering their destitution; Or young girls and women who don’t even
dare to consider the option of studying, that usually work in jobs they don’t chose and that are statistically prone to unwanted teenage pregnancies. Ruwasunchis has been working in the community of San Pablo Mirador in Manchay. Our program includes 120 children, 50 adolescents, 30 women, and 150 volunteers; all a part of a movement composed of 350 “changeagents” who are in constant interaction within the community. 2013 was a great year for the organization. We were able to consolidate our Community Development proposal in Manchay, thus allowing new projects to form and more volunteers to join our cause. We won the National Award for Volunteer Work in two categories: Gender and Sports & Recreation. Furthermore, we added new organizations and businesses to the Ruwasunchis effort. Without the members of the movement, none of this would have been possible. The volunteers use their creativity, hands, and hearts to harness the big transformation, all while experiencing a
more personal transformation as well. The organizations and businesses involved have allowed us to advance steadily by providing the necessary resources to materialize our projects. Our friends and supporters have experienced the program first-hand, and by using their various interests and expertise, they have not only planted seeds in Ruwasunchis, but have also nurtured the seeds so they may fully blossom. Acknowledgement and gratefulness all seem to fall short when if comes to addressing the people who have come together to bring about such a deep and significant transformation. It is our shared dream to bring Ruwasunchis to fruition, together. It has been remarkable and rewarding to realize that my fellow Peruvians, when given an opportunity to contribute and develop their communities, enthusiastically join forces to improve their country, and ultimately their world.
Ruwasunchis,
Juan Diego Calisto
IN CONTEXT.
In a global context, we are attempting to achieve our “millennial goals,” such as reducing the extreme poverty rate by 2015. With questionable parameters, such as using the 2 and 1.25 US Dollars respectively to distinguish between poverty and extreme poverty, it is necessary to look at the issue of poverty from an integral perspective; for example, factoring nutritional indicators or “multi-dimensional poverty” indexes. Latin America has made significant progress in the reduction of monetary poverty; however, the issues of inequality in all of its different dimensions must also be evaluated: income level, concentration of land, access to education and health care, employment opportunities for youth (specifically, those in communities of scarce resources who tend to partake in informal, commercial activities nearly exclusively). Finally, there is the subject of racial inequality; for example, more than 80% of 40 million aborigines in the region live under conditions of extreme poverty. Peru has had several years of successive economic growth, thus placing it amongst the higher ranking countries in the Latin-American economic charts. Peru’s monetary
poverty has certainly decreased; undoubtedly, this creates the perfect context to attend to pressing issues that still remain untouched. One of these is the empowerment of marginalized demographics; failure to do so casts aside such groups as only spectators of a feast they have not been invited to partake in. Furthermore, violence against women remains a major issue. 39% of Peruvian women stated they were victims of physical and/or sexual violence at the hands of their spouse (ENDES 2011). From a geographic perspective, the highest percentages took place in the following: urban settings (31%), in the Jungle and Andes Highlands (34%), and, specifically, within the regions of Cusco and Apurimac (44%). The community of Manchay, attached to the district of Pachacamac, is an underprivileged area with many basic needs unmet. This particular area, according to the FONCODES Report (Foncodes 2006) is a level #2 of Poverty. Per example, 12% of children ages 6-9 suffer from malnourishment. In an environment as Manchay, one of the most issues in terms of education is the unfavorable ecosystem. On the one
hand, we can find a poor access of basic services, domestic violence, and the absence of role models in order to help children and young people. On the other hand, people have difficulties to identify their own vocation because of a lack of guidance: they don’t have opportunities for vocational training, for the development of creativity etc. In the Manchay’s education system, there are few focuses on the development of creativity for children and artistic and cultural capabilities. Housewives have not the opportunities to get income generating activities which would allow them to educate and to feed best their kids. At the same time, most of them were victims of political violence during the 80’s, so they migrated to Manchay. Most of the men work in the construction sector as bricklayers or general foreman. Into each human group, people live together with different violence and right manifestations which are not applied.
ABOUT RUWASUNCHIS Ruwasunchis is a term in Quechua- the native tongue of the Peruvian Andes. It translates as “let’s do it all together.” Ruwasunchis is a civil organization that generates opportunities within the most vulnerable communities in Peru. Striving for a holistic improvement in the overall “quality of life” of the people who need it most while promoting personal growth, not only within the change-agents (children, adolescents / young-adults and women) but also with our volunteers.
Let’s do it all together.
OUR PROPOSAL: COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT To Ruwasunchis, “Community Development” means the social planning and communal organization that puts forth a series of services to meet the needs of a given demographic. Community Development is centered on the individual and is based on the belief that a community will develop insofar as there is a development in the individuals who conform it and vice-versa. As Marchioni stated, “The fundamental matter today is, evidently, how to allow for social intervention to take the streets and gain back the protagonism of the ‘ample front,’ for it to be a productive intervention that calls on the citizens—and not just the ‘consumers’—to gain awareness of their needs. And amongst the needs, the most primordial one: that of being the active protagonists of the solution to their problems.” (Marchioni 1987)
DEVELOPING COMMUNITY. To date, we work with over 120 children, 50 adolescents, 30 women, and 150 volunteers; all part of one movement constructed of 350 change-agents in constant interaction. Although we focus first on the marginally-urban community of Manchay, we have already made advances in 2014 towards intervening in the adjacent communities of Patacancha and Lircay Ccasa, in the district of Congalla, region of Huancavelica. We selected these districts due to the heavy immigration of female weavers during the terrorism era (The Shining Path). Core traits of Ruwasunchis are the ‘horizontal’ nature of the interactions between our change-agents; the sense of community, and the value we place in humbleness and humility. Additionally, we value openness to change and commitment to the cause. We don’t see the people of the areas where our work is based as “beneficiaries” but more as “change-agents”, i.e. as empowered people who play an active role in their own development.
2013 was a very special year for Ruwasunchis. We focused on consolidating our initial work with children and youth in Manchay. We potentiated our Environmental Strategy with concrete actions that have empowered several young change-agents who now play leading roles within their communities. We also saw the results of our focused efforts with the weavers in Manchay. Finally, we rolled-out a program focusing on sustainability which creates social enterprises that will allow for a continuous development aiming for mid / long term goals.
“For me to really be, I must be for another; i must leave myself, search for me in the others; those others who wouldn’t be themselves if I didn’t exist,;those others that give me a full existence” – Octavio Paz
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children
Children as citizens and change-agents. This is one of Ruwasunchis dreams and we try to work with this present in our minds. In 2013, we implemented the Cultural Platform Project, which brings about creative, cultural, and artistic workshops to underserved children. Creativity and The Arts are clearly relegated in the Peruvian educational system, and this is even more evident in regard to public education. Unfortunately, very little is done to promote the birth of creative, forwardthinking, principled and original ideas. Conversely, we wish to promote the active participation of students in the process of learning, with critical thinking applied to their surroundings which is, in the end, both flexible and open to change. If we do not motivate our children to learn and understand the world from an individual perspective, it will be difficult for a spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation to emerge; therefore, rendering it difficult for changeagents to develop. With regard to LatinAmerican standards, Peru has the lowest scores in reading comprehension, mathematics, and science (PISA 2012). If this is the current status of our most traditional areas of knowledge and learning in the educational system, it’s hard to imagine
how we would be rated when it comes to our children’s capacity to explore creative or artistic outputs. The following workshops were implemented during 2013:
+ Playing and Creativity + Literary Creation + Theater + English + Street Soccer + Painting + Science and technology + Environmental Education 120 children of the San Pablo community participated in these workshops, where they received instruction from Ruwasunchis’ volunteers. A bilateral and intercultural “learning process” was established while promoting an emotional & intellectual growth in both participating children and volunteers.
He who doesn’t invent, does not live. -Ana Maria Matute
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The Young Citizens program seeks to provide kids between the ages of 14 and 21 with a space for personal empowerment and growth
youth
Creative Youth It consists of projects such as “Creative Youth,” which provides life-coaching, social intelligence and interpersonal communication workshops for more than 50 students –annually- in the Jose Carlos Mariategui Public Elementary and Middle Schools. Examples of workshops include body language reading and expression, theatrical improvisation, clowning, and Batucada/Capoeira. Generally, students in public schools do not have access to these types of workshops. Access to such workshops benefits the students by leading them on a path of self-discovery and well-being that will provide lasting impact throughout their lives. This project also allows the facilitators to identify the more committed children who may be viable candidates for scholarships or other educational opportunities; the workshops allow us the tools to properly allocate resources and additional opportunities.
Planting Dreams Planting Dreams allows adolescents from Manchay to study in institutes, academies, and cultural associations. In 2014, nine of our female participants will study “Fashion and Industrial Design,” at the Chio Lecca Institute. This opportunity is due to the collaboration of this renowned educational institution and the pledges and grants of 96 sponsors. This specific campaign was an encouraging sign of the commitment and care that Peruvians have for one another, and also of the desire that lives within us to give the underserved populations their rightful opportunities to advance. It’s through opportunities such as these that we may mold new leaders and promote a more just society; with more social and community-related points of reference that can inspire the next generations.
youth
Green Promoters The goal of the Green Promoters Project is to sensitize the youth of Manchay with regard to our current environmental challenges and the possible green path of sustainability. It includes workshops and classes in Urban Agriculture, Recycling, and Personal Development. In addition, we have the possibility of expanding and taking some of these initiatives to other districts, as well as offering opportunities to engage in environmental awareness events such as: The Green Film Festival of “Kuyapanakuy,” (which was organized by Conservamos por Naturaleza), the LOOP (Life Out of Plastic) exhibit, and “What our seas hide.” During 2014, these green-promoters will help in implementing approximately 20 periurban orchards and vegetable gardens in the area of San Pablo Mirador.
Street Soccer Gangs and Soccer Hooliganism are problems that not only affect the youth of Manchay but Peruvian adolescents throughout the country. To provide our participants with a different outlook, we implemented the Street Soccer workshop; its main objective is to cultivate respect, solidarity, and commitment in participants, ages 13-18 years old. Within the community of San Pablo Mirador, Manchay, there are 20 people—both youth and adults—committed to showcasing these core values via Street Soccer workshops. Street Soccer is a movement spread around 64 countries, which overtly promotes these values through the game of soccer.
1 Jovenes
women
Urban weavers program works with 30 weavers from San Pablo Mirador, and looks after the personal development of the women, which includes establishing learning processes for enhanced technique, improving their final products, and better managing their personal finances. Manchay is a community that attracts migrant peoples from different regions of Peru, as Ancash, Cusco or Huancavelica. Some of these weavers were displaced from their towns of origin by the terrorist movements of the Shining Path and M.R.T.A. Furthermore, exposure to violence in general –conceptualized as verbal or physical aggression- is a problem which affects both children and adults in the region. Violence tends to deeply affect and impact the physical and intellectual well-being of citizens, and such exposure can hinder the development of successful members of the community, thus causing a decline in the community as a whole.
“Violence breaks the heart, it breaks the love and ones’ friendships” -A female Manchay resident In 2013, we included a group of young weavers ages between the ages of 15-19, a secure space where they could develop their personal capacities, as well as a conceptual space to enable self-actualization to bring them to their full potential. This allowed the young women to become an additional source of income for their respective homes. Furthermore, it prevented their entrance into dangerous trades. To date there are 10 active young weavers who have imprinted a different dynamic to the group, generating an interactive exchange and learning process between the elder and younger participants.
Ayllu Ruwasunchis is a social brand that works with craftsmen and weavers of Manchay (Lima) and Huancavelica. Its initial project was directly linked to the Manchay Weavers. Not only does it offer new and diverse markets for their products, but it also works on the personal development of the weavers. The program is heavily invested in improving the quality of their final products for commercial purposes and competitiveness.
The collaboration with the social enterprise Ayllu Ruwasunchis provides the tools for market enhancement for the Weavers of Manchay, while also improving the overall quality of the products through close observance of the latest market and industry trends. In 2013, the project generated US$ 2 857; this sum was directly collected by the weavers, and this is only the beginning. In 2014, a peri-urban vegetable and fruit garden will be implemented by each weaver. Finally, “Creative Gestation� workshops will be given to pregnant women, as well as earlystimulation for the newborns and children.
volunteers Just like the diversity that prevails amongst our volunteers -all alumni or students of a wide variety of career tracks and specializations, from many different private and public colleges- many of the adolescents and young adults from the town Manchay have signed up as volunteers of Ruwasunchis, becoming change-agents that promote the development of their own community. This gives meaning and cohesiveness to our project: no matter what our backgrounds, we are all part of one and the same movement, growing and sharing in a community.
In 2013, 150 volunteers gave 15 000 hours of their time.
PGP
Personal Growth Plan.
The Personal Growth Plan of Ruwasunchis is a path for strategic groups, each with its own set of goals and achievements.
The plan for Personal Growth for our Volunteers invigorates their commitment to the cause while assisting them in their personal and professional growth. Ruwasunchis promotes personal development through the involvement and interaction of Peruvian citizens from different urban and rural landscapes. In this exchange, therein lies an opportunity to generate life-changing, personal improvements, which allow our volunteers to be change-agents not only within Ruwasunchis, but also within their families, communities, and country as a whole.
Tarpuq
The Plan of Personal Development for Weavers establishes a path that cuts right through our Urban Weavers Project. As our weavers evidence compliance with their delivery deadlines, showcase personal engagement, and take part in quality production, they will continue to expand and solidify their position in stable and expanding markets. Once they obtain their solidarity “badge”, it means they are at the highest echelon and they have access to benefits such as internships or scholarships, in accordance to their specific interests.
Volunteers.
Women.
Youth.
The Growth Plan for Youth encourages young members of vulnerable communities to analyze their surroundings /reality, and overcome obstacles. As they showcase signs of commitment and solidarity, they will gain access to benefits such as scholarships, special workshops and opportunities.
Tarpuq: is a Quechua Word which means “he who plants”. The plural form of this noun is Tarpuqkuna. When Volunteers, young community members and weavers can plant dreams, pursue opportunities and sustain hope, this is when they are truly “change-agents” in the full sense of the term: they reach the pinnacle of Plan for Personal Growth. A child can also be a change-agent, and through our workshops we try to foment their avidness to learn and improve. The children that exhibit the virtues of commitment and dedication are then considered Tarpuq. That is one of the missions of Ruwasunchis: to mold young changeagents who will contribute to our communities, and ultimately to our country, in hopes of one day creating a more just and equal Peru.
Corporate partners During 2013, IBM Peru has collaborated with the projects Cultural Platform and Urban Weavers. We did the first community garden of San Pablo, and we organized a play date between the children of Manchay and sons of IBM workers. They also helped us with the remodeling of the soccer field of San Pablo.
During 2013 Adidas has been a key ally of the Street Soccer project, focused on creating healthy spaces for youth development. They also helped in the remodeling of the soccer field of San Pablo, and our event for closing the year in Manchay.
During 2013 American Tower has been an important ally of Ruwasunchis on its educative Project. We built together an early stimulation module, and they helped us in implementing our classrooms. They also helped us in the remodeling of the soccer field of San Pablo.
Corporate partners of Ruwasunchis are active agents on the mission of community development, collaborating with a high level of commitment and solidarity.
Internal allies Cecilia Vidal Coach Arcade is our ally in our Personal Growth Plan. They facilitate us their cozy installations, and there’s were the workshops for volunteers take place.
Cromagraf, since the beginnings of Ruwasunchis, has printed our advertising materials such as banners, brochures, etc.
Rubio Leguia Normand studio is the legal adviser of NGO Ruwasunchis, by the pro bono scheme.
Tactica 3.0 support us with the communicational and marketing strategy of Ruwasunchis
In 2013 Cecilia has supported us with individual and group coaching. Her support allowed us a personal, professional and organizational growth.
Miranda & Amado Lawyers, is our legal pro bono adviser in the program of Youth Citizens, of Ruwasunchis.
Studio d3 support us with the design of our virtual posters, and internal communication documents.
Asia Sur collaborates with the coverage of the events of Ruwasunchis, and donates once a year a percentage of their subscriptions.
External allies Lucho Herrera Pez en la Luna is our ally in ludic community interventions, and in our Personal Growth Plan, with the workshop of Play and Imagination.
LAFF, UK Foundation, is an organizational ally that support us with our social Enterprise Ayllu Ruwasunchis and with our Environmental Strategy.
Respirales is a key ally in our Personal Growth Plan, in the workshop of Corporal Language. They also support us with workshops with youth from Manchay.
Apu Estudio support us with projects of Architecture, and with workshops with youth from Manchay.
Emergency Clowns are our allies in our Personal Growth Plan, with the workshop of Clown. They also support us with workshops with the youth of Manchay.
Chio Lecca gave us half scholarships so that Young women from Manchay can study Fashion Design.
Lucho Herrera is our ally in our Personal Growth Plan, with the workshop of theater improvisation. He also support us with workshops with youth of Manchay.
Grupo Veraz is an important ally in our Personal Growth Plan, with the workshop of Participative Dynamics.
External allies LOOP is one of the environmental allies of Ruwasunchis. Green Promoters of Manchay participate in events of campaigns facilitated by LOOP.
France Volontaires is the nexus between Ruwasunchis and French volunteers, that come to Peru to contribute to community development.
ANIA is one of the environmental allies of Ruwasunchis, collaborating with the environmental strategy, with the children and youth from Manchay.
The International Volunteering of the Archdiocese of Freiburg is the nexus for that German volunteers come to Ruwasunchis to contribute to community development.
MUNICIPALIDAD METROPOLITANA DE LIMA
CREA is our ally in our Personal Growth Plan, with the workshop of Theater.
The Metropolitan Municipality of Lima, by its “Plan for Girls and Boys, support youth from Manchay with study opportunities.
Ernesto Carozzo, professional photographer, support us with photos of our projects, and workshops for youth from Manchay.
Income 2013 During the year 2013 our total income was of US$ 41 462.
Income 2013 (US$)
$2,818, 7% $6,573, 16% Donations enterprises Other donations
Activities $32,071, 77%
77% of this income came from donations of enterprises, 16% of other donations, and 7% of own activities.
Expenses 2013 During the year 2013 total expenses were of US$ 32 576.
Expenses 2013 (US$)
$5,186, 16%
$2,699, 8%
Execution of projects Project management and development
Administrative expenses
$24,691, 76%
76% of these expenses corresponded to the execution of projects. The positive balance (income – expenses) of the year 2013 was of US$ 8 886.
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“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.� - Eleanor Roosevelt
Bibliography COOPERATION FUND FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT - FONCODES 2006 Poverty Map 2006 NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STATISTICS - INEI 2011 Demographic and Family Health Survey MARCHIONI, Marco 1987 Reflections on the methodology of social intervention in the actual conditions. Social Documentation, 69 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development - OECD 2012 Programme for International Student Assessment – PISA
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