The Context

1
The Context
Cuenca Municipal Dump, El Valle

• El Valle was home to the municipal landfill or
  dump for Cuenca, Ecuador the countrys
  third-largest city.
•  
• The environment was unsafe and hostile.
•  
• Self-confidence and self-esteem were virtually
  nonexistent.

2
We went out of curiosity, but when we saw that
the trucks carried potatoes, cabbages though
they were a little bruised, we could use them
we began to gather them, and took them to cook
for our children our lands produced nothing, we
had nothing to live by.
3
Things Begin To Change

• CARE got involved in 1997 along with the
  municipality of Cuenca and Ecuadors department
  of children and families.
• Two associations are formed the Association of
  Recyclers of El Valle (AREV) and the Association
  of Recyclers of Urban Cuenca (ARUC).
• CARE helped the women develop the capacity to
  sell to paper and plastic factories. Income
  increased.
• Additional CARE workshops covered topics of
  self-esteem, reproductive health, domestic
  violence, etc.

4
What Are We Studying?
Ecuadors cut on the Global SII Questions

• What are the key changes in the womens lives,
  and how are they perceived, felt and lived?
• What did CARE do to promote or initiate these
  changes? What did CARE fail to do?
• What did other institutions do to promote the
  changes?

5
Ecuador SII Principles and Methods
Dialogue of Knowledges
Principles of Ecuadors SII
Methods Activities

• Be empowering
• Reflect local knowledge
• Provide safety and healing
• Build accountability interdependence
• Probe beliefs and blind spots

• Defining own sense of empowerment
• Personal histories/ group journeys
• Triangulating interviews
• Participatory analysis process
• Literature review

6
What Are We Learning
About Empowerment?

• Being a recycler
• isnt just getting sustenance
• with difficulty and hard work.
•  
• Being a recycler
• is also rescuing the nation
• at the corner,
• by the lightpost,
• in the dumps
• where people hide the shame
• of the garbage of their exaggerated consumerism.
• There we are
• rescuing animals, air, water
• rescuing life.

  - Rodrigo Ramirez, Recycler
7
What Are We Learning
About Empowerment?

• Recycling is no longer a last resort or a means
  for survival. It is a dignified job that benefits
  the entire city and the environment.
• Women are able to speak with confidence to
  representatives of large companies and the
  municipality.
• Women are able to communicate better with their
  husbands and children, negotiate problems and
  make decisions.

8
What Are We Learning
About Empowerment?

• Women have grown significantly at a personal
  level progress is slower at the group level, and
  in wider structures. Yet, a broader base is
  important because it helps to solidify
  empowerment.
• Empowerment can be fluid it has ups and downs,
  often influenced by outside factors.
• Empowerment has costs and tradeoffs for women.

9
What Does it Take
To work with the most marginalized women?
On an Organizational Level

• Clear vision/goals
• Gender-sensitive and empowered frontline staff
• Commitment over time
• Political will
• Flexible rules and procedures

On a Personal Level

• Authenticity
• Passion for justice
• Openness to learn
• Capacity to connect
• Political skill
• Personal courage
• Stamina

10
What Does it Take
To do rights-based impact research?
this has helped me to re-establish the
priorities and grand passions that drive my work.
It has been so valuable to have this space, to
reconsider and challenge my daily doings and
put my feet firmly back in the field.

• A real desire to know
• Openness to criticism
• Time to define yourquestions, build a team,
  work in ways and at a pace that suits all, and
  be thoughtful about analyzing all the data you
  collect!
• Resources, including staff and funding
• Methods tailored to your questions and your
  principles