Ayuda! Guatemala necesita vender más mantequilla de maní!

Así que he tenido esta idea dando vueltas en mi cabeza por unos años. Cuando estuve en Guatemala, los grupos con que yo estaba trabajando a menudo requieriron algo de experiencia o un servicio en un área particular, pero o bien:

• No sabían dónde encontrar este servicio
• Tenían dudas en cuanto a la calidad del servicio
• No se pudieron pagar el precio del servicio

Un ejemplo de ello hubiera sido las etiquetas que teníamos que diseñar para los productos en venta de los grupos. El "tiempo al mercado" de muchos de estos productos fue/es extremadamente rápido, lo que significa que alguien tuvo que diseñar un paquete o/y presentación del producto, a menudo en un período muy corto. El diseño podría ser por cualquier persona de los propios grupos o por alguien que trabaja en el Ministerio de Económica, muchos de los cuales tenían credenciales dudosa en el diseño de productos. La mayoría de los mismos grupos y que es lo más importante- los clientes no participaron en este proceso.

Mi pensamiento, como yo mismo (no soy un diseñador de productos para nada) estaba tratando de mejorar el diseño del frasco y la etiqueta de mantequilla de maní  (ver derecha), es que debe existir, literalmente miles de personas en el mundo (ya sea locales o en otros países) quien le encantaría tratar diseñar una etiqueta de maní mantequilla para un grupo de mujeres indígenas en Guatemala.

¿A quién tenía presente?

1. Estudiantes del diseño/arte, miles de los cuales supongo que crean diseños para  productos míticos que no existen (y estoy definitivamente incluyenco entre ellos estudiantes de universidades en Guatemala).

2. Profesionales del diseño/arte, por ejemplo quien trabajan en una agencia de publicidad und hacen un trabajo donde hay menos oportunidades para originalidad.

Tal vez haya otros candidatos obvios, pero no que vienen a la mente en este moment.

Pero, ¿cómo sea posible que tal una conexión sea establecida? Obviamente, a través de Internet. En un nivel básico, se publicaría un problema, con un honorario que debería pagarse por el grupo (calculado por ellos mismos, y quizás en el futuro por un tercero partido). Este problema podría ser adoptada por un número de partidos (o una parte que el grupo mismo se escogió), y el "ganador" sería concedido con el honorario. Un profesor, por ejemplo, podría presentar el problema a sus alumnos. Un máximo de cuatro competitores  podrían diseñar etiquetas de mantequilla de maní dentro de los parámetros definidos.

Para los profesionales y profesores/alumnos, el acceso a Internet no suele ser un problema. Para las empresas en el mundo sin fines de lucro, este acceso no es tan facil. Lo requeriría actores locales para promover dicha oferta. Sin embargo, dichos actores participan ahora en los países del tercer mundo en varias áreas: Micro-créditos, cursos de Internet, etc. Sería alianzas con estos grupos que podrían promover el servicio.

¿Cuánto costaría tal servicio? En la idea de cobrar una tarifa por el servicio hay, en mi opinión, tres ventajas. Uno, que el negocio o grupo se da cuenta de que están recibiendo un servicio, y no algo de forma gratuita, lo que le da más valor a ellos y también les ayuda en el manejo del negocio, en lugar de sea una institución benéfica. Dos, que la persona que presta el servicio sea remunerado por el. Tres, que el sitio web tiene un pequeño ingreso para permitir su mantenimiento, etc.

También es posible pronosticar que el sitio web en sí podría servir de consulta en términos de qué grupos reciben prioridad de los servicios, que las solicitudes de servicio por 0,01 dólares que se publican en la página web no sean demasiados, y quizás en el futuro que ciertos servicios costarán una tarifa base, o un honorario standard. El sitio web también se podría traducir los solucitudes a otros idiomas. Se prevé que el sitio web cumplen una función similar a la página web de Kiva, ayudando a los usuarios distinguir qué servicios fueron mejores o los más interesantes para ellos.

¿Qué servicios se podría pedir? Ideas para mejorar la gestión del proyecto de un negocio pequeño que se estancó, diseño de etiquetas, diseño de funcionalidad de productos (por ejemplo, sistemas solares para comunidades apartadas), diseño de sitios web.

¿Qué se necesita? Para mí, un buen lugar para empezar sería con una organización internacional que sea capaz de promover este tipo de servicio. Estamos hablando de un país específico en la primer fase, por ejemplo la India, con una organización de microcrédito. El sitio web sería construido y gestionado en dondequiera (lo lógico sería que se base en un país donde el equipo podría promoverlo activamente a las universidades), con un equipo de colaboradores en la web. Con suerte, después de que la prueba de concepto fue, así, probado, otros organizaciones involucrados en el desarrollo sin fines de lucro podrían ayudar a promover la página web a través de su propio sitio web, y con sus propios contactos.

Pensamientos?

Help! Guatemala needs to sell more Peanut Butter!

So I have had this idea floating around in my head for a few years now. When I was in Guatemala, the groups I was working for quite often required some expertise or service in a particular area, but either:

• Didn't know where to find this service
• Were dubious about the quality of the service
• Could not afford the price of the service

An example would have been the labels we had to design for the products the groups were selling. The "to-market" time of many of these products was extremely fast, meaning that someone had to design a package and presentation for the product in often a very short period. The design could be one by anyone from the groups themselves to someone working in the "economic ministry", many of which had dubious credentials inproduct design. Mostly the groups themselves or more importantly the customers had no input into the product design.

My thought, as I myself (not a product designer!) was trying to improve the design of a peanut butter jar and label (see right), was that there must exist literally thousands of people in the world (either locals or in other countries) that would love to try and design a peanut butter label for a group of indigenous women in Guatemala. 

Who did I have in mind? 

1. Art design students, thousands of which I am guessing create designs for mythical products that don't exist (and I am definitely including students from Guatemalan Universities in this).
2. Art design professionals, who work in an ad agency doing work where they themselves have little creative input. 

There are perhaps other obvious candidates, but none that come to mind at present. 

But how could such a connection be established? Obviously, through the internet. On a basic level, a problem would be posted, with a fee to be paid by the group (calculated by themselves, and perhaps in the future by a third party). This problem could be taken up by a number of parties (or one party that the group chose themselves), and the "winner" awarded the fee. A professor, for example, could present the problem to his students. A maximum of four competing people could design peanut butter labels within the parameters defined. 

For design professionals and professors/students, access to the internet is not usually a problem. For businesses in the non-profit world, that access is not so assured. It would require local groups to promote such an offer. But these local groups are now involved in third-world countries in several areas: Micro-loans, Internet courses, etc. It would be partnerships with these groups that could promote the service. 

How much would such a service cost? The idea of charging a fee for the service has, in my view, three advantages. One, that the business realises they are getting a service, and not something for free, which gives it more worth to them and also helps them in running the business, rather than a charity. Two, that the person providing the service is renumerated for their services. Three, that the service website has some small amount of income to allow for maintenance, etc.

It is also possible to forsee that the website itself could provide some consulting in terms of which groups receive priority for services, that not too many service requests for $0.01 are posted on the website, and perhaps in the future that certain services cost a base fee, or a standard fee. The website could also translate problems into other languages. It is envisaged that the website would fulfill a role similar to the Kiva website, helping users distinguish which services were for them. 

What services could be requested? Ideas for improving the project management of a stagnated small business, label design, product funtionality design (for example with solar systems for remote communities), website design. 

What does it need? For me, a good place to start would be with an international organisation that would be able to promote such a service. We are talking in one specific country at first, say India, with a Microcredit organisation. The website would be built and managed whereever (it would make sense to base it in a country where the team could actively promote it to universities), with a team collaborating over the web. Hopefully, after the proof-of-concept was, well, proven, other organisations involved in non-profit development could help promote the website through their own website, and on the ground with their own contacts. 

Thoughts?

A little about cooperatives in Guatemala

I have often been asked about my work in Guatemala, particularly with regard to which organisation(s) I was working with. Most people I guess expect to hear that I was working with World Vision, UNICEF, Save the Children, etc. Indeed it was a question I was not only asked by foreigners, but also by Guatemalans, especially from other grass-roots organisations that I came into contact with. But that had more to do with the history of Guatemala and their experiences. Hopefully more about that in a future blog.

The simple answer is that I didn't find the work through any multi-national help organisation, and in fact I rarely came into contact with any of them. The groups I worked with were almost exclusively "grass-roots" ones. I will try and clarify what I mean by that, and why I felt so drawn to them.

In many Guatemalan communities there exists what is known as a cooperativa  ("co-operative" in English). This cooperative generally "represents" the community in a variety of roles. It is usually a registered commercial entity, and must keep tabs on incoming and outgoing funds. The purchasing of land titles, communal vehicles, supplies for communal buildings are usually performed through this entity. It is also an organisational body, meaning that decisions affecting the community are conducted and voted upon using the structure of the cooperative. It's kind of a community "council". Members (of which there are usually 5 or more) are elected each year and hold positions such as President, Treasurer, Secretary, etc.

It is with this organisational and financial aspect in mind that most cooperatives were initially conceived. Traditionally, Guatemalan communities have dedicated themselves to one (or two closely related) activities that require an external market, or external representation. These would be mainly agricultural activities, such as cultivation of coffee, cacao, fruits and vegetables, etc. And the main function of the cooperative is to coordinate, transport and sell these raw materials. That function has extended in recent years to include also the processing, and quality control at a minimal level.

As an aside, funds donated to or given to the community for public works are generally managed by the cooperative, and any joint ventures (known as projectos) generally mean plenty of meetings involving the whole community. Projects can also involve only a small sub-section of the community, or I guess what would be termed a "sub-commitee" and these projects can be chaired by someone outside the cooperative commitee. The money though, as I understand it, is managed by the cooperative.

An example would be a project, funded by an NGO, to buy calves to fatten into cows. The NGO would give certain funds or the raw materials (perhaps including things like fences and fencing materials) and the community, in the guise of the cooperative, would decide for example:

• Who from the community would participate in the project
• How the labour for building the pens would be organised
• How the animals would be distributed
• How the funds from the sales of the cows would be distributed or re-invested

The money for these operations would then either be controlled directly by the Treasurer for the cooperative, or given to the person designated to run the cattle sub-project.

Some coopertives have more reach than others, by which I mean that some contribute to the running of the community more than others. In general, younger established communities still have a cooperative that functions relatively universally in the community, and in many other communities the people have opted to control their own finances and operations, which means that the cooperative has less influence, or at least that people take it less seriously. The decision to reduce the "communality" of the cooperative is generally taken by the cooperative members themselves, although cooperatives can cease to represent the community simply because the majority of the community don't agree with or feel that the decisions affect them any more.

The reason I have introduced the Guatemalan community "cooperative" is because every community has one. This universality has meant that the name and structure is employed by many groups within a community, groups that effectively perform the function of a sub-commitee. That is, they are community members who dedicate themselves to a specific task (or project), but this commitee is not governed by the rules of the cooperative, and does not receive funds from it. Nevertheless, the principals of the group are similar:

• They dedicate themselves to a specific task
• They elect a board of directors to handle the operations of the group
• All members are involved in the decisions of the project
• The members decide on the allocation of funds within the project

The simplest explanation of why this structure is so common in Guatemala is perhaps pratically all Guatemalans understand how such a structure functions or have experienced one in their lifetime.

All the groups I was involved with when I worked in Guatemala had this structure. Some were more closely connected with the "community cooperative" than others. The histories of how these groups had formed and arrived at their present states is perhaps too long and complicated to detail here. The important points can be summarised so:

1. They were all autonomous groups that had been formed in their own communities, by community members with a common goal
2. They were directed by a sub-commitee of women from within the community, with no assitance (at a board level) from outside

The actual groups themselves I hope to detail in the coming week.

Ein neuer Anfang
 

Ich beschloss mit dem Schreiben dieses Blog anzufangen, in der Hauptsache wegen meiner "Lebenssituation" im Moment, so dass ich glaube, die beste Ausgangspunkt ist durch die Beschreibung, wer ich bin und was sie ist.

Ich bin eine 36-jährige Elektronik-Ingenieur (oder Elektrotechnik auf Deutsch) von Beruf, beendete ich die Universität im Alter von 23 Jahren und arbeitete dann in der Industrie Digital Design (Networking Hardware, Scanner, Telekommunikation) neun Jahre bis 2005. Inspiriert von mehreren Auslandsreisen, vor allem in Länder mit einem hohen Anteil an armen Bevölkerung, beschloss ich, nach Mexiko und Guatemala ausreisen. Da versuchte ich mich mit organisierten Gemeinschaftsgruppen zu arbeiten in Bereichen wie traditionelle Textilproduktion oder traditionellen Nahrungsmittelerzeugung (Ich hoffe in der Zukunft ein Blog über diese Suche auch zu schreiben).

Zum Schluss fing ich einer Zusammenarbeit als "Berater" mit einer Frauengruppe aus einer Gemeinschaft von guatemaltekischen Flüchtlinge an, die neue Flächen im Rahmen des „Peace Accords“ nach dem Ende des guatemaltekischen Bürgerkriegs im Jahr 1996 gewährt wurden. Diese Frauen produzieren mit lokal angebauten Erdnüsse Erdnussbutter (die vorherigen Blog, das ich völlig vergessen hatte, wurde über eine Erdnuss „Shell-Entferner“ ich für sie organisiert hatte), ein Prozess, den sie von einem Mormon Ehepaar, die in der Gemeinschaft fast zehn lebten. Dies war offenbar als eine „Safe-Guard“, damit die Gemeinschaft nicht durch die Regierung, private Interessen oder den umliegenden Gemeinden nach ihrer Rückkehr belästigt war.

Diese Zusammenarbeit, um weitere Kontakte mit Gruppen in ähnlichen Situationen geführt, und ich verbrachte mehr als drei Jahren im Land leben, erfüllt eine Rolle als Berater und berät mehr aktive Rolle als "Handelsvertreter" für die Bevölkerung und ihre Produkte in den lokalen guatemaltekischen Märkten. Ich war auch in anderen sozialen Bewegungen und Programme innerhalb des Landes beteiligt, vor allem solche im Zusammenhang mit der Förderung lokaler und gemeinde-organisierter Produzentengruppen.

Ich fand diese Arbeit unglaublich motivierend, persönlich befriedigend, belebend, und ich konnte es nicht genug davon bekommen. Ich begann eigene Projekte mit diesen Gruppen und versuchen, sowohl ihre Fähigkeit, eine Zukunft für sich und ihre Initiativen weiter zu sichern, und ihre Aussichten auf eine Zusammenarbeit als einen Weg, diese Ziele zu erreichen (damit meine ich die Zusammenarbeit mit anderen gleichgesinnten Gruppen). Was als ein "Experiment" begonnen hat, um zu sehen, ob ich mich wirklich in einer solchen unbekannten Umgebung engagiere konnte, wurde eine Überzeugung, dass diese Art von Arbeit war, was ich weiterhin mit meinem Leben tun wollte.

Ein Punkt kam, wo ich in meine Meinung so viel wie Möglich mit meiner aktuellen Projekte getan hatte, und daß meine Anwesenheit die Fähigkeit der Gruppen zu entwickeln behindern wurde, anstatt zu helfen (durch die Entwicklung meine ich im Zusammenhang mit der Entwicklung von Selbst-Management- dass ich einfach Aufgaben wegnehmen, die sie tun haben oder Lernen selbst könnten). Ich kehrte nach Australien zu finden, die Finanzierung für ein Projekt, das auf die Gruppe der Leistungen in den vergangenen drei Jahren profitieren würde. Das Ziel des Projekt würde es ermöglichen, ihr Geschäft weiter zu wachsen, indem sie Produkte in mehr Märkten, einschließlich potentiell internationale. Leider, die Suche für die Finanzierung fruchtlos erwiesen. Vielleicht es war einfach zu viel für eine Person zu erstellen und zu verwalten, indem sich.

Persönliche Umstände (d.h. meine Freundin ;-) dann führte mich nach Deutschland, in die ich fast genau vor einem Jahr kam, und wo ich jetzt wohne. Ich glaubte damals, dass es auch ein positiver Schritt für mich in Bezug auf die Fortsetzung meiner Entwicklung als Profi in die Bereit des Community Development könnte, als es vielen Regierungs- und Nicht-Regierungsorganisationen (vor allem kirchliche Organisationen) gibt, die Entwicklungsprojekte in vielen Ländern untersuchen und überwachen, einschließlich in Lateinamerika. Leider gab es einige Hindernisse, die ein wenig schwieriger zu überwinden sind, als ich dachte, die Sprachbarriere zu den größten. Ja, die meisten jüngeren Deutschen sprechen sehr gut Englisch, aber die meisten Organisationen, die auf die deutsche Regierung oder deutsche Sponsoren antwortlich sind, erfordern, dass du professionellen Deutschsprache reden und schreiben könntest.

Ich weiterhin für einen Job im Bereich der Entwicklungszusammenarbeit suchen, aber jetzt muss ich auch die Möglichkeit schauen, ob eine weitere Studie in einer deutschen Universität notwendig ist. Es könnte sein, dass keine Position in Lateinamerika oder anderen Entwicklungsland ereignen wird, und ich muss dann meine Beschäftigungs-Möglichkeiten erweitern.

Und das ist so ziemlich eine verdichtete Version meiner Geschichte. Ich beschloss, dieses Blog zu schreiben dann, um mich daran zu erinnern, was mich so viel über dieses Feld inspirierte und noch inspiriert, warum bin ich so an ihm interessiert, und warum ich überzeugt bin, dass ich weiterhin daran arbeiten möchte. Ich hoffe, dass es so etwas wie eine Art Rückblick auf das wird, was ich in Guatemala tat, und dass es etwas, damit ich auf Themen, die sowohl in Guatemala und in der "ersten Welt" Länder wie Deutschland und Australien relevant sind, ausbauen könnte. Ich hoffe, dass es manchmal ein persönliches und manchmal ein gutes sachliches Leseerlebnis ist.

Oh, und ich sollte meine deutsche Übersetzungen üben, so dass einige Teile auch in deutscher Sprache erscheinen sollten. Ich sollte mein Spanisch mehr als gut mit, aber die Übersetzung in zwei Sprachen für jeden Beitrag nur zu viel Zeit nimmt. Hoffentlich könnte ich über meine Zeit in Guatemala ein wenig in Erinnerungen schwelgen ... obwohl auf Spanisch 

A new beginning

I decided to start writing this blog in the main because of my "life situation" at the moment, so I suppose the best place to start is by describing who I am and what that is.
I am a 36 year old Electronic Engineer by trade, I finished University at the age of 23, and then worked in the Digital Design industry (Networking Hardware, Scanners, Telecommunications) for nine years until 2005. Inspired by several overseas trips, mainly to countries with a high percentage of poor population, I decided to head to Mexico and Guatemala to try and work with organised community groups working in fields such as traditional textile or food production (I hope to write a future blog about this).
I ended up beginning a collaboration as a "consultant" with a group of women from a community of Guatemalan refugees, who were granted land as part of the Peace Accords following the end of the Guatemalan Civil War in 1996. These women were using locally grown peanuts to produce peanut butter (the previous blog, which I had completely forgotten about, was about a peanut sheller I organised for them), a process they learned from a Mormon couple who lived in the community for almost ten years, apparently as a safe-guard that the community was not harassed by government, private interests or neighbouring communities following their repatriation.
This collaboration led to further contacts with groups in similar situations, and I spent over three years living in the country fulfilling a role as an advising consultant and more active "sales representative" for community groups and their products in local Guatemala markets. I was also involved in other social movements and programs within the country, mainly those related to the promotion of local, community-organised and structured groups of producers.
I found this work incredibly motivating, personally satisfying, invigorating, and I couldn't get enough of it. I started projects of my own with these groups, trying to further both their ability to secure a future for themselves and their initiatives, and their outlook on collaboration as a way to achieve these goals (by that I mean collaboration with other like-minded groups). What began as an "experiment" to see if I could really engage myself in such an unknown environment became a conviction that this type of work was what I wanted to continue to do with my life.
A point came when I believed I had done as much as I could with my current projects, and that my presence was hindering the ability of the groups to develop rather than helping it (by development I mean in the context of developing self-management- that I was simply taking away tasks that they could have been learning or doing themselves). I returned to Australia to try and find funding for a project that would capitalise on the improvement that the groups had made over the years, and that would enable the groups to continue to grow by offering products to more markets, including potentially international ones. Unfortunately that quest for funding proved fruitless, perhaps simply too much for one person to draw up and manage by themselves.
Personal circumstances (i.e. my girlfriend ;-) then led me to Germany, in which I arrived almost exactly a year ago, and where I now live. I believed at the time that it could also be a positive move for me in terms of continuing my development as a professional in Community Development work, being as there are many government and non-government (principally church-based organisations) that sponsor and oversee development projects in many countries around the world, including Latin America. Alas, there have been some obstacles that have been a little more difficult to overcome than I imagined, the language barrier being among the greatest. Yes, most younger Germans speak good English, but most organisations that answer to the German government or German sponsors require YOU to speak and write professional German.
I continue to look for a job in the area of sustainable or community development, but now I must also look at the possibility that further study in a German University might be necessary to broaden my employment possibilities if a position in Latin America or other developing country doesn't eventuate.


And that is pretty much a condensed version of my story. I decided to write this blog, then, to remind myself of what inspired and inspires me so much about this field, why I am so interested in it, and why I am convinced I want to continue to work in it. I hope it will become something of a way to look back at what I did in Guatemala, and something to enable me to expand on the topics that are relevant both there and in "first world" countries such as Germany and Australia. I hope it to be sometimes personal, and sometimes a good factual read.
Oh, and I need to practice my German translations, so some parts should also appear in German. I really should be using my Spanish more as well, but translating to two languages for every post might just take up too much time. Hopefully I'll get to reminisce about my time in Guatemala a little in Spanish though...